Electrocardiogram Cream Reduces Skin-Electrode Impedance Upon Neuromuscular Monitoring Using TOF-Cuff®.

Background Mechanistic insight into the high failure rate of TOF-Cuff® (RGB Medical Devices, Madrid, Spain) measurements on the lower leg is unclear. Aims We aimed to determine whether materials applied to pseudo-skin can reduce the impedance between a model arm and TOF-Cuff® electrodes and whether a material between TOF-Cuff® electrodes and the patient's skin surface decreases the skin-TOF-Cuff® electrode impedance within the appropriate range. Methods This was a combination of an in vitro study using non-living materials and a prospective observational clinical study. Eight patients aged > 70 years who had undergone elective surgery were eligible. One of the primary outcomes was whether water, electrocardiogram (ECG) cream, or ECG gel applied on the pseudo-skin could reduce the impedance between the model arm and the TOF-Cuff® electrodes in the in vitro study. Another was whether a material between the TOF-Cuff® electrodes and the patient's skin surface decreased the skin-TOF-Cuff® electrode impedance to an appropriate level of less than 5,000 Ω in the clinical study. Results The application of water, ECG cream, and ECG gel similarly reduced the impedance values within the electrical circuit in the in vitro study. ECG cream application between the patient's skin surface and the TOF-Cuff® electrodes decreased the skin-TOF-Cuff® electrode impedance (median (interquartile range (IQR)) Ω) from 8,600 (6,450 to 9,775) to 2,000 (1,600 to 2,600) (P = 0.012) in surgical patients. Conclusion ECG cream application between the patient's skin surface and the TOF-Cuff® electrodes decreased the skin-TOF-Cuff® electrode impedance appropriately, and thus, the application can facilitate precise TOF-Cuff® measurements in patients.

Anesthetic induction and endotracheal intubation in the sitting position due to the fixed forearm caught by a meat grinder

Abstract A male patient was scheduled for urgent amputation of his right forearm. His right forearm was stuck inside the insertion slot of a meat grinder, resulting in severe pain to his injured arm. His upper body could not move to sit in a semi-upright position. An endotracheal tube was successfully placed after rapid sequence intubation using a video laryngoscope from behind the patient on the first attempt. This case report is the first documentation of successful anesthetic induction with subsequent endotracheal intubation using a video laryngoscope from behind an injured patient whose upper body was upright with limited positioning.

Anesthetic induction and endotracheal intubation in the sitting position due to the fixed forearm caught by a meat grinder.

A male patient was scheduled for urgent amputation of his right forearm. His right forearm was stuck inside the insertion slot of a meat grinder, resulting in severe pain to his injured arm. His upper body could not move to sit in a semi-upright position. An endotracheal tube was successfully placed after rapid sequence intubation using a video laryngoscope from behind the patient on the first attempt. This case report is the first documentation of successful anesthetic induction with subsequent endotracheal intubation using a video laryngoscope from behind an injured patient whose upper body was upright with limited positioning.

Association between remimazolam and postoperative delirium in older adults undergoing elective cardiovascular surgery: a prospective cohort study.

PURPOSE: Postoperative delirium is one of the most common complications after cardiovascular surgery in older adults. Benzodiazepines are a reported risk factor for delirium; however, there are no studies investigating remimazolam, a novel anesthetic agent. Therefore, we prospectively investigated the effect of remimazolam on postoperative delirium. METHODS: We included elective cardiovascular surgery patients aged ≥ 65 years at Hamamatsu University Hospital between August 2020 and February 2022. Patients who received general anesthesia with remimazolam were compared with those who received other anesthetics (control group). The primary outcome was delirium within 5 days after surgery. Secondary outcomes were delirium during intensive care unit stay and hospitalization, total duration of delirium, subsyndromal delirium, and differences in the Mini-Mental State Examination scores from preoperative to postoperative days 2 and 5. To adjust for differences in the groups' baseline covariates, we used stabilized inverse probability weighting as the primary analysis and propensity score matching as the sensitivity analysis. RESULTS: We enrolled 200 patients; 78 in the remimazolam group and 122 in the control group. After stabilized inverse probability weighting, 30.3% of the remimazolam group patients and 26.6% of the control group patients developed delirium within 5 days (risk difference, 3.8%; 95% confidence interval -11.5% to 19.1%; p = 0.63). The secondary outcomes did not differ significantly between the groups, and the sensitivity analysis results were similar to those for the primary analysis. CONCLUSION: Remimazolam was not significantly associated with postoperative delirium when compared with other anesthetic agents.

