[Auxiliary cerclage-wiring in internal fixation of displaced acetabular fractures]. / Auxiliäre Cerclage zur Reposition und Retention dislozierter Acetabulumfrakturen.

BACKGROUND: Displaced fractures of the acetabulum involving the quadrilateral plate continue to be a surgical challenge. In this study, we describe our operation technique of auxiliary acetabular cerclage-wiring combined with plate osteosynthesis and present our results as well as short-term outcome. PATIENTS AND METHODS: All patients aged 18 years and older treated with auxiliary cerclage-wiring between 2007 and 2012 were included in this study. Fractures were classified according to Letournel. Cerclage wiring was used when reposition and retention of the fracture was insufficient with plates and screws alone. Short-term outcome was evaluated by the German Short Musculoskeletal Functional Assessment (SMFA-D) questionnaire. RESULTS: Data from 23 patients were collected. The follow-up period was 7 months (range 2-23 months). Of the 23 patients, 22 showed excellent fracture reduction and retention. One patient had to undergo revision surgery due to loss of reposition. Patients showed good functional outcome. CONCLUSION: Auxiliary acetabular cerclage-wiring is a safe and effective method for fracture reduction and retention especially in displaced acetabular fractures involving the quadrilateral plate.

Time course of subjective pain ratings, and wound and leg tenderness after hysterectomy.

BACKGROUND: Little information is available on time course of wound tenderness and relationship to subjective pain ratings following surgery. Furthermore, it is not clarified whether surgical procedures may induce hyperalgesia to mechanical stimulation outside the area of the surgical incision. We have therefore assessed postoperative pain and pressure pain thresholds (PPT) adjacent to and remote from the surgical incision in 16 patients undergoing hysterectomy. METHODS: Pressure pain threshold was assessed with pressure algometry preoperatively, 4 and 6 and 1, 4 and 8 d after surgery on the abdominal wall 0.05, 5, 10 and 15 cm perpendicular to the wound, and on the anterior surface of the left thigh and tuberositas tibia. Furthermore, pain was assessed on a visual analogue scale (VAS) at rest and during cough. RESULTS: PPT decreased significantly 0.5, 5, 10 and 15 cm from skin incision up to 96 h after surgery (P < 0.01) with a trend towards higher PPT with increasing distance from the wound. There was no significant changes in PPT on the thigh or the tuberositas tibia (P = 0.49 and P = 0.12) and no correlation between changes in PPT near the wound and in remote (areas the legs) (Rs = -0.082, P = 0.53, respectively). VAS at rest increased from 4 to 24 h and the cough values, remained elevated throughout the study (P < 0.05). An inverse relationship was observed between PPT 5 cm from the incision and VAS at rest (Rs = -0.406, P = 0.0002) and during cough (Rs = -0.398, P = 0.0002). CONCLUSION: These results indicate that wound pressure algometry correlates to postoperative pain at rest and during movement and may be an alternative way of assessing wound pain and tenderness. Increased tenderness to mechanical stimulation remote from the surgical wound could not be demonstrated.

Pharmacokinetics and analgesic effect of ropivacaine during continuous epidural infusion for postoperative pain relief.

BACKGROUND: The pharmacokinetics and clinical efficacy of ropivacaine (2.5 mg/ml) during a 24-h continuous epidural infusion for postoperative pain relief in 20 patients scheduled for abdominal hysterectomy were characterized using an open-label, increasing-dose design. METHODS: Through an epidural catheter inserted at T10-T12, a test dose of 7.5 mg ropivacaine was given 3 min before a bolus dose of 42.5 mg and immediately followed by a 24-h continuous epidural infusion with either 10 or 20 mg/h. Peripheral venous plasma samples were collected up to 48 h after infusion, and urinary excretion was followed up to the end of infusion. Postoperative pain at rest, on coughing, and at mobilization was assessed by means of a visual analog scale 2,4,6,8,12, and 24 h after the end of surgery. Sensory (pinprick) and motor block (modified Bromage scale) were assessed at the same intervals. RESULTS: The total plasma concentrations of ropivacaine increased markedly and consistently during the 24-h epidural infusion, in contrast to stable unbound concentrations. Both total and unbound plasma concentrations at the end of infusion were proportional to the total dose, although only the latter was proportional to the infusion rate. The total and unbound plasma clearance was independent of dose. Total mean clearance decreased on average by 21% (P < 0.001) during the last 12 h of epidural infusion, i.e., from 539 +/- 191 ml/min to 418 +/- 138 ml/min, indicating time-dependent kinetics. The unbound clearance also varied between estimates after 8 h of infusion and the end of treatment, i.e., a 5.3% decrease from 10.4 +/- 5.3 l/min to 9.5 +/- 3.9 l/min (P < 0.05). The unbound fraction of ropivacaine in plasma decreased during treatment, and this was related to the increase in alpha1-acid glycoprotein concentration. Pain was generally well controlled, and median visual analog scale scores during mobilization were less than 30 mm in patients receiving ropivacaine at 20 mg/h. CONCLUSIONS: The pharmacokinetics of ropivacaine were independent of dose, but total clearance decreased with time over 24 h. The consistent increase in total plasma concentration during the postoperative epidural infusion contrasted to much less variation in the unbound plasma concentrations of ropivacaine.

