[Anesthetic Management Using Frontal Nerve, Greater Occipital Nerve, and Superficial Cervical Plexus Block for Posterior Cervical Spinal Fusion in a Patient with Athetoid Cerebral Palsy].

Here, we report successful anesthetic management of posterior cervical spinal fusion utilizing block of the frontal nerve, the greater occipital nerve, and the superficial cervical plexus in a patient with athetoid cerebral palsy. A 69-year-old woman (height 157 cm; weight 33 kg) with athetoid cerebral palsy was scheduled to undergo posterior cervical spinal fusion for cervical spondylotic myelopathy. After induction of general anesthesia, we performed tracheal intubation using the Pentax-AWS Airwayscope with a thin Intlock. After tracheal intubation, we used ropivacaine for the frontal nerve, greater occipital nerve, and superficial cervical plexus block. Anesthetic maintenance was performed with total intravenous anesthesia utilizing propofol and remifentanil. Continuous administration of dexmedetomidine was started during operation. Following surgery, smooth spontaneous ventilation was observed following uneventful extubation. No significant pain and no athetoid movement were observed under continuous administration of dexmedetomidine.

Comparison of fluid leakage from four different cuffed pediatric endotracheal tubes using a pediatric airway simulation model.

This study used an airway model to compare the ability of a pediatric endotracheal tube with a taper-shaped cuff to prevent microaspiration relative to endotracheal tubes with conventional cuffs. Four different types of 5.0-mm inner diameter cuffed pediatric endotracheal tubes (taper-shaped cuff [Taper], high-volume low-pressure [Hi-Lo], middle-volume low-pressure [Intermediate], and low-volume low-profile [Lo-Pro]) were fixed within vertically placed acrylic tubes. The cuffs were maintained at 10, 20, or 30 cmH2 O pressure and 3 mL of simulated stomach contents was added to the top of the cuffs. The volume of leakage around the cuffs after 5 min and 4 h was measured. After 5 min, the volume of leakage was significantly lower with the Taper than with the Hi-Lo, Intermediate, or Lo-Pro at all pressure settings. After 4 h, leakage was significantly lower with the Taper than with the other three tubes regardless of initial cuff pressure (P < 0.05).

[Successful fiberoptic tracheal intubation guided by Airwayscope with a thin Intlock blade in a patient with severe rheumatoid arthritis].

We present a case of anticipated difficult airway with severe rheumatoid arthritis in which intubation with fiberoptic bronchoscope (FOB) assisted by Pentax-AWS Airwayscope with the thin Intlock (AWS T) was effective. A 69-year-old woman was scheduled to undergo laparoscopic cholecystectomy for acute cholecystitis in a previous hospital. Tracheal intubation with Glidescope or nasal intubation was unsuccessful and abandoned due to mucosal injury and bleeding. Ventilation via several supraglottic airway devices was unsatisfactory, while mask ventilation was easy after induction of anesthesia. She was referred to our hospital for application of veno-arterial extracorporeal life support in case of 'cannot ventilate and cannot intubate'. We planned to perform tracheal intubation preserving spontaneous breathing under intravenous administration of dexmedetomidine and fentanyl. We could visualize the epiglottis, but could not set the target mark to the invisible glottis with AWS-T. Finally, we could accomplish uneventful tracheal intubation with FOB along with the Intlock's guides of AWS-T.

[Airway rescue in a patient with severe obstructive sleep apnea syndrome and impossible ventilation after induction of general anesthesia].

We report the successful rescue ventilation of a patient with severe obstructive sleep apnea syndrome after induction of general anesthesia using the i-gel supraglottic airway device. A 55-year-old man was scheduled for resection of a cerebellopontine angle tumor. He suffered from severe obstructive sleep apnea syndrome and routinely used continuous positive airway pressure. His apnea hypopnea index was 57.8. Manual assisted ventilation following propofol and fentanyl administration was successful. On rocuronium administration, manual ventilation became impossible and oropharyngeal airway could not release this condition. We immediately inserted the i-gel device to provide sufficient ventilation. As tracheal intubation with the i-gel device was difficult, we intubated a spiral tube (internal diameter, 8.0 mm) using the Pentax-AWS Airwayscope. Our findings suggest that the i-gel device may be useful for emergent airway rescue in the event of impossible ventilation for patients with severe obstructive sleep apnea syndrome.

