Dumitrascu, Catalina I.

Achondroplasia accounts for approximately 70% of all forms of dwarfism. Cesarean delivery is often required in parturients with achondroplasia due to cephalopelvic disproportion. There is no consensus on the optimal management for cesarean delivery considering the difficulties in both general and regional anesthesia in patients with achondroplasia. The aim of this study was to explore the literature for prior case reports and series to determine the optimum anesthetic management for cesarean delivery in achondroplastic patients. We conducted a review of the literature using Embase, Medline, Scopus, and Web of Science database searches for case series and case reports on achondroplasia and pregnancy through January 2024. Conference abstracts >3 years old were excluded, as well as data on forms of dwarfism other than achondroplasia, patients taller than 147 cm, and non-English language papers. Extracted data included demographic information, anesthetic management, and reported complications. The literature review resulted in 57 manuscripts with a total of 80 anesthetics. Anesthetic management consisted of planned general anesthesia (n = 16), single injection spinal (n = 28), epidural (n = 17), combined spinal-epidural (n = 12), and intrathecal catheter (n = 1). Six patients required conversion from neuraxial anesthesia to general anesthesia due to failed neuraxial placement (n = 3), inadequate blockade (n = 2), and high neuraxial block (n = 1). Reduced dose of intrathecal bupivacaine was common in this population. Complications such as hypotension (4 in 64), inadvertent dural puncture (1 in 64), and transient paresthesia (3 in 64) during neuraxial technique were reported but were infrequent. Neuraxial anesthesia is more common and a viable option in carefully selected parturients with achondroplasia. We recommend reduction of intrathecal local anesthetic as part of a titratable neuraxial technique (ie, combined spinal-epidural) that minimizes the risk of hypotension, high spinal, and emergent intubation.

Objectives To assess the safety profile of antegrade mitomycin gel instillation through a percutaneous nephrostomy tube (PCNT) for upper tract urothelial carcinoma (UTUC) with the aim of decreasing morbidity associated with therapy. Patients and Methods Patients undergoing antegrade administration of mitomycin gel via PCNT were retrospectively included for analysis from four tertiary referral centres between 2020 and 2022. The primary outcome was safety profile, as graded by Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (v5.0). Post‐therapy disease burden was assessed by primary disease evaluation (PDE) via ureteroscopy. Results Thirty‐two patients received at least one dose of mitomycin gel via PCNT for UTUC, 29 of whom completed induction and underwent PDE. Thirteen patients (41%) had residual tumour present prior to induction therapy. At a median of 15.0 months following first dose of induction therapy, ureteric stenosis occurred in three patients (9%), all of whom were treated without later recurrence or chronic stenosis. Other adverse events included fatigue (27%), flank pain (19%), urinary tract infection (12%), sepsis (8%) and haematuria (8%). No patients had impaired renal function during follow‐up and there were no treatment‐related deaths. Seventeen patients (59%) had no evidence of disease at PDE and have not experienced recurrence at a median follow‐up of 13.0 months post induction. Conclusions Administration of mitomycin gel via a PCNT offers a low rate of ureteric stenosis, demonstrates a favourable safety profile, and is administered without general anaesthesia.

Antisynthetase syndrome is a rare multisystem autoimmune disorder which clinically manifests with myositis, arthritis, interstitial lung disease, Raynaud phenomenon, and skin hyperkeratosis. Lung involvement represents the most severe form of disease and has rarely been reported in pregnancy. We present the case of a 22-year-old woman with antisynthetase syndrome and severe restrictive pulmonary disease who experienced a successful pregnancy and delivery. We discuss anesthetic considerations and highlight the importance of a multidisciplinary team approach in caring for parturients with multifactorial medical conditions.

AbstractBackground and ObjectivesOptimizing perioperative analgesia for patients undergoing major lower‐extremity amputation remains a considerable challenge. The utility of liposomal bupivacaine as a component of peripheral nerve blockade for lower‐extremity amputation is unknown.MethodsWe conducted an observational study comparing three different perioperative analgesic techniques for adults undergoing major lower‐extremity amputation under general anesthesia between 2012 and 2017 at an academic medical center: (1) no regional anesthesia, (2) peripheral nerve blockade with standard bupivacaine, and (3) peripheral nerve blockade with a mixture of standard and liposomal bupivacaine. The primary outcome of cumulative opioid oral morphine milligram equivalent utilization in the first 72 hours postoperatively was compared across groups utilizing multivariable linear regression.ResultsA total of 631 unique anesthetics were included for 578 unique patients, including 416 (66%) without regional anesthesia, 131 (21%) with peripheral nerve blockade with a mixture of standard and liposomal bupivacaine, and 84 (13%) with peripheral nerve blockade with standard bupivacaine alone. Cumulative morphine equivalents were lower in those receiving peripheral nerve blockade with combined standard and liposomal bupivacaine compared with those not receiving regional anesthesia (multiplicative increase 0.67; 95% CI 0.50 to 0.90; P = 0.007). There were no significant differences in opioid utilization between peripheral nerve blockade groups (P = 0.59).ConclusionsPeripheral nerve blockade is associated with reduced opioid requirements after lower‐extremity amputation compared with general anesthesia alone. However, the incorporation of liposomal bupivacaine is not significantly different to blockade employing only standard bupivacaine.