THIOPENTONE-NITROUS OXIDE-HALOTHANE ANAESTHESIA AND SUXAMETHONIUM: PRETREATMENT WITH PANCURONIUM AND GALLAMINE

Eighty healthy adult patients randomly allocated to four groupsreceived pancuronium 0.01, 0.015, 0.02 mg kg^–1 or gallamine0.3 mg kg^–1 i.v. 3 min before induction. Just before inductionof anaesthesia, the patients were examined for signs and symptomsof neuromuscular blockade. After induction of anaesthesia withthiopentone, suxamethonium 1.5 mg kg^–1 was administeredi.v. Five minutes later the second dose was injected. No seriousarrhythmia was seen in any of the four groups following therepeated dose of suxamethonium. However, the highest dose ofpancuronium (0.02 mg kg^–1) caused an unacceptably highfrequency of partial neuromuscular blockade.