Acute abdominal pain due to sigmoid volvulus with persistent descending mesocolon: a case report.

BACKGROUND: Persistent descending mesocolon, an anomaly of fixation of the mesentery of the descending colon, can sometimes cause complications such as intestinal obstruction and intussusception. We present the first reported case of sigmoid volvulus with persistent descending mesocolon. CASE PRESENTATION: An 82-year-old Japanese man had intermittent lower abdominal pain. Abdominal computed tomography showed dilation and a shift to the right side of the sigmoid colon, but no findings of volvulus. The next day, he presented continuous lower abdominal pain with bloody stool. A second abdominal computed tomography showed strangulation and dilation of the sigmoid colon, with shift from the right side of the abdominal cavity to the pelvic space. This suggested the descending colon was running to the medial side with sigmoid volvulus. Emergency surgery was performed for volvulus with persistent descending mesocolon. Operative findings revealed dilation of the sigmoid colon with a partial poorly colored region and strangulation that caused volvulus. After releasing the strangulation of the sigmoid colon, the descending colon was revealed to be running more to the medial side, with adherence to small intestinal mesentery. There was no Toldt's fusion fascia at the descending colon. Persistent descending mesocolon was therefore diagnosed due to abnormality of fixation of the descending colon. The sigmoid colon, including the poorly colored region, was resected and reconstructed, while the inferior mesenteric and left colonic arteries were preserved because of the complexity of the vascular system running around the descending and sigmoid colon due to the shortened mesentery. These findings were pathologically compatible with circulatory compromise and intestinal degeneration due to sigmoid volvulus. The patient had no complications after discharge, including in relation to defecation. CONCLUSION: Persistent descending mesocolon can occasionally cause acute abdominal symptoms requiring immediate treatment. A computed tomography finding of the descending colon running more to the medial side than ordinary cases can aid diagnosis of persistent descending mesocolon.

What is related to postoperative outcome of frail status in elective colorectal cancer surgery?

Background: The population affected by colorectal cancer is growing, and there is an increasing need for prevention of functional decline following treatment. We proposed that the Kihon Checklist published by the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare would be an appropriate means of frailty assessment for prediction of postoperative complications in older patients with colorectal cancer. This prospective cohort study aims to identify the factors influencing postoperative frailty. Methods: We prospectively enrolled consecutive patients with colorectal cancer and aged ≥ 65 year (N = 500) between May 2017 and December 2018. Eligible patients were assessed with the Kihon Checklist prior to surgery and 30 days after surgery. The main measures were variables related to postoperative change in view of frail status. Results: According to the Kihon Checklist questionnaire, 164 patients were frail preoperatively and 172 patients were frail postoperatively, whereas 38 patients changed from "nonfrail" before surgery to postoperative "frail." Overall complications were counted in 97 patients (19.4%), and 5 patients died. Performance status ≥ 2, history of laparotomy, open surgery, complication, ostomy creation, and delirium were significantly associated with changing postoperative "frail" (P = .014, P = .023, P = .006, P < .001, P = .023, and P = .024, respectively). In multivariate analysis, independent related factors of changing postoperative "frail" were complication (odds ratio 2.69, 95% confidence interval 1.19-6.09, P = .018) and ostomy creation (odds ratio 2.32, 95% confidence interval 1.01-5.33, P = .047). Conclusion: The Kihon Checklist questionnaire could identify the factors related to postoperative change of frailty status in older patients with colorectal cancer. This cohort concluded that whether postoperative complication occurred or not was closely associated with perioperative change of frailty status.

Successful procedure with additional omentopexy to suture closure of gallbladder stump in laparoscopic subtotal cholecystectomy.

