Giant Encephalocoele: A Rare Case Report and Review of Literature.

Giant encephalocoeles are rare entities with only one case series and few case reports reported in medical literature. Encephalocoeles, which reach a size larger than the head size, are be called Giant encephalocoeles. We report a case of a 6 month old child who had giant encephalocoele with delayed motor milestones in the form of inability to hold neck. Anesthetic implications include difficulty in securing air way due without undue pressure on the sac. She underwent VP shunt followed by excision of the encephalocele sac. Patient is doing well at 1 year of follow up. Preoperative neurological status and amount of brain tissue herniating into the sac are the most important factors determining the long term prognosis.

A Comparative Study of Clonidine and Lignocaine for Attenuating Pressor Responses to Laryngoscopy and Endotracheal Intubation in Neurosurgical Cases.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Laryngoscopy and endotracheal intubation are associated with reflex sympathetic stimulation, known as pressor response and can cause major complications. We compared the attenuating effect of time-tested lignocaine versus clonidine on the hemodynamic response to laryngoscopy and intubation in neurosurgical cases. DESIGN: A prospective, randomized, comparative, double-blind study with a sample size of sixty patients. METHODS: Sixty patients undergoing elective neurosurgery were randomly allocated into one of the two groups: Group L (n = 30) received lignocaine 1.5 mg/kg intravenous (i.v.) before induction and Group C (n = 30) received clonidine 2 µg/kg i.v. before induction. Heart rate (HR), systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), and mean arterial pressure (MAP) were recorded at baseline, after drug, after induction and 1, 2, 3,5,10, and 15 min after intubation. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: Statistical software, namely, SPSS, version 15.0 by SPSS Inc., Chicago, USA was used for the analysis of data with Chi-square test to compare intergroup hemodynamic parameters. RESULTS: Mean HR remained above baseline at all times after intubation in lignocaine group but decreased at 2 min after intubation and remained below baseline at all times in the clonidine group. SBP, DBP, and MAP all increased above baseline at 1 min after intubation in lignocaine group, and decreased below baseline at 2 min after intubation, whereas in the clonidine group they all decreased below baseline after drug administration and remained below baseline at all times. Therefore, clonidine is very effective in attenuating pressor responses and this difference between the groups is statistically very significant with P < 0.001. CONCLUSION: Clonidine is more effective than lignocaine for attenuating the pressor responses to laryngoscopy and endotracheal intubation in neurosurgical cases.

A Survey on Awareness about the Role of Anesthesia and Anesthesiologists among the Patients Undergoing Surgeries in a Tertiary Care Teaching Women and Children Hospital.

BACKGROUND: Although anesthesiology has grown tremendously and although anesthesiologists play a crucial role in the perioperative management of patients and also outside operating theater (OT) such as critical care, pain clinic, and labor analgesia, they do not get due recognition. We conducted a study to assess the awareness about the role of anesthesia and anesthesiologists among patients scheduled to undergo surgery in a Government Tertiary Care Teaching Women and Children Hospital. DESIGNS: A prospective cross-sectional survey with a sample size of 100 patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Patients scheduled to undergo elective surgery in the age group of 18-65 years with the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) Grades 1 and 2, who are willing to participate and given written informed consent. Patients whose age <18 years and more than 65 years, ASA health status Class 3 and above were excluded. ANALYSIS: Statistical analysis was done by calculating percentages using Chi-square test. RESULTS: Twenty percent of the participants were illiterate and of the educated, none were graduates or postgraduates. Patients with higher level of education had better knowledge of anesthesiology and role of an anesthesiologist with P < 0.05 than those with lesser education. Forty-eight percent of the participants had no idea about anesthesia despite the majority (62%) having previous surgery with no statistically significant difference (P > 0.05) between those with previous surgery and those without previous surgery regarding their knowledge of anesthesiology and anesthesiologist. Ninety percent did not know the complications, types of anesthesia and 44% did not know that anesthesiologist is a doctor. CONCLUSION: Most of the participants were not aware of the role of anesthesia and anesthesiologists inside and outside OT. Although this could be attributed to their lower level of education, the fraternity of anesthesiologists has to educate patients and surgeons about the role of anesthesia.

Attenuation of Hemodynamic Response to Skull Pin Head Holder Insertion: Intravenous Clonidine versus Intravenous Lignocaine Infusion.

