British journal of anaesthesia
-
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical Trial
Effects of the addition of potassium to prilocaine or bupivacaine. Studies on brachial plexus blockade.
A double-blind comparison of prilocaine and prilocaine plus potassium chloride, and of bupivacaine with bupivacaine plus potassium chloride, in brachial plexus blockade (axillary approach) was obtained in two groups of 20 patients. The addition of potassium chloride made no difference to the characteristics of the block with prilocaine, but resulted in a more rapid onset of sensory loss when added to bupivacaine.
-
Single and dual port versions of the keyed fillers fitted to TEC4 and TEC3 vaporizers, respectively, were examined. The single port filler performed satisfactorily, provided that it was correctly used and properly maintained. Design deficiencies in the dual-port keyed filler were found which accounted for many of the problems described by users. The keyed bottle adaptor could be improved by an increase in its length and the provision of two openings into the outer tube at the bottle end.
-
Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical Trial
Haemodynamic effects of pretreatment with metoprolol in hypertensive patients undergoing surgery.
Thirty hypertensive patients scheduled for cholecystectomy or hernia repair under general anaesthesia with thiopentone-fentanyl-nitrous oxide-pancuronium were divided into two groups of 15. One group received metoprolol tablets 200 mg in a slow release form, once daily for at least 2 weeks including the morning of surgery. In addition, metoprolol 15 mg was injected i.v. shortly before the induction of anaesthesia. ⋯ Central venous pressure (CVP) and pulmonary arterial occlusion pressure (PAOP) increased significantly in both groups in response to the surgical stimulus. There was no significant difference between the groups in PAOP and CVP. One patient in the metoprolol group had marked bradycardia (minimum heart rate 26 beat min-1) after neostigmine and atropine; otherwise metoprolol pretreatment was tolerated well.
-
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical Trial
Spinal or general anaesthesia for surgery of the fractured hip? A prospective study of mortality in 578 patients.
The mortality following surgical correction of upper femoral fractures was investigated in 578 patients, over the age of 50 yr, randomly allocated to receive spinal (bupivacaine) or general (enflurane or neurolept) anaesthesia. Thirty days after surgery the mortality was 6% after spinal and 8% after general anaesthesia (ns). ⋯ The estimated blood loss was smaller (P less than 0.05) in patients receiving spinal anaesthesia. Regardless of the anaesthetic technique, a high short-term mortality was related to age, male sex, and trochanteric fracture, whereas excess long-term mortality was related to male sex and high ASA scores.