Articles: operative.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Positive End-expiratory Pressure Alone Minimizes Atelectasis Formation in Nonabdominal Surgery: A Randomized Controlled Trial.
Various methods for protective ventilation are increasingly being recommended for patients undergoing general anesthesia. However, the importance of each individual component is still unclear. In particular, the perioperative use of positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP) remains controversial. The authors tested the hypothesis that PEEP alone would be sufficient to limit atelectasis formation during nonabdominal surgery. ⋯ An online visual overview is available for this article at http://links.lww.com/ALN/B728.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study
Inhalational versus Intravenous Induction of Anesthesia in Children with a High Risk of Perioperative Respiratory Adverse Events: A Randomized Controlled Trial.
Limited evidence suggests that children have a lower incidence of perioperative respiratory adverse events when intravenous propofol is used compared with inhalational sevoflurane for the anesthesia induction. Limiting these events can improve recovery time as well as decreasing surgery waitlists and healthcare costs. This single center open-label randomized controlled trial assessed the impact of the anesthesia induction technique on the occurrence of perioperative respiratory adverse events in children at high risk of those events. ⋯ An online visual overview is available for this article at http://links.lww.com/ALN/B725.
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We present the perioperative details of a 2-year-old child scheduled for cleft palate repair. Low pulse oximetry readings after induction of anesthesia and before surgery led to the diagnosis of HbMIwate, a rare congenital methemoglobinemia due to mutation in the α-globin gene. We explored the utility of noninvasive cooximetry to monitor methemoglobin and oxygenation during anesthesia and found that noninvasive cooximetry is not useful to monitor oxygenation or to detect the percentage of methemoglobin arising from congenital variants like HbMIwate.
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Polypharmacy is increasingly prevalent in older patients and is associated with adverse events among medical patients. The impact of polypharmacy on outcomes after elective surgery is poorly described. The authors' objective was to measure the association of polypharmacy with survival, complications, and resource use among older patients undergoing elective surgery. ⋯ Older patients with polypharmacy represent a high-risk stratum of the perioperative population. However, the authors' findings call into question the causality and generalizability of the polypharmacy-adverse outcome association that is well documented in nonsurgical patients.