Microcirculation during surgery

Throughout the long history of surgery, there has been great advancement in the hemodynamic management of surgical patients. Traditionally, hemodynamic management has focused on macrocirculatory monitoring and intervention to maintain appropriate oxygen delivery. However, even after optimization of macro-hemodynamic parameters, microcirculatory dysfunction, which is related to higher postoperative complications, occurs in some patients. Although the clinical significance of microcirculatory dysfunction has been well reported, little is known about interventions to recover microcirculation and prevent microcirculatory dysfunction. This may be at least partly caused by the fact that the feasibility of monitoring tools to evaluate microcirculation is still insufficient for use in routine clinical practice. However, considering recent advancements in these research fields, with more popular use of microcirculation monitoring and more clinical trials, clinicians may better understand and manage microcirculation in surgical patients in the future. In this review, we describe currently available methods for microcirculatory evaluation. The current knowledge on the clinical relevance of microcirculatory alterations has been summarized based on previous studies in various clinical settings. In the latter part, pharmacological and clinical interventions to improve or restore microcirculation are also presented.

Anesthetic management of laparoscopic pheochromocytoma excision in a patient with a Fontan circulation: a case report / 대한마취과학회지

An 18-year-old male with a Fontan circulation underwent excision of a pheochromocytoma after conversion from laparoscopic surgery. The pneumoperitoneum established for laparoscopic surgery may have adverse effects on the Fontan circulation, because it increases the intra-abdominal pressure (IAP), intra-thoracic pressure, pulmonary vascular resistance, and systemic vascular resistance (SVR), and decreases cardiac preload and cardiac output. Meticulous monitoring is also required during carbon dioxide exsufflation, because a rapid decrease in IAP can provoke hemodynamic deterioration by decreasing venous return and SVR. Furthermore, catecholamines released by the pheochromocytoma can worsen the hemodynamic status of Fontan circulation during surgery. Therefore, sophisticated intraoperative anesthetic care is required during laparoscopic pheochromocytoma excision in patients with a Fontan circulation.

Unsuspected intravascular migration of a thoracic epidural catheter in a thoracotomy patient: A case report

Thoracic epidural analgesia is the most effective method of managing post-thoracotomy pain. However, the catheter may be misplaced into the intrapleural, intercostal, subarachnoid, or intravascular space. Intravascular misplacement of a catheter can be detected by aspiration of blood or administration of a test dose of local anesthetic; however, these methods may result in a false-negative response. Moreover, a catheter placed in the epidural space may migrate into a blood vessel during the intraoperative period. Thus, the location of the catheter tip should always be determined before local anesthetic is administered. We report a case of intraoperative intravascular migration of a thoracic epidural catheter in a 32-year-old male who underwent left thoracotomy.