Effect of large volume paracentesis performed just prior to transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt on the anesthetic management during the procedure.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Patients often undergo paracentesis prior to a transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) procedure to improve respiratory mechanics. However, the effect of large volume paracentesis (LVP) on intraoperative hemodynamics and anesthetic management when it is performed immediately before the TIPS procedure is not well documented. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This is a retrospective study in patients undergoing the TIPS procedure between 2004 and 2017. Patients were divided into two groups based on the volume of preoperative paracentesis, namely, small volume paracentesis (SVP), defined as paracentesis volume less than 5 L and LVP, defined as paracentesis volume of at least 5 L. Patients' demographics and perioperative information were collected through chart review. The Wilcoxon signed-rank test, student's t-test, and Fisher's exact test were used when appropriate. Uni- and multivariate linear regression analyses were used to determine the predictive value of paracentesis volume in relation to intraoperative hemodynamics and management of hypotension. RESULTS: Of 49 patients, 19 (39%) received LVP and the remainder received SVP. Baseline demographics were comparable between groups as were intraoperative hypotension and volume of infused crystalloid and colloid. However, vasopressor use (P = 0.02) and packed red blood cell transfusion (P = 0.01) were significantly higher in the large volume group. Paracentesis volume was an independent predictor of the phenylephrine dose (P = 0.0004), and of crystalloid (P = 0.05) and colloid (P = 0.009) volume administered after adjusting for age, sex, body mass index, alcohol use, hemoglobin, and model for end-stage liver disease score. CONCLUSION: The anesthetic management of patients who undergo LVP just prior to a TIPS procedure may require larger doses of vasopressors and colloids to prevent intraoperative hemodynamic instability during the TIPS placement but may be as well tolerated as SVP.

Incidental finding of tracheal bronchus complicating the anesthetic management of a left video-assisted thoracoscopic procedure.

Congenital abnormalities of the large airways are uncommon, but may occasionally pose significant difficulties for anesthesiologists. The tracheal bronchus is an anatomical variant in which an accessory bronchus originates directly from the trachea rather than distal to the carina, as a takeoff from the right mainstem bronchus. Anesthesiologists should be aware of this uncommon anomaly, its different variants, and its management in order to successfully establish one lung ventilation (OLV) for surgical isolation. In this article, we report the challenges encountered in establishing OLV in a patient with a previously undiagnosed aberrant right upper lobe bronchus arising directly from the trachea.

Predictive model for the inadequate labor epidural analgesia: an outcome of the prospective observational study at university women's hospital.

BACKGROUND: Continuous epidural analgesic infusions provide superior analgesia as compared to other forms of labor analgesia. However, inadequate analgesia after labor epidurals is not uncommon and has been found to be as high as 24% in some studies. The mechanism of these failures include inappropriate epidural catheter location, tissue compartmentalization within epidural space, delayed migration, kinking, occlusion or disconnection of correctly placed epidural catheter. AIMS: The aim of our study was to examine the effect of various factors on the incidence of inadequate pain relief with labor epidurals. METHODS: Eighteen independent potential risk factors for failed epidurals were collected from each parturient: patient characteristics (body mass index, history of failed epidural, opioid tolerance, illicit drug use and back abnormalities), labor details (parity, singleton versus multiples pregnancies, induced versus spontaneous labor, augmentation with oxytocin, malpresentation and cervical dilatation greater than 7 cm), epidural technique (experience of the operator-resident/specialist, method of loss of resistance-air/saline, paresthesia during epidural insertion, difficult insertion, ultrasound used, and number of attempts) and other factors (time of epidural insertion). RESULTS: Data collected from 502 parturients showed that difficulty in placement of epidural catheter was reported in 43 (8.6%) patients. Inadequate pain reliefwas seen in 104 (21%) parturients. Cervical dilatation > 7 cm, previous failed epidural analgesia, paresthesia during epidural insertion, and loss of resistance using air were found to be the best predictors of inadequate epidural analgesia A constructed classification table showed that the predictive model correctly classified 96.7% of successful epidurals of producing adequate pain relief. However, the predictive model correctly classified only eighteen failed/inadequate epidurals (16.8%) as failures. Overall, 79.7% of the epidurals placed were successfully classified by the predictive model. CONCLUSION: In parturients identified as being at high risk for failed epidural, ultrasound guidance, saline-based loss of resistance technique, and appropriate intra-epidural-space length of catheter are the methods that should be utilized to lower the incidence of failure.

Inhaled carbon monoxide attenuates myocardial inflammatory cytokine expression in a rat model of cardiopulmonary bypass.

