Determining optimal cuff volume for cuffed endotracheal tubes commonly used in pediatric patients: A prospective observational study

OBJECTIVES

To determine an optimal cuff inflation volume to achieve safe cuff pressure (20-25 cmH2O) in cuffed endotracheal tubes (ETTs) with an inner diameter of 4.5, 5.0, and 5.5 mm, which are commonly used in pediatric anaesthesia clinical practice and to create a formula to determine the optimal cuff volume.

METHODS

This study was carried out between February and June 2021 in Ankara City Hospital, Ankara, Turkey. A total of 127 pediatric patients who were intubated with 4.5, 5.0 and 5.5 numbered cuffed ETTs were included in this study. The same brand of cuffed ETT was used for each patient. The diameter of the subglottic transverse airway was measured by ultrasound for selecting the appropriate tube. Cuff pressure was measured with a cuff manometer to ensure optimum cuff pressure (20-25 cmH2O).

RESULTS

We found out that the mean ideal cuff volume inflated for 4.5 size tube was 1.7±0.3 ml, 1.9±0.3 ml for 5.0 size tube, and 2.1±0.3 ml for 5.5 size tube. Additionally we developed the "endotracheal cuff volume (ml) = 1,027 x height (m) + 0,104 x subglottic transverse diameter (mm) - 0,0191" formula to predict the most suitable inflation volume for ETT cuffs.

CONCLUSION

In this study, we suggested the optimal cuff volume to inflate the cuffs of ETTs 4.5, 5.0, and 5.5, which are frequently used in pediatric anaesthesia practice, in the appropriate cuff pressure range.ClinicalTrials.gov ref. no.: NCT04948359.

The relationship between gastric ultrasound findings and endoscopically aspirated volume in infants and determining the antral cutoff value for empty stomach diagnosis

BACKGROUND/AIMS

Pulmonary aspiration of gastric content is a serious perioperative complication. The objective of this prospective study was to assess the relationship between the gastric volumes suctioned endoscopically and quantitative (antral cross-section area) and qualitative (empty vs. nonempty) examination of the gastric antrum. Furthermore, the study aimed to determine the best antral cross-section area cutoff value for a truly empty antrum in infants.

METHODS

This study was performed in a pediatric gastrointestinal endoscopy unit. Antral sonography was performed in supine and right lateral decubitus positions in 46 fasted infants prior to upper gastrointestinal endoscopic evaluation. Antral cross-sectional area measurements in both positions and qualitative evaluation of the antrum (according to a three-point grading system) were recorded. Gastric contents were endoscopically suctioned and measured.

RESULTS

Forty-six patients (aged under 24 months) were included. According to the three-point qualitative grading system, 76.1% of patients were classified as grade 0. The best cutoff value for the antral cross-section area in the right lateral decubitus position, indicating an empty antrum, was determined to be 2.40 cm2 . At this specific cutoff value, the sensitivity was 100%, the specificity was 68.6%, and the negative predictive value was 100%.

CONCLUSIONS

Gastric ultrasonography can confirm an empty or nearly empty stomach in healthy infants.

Procedural sedation for paediatric patients with spinal muscular atrophy undergoing intrathecal treatment

AIMS

Nusinersen is administered intrathecally for treating spinal muscular atrophy (SMA). Procedural sedation is common with intrathecal treatment in children. The purpose of this study is to emphasize that intrathecal treatment of paediatric patients with SMA I, II and III can be tolerated with procedural sedation instead of general anaesthesia.

METHODS

Data were collected the from the anaesthesia charts and electronic medical records of 14 paediatric patients with SMA types I, II and III who underwent procedural sedation for repeated intrathecal treatments for SMA. Intravenous induction was performed, and patients were oxygenated with a face mask or nasal cannula while spontaneous breathing continued.

