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Warming patients is important but not risk-free

July 29, 2013 By J. Lance Lichtor in Patient Safety

The evidence to show the importance of keeping a patient warm during surgery is strong. For example, the risk of surgical site infection increases when patients are cold. In patients undergoing bowel surgery, infection risk is increased as much as three times when temperature drops 2°C. Forced air warming is the most common method used […]

Despite Fujii’s unprecedented fabrication, ramosatron might actually be a better drug than ondansetron

July 26, 2013 By J. Lance Lichtor in Ambulatory Anesthesiology

When investigating the work of Dr. Yoshitaka Fujii, Toho University noted that 8/9 studies did not have appropriate ethics committee approval. A subsequent analysis by the Japanese Society of Anesthesiologists found that 172/212 studies were fabricated. Earlier this year in an editorial published in Anesthesia & Analgesia, Drs. Ashraf S. Habib and Tong J. Gan […]

Anesthesia and Analgesia highlights: August 2013

July 24, 2013 By Steven Shafer in This issue

The August 2013 issue of Anesthesia and Analgesia has just posted. Highlights of this issue of the journal include: · Is lidocaine a general anesthetic? Hamp and colleagues (The Effect of a Bolus Dose of Intravenous Lidocaine on the Minimum Alveolar Concentration of Sevoflurane: A Prospective, Randomized, Double-Blinded, Placebo-Controlled Trial) found that 1.5 mg/kg of […]

An unusual complication of central venous cannulation: intrathecal cannulation

July 19, 2013 By J. Lance Lichtor in Patient Safety

An earlier post for AA2day described cases of guidewires inadvertently left in patients. In a case report titled “Inadvertent Intrathecal Placement of a Pulmonary Artery Catheter Introducer,” which was published in this month’s issue of Anesthesia & Analgesia, Dr. Marcel Vercauteren, Department of Anesthesiology, University Hospital Antwerp, Edegem, Belgium, and co-authors describe a patient who, […]

Use of ultrasound for treatment of patients with chronic pain

July 17, 2013 By J. Lance Lichtor in Pain Medicine

Anesthesiologists use ultrasound in a variety of areas. Needle placement is probably the most common reason to use ultrasound and in this month’s issue of Anesthesia & Analgesia, Dr. Anuj Bhatia, Department of Anesthesia and Pain Management, Toronto Western Hospital (University Health Network), Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and co-authors review the use of ultrasound for needle […]

A device that can decrease the risk of exposure to anesthetics used in the operating room

July 15, 2013 By J. Lance Lichtor in Ambulatory Anesthesiology

Image: The double mask can decrease exposure risk of inhaled anesthetic agents. Image source courtesy of Anesthesia

In operating rooms in the United States, due primarily to risk of adverse reproductive effects, there are limits set by the National Institute for Occupational Health and Safety for exposure to nitrous oxide (25 ppm) and potent inhalation agents (2 ppm). Limited exposure to anesthetic gases in hospitals is accomplished in large part via the […]