AORN journal
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Malignant hyperthermia (MH) is a medical emergency that all perioperative nurses should be prepared to handle. Patients with the inherited MH trait have a rare skeletal muscle disease that causes them to develop life-threatening hyperthermia (ie, body temperatures of 43.3 degrees C [110.0 degrees F] or higher) at the time MH-triggering agents are administered to induce general anesthesia or shortly thereafter. ⋯ The MH syndrome also is characterized by continuous skeletal muscle rigidity, hypermetabolism, hypercapnia, tachypnea, and tachycardia that result in cardiac arrest and death if left untreated. Perioperative staff members' knowledge of MH, the care of MH-susceptible patients, and adequate preparation for MH crises are the cornerstones of successful patient outcomes to this life-threatening syndrome.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical Trial
The use of music during the immediate postoperative recovery period.
The most effective approach to managing patients' pain in the immediate postoperative period may include a combination of pharmacologic agents and noninvasive, nonpharmacologic interventions. In this study, nurse researchers evaluated the effect of music on pain and anxiety levels and selected physiologic parameters of two groups of patients who were emerging and recovering from anesthesia. ⋯ Patients in the control group had identical surgical procedures, received the same preoperative medications, and were managed with the same anesthesia protocol but did not listen to music in the OR or PACU. No differences existed between the two patient groups in the variables measured; however, patients in the treatment group stated that music helped them relax and functioned as a distracter.