Stubborn Futures: Caring Against Anaesthetic Time

Defining the learning curve in CT-guided navigated thoracoscopic vertebral body tethering.

abstractFeminist thinking and organising is being altered through digital spaces, as these spaces increasingly allow for greater participation of women and marginalised identities in the public sphere. The digital environment makes it possible for voices that may not have been present in the public sphere prior to the existence of social networking sites to be heard and viewed publicly (Goby, 2003). It also allows for individuals to be exposed to viewpoints that are not their own and to be held accountable for the values they espouse, as well as to have these challenged publicly. This ultimately allows for a richer and more complex public sphere, and for opportunities to construct counter-publics and counter-discourses (McLean, 2013, 2014; Nip, 2004). McLean and Mugo (2015) hold that the richness and complexity of this public sphere can be considered to be more reflective of lived realities and nuanced relationships of power than earlier conceptions of the public sphere. This article will speak specifically to the experiences of the queer African woman, and here ‘participation’ is inclusive of the sharing of lived experiences, decision making, organising and advocacy, public dialogue, and policy changes.Writing as a previous editor and curator of the Pan-African queer online space HOLAA!, and taking this space as a point of departure, the possibilities presented by digital spaces for feminist thinking and organising are explored. The possibility for adding to global narratives is considered, and how digital communities impact on and alter feminist participation, resulting in the formation of rich feminist publics and counter-publics is discussed.

Introduction. Effective utilisation of operating theatre time is an important issue in neurosurgery. There is a commonly held belief amongst surgeons that throughput of theatre is decreasing secondary to worsening perioperative delays. The aim of this paper is to explore some of the factors that lead to delays in the perioperative period by determining whether there has been a trend in the increasing length of case time over a fifteen-year period. Materials and methods. Case notes of all elective patients who consented for surgery between January 1998 and the end of 2012 were reviewed. Only patients who underwent elective surgery were included. Variables recorded included transit time from the ward to theatre, anaesthetic time, surgical time and time spent in recovery. These were compared over the 15-year period to look for apparent trends. Results. The total number of patients who consented for elective surgery at our institution between January 1998 and December 2012 was 6760. The mean anaesthetic time considering all operations performed was 43 mins each over the 15-year period. Anaesthetic time was deemed to be trending upwards from 1998 where the mean time was 27 –60 mins in December 2012, thus reflecting an increase of 33 mins. The mean surgical times over the 15-year period were 131 mins. However in 1998, mean surgical time was 127 mins compared with 133 mins in 2012. Discussion and conclusion. For the operations analysed, anaesthetic time seems to be increasing and has effectively doubled over a 15-year period. Surgical time and non-clinical time are shown to be virtually constant. This delays the overall theatre list and increases the cancellation rate. For compensating this, changes need to be made when allocating resources to both elective and emergency theatres. Staff recruitment needs to be assessed and internal audits need to be conducted within institutions to analyse ways to optimise the throughput of an operation theatre. If these principles are not adhered to, it will have a negative impact as our populations, and hence our case loads increase to instrumental levels. This will in turn have a negative impact on health workers and patients alike.

The goal of the present study was to investigate the number of operations for abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) including time-trends in treatment during a 20-year period. Operating time and anesthesia time were also studied. During the period 1983-2002, a total of 1,041 patients with AAA were treated with open surgery (905) or EVAR (136). Number of operations, type of graft, anesthesia time, and operating time were the variables investigated. Data were collected retrospectively from the patients' medical records. There was an increase in the number of operations both for ruptured and non-ruptured AAA in men during the study period. Among women, an increase was observed only for ruptured aneurysm. Operating time and anesthesia time increased significantly during the 20-year period. The number of patients treated by EVAR increased significantly, beginning in 1995. In conclusion, there has been an increase in the number of AAA operations, and the proportion of patients treated with EVAR is increasing. Furthermore, we found an increase in both anesthesia time and operating time. These trends may be important for allocation of resources needed for the treatment of patients with AAA.