[Difficult airway management using the air-Q in a patient with Klippel-Feil syndrome].

Patients with Klippel-Feil syndrome (KFS) frequently encounter difficult airway management due to skeletal abnormalities, including fusion of two or more vertebrae and short neck. We report successful tracheal intubation using the air-Q supraglottic airway device (air-Q). A 46-year-old woman (height, 149 cm; weight, 62 kg) with KFS was scheduled to undergo vertebral arch plasty for cervical spondylotic myelopathy. She could open her mouth sufficiently but could not tilt her head due to C1-3 fusion. Following administration of fentanyl 100 microg and propofol 120 mg, mask ventilation was achieved with jaw thrust maneuver. We then administered rocuronium 50 mg for immobilization and attempted tracheal intubation using the Pentax-AWS Airwayscope with a thin pediatric Intlock. However, we could not target the glottis, and ventilation via a size 3 i-gel or size 3.5 air-Q was unsuccessful. Using a size 2.5 air-Q, sufficient ventilation was finally achieved. We performed fiberoptic tracheal intubation through the air-Q using a tube with an internal diameter of 6.0-mm. We then exchanged the 6.0-mm tracheal tube with a 7.0-mm spiral tube using a 10 Fr tracheal tube introducer.

[Difference in nitrous oxide-mediated increases in intracuff pressure between two tracheal tubes in a simulated pediatric lung model].

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to compare the nitrous oxide-mediated increases in cuff pressure between a tracheal tube with a tapered cuff (Taper) or conventional high volume low pressure cuff (HVLP) utilizing a simulated pediatric lung model. METHODS: The automated cuff pressures were adjusted to 10, 20, and 30 cmH2O. The Taper and HVLP were exposed to 80% nitrous oxide and cuff pressure was measured 15 and 30 minutes later. RESULTS: The cuff pressure of the Taper was significantly lower than that of the HVLP after 15 and 30 minutes, regardless of the initial pressure. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that the Taper may be more effective than the HVLP in preventing hyperinflation of the tracheal tube cuff in response to nitrous oxide exposure in children.

Use of central venous saturation monitoring in a patient with pediatric cardiac beriberi.

The patient was a 1-year-and-4-mo-old boy. He had drunk about 1 L of an isotonic drink for infants daily since about 10 mo after birth. He was examined by a local doctor due to anorexia and vomiting, found to have cardiomegaly, and transported to our hospital with suspected myocarditis. After admission, the patient showed polypnea, a decreased level of consciousness, and marked metabolic acidosis and lapsed into circulatory insufficiency, requiring catecholamine administration, endotracheal intubation, and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation. Initially, low-output heart failure due to acute myocarditis was suspected, but the central venous oxygen saturation was high, at 82%. Considering high-output heart failure to be more likely, we evaluated its cause and noted, by urinary organic acid analysis, increases in lactate, pyruvate, 3-OH-butyrate, acetoacetate, metabolic products of branched-chain amino acids, 2-ketoglutarate, 2-OH-glutarate, 2-keto-adipate, and 2-OH-adipate. Since the vitamin B1 level was reduced to 12 ng/mL (normally 20-50 ng/mL), a diagnosis of cardiac beriberi due to vitamin B1 deficiency was made. When unexplained heart failure is observed in children, cardiac beriberi must be excluded as a differential diagnosis of myocarditis and cardiomyopathy. The measurement of the central venous oxygen saturation may be useful for the diagnosis.

[A case of fulminant myocarditis successfully treated by percutaneous cardiopulmonary support after 50 minuite-cardiopulmonary resuscitation].

