Anesthesia for outpatient female sterilization

This issue of the Bulletin deals with the principles of anesthesia for outpatient female sterilization with emphasis on techniques for laparoscopy and minilaparotomy. General anesthesia techniques provide analgesia, amnesia, and muscle relaxation and are particularly useful for managing the anxious patient. Disadvantages include increased expense, need for specialized equipment, and highly trained personnel, and delayed recovery. Complications, though relatively rare, can be life-threatening and include aspiration of stomach contents, hypoxia, hypercarbia, hypotension, hypertension, cardiac arrhythmias, cardiorespiratory arrest, and death. There is no single preferred technique of general anesthesia, athough most anesthetists employ methods that allow rapid recovery of faculties, enabling the patient to be discharged soon after surgery. To accomplish this end, light anesthesia with sodium thiopental induction and nitrous oxide maintenance is often used. Short duration muscle relaxation with an agent such as succinylcholine supplements this technique. Other techniques include light anesthesia with inhalational anesthetic agents and the use of intravenous ketamine. Local anesthesia augmented by systemic and/or inhalational analgesia is supplanting general anesthesia techniques for laparoscopy in many locales. This approach is also particularly well-suited for minilaparotomy in developing countries, where it has achieved its greatest popularity. The local technique carries with it reduced morbidity and mortality but may not entirely relieve discomfort. The primary danger of local anesthesia is respiratory depression due to excessive narcosis and sedation. The operator must be alert to the action of the drugs and should always use the minimal effective dose. Although toxicity due to overdosage with local anesthetic drugs is occasionally experienced, allergic reactions to the amide-linkage drugs such as lidocaine or bupivacaine are exceedingly rare. For outpatient laparoscopy or minilaparotomy, local anesthesia with proper preoperative counselling and premedication should provide adequate relief of pain and is the method of choice, unless the patient cannot be examined awake or is totally uncooperative. The decision to utilize either general or local anesthesia should be made by the patient after thorough counselling by the surgical team. In many cases, the circumstances of the surgical environment will dictate the choice, but patient comfort and safety should always be the goal.     

Spinal anesthesia: practical applications.

The recent widespread popularity of spinal anesthesia can be traced to two events. One is the appreciation that, when used for operations below the level of the umbilicus, anesthetically induced physiologic trespass is less with spinal than with general anesthesia. The other is the recognition that modest hypotension with peripheral vasodilation, that may be seen with spinal anesthesia or intravenous infusion of nitroprusside, is, unlike hypotension associated with hypovolemia, unaccompanied by physiologically significant changes in peripheral distribution of cardiac output or changes in the balance between tissue oxygen supply and demand in the myocardium or elsewhere. Spinal anesthesia also has special advantages specific to urinary tract surgery in the geriatric patient.     

ANESTHESIA IN CARDIAC OPERATIONS

When the team of physicians—cardiologist, anesthesiologist and surgeon—who are to attend a patient during a cardiac operation study the patient together in preoperative evaluation, they are better able to anticipate emergencies that might arise during the procedure and to deal with them without loss of time for discussion.The principal problems of the anesthesiologist during operation are maintenance of adequate ventilation and oxygenation, maintenance of the lightest level of anesthesia possible (the minimum degree of poisoning), and maintenance of adequate circulation. The cardiologist must maintain constant observation of the heart rate and rhythm and be alert for early signs of myocardial oxygen deficiency.     

GENERAL ANESTHESIA FOR EYE OPERATIONS—A Consideration of Some Pertinent Factors Involved in Administration

In the administration of general anesthesia for surgical operations on the eye, care must be taken to consider the patient''s total physiological condition. A patient with eye problems may have generalized changes of more than moderate extent. Most patients are in the age group in which the incidence of cardiovascular and pulmonary problems is relatively high. If the patient is in a younger age group, perhaps diabetes or the collagen diseases must be suspected. Care must be taken to prevent undue strains to the eye during and immediately after the operation.Constant care and an awareness of possible complication is necessary for successful management in these cases.     

Special considerations in the treatment of patients with bipolar disorder and medical co-morbidities

BACKGROUND: The pharmacological treatment of bipolar disorder has dramatically improved with multiple classes of agents being used as mood-stabilizers, including lithium, anticonvulsants, and atypical antipsychotics. However, the use of these medications is not without risk, particularly when a patient with bipolar disorder also has comorbid medical illness. As the physician who likely has the most contact with patients with bipolar disorder, psychiatrists must have a high index of suspicion for medical illness, as well as a basic knowledge of the risks associated with the use of medications in this patient population. METHODS: A review of the literature was conducted and papers addressing this topic were selected by the authors. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: Common medical comorbidities and treatment-emergent illnesses, including obesity, diabetes mellitus, dyslipidemia, cardiac disease, hepatic disease, renal disease, pulmonary disease and cancer are reviewed with respect to concomitant use of mood stabilizers. Guidance to clinicians regarding effective monitoring and treatment is offered. CONCLUSIONS: Mood-stabilizing medications are necessary in treating patients with bipolar disorder and often must be used in the face of medical illness. Their safe use is possible, but requires increased vigilance in monitoring for treatment-emergent illnesses and effects on comorbid medical illness.     

