We have performed a retrospective analysis of the peri-operative course of 218 consecutive patients who underwent routine coronary artery bypass graft surgery in this institution. All patients received a standardised general anaesthetic using target-controlled infusions of alfentanil and propofol. One hundred patients also received thoracic epidural anaesthesia with bupivacaine and clonidine, s...

PURPOSE: Our goal was to compare the efficacy and side effects of thoracic epidural anesthesia or general anaesthesia during intra-abdominal surgery. METHODS: A hundred twenty-five patients were randomized to receive thoracic epidural anesthesia in awake patients (Group TEA) or general anesthesia (Group GA) in a prospective, randomized study. Preoperatively, all patients received a thoracic epi...

Purpose: In this study we sought to determine if and when a difference exists with regards to differential sensory blockade between spinal and epidural anaesthesia using lidocaine. Methods : Ten healthy volunteers were randomly assigned to receive both spinal and epidural anaesthesia. Nonepinephrine containing solutions of lidocaine, 100 mg lidocaine 5% with 7.5% dextrose (spinal) and 600 mg li...

BACKGROUND Relative effects of dosage, volume and concentration of local anaesthetics used for postoperative thoracic epidural analgesia are still under debate. In this randomized, prospective, double-blinded study, we evaluated the incidence of side-effects such as changes in arterial pressure, postoperative nausea, vomiting, and pruritus in patients admitted for thoracic surgery during contin...

A MALE patient, 73 yr old, had a Flexitip Plus (Arrow International, Reading, PA) 19gauge end-hole, wire-reinforced thoracic epidural catheter inserted for postthoracotomy pain management. He underwent highresolution spiral computed tomography scan with the catheter in situ before its use to evaluate previous bronchoscopic findings. A composite set of sagittal computed tomography images (figs. ...

BACKGROUND Anesthesia and inflammatory response have been studied in major abdominal and thoracic surgical procedures, but not in major orthopaedic reconstructive procedures such as total knee arthroplasty. Most studies have compared general anesthesia with epidural anesthesia, but none has compared epidural with spinal. MATERIAL/METHODS In a prospective randomized study, 2 groups of patients...

BACKGROUND Many studies focusing on the effects of local anaesthetics on QT intervals have been performed, but the articles evaluating the relationship between thoracic epidural anaesthesia combined with general anaesthesia and QT parameters are very limited. AIMS We aimed to compare the effects of bupivacaine and ropivacaine on QT interval, corrected QT, dispersion of QT, and corrected dispe...

BACKGROUND Despite epidural analgesia increasingly being utilized in hospitals, very little research-based evidence is available about registered nurses' (RNs) and midwives' knowledge of this technique. OBJECTIVE To describe the current epidural knowledge levels of RNs and midwives in a multi-site setting. METHOD RNs and midwives at four, regional teaching facilities completed an epidural k...

Extradural co-administration of opioids and local anaesthetics is a popular method for control of pain [3, 5, 18]. Spinal and epidural administration of opioids produce a profound and long lasting segmental analgesia, which is not associated with sensory, sympathetic, or motor blockade [2, 4]. The side effects of epidural opioids in men are dose-dependent and may include pruritus, nausea, respi...