British journal of anaesthesia
-
Multicenter Study
Assessment of healthcare professionals' knowledge of managing emergency complications in patients with a tracheostomy.
Ear, nose, and throat (ENT) surgeons perform the majority of surgical tracheostomies. Intensive care anaesthetists are increasingly performing bedside percutaneous tracheostomy. The objectives of this study were to characterize emergency complications of tracheostomy and to ascertain healthcare professionals' knowledge of life-saving strategies for the patient with a tracheostomy. ⋯ Knowledge of tracheostomy-related emergencies appears to be insufficient among non-ENT healthcare professionals. This needs to be addressed in order to maximize patient safety.
-
Multicenter Study Comparative Study
Regional anaesthesia for carotid endarterectomy: an audit over 10 years.
The aim of this retrospective study was to compare the failure rates and the frequency of anaesthesia-related complications of two different methods of regional anaesthesia used for carotid endarterectomy--cervical epidural (CE) anaesthesia and cervical plexus block (CPB). ⋯ Both methods of regional anaesthesia are acceptable for carotid artery surgery. CPB is associated with a significantly lower frequency of anaesthesia-related complications and should therefore be considered the anaesthetic of choice. CE anaesthesia should not be performed except in extenuating circumstances such as variant anatomy or the requirement for more extensive surgery.