Wound infiltration with ropivacaine and bupivacaine for pain after inguinal herniotomy.

In a double-blind, randomized study, 32 patients scheduled for elective inguinal herniotomy under general anaesthesia received subcutaneous infiltration with 40 ml ropivacaine 2.5 mg/ml or bupivacaine. Postoperative pain intensity was assessed repeatedly for 24 hours at rest, during cough and movement on a visual analogue scale (VAS) and by means of pressure algometry. No differences between pain intensities or wound tenderness were found between the groups. The demand for analgesics was similar in the two groups. We conclude that incisional ropivacaine is as effective as bupivacaine in the management of post-herniotomy pain.

Effect of general anesthesia and major versus minor surgery on late postoperative episodic and constant hypoxemia.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the relative contribution of general anesthesia alone and in combination with the surgical procedure to the pathogenesis of late postoperative hypoxemia. DESIGN: Open, controlled study. SETTING: University hospital. PATIENTS: 60 patients undergoing major abdominal surgery and 16 patients undergoing middle ear surgery, both with comparable general anesthesia. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Patients were monitored with continuous pulse oximetry on one preoperative night and the second postoperative night. Significant episodic or constant hypoxemia did not occur on the second postoperative night following middle ear surgery and general anesthesia, but severe episodic and constant hypoxemia did occur on the second postoperative after major abdominal surgery and general anesthesia. CONCLUSIONS: General anesthesia in itself is not an important factor in the development of late postoperative constant and episodic hypoxemia, which instead may be related to the magnitude of trauma and/or opioid administration.

Effect of epidural blockade and oxygen therapy on changes in subcutaneous oxygen tension after abdominal surgery.

The effect of oxygen therapy (37% by face mask) and epidural local anesthetic blockade (9 ml 0.5% bupivacaine at Th9-11 level) on wound oxygenation was evaluated in eight otherwise healthy patients undergoing elective colorectal resection. The patients were monitored continuously for subcutaneous oxygen tension, arterial oxygen saturation, heart rate, and skin temperature on the day after operation, and arterial blood for gas analysis was drawn every 15 min during the study. A fluid challenge (10 ml saline/kg body wt) did not alter any of the measured values. The epidural blockade did not change any of the measured values. Oxygen therapy before epidural blockade increased median subcutaneous oxygen tension from 60 to 71 mmHg (P < 0.02) and, after epidural blockade, from 64 to 71 mmHg (P < 0.02) Time to reach steady state in subcutaneous oxygen tension with oxygen therapy was 30 (15-55) min without epidural blockade and 15 (10-20) min with blockade (P < 0.03). In conclusion, epidural local anesthetic blockade did not increase subcutaneous oxygen tension with or without oxygen therapy after elective uncomplicated major abdominal surgery.

Pain sensation and nociceptive reflex excitability in surgical patients and human volunteers.

Pain threshold, nociceptive flexion reflex (NFR) threshold and responses to suprathreshold stimulation were investigated in 15 female patients (mean age 32 yr (range 22-48 yr)) before and 68 (range 48-96) h after gynaecological laparotomy. Control measurements were performed in 17 healthy human volunteers (five males, age 30 yr (range 24-41 yr)). In the surgical patients, pain threshold decreased and pain to suprathreshold stimulation increased significantly (P = 0.006 and P = 0.04, respectively) from before to after surgery. A corresponding trend was demonstrated in neurophysiological measurements, although the decrease in NFR threshold and increase in NFR amplitude to suprathreshold stimulation were not significant (P = 0.08 and P = 0.24, respectively). The correlations between the relative change in pain and reflex thresholds, and time from surgery, were statistically significant (pain threshold: rs = 0.53, P = 0.04; NFR thresholds: rs = 0.54, P = 0.04). In the healthy volunteers, no significant differences in thresholds and responses to suprathreshold stimulation were observed between two recordings with an interval of at least 48 h. The allodynia and hyperalgesia observed in postsurgical patients may be related to postoperative sensitization of central neurones.

