Three concentrations of levobupivacaine for ilioinguinal/iliohypogastric nerve block in ambulatory pediatric surgery

Study ObjectiveTo compare the postoperative analgesia of three different concentrations of levobupivacaine for ilioinguinal/iliohypogastric (II/IH) block in children undergoing inguinal hernia repair.DesignDouble-blind, prospective, randomized, controlled trial.SettingOperating room and postoperative recovery area of a university hospital.Patients73 ASA physical status I and II children, aged one to 6 years, scheduled for outpatient inguinal hernia repair.InterventionsPatients were randomized to receive one of three levobupivacaine concentrations: 0.125% (L0.125), 0.25% (L0.25), or 0.375% (L0.375). All patients received standard anesthesia with sevoflurane and II/IH nerve block.MeasurementsHeart rate (HR), non invasive blood pressure (NIBP), respiratory rate, end-tidal carbon dioxide concentration (ETCO₂), and oxygen saturation via pulse oximetry (SpO₂) were monitored during surgery. Postoperative pain scores with CHEOPS (Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario Pain Scale) and need for rescue analgesia postoperatively were measured and recorded.Main Results60 patients entered the postoperative observational period. The number of patients who received rescue analgesia was comparable in the three groups. In Group L0.125, mean CHEOPS score was significantly higher, and time to first administration of rescue analgesia was shorter, than in the other two groups (P < 0.05). Pain scores and time to first administration of rescue analgesia were comparable between Groups L0.25 and L0.375.ConclusionsII/IH nerve block using 0.4 mL kg^-1 of 0.25% levobupivacaine provided satisfactory postoperative pain relief after inguinal herniorraphy.     

Spinal anaesthesia with articaine 5% vs bupivacaine 0.5% for day-case lower limb surgery: a double-blind randomized clinical trial

BACKGROUND: A local anaesthetic with fast onset and short reliable duration of anaesthesia may be preferable for out-patient lower limb surgery. Articaine is believed to act faster and to have a shorter duration of action than bupivacaine, but there are no conclusive data available. The purpose of this study was to compare articaine and bupivacaine for day-case lower limb surgery. METHODS: Eighty patients planned for day-case lower limb surgery enrolled in this study. Patients were randomized to receive hyperbaric articaine 80 mg or plain bupivacaine 15 mg intrathecally. Primary outcome variable was recovery time from motor block. Secondary outcomes were: onset of sensory and motor block, maximum spread of sensory block, time to micturition, discharge from the hospital, and complications. RESULTS: The groups were comparable for the medians and the range of the maximum blocks after 30 min. Median time to complete regression of motor block was 101 min (range 80-129) for articaine compared with 307 min (range 225-350) for bupivacaine (P<0.0005). First spontaneous micturition occurred after 257 min (210-293) in the articaine group and after 350 min (304-370) in the bupivacaine group (P<0.0005). In the articaine and bupivacaine groups, patients were discharged after 300 min (273-347) and 380 min (332-431), respectively (P<0.0005). There was no significant difference in the occurrence of complications between the groups. CONCLUSIONS: Spinal anaesthesia with 80 mg of hyperbaric articaine has a shorter duration than a spinal anaesthesia with 15 mg of plain bupivacaine in lower limb surgery of approximately 1 h duration.     

Day-case surgery patients' health-related quality of life

This study describes the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of day-surgery patients and aims to identify factors associated with HRQoL. The cross-sectional questionnaire survey data were collected from day-surgery patients being discharged from hospitals in one Finnish hospital district in 2001 using the Nottingham Health Profile (NHP). The analysis was based on statistical methods. Day-case surgical patients had the best HRQoL in the social dimension and mobility. The NHP scores showed moderate distress in sleep and energy, and demonstrated pain. Older age and vocational education were associated with higher scores as measured with the NHP, indicating more problems in the measured variables. The patients who have been operated as day cases recovered satisfactorily and the operation did not weaken their perceived HRQoL. More emphasis should be put on evaluating day-case surgery patients' pain. Patient's age should be taken into account in planning type of surgery. The NHP is also a useful tool for the purposes of studying the HRQoL of day-case surgery patients.     

