The effect of 6% hydroxyethyl starch 130/0.4 on renal function, arterial blood pressure, and vasoactive hormones during radical prostatectomy: a randomized controlled trial.

Background: Although hydroxyethyl starch (HES) is commonly used as an intravascular volume expander in surgical patients, recent studies suggest that it may increase the risk of renal failure in critically ill patients. We hypothesized that patients undergoing radical prostatectomy and receiving HES would be more likely to develop markers of renal failure, such as increasing urinary neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (u-NGAL), creatinine clearance (C(crea)), and decreasing urine output (UO).

Methods: In a randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled study, 40 patients referred for radical prostatectomy received either 6% HES 130/0.

Evaluation of two methods to calculate p50 from a single blood sample.

Background: The hemoglobin-oxygen affinity is conveniently described as the oxygen tension at which the hemoglobin is 50% saturated (p50). We compared two methods of single-point analysis for p50 calculation, using clinical data.

Methods: From patients submitted to anesthesia for major surgery, 114 arterial or venous blood samples were analyzed by using the Sigaard-Andersen oxygen status algorithm (p50OSA) and Doyle's method (p50Doyle) based on Hill's equation.