British journal of anaesthesia
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A case is reported of an unusual complication in which acute gastric dilatation occurred in an incarcerated hiatus hernia, resulting in left ventricular failure in the postoperative period. Failure to recognize this gave rise to concern when the patient re-presented for further surgery.
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We have examined the effect of varying end-expiratory lung volume on carbon dioxide elimination in 10 mongrel dogs undergoing conventional mechanical ventilation at 12 b.p.m. and forced diffusion ventilation (FDV) at 6 Hz and 50 Hz and continuous flow. End-expiratory volumes were altered by changing the pressure in a plethysmographic box in which the dogs underwent ventilation. ⋯ The results indicated that more carbon dioxide was eliminated at low lung volumes and this was most pronounced with HFV at 50 Hz and continuous flow. It is postulated that changes in airway geometry and different lung volumes may alter the distance between the gas interface in the conductive airways and the respiratory zone and so alter the efficiency of ventilation during FDV.
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Study of patients who exhibit only limited morphological abnormality yet present difficulty with direct laryngoscopy is facilitated by a standard intubating position. The "Angle Finder" instrument allows implementation of a simple reproducible geometric standard which is applied easily in formal research work and in clinical practice and teaching. ⋯ Initially, the standard was derived from a review of the literature, then validated in a study of the intubating practices of 10 senior anaesthetists. A more detailed study of 10 normal volunteers confirmed reproducibility and, for nine patients with a history of difficult direct laryngoscopy, the standard was shown to be appropriate.
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This report describes our experiences with 129 awake oral and nasal fibreoptic intubations in 123 patients considered to be at high risk of aspiration of gastric contents. I.v. sedation was used on all but six occasions. ⋯ Rigid laryngoscopy was necessary after fibreoptic laryngoscopy failed in one patient (with a bleeding peptic ulcer) who vomited a large amount of fresh and clotted blood. No other patient regurgitated during the procedure, and no patient developed evidence of aspiration.
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The effects of high frequency ventilation in combination with sustained inflations was studied in the surfactant-deficient lungs of 18 New Zealand White rabbits (weight 1.9-2.1 kg) during anaesthesia with urethane and neuromuscular block with pancuronium. Lung damage was induced by repeated lung lavage. ⋯ In group I there was a significant decrease in gas exchange for oxygen and deterioration in pulmonary mechanics, whereas in group II there was little change in baseline blood-gas values or pulmonary mechanics. These data suggest that, with adequate ventilatory management during the period of lung lavage, the lung damage produced by this manoeuvre may be obviated.