Ultrasonographic guidance enables exact placement of the local anaesthetic for TAP blocks. In patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy under standard general anaesthetic, ultrasound-guided TAP block substantially reduced the perioperative opioid consumption.

Prophylactic use of large doses of TA provides an effective, safe, and cheap method for reducing blood loss during and after spinal operations. Hence, TAmay help in reducing not only transfusion related complications but also operative expenses. Considering the limited number of patients in this study, our results need, however, to be validated on a larger number of patients, probably in a multicenter study.

The use of endoscopy for treating pediatric patients with increased intracranial pressure is a new surgical procedure. These patients require general anesthesia with continuous heart rate monitoring. We have observed a high incidence of decrease in heart rate. If a decrease in heart rate occurs, alerting the surgeon to speed the procedure would be an effective treatment.

MACEs and MAPEs occur at similar frequencies and affect survival to a similar degree. All 3 types of postoperative troponin elevation in this analysis were associated, to varying degrees, with increased risk of death and disability.

Purpose:The main objective of this survey is to describe the current practice of thoracic anesthesia in the Middle Eastern (ME) region.Methods:A prospective online survey. An invitation to participate was e-mailed to all members of the ME thoracic-anaesthesia group. A total of 58 members participated in the survey from 19 institutions in the Middle East. Questions concerned ventilation strategies during one-lung ventilation (OLV), anesthesia regimen, mode of postoperative analgesia, use of lung isolation techniques, and use of i.v. fluids.Results:Volume-controlled ventilation was favored over pressure-controlled ventilation (62% vs 38% of respondents, P<0.05); 43% report the routine use of positive end-expiratory pressure. One hundred percent of respondents report using double-lumen tube (DLT) as a first choice airway to establish OLV. Nearly a third of respondents, 31.1%, report never using bronchial blocker (BB) in their thoracic anesthesia practice. Failure to pass a DLT and difficult airway are the most commonly cited indications for BB use. Regarding postoperative analgesia, the majority 61.8% favor thoracic epidural analgesia over other techniques (P<0.05).Conclusions:Our survey provides a contemporary snapshot of the ME thoracic anesthetic practice.