BACKGROUND: Insertion of skull pin induces a significant increase in heart rate (HR), blood pressure (BP) and intracranial pressure. Alpha 2 agonist clonidine and intravenous (i.v.) lignocaine are effective in attenuating stress response. Local infiltration of pin site and scalp block with lignocaine are commonly used techniques for prevention of hemodynamic response to skull pin insertion. We compared the effectiveness of i.v. clonidine infusion and i.v. lignocaine infusion in suppressing the hemodynamic response to skull pin head holder insertion. DESIGNS: Randomized double blind study conducted with sample size - sixty patients, divided into two groups: Group C (n = 30) - clonidine i.v. dose 2 µg/kg; Group L (n = 30) - lignocaine i.v. dose 1.5 mg/kg. MATERIALS AND METHODS: All patients posted for elective craniotomy belonging to American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) 1 and 2, age group 18-70 were included in the study. ASA 3, 4; difficult airway; hypertensives; allergy to study drugs; ischemic heart disease; and arteriovenous malformations were excluded. Study drugs were administered 10 min prior to induction in 10 ml syringes with infusion pump over 10 min. Standard anesthesia protocol followed. HR, noninvasive BP, mean arterial pressure (MAP), and IBP were recorded at baseline (BL), after study drug (AD), 1 min after intubation (AI), 1 min prior to pin insertion -pre pin (PP), and 5 min after pin insertion (AP). ANALYSIS: Descriptive and inferential statistical analysis - Student's t- and Chi-square/Fisher exact test were used (SAS 9.2, SPSS 15.0) P value described as *moderately significant (P value: 0.01 < P ≤ 0.05) **strongly significant (P value: P ≤ 0.01). RESULTS: Groups were matched with respect to age (P = 0.7), gender distribution (P = 0.6), and weight (P = 0.67) There was no difference in BL HR in two groups. Significant difference in HR was noted after intubation P < 0.031 and pin insertion P < 0.001 stages with lower HR in Group C (76.03 ± 9.88) versus Group L (98 ± 60.89) MAP recordings showed no statistically significant difference in two groups at BL and after drug administration stages. A significant difference was seen in intubation (P < 0.014), very significant difference (P < 0.001) was noted in pre- and post-pin insertion stages with MAP was lower in Group C (76.03 ± 9.88) versus Group L (87.17 ± 8.90). CONCLUSION: i.v. clonidine at dose of 2 µg/kg is a better drug in attenuating hemodynamic response to skull pin head holder insertion than i.v. lignocaine.

A comparative study of landmark-based topographic method versus the formula method for estimating depth of insertion of right subclavian central venous catheters.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Subclavian central venous catheterisation (CVC) is employed in critically ill patients requiring long-term central venous access. There is no gold standard for estimating their depth of insertion. In this study, we compared the landmark topographic method with the formula technique for estimating depth of insertion of right subclavian CVCs. METHODS: Two hundred and sixty patients admitted to Intensive Care Unit requiring subclavian CVC were randomly assigned to either topographic method or formula method (130 in each group). Catheter tip position in relation to the carina was measured on a post-procedure chest X-ray. The primary endpoint was the need for catheter repositioning. Mann-Whitney test and Chi-square test was performed for statistical analysis using SPSS for windows version 18.0 (Armonk, NY: IBM Corp). RESULTS: Nearly, half the catheters positioned by both the methods were situated >1 cm below the carina and required repositioning. CONCLUSION: Both the techniques were not effective in estimating the approximate depth of insertion of right subclavian CVCs.

Anesthesia for a Rare Case of Uncorrected Pentalogy of Fallot Undergoing Craniotomy and Drainage of Brain Abscess.

Children with uncorrected cyanotic congenital heart diseases can present for non cardiac surgeries. They pose several challenges to the Anaesthesiologist, especially when they are posted for emergency surgery, due to the complex haemodynamic changes secondary to the heart disease. Pentalogy of Fallot (POF) is a rare form of congenital heart disease characterized by the association of Tetralogy of Fallot (TOF) with an atrial septal defect (ASD). TOF is the leading cause of intracardiac right to left shunt and is the commonest type of cyanotic congenital heart disease to cause a brain abscess. Children with POF presenting with brain abscess pose several challenges to the anaesthesiologist due to the altered haemodynamics and warrant a meticulous anaesthetic plan. There are very few case reports of Anaesthesia management of a child with Pentalogy of Fallot (POF) presenting for non cardiac surgery. We report the anaesthetic management of a rare case of a 5-year-old child with uncorrected POF, who presented to our Superspeciality hospital with a brain abscess and underwent an emergency craniotomy with drainage of the brain abscess successfully.

Anaesthesia for a Rare Case of Down's Syndrome with Morgagni's Hernia Undergoing Laparoscopic Repair.

Morgagni's hernia is a type of congenital diaphragmatic hernia and it is rare in children. The association between Down's syndrome and Morgagni's hernia in children is also rare. Laparoscopic repair is a preferred surgical approach than open surgical procedures as laparoscopy offers a bilateral view of Morgagni's hernia, minimal tissue damage and a faster recovery. When children with Down's syndrome and associated Morgagni's hernia present for laparoscopic repair, they pose several complex challenges to the anaesthetist due to the involvement of multiple organ systems, difficulties in airway management and effects of laparoscopic surgery on the organ systems. Therefore, such children need a very careful anaesthetic plan, including a thorough preoperative assessment and preparation for a successful perioperative outcome.

Anaesthetic management of a pregnant patient with intracranial space occupying lesion for craniotomy.

Intracranial space occupying lesion [SOL] during pregnancy presents several challenges to the neurosurgeons, obstetricians and anaesthesiologists in not only establishing the diagnosis, but also in the perioperative management as it requires a careful plan to balance both maternal and foetal well-being. It requires modification of neuroanaesthetic and obstetric practices which often have competing clinical goals to achieve the optimal safety of both mother and foetus. Intracranial tuberculoma should be considered in the differential diagnosis of intracranial SOL in pregnant women with signs and symptoms of raised intracranial pressure with or without neurological deficits, especially when they are from high incidence areas. We report a 28-week pregnant patient with intracranial SOL who underwent craniotomy and excision of the lesion, subsequently diagnosed as cranial tuberculoma.

Lemierre's syndrome presenting with septic shock.

Lemierre's syndrome is a rare condition characterized by septic thrombophlebitis of the internal jugular vein and metastatic abscesses following oropharyngeal infection. Though classically caused by Fusobacterium necrophorum, a number of other causative organisms have been reported in literature. We report a case of Lemierre's syndrome following parapharyngeal abscess due to staphylococcus aureus which progressed to septic shock.