Patient control of combined spinal epidural anaesthesia.
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Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to R Macdonald.
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During development of the zebrafish forebrain, a simple scaffold of axon pathways is pioneered by a small number of neurons. We show that boundaries of expression domains of members of the eph, forkhead, pax, and wnt gene families correlate with the positions at which these neurons differentiate and extend axons. Analysis of genetically or experimentally altered forebrains indicates that if a boundary is maintained, there is appropriate neural differentiation with respect to the boundary. Conversely, in the absence of a boundary, there is concomitant disruption of neural patterning. We also show that a strip of cells within the dorsal diencephalon shares features with ventral midline cells. This strip of cells fails to develop in mutant fish in which specification of the ventral CNS is disrupted, suggesting that its development may be regulated by the same inductive pathways that pattern the ventral midline.
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Some advances in the technology of the digital acquisition of radiographic images are discussed. The rôle of teleradiology and other communication prospects within dentistry are proposed and some anticipated trends in the use of new technology suggested. The philosophical concept of Total Quality Management in dentistry is introduced.
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Twenty-three patients (22 soldiers and 1 civilian) were admitted to the Cambridge Military Hospital between May 1990 and May 1992 with chronic inversion instability of an ankle and underwent Watson-Jones Tenodesis. A retrospective study was carried out to evaluate their results.
An evaluation of a 30 gauge spinal needle in a combined epidural/spinal anaesthetic technique for Caesarean section revealed a 25% failure rate of the spinal element. In this unit, no more than 4% of spinal anaesthetics might be expected to fail. One of the reasons for the higher failure rate was that, when using the Tuohy needle as an introducer, the dura was not identified. This prompted us to compare the 'through-the-Tuohy' or needle within needle approach for combined epidural/spinal anaesthesia, with a technique that involved siting the epidural and spinal sequentially in separate spaces. One hundred women requiring elective Caesarean section under spinal anaesthesia were randomised into single or double space groups. The technique failed in 16% of through-the-needle cases, and in 4% of sequential sitings. Combined spinal/epidural anaesthesia for Caesarean section is more successful if each procedure is performed using separate spaces.
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Between 1982 and 1989 over 3000 patients were questioned about recall and dreaming after general anaesthesia for Caesarean section. Some 28 (0.9%) patients were able to recall something of their operation and 189 (6.1%) reported dreams. There was uniform adherence to a rigid anaesthetic protocol up to and including 1985, but a much publicized incident reported from the courtroom stimulated a relaxation of this regimen. Consequently the incidence of awareness decreased from 1.3% to 0.4%, and the incidence of dreaming was also reduced. Recollections of surgery were confined to manipulations, noises and voices. None of our patients complained of pain at the time of interview, although one since has. The inadequacies of the initial protocol and an approach to informed consent are discussed.
A 30-gauge spinal needle was evaluated for Caesarean section, using a combined epidural/spinal technique, in 50 mothers. Spinal anaesthesia failed in six mothers and was inadequate in another six. General anaesthesia was required on one occasion. A 25% overall failure rate suggests that a 30-gauge needle is not a practical proposition for routine clinical practice.
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