The Influence of Perioperative Dexmedetomidine on Patients Undergoing Cardiac Surgery: A Meta-Analysis

BackgroundThe use of dexmedetomidine may have benefits on the clinical outcomes of cardiac surgery. We conducted a meta-analysis comparing the postoperative complications in patients undergoing cardiac surgery with dexmedetomidine versus other perioperative medications to determine the influence of perioperative dexmedetomidine on cardiac surgery patients.MethodsRandomized or quasi-randomized controlled trials comparing outcomes in patients who underwent cardiac surgery with dexmedetomidine, another medication, or a placebo were retrieved from EMBASE, PubMed, the Cochrane Library, and Science Citation Index.ResultsA total of 1702 patients in 14 studies met the selection criteria among 1,535 studies that fit the research strategy. Compared to other medications, dexmedetomidine has combined risk ratios of 0.28 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.15, 0.55, P = 0.0002) for ventricular tachycardia, 0.35 (95% CI 0.20, 0.62, P = 0.0004) for postoperative delirium, 0.76 (95% CI 0.55, 1.06, P = 0.11) for atrial fibrillation, 1.08 (95% CI 0.74, 1.57, P = 0.69) for hypotension, and 2.23 (95% CI 1.36, 3.67, P = 0.001) for bradycardia. In addition, dexmedetomidine may reduce the length of intensive care unit (ICU) and hospital stay.ConclusionsThis meta-analysis revealed that the perioperative use of dexmedetomidine in patients undergoing cardiac surgery can reduce the risk of postoperative ventricular tachycardia and delirium, but may increase the risk of bradycardia. The estimates showed a decreased risk of atrial fibrillation, shorter length of ICU stay and hospitalization, and increased risk of hypotension with dexmedetomidine.     

Carbon monoxide poisoning

Carbon monoxide poisoning is a significant cause of illness and death. Its protean symptoms probably lead to a gross underestimation of its true incidence. Low levels of carbon monoxide aggravate chronic cardiopulmonary problems, and high levels are associated with cardiac arrhythmias and cerebral edema. Patients who survive acute poisoning are at risk of delayed neurologic sequelae. The measurement of carboxyhemoglobin levels does not reveal the tissue levels of carbon monoxide but is useful in determining therapy. Treatment includes the monitoring and management of cardiac arrhythmias and oxygenation. Hyperbaric oxygenation is beneficial, but there are currently no definite criteria for its use.     

预负荷／共同负荷联合血管收缩药对腰麻剖宫产术血流动力学变化

目的探讨预负荷／共同负荷联合小剂量血管收缩药盐酸麻黄碱注射液（上海信谊金朱药业有限公司）、盐酸去氧肾上腺索注射液（上海禾丰制药有限公司）对腰麻剖官产术中血流动力学的变化及预防低血压的有效性及安全性。方法选择剖官产术90例,随机分为3组,每组30例．ASAI～Ⅱ级。预负荷晶体液乳酸林格氏注射液（石家庄西药有限公司）6～8ml／kg联合共同负荷输入羟乙基淀粉130／0．4氯化钠溶液（万汶,北京费森尤斯卡比医药有限公司）10ml／kg。术中监测记录SBP、DBP、HR、ECG、SpO2。结果预负荷／共同负荷联合血管收缩药预防剖宫产术腰麻后低血压。P组和E组的低血压发生率明显低于C组（P〈0．05）;P组术中HR低于E组和C组。预防恶心、呕吐给于盐酸昂丹司琼注射液（齐鲁制药有限公司）,不良反应少,无明显呼吸抑制、无术后头痛现象。结论预负荷／共同负荷联合小剂量血管收缩药,有效降低腰麻后低血压的发生率,去氧肾上腺素比麻黄碱能更好维持产妇血流动力学的稳定。对新生儿无不良影响,安全。     

Medical Care of the Alcoholic Patient

Alcoholism is an illness that constitutes a major health problem at all levels of society. The physician should accept his responsibility to prevent it and to care for the alcoholic. If he knows that one of his patients is drinking immoderately, he should warn him of the outlook. A patient''s acquired dependence on alcohol may be overt, or revealed only on examination for organic disease or emotional disturbance. The diagnosis may be accepted reluctantly, or denied despite positive evidence, but the patient should be persuaded to give up drinking. He may require psychiatric help or advice from a social worker. He may be so ill as to require treatment in hospital, and hospitals must recognize the urgency of such admissions. Discharge from hospital does not end treatment, for alcoholism is a chronic disease, requiring long-term planning, persistent follow-up and enduring sympathy by the physician, who must always be as available to his alcoholic patient as he is to his patient with diabetes, epilepsy or cardiac disease.     

