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Biomedical subjects

D Eimerl

Publications and source records attributed to D Eimerl.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

[Laparoscopic colonic resection].

We present our initial experience with laparoscopic colonic resection in 15 patients: adenocarcinoma of the colon, 10 cases, giant villous adenoma (2), arteriovenous malformation (2), and a case of benign stricture. Mean operating time was 190 minutes and there were no intraoperative complications. The margins of resection and number of resected lymph nodes in patients with malignancy were comparable to those in the conventionally operated. Mean postoperative hospital stay was 6.1 days. During a maximum follow-up of 15 months there were no wound or trocar-site recurrences. We conclude that laparoscopic colonic resection is technically feasible and safe. However, its use for treating malignant diseases of the colon needs further study.

Adenocarcinoma

Postischemic intestinal motility in rat is inversely correlated to length of ischemia. An in vivo animal model.

An inverse correlation between postischemic gastrointestinal motility and the length of intestinal ischemia was found in an animal model. Intestinal ischemia was caused without concurrent laparotomy and for a predetermined time period (ischemia time) by pulling on an external nylon thread that was threaded through a double-lumen catheter. This catheter was passed into the abdominal cavity to encircle the superior mesenteric artery. Gastrointestinal motility was determined by the introduction of a color-marked meal into the animal's stomach and the measurement of the proportionate length of the small bowel filled with it (transit index). This simple and reliable animal model can also be used for the evaluation of techniques and pharmacological manipulations aimed at modulation of the effects of intestinal ischemia on intestinal motility and its consequences.

Animals

Epidural anesthesia accelerates the recovery of postischemic bowel motility in the rat.

BACKGROUND: Intestinal ischemia is associated with derangement of gastrointestinal motility. Uncontrolled clinical observations that bupivacaine injected into the epidural space causes faster recovery of bowel motility after various abdominal operations led us to assess the hypothesis that epidural anesthesia can hasten the recovery of gastrointestinal motility in the immediate postischemic period. METHODS: Gut motility studies were performed in rats in which epidural anesthesia and intestinal ischemia could be initiated without the need to provoke surgical trauma. Epidural lidocaine was compared to epidural saline in their effect on intestinal motility after a 30-min period of bowel ischemia. RESULTS: Total ischemia to the small bowel resulted in pronounced postischemic adynamic ileus as evidenced by only 0.7% of the total length of the small bowel filled with a marker meal at the end of the study period (transit index) compared with 84.4% in the control group. Lidocaine epidural anesthesia caused significantly more rapid resolution of the adynamic ileus (60.3% of the bowel filled with the marker meal vs. 30.9% in the controls in which saline was injected). CONCLUSIONS: Epidural lidocaine compared to epidural saline hastens the recovery of gastrointestinal motility in rats after a 30-min period of bowel ischemia. This effect may be elicited by attenuation of sympathetic efferent inhibitory pathways or by vasodilatation caused by the sympathetic block. These results suggest that lidocaine epidural block not only alleviates pain in situations of ischemic injury to the bowel but may also hasten the recovery from postischemic paralytic ileus.

Anesthesia, Epidural

Plasma concentrations of methadone during postoperative patient-controlled extradural analgesia.

Plasma concentrations of methadone were measured by gas chromatography in 16 patients receiving extradural methadone by continuous infusion for relief of postoperative pain. Venous blood samples were taken after a loading dose of extradural methadone 2 mg and during infusion of 0.46 mg h-1 plus patient-controlled increments of 0.2-1 mg. Mean (SD) plasma concentration of methadone was 9.8 (2.1) ng ml-1 at 15 min; this did not change significantly during the first 2 h, after which it increased gradually to 32.2 (4.6) ng ml-1 (P less than 0.001) at the end of 24 h. The mean quantity of extradural methadone required to produce effective analgesia was 10.3 (1.8) mg during the first 12 h after operation and 6 (1.0) mg for the subsequent 12 h. The mean amount of methadone for effective analgesia on the second day was 7.6 (1.1) mg. No adverse effects were detected during the 2-3 days of methadone therapy. Plasma concentration of methadone increased significantly during patient-controlled infusion of extradural methadone in the first 24 h after operation, suggesting rapid vascular uptake. Systemic activity of the drug contributes to the analgesic effect of extradural methadone.

Adult

Epidural capsaicin produces prolonged segmental analgesia in the rat.

