Síndrome de Kounis intraoperatória com melhoria das alterações eletrocardiográficas e da situação hemodinâmica após a administração de nitroglicerina

A 58‐year‐old female without cardiovascular risk factors, was going to be operated to repair the rotator cuff. Induction and interscalene brachial plexus block were uneventful, but after her placement for surgery the patient started with severe bronchospasm, hypotension, cutaneous allergic reaction and ST elevation on the electrocardiogram. An anaphylactic shock was suspected and treated but until the perfusion of nitroglycerina was started no electrocardiographic changes resolved. After necessary diagnostic test the final diagnosis was variant I of Kounis syndrome due to cefazolin and rocuronium. Ephinephrine is the cornerstone of treatment for anaphylaxis but should we use it if the anaphylactic reaction is also accompanied by myocardial ischemia? The answer is that we should not use it because myocardial ischemia in this syndrome is caused by vasospasm, so it would be more useful drugs such as nitroglycerin. But what if we do not know if it is a Kounis syndrome or not? In this article we report our experience that maybe could help you in a similar situation.     

Comparação entre os efeitos de dexmedetomidina,fentanil e esmolol na prevenção da resposta hemodinâmica à intubação

Background and objectives

Laryngoscopy and intubation can cause hemodynamic response. Various medications may be employed to control that response. In this study, we aimed to compare the effects of dexmedetomidine, fentanyl and esmolol on hemodynamic response.

Method

Ninety elective surgery patients who needed endotracheal intubation who were in American Society of Anesthesiology I–II group and ages between 21 and 65 years were included in that prospective, randomized, double‐blind study. Systolic, diastolic, mean arterial pressures, heart rates at the time of admittance at operation room were recorded as basal measurements. The patients were randomized into three groups: Group I (n = 30) received 1 μg/kg dexmedetomidine with infusion in 10 min, Group II (n = 30) received 2 μg/kg fentanyl, Group III received 2 mg/kg esmolol 2 min before induction. The patients were intubated in 3 min. Systolic, diastolic, mean arterial pressures and heart rates were measured before induction, before intubation and 1, 3, 5, 10 min after intubation.

Results

When basal levels were compared with the measurements of the groups, it was found that 5 and 10 min after intubation heart rate in Group I and systolic, diastolic, mean arterial pressures in Group III were lower than other measurements (p < 0.05).

Conclusions

Dexmedetomidine was superior in the prevention of tachycardia. Esmolol prevented sytolic, diastolic, mean arterial pressure increases following intubation. We concluded that further studies are needed in order to find a strategy that prevents the increase in systemic blood pressure and heart rate both.     

Cardiac air transit following venous air embolism and right ventricular air aspiration*

Using intra‐cardiac echocardiography in anaesthetised swine we tested the hypotheses that embolised air (i) passes immediately through the right atrium into the ventricle; (ii) persists in the right ventricle for a long time; (iii) is detectable for longer within the right ventricle or main pulmonary artery than the right atrium, and (iv) right ventricular aspiration recovers more air than right atrial aspiration. Following intravenous injection of different air volumes the air appeared in the right atrium in a mean (95% CI) of 3 s (2.5–3.5 s) and almost simultaneously in the right ventricle after 5 s (3.9–6.0 s), but air persisted for longer in the right ventricle (420 s; (367–473 s)) and pulmonary artery (541 s; (475–606 s)) than in the right atrium (404 s (353–457 s)), particularly with larger air volumes and in the semi‐upright position. More air was recovered via a right ventricular catheter than an atrial catheter (52% vs 25%, p < 0.01).     

Renal cell carcinoma extending into the right atrium; report of a case

A 62-year-old male was diagnosed through abdominal ultrasonography, with right renal cell carcinoma extending into the inferior vena cava. Surgery was performed because echocardiography revealed the tumor to have reached the right atrium. The portion of the tumor situated in the right atrium was resected under the extracorporeal circulation. Distal part of inferior vena cava was resected with the tumor included. The tumor remaining in the confluence of hepatic veins was removed from the incised end of the inferior vena cava and was detached from the venous wall. Postoperative abdominal echography revealed a small additional tumor mass in hepatic veins. Although this mass was considered to be a remnant of the intravenous tumor, an additional surgical procedure was judged to be impossible. In retrospect, an additional long-axis incision on the inferior vena cava might have enabled us to catch the remnant of the tumor thrombus in the hepatic vein.     

