Impact of the First Wave of COVID-19 on the Number of General Anesthesia Cases in 34 Tertiary Hospitals in Japan: A Multicenter Retrospective Study.

Since the first case of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) was reported in Japan in January 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic has brought about a significant change in people's lives. Although the COVID-19 pandemic is expected to have had an impact on the work of anesthesiologists, the specific impact has been largely unreported. We hypothesized that the number of general anesthesia (GA) cases has decreased due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

High mobility group box 1 can be used to monitor perioperative course in patients with liver cancer.

Objective: High mobility group box 1 (HMGB1) is produced by inflammation. Regarding liver injuries, HMGB1 is reportedly involved in liver regeneration. The present study investigated the use of HMGB1 as a postoperative marker of surgical course in patients with liver cancer.

Adhesions in the epidural space caused by frequent epidural blocks.

We report a case of adhesions in the epidural space caused by more than 200 times epidural blocks that were observed with epiduroscopy. A 41-year-old man had repeatedly undergone lumbar epidural blocks to treat pain in his leg, resulting in decreased efficacy of the epidural block. We described endoscopic findings that these adhesions were mostly consisted of adhesions formed from the soft connective tissue.

Optical surgical navigation system causes pulse oximeter malfunction.

An optical surgical navigation system is used as a navigator to facilitate surgical approaches, and pulse oximeters provide valuable information for anesthetic management. However, saw-tooth waves on the monitor of a pulse oximeter and the inability of the pulse oximeter to accurately record the saturation of a percutaneous artery were observed when a surgeon started an optical navigation system. The current case is thought to be the first report of this navigation system interfering with pulse oximetry.