The effect of epidural capsaicin injections on the thermal nociceptive threshold of unrestrained freely moving adult rats was examined. Capsaicin solution (1% 0.05 ml, 0.1 ml) was injected in a single dose or in two consecutive doses through an indwelling lumbar epidural catheter. Effects were compared with 1 ml 1% capsaicin injected intraperitoneally. Twelve rats served as sham-treated and vehicle controls. Nociceptive thermal stimuli were brief pulses of CO2 laser radiation directed at three body areas, hind limb, forelimb, and pinna. Capsaicin caused prolonged, segmental thermal analgesia. Maximal nociceptive threshold values in the hind limbs, attained within 24 h of epidural injection, were 2.5 (P less than or equal to 0.006) and 5.3 (P less than or equal to 0.0005) time control values for the 0.05-ml and 0.1-ml doses, respectively. Response thresholds in the forelimbs and pinna were unaffected. Two-stage epidural injection of capsaicin led to a roughly twofold elevation of threshold, as well as prolongation of the analgesia to about 14 days. Intraperitoneal injection of capsaicin resulted in elevation of nociceptive threshold which included all body areas tested. These results indicate that epidural application of capsaicin at the lumbar spinal level produced a profound and long-lasting segmental analgesia.

Analgesics

One-lung high-frequency ventilation in the management of traumatic tear of bronchus in a child.

An 8-yr-old child suffered traumatic bilateral pneumothoraces and a ruptured right main bronchus. Surgical repair of the bronchus was postponed for 18 h after a definite diagnosis was established due to severe hypoxemia and hypercarbia. Only left endobronchial high-frequency ventilation with muscle relaxation corrected this pulmonary dysfunction sufficiently to enable surgical intervention.

Accidental Falls

Interaction of hypoxia and hypercapnia on cerebral hemodynamics and brain electrical activity in dogs.

The interaction of hypoxic hypoxia, hypercapnia, and mean arterial blood pressure (MABP) was studied in 15 pentobarbital-anesthetized ventilated dogs. In one group of animals (n = 5) hypercapnia [arterial CO2 partial pressure (PaCO2) approximately 50 Torr] was added to both moderate hypoxia and severe hypoxia. Moderate hypoxia [arterial O2 partial pressure (PaO2) = 36 mmHg] increased MABP and cerebral blood flow (CBF) without changes in cerebral O2 uptake (CMRO2). Superimposed hypercapnia increased CBF and MABP further with no change in CMRO2. In another group of animals (n = 5), a MABP increase of approximately 40 mmHg during moderate hypoxia without hypercapnia did not further increase CBF, suggesting intact autoregulation. Thus, during moderate hypoxia, hypercapnia is capable of increasing CBF. Severe hypoxia (PaO2 = 22 mmHg) increased CBF, but MABP and CMRO2 declined. Superimposed hypercapnia further decreased MABP and decreased CBF from its elevated level and further decreased CMRO2. Raising MABP under these circumstances in another animal group (n = 5) increased CBF above the level present during severe hypoxia alone and increased CMRO2. The change in CBF and CMRO2 during severe hypoxia plus hypercapnia with MABP elevation were not different from that severe hypoxia alone. We conclude that, during hypoxia sufficiently severe to impair CMRO2, superimposed hypercapnia has a detrimental influence due to decreased MABP, which causes a decrease in CBF and cerebral O2 delivery.

Animals

Pulmonary complications following endotracheal intubation for anesthesia in breech extraction.

A 28-year-old, healthy pregnant patient developed bilateral pneumothorax, subcutaneous emphysema, pneumomediastinum, pneumoretroperitoneum and pneumoperitoneum following endotracheal intubation and manual ventilation during general anesthesia for breech extraction. It is likely that positive-pressure ventilation was the cause for this very rare combination of complications. Early recognition and treatment may prevent such a catastrophe.

Adult

Effects of alfentanil on cerebral vascular reactivity in dogs.

The effects of high dose alfentanil on the cerebral vascular responses to alterations in mean arterial pressure (MAP), arterial oxygen tension (PaO2) and arterial carbon dioxide tension (PaCO2) were studied in 17 dogs, using the cerebral venous outflow technique. In six animals anaesthetized with sodium pentobarbitone 30 mg kg-1 i.v., bolus injection of alfentanil 0.32 mg kg-1 i.v. decreased MAP without a change in cerebral blood flow (CBF). In another group of animals(n = 5) anaesthetized with pentobarbitone 30 mg kg-1 i.v. the CBF responses to changes in MAP, PaO2, and PaCO2 were studied. In a third group of animals (n = 6) anaesthetized with alfentanil 0.32 mg kg-1 i.v. plus pentobarbitone 1-2 mg kg-1 i.v. and an infusion of alfentanil 0.32 mg kg-1 h-1, the CBF response to alterations in MAP, PaO2, and PaCO2 were studied and compared with the barbiturate-anaesthetized animals. The CBF responses to hypercapnia and hypoxia in the alfentanil-anaesthetized animals were not different from those observed in animals anaesthetized with barbiturate only. The lower and upper limits of cerebral autoregulation in alfentanil-anaesthetized animals were not different from those observed in animals anaesthetized with barbiturate only. The data suggest that alfentanil, in doses sufficient to cause profound analgesia and anaesthesia, does not alter cerebral reactivity to changes in PaO2, PaCO2 and MAP.