Comparação dos efeitos de remifentanil e remifentanil + lidocaína em intubação de pacientes intelectualmente deficientes

Background and objectives

This is a prospective, randomized, single‐blind study. We aimed to compare the tracheal intubation conditions and hemodynamic responses either remifentanil or a combination of remifentanil and lidocaine with sevoflurane induction in the absence of neuromuscular blocking agents.

Methods

Fifty intellectually disabled, American Society of Anesthesiologists I–II patients who underwent tooth extraction under outpatient general anesthesia were included in this study. Patients were randomized to receive either 2 μg/kg remifentanil (Group 1, n = 25) or a combination of 2 μg/kg remifentanil and 1 mg/kg lidocaine (Group 2, n = 25). To evaluate intubation conditions, Helbo‐Hansen scoring system was used. In patients who scored 2 points or less in all scorings, intubation conditions were considered acceptable, however if any of the scores was greater than 2, intubation conditions were regarded unacceptable. Mean arterial pressure, heart rate and peripheral oxygen saturation (SpO₂) were recorded at baseline, after opioid administration, before intubation, and at 1, 3, and 5 min after intubation.

Results

Acceptable intubation parameters were achieved in 24 patients in Group 1 (96%) and in 23 patients in Group 2 (92%). In intra‐group comparisons, the heart rate and mean arterial pressure values at all‐time points in both groups showed a significant decrease compared to baseline values (p = 0.000)

Conclusion

By the addition of 2 μg/kg remifentanil during sevoflurane induction, successful tracheal intubation can be accomplished without using muscle relaxants in intellectually disabled patients who undergo outpatient dental extraction. Also worth noting, the addition of 1 mg/kg lidocaine to 2 μg/kg remifentanil does not provide any additional improvement in the intubation parameters.     

Desenvolvimento de fibrilação ventricular por causa de etomidato para indução anestésica: um efeito colateral muito raro,relato de caso

Background and objectives

Ventricular fibrillation occurring in a patient can result in unexpected complications. Here, our aim is to present a case of ventricular fibrillation occurring immediately after anesthesia induction with etomidate administration.

Case report

A fifty‐six‐year‐old female patient with a pre‐diagnosis of gallstones was admitted to the operating room for laparoscopic cholecystectomy. The induction was performed by etomidate with a bolus dose of 0.3 mg/kg. Severe and fast adduction appeared in the patient's arms immediately after induction. A tachycardia with wide QRS and ventricular rate 188 beat/min was detected on the monitor. The rhythm turned to VF during the preparation of cardioversion. Immediately we performed defibrillation to the patient. Sinus rhythm was obtained. It was decided to postpone the operation due to the patient's unstable condition.

Conclusion

In addition to other known side effects of etomidate, very rarely, ventricular tachycardia and fibrillation can be also seen. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case regarding etomidate causing VF in the literature.     

Predicting the optimal depth of left‐sided central venous catheters in children

The aim of this study was to predict the optimal depth for insertion of a left‐sided central venous catheter in children. Using 3D chest computed tomography angiography, we measured the distance from a point where the internal jugular vein is at the superior border of the clavicle, and from a point where the subclavian vein is inferior to the anterior border of the clavicle, to the junction of the superior vena cava and the right atrium in 257 children. Linear regression analysis revealed that the distances correlated with age, weight and height. Simple formulae for the depth of a central venous catheter via the left internal jugular vein (0.07 × height (cm)) and the left subclavian vein (0.08 × height (cm)) were developed to predict placement of the central venous catheter tip at the junction of the superior vena cava with the right atrium. Using these fomulae, the proportion of catheter tips predicted to be correctly located was 98.5% (95% CI 96.8–100%) and 94.0% (95% CI 90.8–97.3%), respectively.     

Guidewire deflector system removal of catheter foreign body retained in the right heart for six months.

A case of successful removal of a catheter foreign body retained in the right atrium for 6 months is presented. The hooked catheter approach was used to retrieve the catheter from the right atrium. Due to the hook configuration of the retrievers, the catheter had to be surgically excised from the common femoral vein. Subsequently a system was developed and used successfully in other cases which eliminates the need for performance of a further surgical procedure to remove successfully the catheter or retrieval device.     