Cerebral state index: comparison between pairwise registrations from the left and the right sides of the brain

Background. Lateralization of cerebral blood flow and EEG activityis known to vary during cognition, sleep and waking. In spiteof this, electrode placement for the cerebral state index (CSI^TM)monitor is not specified to a particular side of the brain.This study is designed to determine if pairwise registrationsdiffer for CSI measured simultaneously from the left or rightsides of the brain. Methods. In total, 25 ASA I–II patients undergoing electiveday surgery under general anaesthesia were recruited. Pairwiserecordings were made every minute from two CSI^TM monitors (CerebralState Monitor, Danmeter A/S; Odense, Denmark) connected to theleft and the right side of the head. Sedation was graded accordingto the observer's assessment of alertness/sedation rating scaleand correlated with CSI. Results. A large overlap of indices, of similar magnitude, foreach side of the brain was seen between different levels ofsedation. The agreement between pairwise registrations was high,correlation between the 584 CSI pairs of recordings left/rightwas r²=0.92. Conclusions. Despite known lateralization of the EEC, this studyfound a very high correlation in CSI derived simultaneouslyfrom the left and right sides of the brain by two independentmonitors. LMA® is the property of Intavent Ltd.     

Postoperative shoulder surgery initiative (POSSI): an interim report of major shoulder surgery as a day case procedure

Background. There are logistical and financial advantages toundertaking shoulder surgery in a day case setting. However,this approach is limited by postoperative pain being inadequatelycontrolled by oral medication alone. We describe a pilot studyinvestigating the feasibility and acceptance of community basedcontinuous interscalene brachial plexus blockade (CIBPB) toprovide effective analgesia for day case shoulder surgery. Methods. Phase 1 consisted of five patients who received CIBPBfor shoulder surgery. Following an overnight hospital stay theywere assessed for discharge home with the interscalene catheterin situ. Once the safety and feasibility of the approach wasdocumented, five more patients were recruited to Phase 2. Thesepatients had the adequacy of analgesia assessed in the postoperativeperiod and were discharged home on the same day as surgery.A district nurse visited twice daily and removed the catheteron the third day. Patient satisfaction was assessed using adiscovery interview. Results. Nine of the 10 patients experienced good analgesia.One patient was re-admitted because the catheter fell out. Nopatient experienced complications and the discovery interviewsshowed that the patients were satisfied with their managementand pleased to be treated as a day case. Conclusions. POSSI proved that it was feasible to manage thesepatients in the community with support and training of the districtnurses. Although extra community nursing hours are required,this technique has the potential for significant cost benefitswith at least three bed days saved per patient. Declaration of interest. Dr N.M. Denny is a paid consultantfor B. Braun. Dr Sardesai, Dr Ridgway and Dr Russon have heldthe Clinical Fellow in Regional Anaesthesia post at Addenbrooke'sHospital 2003/4, 2004/5 and 2005/6 respectively. This post ispartly funded by Abbott Laboratories Ltd. have held the ClinicalFellow in Regional Anaesthesia post at Addenbrookes Hospitalin 2003/4 and 2004/5 respectively. No direct payment was receivedfor this study.     

Can elective surgery for mandibular and zygomatic complex fractures reduce overall hospital stay without compromising outcomes? Analysis of administrative datasets by the GIRFT programme

When patients attend the emergency department with facial fractures that require surgery and are immediately admitted, surgery can be delayed as theatre time is prioritised for other more urgent patients. One solution is to send the patient home and admit them as an elective patient at a later date. The aim of this study was to investigate the outcomes of patients admitted directly and those seen as elective patients following fracture of the mandible or zygomatic complex. Data were taken from the hospital episodes statistics (HES) dataset for 2011-2018, and all hospital admissions for mandibular and zygomatic complex fractures within the National Health Service (NHS) in England were extracted. Patients were categorised as those admitted on attendance at the emergency department and given definitive treatment during the admission, and those not admitted on attendance at the emergency department but discharged home and seen as elective admissions within 30 days of attendance. Data were available for 39 606 patients. For both types of fracture there was substantial variation between NHS trusts in the proportion of patients admitted electively and the proportion admitted directly as emergencies. Elective admission was independently associated with shorter overall stay and lower emergency readmission rates. We found no evidence that delays to definitive surgery through elective admission had a negative impact on emergency readmission rates. Patients admitted electively had a significantly shorter hospital stay.     

