International anesthesiology clinics
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Int Anesthesiol Clin · Jan 1995
Review Comparative StudyPropofol: a new drug for sedation in the intensive care unit.
Patients in the ICU who require intubation and mechanical ventilation benefit from adequate sedation and analgesia. Traditionally, this has been achieved using benzodiazepines and opioids. Alternatively, propofol is being administered for sedation of patients in the ICU with increasing frequency. ⋯ Finally, continuous administration of propofol may cause clinically significant hypertriglyceridemia in patients with disordered triglyceride metabolism, or in patients receiving excessive doses of propofol or parenteral lipid supplements. Although propofol is more expensive than equipotent doses of other sedative agents, the additional cost of using propofol for sedation of critically ill patients in the ICU may be more than offset by the savings accrued from faster times to extubation, shorter ICU stays, and the use of fewer medications to manage these patients. Further research needs to be done to determine the potential clinical and cost benefits of using propofol for sedation of patients in the ICU.
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In an editorial, Kapur [4] described perioperative nausea and vomiting as the big "little problem following ambulatory surgery." In contrast to the attitudes of some physicians, patients put a high value on freedom from nausea and emesis in the postoperative period and are willing to accept some pain and drowsiness as the cost of controlling PONV [85]. Until recently, there had been little change in the incidence of postoperative emesis since the introduction of halothane into clinical practice in 1956. However, the introduction of the IV anesthetic agent propofol and of the NSAID ketorolac, plus abandonment of the policy of insisting that patients drink before discharge, appear to have contributed to a recent decline in the incidence of emesis. ⋯ Further research into the mechanisms of this common postoperative complication may help in improving the management of emetic sequelae in the future. Improvements in antiemetic therapy could have a major impact for surgical patients, particularly those undergoing ambulatory surgery. Just as pain is no longer considered an unavoidable part of the postoperative experience, so should nausea and vomiting be considered an avoidable side effect.
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The lower solubilities of desflurane and sevoflurane provide a clear advantage over older potent agents, permitting more precise control over the delivery of anesthesia and more rapid recovery from anesthesia. Other pharmacological properties of these two agents at concentrations of 1 MAC or less differ little from those of older agents. Sevoflurane differs from desflurane in that it is without pungency and useful for induction of anesthesia by inhalation. ⋯ Desflurane also can cause transient increases in pulse rate and blood pressures when its concentration is rapidly increased above 6%. Sevoflurane has the disadvantage of vulnerability to degradation in vitro and in vivo, raising a concern regarding a subtle toxicity. Although neither of these new anesthetics can be said to be ideal, each may be a step in that direction.
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In a little over 10 years, six new muscle relaxants have been introduced in clinical practice. The first two, intermediate-duration vecuronium and atracurium, were outstanding drugs and clearly an advance over the earlier, longer-acting drugs. With their introduction, the phenomenon of "recurarization" largely disappeared. ⋯ However, mivacurium has neither the rapid onset nor the ultra-short duration of succinylcholine. Rocuronium is the first nondepolarizing relaxant with an onset approaching that of succinylcholine. It is likely that we will see the introduction of at least two more drugs, Org 9487 and 51W89, by the end of this decade, and the goal of developing a nondepolarizing relaxant that is a complete replacement for succinylcholine may not be too far in the future.