We report a case of an 8-year-old girl with fulminant myocarditis successfully treated with percutaneous cardiopulmonary support (PCPS). She was first taken to our hospital for treatment of suspected infective enterocolitis since her main symptoms were fever, vomiting and diarrhea. On day 2 after admission, her ECG showed wide QRS and echocardiography demonstrated severe hypokinesis. She was transferred to the ICU with suspected acute myocarditis. On admission to the ICU, circulatory collapse was not detected. ECG showed severe bradycardia and ventricular fibrillation after intubation. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation was performed immediately for 50 minutes prior to initiation of PCPS. She was treated intensively with catecholamines, plasma exchange, continuous hemodiafiltration, high-dose gamma-globulin, and high dose methylprednisolone. Hypothermia therapy was also performed. She was weaned from PCPS on day 6 after initiation of PCPS. The patient was finally discharged from the hospital without any neurological complications on day 68 after weaning from PCPS. The proportion of patients in whom cardiopulmonary resuscitation was performed or having ventricular tachycardia or fibrillation were higher in non-survivors than in survivors.

[Effect of continuous intravenous infusion of flurbiprofen axetil and tramadol hydrochloride for postoperative pain management of laparoscopic colectomy].

BACKGROUND: In this study, we evaluated the efficacy of continuous intravenous infusion of flurbiprofen axetil (FA) combined with tramadol hydrochloride (TH) for postoperative pain control after laparoscopic colectomy. METHODS: Fifty patients scheduled for laparoscopic colectomy were randomly assigned to one of the following three groups : the saline group which received saline, the FA alone group which received FA 4 mg kg-1 . 24hr-1, and the FA plus TH group which received FA 4 mg kg-1 . 24 hr-1 and TH 2 mg kg-1 . 24 hr-1 intravenously after bolus injection of FA 50 mg immediately before the end of the operation. We examined the pain scores at 4 and 24 hr, and postoperative analgesic medication use during 0-4, 4-24, and 24-48 hours. RESULTS: Although no significant difference was observed among pain scores for these three groups, the FA plus TH group required the lowest dose of analgesic medication. For lower abdominal incision, the FA plus TH group required the least analgesic medication in 4-48 hr. No significant difference concerning analgesic medication was observed among the three groups for upper abdominal incision. CONCLUSIONS: Continuous intravenous injection of FA plus TH is more effective than FA alone for postoperative pain management after laparoscopic colectomy.

[Anesthetic management of laser surgery using PCPS for tracheal tumor].

Primary tracheal cancer is extremely rare, but critical tracheal stenosis is seen in many cases. Although laser resection or stent placement is performed under general anesthesia, anesthetic management for tracheal tumor is extremely difficult in terms of airway management. We report a 65-year-old woman scheduled to undergo bronchoscopic laser surgery and insertion of Dumon stent for tracheal tumor which severely obstructed the upper airway. Anesthesia was maintained with propofol, fentanyl and dexmedetomidine. Percutaneous cardiopulmonary support (PCPS) was established via the femoral artery and vein prior to induction of anaesthesia. Tumor resection was performed, but the stent placement was cancelled because a rigid bronchoscope could not be inserted due to difficult laryngeal exposure. Tracheostomy was then performed after weaning from PCPS. Although desaturation due to unsuccessful venous drainage and difficult ventilation by laryngeal edema during the operation and tracheal obstruction by a clot after the operation was observed, the patient's clinical condition improved. In cases of severe tracheal stenosis, airway obstruction by hemorrhage, secretion and laryngeal edema, etc. occur easily. Therefore, some kind of measures should be taken for the operation and a number of precautions must be taken during the perioperative period.

[Effects of bicarbonated Ringer's solution for infants and children undergoing open-heart surgery].

BACKGROUND: There is no study on the use of bicarbonated Ringer's solution (BR) for pediatric patients. We evaluated the effect of BR on infants and children undergoing open-heart surgery, compared with acetated Ringer's solution (AR). METHODS: The records of 18 pediatric patients with congenital heart disease who had undergone elective open-heart surgeries with cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) were reviewed retrospectively. Eight patients received AR as infusion and CPB priming solution, and ten patients received BR. The pH, HCO3-, base excess and lactate were measured at seven points ; (1) after anesthesia induction, (2) CPB-start, (3) before CPB withdrawal or 60-minute after CPB, (4) after CPB withdrawal, (5) end of operation, (6) 6-hour after operation, and (7) 24-hour after operation, and administered volume of sodium bicarbonate during surgery and 24-hour after surgery were evaluated. Data were compared between two groups. RESULTS: There were no significant differences in values of pH, HCO3-, base excess and lactate between the two groups at any measurement point. The administered volume of sodium bicarbonate during the procedure in BR was significantly smaller than that in AR. CONCLUSIONS: BR was useful as infusion fluid and CPB priming solution for infants and children who underwent open-heart surgeries, and reduced the administration of sodium bicarbonate during surgery.

