Jeetinder Kaur Makkar

Postoperative pain assessment in preverbal children and children with cognitive impairment

Postoperative pain assessment and management in preverbal children and children with cognitive impairment poses major challenges to pediatric anesthesiologists. An accurate diagnosis of extent of pain is the keystone for the successful management of pain. This article reviews the neurobiology of pain at birth, long‐term consequences of early pain and different pediatric pain assessment tools used for postoperative assessment in infants, young children, and children with cognitive disabilities.

Laryngeal mask airway insertion in children: comparison between rotational, lateral and standard technique

Background:  The purpose of the study was to compare the success and ease of insertion of three techniques of laryngeal mask airway (LMA) insertion; the standard Brain technique, a lateral technique with cuff partially inflated and a rotational technique with cuff partially inflated.

Subtenon Block Compared to Intravenous Fentanyl for Perioperative Analgesia in Pediatric Cataract Surgery

BACKGROUND: General anesthesia with opioids provides good operative conditions for ocular surgery in children; however, postoperative pain management remains a significant problem. Regional anesthesia is commonly used as an adjunct to general anesthesia in children. We compared the efficacy and safety of subtenon block (SB) versus IV fentanyl for perioperative analgesia in pediatric cataract surgery. We hypothesized that perioperative analgesia using SB may reduce the requirement of postoperative rescue analgesia compared with fentanyl. METHODS: This was a prospective, randomized, controlled, double-blind trial. One hundred fourteen ASA I and II children (6 mo–6 yr) undergoing elective cataract surgery in one eye under general anesthesia were studied. Children were randomly allocated to one of the two groups, i.e., Group SB (n = 58) or Group F (n = 56) after securing the airway. Children in Group SB received SB with 0.06–0.08 mL/kg of 2% lidocaine and 0.5% bupivacaine (50:50) mixture and simultaneous 0.2 mL/kg normal saline IV, whereas children in Group F received 1 &mgr;g/kg (0.2 mL/kg of 5 &mgr;g/kg) of fentanyl IV and simultaneous subtenon injection with normal saline (0.06–0.08 mL/kg). Surgery started after 5 min of study drug administration. Postoperative assessment for pain, sedation, and nausea/vomiting was done at 0.5, 1, 2, 3, 4, and 24 h. The primary outcome was number of patients requiring rescue analgesia during the 24-h study period. Secondary outcomes assessed were pain and sedation scores, time to first rescue analgesia, incidence of occulocardiac reflex, and nausea/vomiting. RESULTS: The number of patients requiring rescue analgesia during the 24 h was significantly less in Group SB (n = 17/58, 29.3%) compared with Group F (n = 39/56, 69.6%, P < 0.001). The postoperative pain scores were statistically lower in Group SB at all time intervals. The median (range) time to first analgesic requirement was significantly prolonged in Group SB (16 [2–13] vs 4 [0.5–8.5] h in Group F) (P < 0.001). Sedation scores at ½ h were comparable, after which significantly more children were anxious or crying in Group F compared with Group SB in which more children were calm, sitting, or lying with eyes open and relaxed (P < 0.05). A significantly higher incidence of oculocardiac reflex was recorded in Group F versus Group SB (P = 0.019). No complication related to SB was noticed. CONCLUSIONS: SB is a safe and superior alternative to IV fentanyl for perioperative analgesia in pediatric cataract surgery.

Aprepitant for postoperative nausea and vomiting: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) is an important clinical problem. Aprepitant is a relatively new agent for this condition which may be superior to other treatment. A systematic review was performed after searching a number of medical databases for controlled trials comparing aprepitant with conventional antiemetics published up to 25 April 2015 using the following keywords: ‘Aprepitant for PONV’, ‘Aprepitant versus 5-HT3 antagonists’ and ‘NK-1 versus 5-HT3 for PONV’. The primary outcome for the pooled analysis was efficacy of aprepitant in preventing vomiting on postoperative day (POD) 1 and 2. 172 potentially relevant papers were identified of which 23 had suitable data. For the primary outcome, 14 papers had relevant data. On POD1, 227/2341 patients (9.7%) patients randomised to aprepitant had a vomiting episode compared with 496/2267 (21.9%) controls. On POD2, the rate of vomiting among patients receiving aprepitant was 6.8% compared with 12.8% for controls. The OR for vomiting compared with controls was 0.48 (95% CI 0.34 to 0.67) on POD1 and 0.54 (95% CI 0.40 to 0.72) on POD2. Aprepitant also demonstrated a better profile with a lower need for rescue antiemetic and a higher complete response. Efficacy for vomiting prevention was demonstrated for 40 mg, 80 mg and 125 mg without major adverse effects. For vomiting comparison there was significant unexplainable heterogeneity (67.9% and 71.5% for POD1 and POD2, respectively). We conclude that (1) aprepitant reduces the incidence of vomiting on both POD1 and POD2, but there is an unexplained heterogeneity which lowers the strength of the evidence; (2) complete freedom from PONV on POD1 is highest for aprepitant with minimum need for rescue; and (3) oral aprepitant (80 mg) provides an effective and safe sustained antivomiting effect.