Background Traditional teaching supports upper extremity tourniquet pressure to be set at 250 mm Hg. Complications have been associated with increased pressure and duration of tourniquet use. We hypothesized that there will be no significant difference in intraoperative variables between tourniquet pressures of 125, 150, 175, or 200 mm Hg as compared with the current practice of 250 mm Hg during mini-open carpal tunnel release. Case Description A retrospective review was conducted of patients undergoing open carpal tunnel release from June 2009 to June 2012. Those undergoing surgery with a tourniquet pressure of 250 mm Hg were compared with those with lower tourniquet pressures regarding their demographics, operative and anesthesia time, and whether the tourniquet pressure needed to be increased to 250 mm Hg during surgery. Literature Review A total of 432 patients underwent carpal tunnel release over the 3-year period. There were no differences with respect to patient demographics. There was no significant difference between operative or anesthesia time between different tourniquet pressure groups. There were no reported problems with breakthrough bleeding or difficulty with visualization of structures in any of the pressure groups. None of the patients with lower tourniquet pressures needed the tourniquet pressure to be adjusted during surgery. Clinical Relevance This study demonstrated that using lower tourniquet pressures had no effect on the operation for open carpal tunnel release including effect on operative or anesthesia time, breakthrough bleeding, or complications directly related to tourniquet pressures. Orthopedic surgeons may consider reducing tourniquet pressures during carpal tunnel release.

Editorial

A Continued Commitment to Excellence

a component with feminist criticisms of rights. There are two parts to this project. First, I must respond to the criticisms feminists have made against rights theories in order to show that it is possible for a moral theory that includes rights to be a feminist moral theory. Answering these criticisms is necessary if I am to establish that moral theories that include rights are among the candidate theories from which feminists might choose. Second, I must develop a feminist moral theory that encompasses rights, and argue for its superiority to other sorts of moral theories in order to show that a moral theory that encompasses rights is a plausible feminist moral theory. Going beyond responding to criticisms and developing a positive feminist rights theory is necessary if feminists are to find rights theories to be attractive candidate moral theories. 2 In this paper I am concerned mostly with the first part of the project, responding to some feminist arguments against theorizing about morality in terms of rights, although in the course of responding to the objections I make remarks that might suggest ways in which some rights theories might be developed as feminist moral theories. 3 By this point in the paper, it should be clear what the project is that I am undertaking. However, some readers might still be wondering why Ia m undertaking it. Why should feminists care about reconciling feminist criticisms of moral theories that include rights with feminist concern for the oppression of women expressed in terms of “women’s rights”? Why isn’t it talk of “women’s rights” that ought to be abandoned in light of feminist criticisms of rights? I think that there are both pragmatic and principled reasons for thinking that feminist theorists ought to reconsider rights. First, the pragmatic answer to this question is that feminist moral theory ought not to abandon the moral and political language of the communities in which we live, if peace can be made with that language. Feminism does not exist in the academy alone and feminist intellectuals risk isolation if we reject the moral concepts that inform political debate. The language of rights is well established both in mainstream political institutions and in progressive political movements for social change. 4 If feminist theorists can rethink rights, rather than reject rights, then there is a role for feminist moral and political philosophers to participate in debates about the content of women’s rights and about what governments and individuals need to do to accord women rights.

A moment to reflect.

Mortality outcomes based on ASA grade in avian patients undergoing general anesthesia

The aim of this paper was to determine the use of theatre time for all procedures performed under general anaesthetic on a paediatric dental list. A prospective study of paediatric dental general anaesthetic procedures was undertaken at Ninewells Hospital and Medical School, NHS Tayside, Dundee, UK. Data were collected prospectively for 71 operating lists over a 3-year period from April 2003 to March 2006. Both operator status and the procedure being undertaken were recorded. In addition, pre-anaesthetic, anaesthetic, operating and disconnection times were recorded. Of the 71 lists examined, 61 either finished early or on time, with a median unused time of 32.50 min (interquartile range = 19.50, 50.00 min), whilst 10 lists finished late with a median overrun time of 30.50 min (interquartile range = 9.25, 45.50 min). Comparing lists which finished late with those which were completed within time, the median pre-anaesthetic time was significantly longer (Mann-Whitney U-test, W = 20.05, P = 0.048). Overall, the theatre was in use for 78.22% of time combining pre-anaesthetic, anaesthetic, operating and disconnection times; hence, there was poor time utilization of theatre for 21.78% of the total theatre time. Overall, 85.9% of theatre sessions for dental procedures under general anaesthetic in children finished early or on time. Where lists finished late, the duration of the pre-anaesthetic time appeared to be the significant factor.