RESULTS

Fourteen patients were included in the study: one SMA I, eight SMA II and five SMA III. They underwent 88 intrathecal nusinersen injections in total. In the one SMA I patient, of 8 months, the procedure was performed under local anaesthesia. In all other patients, the treatments were performed under procedural sedation. Different combinations of midazolam, ketamine, propofol, fentanyl and remifentanil were used. The mean doses of the agents used were 0.03 mg kg-1 , 0.97 mg kg-1 , 2.71 mg kg-1 , 0.84 μg kg-1 and 0.5 μg kg-1 , respectively. There were no intraoperative or postoperative complications.

CONCLUSION

We found the procedural sedation to be sufficient, safe and effective in SMA II and III paediatric patients who underwent nusinersen treatment intrathecally, provided anaesthetic agents are titrated and administered carefully.

Evaluation of the relationship between airway measurements with ultrasonography and laryngoscopy in newborns and infants

BACKGROUND

A difficult laryngoscopy in young children can be a stressful situation for the pediatric anesthetist. In recent years, several measurements have been used to obtain difficult laryngoscopy markers in children. However, there is no prospective study in which ultrasonography is expected to be used for this purpose, particularly in the newborn and infant age groups.

GOALS

In this study, our goal was to evaluate the relationship between the preoperative airway assessment tools and the difficult laryngoscopic view in neonates and infants.

METHODS

Our study included newborns and infants undergoing elective surgery requiring intubation under general anesthesia. The following measurements were recorded the following: patients' age, body mass index, thyromental distance, mandibular length, the distance between the lip corner and ipsilateral ear tragus, and the transverse length (measured by hand with sign-middle-ring fingers side by side). In the thyromental distance measurement, the "thyroid notch" was determined by ultrasonography. Glottic structures appearing during laryngoscopy were graded according to the Cormack-Lehane Classification.

RESULTS

Of the 150 patients included in the study, 36 were female, and 92% were under the age of one. The incidence of difficult laryngoscopic views was 8% in the age groups studied, and the frequency of difficult laryngoscopic views in the newborn age group was 14.3%. The relationship between airway assessment tools and the Cormack-Lehane Classification scores was statistically significant. The negative predictive value was high for all values.

CONCLUSIONS

The risk of a difficult laryngoscopy increases in children under the age of one. The preoperative airway assessment tools and body mass index had acceptable negative predictive values. We believe that all measurements could be used as markers for difficult laryngoscopy in newborns and infants.

Brain Death and Organ Donation in Paediatric Intensive Care Unit

Objective

The purpose of the present study was to retrospectively analyse the brain death (BD) cases that were specified within the last 8 years in the paediatric intensive care unit of our hospital.

Methods

Archive files and computer records of 23 paediatric cases were analysed. Data on age, gender, conditions that caused BD, paediatric risk of mortality (PRISM III) scores, time between suspicion of BD and issuing of BD report, confirmatory tests used, complications that occurred following the diagnosis of BD and time to cardiac arrest development after diagnosis of BD were recorded.

Results

The average age of the patients was 6.8±5.5 years. The most frequent cause of BD was intracranial haemorrhage (30.4%). The mean time to diagnosis after BD suspicion was 5.9±6.2 days. Electroencephalography was performed in 61% of the patients in addition to the apnoea test. Radiological imaging methods were used in 39% of the patients (n=9). Of the cases, 34.7% developed hypothermia, and 4.3% developed diabetes insipidus (DI). Among them, 43.4% had both DI and hypothermia. The mean PRISM score was calculated as 22±9.2. The donation rate of the families was 17%. The mean time to cardiac arrest development after diagnosis of BD was 6.9±7.4 days in non-donor cases where medical support had been reduced.

Conclusion

Any patient with a neurologically poor prognosis in the intensive care unit should be considered to develop BD and diagnosed with BD without delay. The donation rate will increase if family interviews are done by an experienced and educated coordinator.

Evaluation of the effects of sedation administered via three different routes on the procedure, child and parent satisfaction during cystometry

Purpose

In this study, we retrospectively investigated case reports with and without midazolam administration via oral, intranasal and rectal before cystometry procedure. We aimed to compare the data to evaluate the effects of sedation before cystometry on the pediatric patients and parents’ satisfaction.

