Browsing by Author "Salvador, Sara"
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- Inadequate Adenosine-Induced Flow Arrest During Intraoperative Basilar Aneurysm SurgeryPublication . Pereira, Ana; Salvador, Sara; Sousa, Helena; Casal, ManuelaAneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) is an acute neurologic emergency. We report the case of a 48-year-old male with a massive SAH caused by a ruptured aneurysm of the vertebrobasilar transition. During an urgent craniotomy, due to an aneurysm re-rupture, adenosine was given for flow arrest but no sinus pause was observed. Esmolol was administered and strategies for cerebral protection were implemented. The surgeon was able to clip the aneurysm and the patient was discharged after 78 days without sequelae. The highest adenosine dose given did not result in an efficient cardiac pause. Atropine given one hour before could have contributed to this. This case highlights a successfully managed case of ruptured aneurysm with refractory adenosine-induced flow arrest.
- Neuromuscular Blockade Monitoring: Having It but Knowing When Not to Trust ItPublication . Salvador, Sara; Frada, Rita; Campos, Matilde; Esteves, SimãoButyrylcholinesterase (BChE) is an enzyme involved in the degradation of depolarizing and non-depolarizing neuromuscular blocking agents (NMBA), such as succinylcholine and mivacurium, respectively. Its deficiency is inherited or acquired, and results in paralysis of skeletal muscles after NMBA administration. We report a case of a 32-year-old pregnant woman proposed for cesarean section. General anesthesia (GA) was induced using propofol and succinylcholine. The surgical procedure was uneventful but after 40 minutes, there was no reversal of neuromuscular block (NMB). Other differential diagnoses were excluded and a deficit of BChe was assumed. When the train-of-four ratio (TOFr) achieved 40%, neostigmine/atropine led to the slow recovery of NMB up to TOFr 88%. The patient was extubated, but ventilation proved ineffective, so GA was induced and the patient was reintubated. A new measurement found a TOFr of 60%. Sedation and ventilatory support were maintained until the complete reversal of NMB (4 hours after succinylcholine). Prolonged block is a rare but serious complication of the use of succinylcholine in patients with BChE deficiency. This report not only highlights the importance of intraoperative NMB monitoring in homozygotic patients for atypical cholinesterase but also raises awareness for its careful interpretation