Stuck guidewire in the right atrium: an emergent situation in central vein catheter placement

Objective To investigate the emergency treatment and clinical effect when the guidewire stuck in the right atrium during central vein catheter placement for hemodialysis. Methods Five cases with guidewire stuck in the right atrium during central vein catheter placement for hemodialysis from January 2011 to July 2018 admitted into the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University were retrospectively analyzed. In two cases, the guidewires were found completely stuck when the insert depth was about 20 cm. The guidewires were not able to move forward nor backward. In the other three cases, the guidewires could be moved forward but not backward with the insert depth at about 18 cm. All patients received emergent computed tomography angiography (CTA) or digital subtraction angiography (DSA) imaging. Images showed that the guidewires were stuck in the right atrium near the ventricular valve. The guidewire core drawing method, the multipurpose angiography (MPA) catheter capturing method and the manual guidewire adjusting method were used for emergent treatment. Results One patient with completely stuck guidewire was successfully treated with guidewire core drawing method and the temporary central vein catheter catheterization through the internal jugular vein was performed under DSA. In a completely stuck case and a retrogradely stuck case, the J-shaped ends of the warped guidewires were captured into the MPA catheter, and the guidewires were then withdrawn from right atriums along with the contrast catheter. In the other 2 retrogradely stuck cases, under DSA, the guidewires were repeatedly pushed, the direction of J-shaped ends was manually adjusted, and then the guidewires were repeatedly pushed and pulled until catheters can be pulled out of the right atriums. The later 4 cases had permanent central vein catheter placement with the same guidewire after the stuck guidewires were withdrawn from the right atrium and readjusted. Conclusions All three methods can successfully solve the emergent situation of the stuck guidewire in the right atrium. For patients with completely stuck guidewires, the MPA catheter capturing method can be simpler, safer, and more effective.     

Monitoramento dos efeitos da raquianestesia sobre a saturação de oxigênio cerebral em pacientes idosos com o uso de espectroscopia de luz próxima ao infravermelho

Objective

Central blockage provided by spinal anaesthesia enables realization of many surgical procedures, whereas hemodynamic and respiratory changes influence systemic oxygen delivery leading to the potential development of series of problems such as cerebral ischemia, myocardial infarction and acute renal failure. This study was intended to detect potentially adverse effects of hemodynamic and respiratory changes on systemic oxygen delivery using cerebral oxymetric methods in patients who underwent spinal anaesthesia.

Methods

Twenty‐five ASA I–II Group patients aged 65–80 years scheduled for unilateral inguinal hernia repair under spinal anaesthesia were included in the study. Following standard monitorization baseline cerebral oxygen levels were measured using cerebral oximetric methods. Standardized Mini Mental Test (SMMT) was applied before and after the operation so as to determine the level of cognitive functioning of the cases. Using a standard technique and equal amounts of a local anaesthetic drug (15 mg bupivacaine 5%) intratechal blockade was performed. Mean blood pressure (MBP), maximum heart rate (MHR), peripheral oxygen saturation (SpO₂) and cerebral oxygen levels (rSO2) were preoperatively monitored for 60 min. Pre‐ and postoperative haemoglobin levels were measured. The variations in data obtained and their correlations with the cerebral oxygen levels were investigated.

Results

Significant changes in pre‐ and postoperative measurements of haemoglobin levels and SMMT scores and intraoperative SpO₂ levels were not observed. However, significant variations were observed in intraoperative MBP, MHR and rSO2 levels. Besides, a correlation between variations in rSO2, MBP and MHR was determined.

Conclusion

Evaluation of the data obtained in the study demonstrated that post‐spinal decline in blood pressure and also heart rate decreases systemic oxygen delivery and adversely effects cerebral oxygen levels. However, this downward change did not result in deterioration of cognitive functioning.     

Evaluation of catheter placement in the treatment of venous air embolism.

Venous air embolism is a potential complication of many surgical, therapeutic, and diagnostic procedures. Aspiration of air via a catheter placed in the superior vena cava or right atrium or placed in the pulmonary outflow tract and pulled through the right heart chambers had been advocated for the treatment of venous air embolism. In this study, three catheter positions were analyzed to determine which was best for removal of gas after induction of massive venous air embolism in dogs. In 18 dogs, 9 of which were suspended by their forelegs to simulate the sitting position used in posterior fossa exploration and 9 of which were supine, a Swan-Ganz catheter was placed in the right atrium, right ventricle, or pulmonary artery. A measured amount of air was injected into the left jugular vein and syringe aspiration of the air was attempted through the catheter. In the group with the catheter in the pulmonary artery, aspiration was continuous while the catheter was withdrawn through the right heart chambers. The amount of air aspirated varied widely among the three catheter positions, and no one catheter position proved superior to the other two.     

