Der Anaesthesist
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Peripartum hemorrhage (PPH) is a frequent obstetric emergency situation with increasing incidence in the last decades. It requires a fast, coordinated and interdisciplinary management. This life-threatening situation is often recognized too late and not adequately treated (too little is done too late); therefore, it is important to be aware of the most important risk factors for PPH known as the 4 Ts (i.e. tonus, trauma, tissue and thrombin). Due to the special patient population there is only little evidence-based data on hemostatic therapy in this situation; therefore, the currently available studies on the therapy of PPH is discussed.
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Despite substantial success in the anesthetic and surgical management of cardiac surgery, patients frequently show postoperative complications and organ dysfunctions. This is highly relevant for mid- to long-term outcomes. ⋯ Beside the use of cardioplegia and hypothermia, the use of volatile anesthetics is well-established during cardiac surgery because of its conditioning and protective properties. Regardless of the promising results derived from experimental studies and small clinical trials, the majority of other approaches failed to translate their findings into the clinic. Therefore, systematic experimental studies are needed to identify potential confounding factors that may affect the protective effects.
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The ultrasound-guided venipuncture of the internal jugular vein for placement of a central venous catheter is well established. For verification of the catheter tip position mostly intracardiac ECG or chest radiography are used. Previously, we established the right supraclavicular fossa view for ultrasound based verification of the catheter placement in the superior vena cava utilizing a microconvex probe. The microconvex probe has a small footprint. However, not all ultrasound systems used in the operating theater are equipped with a microconvex transducer. ⋯ The microconvex transducer as compared to the linear probe is superior in visualizing the superior vena cava. Possible reasons are a smaller footprint, a better degree of freedom for angulation and a greater penetration depth of the microconvex probe.
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Review
[Venous thrombosis and pulmonary embolism : Updated S2 guidelines on diagnostics and therapy].
The updated version of the S2k guidelines on diagnostics and therapy of venous thrombosis and pulmonary embolism have been available since the end of last year. The guidelines deal with the advantages and disadvantages of the currently available investigation and treatment methods, the diagnostic sequence of investigations under various clinical conditions, the invasiveness and duration of therapies and the potential special features of vulnerable patient collectives. This article presents a summary of the most important assertions.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Effect of using a laryngeal tube on the no-flow time in a simulated, single-rescuer, basic life support setting with inexperienced users.
The laryngeal tube (LT) is a recommended alternative to endotracheal intubation during advanced life support (ALS). Its insertion is relatively simple; therefore, it may also serve as an alternative to bag mask ventilation (BMV) for untrained personnel performing basic life support (BLS). Data support the influence of LT on the no-flow time (NFT) compared with BMV during ALS in manikin studies. ⋯ The NFT was significantly shorter in the later periods in a single-rescuer, cardiac arrest scenario when using an LT without previous training compared with BMV with previous training. A possible explanation for this result may be the complexity and workload of alternating tasks (e.g., time loss when reclining the head and positioning the mask for each ventilation during BMV).