Functional decline in old age

Functional decline is a common condition, occurring each year in nearly 12% of Canadians 75 years of age and older. The model of functional health proposed by the World Health Organization (WHO) represents a useful theoretical framework and is the basis for the SMAF (Système de measure de l''autonomie fonctionelle or Functional Autonomy Measurement System), an instrument that measures functional autonomy. The functional decline syndrome, in which functional autonomy is diminished or lost, may present as an acute condition, i.e., a medical emergency for which the patient must be admitted to a geriatric assessment unit. The subacute form is a more insidious condition in which the patient requires comprehensive assessment and a rehabilitation program. A preventive approach based on screening of those at risk and early intervention should prevent or delay the appearance of functional decline or diminish its consequences. Effective strategies for the prevention of or rehabilitation from functional decline will help reduce the incidence of disabilities and the period of dependence near the end of life. These strategies are absolute prerequisites for controlling sociohealth expenses and, most importantly, for allowing people to live independently in old age.     

Risk Stratification in Young Patients With Channelopathies

Identifying the young patient at risk of malignant arrhythmias and sudden cardiac death remains a challenge. It is increasingly recognised that sudden death, syncope and aborted cardiac arrest at a young age in patients with a structurally normal heart may be the result of various ion channel disorders - the channelopathies. The approach to risk stratification involves a combination of the clinical presentation, taken in conjunction with the family history, genetic testing, invasive electrophysiological studies or other provocative tests where appropriate and feasible. A logical approach to risk stratification in some of the commoner channelopathies seen in paediatric practice is presented.     

Perioperative management of cosmetic liposuction

Recent qualms about the safety of aesthetic lipoplasty may be attributable more to support system flaws than to technical process deficiencies. The authors here focus on perfunctory patient monitoring when sedative or analgesic drugs are given, cavalier infiltration of mega-dose lidocaine, cursory intraoperative patient observation by team members with conflicting responsibilities, anesthesia providers unfamiliar with the unique surgical physiology of liposuction, hurried-discharge policies that virtually ignore the residual depressant effects of sedatives and analgesics, and compressive dressings that impair postoperative chest-wall expansion and venous return. Whereas pulmonary embolism remains the leading process cause of morbidity from liposuction, complications from austere resource allocation to dedicated patient monitoring should be largely preventable. Not all lipoplasties require an anesthesia provider but-when heavy sedation, mega-dose lidocaine, or both, are projected-a trained team member dedicated exclusively to patient safety and comfort should be a minimum patient care standard. The potential role of lidocaine cardiotoxicity in tumescent anesthesia is widely underappreciated and that of hypothermia goes mostly unrecognized. These, plus largely preventable or potentially correctable perioperative events such as pulmonary edema, fluid imbalance, or improperly administered sedative and analgesic drugs, demand upgrading and expansion of monitoring, resuscitative, and recuperative facilities in physician offices. In fact, ASPS guidelines urge that anesthesia services be engaged for dedicated patient care whenever "major" liposuction or conscious sedation is projected, because liposuction is neither as benign nor as simple a procedure as heretofore reputed. To assess objectively the operative and anesthetic risk of obesity, document body mass index for the preoperative record; morbid obesity (body mass index >/= 35.0), for instance, is a known risk multiplier for sedatives and analgesics. Other system issues such as the dynamic profile of high-dose lidocaine pharmacokinetics, the deportation of fat globules in the bloodstream, and the incidence of intraoperative hypothermia remain as unresolved topics for interdisciplinary, multi-institutional clinical research.     

Pancreatic islet PEGylation as an immunological polymeric restraint

Pancreatic islet transplantation is one of the most promising strategies for patients suffering from type 1 diabetes mellitus, but several therapeutic immunosuppressive medications must be administered to protect transplanted islets in the long-term and these expose patients to the risk of serious complications. Therefore, it is necessary to attenuate or eliminate the usage of immunosuppressant. Here, we introduce pancreatic islet PEGylation technique on the surface of islets to reduce immunogenicity of transplanted islets, thereby reducing dosage of immunosuppressive medicines. In addition, various strategies are tried to show the synergistic effect of the conjugated PEG molecules on the prevention of immunoisolation and induction of immune tolerance. This review critically addresses various insights developed in each individual strategy.     

