No abstract available.

No abstract available.
Anesthesia

The autonomic nervous system (ANS) contributes importantly to the short-term regulation of blood pressure and cardiovascular variability. Evidence from numerous studies indicates a strong association among compromised ANS, sudden cardiac death, blood pressure instability and adverse postoperative cardiac events. Heart rate variability (HRV), blood pressure variability (BPV) and baroreflex sensitivity (BRS) have been studied for years as tools for assessing ANS. In this review, physiological origin and measurement principle of cardiovascular fluctuations are described and changes in indices of HRV, BPV and BRS observed in various situations of anesthesia are discussed. Anesthesiologists need to consider estimation of ANS function to predict hypertension/hypotension after anesthesia induction and to improve short-term outcome and long-term cardiac morbidity and mortality.
Anesthesia ; Anesthesiology ; Autonomic Nervous System ; Baroreflex ; Blood Pressure ; Death, Sudden, Cardiac ; Heart ; Heart Rate

No abstract available.
Anesthesia* ; Liver Transplantation* ; Liver*

No abstract available.
Anesthesia ; Natriuretic Peptide, Brain

Pulmonary embolism (PE), which can originate as a consequence of deep vein thrombosis (DVT), is the most frequent and potentially fatal venous thromboembolic event. Despite the fact that the incidence of venous thromboembolism (VTE) in Asians is lower than that in the Western populations, a recent epidemiologic study demonstrates an increasing incidence of VTE in the Korean population. Anticoagulants, including low molecular weight heparin (LMWH) and vitamin K antagonist (VKAs), have been the main treatments for PE, however, recently new oral anticoagulants (NOACs) were introduced. We will review how well patients with PE can be managed with the existing anticoagulants and NOACs along with the time span of treatment, which still pose some challenges for clinicians.
Anticoagulants ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Heparin, Low-Molecular-Weight ; Humans ; Incidence ; Pulmonary Embolism ; Venous Thromboembolism ; Venous Thrombosis ; Vitamin K

BACKGROUND: The sequence method of determining baroreflex sensitivity (BRSSEQ) has been reported to correlate poorly with the phenylephrine method of determining BRS in individuals with attenuated BRS. Inhalation anesthetics are also known to decrease BRS. We therefore assessed the effect of varying the systolic blood pressure (SBP) and R-R interval (RRI) thresholds on BRSSEQ values and compared these results with the BRS obtained by the modified Oxford technique (BRSMODOX). METHODS: The average number of valid sequences and BRSSEQ values were derived by varying the SBP threshold from 0.5 to 2.5 mmHg and the RRI threshold from 1 to 6 ms, and the relation of BRSSEQ values to BRSMODOX values using sequential administration of nitroprusside and phenylephrine was assessed in 40 healthy individuals during sevoflurane anesthesia. RESULTS: Increasing either the SBP thresholds or RRI thresholds resulted in a decrease in the number of valid sequences. As the SBP thresholds were decreased and the RRI thresholds were increased, BRSSEQ values increased. When the SBP threshold exceeded 1 mmHg, no significant correlations were observed between BRSSEQ and BRSMODOX values. Significant correlations between the two methods were observed for an SBP threshold of 0.5 mmHg and RRI thresholds of 1, 2, 3 and 4 ms. Biases between the two methods were 2.1, 2.1, 0.4, and 0.4 ms/mmHg for 0.5 mmHg and 1, 2, 3 and 4 ms. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that adjusting the SBP threshold to 0.5 mmHg and the RRI threshold to 3 or 4 ms may improve BRSSEQ validity during sevoflurane anesthesia, when compared to BRSMODOX.
Anesthesia* ; Anesthetics, Inhalation ; Baroreflex* ; Bias (Epidemiology) ; Blood Pressure* ; Nitroprusside ; Phenylephrine

Adrenal insufficiency, which is related to hemodynamic instability and increased mortality, has been reported in patients with advanced liver disease regardless of the presence of septic conditions. In this regard, the hepatoadrenal syndrome has been recently proposed as adrenal insufficiency in critically ill patients with liver disease. We describe here a 67-year-old female patient with hepatic failure and adrenal insufficiency. The patient showed stable vital signs and no evidence of sepsis preoperatively. Despite hydrocortisone replacement and inotropics administration, severe intraoperative hemodynamic instability was observed. Hydrocortisone administration was continued postoperatively, nevertheless inotropics could not be tapered. On postoperative day 11, the patient died due to pneumonia and septic shock. Hepatoadrenal syndrome may have played a key role in her severe hemodynamic fluctuation and poor outcome, reinforcing the importance of adrenal function in the liver transplantation surgery.
Adrenal Insufficiency ; Critical Illness ; Female ; Hemodynamics ; Humans ; Hydrocortisone ; Liver ; Liver Diseases ; Liver Failure ; Liver Transplantation ; Pneumonia ; Sepsis ; Shock, Septic ; Vital Signs

Currently, hemodynamic monitoring system is developing rapidly, with many different devices now available, which makes anesthesiologists feel somewhat confused by the various possibilities and issue of noninvasiveness. By the order of degree of invasiveness, these devices can be classified into the highly invasive pulmonary artery catheter and the completely noninvasive bioimpedance/bioreactance technique and Doppler echocardiography. Recently, trans-cardiopulmonary thermodilution-derived hemodynamic parameters, such as global end-diastolic volume, global ejection fraction, cardiac function index, extravascular lung water, pulmonary vascular permeability index and its cardiac output, are available in anesthetic practice by PiCCO(R)(Pulsion Medical Systems) and VolumeView(R) (Edwards Life Sciences). This article provides objective review of the monitoring systems, as well as the advantages and limitations, in order to offer better management of the critically ill patients undergoing surgery.
Capillary Permeability ; Cardiac Output* ; Catheters ; Critical Illness ; Echocardiography, Doppler ; Extravascular Lung Water ; Hemodynamics* ; Humans ; Pulmonary Artery

BACKGROUND: Liver transplantation (LT) has become the treatment of choice for advanced liver disease. However, renal dysfunction often complicates the course of liver transplant recipients. The preoperative serum creatinine level have been shown to be an important predictor of a short-term graft and patient survival rates and the need for perioperative dialysis. This study examined the impact of the pretransplant renal function on the anesthetic characteristics and renal function after LT. METHODS: Patients undergoing LT were divided two groups according to the creatinine (Cr) level at time of LT. The following information was collected for each patient: age, etiology, weight and height, serum Cr, Cr clearance, patient survival, and cause of death. The laboratory data was collected at preoperative day, operation day and postoperative 1, 7, 30 days and 6 months. The hemodynamic profile was collected during LT. RESULTS: There were 27 patients in the renal dysfunction (RD) group. Ascites, total blood transfusion and fluid administration was significantly higher in the RD group. The hemodynamic parameters were similar in both groups. The BUN and Cr levels were significantly higher in the RD group in the perioperative period. At the preoperative period, the AST, ALT, bilirubin and prothrombin time was significantly higher in the RD group. The postoperative ICU stay and mortality rate was higher in the RD group. CONCLUSIONS: A pretransplant renal dysfunction is the result of deterioration in the liver function in the preoperative period, and indicates a greater requirement of blood and fluid during surgery.
Ascites ; Bilirubin ; Blood Transfusion ; Cause of Death ; Creatinine ; Dialysis ; Hemodynamics ; Humans ; Liver Diseases ; Liver Transplantation ; Liver* ; Mortality ; Perioperative Period ; Preoperative Period ; Prothrombin Time ; Survival Rate ; Transplantation ; Transplants