A massive transfusion protocol to decrease blood component use and costs.

Hypothesis: A massive transfusion protocol (MTP) decreases the use of blood components, as well as turnaround times, costs, and mortality.

Design: Retrospective before-and-after cohort study.

Setting: Academic level I urban trauma center.

Allogeneic blood transfusion increases the risk of postoperative bacterial infection: a meta-analysis.

Background: Immunosuppression is a consequence of allogeneic (homologous) blood transfusion (ABT) in humans and is associated with an increased risk in cancer recurrence rates after potentially curative surgery as well as an increase in the frequency of postoperative bacterial infections. Although a meta-analysis has been reported demonstrating the relationship between ABT and colon cancer recurrence, no meta-analysis has been reported demonstrating the relationship of ABT to postoperative bacterial infection.

Methods: Twenty peer-reviewed articles published from 1986 to 2000 were included in a meta-analysis.

Fast-tracking after outpatient laparoscopy: reasons for failure after propofol, sevoflurane, and desflurane anesthesia.

In this study, although 41%-94% of the patients were fast-track eligible after laparoscopic surgery, only 35%-53% of the patients actually bypassed the postanesthesia care unit (PACU) because of anesthetic-related factors and surgical complications. Residual sedation was the most common anesthetic-related cause of failure to bypass thePACU.

Reversal of rocuronium with edrophonium during propofol versus sevoflurane anesthesia.

Background: The use of volatile anesthetics for maintenance of anesthesia can enhance the action of non-depolarizing muscle relaxants and interfere with the reversal of neuromuscular blockade. In this study, we studied the antagonism of rocuronium with edrophonium-atropine during propofol- versus sevoflurane-based anesthesia.

Methods: Following induction of anesthesia with propofol (2-2.