The present retrospective cohort study was designed to determine body mass index (BMI) at the delivery in women undergoing cesarean section in a Japanese urban area, and whether the nerve block height after spinal anesthesia upon the cesarean delivery relates to the lower maternal BMI, less gestational age, or underweight fetus at birth in the population. A total of 401 pregnant women undergoing cesarean delivery with spinal anesthesia were evaluated retrospectively. We examined background differences, including BMI at the delivery, gestational age, and fetal birth weight between the cases with and without the adequate initial nerve block height less than the sixth thoracic vertebral level (Th6) after the spinal dose administration. The data demonstrated advanced maternal age pregnancy (median 35.5 years) and normal BMI (median 24.7) at the delivery in the population. The patients with the inadequate initial nerve block height immediately after the spinal dose administration documented significantly lower block height compared with those with adequate block height (Th8 [n = 55] vs Th4 [n = 346], P < 0.001). There was a risk of the low initial block height caused by either preoperative BMI <23, gestational age <37 weeks, or fetal birth weight <2500 g in the population. In a Japanese urban area, parturient median BMI undergoing cesarean delivery is in the normal range. Such lower BMI, in addition to less gestational age or underweight fetus, seems one of the factors causing the low initial block height upon spinal anesthesia.

Background: As patients with left ventricular assist device (LVAD) have long expected survival, the incidence of noncardiac surgery in this patient population is increasing. Here, we present the anesthetic management of a patient with a continuous-flow LVAD who underwent video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS). Case presentation: A 37-year-old man with LVAD was scheduled to undergo VATS because of repeated spontaneous pneumothorax. Generally, patients with these devices have marginal right heart function; therefore, it is important to avoid factors that worsen pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR). However, VATS requires one-lung ventilation (OLV) and it tends to cause increase in PVR, leading to right heart failure. In the present case, when the patient was set in a lateral decubitus position and progressive hypoxia was observed during OLV, transesophageal echocardiography demonstrated a dilated right ventricle and a temporally flattened interventricular septum, and the central venous pressure increased to approximately 20 mmHg. Because we anticipated deterioration of right heart function, dobutamine and milrinone were administered and/or respirator settings were changed to decrease PVR for maintaining LVAD performance. Finally, resection of a bulla was completed, and the patient was discharged in stable condition on postoperative day 37. Conclusions: The anesthetic management of a patient with LVAD during VATS is challenging because the possible hemodynamic changes induced by hypoxia associated with OLV affect LVAD performance and right heart function. In our experience, VATS that requires OLV will be well tolerated in a patient with LVAD with preserved right heart function, and a multidisciplinary approach to maintain right heart function will be needed.

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Background: We reviewed the intraoperative management of previous liver transplantation (LT) cases to identify an optimal anesthetic method, which may affect patient outcomes and lead to faster postoperative recovery for future recipients. Methods: This single-center retrospective study reviewed 63 patients who underwent LT, including 51 living donor LT (LDLT), seven deceased donor LT (DDLT), and five simultaneous liver-kidney transplantation patients. We examined the patients’ backgrounds, intraoperative management (anesthetic method, water balance, and catecholamine dosage), and postoperative courses (hospitalization period, length of intensive care unit stay, renal function). Results: All patients received general anesthesia using inhalational anesthetics, either sevoflurane or desflurane, and both drugs were administered similarly. Rocuronium was administered at its usual dose despite liver failure. All patients undergoing preoperative dialysis due to acute kidney injury were successfully withdrawn from dialysis after surgery. The albumin infusion volume was 32% of the total infusion and transfusion volume. The five-year survival rate was 88% and graft failure occurred in one case. Conclusion: The anesthetic management of LT is currently conducted empirically in our institution, and we could not identify an optimal anesthetic method. However, we drew some conclusions. First, the use of human atrial natriuretic peptide as a drug infusion and appropriate transfusion management was expected to restore renal function. Second, the infusion volume of albumin was high. Third, the usual dose of rocuronium was required because excessive bleeding may cause unstable plasma drug concentration. Our results will be useful in future multi-institutional studies or meta-analyses and further improving the outcomes of future transplant recipients.