1/8. Undiagnosed central anticholinergic syndrome may lead to dangerous complications.This report describes two cases of central anticholinergic syndrome, the first after general anaesthesia and the other during a prolonged stay in the intensive care unit. The symptoms in both patients resolved soon after physostigmine administration. There was a delay in the diagnosis of central anticholinergic syndrome, which resulted in acute lung injury and unanticipated intensive care unit admission. It is suggested that in cases of abnormal mental recovery after anaesthesia or sedation, the diagnosis of central anticholinergic syndrome should be considered.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = anaesthesia (Clic here for more details about this article) |
2/8. Sympathetic paraganglioma presenting with Horner's syndrome in a child.Paragangliomas of the head and neck arise from collections of cells from the neural crest associated with cranial or sympathetic nerves. Such lesions are rare in children. The majority of paragangliomas in the paediatric age groups have been familial, occurring in association with an adrenal pheochromocytoma. Children typically present with a neck mass and systemic evidence of catecholamine hypersecretion. We present the case of a 12-year-old boy with a history of increasing headache, drowsiness and Horner's syndrome for 8 months. The patient underwent exploration of the neck mass under general anaesthesia. The lesion was found to be in continuity with the left sympathetic chain. It was highly vascular but was removed en mass and sent for histological analysis. The histology showed that the mass was a well-circumscribed encapsulated tumour and that complete excision was achieved. The post-operative period was uneventful and the patient recovered well after the operation. On review at 6 months following surgery, his scars were maturing satisfactorily but the Horner's syndrome was persistent. Sympathetic chain paragangliomas are very rare tumours in the head and neck but should be considered in the differential diagnosis when clinical and radiographic evidence suggest a paraganglioma. The presentation is typically of a slow-growing neck mass with the presence of an ipsilateral Horner's syndrome. To our knowledge, this is the first reported case of a sympathetic chain paraganglioma in a child.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.5keywords = anaesthesia (Clic here for more details about this article) |
3/8. Renal transplantation and diabetic autonomic neuropathy.This report describes six episodes of cardiovascular collapse in the perioperative period of a young diabetic woman undergoing general anaesthesia for renal transplantation and a similar episode after a second anaesthetic. She was subsequently found to have an autonomic neuropathy. Recommendations for the management of similar patients are made.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.5keywords = anaesthesia (Clic here for more details about this article) |
4/8. Perioperative autonomic hyperreflexia in high spinal cord lesions: a case report.We report the case of a 20-year-old man with serious perioperative attacks of autonomic hyperreflexia starting during urological surgery 14 months after a complete C6-C7 spinal cord injury. The intraoperative attacks were controlled by deepening the level of anaesthesia, while the postoperative attacks were treated with emepronium bromide. A brief discussion of the pathophysiology and treatment is given.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.5keywords = anaesthesia (Clic here for more details about this article) |
5/8. ketamine anaesthesia for a patient with the shy-drager syndrome.A 58-year-old man with the shy-drager syndrome underwent laryngo- and tracheoscopies in general anaesthesia for evaluation of the larynx after tracheostomy following bilateral vocal cord paralysis. A profound fall in arterial pressure during anaesthesia induced with thiopentone has been demonstrated in previously reported patients with the shy-drager syndrome. In the present patient, anaesthesia induced with ketamine, maintained with nitrous oxide in oxygen and supplemented with fentanyl, diazepam and suxamethonium did not cause a fall in arterial pressure.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 3.5keywords = anaesthesia (Clic here for more details about this article) |
6/8. Anaesthetic implications of long term diabetic complications.A case history in which a patient suffering from long-term diabetes mellitus underwent vascular surgery of a lower extremity is presented. Anaesthesia was commenced with an epidural anaesthesia, but due to insufficient analgesia combined with a high thoracal block general anaesthesia was added. The course was complicated because of cardiomyopathy, autonomic neuropathy, difficult laryngoscopy, aspiration of gastric content, and acute renal failure. Anaesthetic implications of long-term diabetes mellitus are discussed.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = anaesthesia (Clic here for more details about this article) |
7/8. Sudden cardiorespiratory arrest after renal transplantation in a patient with diabetic autonomic neuropathy and prolonged QT interval.A 31-yr male with insulin dependent diabetes mellitus for 20 years underwent general anaesthesia for renal transplantation. During transfer from operating theatre to ICU he developed bradycardia advancing to ventricular fibrillation and had to be resuscitated. bradycardia did not respond to atropine. Postoperative autonomic nervous function tests showed advanced autonomic neuropathy. He was found to have constantly prolonged QTc interval in his pre- and postoperative ECGs (462-503 ms). Prolongation of QTc interval could be used as a valuable predictor of postoperative cardiac complications in diabetic patients with autonomic neuropathy.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.5keywords = anaesthesia (Clic here for more details about this article) |
8/8. Autonomic hyperreflexia during labour.We present two cases of automatic hyperreflexia (AH) during labour in women with spinal cord damage, in whom AH developed before and after delivery. The AH was successfully controlled using epidural anaesthesia in Case #1, but failed in Case #2. The blood pressure was controlled with nicardipine. However, overdose of nicardipine produces vasodilation and its side effects include headache, flushing and palpitation similar to AH. Considering these effects, we recommend epidural anaesthesia to control AH, because epidural anaesthesia does not only reduce BP, but also blocks the noxious stimuli and relieves the symptoms of AH. Our experience suggests that the epidural catheter can be placed two to three weeks before the date of predicted childbirth, because the onset of labour in a patient with spinal cord damage is difficult to predict and can proceed very rapidly. Also, the epidural catheter is available after the delivery. We recommended the epidural catheter is maintained for 24-48 hr postpartum.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1.5keywords = anaesthesia (Clic here for more details about this article) |