Reconstruction of Oromandibular Defects by Vascularized Free Flaps: The Radial Forearm Free Flap and Fibular Free Flap as Major Donor Sites

Patients undergoing pneumonectomy for lung cancer are thought to be at high risk for the development of postoperative pulmonary complications (PC) and these complications are associated with high mortality rates. The purpose of this study was to identify independent factors associated with increased risk for the development of postoperative PC after pneumonectomy for lung cancer, and to assess the usefulness of predicted pulmonary function to identify high risk patients and other adverse outcomes. We reviewed retrospectively 242 patients undergoing pneumonectomy for lung cancer during a 12-year period. Perioperative data (clinical, pulmonary function test, and surgical) were recorded to identify risk factors of PC by univariate and multivariate analyses. Overall mortality and morbidity rates were 5.4 and 59%, respectively. Thirty-four patients (14%) developed PC (acute respiratory failure, ARF = 8.7%, reintubation = 5.4%, pneumonia = 3.3%, atelectasis = 2.9%, postpneumonectomy pulmonary edema = 2.5%, mechanical ventilation more than 24 h = 1.2%, pneumothorax = 0.8%). Patients with surgical (P < 0.001), cardiac (P < 0.001) and other complications (P < 0.01) had higher incidence of PC than those without postoperative complications. Intensive care unit stay (53 +/- 39 h vs. 35 +/- 19 h; P < 0.001) and hospital stay (18 +/- 11 days vs. 12 +/- 7 days; P < 0.001) was significantly longer in patients with PC. The mortality rate associated with PC was 35.5% (P < 0.001). By univariate analysis, it was found that older patients (P = 0.007), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) (P = 0.023), heart disease (P = 0.019), no previous record of chest physiotherapy (P = 0.008), poor predicted postoperative forced expiratory volume in 1s (ppo-FEV1) (P = 0.001), and prolonged anesthetic time (P < 0.001) were related with higher risk of PC. In the multiple logistic regression model, the anesthetic time (minutes; odds ratio, OR = 1.012), ppo-FEV1 (ml/s; OR = 0.998), heart disease (OR = 2.703), no previous record of previous chest physiotherapy (OR = 2.639), and COPD (OR = 2.277) were independent risk factors of PC. PC after pneumonectomy are associated with high mortality rates. Careful attention must be paid to patients with COPD and heart disease. Our results confirm the relevance of previous chest physiotherapy and the importance of the length of the surgical procedure to minimize the incidence of PC. The predicted pulmonary function (ppo-FEV1) may be useful to identify high risk patients for PC development and adverse outcomes.

Free flap surgery in the elderly: Experience with 110 cases aged ≥70 years

A retrospective study was undertaken to characterize and compare the perioperative course of 91 cases of one- and two-stage combined anterior and posterior spinal fusions over a 7-year period. The two patient populations were similar regarding preoperative characteristics and the number of levels fused. Significantly decreased operative and anesthesia time, operative blood loss, and postoperative hospital days were seen in the one-stage population compared to the two-stage cases (P < 0.05). For the spinal deformity subgroup, a longer chest-tube duration, decreased anesthesia time, and decreased postoperative hospital stay in the one-stage group were the only significant differences. Surgical treatment delays were noted in 8% of one-stage cases and in 23% of two-stage cases. Complications occurred in 53% of all cases, with a significantly higher major complication rate in patients with preoperative medical comorbidities who underwent two-stage combined fusion versus one-stage reconstruction. Higher complication rates were also associated with an age greater than 40 years, the presence of medical comorbidities, and cases treated with a thoracoabdominal anterior approach.