Journal of perianesthesia nursing : official journal of the American Society of PeriAnesthesia Nurses
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J. Perianesth. Nurs. · Jun 1998
ReviewThe selection and administration of perioperative intravenous fluids for the pediatric patient.
The perioperative administration of intravenous fluids and the maintenance of fluid homeostasis is essential in the comprehensive care of the pediatric patient. Intravascular fluid balance is influenced by a number of preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative circumstances. The pediatric patient is not simply a small adult, and therefore cannot be treated as such with respect to intravenous fluid administration. The restoration and maintenance of the smaller pediatric intravascular volume is crucial to optimize cardiac output and ensure tissue oxygen delivery.
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J. Perianesth. Nurs. · Jun 1998
Modifications to the postanesthesia score for use in ambulatory surgery.
The Aldrete Score has withstood the changes in anesthesia and surgical care that have developed in the past three decades. Nevertheless, it is imperative that (1) a modification is made to incorporate the most effective monitor of the respiratory and hemodynamic functions, e.g., pulse oximetry; and (2) the five indices previously used be expanded by incorporating five more indices including dressing, pain, ambulation, fasting/feeding, and urine output to evaluate patients undergoing ambulatory surgery and anesthesia. A patient's recovery from anesthesia and surgery, using 10 indices graded 0, 1, or 2, would provide criteria for street fitness and discharge to home when the patient reaches a postanesthesia recovery score of 18 or higher.
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Postoperative pain, although frequently encountered, is often undertreated. A new method of treating postoperative pain is preemptive analgesia, which seeks to prevent or diminish pain before it is caused. A variety of drugs may be used and include nonsteriodal anti-inflammatory drugs, local anesthetics, opioids, and ketamine. They may be given before, during, and after surgery through the oral, intramuscular, intravenous, epidural, intrathecal, and intra-articular routes.
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J. Perianesth. Nurs. · Apr 1998
Clinical Trial Controlled Clinical TrialThe effect of music in the postanesthesia care unit on pain levels in women who have had abdominal hysterectomies.
Management of pain in the immediate postoperative period is a major concern of postanesthesia nurses. Music is a nursing intervention with the potential to decrease patient perception of pain in the PACU. The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of the use of music on the level of patient pain in the immediate postoperative period. ⋯ The setting is a PACU in a community hospital in a suburban area. Subjects were asked to rate their pain level every 15 minutes while in the PACU using two valid and reliable measures, a verbal pain rating scale and a graphic numeric pain intensity scale. Repeated measures of analysis of variance showed no differences in level of pain between groups or over time.