Safety and efficacy of ketamine xylazine along with atropine anesthesia in BALB/c mice

Anesthetics are an indispensable prerequisite for surgical intervention and pharmacological animal studies. The objective of present study was to optimize the dose of ketamine (K) and xylazine (X) along with atropine sulfate (A) in order to achieve surgical tolerance in BALB/c mice. Several doses of ketamine (100, 150, 200 mg/kg) and xylazine (10, 15, 20 mg/kg) were mixed and combination of nine doses (K/X: 100/10, 100/15, 100/20, 150/10, 150/15, 150/20, 200/10,200/15,200/20) were evaluated (n=9 per combination). A constant dose of atropine (0.05 mg/kg) was also used to counter side effect. Time-related parameters were evaluated on the basis of reflexes. KX at dose 200/20 mg/kg produced surgical tolerance in all nine mice with duration 55.00±6.87 minutes. The induction time 0.97±0.09 minutes, sleeping time 90.67±5.81 minutes and immobilization time (102.23±6.83 minutes) were significantly higher than all combination. However, this combination was considered unsafe due to 11 % mortality. While, KX at dose 200/15 mg/kg results in none of the mortality, so was considered as safe. Moreover, this combination produces surgical tolerance in 89 % mice with duration (30.00±7.45 minutes). It was concluded that KX at dose 200/15 mg/kg along with atropine 0.05 mg/kg is safe for performing surgical interventions in BALB/c mice.

Treatment of intracranial tuberculomas?

Fifteen patients with intracranial tuberculomas were treated in this centre. Diagnosis was based on high ESR, CT Scan and any other tuberculous lesion in the body. All the patients were given antituberculous therapy and those who improved were continued on drugs. Surgery was done in cases where there was failure to improve or diagnosis was in doubt and those who had clinical features of raised intracranial pressure. Repeated CT Scans are essential to know the progress of the disease. Sixty percent patients improved on drugs, while 40% underwent surgery. Mortality of 7% was seen which is quite low due to modern diagnostic facilities and drug availability. Treatment of intracranial tuberculomas is essentially medical and surgery is indicated when medical treatment fails

Nasal encephalocele: a study of 16 cases

Sixteen cases of nasal encephalocoele were treated at the Department of Neurosurgery, Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre, Karachi over a period of 10 years. Diagnosis was mainly clinical. Although a plain X-ray of the skull outlines the bony defect, C.T. Scan is more helpful as, besides visualizing the facial and orbital skeleton, it also detects associated anomalies. All these patients underwent combined transcranial-extracranial repair. A few complications like C.S.F. leakage, meningitis and hydrocephalus were seen postoperatively but there was no mortality. The method of repair and complications are discussed and compared in the light of available literature. Cosmetic results are excellent if surgery is performed in infancy. Early repair is also essential to prevent brain damage and facial deformity

Intracranial space occupying lesions- review of 386 cases

An analysis of 386 of Intracranial Space Occupying Lesions [SOL] including neoplastic and inflammatory masses diagnosed and treated at Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre, Karachi over a period of 2 years is presented. C.T. Scan and MRI were used for the diagnosis of midline, multiple and very small lesions. S.O.L. were more common in males in the age group 11-20 years. Gliomas comprised 32.1% of the total cases followed by meningiomas 13.7%, abscesses 13.2% and pituitary tumours 13.2%. Tuberculomas constituted 5.5% and therefore, should always be considered in the differential diagnosis