Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

S Montanini

Publications and source records attributed to S Montanini.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Use of acetylcysteine as the life-saving antidote in Amanita phalloides (death cap) poisoning. Case report on 11 patients.

alpha-Amanitin is an amatoxin known to produce deleterious effects on the liver and the kidneys, when circulating in the blood. It is produced by a particular kind of mushroom called amanita phalloides. Therapeutic options employed to treat mushroom intoxication, such as haemodiaperfusion on activated charcoal, high dosages of penicillin G, oral charcoal, etc., very often failed to act properly and liver transplantation (when a graft is available) appeared to be the only solution. In recent years, as suggest by some authors, it has been postulated that the oxidant effects of alpha-amanitin could be counteracted by the use of antioxidants such as silibinin. High dosages of N-acetyl-cysteine (CAS 616-91-1, NAC), already used as antioxidant in paracetamol poisoning, were successfully used in our Intensive Care Unit (ICU) in the treatment of Amanita phalloides poisoning. In the last two years, 11 patients (mean age of 5-72 = 38.5) were treated for Amanita phalloides poisoning of various degrees, with a protocol (haemodiaperfusion on activated charcoal, high dosages of penicillin G, etc.) further comprehending NAC (fluimucil). All the patients recovered successfully but one (bearing precedent liver disease) needed liver transplantation. Daily monitoring of liver enzymes, creatinine, coagulation, LDH, blood and urinary alpha-amanitin were used to screen the progresses of the patients.

Acetylcysteine↗

[Comparison of manual infusion of propofol and target-controlled infusion: effectiveness, safety and acceptability].

BACKGROUND: Diprifusor TCI is a newly developed target-controlled system for the infusion of propofol. Purpose of this study is to evaluate the acceptability, efficacy and safety of Diprifusor TCI in comparison with the manually controlled technique. METHODS: This multicentre, randomised, parallel group study was carried out in 160 patients undergoing surgical procedures of 10 min to 4 h duration in 8 centres. In each centre 20 male or female patients, aged > or = 18 years, ASA I-III were randomised to treatment with either Diprifusor TCI (TCI group--80 patients) or manually controlled infusion (MI group--80 patients). Assessments included hemodynamics; adverse events, including accidents, actual or possible; recovery times; anesthetist ratings of quality of induction and maintenance, and of ease of control and use of technique. Ratings were summed up in a global quality score (study end-point). RESULTS: Induction doses were significantly lower (median values 1.4 vs 1.9 mg/kg) and maintenance infusion rate significantly higher (median values 10.2 vs 8.8 mg/kg/h) in the TCI group; anesthetists ratings obtained maximum scores in most patients of either group, but more frequently in the TCI group, with significant differences for ease of control (good 91.2% TCI vs 74.7% IM; adequate 8.8 vs 21.5%; poor 0 vs 3.8%), and of use of technique (good 91.2% TCI vs 60.8% IM; adequate 8.8 vs 39.2%); the global quality score showed a significant advantage for the TCI system (median value 12 vs 11). CONCLUSIONS: The TCI technique is effective and safe, and has a better acceptability than the manually controlled infusion technique.

Adolescent↗

[Anesthesiologic problems in candidates for delayed surgery].

In preparing and maintaining a proper anaesthetic plan in the patient with subarachnoid haemorrhage undergoing delayed surgery, various concerns occur to the anaesthesist and the intensivist. These problems are related to the intracranic pathology but also to the structural, biochemical and functional changes occurring in a lot of organs and systems. Aim of anaesthetic approach is a correct preoperative evaluation and the maintenance of intracranic and systemic homeostasis. Systemically it is frequent the evidence of electrocardiographic abnormalities, due in same instances to myocardial hypoperfusion, of respiratory dysfunctions, of idroelettrolitic and metabolic changes leading to hypovolemia, hyponatremia and hypokalemia, and of coagulation disorders. With regards to the cerebral homeostasis, it is imperative to prevent rebleeding and vasospasm and the related neurologic damage. It is important the preoperative correction of the systemic dysfunctions, the prevention of the secondary neurologic damage, the stabilization of hemodynamic responses to various noxious stimuli, the provision of a good surgical field, and the achievement of a stable recovery; all these with the help of a proper clinical and instrumental monitoring.

Anesthesiology↗

[Perioperative thermal homeostasis. A duty of the anesthesiologist].

Anaesthesia, surgical procedures and operating room temperature can deeply alter the human thermoregulatory system. Unexpected and sometimes serious perioperative complications can occur. Many studies have been carried out in order to describe and evaluate the detrimental effects produced by different anaesthesia procedures (whether by general, regional or integrated anaesthesia) on thermic homeostasis. More recently it has also been reported that perioperative hypothermia significantly affects patients' outcome, increasing intraoperative blood losses, incidence of postoperative wound infection, and hospital stay. Italian anaesthetists have still a poor consideration about intraoperative body temperature monitoring and patients' warming as basic important skills for a better anaesthesiologic patients management. According with the literature, we do believe that this is not a right opinion. The purpose of the present paper would be to point out the most important knowledges concerning thermic homeostasis management, in order to increase anaesthesiologist's awareness in this essential field of patients perioperative care.

Anesthesia↗

[Postoperative pain in shoulder surgery].

Postoperative shoulder pain should be adequately treated not only because of the high severity of the symptomatology often observed, but also because pain and muscle contraction render impossible an early rehabilitation programme. Regional anaesthesia, by virtue of its beneficial effects on the pathophysiology of pain and its influence on the rehabilitative problems of shoulder surgery, is the most adequate technique for the control of postoperative pain.

Analgesia↗

[Comparison of a combination of fentanyl and alfentanil with propofol in brief surgery].

We studied 96 patients undergoing short gynecological procedures. Anaesthesia has been induced with fentanyl 1.5 micrograms/kg (45 patients) or alfentanil micrograms /kg (51 patients) and a hypnotic dose of propofol, and maintained with 70% N2O via facial mask. We observed a better and more rapid control of surgical analgesia with alfentanil, and an earlier recovery of postoperative psychophysical functions. Post-induction apnea has been more frequent and prolonged in the alfentanil group, but no difference in the time necessary to recover an adequate ventilation has been observed between the two groups. Alfentanil anaesthesia determined a more marked intraoperative bradycardia. By virtue of the speed of onset and the short duration of action, alfentanil is a suitable anaesthetic agent for short surgical procedures, particularly in day-stay patients.

Adult↗

[Muscular rigidity caused by alfentanil: prevention].

We studied three groups of 30 patients each, undergoing minor orthopaedic surgery, anaesthetized with alfentanil (30 micrograms/kg bolus followed by an infusion of 0.3 micrograms/kg/min), thiopental 3 mg/kg and 70% N2O via facial mask. Patients in group I were treated, three minutes before induction, with vecuronium 0.02 mg/kg i.v., while those in group II were premedicated with diazepam 0.15 mg/kg i.m. 30-45 minutes before induction. Group III served as control. Muscular rigidity was evaluated clinically with a subjective score based on a scale of 0 (no rigidity) to 3 (severe rigidity). Diazepam did not give significant protection from muscular rigidity. Vecuronium administration did not significantly reduced the number of patients who became rigid, but significantly decreased the incidence of severe rigidity (p less than 0.005), the mean rigidity score (p less than 0.05) and the incidence of rigidity at the induction of anaesthesia (p less than 0.0005). We also observed a progressively increasing incidence of rigidity with increasing age (not significantly) and body weight (p less than 0.05 total rigidity, p less than 0.01 severe rigidity).

Adolescent↗