1/6. Anaesthetic considerations in a patient with lepromatous leprosy.PURPOSE: To consider the anaesthetic problems in a patient with lepromatous leprosy undergoing general anaesthesia. CLINICAL FEATURES: A 52 yr old man with lepromatous leprosy for five years was booked for elective radical nephrectomy. He received 100 mg dapsone per day po. The patient was asymptomatic for cardiovascular disease but his electrocardiogram showed complete left bundle branch block, inferior wall ischaemia with echocardiogram findings of 58% ejection fraction and left ventricular diastolic dysfunction. Other preoperative investigations (haemogram, serum urea and creatinine, liver function tests and chest X-ray) were normal. After premedication with diazepam, meperidine and promethazine, the patient received glycopyrrolate and anaesthesia was induced with thiopentone. atracurium was given to facilitate tracheal intubation. Anaesthesia was maintained with intermittent positive pressure ventilation using N2O in oxygen with halothane. Anaesthesia and surgery were uneventful except that the patient had a fixed heart rate that remained unchanged in response to administration of anticholinergic, laryngoscopy, intubation and extubation. CONCLUSION: patients with lepromatous leprosy may have cardiovascular dysautonomia even when they are asymptomatic for cardiovascular disease.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = anaesthesia (Clic here for more details about this article) |
2/6. Rate-dependent left bundle branch block during anaesthesia.Rate-dependent left bundle branch block during general anaesthesia is rare. Its occurrence makes electrocardiographic diagnosis of acute myocardial ischaemia or infarction difficult. It can also be confused with a slow rate ventricular tachycardia. We present a case of rate-dependent left bundle branch block in a patient with no previous history of ischaemic heart disease. carotid sinus massage resulted in a decrease in heart rate and reversion to normal sinus rhythm.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 2.5keywords = anaesthesia (Clic here for more details about this article) |
3/6. Intraoperative diagnosis of rate-dependent bundle branch block.Rate-dependent left bundle branch block (LBBB) occasionally occurs during anaesthesia when the heart rate exceeds a critical value. While it is usually a benign disorder, it may mask the electrocardiographic manifestations of myocardial ischaemia and the ST-T wave pattern associated with LBBB may be mistaken for those of ischaemia. This case report presents two cases in which rate-dependent LBBB was clearly documented during the perioperative period. It demonstrates the use of pharmacologic agents (e.g., atropine and neostigmine) and physiologic manipulations (e.g., carotid sinus massage) to alter the heart rate and confirm the diagnosis of benign rate-dependent LBBB in the operating room. These interventions should be used with caution in patients who have hypertension, angina, cerebrovascular, or AV node disease or in the setting of myocardial ischaemia or severe bundle branch disease.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.5keywords = anaesthesia (Clic here for more details about this article) |
4/6. inhalation anaesthesia and the kearns-sayre syndrome.kearns-sayre syndrome is an extremely rare mitochondrial myopathy, characterised by retinitis pigmentosa associated with progressive external ophthalmoplegia. Cardiac conduction abnormalities are common and range from bundle branch block to third degree atrioventricular block. Generalised degeneration of the central nervous system has also been reported. We describe the anaesthetic management of a child afflicted by this syndrome. The major anaesthetic complication in this disease is sudden third degree atrioventricular block which may lead to death in the absence of an artificial cardiac pacemaker.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 2keywords = anaesthesia (Clic here for more details about this article) |
5/6. Intermittent left bundle branch block revealed during anaesthesia.Intermittent left bundle branch block is uncommon. During anaesthesia,, left bundle branch block may be related to hypertension or tachycardia and its occurrence makes the diagnosis of acute myocardial ischaemia or infarction difficult. patients with intermittent left bundle branch block often develop established left bundle branch block, which may represent an earlier state of ischaemic heart disease. Cardiological investigation of our patient after operation did not point towards an organic cause of intermittent left bundle branch block.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 2.5keywords = anaesthesia (Clic here for more details about this article) |
6/6. Spontaneous remission of left bundle branch block during anaesthesia.Routine pre-operative evaluation of a 58-year-old man scheduled for repair of an inguinal hernia, disclosed a blood pressure of 200/100 mmHg. This decreased to 150/100 mmHg after a period of rest. An electrocardiogram taken as a result of this chance finding showed left bundle branch block. There were no other cardiovascular symptoms or signs. Soon after induction of general anaesthesia, the conduction defect disappeared. The return to sinus rhythm was sudden and sustained and was not related to changes in heart rate or blood pressure. One month later, his electrocardiograph remained normal.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 2.5keywords = anaesthesia (Clic here for more details about this article) |