Laparoscopic subtotal cholecystectomy, a bailout surgery for cholecystitis, can result in postoperative bile leakage, so surgical ingenuity is required. An 88-year-old woman had pain at the right hypochondrium. Abdominal computed tomography showed swelling of the gallbladder and thickness of the gallbladder wall, leading to diagnosis of mild acute cholecystitis. Percutaneous transhepatic gallbladder drainage was performed to alleviate cholecystitis because the patient was taking antiplatelet medicine. Laparoscopic cholecystectomy was then performed within 72 hours from the onset. The gallbladder was operatively found to be strongly fibrotic, so the procedure was switched to laparoscopic subtotal cystectomy, dissecting the gallbladder at the infundibulum-cystic duct level. The gallbladder stump was closed with barbed suture and omentopexy was added due to fragility. There was no significant postoperative bile leakage. Additional omentopexy to stump closure in laparoscopic subtotal cholecystectomy was thought to be useful in prevention of postoperative bile leakage.

Anesthesia in a patient with multiple-system atrophy using a combination of rocuronium and sugammadex.

Multiple-system atrophy is an adult-onset progressive neurodegenerative disease affecting the central nervous system, including the spinal cord. There has been no perioperative guideline of the muscle relaxants used in multiple-system atrophy, although a recent article recommends anesthesiologists to use shorter-acting drugs at the lowest possible doses in the patients. Here, we document the first case with multiple-system atrophy undergoing surgery managed with a combination of rocuronium and sugammadex. The recovery time to the train-of-four count 2 after intravenous rocuronium 0.6 mg / kg, or the time from the start of sugammadex 2 mg / kg intravenously to the train-of-four ratio over 0.9 was prolonged in our case more than 20 and 2 minutes compared with those in healthy subjects, respectively. Neuromuscular monitoring, in addition to the careful vigilance in the perioperative period, seems mandatory in the patients. J. Med. Invest. 68 : 381-382, August, 2021.

Intraoperative Remifentanil Dosage in Surgery for Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis Does Not Increase Postoperative Opioid Consumption When Combined With Epidural Analgesia: A Retrospective Cohort Study.

Background In adults, high-dose remifentanil during surgery has been reported to increase postoperative opioid consumption, but this has not been well documented in children. Multimodal analgesia is recommended in the perioperative period for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS), but no report has examined opioid consumption under epidural analgesia, which is one of the most common types of analgesia. Aims To investigate the association between intraoperative remifentanil dosage and postoperative opioid consumption in AIS in the setting of combined epidural analgesia for postoperative multimodal analgesia. Methods In this retrospective cohort study, patients aged 10-18 years who underwent surgery for scoliosis and epidural analgesia for postoperative pain between July 2012 and April 2019 were included. The primary endpoint was the association between intraoperative cumulative weight-adjusted remifentanil dosage and logarithmic transformation of cumulative weight-adjusted fentanyl consumption in the intensive care unit (ICU). Nonopioid analgesics were investigated as secondary endpoints. An epidural catheter was inserted by the surgeon intraoperatively, and a local anesthetic was administered at the end of the surgery. Multivariate linear regression analysis with adjustment for confounders was performed for all analyses. Results In total, 142 patients were included, and the median intraoperative remifentanil dosage for all patients was 0.27 (interquartile range, 0.24-0.34) µg/kg/min. No association was observed between cumulative weight-adjusted intraoperative dosage of remifentanil and fentanyl, even after adjusting for potential confounders (slope = -1.25; 95% confidence interval [CI], -4.35 to 1.85; P = 0.43). No association was observed between nonopioid analgesic use and intraoperative remifentanil dosage. Conclusion No association was noted between remifentanil dosage during surgery for AIS and postoperative opioid consumption with epidural analgesia. However, this study has limitations due to its retrospective design; thus, further prospective studies are warranted.

