The Difficult Airway Trolley: A Narrative Review and Practical Guide

A new anesthesia scheme for parathyroidectomy under neuromonitoring: a retrospective cohort study

Background

Parathyroidectomy under nerve monitoring has been carried out for nearly ten years in the China-Japan Union Hospital of Jilin University. We retrospectively evaluated patients' prognosis with secondary hyperparathyroidism (SH) under neuro- and non-neuro-monitored parathyroidectomy anesthesia. The purpose of this study is to summarize and introduce a new anesthesia scheme for parathyroidectomy under nerve monitoring.

Methods

From January 2000 to December 2019, 200 patients with SH in the China-Japan Union Hospital of Jilin University were retrospectively analyzed. Among them, 100 patients underwent parathyroidectomy under neurological monitoring (Group A), and 100 patients underwent parathyroidectomy without neurological monitoring (Group B). The dosage of muscle relaxant, parathyroid hormone (PTH), serum calcium, phosphorus, urea, creatinine, and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) was recorded before surgery (T0), after surgery (T1), at discharge (T2), during skin incision (Ta), at four parathyroidectomies (Tb), and 10 min after total removal. The levels of PTH were measured at four-time points (Tc) and 30 minutes (Td) after complete resection.

Results

After screening and propensity score match (PSM), the data of 92 patients were analyzed. Group A's muscle relaxant dose was significantly less than Group B; the length of hospital stay in Group A was significantly lower than in Group B (P<0.05). The serum calcium levels, phosphorus, urea, and creatinine at T2 in Group A were lower than those in Group B (P<0.05).

Conclusions

Parathyroid nerve monitoring technology combined with preoperative complete anesthesia scheme, anesthesia induction with one time ED95 (95% effective drug dose) cis-atracurium, end breath gas, and sevoflurane maintenance anesthesia under BIS monitoring can improve the prognosis of patients, shorten the length of hospital stay, and is effective and safe.

Availability and organization of difficult airway equipment in Swedish hospitals: A national survey of anaesthesiologists

BACKGROUND

Airway complications account for almost one third of anaesthesia-related brain damage and death. Immediate access to equipment enabling rescue airway strategies is crucial for successful management of unanticipated difficult airway situations.

METHODS

We conducted a nationwide survey of Swedish anaesthesiologists to analyse availability and organization of difficult airway trolleys (DATs), and multiple factors pertaining to difficult airway management, to highlight areas of potential improvement.

RESULTS

Six hundred and thirty-nine anaesthesiologists completed the 14-item survey. Whereas DATs were almost ubiquitous (95%) in main operating departments of hospitals, prevalence was low in remote anaesthetizing locations (20.3%) and electroconvulsive therapy units (26.6%). Approximately 60% of emergency departments had a DAT. Immediate (within 60 seconds) access to videolaryngoscopes in all units where general anaesthesia is conducted was reported by 56.8%. Almost half of anaesthesiologists reported that all DATs at their workplace were standardized. Forty-six per cent reported that the DATs were organized according to a difficult airway algorithm; almost 90% believe that such an organization can impact the outcome of a difficult airway situation positively. Only 36.2% of DATs contained second-generation supraglottic airway devices exclusively. Most Swedish anaesthesiologists use the Swedish Society of Anaesthesiology and Intensive care Medicine difficult airway algorithm, but almost one fifth prefer the Difficult Airway Society algorithm. Less than half of respondents underwent formal difficult airway training annually.

CONCLUSION

Our results motivate efforts to (a) increase availability of DATs in remote anaesthetizing locations, (b) increasingly standardize DATs and organize DATs according to airway algorithms, and (c) increase the frequency of difficult airway training.