Search

Purpose: Intraoperative anxiety is the most common psychological response of the patient during awake craniotomy. Psychological stress can trigger patient decline, resulting in failed awake craniotomy and significantly poor outcomes. This study aimed to identify the risk factors for panic attack (PA) during awake craniotomies., Methods: With the local ethics committee approval, we conducted a manual chart review of the medical record of patients who underwent consecutive awake craniotomies between November 1999 and October 2016 at Tokyo Women's Medical University. A total of 405 patients were identified and assigned to 2 groups based on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-V criteria: those that met the PA criteria (Group PA) and those that did not (Group non-PA). Patient characteristics and the incidence of the PA specifier were collected. The features of the two groups were statistically compared, and risk factors for PA occurrence were determined by regression analysis., Results: Sixteen of 405 patients met the diagnostic criteria of PA. Patients' characteristics were not statistically different between the groups. Multivariate logistic regression showed that intraoperative anxiety (p = 0.0002) and age younger than 39 years (as opposed to age >  = 39 years; p = 0.0328) were significantly associated with the occurrence of PA during awake craniotomy., Conclusions: For patients undergoing awake craniotomy, intraoperative anxiety and age younger than 39 years were considered risk factors of PA. As PA often necessitates conversion to general anesthesia, intensive perioperative psychological support and pain management are required to achieve patient satisfaction and the surgical goal of awake craniotomy., (© 2021. Japanese Society of Anesthesiologists.)

Background: Awake craniotomy paired with intraoperative magnetic resonance imaging (iMRI) is now the established technique for maximizing surgical resection, while preserving neurological function. However, leaving an unsecured airway patient in the iMRI gantry represents considerable risk. Our study aimed at identifying the incidence of critical adverse events in unsecured airway patients during iMRI as part of awake craniotomy., Materials and Methods: We conducted a clinical chart review of consecutive awake craniotomies performed between November 1999 and December 2015. Sequences of iMRI performed without invasive airway management were selected for assessment and the incidence of critical adverse events, including general convulsive seizure, respiratory arrest, nausea/vomiting and agitation, was identified., Results: Critical adverse events occurred in 21 of 356 unsecured airway patients within 24 of the 579 iMRI sequences. In cases using the low-field strength open MRI scanner, emergency termination of scans due to patient decline was recorded in only 4 cases: no cases of cardiac arrest, accidental death, or thermal injury were recorded. Compared with cardiovascular monitoring, patient respiratory status was poorly recorded., Conclusions: In terms of anesthesia, concurrent use of iMRI for awake craniotomy is clinically acceptable providing potential intraoperative complications can be controlled. Further, the configuration of the iMRI scanner as well as the reduced exposure from the lower magnetic field strength was found to impact patient safety management. Therefore when a conscious patient is left in the gantry without airway support, it is advisable that levels of oxygenation and ventilation should be monitored at all times.

Purpose: Intraoperative vomiting leads to serious respiratory complications that could influence the surgical decision-making process for awake craniotomy. However, the use of antiemetics is still limited in Japan. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of prophylactically administered single low-dose dexamethasone on the incidence of vomiting during awake craniotomy. The frequency of hyperglycemia was also examined., Methods: We conducted a retrospective case review of awake craniotomy for glioma resection between 2012 and 2015., Results: Of the 124 patients, 91 were included in the analysis. Dexamethasone was not used in 43 patients and the 48 remaining patients received an intravenous bolus of 4.95 mg dexamethasone at anesthetic induction. Because of stable operating conditions, no one required conscious sedation throughout functional mapping and tumor resection. Although dexamethasone pretreatment reduced the incidence of intraoperative vomiting (P = 0.027), the number of patients who complained of nausea was comparable (P = 0.969). No adverse events related to vomiting occurred intraoperatively. Baseline blood glucose concentration did not differ between each group (P = 0.143), but the samples withdrawn before emergence (P = 0.018), during the awake period (P < 0.0001) and at the end of surgery (P < 0.0001) showed significantly higher glucose levels in the dexamethasone group. Impaired wound healing was not observed in either group., Conclusion: A single low-dose of dexamethasone prevents intraoperative vomiting for awake craniotomy cases. However, as even a small dose of dexamethasone increases the risk for hyperglycemia, antiemetic prophylaxis with dexamethasone should be administered after careful consideration. Monitoring of perioperative blood glucose concentration is also necessary.

A 31-year-old woman with a left frontal and parietal brain tumor underwent awake craniotomy. Propofol/remifentanil general anesthesia was induced. Following craniotomy, anesthetic administrations ceased. The level of consciousness was sufficient and she was not agitated. However, the patient complained of nausea 70 minutes into the awake phase. Considering the adverse effects of antiemetics and the upcoming surgical strategy, we did not give any medications. Nausea disappeared spontaneously while the operation was suspended. When surgical intervention extended to the left caudate nucleus, involuntary movement, classified as a tremor, with 5-6 Hz frequency, abruptly occurred on her left forearm. The patient showed emotional distress. Tremor appeared on her right forearm and subsequently spread to her lower extremities. Intravenous midazolam and fentanyl could not reduce her psychological stress. Since the tremor disturbed microscopic observation, general anesthesia was induced. Consequently, the tremor disappeared and did not recur. Based on the anatomical ground and the medication status, her involuntary movement was diagnosed as psychogenic tremor. Various factors can induce involuntary movements. In fact, intraoperative management of nausea and vomiting takes priority during awake craniotomy, but we should be reminded that some antiemetics potentially induce involuntary movement that could be caused by surgery around basal ganglia.

