Impact of general versus epidural anesthesia on early post-operative cognitive dysfunction following hip and knee surgery

<b>Background</b> : Post-operative cognitive dysfunction is the subtle cerebral complication temporally seen following surgery. The aim of this study was to compare the influence of either general anesthesia (GA) or epidural anesthesia (EA) on the early post-operative neurocognitive outcome in elderly (&gt;59 years) subjects undergoing hip and knee surgery. <b>Methods</b> : A total of 60 patients were recruited in a prospective, randomized, parallel-group study, comparable by age and sex. They were enrolled and randomized to receive either EA (<i>n</i> = 30) or GA (<i>n</i> = 30). All of them were screened using the Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE), with components of the Kolkata Cognitive Screening Battery. The operated patients were re-evaluated 1 week after surgery using the same scale. The data collected were analyzed to assess statistical significance. <b>Results</b> : We observed no statistical difference in cognitive behavior in either group pre-operatively, which were comparable with respect to age, sex and type of surgery. Grossly, a significant difference was seen between the two groups with respect to the perioperative changes in verbal fluency for categories and MMSE scores. However, these differences were not significant after the application of the Bonferroni correction for multiple analyses, except the significant differences observed only in the MMSE scores. <b>Conclusions</b> : We observed a difference in cognitive outcome with GA compared with EA. Certain aspects of the cognition were affected to a greater extent in this group of patients undergoing hip and knee surgery

A comparison between volume-controlled ventilation and pressure-controlled ventilation in providing better oxygenation in obese patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy

Background: The maintenance of oxygenation is a commonly encountered problem in obese patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy. There is no specific guideline on the ventilation modes for this group of patients. Although several studies have been performed to determine the optimal ventilatory settings in these patients, the answer is yet to be found. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of pressure-controlled ventilation (PCV) in comparison with volume-controlled ventilation (VCV) for maintaining oxygenation during laparoscopic cholecystectomy in obese patients. Methods: One hundred and two adult patients of ASA physical status I and II, Body Mass Index of 30-40 kg/m 2 , scheduled for laparoscopic cholecystectomy were included in this prospective randomized open-label parallel group study. To start with, all patients received VCV. Fifteen minutes after creation of pneumoperitoneum, they were randomized to receive either VCV (Group V) or PCV (Group P). The ventilatory parameters were adjusted accordingly to maintain the end-tidal CO 2 between 35 and 40 mmHg. Respiratory rate, tidal volume, minute ventilation and peak airway pressure were noted. Arterial blood gas analyses were done 15 min after creation of pneumoperitoneum and at 20-min intervals thereafter till the end of the surgery. All data were analysed statistically. Results: Patients in Group P showed a statistically significant ( P < 0.05) higher level of PaO 2 and lower value of PAO 2 -PaO 2 than those in Group V. Conclusion: PCV is a more effective mode of ventilation in comparison with VCV regarding oxygenation in obese patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy