Sherlock Holmes and anaesthesia.

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's first Sherlock Holmes adventure, A Study in Scarlet, was published 100 years ago. Between 1887 and 1927 he wrote 56 short stories and four novels about his fictional detective. Episodes in the adventures which relate to anaesthetic drugs are described. Use of the drugs was criminal in the case of chloroform, opium, and curare; therapeutic in the case of morphine; and recreational when Holmes himself used cocaine.

Criminal poisoning with anaesthetic drugs: murder, manslaughter, or not guilty.

Criminal poisoning is uncommon and the use of anaesthetic and related drugs for this purpose is very rare. Seven cases, involving the use of morphine, chloroform, hyoscine, thiopental, and succinylcholine, are described. In three cases the accused was found guilty of murder, in two guilty of manslaughter, in two not guilty and in one the verdict is not known.

Informed consent for clinical anaesthesia research.

Most surgical patients are first seen by an anaesthetist after admission to hospital, either the evening before or on the day of surgery. Some medical ethicists believe that an approach by an anaesthesia researcher made after admission is unethical because the hospital itself is a coercive environment, and patients have insufficient time for reflection or consultation. Others believe that an approach prior to admission may be an invasion of the patient's privacy and confidentiality. The implications of these views for anaesthesia researchers may not be apparent to research ethics boards (REBs). To determine current practice, a questionnaire concerning the membership and function of REBs and the time of obtaining informed consent was sent to each research representative of the 16 Canadian university departments of anaesthesia. Membership of REBS was similar, but not identical, in all centres. Most representation was from medical disciplines. Consent was generally obtained following the patient's admission to hospital. In one centre, the REB always requested informed consent to be obtained before the patient's admission to the hospital. Surgeons had no involvement with consent for anaesthesia research in 14 centres while in the other two they gave permission for their patients to be studied and informed patients of the potential approach by anaesthesia researchers. We conclude that it is ethically acceptable to obtain informed consent for most low-risk clinical anaesthesia research after the patient's admission to hospital.

The Wood Library-Museum's 1858 edition of John Snow's On chloroform and other anaesthetics.

The original 1858 edition of John Snow's On Chloroform and Other Anaesthetics, from which came the Wood Library-Museum of Anesthesiology reprints in 1971 and 1989, was donated to the Wood Library-Museum by Ralph Waters of Madison, Wisconsin, in 1967. The book contains a message of appreciation to Waters, dated October 1937, with the signatures of J. Blomfield, Charles King, and R.R. Macintosh as representatives of anesthesiology in England. Correspondence exists in the archives of the University of Wisconsin-Madison between Macintosh, Professor of Anaesthetics in Oxford, and Waters, Associate Professor in Madison. This reveals that Waters, during his visit to England in 1936, inspired British anesthetists to discover more of Snow's early contributions to anesthesiology, even though Waters himself did not possess On Chloroform and Other Anaesthetics. King, a manufacturer of anesthetic equipment, found a copy in the hands of Blomfield, an anesthetist at St. George's Hospital, London, where John Snow had worked. It was this copy that they presented to Waters, and that was delivered to Waters by hand when Waters' resident, Ivan Taylor, returned from Oxford to Madison. Blomfield's ownership of the book, in addition to his position as president of the Association of Anaesthetists of Great Britain and Ireland, explains why the inscription is in his handwriting.

Amniotic fluid embolism: a report of four probable cases.

Four probable cases of amniotic fluid embolism (AFE) are reviewed. The outcome appeared to be determined by the severity of the insult, and possibly the gestation of the pregnancy, rather than the management of the AFE. Two cases occurred during early labour; neither patient recovered consciousness. One died two weeks later and the other suffered severe permanent cerebral damage. The other two cases occurred during dilatation and curettage, one for therapeutic abortion at fourteen weeks gestation and the other for missed abortion at twenty weeks gestation. Both patients made full recoveries. Disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) was a feature of all four cases. In the patients in labour it occurred almost immediately. In those undergoing dilatation and curettage it occurred after the patients had apparently recovered but were under observation in the intensive care unit. Amniotic fluid embolism can occur during an apparently uneventful labour. It should also be suspected when unexplained collapse occurs during second trimester dilatation and curettage. Because severe DIC may follow, such patients should be transferred immediately to a centre with full haemotology services.

Vomiting and aspiration pneumonitis with the laryngeal mask airway.

We report a case of severe aspiration pneumonitis in the dependent lung of a 74-yr-old man following Austin-Moore arthroplasty. A laryngeal mask airway provided a clear airway until anaesthesia became too light during manipulation of the fractured femoral head. Active vomiting occurred and gastric contents were "reflected" back into the trachea. Tracheal intubation and suction were immediately performed but the patient required postoperative ventilatory and inotropic support for three days.

Repeat ketamine anaesthesia of a child for radiotherapy in the prone position.

Sixteen ketamine anaesthetics over an eight-week period for a course of postoperative radiotherapy following removal of a medulloblastoma in an 18-month-old child are described. On each occasion the child was in the prone position with a tight fitting shell covering the head, trunk and arms. The problems of repeated anaesthetics, isolation of the child in one room from the anaesthetist in another, and psychological upset to the mother and child are discussed. Ketamine was chosen because with this agent the patient usually maintains a clear airway, even in unusual postures. It was used successfully by both the intramuscular and rectal routes, thus avoiding repeated venepuncture and intubation. Post-anaesthetic nausea was a problem, but tolerance to ketamine and psychological emergence phenomena did not occur.

Comparison of flunitrazepam and thiopentone for induction of general anaesthesia.

Forty female out-patients undergoing therapeutic abortion participated in a double-blind study comparing flunitrazepam 0.05 mg . kg-1 with thiopentone 6.0 mg . kg-1 as induction agents for general anaesthesia. Induction time, as measured by the time to loss of lid reflex and voluntary speech, was not only significantly longer in patients receiving flunitrazepam, but also much more variable and imprecise than with thiopentone. The Steward recovery room scores and psychomotor drawing test results revealed that recovery was significantly slower in the flunitrazepam group. Anterograde amnesia was observed in all patients who had received flunitrazepam and in one patient who had received thiopentone. No retrograde amnesia was found in either group. Flunitrazepam produced postoperative drowsiness, sedation, ataxia and nausea while with thiopentone discomfort from surgery and discomfort at the intravenous injection site were the main complaints. Because of the slowness of induction with flunitrazepam and marked individual variation, we do not feel that this drug can be considered a suitable agent for routine induction of general anaesthesia.

Gastric fluid volume and pH in elective inpatients. Part I: Coffee or orange juice versus overnight fast.

In order to assess the effect of preoperative oral fluids, with and without ranitidine, on gastric fluid volume and pH, 300 elective surgical inpatients, ASA physical status I or II, were randomly assigned to one of six groups. The three groups that received placebo are discussed in this paper, Part I, and the three that received ranitidine in Part II. Between two and three hours before the scheduled time of surgery patients received either 150 ml coffee (Group 1), or 150 ml orange juice (Group 2), while the control group continued their overnight fast (Group 3). No opiate or belladonna premedication was given. Immediately following induction of anaesthesia the residual gastric fluid was obtained by suction on a nasogastric tube and its volume and pH measured. Residual gastric fluid volumes showed no statistically significant differences among the groups (Group 1: 24.5 +/- 21.6 ml; Group 2: 23.7 +/- 18.4 ml; Group 3: 23.2 +/- 17.3 ml; p greater than 0.1). Values for pH among the groups were also similar (Group 1: 2.18 +/- 1.58; Group 2: 1.95 +/- 1.24; Group 3: 1.95 +/- 1.62; p greater than 0.1).

Gastric fluid volume and pH in elective inpatients. Part II: Coffee or orange juice with ranitidine.

In order to assess the effect of preoperative oral fluids, with and without ranitidine, on gastric fluid volume and pH 300 elective surgical inpatients, ASA physical status I and II, were randomly allocated to one of six groups. The three ranitidine groups (Groups 4, 5, and 6) are discussed in this paper (Part II), and the three placebo groups (Groups 1, 2, and 3) in Part I. Between two and three hours before the scheduled time of surgery, patients received 150 ml coffee with oral ranitidine 150 mg (Group 4), 150 ml orange juice with oral ranitidine 150 mg (Group 5), or oral ranitidine alone (Group 6). No opiate or belladonna premedication was given. Immediately following induction of anaesthesia a # 18 Salem sump tube was passed and its position in the stomach confirmed by auscultation of insufflated air. The volume of residual gastric fluid, which was aspirated into a 60 ml syringe, was recorded, and its pH was measured. There were no statistically significant differences between groups with respect to volume (Group 4: 14.3 +/- 15.4; Group 5: 14.8 +/- 17.0; Group 6: 9.7 +/- 12.6 ml). The mean pH in all groups was greater than 5.40 (Group 4: 5.65 +/- 2.12; Group 5: 5.41 +/- 2.12; Group 6: 6.21 +/- 1.51).

The laryngeal mask airway: clinical appraisal in 250 patients.

The laryngeal mask airway consists of a tubular oropharyngeal airway to the distal end of which is sealed a silicone laryngeal mask with an inflatable rim which provides an airtight seal around the larynx. It provided a clear airway in 238 of 250 elective and emergency non-obstetrical patients for a wide variety of surgical procedures, ranging from minor gynaecological and urological procedures to major abdominal and orthopaedic surgery with either spontaneous respiration or intermittent positive pressure ventilation. Anaesthetic techniques and drugs were similar to those which would have been used for the same procedures if face-mask or tracheal intubation had been employed. Blind insertion of the laryngeal mask airway was successful at the first attempt in 187 patients, some manipulation was required in 61 patients, and insertion was impossible in two patients, each of whom had a small mouth. In ten patients tracheal intubation was required because of airway obstruction or a large gas leak. The LM airway does not require laryngoscopy for its insertion, it relieves the anaesthetist's hands from holding a face-mask, it cannot be misplaced in the oesophagus, and it is well tolerated during emergence from anaesthesia.

Simple narcotic kits for controlled-substance dispensing and accountability.

Operating rooms require a storage, dispensing and accounting system for restricted drugs which satisfies narcotics control authorities and is compatible with efficient care of patients. We describe narcotic kits containing fentanyl-morphine-midazolam, alfentanil-midazolam and sufentanil-midazolam, for general operating rooms, and two kits with larger quantities of fentanyl and sufentanil for cardiac operating rooms. The container for each kit is a video cassette holder which has a foam-rubber liner with sculpted depressions for each ampoule. Sealed kits are delivered each morning from pharmacy to the locked narcotics cupboard in the recovery room. On request, the recovery room nurse unlocks the cupboard and the anaesthetist signs out the required kit(s) for the day. A drug utilization form is enclosed with each kit, on which the anaesthetist records the amount of drug administered to each patient, and before returning the kit to the locked narcotics cupboard, the total amount of each drug used, discarded, and returned. Used kits are collected the following morning by a pharmacy technician who reconciles the contents and drug form of each kit. More than 40 staff anaesthetists and a similar number of residents have used the system for seven years, during which time 130,000 patients have passed through the operating rooms. Detection of one case of drug diversion by a staff anaesthetist was made partly by the control system, but mainly by behavioural changes. The system is simple, inexpensive, and effective and has been well received by the departments of pharmacy, anaesthesia, and nursing.

Open drop ether anaesthesia for caesarean section: a review of 420 cases in Nepal.

Anaesthesia for Caesarean sections performed during 1982-83 at the Women's Hospital in Kathmandu, Nepal is reviewed. In a twelve-month period 535 Caesarean sections were performed, representing 7.36 per cent of 7,263 deliveries. Many pregnant women in Nepal do not have antenatal care and the mean haemoglobin of these mothers was 86 g X L-1. In the absence of an on-call anaesthetist for obstetrics, more than 90 per cent of the anaesthetics were given by junior obstetric residents, using open drop diethyl ether without endotracheal intubation. Eleven patients developed postoperative chest infection; in none of these was there any suggestion of inhalation of gastric contents and all recovered uneventfully. Of the 18 maternal deaths in the 7,263 deliveries during this period, one occurred during Caesarean section. This was due to uncontrollable haemorrhage and was not attributable to the anaesthetic. For poor risk patients, and in unskilled hands, diethyl ether remains a remarkably safe anaesthetic.

The Woolley and Roe case.

Albert Woolley and Cecil Roe were healthy, middle-aged men who became paraplegic after spinal anaesthesia for minor surgery at the Chesterfield Royal Hospital in 1947. The spinal anaesthetics were given by the same anaesthetist, Dr Malcolm Graham, using the same drug on the same day at the same hospital. The outcome for the patients and their families was devastating, as it was for the use of spinal anaesthesia in the UK. At the trial 6 yr later, and against the opinion of leading neurologists, the judge accepted Professor Macintosh's suggestion that phenol, in which the ampoules of local anaesthetic had been immersed, had contaminated the local anaesthetic through invisible cracks. In an interview 30 yr after the verdict, Dr Graham believed tha the tragedy was caused by contamination of the spinal needles or syringes during the sterilization process. The subsequent explanation that, on the day in question, descaling liquid in the sterilizing pan had not been replaced by water, supported his belief and finally offered a credible explanation. We review the Woolley and Roe case, the status of spinal anaesthesia before and after 1947, and the relevant medico-legal judgments in claims for negligence in the early days of the National Health Service.

Gastric fluid volume and pH in elective patients following unrestricted oral fluid until three hours before surgery.

This clinical study was designed to assess the results of new preoperative fasting guidelines in which patients are instructed that they must not eat any solid food after midnight, but that they may drink unrestricted amounts of clear fluid until three hours before their scheduled time of surgery. We studied 199 healthy, elective surgical inpatients aged 18-70 yr to determine whether there was any correlation between the ingestion interval or the volume of fluid ingested, with the volume and pH of residual gastric fluid at induction of anaesthesia. Pregnant patients, and those with gastric disorders or who were taking medications that affect gastric motility or secretion, were excluded. Either no premedication was given, or oral diazepam 5-15 mg was given 90 min preoperatively. Of the 199 patients, 105 ingested 50-1200 ml on the morning of surgery. The ingestion-induction interval was less than three hours in 12 patients whose actual surgery time was ahead of schedule. The remaining 94 patients did not drink because they were scheduled for surgery before 11:00 (n = 51), they did not want to drink (n = 24), or they were advised not to drink by their nurse or surgeon (n = 16). Following induction of anaesthesia, gastric fluid was aspirated through a #18 Salem sump orogastric tube, the volume was recorded and pH was measured with a calibrated pH meter. Patients were divided retrospectively into four groups (in three of which patients ingested fluid) according to the ingestion-induction interval (1.3-3.0 hr, 3.1-5.0 hr, 5.1-8.0 hr, and nothing by mouth after midnight).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Gastric fluid volume, pH, and emptying in elective inpatients. Influences of narcotic-atropine premedication, oral fluid, and ranitidine.

One hundred and twenty healthy, elective surgical inpatients were randomly assigned to one of four groups. Between two and three hours before the scheduled time of surgery all patients ingested a marker dye, phenol red, 50 mg in 10 ml water, with placebo tablet alone (Groups 1 and 2), placebo tablet with 150 ml oral fluid (Group 3), or oral ranitidine 150 mg with oral fluid 150 ml (Group 4). Patients in Group 1 received oral diazepam or no premedication, while those in Groups 2, 3, and 4 received IM narcotic and atropine one hour preoperatively. Following induction of anaesthesia the residual gastric fluid was aspirated through a Salem sump tube and its volume, pH, and phenol red content measured. Mean volumes were Group 1: 24 ml; Group 2: 13 ml; Group 3: 17 ml; Group 4: 14 ml. Mean pH values were Group 1: 2.99; Group 2: 3.03; Group 3: 3.44; Group 4: 5.28. The amount of phenol red in the samples indicated at least 90 per cent gastric emptying had occurred in 90 per cent of patients. We conclude that, in healthy patients, 150 ml oral fluid is almost completely emptied from the stomach within two hours of ingestion, even when followed one hour later by narcotic-atropine premedication.

Anaesthesia training in Nepal.

The background, organization, problems, and successful implementation of an anaesthesia training program in Nepal are described. Nepali physicians had previously taken their postgraduate anaesthesia training in western countries, especially in Britain. The low pay of anaesthetists, poor maintenance of equipment, and irregular supplies of anaesthetic drugs in their own country has led many of them to stay abroad. In 1985 there were only seven Nepali anaesthetists in Nepal for a population of 16 million. An alternative approach to training is presented in which a series of Canadian anaesthetists, over a three-year period, are supporting the establishment of a one-year Diploma in Anaesthesiology program in Nepal. They are working with Nepali anaesthetists and the Institute of Medicine in Kathmandu, Nepal. The local anaesthetists supervise most of the clinical training while the Canadians give academic leadership and guidance.

The effect of preoperative oral fluid and ranitidine on gastric fluid volume and pH.

One hundred unpremedicated daycare patients were randomly assigned to one of four groups. Between two and three hours preoperatively all patients received either oral ranitidine 150 mg, or placebo, with bromosulphthalein (BSP) 50 mg in 10 ml water, immediately followed by either 150 ml water or no further fluid. The residual gastric volume (RGV) in the two placebo groups was significantly lower in patients given 150 ml water (20.6 +/- 14.1 ml) than in those who continued fasting (29.9 +/- 18.2 ml) (p less than 0.05). The RGV was further significantly decreased in the two ranitidine groups (10.0 +/- 8.8, 9.7 +/- 10.5 ml) compared with the two placebo groups (20.6 +/- 14.1, 29.9 +/- 18.9 ml) (p less than 0.01). Mean pH values were significantly higher in the two ranitidine groups (6.71 +/- 0.99; 6.31 +/- 1.81) than in the two placebo groups (2.05 +/- 1.41; 1.72 +/- 0.33) but were not significantly different in the fluid versus non-fluid groups. In patients who ingested 150 ml water there was no correlation between the premedication interval and either RGV or pH values. The extremely low percentage of the original BSP (less than 0.9 per cent) in the gastric fluid of these patients demonstrated that gastric emptying of the ingested water was virtually complete prior to surgery. The combination of RGV of 25 ml or more with pH less than 2.5 was present in 56 per cent of patients who had only a sip of water with placebo, in 28 per cent of those who received 150 ml water with placebo, and in only two per cent of those patients who received ranitidine.

Gastric distension and ventilation during laparoscopic cholecystectomy: LMA-Classic vs. tracheal intubation.

PURPOSE: The standard laryngeal mask airway LMA-Classic was designed as an alternative to the endotracheal tube (ETT) or the face mask for use with either spontaneous or positive pressure ventilation. Positive pressure ventilation may exploit leaks around the LMA cuff, leading to gastric distension and/or inadequate ventilation. We compared gastric distension and ventilation parameters with LMA vs ETT during laparoscopic cholecystectomy. METHODS: One hundred and one, ASA I-II adults scheduled for elective laparoscopic cholecystectomy were randomly assigned to LMA-Classic or ETT. Patients with BMI >30 kg x m(-2), hiatus hernia or gastroesophageal reflux were excluded. Following induction of anesthesia, an in-and-out orogastric tube was passed to decompress the stomach before insertion of the LMA (women size #4, men size #5) or ETT (women 7 mm, men 8 mm). Anesthesia was maintained with isoflurane in nitrous oxide and oxygen (FIO2 0.3-0.5), rocuronium and fentanyl. The surgeon, blinded to the type of airway, scored gastric distention 0-10 at insertion of the laparoscope and immediately before removal at the end of the surgical procedure. RESULTS: Incidence and degree of change in gastric distension were similar in both groups. Ventilation parameters during insufflation (mean +/- SD) for LMA and ETT were: S(P)O2 98 +/- I vs 98 +/- I, P(ET)CO2 38 +/- 4 vs 36 +/- 4 mm Hg and airway pressure 21 +/- 4 vs 23 +/- 3 cm water. CONCLUSION: Positive pressure ventilation with a correctly placed LMA-Classic of appropriate size permits adequate pulmonary ventilation. Gastric distension occurs with equal frequency with either airway device.