Carbon monoxide (CO), a by-product of Heme metabolism, is a potent modulator of inflammation. Low dose inhaled CO has demonstrated reduced lung and kidney injury in animal models of cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB). We evaluated the impact of low dose inhaled CO on systemic, pulmonary, and myocardial inflammatory response to CPB in rats. Sixteen male Sprague-Dawley rats underwent CPB for 1 hour. The CO (n = 8) group received inhaled CO at 250 ppm for 3 hours before CPB. The Air (n = 8) group served as the control. Pulmonary mechanics were assessed pre and post CPB. The animals were recovered for 30 minutes post CPB and subsequently sacrificed. Pre CPB and post CPB serum Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) and Interleukin-10 (IL-10) were analyzed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Gene expression array and real time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analysis was performed on the extracted heart tissue. Baseline characteristics were similar between the groups with the expected exception of carboxyhemoglobin levels (p < or = .001) and oxyhemoglobin saturation (p < or = .01) in Air versus CO treated groups, respectively. Serum TNF-alpha (363 +/- 278 vs. 287 +/- 195;p = .13) and IL-10 (237 +/- 26 vs. 302 +/- 137; p = Not Significant) in Air versus CO groups respectively were not statistically different after CPB, despite showing a trend of inflammatory attenuation. Gene expression array of the myocardial tissue suggested a pattern of inflammatory modulation, which was confirmed by real time quantitative PCR demonstrating IL-10 expression 3.13 times higher (p = .02) in the CO treated group compared to the Air group. These data demonstrate that pretreatment with CO at 250 ppm may have a modulatory effect on the inflammatory response to CPB without compromising hemodynamics or oxygen delivery. Further investigation in a survival model of CPB is warranted.

Anesthetic management of children with Rubinstein-Taybi syndrome--case reports.

A limited number of cases of anesthetic management of Rubinstein-Taybi Syndrome (RTS) have been reported since this syndrome was first diagnosed in 1963. After some well-publicized complications following anesthesia for patients with RTS, there has been great interest in avoiding all precipitant factors and careful monitoring during intraoperative and postoperative periods. This case series examines the cases of three pediatric patients with RTS who presented to the Children's Hospital of Michigan for different surgeries. We aim in this study to share information about this rare syndrome and to emphasize how this case series allowed us to improve our anesthetic management. In each case, we adjusted our techniques using information from preceding cases to avoid complications in the following encounter.

Successful management of hypothermic cardiopulmonary bypass in a malignant hyperthermia susceptible patient.

Malignant hyperthermia (MH) is a potentially lethal reaction in those that are genetically predisposed, frequently triggered by inhaled anesthetics. MH is often difficult to diagnose because it is accompanied by signs and symptoms that are shared with other disorders. The diagnosis is further obscured in cardiac surgical patients, as the signs of MH can be masked by the cardiopulmonary bypass circuit (CPB) and the use of induced hypothermia. In this case-report, we describe the successful anesthetic management of a 65-year-old MH-susceptible female, confirmed via caffeine halothane contracture test, with aortic regurgitation and ascending aortic dilatation who underwent a Bentall procedure. We have also identified certain key measures for the safe anesthetic management of these patients.

Choice of hemostatic agent influences adhesion formation in a rat cecal adhesion model.

INTRODUCTION: Hemostatic agents are frequently used during abdominal surgery and some are linked to adhesion formation. We sought to evaluate the impact of several commonly used hemostatic agents on adhesion formation in a rat peritoneal model. METHODS: In our study, Wister outbred rats underwent laparotomy and excision of a portion of their peritoneum to initiate adhesion formation process. One of six different hemostatic agents, namely, activated starch microspheres (Arista AH; Medafor Inc., Minneapolis, MN), glutaraldehyde activated collagen (BioGlue; Cryolife Inc., Kennesaw, GA), thrombin coated collagen microspheres (FloSeal; Baxter Inc., Deerfield, IL), thrombin activated fibrin polymer (Tisseel, Baxter), polyethylene glycol polymer (CoSeal, Baxter), or oxidized cellulose (Surgicel; Ethicon Inc., Somerville, NJ), was placed in the area of peritoneal defect. All animals were sacrificed on post-op day 7 and strength and extent of adhesion formation was determined. Histopathological examination of rat caecum was also performed. RESULTS: Arista and CoSeal showed significantly lower adhesion formation than controls (P < 0.05). Higher adhesion scores were seen in BioGlue (P < 0.05) treated rats. Additionally, histopathologic examination showed that BioGlue caused statistically more inflammation and necrosis than controls (P < 0.05). Total adhesion score increased with residual amount of agent present at 7 d. CONCLUSIONS: Use of Arista and CoSeal may help in reducing peritoneal adhesions after intra-abdominal surgeries. Furthermore, there appears to be a relationship between the creation of inflammation and necrosis in tissues and the eventual formation of adhesions. This could aid in improving the design of these agents in the future.