Preoperative gastric point-of-care ultrasound in nonelective surgical procedures in pediatric-aged patients.

Background: Airway management for nonelective surgical procedures in the setting of trauma, pain, and opioid use can be complicated by the potential for aspiration due to delayed gastric emptying. Point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) remains a useful tool for evaluating gastric content and volume in various clinical settings. The authors evaluated gastric volume and content in children scheduled for urgent and semi-urgent procedures to assess their aspiration risk. Methods: After obtaining consent, gastric POCUS was performed in the preoperative holding area for pediatric patients scheduled for both elective and nonelective surgery. Qualitative and quantitative measurements of the gastric antrum were taken, and the risk of gastric aspiration was calculated. Additional data collected included patient demographics, the type of surgery, nil per os (NPO) status at the time of surgery, NPO status at the time of injury, and administration of opioids. Results: The study cohort included 100 patients ranging in age from 3 to 17 years old (mean age 9.2 years). Out of these 100 patients, gastric scanning was successfully conducted in 98 patients. Sixteen of fifty-nine nonelective patients (27%) had received opioids for pain control prior to surgery. Among the 34 patients who had suffered an acute injury, 7 (21%) had been NPO for <8 hours at the time of the injury. Ninety-nine out of hundred patients had been NPO for at least 6 hours at the time of the gastric ultrasound. Based on our gastric ultrasound findings, all patients who were appropriately NPO had either Grade 0 or Grade 1 risk for aspiration, indicating a low risk of aspiration. Conclusions: The preliminary data show that when patients presenting for nonelective surgery are appropriately NPO, they may have a low risk of aspiration. This information may help guide the choice of anesthetic induction technique, particularly when concerns exist about the safety of a rapid sequence induction. It allows for a more stable and controlled induction of anesthesia.

Speech Recognition System Generates Highly Accurate Endoscopic Reports in Clinical Practice.

Objective Endoscopic reports are conventionally written at the end of each procedure, and the endoscopist must complete the report from memory. To make endoscopic reporting more efficient, we developed a new speech recognition (SR) system that generates highly accurate endoscopic reports based on structured data entry. We conducted a pilot study to examine the performance of this SR system in an actual endoscopy setting with various types of background noise. Methods In this prospective observational pilot study, participants who underwent upper endoscopy with our SR system were included. The primary outcome was the correct recognition rate of the system. We compared the findings generated by the SR system with the findings in the handwritten report prepared by the endoscopist. The initial correct recognition rate, number of revisions, finding registration time, and endoscopy time were also analyzed. Results Upper endoscopy was performed in 34 patients, generating 128 findings of 22 disease names. The correct recognition rate was 100%, and the median number of revisions was 0. The median finding registration time was 2.57 [interquartile range (IQR), 2.33-2.92] seconds, and the median endoscopy time was 234 (IQR, 194-227) seconds. Conclusion The SR system demonstrated high recognition accuracy in the clinical setting. The finding registration time was extremely short.

Ultrasound-Guided Placement of a Hemodialysis Catheter into the Distal Femoral Vein in a Patient with Multiple Catheters: A Case Report.

Cardiac surgery-associated acute kidney injury may require postoperative renal replacement therapy. Although the right internal jugular vein and femoral veins are generally the preferred insertion sites for the hemodialysis catheter for continuous renal replacement therapy, the presence of other indwelling catheters or prior thrombotic events from previous catheters may preclude use of these sites. We present a case in which the hemodialysis catheter was inserted into the distal femoral vein using point-of-care ultrasound in a patient with multiple catheter insertions after coronary artery bypass grafting. Although the tip of the dialysis catheter was more distal than the classic femoral approach, renal replacement therapy was performed without problems. Moreover, it was easier for the nurses to keep the insertion site clean and to change the patient's position.

Optic nerve ultrasound and cardiopulmonary bypass: A pilot study.

Introduction: Despite advances in surgical, anesthetic, perfusion, and postoperative care, adverse neurological consequences may occur following cardiac surgery and cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB). Consequences of the physiologic effects of CPB may alter the blood-brain barrier, autoregulation, and intracranial pressure (ICP) in the immediate postoperative period. Methods: We evaluated the effects of cardiac surgery and CPB on the central nervous system by measuring the optic nerve sheath diameter (ONSD) by using ultrasound as a surrogate marker of ICP. ONSD was measured after anesthetic induction and endotracheal intubation (time 1), after separation from CPB (time 2), and at the completion of the surgical procedure prior to leaving the OR (time 3). Results: The study cohort included 14 patients, ranging in age from newborn to 6 years. When comparing the Fontan group (n = 5) to the non-Fontan group (n = 9), four elevated ONSD observations were recorded for the Fontan patients during the study period, including one at time 1, one at time 2, and two at time 3. In Fontan versus non-Fontan patients, ONSD was greater at all three time points compared to non-Fontan. The change in the ONSD from time 1 to time 2 was greater (+0.2 mm vs. -0.1 mm), and the mean value at time 2 was significantly higher (4.2 vs. 3.5 mm, P = 0.048). Conclusions: Patients with Fontan physiology may be more prone to higher levels of baseline intracranial pressure due to elevated systemic venous pressure and decreased cardiac output. Alternatively, the chronically high central venous pressures may artificially elevate ONSD without clinical changes in ICP, necessitating the development of separate normative values based on the type of congenital heart disease.

Ultrasound assessment of the inferior vena cava in children: A comparison of sub-xiphoid and right lateral coronal views.

OBJECTIVES: The inferior vena cava collapsibility index (IVCCI) has been used to assess the respiratory variation of the inferior vena cava (IVC) diameter and hence intravascular volume. The sub-xiphoid view (SXV) is the standard view to evaluate the IVC. The right lateral transabdominal view (RLV) has been shown in adults to be an alternative view to evaluate the IVC when the SXV is not feasible. The aim of the study was to compare IVC dimensions from these two views and thus determine whether the RLV view can be used instead of the SXV in pediatric patients. METHODS: We conducted a single-center prospective observational crossover study. Study subjects were ASA physical status 1-2 children, 1-12 years of age scheduled for elective surgery under general anesthesia. Anesthesia was maintained by mask with spontaneous ventilation with end-tidal sevoflurane at 2%-5% after the induction of anesthesia. IVCCI was measured using M-mode in both the SXV and RLV. RESULTS: The study cohort included 50 children with a mean age of 5.1 years. The median value for the IVCCI-sx was 0.45 (IQR: 0.28-0.70) while the IVCCI-rl was 0.30 (0.19-0.5). The mean difference between the two groups was 0.12 (95% CI: 0.177-0.066, p < .001, two-tailed paired t-test). Spearman's rank correlation coefficient was 0.66. The univariate linear regression model was IVCCIsx = 0.21 + 0.77 × IVCCIrl. CONCLUSIONS: IVCCIrl was lower than IVCCIsx. IVCCI measured from the right lateral view tended to overestimate the patient's fluid-responsiveness and therefore these two values are not interchangeable.

Anesthetic Care During Tracheostomy in a Patient with Generalized Tetanus: A Case Report.

Tetanus is a potentially fatal infectious disease caused by the toxins produced by the anaerobic bacterium, Clostridium tetani. Of major concern during the perioperative care of these patients is control of muscle spasms, skeletal rigidity, and autonomic dysfunction. Several of the modern sedative and opioid agents including remifentanil have not been fully evaluated in managing tetanus. We present the intraoperative use of remifentanil in a 75-year-old woman with generalized tetanus who required anesthetic care during placement of a tracheostomy. The end-organ involvement of tetanus is presented, previous reports of anesthetic care reviewed, and the potential utility of remifentanil explored.

Combined Spinal-Epidural Anesthesia for Subtotal Colectomy in a Patient With Hamman Syndrome and Epidural Pneumatosis: A Case Report.

It remains unclear how epidural pneumatosis affects the efficacy of neuraxial anesthesia. Spontaneous pneumomediastinum (Hamman syndrome) with epidural pneumatosis is rare. Regardless of its etiology, general anesthesia with positive pressure ventilation in patients with pneumomediastinum carries the risk of pneumothorax. We present a 19-year-old patient with Hamman syndrome and epidural pneumatosis who required emergency laparotomy. Effective analgesia was obtained using neuraxial anesthesia with a combined spinal-epidural anesthesia technique.

The U-shaped association of serum iron level with disease severity in adult hospitalized patients with COVID-19.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is an emerging infectious disease that leads to severe respiratory failure (RF). It is known that host exposure to viral infection triggers an iron-lowering response to mitigate pathogenic load and tissue damage. However, the association between host iron-lowering response and COVID-19 severity is not clear. This two-center observational study of 136 adult hospitalized COVID-19 patients analyzed the association between disease severity and initial serum iron, total iron-binding capacity (TIBC), and transferrin saturation (TSAT) levels. Serum iron levels were significantly lower in patients with mild RF than in the non-RF group; however, there were no significant differences in iron levels between the non-RF and severe RF groups, depicting a U-shaped association between serum iron levels and disease severity. TIBC levels decreased significantly with increasing severity; consequently, TSAT was significantly higher in patients with severe RF than in other patients. Multivariate analysis including only patients with RF adjusted for age and sex demonstrated that higher serum iron and TSAT levels were independently associated with the development of severe RF, indicating that inadequate response to lower serum iron might be an exacerbating factor for COVID-19.

Utility of gastric ultrasound in evaluating nil per os status in a child.

Although rare, the aspiration of gastric contents can lead to significant morbidity or even mortality in pediatric patients receiving anesthetic care. For elective cases, routine preoperative practices include the use of standard nil per os times to decrease the risk of aspiration. However, patients may fail to adhere to provided NPO guidelines or other patient factors may impact the efficacy of standard NPO times. Gastric point-of-care ultrasound provides information on the volume and quality of gastric contents and may allow improved patient management strategies. We present a 4-year-old patient who presented for bilateral myringotomy with tympanostomy tube insertion, who was found to have evidence of a full stomach during preoperative gastric ultrasound examination. The use of preoperative gastric point-of-care ultrasound in evaluating stomach contents and confirming NPO times is reviewed and its application to perioperative practice discussed.

Point-of-Care Lung Ultrasound to Evaluate Lung Isolation During One-Lung Ventilation in Children: Narrative Review.

This review focuses on the current technique and evidence regarding the use of point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) to evaluate lung isolation for thorax surgery in infants and children. Previous reports in infants and children are presented. Figures and high-quality video are used to demonstrate the technique for POCUS in pediatric patients and to highlight differences between pediatric and patients. Lung sliding in B-mode and the seashore sign in M-mode suggest that the lung is ventilated. Pediatric anesthesiologists should be familiar with this technique as it is non-invasive and may also be more accurate when compared with auscultation.

Point-of-Care Gastric Ultrasound in a Pediatric Patient After Bowel Preparation: A Case Report.

Polyethylene glycol electrolyte solutions (PEG, NuLYTELY®) are widely used to prepare the GI tract before colonoscopy or barium enema examinations. Although PEG appears as a clear liquid, the optimal interval for sedation or general anesthesia after the last administration of these solutions is unclear and controversial in the anesthetic literature. We present a 3-year-old patient with intermittent bloody stools who required anesthetic care for esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) and colonoscopy. Given the controversial nil per os time with the use of PEG-containing solutions, point-of-care gastric ultrasound was performed to evaluate gastric contents and gastric volume before the induction of anesthesia.

The Difference Between Set and Delivered Tidal Volume: A Lung Simulation Study.

BACKGROUND: Precise control of tidal volume is one of the keys in limiting ventilator-induced lung injury and ensuring adequate ventilation in mechanically ventilated neonates. The aim of the study was to compare the tidal volume (mVT) measured from the expiratory limb of the ventilator with the actual tidal volume (aVT) that would be delivered to the patient using a lung model to simulate a neonate. METHODS: This study was conducted using the ASL5000 lung simulator. Three combinations of parameters were set: resistance (cmH2O/L/sec) and compliance (mL/cmH2O) of 50 and 2 (Group 1), 100 and 1 (Group 2), and 150 and 0.5 (Group 3), respectively. The ASL5000 was connected to each of the ventilators including one anesthesia machine ventilator (Drager Fabius GS) and two ICU ventilators (Servo-i Universal and Evita Infinity V500). Each ventilator was evaluated with a set tidal volume of 30 mL (sVT) and a respiratory rate of 25 breathes/minute in both the volume-controlled ventilation (VCV) and dual-controlled ventilation (DCV) modes. RESULTS: The discrepancies between sVT, mVT and aVT were highest with the Fabius anesthesia machine ventilator and increased in the simulated lung injury groups. When comparing the ICU ventilators, the difference was greater the Servo-i and increased when using the DCV mode and with simulated lung injury. CONCLUSION: Accurate tidal volumes were achieved only with the Infinity ICU ventilator. This was true regardless of mode of ventilation and even during simulated lung injury.

Anesthetic Management of an Infant With Kleefstra Syndrome During Direct Laryngoscopy and Rigid Bronchoscopy: A Case Report.

Kleefstra syndrome (KS) is an autosomal dominant disorder caused by a chromosomal deletion at 9q34.3 resulting in pathogenic variants of the gene that codes for the enzyme, euchromatin histone methyltransferase 1 (EHMT1). KS is a rare, yet clinically relevant congenital disorder for anesthesiologists because of its potential for cardiac and craniofacial involvement. We present a 3-month-old patient with KS who required anesthetic care for diagnostic laryngoscopy and rigid bronchoscopy. The end-organ effects of KS are reviewed and our anesthetic care presented.

Persistent Left Superior Vena Cava Suggested by an Unusual Central Venous Pressure Waveform.

Background A persistent left superior vena cava (PLSVC) is the most common congenital anomaly of the thoracic venous return. Case Description During atrial septal defect repair, a pulmonary artery (PA) catheter was placed via the left internal jugular vein. Although placement of the PA catheter in the main PA was confirmed by transesophageal echocardiography, the central venous pressure (CVP) waveform was abnormal. Intraoperatively, the PA catheter was seen exiting the coronary sinus with the CVP port within the coronary sinus. Conclusions The diagnosis of PLSVC is discussed and the differential diagnosis of the abnormal "ventricular" pattern of the CVP waveform is reviewed.

Batten disease and perioperative complications: a retrospective descriptive study.

PURPOSE: Batten disease or neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis is the most prevalent neurodegenerative disorder of childhood. Previously reported perioperative complications in children with Batten disease have come mainly from single case reports. The primary aim of the current study was to investigate perioperative complications of patients with Batten disease in the largest cohort known to date. The secondary objective was to characterize the anesthetic management including the use of propofol and to assess its association with adverse events. METHOD: We conducted a single center, retrospective descriptive study by querying the hospital's electronic medical record to identify patients with a diagnosis of Batten disease or ICD10 E75.4 who received anesthetic care from December 2014 to May 2019. RESULTS: Thirty-five patients who underwent a total of 93 anesthetic encounters (range 1-11) were included in the analysis. A total of 29 adverse events were identified. Hypotension (N = 6, 6.5%) and bradycardia (N = 7, 7.5%) requiring treatment with medications were the most common adverse events. Other adverse events include oxygen desaturation (N = 4, 4.3%), seizures (N = 4, 4.3%), unanticipated hospital or ICU admission (N = 1, 1.1%), PACU phase 1 stay > 120 min (N = 2, 2.2%), hypothermia (N = 4, 4.3%), agitation (N = 1, 1.1%), and laryngospasm requiring treatment (N = 1, 1.1%). The number of preoperative anti-epileptic drugs (AEDs) had a positive correlation with the rate of perioperative adverse events. There was no statistical relationship of adverse events with intraoperative use of propofol (odds ratio 1.03, 95% CI 0.42-2.51). CONCLUSIONS: The majority of these patients were managed without clinically significant perioperative complications. As previously reported, bradycardia, hypotension, and hypothermia were the most common adverse events. Routine avoidance of propofol in patients with Batten disease does not appear warranted.

Sequential Versus Combined Heart-Liver Transplantation in the USA.

