The British journal of theatre nursing : NATNews : the official journal of the National Association of Theatre Nurses
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The maintenance of body water content is a classic example of homeostasis at work. Water is continuously lost and added to the systems. The regulation of a balance between the factors involved demonstrates the dynamic nature of homeostatic processes. ⋯ The hydration, and electrolyte, needs, will vary between patients so fluid therapies should be individualised. Whilst a patient's fluid balance chart provides a means of assessing water balance, the interpretation is complicated after surgery. An awareness of other signs is therefore essential.
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This is the concluding part of a series of articles which examines the principles of pharmacology. This paper reviews the potential variability of an individual's response to drugs and the unwanted adverse reactions that may occur. Following this theme, the pharmacological considerations of the extremes of age will be briefly reviewed and the implications for perioperative practice highlighted. The reader is encouraged to use the reference list as indicative reading and complete the questions that appear during the text.
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The aims of this article are to examine the potential hazards of exposure to nitrous oxide gases on personnel working within the perioperative environment and to provide an insight into the history of nitrous oxide, its use in anaesthetics and its contribution to global air pollution and the greenhouse effect.
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Solid organ transplantation has developed immeasurably over the last two decades. Even in relatively recent times such as the mid 1970's, transplantation was regarded as an experimental modality of treatment rather than an established clinical tool. Since then the speciality has risen from the roles of experiment so that transplantation of kidney, heart, liver, lung, pancreas and even small bowel has now become relatively commonplace. ⋯ The single most common cause of early graft loss was acute rejection which was regarded as the "sword of Damocles" of transplantation. In the majority of cases acute rejection of transplants is no longer the scourge that it used to be. The purpose of this article is to briefly review current thoughts on the management of acute and chronic rejection and the role of new immunosuppressive agents in transplantation.