Correlates of myalgia in electroconvulsive therapy.

Myalgias are common in patients treated with electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). The mechanism of this side effect is unknown. Two commonly postulated etiologies are the motor activity during the convulsion and the fasciculations induced by succinylcholine.

The clinical utility of inhalational anesthesia with sevoflurane in electroconvulsive therapy.

Anesthesia in electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) almost always is induced with intravenous agents, typically barbiturates, etomidate, or propofol. There are, however, circumstances in which an inhalational agent would be preferable for induction of general anesthesia. These uncommon clinical scenarios include severe needle stick phobia, agitation preventing insertion of an intravenous catheter, and poor tolerance of intravenous induction agents.

Twelve-lead high-frequency QRS electrocardiography during anesthesia in healthy subjects.

Analysis of the high-frequency (HF) components of the QRS complex has been shown to be a more sensitive indicator of myocardial ischemia and infarction than conventional ST segment analysis in settings outside of the operating room. In this study, we documented the effect of general anesthesia on HF QRS analysis in healthy patients as the first step in determining the potential of this technique for monitoring anesthetized patients. HF QRS electrocardiograms (ECGs) were obtained from all 12 ECG leads in 30 healthy subjects before and after the induction of anesthesia.