Key Points ▪ Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) consists of a specific heart-lung machine that provides circulatory support and/or gas exchange for patients with severe but potentially reversible respiratory or cardiac failure or both. Although the term <ce:italic>extracorporeal life support</ce:italic> (ECLS)…
Key Points ▪ Critical care of the nervous system is based on control of cerebral and spinal cord physiology and the prevention of secondary insults. This goal, in turn, depends on the comprehensive maintenance and adequacy of physiologic parameters and…
Key Points ▪ Anesthesiologists have been key contributors to the field of critical care, both in the advancement of clinical practice and development of technology relevant to the field. ▪ Intensive care unit structure, staffing, and utilization varies considerably among…
Key Points ▪ Postoperative cognitive concerns have been voiced by older patients, their families, and caregivers for over a century, and more recently documented with objective testing. ▪ The term postoperative cognitive dysfunction (POCD) is neither recognizable by the general…
Key Points ▪ The process of nociception is a dynamic process (i.e., neuroplasticity) with multiple points of modulation. Persistent noxious input may result in relatively rapid neuronal sensitization and possibly persistent pain. ▪ Postoperative pain, especially when poorly controlled, results…
Key Points ▪ Emergence from general anesthesia and surgery may be accompanied by a number of physiologic disturbances that affect multiple organ systems. Most common are postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV), hypoxia, hypothermia and shivering, and cardiovascular instability. ▪ In…
Key Points ▪ Congenital heart disease causes significant alterations in oxygenation, perfusion, and myocardial function after birth, and it can be categorized into hypoxic and normoxic lesions. ▪ The overall goal of therapy in shock is to treat the underlying…
Key Points ▪ Organ system maturation, from birth through adolescence, affects physiologic function and therefore anesthetic and surgical management and outcome. ▪ The understanding of congenital heart disease (CHD) and consequent anesthetic management is based on the pathophysiologic determinants of…
Key Points ▪ At birth the circulation undergoes a fundamental change as blood oxygenation occurs through the lungs rather than the placenta. This transition places some newborns at risk of sudden increases in pulmonary artery pressure with resultant shunting of…
Key Points ▪ Over the last three decades, regional anesthesia in pediatrics has become an integral part of everyday practice. ▪ Regional anesthesia appears as a viable option for treating intraoperative and postoperative pain control in children. ▪ In recent…