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Biomedical subjects

O Wilder-Smith

Publications and source records attributed to O Wilder-Smith.

12 recordsLinked to original sources

General anaesthesia for supratentorial neurosurgery.

Anaesthesia for the surgical treatment of supratentorial tumours requires an understanding of: the pathophysiology of a localised or generalised increase in intracranial pressure (ICP), the regulation and maintenance of intracerebral perfusion, avoidance of secondary systemic insults to the brain, and the effects of anaesthetic drugs on ICP, cerebral perfusion and cerebral metabolism. Knowledge of the therapeutic options available for decreasing ICP, brain bulk and brain tension perioperatively is also essential. Potential complications which may present during supratentorial neurosurgery include massive intraoperative haemorrhage and seizures. The fact that the surgeon is operating on a tensed brain is also a potential source of difficulty. The need to monitor brain function and environment during surgery poses a challenge to the anaesthesiologist, as does the achievement of rapid emergence from anaesthesia with the adequate use of anaesthetic drugs.

Anesthesia, General↗

Adjuvant propofol enables better control of nausea and emesis secondary to chemotherapy for breast cancer.

We investigated the prophylactic antiemetic effect of added low-dose infusion of propofol in patients exhibiting nausea and vomiting refractory to dexamethasone and serotonin antagonist during non-cisplatin chemotherapy for breast cancer. In a prospective open longitudinal study, 117 patients who had more than five episodes of nausea and vomiting in their first chemotherapy cycle during the first 24 hr completed the study. They received in addition to the usual prophylactic antiemetic regimen a continuous intravenous infusion of 1 mg.kg-1.hr-1 propofol started four hours before chemotherapy and continued up to 24 hr for the two subsequent cycles. The number of vomiting/nausea episodes, level of sedation, patient activity, appetite and preference for future chemotherapy cycles were assessed. In the propofol supplemented cycles 90 and 80% of patients, during the 1st and 2nd propofol-assisted cycle respectively, were free of nausea and vomiting during the first 24 hr after chemotherapy. Patients were more frequently active and had more appetite during the propofol-assisted cycles. No propofol-associated side effects were observed. We conclude that the addition of a subhypnotic infusion of propofol enables better control of nausea and vomiting caused by non-cisplatin chemotherapy in the first 24 hr post-treatment.

Aged↗

[Use of propofol in intracranial surgery in 83 consecutive patients].

Propofol is an intravenous anesthetic agent with a short half-life allowing rapid recovery; it has cerebral hemodynamic effects similar to those of thiopental. The aim of the present study was to describe 83 patients (mean age 50.6 +/- 15.1 yrs) scheduled for intracranial surgery in whom a total intravenous anesthesia technique (TIVA) with propofol was used. 16 patients were operated in the sitting position. Mean propofol induction dose was 2.1 +/- 0.8 mg/kg combined with 2.3 +/- 1.8 micrograms/kg of fentanyl, 1.5 mg/kg of lidocaine, and 0.08 mg/kg of vecuronium to facilitate intubation. Before installation of the Mayfied pin-head holder, the site of the pins was infiltrated with 2-3 cc of lidocaine 1%. Anaesthesia was maintained with propofol 5.9 +/- 2.1 mg/kg/h and fentanyl 1.6 +/- 0.65 micrograms/kg/h. Mean values of mean arterial pressure and heart rate showed less than 10% variation at intubation, application of the pin-head holder and skin incision. Intracranial pressure measured by the lumbar route (after checking the patency of the CSF passage from the cerebral to the spinal compartments) varied by slightly more than 10%, starting at 11.3 +/- 6.0 mmHg before induction and 11.3 +/- 5.2 mmHg at intubation down to 9.5 +/- 4.5 mmHg after skin incision. The lumbar drainage in place allowed the surgeon to improve brain relaxation by drawing 5-20 cc of lumbar CSF. Duration of anaesthesia was 367 +/- 96 mn from induction to extubation.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adult↗

Propofol and cholestatic pruritus.

Hepatic cholestatis is frequently associated with pruritus. This pruritus is often intractable and resistant to conventional treatment. We treated three patients with intractable cholestatic pruritus with subhypnotic doses of propofol, a new intravenous anesthetic induction agent. All patients rapidly became itch- and scratch-free for a period of 60-90 min. No sedation occurred; no other side effects were observed.

Aged↗

The effect of nalbuphine and droperidol on spontaneous movements during induction of anesthesia with propofol in children.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effects of droperidol and nalbuphine on spontaneous movements during induction of anesthesia with propofol in children. DESIGN: Randomized, double-blind study. SETTING: Inpatient ear, nose, and throat (ENT) surgical clinic at the University Hospital of Geneva. PATIENTS: Forty-five children, ages 4 to 12 years, undergoing routine elective ENT surgery. INTERVENTIONS: Children were randomly assigned to receive either nalbuphine 0.1 mg/kg, droperidol 0.025 mg/kg, or isotonic saline 3 minutes before anesthesia induction. Induction was performed with a loading dose of propofol 3 mg/kg. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Spontaneous movements were observed in 33%, 87%, and 100% of patients in the nalbuphine, droperidol, and control groups, respectively. The movements were dystonic and choreiform in nature and were similar in all three groups. The frequency of spontaneous movements was significantly reduced (p < 0.05) in the nalbuphine group as compared with the droperidol and control groups. CONCLUSIONS: Nalbuphine, but not droperidol, decreases the frequency of spontaneous movements induced by propofol during induction of anesthesia in children; neither quality of induction and recovery nor interval between the end of propofol administration and tracheal extubation were modified by nalbuphine as compared with the control group.

Adjuvants, Anesthesia↗