A Novel Technique for Tethered Dialysis Catheter Removal Using the Laser Sheath

Traction and cutdown techniques can successfully remove a tunneled dialysis catheter (TDC) in a great majority of patients. However, these methods may not be successful in patients with catheters that are tethered or attached to the central veins or the atrium. A forceful application of traction can lead to catheter breakage with subsequent retention of the broken piece and carries a potential risk of vascular and atrial wall avulsion. Open thoracotomy has been employed to remove an attached TDC. However, this procedure is invasive and bears a significant morbidity. This report presents three cases of tethered TDCs that underwent laser sheath extraction. The TDCs had been in place for an average of 26 months. The patients underwent initial unsuccessful removal attempt using the traction method with surgical exploration all the way to the venotomy site. The laser technique that is used to remove pacemaker/implantable cardioverter defibrillator leads was then applied to these stuck catheters. All three catheters were successfully removed without any damage to the catheter, central veins, or the right atrium. There were no retained catheter fragments left in the central veins or the atrium. One patient demonstrated a significant thrombus that extended from the tip of the catheter all the way to the right ventricle. The external sheath of the laser device successfully aspirated the thrombus. There were no procedure‐related complications. In this small series, a laser sheath successfully extracted tethered dialysis catheters. The study found the procedure to be effective, easy to perform, and minimally invasive. We suggest that this approach be considered for the removal of tethered catheters that cannot be removed using traditional approaches.     

Subendocardial abscess as a complication of prolonged central venous access for parenteral nutrition.

Patients with chronic gastrointestinal diseases may require long-term parenteral nutrition. The authors describe a case in which a subendocardial abscess developed in the right atrium in association with staphylococcal septicemia. The patient, a 15-year-old boy, had a malpositioned Silastic catheter, the tip of which was in his right atrium. Staphylococcal abscess of the heart has been described previously after cardiac surgery, but the authors believe this is the first reported case related to a central venous catheter.     

Avaliação colonoscópica em pacientes com espondilite anquilosante

IntroductionPatients with ankylosing spondylitis can have intestinal inflammatory lesions, thus the use of colonoscopy for such patients should be defined.ObjectivesTo assess the gross intestinal colonoscopic changes and microscopic histopathologic findings of patients with ankylosing spondylitis; to correlate the colonoscopic and histopathologic findings; and to study the relationship of the histopathologic findings with extra‐articular manifestations of the disease, HLA‐B27, BASFI and BASDAI.MethodsThis is a cross‐sectional study of 22 patients with ankylosing spondylitis. The patients underwent clinical assessment, BASDAI and BASFI application, blood collection for HLA‐B27 measurement, and colonoscopy with biopsy of four intestinal segments (terminal ileum, right and sigmoid colons, and rectum).ResultsAbnormal colonoscopic results were obtained in 13 (59.1%) patients, the major abnormality being intestinal polyps. The groups of normal and abnormal colonoscopic results (n = 9 and n = 13, respectively) were homogeneous regarding age, BASFI, BASDAI, and categorical variables, and the P‐value showed no significant difference between groups. The histopathological findings revealed abnormal biopsies in 81%, 90.9%, 90.9% and 86.4% for terminal ileum, right colon, sigmoid colon, and rectum, respectively. The histopathologic results showed no statistically significant association with the extra‐articular manifestations, BASFI, BASDAI and HLA‐B27 positivity.ConclusionsThe histological analysis of the four intestinal segments evidenced inflammatory lesions in patients with normal and abnormal colonoscopic results, independently of bowel symptomatology and therapy used in the treatment of the basal disease.     

Venovenous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation in neonatal systemic artery-to-pulmonary artery shunt operations using a double lumen catheter

The right atrium of the neonate may be too small for direct insertion of 2 venous catheters during intraoperative life support. We inserted a double lumen catheter into the right atrium, and venovenous (V-V) extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) was instituted. The patient's arterial oxygen saturation was maintained at 70% to 90%, and hemodynamic stability was obtained during V-V ECMO. V-V ECMO using a double lumen catheter can be easily established in a small neonate, and is an effective support technique for untolerable hypoxemia during systemic-to-pulmonary artery shunt operations.