Adjuvants, Anesthesia

Observations on extradural morphine analgesia in various pain conditions.

We report the extradural administration of low-dose morphine in 10 ml of 10% dextrose (2-3 mg) to 98 adult patients with various types of acute and chronic pain. Extradural morphine injections were given either via a Tuohy needle (single or repeat injection) or via an extradural catheter. Pain relief was evaluated by subjective scoring and by the subsequent need for systemic analgesics. In 56% of patients, pain relief was considered good or excellent, in 24% it was fair, and in 20%, poor. The best results were after surgery and trauma and in patients with advanced peripheral vascular disease. The analgesia of each dose of extradural morphine lasted for 8 h (mean range 4-36 h). There was no motor, sensory or sympathetic blockade and no respiratory or haemodynamic complications. Dizziness and vomiting occurred in two patients, and urinary retention for about 12 h in three.

Adult

[The pain clinic].

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Antipsychotic Agents

Preservation of myocardial contractility in hemorrhagic shock with methylprednisolone.

The left anterior descending or left circumflex coronary artery was cannulated selectively in 10 dogs. Methylprednisolone, 1 mg per kilogram of body weight, was injected into the artery and the cannula was withdrawn. The animals were then subjected to hemorrhagic shock for 90 minutes. Retransfusion to prestudy blood pressure was then accomplished. The electrocardiogram, arterial blood pressure, contractile force, and first derivative of contractile force were recorded continously both from the areas that were pretreated and those that were not, the controls. Contractile force in the control area was reduced to 32 +/- 3.2% of the preshock period after 90 minutes of shock, whereas in the pretreated area it was twice as high at the same time. Ten minutes after transfusion, the contractile force of the pretreated area exceeded the preshock level, whereas the recovery of contractile force in the control area reached only 70% of the preshock level. This study shows that intracoronary infusion of methylpredisolone can afford myocardial protection in hemorrhagic shock to a significant degree.

Animals

The variable effect of PEEP in acute respiratory failure associated with multiple trauma.

Both short and longterm effects of positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP) on oxygenating capacity (OC) were investigated in three groups of patients with acute respiratory failure following multiple trauma (MT). Group A consisted of six patients with "uncomplicated" MT; Group B, eight patients with MT and generalized sepsis; Group C, nine patients with MT and lung contusion. OC was evaluated in terms of PaO2/FIO2 and P(A-a)DO2 on FIO 2 = 1.0. OC was markedly and equally reduced in the three patient groups before use of PEEP. The use of a mean PEEP of 6-7 cm H2O resulted in an initial improvement in mean PaO2/FIO2 of 152.5, 36.1, and 59.2 mm Hg, and an overall improvement of 196.8, 57.5, and 107.0 mm Hg in Groups A, B, and C, respectively. There was a similar improvement in both the initial and the overall effect of PEEP on P(A-a)DO2 in the three groups. The difference in the improvement in OC due to PEEP was statistically significant between Groups A and B. It is concluded that acute respiratory failure following MT includes a wide spectrum of clinical syndromes, and that the improvement in OCT due to PEEP depends on the clinical sydrome that is responsible for the respiratory failure associated with MT.

Acute Disease

The marked myocardial depressant effect of verapamil.

An experiment was designed to measure accurately the primary effect of verapamil on myocardial contractility by infusion of the drug directly into the coronary artery of open-chested anesthetized dogs. A marked myocardial depressant effect, which was dose and time dependent, was noted during verapamil infusion at the infused area only. The percent decrease in contractile force ranged from 8.8 at an infusion rate (mg/min) of 0.55 X 10(-2) to 36.8 at 5.5 X 10(-2). Similar changes were observed in the first derivative of the contractile force. No changes were observed in the left ventricular systolic or end-diastolic pressure and only a mild increase in contractile force was noted in the control (noninfused) area. The depressant effect of verapamil was sustained. Recovery time after 5 min of verapamil infusion was dose dependent, ranging from 10 to 45 min. During the recovery period, an overshoot of the contractile force was observed in dogs on the higher doses only. We concluded that verapamil in clinically relevant doses has a marked negative inotropic effect of long duration and therefore should be used with caution in patients with depressed left ventricular function. Cessation of the verapamil treatment may cause a transient increase in myocardial contractility, which might be hazardous in patients with angina pectoris who have compromised coronary blood flow.

Animals