Anesthesiology and pain medicine
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Despite controversies about the safest anesthetic technique for cesarean delivery in severely preeclamptic women, there is evidence that supports the use of spinal anesthesia in this group of patients. ⋯ Our results confirm that low-dose bupivacaine spinal anesthesia is associated with a lower risk of hypotension than previously believed, and it can therefore be safely used in severe preeclamptic women undergoing cesarean delivery.
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Anecdotal evidence suggests that a vertical small-needle injection method enters the caudal epidural space with comparable efficacy to cephalad-directed methods, with less intravascular injection. ⋯ This compares favorably to published success rates of fluoroscopically-guided technique and was well tolerated. Vertical caudal epidural injection may be suitable for combination with ultrasound-guided methods with Doppler flow monitoring.
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The authors evaluated the effectiveness of percutaneous epidural adhesiolysis (PEA) in patients with low back pain due to contained disc herniation. ⋯ PEA for low back pain due to contained disc herniation is a safe and effective procedure. Therefore, it may be considered as an option for treatment before invasive operations are performed.
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Several factors are thought to affect the spread and duration of spinal anesthesia (SA) in adults. These include the volume of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in the lumbar spinal canal, which has a negative correlation with both the spread and duration of the sensory block. ⋯ The aspiration of 1 - 3 mL of CSF before an injection of levobupivacaine did not seem to affect the spread and duration of the sensory block or postpuncture complications in children following SA.
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Tracheal intubation is an essential method of keeping the airway open in patients under general anesthesia. Sore throat is a prevalent complication after endotracheal intubation. ⋯ Gargling a green tea solution, an anti-inflammatory, natural, and harmless substance, can reduce the pain of sore throat in patients after endotracheal extubation.