Amplitude-reduction alert criteria and intervention during complex paediatric cervical spine surgery.

Objective: To determine the utility of widely used intraoperative neuromonitoring (IONM) alert criteria and intervention for predicting postoperative outcome following paediatric spinal surgery.

Methods: Retrospective analysis of somatosensory evoked potentials (SSEP) and motor evoked potentials (MEP) in consecutive cervical spine fixations. An intervention protocol followed amplitude-reductions in SSEPs (≥50 %) and/or MEPs (≥80 %).

A comparison of total intravenous anaesthesia using propofol with sevoflurane or desflurane in ambulatory surgery: systematic review and meta-analysis.

With the popularity of ambulatory surgery ever increasing, we carried out a systematic review and meta-analysis to determine whether the type of anaesthesia used had any bearing on patient outcomes. Total intravenous propofol anaesthesia was compared with two of the newer inhalational agents, sevoflurane and desflurane. In total, 18 trials were identified; only trials where nitrous oxide was administered to, or omitted from, both groups were included.