Both obesity (BMI over 30) and SAS are risks for Supper airway maintenance. We report an obese patient (BMI 33.5) with SAS who underwent awake craniotomy. Weight reduction was instructed 1 month before the operation, and the patient lost enough weight to use intraoperative MRI. Under general anesthesia, surgical pads containing 2% lidocaine with adrenaline were inserted into the nasal cavities. The patient's airway S was secured by i-gel® until dura was opened. A nasal airway was then inserted to confirm the upper airway patency and anesthetics were terminated The patient regained consciousness and started respiration. The i-gel® was removed. The nasal airway was changed to an RAE tracheal tube ; the tube was fixed above the vocal cords under bronchofiberscopic observation. Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) via RAE tube was started. Neither coughing nor epistaxis was observed.The RAE tube prevented glossoptosis and did not disturb speech mapping. Emergent endotracheal intubation was easily managed because the tube was close to the glottis. The RAE tube was removed and nasal CP AP was applied overnight Carefully prepared CP AP support via nasal RAE tube was practical in keeping upper airway patency for an obese patient complicated with SAS undergoing awake craniotomy.

We had a neurosurgical patient who developed apnea during iMRI. She was suspected of obstructive sleep apnea. The tumor had a risk of motor aphasia, and therefore awake craniotomy with iMRI was planned. First, the patient was anesthetized and her airway was secured. After 11 minutes of termination of anesthetics, the patient regained consciousness. The level of consciousness was sufficient. Her respiration was stable with oxygen supply. Anesthetics were not given any more. She gradually became drowsy when the tasks were finished and tumor was removed, although she responded to verbal commands. During the second iMRI, capnogram showed flat line and peripheral oxygen saturation level dropped to 90%. Scanning was urgently stopped and the patient was intubated. The patient recovered without any neurological deficits the day after the surgery although the reason of respiratory arrest is still unknown. Awake craniotomy could be challenging because of unsecured airway with risks of vomitting, epileptic attacks or unstable level of consciousness. It is considered that the patient monitoring becomes more difficult when iMRI is performed because the patient's face cannot be obsereved directly. We should remember that conscious level as well as respiration pattern may change during operation.

Purpose. It has been shown in previous studies that nitrous oxide (N2O) suppresses the amplitude of motor evoked potentials (MEPs) in individual subjects. In the present study, we compared the absolute amplitude and latency of MEPs among groups of patients with various concentrations of N2O. Methods. The subjects were 60 patients who were scheduled to undergo craniotomy with MEP monitoring. Anesthesia was induced and maintained with propofol and fentanyl. The patients were randomly assigned to one of three groups based on the concentration of N2O: 0% N2O (N0 group), 50% N2O (N50 group), and 66% N2O (N66 group). MEPs were elicited by transcranial electrical stimulation. The effect-site concentrations (ESCs) of anesthetics were calculated retrospectively. The effects of anesthetics on MEP were analyzed by analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) followed by Tukey’s method. Results. MEPs were elicited in all cases. The absolute amplitude of the MEP was significantly higher in the N0 group than in the N50 and N66 groups [4.16 ± 0.42 vs 1.00 ± 0.26 mV and 1.00 ± 0.27 mV, respectively (mean ± SD); P < 0.05]. In contrast, there was no significant difference in the latency of the MEP among the three groups of subjects (N0: 16.64 ± 0.72, N50: 16.78 ± 0.66, and N66: 16.82 ± 0.63 ms). Conclusion. The results suggest that N2O can suppress the absolute amplitude of the MEP in patients under propofol and fentanyl anesthesia. Although monitoring of MEP as a trend is feasible even if N2O is used, the use of N2O may be better avoided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Perioperative seizure control is correlated with a better surgical outcome for awake craniotomy, but some anticonvulsants can induce hyponatremia. Mannitol has also been reported to be hyponatremic.Case presentation: A 51-year-old right-handed man had malignant glioma in the left parietal lobe. Since anticonvulsant polytherapy did not stop his seizure activity, the daily dose of carbamazepine was increased beginning 17 days before awake craniotomy. The last preoperative blood examination indicated that his plasma sodium level had gradually decreased from 140 to 130 mEq/L. Following skin incision, 200 mL of 20% mannitol was administered and his plasma sodium level subsequently dropped to 117 mEq/L. The surgical strategy was changed so that the entire procedure would be performed under general anesthesia because severe intraoperative complications were anticipated.Conclusions: This case suggests that a perioperative electrolyte imbalance caused by drug interactions could be clinically significant for awake craniotomy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]