Outpatient penetrating keratoplasty

Abstract
Elective penetrating keratoplasty has been performed on an outpatient basis on 37 patients since July 1987. The commonest indications have been herpetic keratitis, keratoconus, and pseudophakic or aphakic corneal oedema. Local anaesthesia, with little or no sedation, was used in most cases, and only three patients had a general anaesthetic. Accompanying procedures have included anterior vitrectomy, extracapsular cataract extraction with posterior chamber lens implantation and IOL exchange. The results demonstrate that outpatient keratoplasty is a safe, effective alternative to hospitalisation, and has a very high level of patient acceptance.     

腹腔镜联合胆道镜经胆囊管胆道探查日间手术可行性探讨

目的探讨腹腔镜术中联合胆道镜经胆囊管胆道探查(laparoscopic transcystic common bill duct exploration,LTCBDE)并取石术实施日间手术的可行性。方法回顾性分析2016年2月至2017年5月在首都医科大学附属北京友谊医院由同一组手术团队完成的39例择期行LTCBDE治疗胆囊结石合并胆总管结石的临床资料。所有患者均在门诊完成术前检查和术前评估;患者于手术当日入院,术后24 h内离院回家;回家12h内电话随访,术后第7日门诊随访。结果 39例患者均顺利完成LTCBDE,无胆总管切开及中转开腹,术后所有患者均于入院24 h内出院,其中手术当天出院37例,过夜观察次日晨出院2例。手术时间45~113 min,平均手术时间(72.5±24.8)min;39例患者术后6 h均进流食,术后腹部切口疼痛23例,恶心、呕吐12例,伤口少量渗血2例,给予常规对症处理后缓解。住院费用平均(9 134.6±824.4)元。随访至今无腹部不适症状。结论严格掌握适应证,选择性施行LTCBDE的日间手术是安全可行的,适合有条件的大型医院开展。     

An audit of ambulatory laparoscopic cholecystectomy in a Singapore institution: are we ready for day-case laparoscopic cholecystectomy?

Background. Day-Case laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) is practiced in many countries. However, this has yet to be widely accepted in Singapore. This study aims to determine the potential success rate of day-case LC in our institution. Patient and methods. We retrospectively assessed the proportion of our Ambulatory Surgery 23 hour (AS23) LC patients that met discharge criteria. Our proposed same-day discharge criteria include minimal pain, ability to tolerate feeds, ambulate independently and void spontaneously after 6–8 hours of monitoring. Results. From January 2005 to December 2006, of 405 patients listed for elective LC, 84% of patients were admitted to our AS23 ward. Patients with previous biliary sepsis or pancreatitis or who need laparoscopic common bile duct exploration (LCBDE) were included. The other 66 were admitted as inpatient. Forty-one of them were admitted due to conversion. A history of cholecystitis or cholangitis was a significant predictor of conversion to open surgery (OR=5.73 and 5.74 respectively, p<0.001). Of the 339 patients, 66% of them fulfilled all four criteria within eight hours of monitoring. Therefore, based on an intention-to-treat analysis, 51.2% fulfilled all four criteria and could potentially be discharged the same day. No predictor for failure was identified, including presence of co-morbidities, duration of operation, surgeon''s grade and additional procedures like LCBDE. Conclusion. Using our current inclusion criteria, we projected a success rate of at least 50% with the implementation of day-case LC. With the attendant advantages of cost savings and reduced resource utilization, it is therefore worthwhile to start it in Singapore.