Two matched groups of eight patients were given hyperbaric tetracaine (12 mg) intrathecally. One group was instructed to cough vigorously three times after injection. The mean upper level of analgesia by pinscratch technique was the sixth thoracic dermatome in both groups. We conclude that three vigorous coughs do not influence the spread of spinal anesthesia.

Aged↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Depression of lung mucociliary dlearance by thiopental and halothane.

It has previously been demonstrated that an induction dose of thiopental, 25 mg/kg, without continuing anesthesia did not depress peripheral lung mucociliary clearance in the dog, whereas 2 hours of anesthesia with halothane, 1.2 MAC, did depress clearance. To determine whether this was because thiopental depresses the mucociliary apparatus less than halothane, this study compared mucociliary clearance after 2 hours of anesthesia with halothane with clearance after 2 hours of anesthesia with thiopental, 40 mg/kg. With thiopental, 40 mg/kg, 50% mucociliary clearance of tantalum from peripheral airways required 280 +/- 65 (SEM) minutes, which was comparable to clearance obtained with halothane, 1.2 MAC, 382 +/- 27 (SEM) minutes. Hence thiopental depresses mucociliary clearance as much as halothane does when both are administered in equivalent anesthetic doses for equal periods of time.

Anesthesia, Inhalation↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Pancuronium reduces halothane requirement in man.

We studied the contribution of pancuronium to anesthetic requirement in man by comparing MAC for halothane alone in 18 patients, with that after intravenous administration of pancuronium, 0.1 mg/kg, in 17 patients. In each group, movement was observed in limbs isolated from the circulation by tourniquet. In patients receiving pancuronium, halothane MAC was 0.55%, whereas the control value was 0.73%. Thus pancuronium reduces halothane MAC by 25%.

Adult↗