RESUMEN
Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) is a noninvasive monitor used regularly in pediatric cardiac surgeries to monitor regional cerebral oxygenation (rScO2). A significant intraoperative cerebral desaturation (>20% from baseline) has been reported with poor neurological outcomes. We describe a case of a six-year-old child with carotid sheath neuroblastoma, located at the carotid bifurcation posted for tumor excision. Intraoperative NIRS monitoring revealed only a transient and insignificant (<10%) fall in the rScO2 during the tumor manipulation, ensuring uninterrupted cerebral circulation. The pediatric population is vulnerable to various physiological changes during anesthesia and surgery, and conserving cerebral function is one of the major goals. Though NIRS has been researched in various surgical specialties, future emphasis must be laid on its use in pediatric head and neck surgeries as a surrogate for cerebral perfusion.
RESUMEN
Background: In the fight against the pandemic, personal protective equipment (PPE) has played a vital role. However, working with PPE has its own difficulties and problems. The aim of this study was to find out the reasons of early doffing, that is, in doffing in emergency situations before the shift among healthcare workers (HCWs) working in PPE in the COVID areas in resource-limited settings. Methods: This cross-sectional, survey-based study was carried out on healthcare workers involved in direct care of patients with COVID-19 in tertiary care COVID center, India. The questionnaire was sent as a Google form through email and social media platforms like WhatsApp and Facebook. The data was reported as the mean ± SD for continuous variables and as the percentage for categorical variables. Findings: Among 252 healthcare workers who participated in the survey, 145 (57.5%) participants doffed early on 300 occasions. Out of these 145, 50% doffed early only once and rest doffed early multiple times. The most common reason of early doffing was found to be breach in PPE (15.33%) followed by fogging (14%) and headache (12%), and most commonly, breach was in mask or coverall/gown (32.6% each). Conclusion: Although PPE decreases the risk of infection, it is challenging for HCWs to work in PPE leading to instances of early doffing. The most common reason for early doffing in our study was the breach in PPE and the most common component of breach was found to be mask and coverall/gown. Therefore, we suggest that the proper sizes of the PPE should be made available and proper training in donning should be imparted to HCWs working in PPE.
RESUMEN
Objective: Postspinal hypotension occurs in nearly 50% of women undergoing cesarean section (CS). Although phenylephrine (PE) is currently the vasopressor of choice, severe maternal bradycardia may adversely affect the fetal status due to the reduction in the maternal cardiac output. Norepinephrine (NE) is not associated with bradycardia and is now being evaluated for the treatment of post-spinal hypotension in obstetric patients. The hypothesis of this study was that the prophylactic NE infusion was non-inferior to PE infusion when used for the prevention of postspinal hypotension. Methods: This was a randomized, double-blinded controlled study conducted in 130 parturients scheduled for CS. The participants received either prophylactic NE (5 µg min-1) or PE (25 µg min-1) infusion beginning at the time of spinal injection. The primary outcome was the incidence of hypotension in both groups. Maternal bradycardia, reactive hypertension, nausea and vomiting, requirement of rescue boluses of vasopressor and/or atropine, and neonatal acid base status were also recorded. Results: The incidence of hypotension was 33.80% (22 of 65) in Group PE and 26.10% (17 of 65) in Group NE (P=0.85). The absolute risk difference [90% confidence interval (CI)] in the incidence of hypotension between the groups was -7.7% (-20.9, 5.4). The upper limit of the CI was less than the non-inferiority margin of 20%, indicating that the NE infusion was non-inferior to PE. Conclusion: Prophylactic infusion of NE is not inferior to prophylactic PE infusion in the prevention of postspinal hypotension in patients undergoing CS.
