Anaesthesia
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Thromboelastography is used for assessment of coagulation and to guide administration of blood products peri-operatively. There is currently no method of standardisation in the UK, nor an approved method of proving quality. We investigated the reproducibility of thromboelastography by testing whole blood with no coagulation abnormality in three phases. ⋯ Further examination of the results indicated less variation where analysis was performed on blood taken from the same kaolin vial compared with results from different vials. Our preliminary study indicates that R- and K-times may be highly variable, which we hypothesise may be due to variable mixing of blood and kaolin. We intend to repeat this study in the context of coagulopathy, where variability in results could potentially impact upon transfusion practice.
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Review Meta Analysis Comparative Study
Pentax Airway Scope(®) vs Macintosh laryngoscope for tracheal intubation in adult patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Despite increasing the likelihood of a Cormack-Lehane grade 1 view, pooled results from the studies showed no difference between the Pentax Airway Scope and standard Macintosh laryngoscope for:
- Rate of intubation on first attempt.
- Time for intubation.
- Incidence of oral or pharyngeal injury.