[Neurological disorders after cardiac surgery: Diagnosis of cerebral tumors in the postoperative period].

The incidence of neurologic disorders in the postoperative period of cardiac surgery is high and usually due to a combination of pre- and intraoperative factors. We present 2 patients with brain tumors diagnosed in the immediate postoperative period after sudden onset of neurologic dysfunction. Image studies yielded clinically useful information in these 2 cases.

Black esophagus (acute esophageal necrosis) after spinal anesthesia.

Acute esophagic necrosis or black esophagus is an uncommon clinical entity that owes its name to the endoscopic view of the necrotic esophageal mucosa. It is always related with a critical medical condition and usually has an ischemic etiology. We report the first case of acute esophageal necrosis after a spinal anesthetic for partial hip joint arthroplasty.

Total intravenous anesthesia for aortic aneurysm replacement surgery in a patient with limb-girdle dystrophy.

We report the anesthetic management with total intravenous anesthesia of a 61-year-old male diagnosed with limb-girdle muscular dystrophy admitted for replacement of ascending aorta due to an aortic aneurysm. Limb-girdle muscular dystrophy belongs to a genetically heterogeneous group of muscular dystrophies involving shoulder and hip girdles. Although the risk of malignant hyperthermia does not seem to be increased in these patients compared with the general population, the exposure to inhaled anesthetics and succinylcholine should probably be avoided because these patients have a predisposition to hyperkalemia and rhabdomyolysis.

[Prolonged therapeutic hypothermia after pericardial effusion drain surgery].

Therapeutic hypothermia is an effective treatment for neurological protection after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, and may also be beneficial for in-hospital cardiac arrest. Its use is limited in post-surgical patients due to the risk of specific complications, particularly bleeding. There are significant differences among previous publications regarding the time to reach the target temperature and the duration of therapy, so the optimal strategy is not yet established.