A psychometric questionnaire on patient satisfaction with anaesthesia care must cover areas such as patient information, involvement in decision-making, and contact with the anaesthetist. The assessment using summed scores for dimensions is more informative than a global summed rating. There were significant differences between hospitals. Moreover, the high problem scores indicate a great potential for improvement at all hospitals.

Patients exposed to a surgical safety checklist experience better postoperative outcomes, but this could simply reflect wider quality of care in hospitals where checklist use is routine.

Perception of the anaesthetist and satisfaction with 'Continuity of personal care by anaesthetist' were significantly increased by the introduction of a single postoperative visit by the anaesthetist compared with no visit at all. Overall satisfaction with anaesthesia was unchanged.

The mucosa of the small intestine has some unique microcirculatory features that may result in significant tissue oxygenation changes even under physiological conditions. To prove this hypothesis we investigated mucosal and serosal oxygenation in an autoperfused, innervated jejunal segment in pigs. Eight animals (30-40 kg) were anesthetized, paralyzed, and normoventilated. A small segment of the jejunal mucosa and serosa was exposed by a midline laparotomy and an antimesenteric incision. Mucosal and serosal oxygen tensions were measured using Clark-type surface oxygen electrodes. Mucosal hemoglobin saturation and concentration were determined by tissue reflectance spectrophotometry. Systemic hemodynamics, mesenteric-venous acid base, and blood gas variables, as well as systemic acid-base and blood gas variables and jejunal electromyogenic potentials, were recorded. Measurements were performed after a rest period at 0, 30, 60, and 90 min. All animals remained hemodynamically stable. At time 0 the jejunal oxygen extraction ratio was 0.33 +/- 0.05, the mean serosal PO2 was 60.25 +/- 7.69, the mean mucosal PO2 was 25.47 +/- 4.41 mmHg, and the mean mucosal hemoglobin saturation was 46.36 +/- 6.22%. Mean values did not change with time. In contrast to serosal PO2, mucosal PO2, mucosal hemoglobin oxygen saturation, and hemoglobin concentration showed rhythmic oscillations with a frequency of 3.4-5 cycles/min that were unrelated to systemic hemodynamic parameters, respiratory frequency, and intestinal peristalsis. From this we concluded that the jejunal mucosa demonstrates significant, regular changes in oxygenation parameters that are locally mediated. We speculate that the physiological basis for this phenomenon is the countercurrent arrangement of microvessels in conjunction with vasomotion.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Ibutilide has no significant advantage over amiodarone for the conversion of atrial fibrillation to sinus rhythm in either time to conversion or conversion overall, but severe hypotension was not seen with ibutilide.

Prothrombin complex concentrate (PCC) infusion is preferred for emergency reversal of coumarin therapy. Rapid infusion can potentially save crucial time; however, the possible impact of high infusion speed on PCC safety and effectiveness has not been delineated. In a prospective multinational clinical trial with 43 patients receiving PCC (Beriplex® P/N) for emergency reversal of coumarin therapy, infusion speeds were selected by the investigators. In a twophase statistical analysis, the influence of baseline patient variables and dose on selected infusion speed was assessed. Then, the effect of infusion speed on reduction in international normalized ratio (INR) and on thrombogenicity marker pharmacokinetics was evaluated. Infusion speed ranged widely from 2.0 to 40.0 mL min −1 with a median of 7.5 mL min −1 . Selection of infusion speed was not significantly influenced by gender, age, body mass index, presence of acute bleeding, indication for coumarin therapy, baseline INR, or PCC dose. Infusion speed was higher by a median of 2.2 mL min −1 (95% confidence interval, 1.0-4.3 mL min −1 ) among patients receiving Beriplex P/N volumes ≥80 mL compared with smaller infusion volumes. Infusion speed did not affect INR attained 30 min following PCC infusion. None of the evaluated thrombogenicity marker pharmacokinetic parameters was affected by infusion speed. Infusions in one patient with questionable hemostatic efficacy and another with a possibly PCC-related thromboembolic event were at moderate and slow speeds, respectively. This study provides the first direct evidence that Beriplex® P/N can be rapidly infused for emergency coumarin therapy reversal without altering safety or effectiveness.

Serum cholesterol procalcitonin (PCT) and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels were measured consecutively in 76 critically ill patients at admission to the intensive care unit. The presence of infection was defined according to the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) criteria; in-house mortality, underlying diseases, and severity of sepsis were monitored. Nonsurvivors had significantly lower cholesterol levels compared with survivors (69 mg/dL [range, 37-88 mg/dL] vs. 96 mg/dL [range, 71-132 mg/dL], P = 0.006) whereas no significant differences were noted for serum PCT and CRP levels. In a cohort of patients with cholesterol levels of 50 mg/dL or less, 82% did not survive as compared with patients with cholesterol levels of 100 mg/dL or greater (mortality, 21%). In a control group without infection, no difference of cholesterol, PCT, or CRP was found between survivors and nonsurvivors. Our data show that low cholesterol levels in patients with infectious disease have a prognostic value and may be useful markers to identify high-risk patients already at admission.

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