Influence of timing on the effect of continuous extradural analgesia with bupivacaine and morphine after major abdominal surgery.

We have studied the effect of continuous extradural analgesia with bupivacaine and morphine, initiated before or after colonic surgery, in a double-blind, randomized study. Thirty-two patients were allocated randomly to receive an identical extradural block initiated 40 min before surgical incision (n = 16) or at closure of the surgical wound (n = 16). The extradural regimen consisted of a bolus of 7 ml of plain bupivacaine 7.5 mg ml-1 plus morphine 2 mg and continuous extradural infusion of a mixture of bupivacaine 7.5 mg ml-1 plus morphine 0.05 mg ml-1, 4 ml h-1 for 2 h, followed by a continuous extradural infusion of a mixture of bupivacaine 2.5 mg ml-1 plus morphine 0.05 mg ml-1, 4 ml h-1, continued for 72 h after operation. In addition, all patients received similar general anaesthesia. There was no significant difference in request for additional morphine and no significant differences between the groups in pain scores (visual analogue scale or verbal) during rest or ambulation at any time of measurement. These results do not suggest that timing of analgesia with a conventional extradural regimen is of major clinical importance in patients undergoing colonic surgery.

Effects of lidocaine aerosol on postoperative pain and wound tenderness following minor gynaecological laparotomy.

Twenty-four female patients undergoing sterilization through a minor lower laparotomy received, in a double-blind, randomized study, either lidocaine spray 200 mg or placebo in the surgical wound. Postoperative pain intensity was evaluated on a verbal and a visual analogue scale and wound tenderness with an algometer. During mobilisation from the supine to the sitting position, VAS-score was lower (P less than 0.05) in the lidocaine group 2 h postoperatively, but not 4, 6 and 8 h postoperatively (P greater than 0.05). No significant differences were found in VAS-scores at rest or during cough, or in verbal scale ratings during rest, cough or mobilisation, and postoperative consumption of morphine was similar in the two groups. Pressure pain thresholds were higher (P less than 0.05) 2 h postoperatively in the lidocaine group, but not 4, 6 and 8 h postoperatively. In conclusion, topically applied lidocaine aerosol in the surgical wound leads to very short and clinically insignificant relief of postoperative pain.

Effect of doxapram on postoperative pulmonary complications after upper abdominal surgery in high-risk patients.

In a double-blind randomised trial an infusion of doxapram, 2 mg per min for 6 h immediately after surgery and repeated on the first postoperative day, or the same volume of saline, was given to 39 patients who underwent upper abdominal surgery and who were at high risk of postoperative day, or the same volume of saline, was given to 39 patients who underwent upper abdominal surgery and who were at high risk of postoperative pulmonary complications. The patients were assessed pre-operatively and during the first 5 postoperative days by physical examination, spirometry, blood-gas analysis, and chest radiography. Postoperative pulmonary complications were defined as temperature over 38 degrees C for 2 days, abnormal auscultation, pathological radiography, and/or productive cough. Data from 16 patients per group were analysed. Significantly more patients in the placebo group had three criteria of postoperative pulmonary complication compared with the doxapram group (63% vs 19%). The doxapram group also had higher PaO2 postoperatively.

[The value of routine check-ups of patients after radical surgery of colonic cancer or rectal cancer]. / Vaerdien af rutinemaessig postoperativ kontrol efter radikal operation for cancer coli eller cancer recti.

UNLABELLED: In this retrospective study, the efficiency of the postoperative follow-up regimen was evaluated in patients, radically operated for cancer of the colon or cancer of the rectum. The follow-up regimen consisted of clinical examination, including sigmoidoscopy every six months, supplemented by an X-ray of the colon every year. Two-hundred and eighty-nine patients were included in the study. Twenty-three local recurrences and 19 new malignant tumors were diagnosed 20 and 13 months (mean) after the primary operation, respectively. About one third of the local recurrences and half of the new malignant tumors were diagnosed at the planned follow-ups. Among these patients, a significantly higher success rate as regards radical operation was observed at the second operation. IN CONCLUSION: more frequent follow-ups during the first two years after the primary operation are recommended in order to improve early diagnosis.