Management of airway in trauma victim with penetrating cervical/thoracic spine injury has always been a challenge to the anaesthesiologist. Stabilisation of spine during airway manipulation, to prevent any further neural damage, is of obvious concern to the anaesthesiologist. Most anaesthesiologists are not exposed to direct laryngoscopy and intubation in lateral position during their training period. Tracheal intubation in the lateral position may be unavoidable in some circumstances. Difficult airway in an uncooperative patient compounds the problem to secure airway in lateral position. We present a 46-year-old alcoholic, hypertensive, morbidly obese person who suffered a sharp instrument (screwdriver) spinal injury with anticipated difficult intubation; the case was managed successfully.

Background and Aims: The pain following total abdominal hysterectomy (TAH), a very commonly performed gynaecological surgery, is usually taken care of by various opioids, non-opioids, regional and peripheral nerve blocks. Erector spinae plane block (ESPB) under ultrasound guidance is a relatively new approach for postoperative analgesia in thoracic and abdominal surgeries. Ultrasound availability and expertise to use it is a limitation at times. The primary aim of this study was to determine the analgesic efficacy of ESPB using peripheral nerve stimulation (PNS) technique in patients undergoing TAH. Methods: A total of 60 American Society of Anesthesiologists physical status I and II female patients were posted for abdominal hysterectomy after obtaining ethical committee clearance in a tertiary care centre. Group I (n = 30) received spinal anaesthesia, whereas Group II (n = 30) received ESPB under peripheral nerve stimulator (PNS) guidance with 20 mL of 0.375% ropivacaine before spinal anaesthesia. Post-operative pain intensity reported using the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) was considered as the primary outcome. The haemodynamic variables, total duration before the first rescue analgesia, total consumption of tramadol, level of satisfaction regarding analgesia and any complications were considered as secondary outcomes. The data were recorded in an excel sheet, and analysis was performed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 23.0. Results: VAS score was significantly lower ( P < 0.001) in Group II at 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 12, 18 and 24 h post-operatively. The total dose of rescue analgesia was significantly reduced in the ESPB group. Conclusion: PNS-guided ESPB is effective in relieving pain in patients undergoing TAH.

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/njog.v5i1.5066 NJOG 2010 Jul-Aug; 5(1): 60

Severe post-burn contractures in the neck often cause anatomical distortion and restriction of neck movements, resulting in varying degrees of difficulty in airway management. Any mode of anesthesia that may obviate the need for imperative airway control may be desirable in such situations in which a difficult airway may be anticipated. Here we present one such situation where tumescent local anesthesia was employed to manage a case of severe post-burn neck contractures posted for contracture release and split-skin grafting. The other benefits of this method were minimal blood loss and excellent postoperative analgesia. In conclusion, it can be emphasized that the application of tumescent anesthesia is an important anesthetic tool in patients with predicted difficult airway management.

Context: Although spinal anesthesia (also known as subarachnoid block [SAB]) is used widely for inguinal hernia repair, the paravertebral block (PVB) that produces unilateral, segmental analgesia is used with a high success rate in inguinal hernia repair. Aims: The aim of the study was to compare SAB and PVB in inguinal hernia repair, in terms of the duration of postoperative analgesia and adverse events. Settings and Design: This was a prospective, randomized, controlled double-blind study. Methods: This study was done on 60 male patients of American Society of Anesthesiology (ASA) I and II. Patients were categorized into 30 in each group, either to receive PVB block at two levels T10 and L1 using 15 mL and 5 mL of 0.5% bupivacaine and 1 μg.kg −1 of buprenorphine or SAB with 12.5 mg of 0.5% hyperbaric bupivacaine injected intrathecally. Statistical Analysis Used: SPSS 18.0 and R version 3.2.2 were used for analyzing the data. Categorical measurements were presented in number (%) and analyzed using Chi-square/Fischer's exact test. Continuous measurements were analyzed using Student's t -test. Results: Age, weight, height, and ASA status were comparable in both the groups. In the PVB group, eight patients had failure of block. Hemodynamic responses, time to first analgesia and ambulation, time required to perform the block, Bromage score, satisfaction score, failure rate, and intra- and postoperative drugs used showed a statistically significant difference between the groups ( P < 0.001). Conclusion: PVB is not a sole anesthetic technique due to a higher failure rate and increased intraoperative fentanyl requirement but has advantages such as prolonged analgesia, stable hemodynamics, and early ambulation.