[Vocal cord paralysis after endotracheal intubation: an uncommon complication of general anesthesia]. / Paralisia de cordas vocais após intubação endotraqueal: uma complicação incomum da anestesia geral.

BACKGROUND: General anesthesia is a safe, frequent procedure in clinical practice. Although it is very unusual in procedures not related to head and or neck surgery, vocal cord paralysis is a serious and important complication. Incidence has been associated with patient age and comorbidities, as well as the position of the endotracheal tube and cuff. It can become a dangerous scenario because it predisposes aspiration. OBJECTIVES: To present a case and analyze the risk factors associated with increased risk of vocal cord paralysis described in the literature. CASE REPORT: 53 year-old diabetic man, who developed hoarseness in the postoperative period after receiving general anesthesia for an elective abdominal laparoscopic surgery. Otolaryngological evaluation showed left vocal cord paralysis. CONCLUSIONS: Vocal cord paralysis can be a serious complication of general anesthesia because of important voice dysfunction and risk of aspiration. The management is not yet fully established, so prevention and early diagnosis is essential.

Cuidado perioperatorio de pacientes portadores de dispositivos electrónicos cardíacos implantables / Perioperative care in patients with cardiac implantable electronic devices

Dado el creciente número de pacientes con dispositivos electrónicos cardíacos implantables (DECI), que incluyen marcapasos y/o cardiovertores-desfibriladores implantables, el manejo perioperatorio de aquellos que serán sometidos a cirugía requiere que el equipo quirúrgico esté familiarizado con estos dispositivos y sus implicancias, con la finalidad de disminuir los eventos adversos. Las guías clínicas actuales recomiendan un manejo multidisciplinario. Sin embargo, cuando estas condiciones no son posibles, tanto el equipo quirúrgico como anestésico deben ser capaces de proveer un manejo perioperatorio seguro y efectivo. Este debe ser individualizado a cada paciente, tipo de dispositivo y procedimiento quirúrgico al que será sometido, por lo que una única recomendación no es apropiada para todos los casos. En esta revisión se describen las principales recomendaciones para el manejo perioperatorio de pacientes usuarios de marcapasos y/o cardiovertores-desfibriladores implantables.

With the increased number of patients with cardiac implantable electronic devices (CIED), which include pacemakers and/or implantable cardioverter- defibrillators, the perioperative management of those patients who will be undergoing surgery requires that surgical team to become familiar with these devices and their implications, in order to reduce the adverse outcomes. Current guidelines recommend a multidisciplinary approach of these patients. However, when these conditions are not feasible, both surgical and anesthesia team should be able to provide a safe and effective perioperative environment. This management should be individualized for each patient, type of device and surgical procedure; therefore a single recommendation is not appropriate for all cases. The main recommendations for the perioperative management of patients with pacemakers and/or implantable cardioverter-defibrillators are described in this review.