Paediatric anaesthesia
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Rett syndrome is a devastatingly disabling neurological disease that is only observed in girls. Scoliosis occurs in roughly half the girls and surgery may be required. ⋯ Sudden death may be a feature of the disease which occurred four weeks postoperatively in one case. Although a long QTc interval may be seen, it did not occur in any of our cases.
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Paediatric anaesthesia · Jan 1996
Case ReportsRegurgitation and aspiration of gastric contents in a child during general anaesthesia using the laryngeal mask airway.
We present a case report of a child who underwent general anaesthesia for elective surgery in whom regurgitation and aspiration of gastric contents were associated with the use of the laryngeal mask airway (LMA). Bronchospasm developed but mechanical ventilation was not required. The possible mechanisms causing regurgitation are discussed.
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Paediatric anaesthesia · Jan 1996
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical TrialOral transmucosal ketamine: an effective premedication in children.
The oral cavity offers a simple, painless way of drug administration. For this reason, we used oral transmucosal ketamine (5-6 mg.kg-1) for premedication in 25 children and compared it with intranasal ketamine (5-6 mg.kg-1), placebo and intramuscular ketamine (5-6 mg.kg-1). ⋯ The lollipops produced a slight increase in gastric volumes but did not affect gastric pH. In conclusion OTK has been shown to be an effective, harmless preoperative medication in paediatric patients.
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Paediatric anaesthesia · Jan 1996
Case ReportsThe use of ondansetron to treat pruritus associated with intrathecal morphine in two paediatric patients.
Intrathecal morphine is an effective technique for providing postoperative analgesia after major surgical procedures in children. Pruritus is a common side effect associated with intrathecal morphine. We report two patients who experienced significant pruritus associated with intrathecal morphine administration and were successfully treated with ondansetron. Ondansetron appears to be a beneficial and safe method of relieving pruritus associated with intrathecal morphine.
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Paediatric anaesthesia · Jan 1996
Case ReportsTotal spinal anaesthesia following caudal block with bupivacaine and buprenorphine.
This is a case report of an 18-month-old 10 kg child who presented for emergency repair of a recurrent diaphragmatic hernia with a history of craniofacial dystosis and was given a caudal block postoperatively with a combination of 4 ml of 0.5% bupivacaine and 2.5 micrograms.kg-1 buprenorphine made up to a total volume of 10 ml. An inadvertent dural puncture occurred resulting in total spinal block which was managed symptomatically. ⋯ The patient's exposure to a large intrathecal dose of buprenorphine did not lead to prolonged respiratory depression. The possibility of a midbrain insult due to a sudden rise in intracranial pressure is also discussed.