The use of the Mayfield headrest to perform retinal surgery in the prone position.

A Mayfield neurosurgical headrest positioned at the end of a standard operating room table may be utilized to achieve the prone positioning necessary to perform certain types of ophthalmic procedures, such as the unfolding of the inverted flap of a giant retinal break. We describe the technique of employing this readily available headrest.

Survival following massive pulmonary hemorrhage complicating pulmonary embolectomy: a case report.

Continued employment of extracorporeal circulation provides for adequate oxygenation despite massive pulmonary hemorrhage. However, this modality requires continuing heparinization, which seems to preclude control of the hemorrhage. The longer bleeding persists, the more the pulmonary damage. Further, the problems of massive volume replacement will be added to this catastrophe. The authors believe that rapid discontinuance of extracorporeal bypass, reversal of heparinization with protamine, aggressive pulmonary suctioning, and alternate ventilation with 100% O2 were responsible for their good result. Arterial hypoxemia was avoided despite pulmonary suction yielding 1500 ml in 17 minutes.

Awake endotracheal intubation: a review of 267 cases.

During a 3-month period, 267 "awake" endotracheal intubations, representing 35 percent of all preoperative intubations, were performed with small doses of amnalgesic drugs given intravenously. Of 249 patients interviewed postoperatively, 86 percent reported complete amnesia for the procedure and only 3.5 percent recalled the event as being "quite unpleasant".