Methods

A total of 124 ASA I-II pediatric cases aged 5–14 years were retrospectively investigated from the hospital records. One of the three administration routes was chosen; oral midazolam at a dose of 0.5 mg/kg and nasal or rectal midazolam at a dose of 0.3 mg/kg (maximum 15 mg). Heart rate, blood pressure, oxygen saturation, the Wisconsin Hospital of Children Sedation Scale (CHWSS) score and the Groningen Distress Rating Scale (GDRS) score were recorded. Cystometry measurement values, diagnoses of the cases and procedure durations were recorded from the urodynamic laboratory records.

Results

80 female, 44 male cases were evaluated. The CHWSS score at the 10th and 20th minutes after the drug administeration was higher in the oral group than the others (p = 0.001). The duration between the administration of the drug and the start of the procedure was shorter in the nasal group (p = 0.01). Parents satisfaction for sedation was 77 % when comparison of the cystometry with and without sedation. Comparison of the cystometry results with or without sedation no significant difference was found between all parameters (p > 0.01).

Conclusion

We believe that sedation with midazolam administered through all three routes is a safe, effective and convenient option during cystometry, especially in the young age group.

Acupuncture as an Antiemetic in Children who Underwent Adenoidectomy and/or Tonsillectomy

OBJECTIVE

Postoperative vomiting (POV) is one of the most common problems following general anaesthesia, and many factors, either solely or in combination, may play a role in aetiology. Acupuncture is a technique that the World Health Organization has accepted as a complementary treatment. This study presents our experience with acupuncture for POV treatment in a study of paediatric tonsillectomy cases.

METHODS

The study included ASA I-II patients (n=70) aged 2-14 years who underwent tonsillectomy and/or adenoidectomy under general anaesthesia. The patients were randomly divided into the following two groups: control and study group. In the study group, an acupuncture needle was intraoperatively applied to the P6 acupuncture point for 20 min. Antiemetics were not administered to either group because of the standard applications in the preoperative period. The patients were postoperatively evaluated by nurses who were unaware about the techniques used in either group.

RESULTS

No statistically significant difference was determined between the groups with regard to age, sex, nature of the operation, duration of anaesthesia, duration of the operation, surgical method and ASA scores. A statistically significant difference was determined between the groups with respect to vomiting rates. The acupuncture group presented with 0.28-times fewer vomiting episodes than the control group.

CONCLUSION

The results of the study demonstrate that acupuncture has an apparent antiemetic efficacy in POV. Its routine use for POV may improve postoperative comfort and reduce drug use for prophylactic or therapeutic purposes.

Anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide antibodies in patients with sarcoidosis

INTRODUCTION

Anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide (anti-CCP) antibodies have a high predictive value in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients and are associated with disease severity. Sarcoidosis is a chronic inflammatory disease characterized by non-calcified granuloma formations.

AIM

To determining the prevalence of anti-CCP antibodies in patients with sarcoidosis, and identifying a possible correlation with clinical and laboratory findings.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Forty-two patients presenting to the rheumatology polyclinic and diagnosed with sarcoidosis as a result of the examinations made, 45 RA patients and 45 healthy subjects were included in the study. Demographic, clinical, serological and radiological data of all patients were recorded. Anti-CCP antibodies were evaluated by using a second-generation ELISA method. Rheumatoid factor (RF) IgM was determined with the nephelometry method.

RESULTS

Forty-two patients (10 males) were included in the study. Mean patient age was 45.2 years (20-70 years) and mean duration of disease was 3.5 years. Two sarcoidosis patients (4.7%) and 38(84.4%) RA patients were found to be positive for anti-CCP antibodies while the antibody wasn't detected in any healthy subject. The two sarcoidosis patients found positive for anti-CCP were also diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis. RF positivity was detected in 7 sarcoidosis patients (16.6%) and in only one subject in the control group.

CONCLUSION

The prevalence of anti-CCP antibodies in patients with sarcoidosis was found to be significantly lower than RA patients and similar with the healthy control group. This result shows that anti-CCP antibodies don't have an important role in the pathogenesis of sarcoidosis, but could be important in revealing the overlap syndromes of sarcoidosis-RA.