Intraoperative maneuvers may affect the development of early postoperative small bowel obstruction after laparoscopic colorectal cancer surgery: Multicenter prospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Early postoperative small bowel obstruction (EPSBO) is one of the most common complications after colorectal cancer (CRC) surgery, and clarification of its causes is desired. Several reports have demonstrated the risks of EPSBO, but few have focused on laparoscopic surgery for CRC and intraoperative maneuvers. We therefore prospectively examined the risk factors for EPSBO after laparoscopic CRC resection. METHODS: We prospectively enrolled 706 patients with CRC that underwent laparoscopic CRC resection in our hospital and affiliated hospitals. We analyzed several factors concerning EPSBO including intraoperative procedures. RESULTS: EPSBO developed in 43 of the 706 cases (6.1%). Univariate analysis showed that risk factors for EPSBO were male sex, increased operative time, repositioning of the small intestine before wound closure and anastomotic leakage. Risk factors for EPSBO according to multivariate analysis were increased operative time (odds ratio (OR) 2.41; P = 0.032), repositioning of the small intestine before wound closure (OR 3.58; P = 0.005) and anastomotic leakage (OR 3.91; P = 0.006). CONCLUSION: To reduce EPSBO after laparoscopic CRC surgery, the operation should be finished as soon as possible without performing optional maneuvers. To avoid development to EPSBO, particular care is required in cases where the risk of anastomotic leakage is predicted to be high.

Accuracy and reliability of continuous blood glucose monitoring during pediatric cardiopulmonary bypass.

The purpose of this study was to assess the accuracy and reliability of a continuous blood glucose monitoring system (artificial endocrine pancreas; STG-55, Nikkiso, Tokyo, Japan) during pediatric cardiopulmonary bypass surgery. Twenty-five pediatric patients scheduled to undergo cardiovascular surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass (age 4 months to 11 years; body weight 5.6-59.7 kg) were enrolled. The glucose sensor line of the artificial endocrine pancreas was connected to the venous side of the cardiopulmonary bypass circuit and used for continuous blood glucose monitoring. We obtained 192 samples for blood gas assessment from the cardiopulmonary bypass circuit, and i-STAT (Abbott, East Windsor, NJ, USA) was used for conventional blood glucose assessment. The accuracies of continuous glucose measurements (STG-55) and conventional intermittent glucose measurements (i-STAT) during cardiopulmonary bypass were compared by means of Clarke error grid analysis. The results were divided into five zones, A, B, C, D, and E, and 78.6% of paired measurements were in zone A, while 21.4% were in zone B. We confirmed that the results of this continuous blood glucose monitoring system for cardiopulmonary bypass during pediatric cardiovascular surgery were highly reliable. An artificial endocrine pancreas may facilitate the safe use of intensive insulin therapy during pediatric cardiovascular surgery.

Pioglitazone suppresses macrophage proliferation in apolipoprotein-E deficient mice by activating PPARγ.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Local macrophage proliferation is linked to enhanced atherosclerosis progression. Our previous study found that troglitazone, a thiazolidinedione (TZD), suppressed oxidized low-density lipoprotein (Ox-LDL)-induced macrophage proliferation. However, its effects and mechanisms are unclear. Therefore, we investigated the effects of pioglitazone, another TZD, on macrophage proliferation. METHODS: Normal chow (NC)- or high-fat diet (HFD)-fed apolipoprotein E-deficient (Apoe-/-) mice were treated orally with pioglitazone (10 mg/kg/day) or vehicle (water) as a control. Mouse peritoneal macrophages were used in in vitro assays. RESULTS: Atherosclerosis progression was suppressed in aortic sinuses of pioglitazone-treated Apoe-/- mice, which showed fewer proliferating macrophages in plaques. Pioglitazone suppressed Ox-LDL-induced macrophage proliferation in a dose-dependent manner. However, treatment with peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ (PPARγ) siRNA ameliorated pioglitazone-induced suppression of macrophage proliferation. Low concentrations (less than 100 µmol/L) of pioglitazone, which can suppress macrophage proliferation, activated PPARγ in macrophages, but did not induce macrophage apoptosis. Pioglitazone treatment did not induce TUNEL-positive cells in atherosclerotic plaques of aortic sinuses in Apoe-/- mice. CONCLUSIONS: Pioglitazone suppressed macrophage proliferation through PPARγ without inducing macrophage apoptosis. These findings imply that pioglitazone could prevent macrovascular complications in diabetic individuals.