Association Between Pituitary-Adrenal Axis Dominance Over the Renin-Angiotensin-Aldosterone System and Hypertension.

Context: The hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and the renin-angiotensin aldosterone system (RAAS) are well known to be associated with hypertension. However, the extent of the effects is not yet well elucidated in general conditions.

Objective: To separately determine the effect of the HPA axis and the RAAS on hypertension in a general population.

[Use of argatroban as a substitute for heparin in a patient with suspected HIT type II undergoing carotid endarterectomy].

Heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT) type II is characterized by a decrease in platelet count and thrombosis following heparin administration. We anesthetized a 67-year-old woman with suspected HIT type II undergoing carotid endarterectomy (CEA). Preoperatively, the patient had received anticoagulation therapy with heparin for cerebral infarction due to thrombosis and she developed thrombocytopenia with deterioration of cerebral infarction.

Continuous monitoring of gastric intraluminal carbon dioxide pressure, cardiac output, and end-tidal carbon dioxide pressure in the perioperative period in patients receiving cardiovascular surgery using cardiopulmonary bypass.

Objective: To verify the hypothesis that the gastric intraluminal PCO2 (PgCO2) changes independently of the change in cardiac output (CO) during and after cardiovascular surgery using cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB), and that the elevation of PgCO2 affects the patients' morbidity.

Design: Prospective, noninterventional study.

Setting: Medical/surgical intensive care unit and operating theater of a university hospital.