Prevention of spinal anaesthesia-induced hypotension in the elderly: i.m. methoxamine or combined hetastarch and crystalloid.

We have compared two methods of reducing hypotension during spinal anaesthesia in elderly patients, 6% hetastarch and crystalloid or methoxamine 10 mg i.m., in terms of haemodynamic stability and requirements for additional vasopressors. Sixty-two patients (aged 60-97 yr) undergoing surgical fixation of fractured neck of femur were allocated randomly to receive 6% hetastarch (Hespan) 500 ml followed by Hartmann's solution 500 ml (group HS, n = 32) or a bolus injection of methoxamine 10 mg i.m. (group MX, n = 30), 10 min before induction of spinal anaesthesia with 0.5% hyperbaric bupivacaine 2.25-3.0 ml. Arterial pressure was measured non-invasively by an oscillotonometer at 2-min intervals from 0 to 40 min and at 5-min intervals thereafter. Methoxamine 2 mg i.v. was given if systolic arterial pressure (SAP) decreased to < 100 mm Hg. Hypotension was defined as a 25% decrease from baseline SAP or mean arterial pressure (MAP). Patient data, sensory level and blood loss were similar in the two groups. SAP and MAP increased initially from baseline until induction of spinal anaesthesia and then decreased for 30 min in both groups, but remained higher in group MX (P < 0.05). Heart rate (HR) decreased from baseline in group MX (P < 0.05) and was less than in group HS at all times from 2 to 60 min (P < 0.01). The incidence of SAP hypotension (47% vs 75%; P = 0.03, odds ratio (OR) = 3.43) and MAP hypotension (47% vs 67%; P = 0.09, OR = 2.51) was less in group MX than in group HS. Requirements for rescue methoxamine i.v. (27% vs 53%, P = 0.04, OR = 3.11) was less in group MX than in group HS but the dose of rescue methoxamine given (mean 6.3 (95% confidence intervals 3.0-9.6) vs 8.9 (5.6-12.2) mg) and time to onset of hypotension (20.7 (14.5-26.7) vs 17.3 (11.4-23.1) min) were similar in groups MX and HS, respectively. We conclude that methoxamine 10 mg i.m., given 10 min before induction of spinal anaesthesia in normovolaemic elderly patients, reduced subsequent SAP and MAP hypotension, HR and requirements for rescue vasopressor therapy compared with a combination of 6% hetastarch 500 ml and crystalloid 500 ml. The previously reported benefit of such volume administration may not extend to the elderly.

Reliability of DSM-III anxiety disorder categories using a new structured interview.

The reliability of DSM-III anxiety disorder diagnoses was determined using a new structured interview, the Anxiety Disorders Interview Schedule (ADIS). Two interviewers examined 60 consecutive outpatients at an anxiety disorders clinic and assigned primary and secondary diagnoses based on the ADIS. The kappa statistic, calculated on the basis of perfect matches on primary diagnoses, indicated good agreement for anxiety, affective, and adjustment disorders, as well as for the specific anxiety disorder categories of agoraphobia, panic, social phobia, and obsessive-compulsive disorder, but not for generalized anxiety disorder. We evaluated the causes for diagnostic disagreement, particularly in relation to the difficult differentiation between generalized anxiety disorder and other anxiety disorders.

Relaxation treatment of pseudoinsomnia and idiopathic insomnia: an electroencephalographic evaluation.

Twenty-nine insomniacs underwent four consecutive sleep laboratory evaluations before and after receiving tension-release relaxation training, no-tension-release relaxation training, or no-treatment. On the basis of the discrepancy between subjective and EEG-defined measures of latency to sleep onset, subjects were classified as pseudoinsomniacs or idiopathic insomniacs. As predicted, tension-release relaxation was significancy more effective than the other two conditions on subjective sleep measures, regardless of insomnia subtype and on objective sleep measures only for idiopathic insomniacs. Subjective improvement was maintained at 12-month followup. Numerous differences between the two subtypes emerged on pretherapy and during-therapy measures distinct from the latency measures, but changes on those variables were unrelated to outcome improvement.