Comparison of Epidrum, Epi-Jet, and Loss of Resistance syringe techniques for identifying the epidural space in obstetric patients.

BACKGROUND: Identifying the epidural space is essential during epidural anesthesia (EA). Pressure of the epidural space in pregnancy is higher than that in nonpregnant woman. Loss of resistance (LOR) method is the most commonly preferred method for identifying the epidural space. Epidrum and Epi-Jet are recently innovated supporting devices that facilitate identifying process for epidural space. In this study we aimed to compare Epidrum, Epi-Jet, and LOR methods in identifying the epidural space, feasibility of technique. METHODS: Two hundred and forty pregnant women who were scheduled for caesarian section surgery under lumbar EA or combined spinal epidural anesthesia (CSEA) were randomized into three groups (Group I Epidrum, n = 80), Group II (Epi-Jet, n = 80), and Group III (LOR, n = 80). We recorded the time required to identify the epidural space and deflation of Epidrum balloon and Epi-Jet syringe, number of attempts, additional methods used to identify epidural space, usefulness of methods, accuracy of identification of epidural space, and outcomes of epidural catheterization. RESULTS: There were no significant differences between the groups with respect to demographic data, duration of deflation of Epidrum balloon and Epi-Jet syringe and distance between skin and epidural space. The mean time required to enter epidural space in Group I was shorter than that in Group II (P = 0.031). Feasibility of Epi-Jet was easier than that of Epidrum (P = 0.015). Number of uncertainties of epidural space identification was higher in Group I than that in Group II (P = 0.009). Also, the requirement for LOR to confirm epidural space and failure rates was higher in Group I than Group II (P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: We suggest that Epi-Jet is superior to Epidrum in pregnant patients in terms of clarity of epidural space identification, usefulness, and success rates of EA or CSEA.

Protective Effect of Intravesical Platelet-Rich Plasma on Cyclophosphamide-Induced Hemorrhagic Cystitis.

PURPOSE: Hemorrhagic cystitis (HC) is the most common urotoxic side effect of cyclophosphamide (CYP). Platelet rich plasma (PRP) plays an important role in wound healing and inflammatory responses. The aim of this study was to investigate the efficacy of intravesical PRP at treatment of interstitial cystitis (IC). MATERIAL-METHODS: Female rats (n=24) were used. IC was induced by intraperitoneal injection of cyclophosphamide (CYP). Rats were randomly allocated to one of four groups (n = 6 per group): a control group; a sham group with saline (75 mg/kg; i.p.) instead of CYP on day 1; a IC group, which was injected with CYP (150 mg/kg; i.p.) on day 1; and, a intravesical PRP­treated group which was injected with CYP (150 mg/kg; i.p.) on day 1. On day 2, the rats in each group were sacrificed under anesthesia. RESULTS: Histological evaluation showed that bladder inflammation in CYP­treated rats was not suppressed by PRP. CYP administration induced severe IC with marked edema, hemorrhage and inflammation in CYP and CYP+PRP groups, but PRP was not found to be effective to decrease these effects. CONCLUSION: The application of PRP could not reverse the histopathological changes in rats that had interstitial cystitis due to the cyclophosphamide injection.

Effects of intravenous ibuprofen and lornoxicam on erythrocyte deformability in rats undergoing hind limb ischemia reperfusion injury.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Acute hind limb ischemia reperfusion (I/R) injury is a common consequence of abdominal aorta cross­clamping during aortic surgery. Erythrocyte deformability is affected by I/R process and may lead to increased tissue and organ injury. Lornoxicam and intravenous ibuprofen are becoming commonly used as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAID) for postoperative analgesia. In this study, we aimed to investigate the effects of lornoxicam (2 mg/kg iv) and intravenous ibuprofen (30 mg/kg iv) on erythrocyte deformability in I/R model in rats. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Four study groups, each containing 6 Wistar rats were created. Laparotomy was performed in all groups under general anesthesia with ketamine and xylazine. In all groups except sham group, ischemia and reperfusion were achieved by clamping and declamping the infrarenal abdominal aorta for 120 minutes. Rats in Group IR+L received intravenous infusion of lornoxicam (2 mg/kg) while rats in Group IR+I received intravenous infusion of ibubrofen (30 mg/kg) following 2 hours of ischemic period. At the end of reperfusion period, erythrocyte packs were prepared from heparinized blood samples. Erythrocyte suspensions with hematocrit at a concentration of 5% in a phosphate­buffered saline (PBS) were used in order to perform deformability measurements. The value of p<0.05 was considered statistically significant. RESULTS: Relative resistance has increased in ischemia reperfusion group when compared to control group (p < 0.0001). Lornoxicam or ibuprofen intravenous treatments did not change the erythrocyte deformability during ischemia reperfusion period in rats (p=0.851, p=0.690). CONCLUSION: Intravenous ibuprofen or lornoxicam administrations during ischemia reperfusion period in rats have no negative effect on erythrocyte deformability. The findings of the study should be supported with more detailed and extensive clinical/experimental studies in the future (Fig. 1, Ref. 18).