Minerva anestesiologica
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Minerva anestesiologica · Jul 2014
Observational StudyImmediate postoperative and mid-term survival in nonagenarians undergoing non-traumatic emergency surgery.
Nonagenarian people are increasingly using the emergency services, however, few studies have addressed this population. The goal of this prospective observational study is to determine relevant factors that independently reduce their immediate postoperative and mid-term survival. ⋯ Postoperative complications are an important predictor of reduced survival both immediately, and in the mid-term. Furthermore, most postoperative mortality occurs within the first 26 days postsurgery; hence the need for an aggressive treatment of such complications during this period.
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Minerva anestesiologica · Jun 2014
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative StudyComparison of unilateral and bilateral spinal anesthesia with 2% hyperbaric prilocaine in day-case inguinal herniorrhaphy: a randomized controlled trial.
Hyperbaric 2% prilocaine produces a faster onset and shorter duration of spinal anesthesia than a plain solution. The anesthetic profile could be improved by restricting the block to the operative side. We compared unilateral versus conventional bilateral spinal anesthesia with hyperbaric 2% prilocaine in day-case patients undergoing unilateral inguinal herniorrhaphy. ⋯ In day-case inguinal herniorrhaphy, attempting unilateral spinal anesthesia with 50 mg hyperbaric 2% prilocaine produced faster time to voiding.
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Minerva anestesiologica · Jun 2014
Observational StudyChanges in thenar muscle tissue oxygen saturation assessed by near-infrared spectroscopy during weaning from mechanical ventilation.
Tissue oxygen saturation (StO₂) measured by near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) has been used to provide information on local tissue oxygenation in different clinical settings. This study aims to determine the effect of weaning from mechanical ventilation on thenar muscle StO₂. ⋯ SBT failure was associated with a significant impairment of thenar muscle StO₂. A decrease of StO₂ at 2 minutes after disconnection from the ventilator was associated with SBT failure. Further validation is warranted.
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Minerva anestesiologica · Jun 2014
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter StudyHow to target temperature after cardiac arrest: insights from a randomized clinical trial.
Implementation of treatments able to improve survival and neurological recovery of cardiac arrest (CA) survivors is a major clinical challenge. More than ten years ago, two pivotal trials showed that application of therapeutic hypothermia (TH, 32-34 °C) to patients resuscitated from an out-of-hospital CA (OHCA) with an initial shockable rhythm significantly ameliorated their outcome. Since then, TH has been used also for non-shockable rhythms and for in-hospital CA to some extent, even if the quality of evidence supporting TH in such situations remained very low. ⋯ This is the largest study evaluating the effects of two different strategies of temperature management after CA. Some important concerns have been raised on the real benefit of keeping CA patients at 33 °C and major changes in clinical practice are expected. We discussed herein the main differences with previous randomized trials and tried to identify possible explanations for these findings.