Azathioprine in inflammatory bowel disease,a safe alternative?

Azathioprine and its metabolite 6-mercaptopurine are effective in the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease. They are mostly used for reduction of the use of steroids, maintenance therapy after remission induction by cyclosporin and treatment of fistulae in Crohn''s disease. Adverse effects occur in about 15% of patients. The main side effects are pancreatitis, allergic reactions, fever and bone marrow suppression. Symptoms, management and prevention are discussed. A blood monitoring schedule is suggested. Azathioprine and 6-mercaptopurine seem to be safe in pregnancy. There may be a slight increased risk for developing a non-Hodgkin''s lymphoma.     

Effects of anti‐human T lymphocyte immune globulins in patients: new or old

Multiple studies demonstrated that anti‐human T lymphocyte immune globulins (ATG) can decrease the incidence of acute and chronic graft rejection in cell or organ transplants. However, further in‐depth study indicates that different subgroups may benefit from either different regimes or alteration of them. Studies among renal transplant patients indicate that low immunological risk patients may not gain the same amount of benefit and thus tilt the risk versus benefit consideration. This may hold true for low immunological risk patients receiving other organ transplants and would be worth further investigation. The recovery time of T cells and natural killer (NK) cells also bears consideration and the impact that it has on the severity and incidence of opportunistic infections closely correlated with the dosage of ATG. The use of lower doses of ATG in combination with other induction medications may offer a solution. The finding that ATG may lose efficacy in cases of multiple transplants or re‐transplants in the case of heart transplants may hold true for other transplantations. This may lead to reconsideration of which induction therapies would be most beneficial in the clinical setting. These studies on ATG done on different patient groups will naturally not be applicable to all, but the evidence accrued from them as a whole may offer us new and different perspectives on how to approach and potentially solve the clinical question of how to best reduce the mortality associated with chronic host‐versus‐graft disease.     

超快通道麻醉联合BIS监测对心脏手术患者的效果及安全性

目的:探究超快通道麻醉辅助脑电双频指数(Bispectral index,BIS)监测对行心脏手术患者认知功能障碍的影响和安全性。方法:选取2014年1月-2017年1月于我院进行心脏手术的59例患者为研究对象,按照随机数字表法将其分为实验组(29例)和对照组(30例)。其中,对照组患者实施心脏超快通道麻醉,实验组患者实施心脏超快通道麻醉辅助BIS监测。术后6个月,使用韦氏成人智力量表对两组麻醉前后认知功能障碍情况进行比对,并比较两组术后6个月内并发症的发生率。结果:(1)两组术后6个月时智力测试得分对比差异无统计学意义(P0.05),各指数间对比差异也无统计学意义(P0.05);(2)实验组患者术后6个月内并发症发生率较对照组显著降低(P0.05)。结论:与单独使用超快速通道的患者相比,行全身麻醉心脏手术患者使用超快速通道麻醉辅助BIS监测麻醉及单用超快速通道对患者认知功能障碍的影响相当,但前者的安全性明显高于后者。     

Intrauterine transfusion of twins.

Drug interactions are important causes of both unexpected toxic and therapeutic effects. Adverse reactions due to drug interaction are proportional to the number of drugs given and the duration of administration. Although drug interactions may be beneficial, they are most often recognized when they increase mortality or morbidity. The frequency of adverse drug interactions in clinical practice makes it mandatory for physicians to know the drugs and mechanisms involved.A drug may potentiate or antagonize the effects of another drug by direct chemical or physical combination, by altering gastrointestinal absorption, by influencing metabolism, transport, or renal clearance, by changing the activity of a drug at its receptor site, or by modifying the patient''s response to the drug by a variety of means.This article stresses the importance of avoiding multible drug therapy. When such treatment is unavoidable, patients must be carefully observed for evidence of intensified or diminished drug effect. Only this permits the detection and prevention of untoward drug interactions.     

Treatment of overactive bladder and incontinence in the elderly

The prevalence of urinary incontinence (UI) and overactive bladder rises with age, and elderly people are the fastest-growing segment of the population. Many elderly people assume UI is a normal part of the aging process and do not report it to their doctors, who must therefore make the effort to elicit the information from them. Coexisting medical problems in older patients and the multiple medications many of them take make diagnosis and treatment more complex in this population. Just as the etiology of incontinence is often multifactorial, the treatment approach may need to be multipronged, with behavioral, environmental, and medical components; in any case, it must be targeted to the individual patient. New, less-invasive surgical techniques and devices make surgery more feasible if other therapy fails.