Perioperative management of esophageal atresia/tracheoesophageal fistula: An analysis of data of 101 consecutive patients

This is a retrospective cohort analysis of electronic data in 101 neonates undergoing open and thoracoscopic surgical repair of esophageal atresia type C in one institution between 2007 and 2017. It looks at the perioperative courses of vital and metabolic parameters. Not surprisingly, the study found correction of TOF/OA is associated with periods of severe […]

Real fasting times and incidence of pulmonary aspiration in children: Results of a German prospective multicentre observational study

Summary A prospective multi-centre observational study designed to give guidance to a proposed change to the national fasting guidelines for children in Germany (which stand at 6hours for solids, 4hrs for breast and formula, and 2hrs for clear fluids) 3324 patients undergoing elective or emergent surgical, diagnostic or investigative procedures across ten German centres were […]

Prospective External Validation of the Pediatric Risk Assessment Score in Predicting Perioperative Mortality in Children Undergoing Noncardiac Surgery

The purpose of this study is to provide external validation to a tool that can be used to predict mortality risk in children undergoing non-cardiac surgery. The Paediatric Risk Assessment (PRAm) has been derived from an American Paediatric Surgical Quality Improvement Database (NSQIP). There are five variables in the score: whether the procedure was urgent […]

The distance between the glottis and the cuff of a tracheal tube placed through three supraglottic airway devices in children: A randomised controlled trial.

Study design A two part RCT involving children < 7yrs of age utilising 3 versions of Supraglottic Airway devices (SAD): I-gel, Ambu AuraGain & air-Q laryngeal airway. A total of 89 children were enrolled (30, 29, 29 for each SAD). Part 1(In vivo): Size 1, 1.5 &2 SAD’s placed after a standardised GA (including paralysis) […]

Perioperative Outcomes and Surgical Case Volume in Pediatric Complex Cranial Vault Reconstruction: A Multicenter Observational Study From the Pediatric Craniofacial Collaborative Group.

Summary Retrospective multicentre observational study of paediatric patients undergoing complex cranial vault reconstruction across 33 North-American institutions Institutions were categorised into low, middle or high surgical case volume Low surgical case volumes were associated with increased total blood donor exposures and increased perioperative transfusion volumes There was no difference in hospital length of stay or […]

Propofol use in children with allergies to egg, peanut, soybean or other legumes

This is a retrospective, single-centre study from Western Australia looking for incidence of propofol allergy in patients with egg, peanut, soybean and other legume allergy from a 10-year period (2005-2015) that received propofol as part of their general anaesthetic (304 children received 648 propofol exposures identified).   The control group of 892 non-allergic children with 1 […]

Red Blood Cell Transfusion in Pediatric Orthotopic Liver Transplantation: What a Difference a Few Decades Make

This is an observational retrospective study of RBC transfusion data in 271 paediatric patients undergoing 278 liver transplants at a single institution from 2008-2017. There were 259 primary transplants, 15 second transplants, and 4 third transplants. Average age at transplantation was 6.9 years. Total mortality was 4.8% (1.5% during transplant admission and 3.3% subsequently). Analysis […]

Assessment of Common Criteria for Awake Extubation in Infants and Young Children

In this prospective observational study, the value of commonly used predictors of fitness for extubation were measured in 600 infants and young children under the age of 7 who had undergone general anaesthesia for a variety of surgical procedures using volatile anaesthesia. Separating the study population into those successfully extubated from those requiring minor and […]