A synthetic kainoid, (2S,3R,4R)-3-carboxymethyl-4-(phenylthio)pyrrolidine-2-carboxylic acid (PSPA-1) serves as a novel anti-allodynic agent for neuropathic pain.

In spite of prominent progress in basic pain research, neuropathic pain remains a significant medical problem, because it is often poorly relieved by conventional analgesics. Thus this situation encourages us to make more sophisticated efforts toward the discovery of new analgesics. We previously showed that i.t. administration of acromelic acid-A (ACRO-A), a Japanese mushroom poison, provoked prominent tactile pain (allodynia) at an extremely low dose of 1 fg/mouse. In the present study we synthesized ACRO-A analogues (2S,3R,4R)-3-carboxymethyl-4-phenoxypyrrolidine-2-carboxylic acid (POPA-2) and (2S,3R,4R)-3-carboxymethyl-4-(phenylthio)pyrrolidine-2-carboxylic acid (PSPA-1) chemically and examined their ability to induce allodynia in conscious mice. Whereas POPA-2 induced allodynia at extremely low doses from 1 to 100 fg/mouse, similar to ACRO-A, PSPA-1 did not induce allodynia; rather, it inhibited the ACRO-A-induced allodynia with an ID(50) value (95% confidence limits) of 2.19 fg/mouse (0.04-31.8 fg/mouse). Furthermore, PSPA-1 relieved neuropathic pain produced by L5 spinal nerve transection on day 7 after the operation in a dose-dependent manner from 1 to 100 pg/mouse. In contrast, it did not affect thermal or mechanical nociception or inflammatory pain. PSPA-1 reduced the increase in neuronal nitric oxide synthase activity in the spinal cord of neuropathic pain mice assessed by NADPH-diaphorase histochemistry and blocked the allodynia induced by N-methyl-d-aspartate. These results demonstrate that PSPA-1 may represent a novel class of anti-allodynic agents for neuropathic pain acting by blocking the glutamate-nitric oxide pathway.

[Anesthetic management of a patient with xeroderma pigmentosum].

Xeroderma pigmentosum (XP) is a rare autosomal recessive disease, which is characterized by hypersensitivity of the skin to ultraviolet (UV)-radiation and progressive neurological complications. Patients with XP show a failure to properly repair UV-induced DNA lesions by the nucleotide excision repair (NER) mechanism. This results predominantly in a high frequency of UV-induced skin tumors at an early age. Therefore, patients with XP must avoid exposure to UV-radiation by use of protective clothing, sunscreen and UV-blocking film. We report a 15-year-old girl, who underwent surgical treatment twice for clubfoot under general anesthesia using propofol and fentanyl. We protected her skin from light with UV blocking film in the operating room. Both surgical procedures were performed uneventfully except for delayed awakening. A number of precautions must be taken in the perioperative management of XP patients, which include proper shielding from damaging light, avoidance of all drugs that harm DNA such as halothane and careful evaluation of neurological abnormalities. There is a possibility of difficult endotracheal intubation or prolonged effect of muscle relaxation due to skin atrophy and joint contracture.

[Evaluation of 38 cases of employing aortic occlusion balloon catheter].

BACKGROUND: Aortic occlusion balloon catheter (AOBC), which occludes the descending aorta without thoracotomy, is expected to prevent further blood loss and raise blood pressure (BP). We investigated the effects of AOBC retrospectively. METHOD: AOBC was used in 38 patients for perioperative management only if the BP responded insufficiently despite rapid resuscitation due to massive hemorrhage below the diaphragm. There were 33 trauma cases, and five cases of ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm. We inserted AOBC via the femoral artery or left common carotid artery in the emergency room(ER) or in the operating room (OR). RESULTS: BP increased for 38.7 +/- 33.9 mmHg following AOBC, with a survival rate of 36%. CONCLUSIONS: In our experience, AOBC was effective for raising BP in patients in hemorrhagic shock.