Chhavi Sawhney

Management of a massive thoracoabdominal impalement: a case report

A 26 year old male was impaled through his chest and upper abdomen with an iron angle, one and half meter long and five centimeters thick. The iron angle entered the chest, through the epigastrium and exited posteriorly just inferior to the angle of left scapula. The patient was transported to hospital with the iron angle in situ. Positioning the patient for intubation proved a major challenge. An unconventional position for intubation allowed a successful airway management. Paucity of time prevented us from gauging the nature and extent of injury. The challenges posed by massive impalement could be successfully managed due to rapid pre-hospital transfer and co-ordinated team effort.

Impacted toothbrush in the oropharynx: a challenging airway

1 Lerman J, Hammer GB, Verghese S et al. Airway responses to desflurane during maintenance of anesthesia and recovery in children with laryngeal mask airways. Paediatr Anaesth 2010; 20: 495–505. 2 Lee J, Oh Y, Kim C et al. Fentanyl reduces desflurane-induced airway irritability following thiopental administration in children. Acta Anaesthesiol Scand 2006; 50: 1161–1164. 3 Kong CF, Chew ST, Ip-Yam PC. Intravenous opioids reduce airway irritation during induction of anaesthesia with desflurane in adults. Br J Anaesth 2000; 85: 364–367.

Organ retrieval and banking in brain dead trauma patients: Our experience at level-1 trauma centre and current views

Background: Organ retrieval from brain dead patients is getting an increased attention as the waiting list for organ recipients far exceeds the organ donor pool. In our country, despite a large population the number of brain dead donors undergoing organ donation is very less (2% in our study). Aims: The present study was undertaken to address issues related to organ donation and share our experience for the same. Methods: A retrospective case record analysis of over 5 years from September 2007 to August 2012 was performed and the patients fulfilling brain death criterion as per Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissue (Amendment) Act were included. Patient demographics (age, sex), mode of injury, time from injury to the diagnosis of brain death, time from diagnosis of brain death to organ retrieval and complications were analysed. Statistics Analysis: Students t test was used for parametric data and Chi square was used for categorical data. Results: Out of 205 patients who were identified as brain dead, only 10 patients became potential organ donors. Conclusion: Aggressive donor management, increasing public awareness about the concept of organ donation, good communication between clinician and the family members and a well-trained team of transplant coordinators can help in improving the number of organ donations.

Post operative pain relief through intermittent mandibular nerve block

Mandibular nerve block is often performed for diagnostic, therapeutic and anesthetic purposes for surgery involving mandibular region. Advantages of a nerve block include excellent pain relief and avoidance of the side effects associated with the use of opiods or Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAIDs). A patient with maxillo facial trauma was scheduled for open reduction and internal fixation of right parasymphyseal mandibular fracture. The mandibular nerve was approached using the lateral extraoral approach with an 18-gauge i.v. cannula under general anesthesia. He received 4 ml boluses of 0.25% plain bupivacaine for intraoperative analgesia and 12 hourly for 48 h post operatively. VAS scores remained less than 4 through out observation period. The only side effect was numbness of ipsilateral lower jaw line, which subsided after local anesthetic administration was discontinued. Patient was discharged after four days.

Critical care issues in solid organ injury: Review and experience in a tertiary trauma center.

Background and Aim: Solid organ (spleen and liver) injuries are dreaded by both surgeons and anesthesiologists because of associated high morbidity and mortality. The purpose of this review is to describe our experience of critical care concerns in solid organ injury, which otherwise has been poorly addressed in the literature. Materials and Methods: Retrospective cohort of solid organ injury (spleen and liver) patients was done from January 2010 to December 2011 in tertiary level trauma Center. Results: Out of 624 abdominal trauma patients, a total of 212 patients (70%) were admitted in intensive care unit (ICU). Their ages ranged from 6 to 74 years (median 24 years). Nearly 89% patients in liver trauma and 84% patients in splenic trauma were male. Mechanism of injury was blunt abdominal trauma in 96% patients and the most common associated injury was chest trauma. Average injury severity score, sequential organ failure assessment, lactate on admission was 16.84, 4.34 and 3.42 mmol/L and that of dying patient were 29.70, 7.73 and 5.09 mmol/L, respectively. Overall mortality of ICU admitted solid organ injury was 15.55%. Major issues of concern in splenic injury were hemorrhagic shock, overwhelming post-splenectomy infection and post-splenectomy vaccination. Issues raised in liver injury are damage control surgery, deadly triad, thromboelastography guided transfusion protocols and hemostatic agents. Conclusions: A protocol-based and multidisciplinary approach in high dependency unit can significantly reduce morbidity and mortality in patients with solid organ injury.

Anaesthetic management and implications of a case of chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy

A 60-year-old man with chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP) was posted for surgery of the neck femur fracture and was successfully managed. We discuss the anaesthetic considerations during regional and general anaesthesia of this patient with CIDP. A brief review of the available literature reveals no consensus on the choice of anaesthetic management.

Benefits and pitfalls of cadavers as learning tool for ultrasound-guided regional anesthesia

Ultrasound-guided regional anesthesia (UGRA), like other basic skills, should be learnt in a simulation laboratory before performing on the patient. Cadavers provide an ideal tool for learning sonoanatomy and skills required for performing UGRA. On the basis of preservation technique used, the cadavers can be formalin embalmed cadavers, Thiel cadavers (soft cadavers), and fresh frozen cadavers. We compared three types of cadavers for performing ultrasound-guided upper and lower limb blocks. We observed that fresh frozen and Thiel cadavers were less smelling and had more realistic appearance as compared to formalin embalmed cadavers. It was seen that Thiel cadavers were more flexible and hence, rotation of neck, shoulder and knee was easier. Although images seen in most cadavers were comparable with live subjects but, Thiel cadavers provided more realistic model.

Does community emergency care initiative improve the knowledge and skill of healthcare workers and laypersons in basic emergency care in India

Background: Due to lack of training in emergency care, basic emergency care in India is still in its infancy. We designed All India Institute of Medical Sciences basic emergency care course (AIIMS BECC) to address the issue. Aim: To improve the knowledge and skill of healthcare workers and laypersons in basic emergency care and to identify impact of the course. Materials and Methods: Prospective study conducted over a period of 4 years. The target groups were medical and nonmedical personnel. Provider AIIMS BECC is of 1 day duration including lectures on cardio-pulmonary resuscitation, choking, and special scenarios. Course was disseminated via lectures, audio-visual aids, and mannequin training. For analysis, the participants were categorized on the basis of their education and profession. A pre- and a post-course evaluation were done and individual scores were given out of 20 and compared among all the groups and P value was calculated. Results: A total of 1283 subjects were trained. 99.81% became providers and 2.0% were trained as instructors. There was a significant improvement in knowledge among all the participants irrespective of their education level including medicos/nonmedicos. However, participants who had higher education (graduates and postgraduates) and/or belonged to medical field had better knowledge gain as compared to those who had low level of education (≤12th standard) and were nonmedicos. Conclusion: BECC is an excellent community initiative to improve knowledge and skill of healthcare and laypersons in providing basic emergency care.

Assessment of hemostatic changes after crystalloid and colloid fluid preloading in trauma patients using standard coagulation parameters and thromboelastography

Background: The choice of an ideal fluid administered post trauma and its subsequent influence on coagulation still poses a clinical dilemma. Hence, this study was designed to assess the influence of in vivo hemodilution with various fluid preparations (4% gelatin, 6% hydoxyethyl starch (HES), Ringers lactate, 0.9% normal saline) on coagulation using standard coagulation parameters and real-time thromboelastography (TEG) in patients undergoing elective surgery post trauma. Methods: In a randomized, double-blind study, 100 patients of either sex and age, belonging to ASA Grades I and II, scheduled for elective surgeries were allocated into four groups of 25 each according to the type of fluid infused. Group G (4% gelatin), Group N (0.9% normal saline), Group R (Ringers lactate), and Group H (6% HES) received preloading with 1 L of fluid according to the group. The coagulation status of the patients was assessed during perioperative period (before surgery, after fluid preloading, and at the end of the surgery) using both conventional coagulation analysis and TEG. Statistical Analysis: Analysis of variance (ANOVA), post hoc and Pearson Chi-square test were used. Results: In all the patients preloaded with gelatin, there was a significant increase in prothrombin time index (PTI; 14.88±0.90 vs. 13.78±3.01, P<0.001) and international normalized ratio (INR; 1.12±0.09 vs. 1.09±0.19, P<0.05) compared to the baseline value. An increase was observed in these parameters in the postoperative period also. In the HES group, there was statistically significant increase in PT time (15.70±1.51 vs. 13.74±0.75, P=0.01) and INR (1.20±0.15 vs. 1.03±0.17, P<0.001) as compared to the baseline. In the intergroup comparisons, the patients preloaded with HES had a significant increase in INR (1.20±0.15 vs. 1.12±0.09, P=0.04) and reaction time (R time; 6.84±2.55 min vs. 4.79±1.77 min, P=0.02) as compared to the gelatin group. The fall in coagulation time (k time; 2.16±0.98 vs. 3.94±2.6, P=0.02), rise in maximum amplitude (MA; 61.94±14.08 vs. 50.11±14.10, P=0.04), and rise in A20 (56.17±14.66 vs. 43.11±14.24, P=0.05) were more in patients preloaded with RL as compared to the HES group. 100% patients in the gelatin group, 84.2% patients in the NS group, 94.4% patients in the RL group, and 66.7% patients in the HES group had hypocoagulable (R time > 14 min) state in the postoperative period. Conclusion: Crystalloids are optimal volume expanders in trauma, with RL having beneficial effects on coagulation system (decrease in k time and increase in MA and A20). Among the colloids, HES 6% (130/0.4) affects coagulation parameters (increase in PTI, INR, R time, k time) more than gelatin. Trial registration (protocol number-IEC/NP-189/2011).

Effect of anaesthesia on the perioperative outcomes of pelvi-acetabular fracture surgeries in the apex trauma centre of a developing country-a retrospective analysis

BackgroundRegional anaesthesia has been proposed to reduce intraoperative blood loss, duration of hospital stay and in-hospital complications with improved postoperative pain control. General anaesthesia is advantageous for prolonged surgeries. We hypothesized that combined regional and general anaesthesia would offer advantages of both in pelvi-acetabular fracture surgeries.MethodsWe identified 71 patients who underwent open reduction and internal fixation of pelvi-acetabular fractures from May 2012 to 2013 in our trauma centre. We excluded patients with incomplete records (n = 4) and other injuries operated along (n = 8). Hence, 59 patients were divided into three groups: G group (general anaesthesia), R group (regional anaesthesia) and GR group (combined regional and general anaesthesia).Main outcome measurements studied were intraoperative blood loss, duration of hospital stay, duration of surgery and intraoperative and postoperative complications.ResultsNo differences were obtained in between the groups in terms of age, gender, Injury Severity Score, number of comorbidities, or duration from injury to surgery. No significant differences were found between the three groups for intraoperative blood loss, days of hospital stay and duration of surgery. Intraoperative and postoperative complications were also comparable between the groups (p > 0.05).ConclusionsThere is no specific significant advantage of the technique of anaesthesia on the observed perioperative complications in pelvi-acetabular fracture surgeries.