Comparison of standing stability with different doses in epidural fentanyl among post-cesarean delivery women: a prospective trial.

Background: The study purpose was to determine the safety and efficacy of different doses of epidural fentanyl plus local anesthetics on ambulation for patients who had elective cesarean delivery.

Methods: A prospective study at a single community hospital used posturography to compute Sway area for assessment of standing stability [ISRCTN14517337]. Continuous epidural infusion of 0.

Identical wave forms of vena cava and pulmonary artery during pulmonary artery catheter insertion due to kinking: a case report of a rare complication.

Background: We experienced a rare malposition of a pulmonary artery catheter due to kinking in a 63-year-old male who was scheduled for an off-pump coronary artery by-pass graft.

Findings: Given the difficulty to obtain stable pulmonary artery waveform, we discovered that the two waveforms of the distal and proximal ports of the pulmonary artery catheter were completely identical. Subsequent fluoroscopy revealed that because the catheter had formed a kink around the apex of the right ventricle, the distal port faced the proximal port of the catheter.

[Anesthetic management of a pneumothorax patient with complete situs inversus].

We experienced a case of pneumothorax in a patient with complete situs inversus. A 30-year-old man was scheduled for partial resection of the left lung under video assisted thoracic surgery. He had asymptomatic complete situs inversus.

Anesthesia protocols for early vitrectomy in former preterm infants diagnosed with aggressive posterior retinopathy of prematurity.

Aggressive posterior retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) can, if left untreated, rapidly progress to total retinal detachment within 1-2 weeks. Early surgical intervention with vitrectomy has been attempted to treat and prevent further retinal detachment. We investigated the anesthetic management of 29 infants with aggressive posterior ROP undergoing early vitrectomy.

[Suspected case of peripartum cardiomyopathy developed during elective cesarean section].

A 35-year-old primigravida with twin gestation was admitted for elective cesarean section. She had no preoperative systemic diseases including heart disease. At 37 weeks of gestation, elective cesarean section was performed under combined spinal-epidural anesthesia.

Electrogastrography during and after cesarean delivery.

Purpose: Although it has been generally believed that parturients have delayed gastric emptying during anesthesia, the most recent reports suggest that gastric emptying is not delayed during pregnancy except during labor. Electrical slow waves in the stomach determine the frequency and the peristaltic nature of gastric contractions. In this study we performed electrogastrography during and after elective cesarean section (CS) in an attempt to evaluate gastric motility.

Pregnancy-related increases in sensory perception thresholds are not correlated with serum progesterone levels.

Background: Why pregnant women require smaller doses of anesthetic agents still remains speculative. One hypothesis proposes that pregnancy raises sensory perception thresholds, perhaps through a progesterone-mediated effect. This study was undertaken in order to quantify any changes in sensory perception thresholds after parturition and to correlate these changes with the expected decrease in postpartum serum progesterone levels.

[Effects of methylergometrine and oxytocin on blood loss and uterine contraction during cesarean section].

Background: The effects of intravenous oxytocics on blood loss and uterine contraction during cesarean section were studied in 136 parturients.

Methods: The subjects were randomized to receive either methylergometrine 0.2 mg bolus (MEM group; n = 34), oxytocin 10 IU over 30 seconds (OX 30 s group; n = 34), oxytocin 10 IU over 5 minutes (OX 5 m group; n = 34) or oxytocin 10 IU over 15 minutes (OX 15 m group; n = 34).

Blood loss estimation during laparoscopic myomectomy using HemoCue.

During laparoscopic myomectomy, it is difficult to determine the actual blood loss volume because physiological saline is used for lavaging to detect the bleeding point or to ensure no active bleeding site. We attempted to estimate blood loss by measuring the waste irrigation fluid's hemoglobin (Hb) concentration using HemoCue (HemoCue, Angelholm, Sweden). Twenty-three women enrolled in our study.

Effects of intravenous infusion rate of oxytocin on thoracic epidural pressure in parturients undregoing elective cesarean section.

The effects of intravenous oxytocin on thoracic epidural pressure during cesarean section were studied in 90 parturients (American Society of Anesthesiologists physical atatus class I or II) after obtaining informed consent. The subjects were randomized to either a control (control group; n=30), bolus (bolus group; n=30) or drip treatment group (drip group; n=30). The subjects were anesthetized with 11 approximately 12 mg of intrathecal isobaric bupivacaine (0.

Current perception threshold increases during pregnancy but does not change across menstrual cycle.

It is well known that pregnancy reduces anesthetic requirements in response to various noxious stimuli. However, there have been no detailed reports concerning functional changes in nerve fibers during pregnancy. Using a Neurometer, a recently available commercial quantitative sensory monitor, we measured current perception threshold (CPT) values for three frequencies corresponding to the stimulation of A-beta, A-delta and C fibers on the median nerve in women at several stages: late pregnancy, the follicular phase and the luteal phase.