INTRODUCTION: Combined heart-liver transplantation (CHLT) has resulted in acceptable survival rates compared to orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) alone and orthotopic heart transplantation alone. Using the US transplant registry, we compared outcomes following sequential and combined HLT. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective cohort study. De-identified data were obtained from the United Network Organ Sharing Registry. The primary outcome was patient survival from the date of OLT. Secondary outcomes included liver allograft survival and heart allograft survival. RESULTS: The study cohort included 301 CHLT recipients and six sequential heart-liver transplantation (SHLT) recipients. Patient survival after CHLT was 88% at 1 year, 84% at 3 years, and 82% at 5 years compared to 83%, 67%, and 50% in the SHLT group (p = 0.010). Liver allograft survival at 1, 3, and 5 years was 88%,83% and 82%, respectively, in the CHLT group compared to 83% and 67%, and 50%, respectively, in the SHLT group (p = 0.009). After OLT, heart allograft survival at 1, 3, and 5 years was 86%, 79%, and 74% in the CHLT group, respectively, compared to 83%, 67%, and 50% in the SHLT group (p = 0.037). CONCLUSIONS: Despite the limited size of the SHLT cohort, we found that CHLT was superior to SHLT in survival rate and graft survival. The better outcomes noted in CHLT may relate to immunoprotection provided by liver transplantation from the same donor.

Point-of-care lung ultrasound to evaluate lung isolation during one-lung ventilation in children: A case report.

Minimally invasive thoracic surgical techniques require effective lung separation using one-lung ventilation (OLV). Verification of lung isolation may be confirmed by auscultation, visual confirmation using fiberoptic bronchoscopy, or more recently, point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS). We describe anecdotal experience with POCUS to guide OLV during robotic-assisted thoracic surgery in a child. Techniques to confirm thoracic separation are reviewed and potential advantages of POCUS discussed.

Simulation of pressure support for spontaneous breathing trials in neonates.

BACKGROUND: Endotracheal tubes used for neonates are not as resistant to breathing as originally anticipated; therefore, spontaneous breathing trials (SBTs) with continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP), without pressure support (PS), are recommended. However, PS extubation criteria have predetermined pressure values for each endotracheal tube diameter (PS 10 cmH2O with 3.0- and 3.5-mm tubes or PS 8 cmH2O with 4.0-mm tubes). This study aimed to assess the validity of these SBT criteria for neonates, using an artificial lung simulator, ASL 5000™ lung simulator, and a SERVO-i Universal™ ventilator (minute volume, 240-360 mL/kg/min; tidal volume, 30 mL; respiratory rate, 24-36/min; lung compliance, 0.5 mL/cmH2O/kg; resistance, 40 cmH2O/L/s) in an intensive care unit. We simulated a spontaneous breathing test in a 3-kg neonate after cardiac surgery with 3.0-3.5-mm endotracheal tubes. We measured the work of breathing (WOB), trigger work, and parameters of pressure support ventilation (PSV), T-piece breathing, or ASL 5000™ alone. RESULTS: WOB displayed respiratory rate dependency under intubation. PS compensating tube resistance fluctuated with respiratory rate. At a respiratory rate of 24/min, the endotracheal tube did not greatly influence WOB under PSV and the regression line of WOB converged with the WOB of ASL 5000™ alone under PS 1 cmH2O; however, at 36/min, endotracheal tube was resistant to breathing under PSV because trigger work increased exponentially with PS ≤ 9 cmH2O. The regression line of WOB under PSV converged with the WOB of T-piece breathing under PS 1 cmH2O. Furthermore, PS compensating endotracheal tube resistance was 6 cmH2O. The WOB of ASL 5000™ alone approached that of respiratory distress syndrome (RDS); however, the pressure of patient effort was normal physiological range at PS 10 cmH2O. PS equalizing WOB under PSV with that after extubation depended on the respiratory rate and upper airway resistance. If WOB after extubation equaled that of T-piece breathing, the PS was 0 cmH2O regardless of the respiratory rates. If WOB after extubation approximated  to that of ASL 5000™ alone, the PS depended on the respiratory rate. CONCLUSION: SBT strategies should be selected per neonatal respiratory rates and upper airway resistance.