Addition of midazolam to continuous postoperative epidural bupivacaine infusion reduces requirement for rescue analgesia in children undergoing upper abdominal and flank surgery

STUDY OBJECTIVE To investigate the effect of adding midazolam to continuous epidural infusion of bupivacaine for postoperative analgesia in children. DESIGN Prospective, randomized, double-blind, controlled study. SETTING Tertiary-care center. PATIENTS 44 ASA physical status I and II children in age groups of two to 10 years, undergoing elective upper abdominal and flank surgery. INTERVENTIONS At the end of surgery, patients were randomly allocated to receive epidural infusion of 0.125% bupivacaine alone (Group B) or with 20 microg/kg/hr midazolam (Group BM) for 12 hours at the rate of 0.2 mL/kg/hr. MEASUREMENTS Pain, motor block, and sedation were assessed at predetermined times over 24 hours. Intravenous fentanyl was used as rescue analgesic for the first 12 hours, and tramadol for next 12 hours. Patients were followed at one week, one month, and one year for any neurological deficits. MAIN RESULTS The number of patients requiring rescue analgesia during infusion was significantly lower in Group BM (7 vs. 17 in Group B; P < 0.001). Time to first rescue analgesia was significantly prolonged in Group BM compared with Group B (P < 0.001). Frequency of fentanyl (P < 0.001) and tramadol (P = 0.001) administration as rescue analgesia was significantly less in Group BM. Significantly lower median pain scores were obtained in Group BM than Group B at all time intervals (P < 0.05). Greater sedation scores were noted in Group BM at all time intervals postoperatively except at 4 hours (P < 0.05). No motor block was observed in any child during the study. No neurological deficit was reported in any child in the one year of follow-up. CONCLUSION Addition of 20 microg/kg/hr of midazolam to postoperative continuous epidural infusion of 0.125% bupivacaine reduces the requirement for rescue analgesia in children following upper abdominal and flank surgery.

A randomized trial comparing prophylactic phenylephrine and ephedrine infusion during spinal anesthesia for emergency cesarean delivery in cases of acute fetal compromise

BACKGROUND Previous evidence showed that use of phenylephrine was associated with higher umbilical artery pH (UA pH) than ephedrine after elective cesarean delivery (CD). However, the best choice of vasopressor and its effect on funic gases in cases of acute fetal compromise require additional studies. METHODS Ninety parturients showing acute fetal compromise during intrapartum period and taken up for CD (category II) under spinal anesthesia were randomized to receive prophylactic infusion of ephedrine 2.5mg/min or phenylephrine 30μg/min. Systolic blood pressure was targeted between 90% and 110% of baseline. Incidence of fetal acidosis (UA pH <7.2 and/or base deficit >12mmol/L) was recorded. Other parameters of cord gases, Apgar score, need for immediate resuscitation, maternal hemodynamics, and adverse events were also compared. RESULTS Number of neonates showing acidosis with ephedrine or phenylephrine was comparable (P=.22). Of these, newborns with base deficit >12mmol had low 1-minute Apgar scores (n=15/23). The ephedrine group had higher oxygen content in UA (P=.03). There was no adverse neonatal outcome during the period of observation. Incidence of maternal nausea and vomiting was higher with ephedrine than with phenylephrine (22.2% vs 4.4%; P=.02). Maternal bradycardia was observed with phenylephrine (P=.02). CONCLUSION Our data report similar fetal acidosis with either phenylephrine or ephedrine administered during spinal anesthesia for treating maternal hypotension in cases of emergency CD.

Fiber‐optic assessment of LMA position in children: a randomized crossover comparison of two techniques

Background:  This crossover study compared fiber‐optic assessment of laryngeal mask airway (LMA) position in children using two LMA insertion techniques, i.e., standard and rotational.

