Myasthenia Gravis is a chronic disorder of neuromuscular transmission characterized by weakness, fatigue of voluntary muscles, especially exacerbations and remissions, a rare disease in Korea. Special considerations are required in the anesthetic management of the myasthenic patients undergoing surgery under general anesthesia and in the postoperative respiratory management by anesthesi olgists. Authors report 8 cases of anesthesia, using N20-02-Enflurane without using nondepolarizing and depolarizing muscle relaxants for thymectomy, experienced during the year 1986~1990.
Anesthesia ; Anesthesia, General ; Fatigue ; Humans ; Korea ; Muscle, Skeletal ; Myasthenia Gravis ; Neuromuscular Depolarizing Agents ; Rare Diseases ; Thymectomy*

We Performed 1,662 anesthesia for emergency surgery at Maryknoll Hospital from January 1985 to December 1989, these surgeries were analyzed clinically and statistically according to age, sex, preoperative status, insurance and noninsurance, frequency of emergency operation, presence of full stomach, department, operation site, anesthetic techniques and agents, time & duration of anesthesia, amount of transfusion. The results were as follows: 1) More than half of the total cases were patients in the third and fourth decade of age. 2) The ratio of male to female numbered 0.83: 1. 3) According to the A.S.A.classification of physical status, patients in emergency class 1 were 38.5%. 4) The ratio of insurance patients (1,113 cases, 67%) versus noninsurance parients (549 cases, 33%) was approximately 2:1. 5) Emergency surgery was 6.1% of total surgical cases. 6) 6.7% patients of emergency surgery had full stomach. 7) The most frequent emergency operations were done by general surgery (43.5%), and obstetrics & gynecology (28.6%). 8) Most common diseases in order, were appendicitis (457 cases), Cesarean section (335 cases), intracranial hematoma (202 cases), repair of tendon, nerve, vessels (71 cases). 9) The most common anesthetic technique for emergency surgery was general anesthesia (94.6%) followed by spinal anesthesia (3.5%). 10) 47.5 percent of emergency operations were performed during the 6 hours from midday to 6 p. m. 11) The duration of anesthesia was up to 2 hours in 1165 cases (70.1%). 12) The cases requiring transfusion during operation were 21.4% (355 cases) of the total cases (1, 662 cases).
Anesthesia* ; Anesthesia, General ; Anesthesia, Spinal ; Appendicitis ; Cesarean Section ; Emergencies* ; Female ; Gynecology ; Hematoma ; Humans ; Insurance ; Insurance Coverage ; Male ; Obstetrics ; Pregnancy ; Stomach ; Tendons