A prospective, randomized comparison of cobra perilaryngeal airway and laryngeal mask airway unique in pediatric patients.

BACKGROUND: The Cobra Perilaryngeal Airway (PLA) provides better sealing pressure than the Laryngeal Mask Airway Unique (LMAU) during positive-pressure ventilation in adults. We compared the performance of the CobraPLA and LMAU in infants and children. METHODS: Two-hundred pediatric patients were randomly assigned to a CobraPLA or an Laryngeal Mask Airway (LMA). We measured airway sealing at cuff inflation pressures of 40 and 60 cm H2O; ease and time of insertion; device stability; efficacy of ventilation; number of insertion attempts; incidence of postoperative sore throat, dysphonia, laryngospasm, bronchospasm, and gastric gas insufflation. Steady-state end-tidal(CO2) was measured at the head of the CobraPLA and at the "Y-piece" piece of the anesthetic circuit. For the major outcomes, the airway groups were subdivided post hoc into small and large CobraPLA and small and large LMA subgroups. Results are presented as means +/- sds; P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. RESULTS: Airway sealing pressure with the cuff inflated to 60 cm H2O in the large CobraPLA subgroup (22 +/- 7 cm H2O) was significantly more than that of the small CobraPLA subgroup (18 +/- 5 cm H2O) and large LMA subgroup (16 +/- 5 cm H2O; P < 0.001). The CobraPLA was more stable than the LMA (same anatomic fit score before and after surgery) and produced less gastric insufflation. Head CobraPLA end-tidal(CO2) values were 6.4 +/- 6 mm Hg more than those of the Y piece of the circle circuit. CONCLUSIONS: The CobraPLA airway performed as well as the LMAU during anesthesia in pediatric patients for a large range of outcomes and was superior for some.

Caffeine in children with obstructive sleep apnea.

BACKGROUND: Children with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) have a higher rate of adverse post-extubation respiratory events, such as laryngospasm, upper airway obstruction, apnea, desaturation and/or need for re-intubation. They are overly sensitive to sedatives and narcotics. Although the etiology of OSA is primarily obstruction (mechanical or neuromuscular), a central element may contribute to OSA. Caffeine citrate has been shown to be effective in treating apnea of prematurity. This study evaluated whether the administration of caffeine benzoate to children with OSA decreases the number of children who experience adverse post-extubation respiratory events. METHODS: In a randomized, double-blind and placebo-controlled study, children with OSA scheduled for adenotonsillectomy (T&A) received either caffeine benzoate, 20 mg/kg IV, (caffeine group, n = 36) or saline (placebo group, n = 36). The primary outcome evaluated the number of children who developed adverse post-extubation respiratory events, and the secondary outcome was the incidence of those events. RESULTS: The results demonstrated the two groups differed in the number of children who developed adverse post-extubation respiratory events (p = 0.032). The overall incidence of adverse postoperative respiratory events was less in the caffeine group than the placebo group (p = 0.0196). CONCLUSION: In children with OSA scheduled for T&A, administration of caffeine benzoate, 20 mg/kg IV, decreased the number of children who developed adverse post-extubation respiratory events and decreased the overall incidence of adverse post-extubation respiratory events. PACU duration, hospital discharge time and postoperative delirium did not differ between groups.

Identification of the epidural space using pressure measurement with the compuflo injection pump--a pilot study.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: While epidural anesthesia (EA) is frequently used, success rate varies and complications associated with incorrect needle placement can occur. Different methods of objective identification of the epidural space (ES) have been suggested, without receiving widespread popularity. This prospective pilot study evaluated continuous pressure measurement during low speed injection with a computerized injection pump to objectively identify the ES. METHODS: While EA was performed using a conventional loss of resistance technique in 20 consecutive patients, the injection pump technology was used to obtain pressure readings from the supraspinous ligament, the ligamentum flavum, and the ES. In the next 20 patients, the epidural space was solely identified with the computerized injection pump. RESULTS: Pressure reading obtained during the first part of the study revealed significant differences between the ES vs. the supraspinous ligament, and the ES vs. the ligamentum flavum (8 mm Hg, 95% confidence interval [CI] 6-11 vs 79 mm Hg, 95% CI 74-83 and 92 mm Hg, 95% CI 83-102, respectively) (P < .001). In the second part of the study, the injection pump allowed for successful identification of the ES and performance of EA in all 20 patients. CONCLUSIONS: This investigation demonstrates that a computerized injection pump can be used to identify the epidural space and can serve as a base for further comparative research to determine whether this technology can increase the success rate of EA or lower the incidence of side effects.