Retrograde intubation with a Mini-Trach II kit.

Background: Retrograde intubation has been accepted internationally as a viable alternative for managing the difficult airway. Various techniques have been described to perform this procedure, however, difficulties have arisen on account of problems with suboptimal materials. We therefore describe a retrograde intubation technique using the knife and stiff plastic introducer from a Mini-Trach II set from Portex Ltd (Kent, UK).

Epidural clonidine enhances postoperative analgesia from a combined low-dose epidural bupivacaine and morphine regimen.

In a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, the value of adding clonidine to a low-dose epidural regimen for postoperative pain treatment was assessed. Twenty-four patients scheduled for hysterectomy during combined thoracic epidural (bupivacaine and morphine) and general anesthesia were studied. Postoperative analgesia consisted of epidural bupivacaine (5 mg/h) and morphine (0.

Systemic piroxicam as an adjunct to combined epidural bupivacaine and morphine for postoperative pain relief--a double-blind study.

In a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, we assessed the value of adding rectal piroxicam to a low-dose epidural regimen for postoperative pain relief. Forty-four patients scheduled for major upper abdominal surgery during combined thoracic epidural (bupivacaine + morphine) and general anesthesia were studied. Postoperative analgesia was achieved by using epidural bupivacaine (10 mg/h) plus morphine (0.