Preoperative assessment for outpatient anaesthesia.

Patients of all ages attending hospital for day-case surgery should undergo some form of routine screening by the anaesthetist before the induction of anaesthesia. A questionnaire is presented which can be recommended as an aid to identifying the patient with a more than normal risk, ensuring smoother anaesthesia with speedy and uneventful recovery and avoiding postponement of surgery in most cases.

Intravenous metoprolol and cardiac dysrhythmias. An evaluation in the management of dysrhythmias in outpatient dental anaesthesia.

The use of intravenous metoprolol in a dose of 0.06--0.17 mg/kg body weight proved effective in the treatment of sinus tachycardia in excess of 150 beats/min and/or ventricular dysrhythmias associated with light halothane anaesthesia for outpatient dental surgery. There were no side-effects related to this cardioselective beta-blocker in the dosage used. The prophylactic use of oral metoprolol should be considered for patients who find the prospect of dental treatment a fearsome experience.

Cardiac dysrhythmias during outpatient dental anaesthesia with enflurane. The role of "beta blockade".

In a study of 120 unpremedicated outpatients presenting for outpatient dental anaesthesia, the incidence of dysrhythmias was lower with enflurane than had previously been found with halothane (1). The intravenous use of the cardioselective beta adrenergic blocking agents practolol and metoprolol, in a dose of 0.05-0.22 and 0.16-0.17 mg/kg body weight, respectively, proved effective in the treatment of sinus tachycardia in excess of 150 beats/min and/or ventricular dysrhythmias. Although metoprolol, unlike practolol, has no intrinsic sympathetic activity, there were no side-effects related to either beta-blocker in the dosages used during enflurane anaesthesia.