Soundless Trouble: Syringe Pump Malfunction and the Hypotension Threat.

Drug infusion devices have become indispensable tools in ICU patient care, drug delivery, and operation rooms (OR) and for controlled fluid delivery. Syringe pump safety is paramount in healthcare and laboratory settings to ensure accurate medication delivery and prevent adverse events. Healthcare professionals must receive thorough training on syringe pump operation, including loading syringes, programming infusion rates, and responding to alarms. Using the correct syringe size and type is essential to prevent inaccuracies in drug/fluid delivery. Regular calibration and maintenance checks are necessary to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the syringe pumps. Two cases of refractory hypotension are reported here, which were resolved by careful inspection of the infusion pumps.

Perioperative Management of Emergency Craniotomes in Children With Cyanotic Congenital Heart Disease: A Case Series.

While congenital heart disease is not uncommon, cyanotic congenital heart disease (CCHD) accounts for a minor fraction of them. However, when cyanosis is present, it usually indicates a severe or critical illness. Tetralogy of Fallot (TOF) is one of the common CCHDs, representing 7-10% of all congenital cardiac malformations. Double-outlet right ventricle (DORV) is another CCHD similar to the TOF and associated with decreased pulmonary flow, ventricular septal defect (VSD), and aorta receiving blood from both ventricles. Reduced oxygen arterial saturation and increased viscosity by polycythemia induce focal cerebral ischemia, often in the area supplied by the middle cerebral artery leading to brain abscess. Brain abscesses require craniotomy, which is a major surgery. These patients also often show features of sepsis and increased intracranial pressure. The presence of CCHD further complicates the situation, making perioperative management even more challenging. There are studies in the literature on the management of similar cases, and they report successful management in most of them. However, not all such cases need intensive postoperative management. We present four pediatric cases who had either TOF or DORV and had to undergo craniotomy for brain abscess or ventriculoperitoneal shunt placement. We describe case management and highlight the critical features and cases that require prolonged postoperative critical care management.

Gastrointestinal endoscopy procedures under intravenous sedation in the prone position: keep LMA gastro handy!

Gastrointestinal endoscopies are often done in the prone position and anesthesiologists are needed to provide sedation. Airway access is limited in the prone position and may make timely airway management difficult in case of airway obstruction during sedation. Specialized laryngeal mask airway devices customized for endoscopy procedures like LMA® Gastro™ can be inserted in the prone position and may help anesthesiologists tide over such crisis situations while simultaneously allowing the endoscopy procedures through the dedicated conduit available for inserting the endoscopes. We have described one such case managed successfully by inserting LMA® Gastro™ in the prone position.