Point-of-care monitoring of perioperative intraocular pressure using portable tonometry in a patient with Posner-Schlossman syndrome: a case report / 대한마취과학회지

A 56-year-old man with a rotator cuff injury, scheduled for arthroscopic reconstruction surgery, had a history of recurrent symptoms of eyeball pain and blurred vision for several years. After close examination, he was diagnosed with Posner-Schlossman syndrome. Three weeks before the scheduled surgery, his intraocular pressure (IOP) increased (> 30 mmHg) and he became extremely anxious about the surgery. We monitored his IOP intraoperatively and successfully completed general anesthesia without any sequelae. As Posner-Schlossman syndrome can present with severe complications that may lead to postoperative visual loss, intraoperative monitoring of intraocular monitoring and careful anesthetic management are crucial to protect vision.

Noninvasive estimation of raised intracranial pressure using ocular ultrasonography in liver transplant recipients with acute liver failure: A report of two cases / 대한마취과학회지

Intracranial pressure (ICP) monitoring is an important issue for liver transplant recipients, since increased ICP is associated with advanced hepatic encephalopathy or graft reperfusion during liver transplantation. Invasive monitoring of ICP is known as a gold standard method, but it can provoke bleeding and infection; thus, its use is a controversial issue. Studies have shown that optic nerve sheath diameter > 5 mm by ocular ultrasonography is useful for evaluating ICP > 20 mmHg noninvasively in many clinical settings. In this case report, we present experiences of using ocular ultrasound as a diagnostic tool that could detect changes in ICP noninvasively during liver transplantation.

Severe hemodynamic instability in a patient with suspected hepatoadrenal syndrome during liver transplantation: A case report / 대한마취과학회지

Adrenal insufficiency, which is related to hemodynamic instability and increased mortality, has been reported in patients with advanced liver disease regardless of the presence of septic conditions. In this regard, the hepatoadrenal syndrome has been recently proposed as adrenal insufficiency in critically ill patients with liver disease. We describe here a 67-year-old female patient with hepatic failure and adrenal insufficiency. The patient showed stable vital signs and no evidence of sepsis preoperatively. Despite hydrocortisone replacement and inotropics administration, severe intraoperative hemodynamic instability was observed. Hydrocortisone administration was continued postoperatively, nevertheless inotropics could not be tapered. On postoperative day 11, the patient died due to pneumonia and septic shock. Hepatoadrenal syndrome may have played a key role in her severe hemodynamic fluctuation and poor outcome, reinforcing the importance of adrenal function in the liver transplantation surgery.