Monitoring of neuromuscular conduction and depth of anesthesia as the basis for general anesthesia management at different stages during abdominal surgery
Background. The purpose of this study was to develop algorithms for the safe control of deep anesthesia and neuromuscular conduction at the stage of rapid sequential induction and anesthesia recovery using instrumental monitoring methods of NMC. Materials and methods. The study included 30 patients. The patients were divided into two groups (the same number of patients in each group): the clinical methods and hardware methods (TOF-Watch SX apparatus in TOF stimulation mode) for monitoring the level of neuromuscular conduction were used in group 1 and 2, respectively. Group 1, without additional monitoring, presented with not only the slightest time from a muscle relaxant introduction to tracheal intubation (85.3 ± 4.9 seconds), but also worse conditions for intubation by the Cooper scale (7.8 ± 0.8, p < 0.05). And in group 2, there is a greater time from a muscle relaxant introduction to tracheal intubation compared with the control group (139.3 ± 4.5), as well as excellent conditions for intubation by the Cooper scale (8.9 ± 0.1 vs. 7.8 ± 0.8). Higher levels of mean blood pressure and heart rate in the first group at the stages of intubation and 5 minutes after intubation were associated with an inadequate level of anesthesia compared with the second group. Results. The time from the end of the operation to the extubation in the 1st group was 4.4 minutes (72 %) more than in the 2nd group. In addition, the time from the end of the surgery to transporting the patient to the ward in the 1st group was 6.6 minutes (62 %) more than in the 2nd group. Thus, the use of additional monitoring can reduce the time of a patient's staying in the operating room by 6.6 minutes. The consumption of rocuronium was significantly higher in the 1st group - 52.3 ± 1.0 mg, compared with the 2nd group - 42.3 ± 1.3 mg, that proves the significance of the difference compared with the control group (p < 0.05). Conclusions. The statistical results of our research have shown that TOF monitoring will help to conduct intubation under the most favorable conditions, provide adequate muscular relaxation for mechanical ventilation and surgery procedure, timely extubation of the trachea, as well as to reduce the period of patients staying in the operating room.