Efficacy of palonosetron in postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV)—a meta-analysis

INTRODUCTION Palonosetron is a second-generation 5-HT3 receptor antagonist with proposed higher efficacy and sustained action for prophylaxis of postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV). METHODS Randomized controlled trials involving adult population undergoing elective surgery under general anesthesia comparing palonosetron to placebo, ramosetron, granisetron, and ondansetron were included. Data were extracted for vomiting incidence (VI), complete response (no nausea/vomiting; Complete Response [CR]), and rescue antiemetic need. This was categorized as early phase (24 hours postoperative for ramosetron and 6 hours for rest) and delayed phase (48 hours for ramosetron and 24 hours for rest). VI and CR were used as markers of drug efficacy. Any adverse effects were evaluated. RESULTS Twenty-two trials (4 with 3 groups) were included (comparing palonosetron to placebo in 5, ramosetron in 5, granisetron in 4, and ondansetron in 12 subgroups). Palonosetron demonstrated statistical superiority over placebo for VI and CR, both early/delayed PONV prevention. For delayed phase, palonosetron surpassed ramosetron in all 3 variables; however, none of the variables attained statistical significance during early phase. In early phase, palonosetron had better VI and CR than did granisetron; however, variables other than CR (better for palonosetron) failed to achieve statistical significance for delayed phase. All 3 outcomes were significantly better for palonosetron compared with ondansetron in delayed phase, but statistical superiority could only be demonstrated for VI in early phase. Being inconsistently documented across trials, nausea scores could not be evaluated. CONCLUSION Palonosetron is as safe as and more effective than placebo, ramosetron, granisetron, and ondansetron in preventing delayed PONV. For early PONV, it has higher efficacy over placebo, granisetron, and ondansetron.

A comparison of single dose dexmedetomidine with propofol for the prevention of emergence delirium after desflurane anaesthesia in children

Emergence delirium is a common problem in children recovering from general anaesthesia. We performed a study comparing emergence characteristics in 100 patients who were randomly allocated to receive either 0.3 μg.kg−1 dexmedetomidine, 1 mg.kg−1 propofol or saline 0.9% and undergoing infra‐umbilical surgery. The Pediatric Anesthesia Emergence Delirium scale was used to grade emergence delirium. Emergence delirium occurred in 9.4% of children in the dexmedetomidine group compared with 13.9% in the propofol group and 40.6% in the control group (p = 0.004). In the dexmedetomidine group, sedation occurred in 62.5% of children at 10 min after transfer to the recovery area, compared with 44.4% in the propofol group and 12.5% in the control group (p = 0.010). We conclude that dexmedetomidine significantly reduced the incidence of emergence delirium but this was at the expense of a greater incidence of sedation in the recovery period.

Effect of parecoxib pretreatment and venous occlusion on propofol injection pain: a prospective, randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled study

STUDY OBJECTIVE To investigate the effect of parecoxib pretreatment with venous occlusion on propofol injection pain. DESIGN Prospective, randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled study. SETTING Operating room of a tertiary-care medical center. PATIENTS 150 ASA physical status I patients scheduled for elective surgery. INTERVENTIONS Patients were randomized to three groups of 50 patients each to receive pretreatment with normal saline (Group NS), parecoxib 20 mg (Group P20), or parecoxib 40 mg (Group P40). All groups underwent venous occlusion for two minutes before propofol was injected. All pretreatment drugs were prepared in 5 mL doses. MEASUREMENTS Pain scores were obtained by a study-blinded observer during propofol injection following the different pretreatment solutions. MAIN RESULTS Pain scores among the three groups were significantly different (P < or = 0.001). In Group NS, 29 (58%) patients had pain during propofol injection compared with 22 (40%) Group P20 and 13 (26%) Group P40 patients (P < or = 0.005). Pain was significantly reduced in Group P40 (P < or = 0.001) compared with the control group. Moderate to severe pain was experienced by 18 (36%) Group NS and 4 (8%) Group P20 patients, whereas no Group P40 patient experienced moderate or severe pain (P < 0.001). Reduction in pain severity was statistically significant after pretreatment with either parecoxib 20 mg (P = 0.002) or parecoxib 40 mg (P < 0.001). CONCLUSION Parecoxib 40 mg with venous occlusion is effective in reducing the frequency and severity of pain with propofol injection. Pretreatment with 20 mg of parecoxib reduces the severity of propofol injection pain significantly but does not reduce frequency compared with the control group.