Minerva anestesiologica
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Minerva anestesiologica · Jul 2011
ReviewPostoperative delirium and postoperative cognitive dysfunction in the elderly - what are the differences?
Postoperative cognitive impairment is an increasingly common problem as more elderly patients undergo major surgery. Cognitive deficits in the postoperative period cause severe problems and are associated with a marked increase in morbidity and mortality. ⋯ Both have multifactorial pathogenesis but differ in numerous other ways, with delirium being well-defined and acute in onset and postoperative cognitive dysfunction (POCD) being subtler and with longer duration. This review aims to provide an overview of the differences in the diagnosis of the two entities and to illustrate the methodological problems that can be encountered when evaluating cognitive deficits postoperatively.
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Minerva anestesiologica · Jul 2011
Randomized Controlled TrialEfficacy of the lidocaine/flurbiprofen axetil combination for reducing pain during the injection of propofol.
Pain during the injection of propofol is a common clinical problem. Lidocaine pretreatment, preceded by venous occlusion, is the most popular method for reducing pain during the injection of propofol but cannot entirely control such pain. We aimed to evaluate the efficacy of lidocaine, flurbiprofen axetil (an injectable prodrug of flurbiprofen), and the two in combination for reducing pain during the injection of propofol. ⋯ The lidocaine/flurbiprofen axetil combination, compared with lidocaine 40 mg or flurbiprofen 50 mg, effectively reduces pain during the injection of propofol.
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Non invasive ventilation (NIV), primarily applied in cardiogenic pulmonary edema, decompensated COPD and hypoxemic respiratory failure, has also found a wide application in the postoperative period. The expanding indications to the transcatheter treatment of diseased left heart valves have led to an increase in cardiac interventional and diagnostic procedures in severely fragile cardiac patients. As an essential part of post cardiac surgery care is ventilatory support, NIV use has expanded to cardiosurgical patients. ⋯ The knowledge and the real time assessment of the possible effects of positive pressure ventilation on cardiopulmonary interactions in the clinical scenario of cardiac surgery will prompt the intensivists to tailor the respiratory support by non invasive ventilation to the individual patient. The influence on the cardiovascular system of positive pressure and volume delivered through the airways, which can be highly favorable on the impaired left heart and less favorable on the diseased right heart, should be considered when applying NIV in a cardio-surgical patient. As a consequence, the application of NIV in this setting requires an expertly skilled team, continuous hemodynamic monitoring and echocardiographic assessment.
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Minerva anestesiologica · Jul 2011
ReviewPerioperative management of proximal hip fractures in the elderly: the surgeon and the anesthesiologist.
The comprehensive management of proximal hip fractures in elderly patients requires dedicated and responsive teamwork. Elderly patients often present with several comorbidities and the immediate treatment of a fracture has to optimize both medical therapy and analgesic control in order to reduce surgical and anesthetic complications and to preserve as much cognitive functioning as possible. The elderly are uniquely exposed to complications related to bed rest, delirium and postoperative cognitive dysfunction (POCD), which appear to be independent factors of morbidity. ⋯ The best choice of surgical treatment depends on the type of fracture as well as the patient's age and medical condition. However, the type of anesthesia management, which includes neuraxial blocks, peripheral nerve blocks and/or general anesthesia, has to be tailored towards generated the best outcome. We present a review from a surgical and anesthetic perspective on the most common perioperative issues in proximal fracture repair.
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Minerva anestesiologica · Jul 2011
Randomized Controlled TrialCombination of propofol and remifentanil target-controlled infusion for laryngeal mask airway insertion in children.
The addition of remifentanil to propofol administration can improve the conditions for insertion of laryngeal mask airways (LMAs). However, the extent to which remifentanil reduces propofol requirements when both drugs are administered concomitantly via target-controlled infusion (TCI) in pediatric patients has not been adequately demonstrated. The purpose of this study was to determine the target concentration of propofol that is required for LMA insertion at three different remifentanil target concentrations (0, 2.5, and 5 ng kg(-1) min(-1)) during TCI in children. ⋯ A higher target concentration of remifentanil significantly reduced the propofol target concentration for LMA insertion during TCI of both drugs in children, but low concentrations of remifentanil failed to reduce the propofol requirement.