Saudi journal of anaesthesia
-
Changes of B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) in sepsis and its utility in predicting intensive care unit outcomes remains a conflicting issue. To investigate the changes in plasma levels of BNP in patients with severe sepsis/septic shock and to study the association of BNP levels with the severity of the disease and prognosis of those patients. ⋯ BNP concentrations were increased in patients with severe sepsis or septic shock and poor outcome was associated with high BNP levels; thus, it may serve as a useful laboratory marker to predict survival in these patients.
-
Postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) is a frequent complication of middle ear surgery. Ondansetron has been shown to be effective for early PONV and dexamethasone has been shown to be effective for late PONV. Therefore, a combination of dexamethasone and ondansetron is commonly used for middle ear surgery. This study was conducted to compare the combination of ondansetron and dexamethasone with ramosetron for early and late PONV up to 48 h after middle ear surgery. ⋯ The combination of dexamethasone and ondansetron is superior to ramosetron for prevention of PONV after middle ear surgeries.
-
Experimental studies both in vivo and in vitro show significantly increased survival rate in animals and in cortical neurons respectively exposed to acute hypoxia and pre-treated with opioids compared to non-treated counterparts. Thus, the main aim of the study was to examine survival rates in patients after sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) in the hospital who were or were not treated with opioids before and/or during cardiac pulmonary resuscitation (CPR). ⋯ Significantly higher 1, 2, 3 and 28 days survival rate and reduced duration of CPR were found in the patients additionally treated with opioids compared to ordinary resuscitation. Further prospective, randomized, controlled trials are needed to investigate the effects of early administration of opioids during CPR on survival and brain function in patients with witnessed in-hospital SCA.
-
The pleth variability index (PVI), which is calculated from respiratory variations in the perfusion index (PI), has been shown to predict fluid responsiveness in mechanically ventilated patients; however, vasomotor tone changes induced by hypercapnia can affect PI and hence may slim down the accuracy of PVI. This study was designed to find out the impact of mild hypercapnia on PVI. ⋯ Hypercapnia retracts back PVI values compared with normocapnia. Precise judgment of fluid responsiveness as indicated by PVI necessitates its comparison against similar etCO2 levels.
-
Various adjuncts have been used with lignocaine to decrease tourniquet pain and prolong post-operative analgesia during intravenous regional anesthesia (IVRA). Calcium-channel blockers potentiate the analgesic effect of local anesthetics. This study was designed to evaluate the efficacy of diltiazem as an adjunct to lignocaine in IVRA with respect to tourniquet tolerance, perioperative analgesia, and quality of anesthesia. ⋯ Diltiazem as an adjunct to lignocaine provided enhanced intraoperative and post-operative analgesia without any significant side effects.