Ahmed Mukhtar

Tuberculosis (TB) is one of the top ten causes of death worldwide. In 2016, there were 490,000 cases of multi-drug resistant TB globally. Over 2 billion people have asymptomatic latent Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection. TB represents an important, but neglected management issue in patients presenting to intensive care units. Tuberculosis in intensive care settings may present as the primary diagnosis (active drug sensitive or resistant TB disease). In other patients TB may be an incidental co-morbid finding as previously undiagnosed sub-clinical or latent TB which may re-activate under conditions of stress and immunosuppression. In Sub-Saharan Africa, where co-infection with the human immunodeficiency virus and other communicable diseases is highly prevalent, TB is one of the most frequent clinical management issues in all healthcare settings. Acute respiratory failure, septic shock and multi-organ dysfunction are the most common reasons for intensive care unit admission of patients with pulmonary or extrapulmonary TB. Poor absorption of anti-TB drugs occurs in critically ill patients and worsens survival. The mortality of patients requiring intensive care is high. The majority of early TB deaths result from acute cardiorespiratory failure or septic shock. Important clinical presentations, management and infection control issues regarding TB in intensive care settings are reviewed.

We review contemporary coagulation management for patients undergoing liver transplantation. A better understanding of the complex physiologic changes that occur in patients with end-stage liver disease has resulted in significant advances in anesthetic and coagulation management. A group of internationally recognized experts have critically evaluated current approaches for coagulopathy detection and management. Strategies for blood component and factor replacement have been evaluated and recommended therapies proposed. Pharmacologic treatment and prevention of coagulopathy, management of patients receiving antiplatelet medications, and the role of transesophageal echocardiography for early detection and management of thromboses are presented.

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This randomised, controlled, double-blind study investigated the effects of intra-operative magnesium sulphate
administration on the incidence of emergence agitation in children undergoing adenotonsillectomy using sevoflurane anaesthesia. Seventy children were randomly allocated to receive a 30 mg.kg
1 bolus of intravenous magnesium sulphate after induction of anaesthesia followed by a continuous infusion of 10 mg.kg
1.h
1 or an equal volume of saline 0.9%. All children received titrated sevoflurane anaesthesia adjusted to maintain haemodynamic stability. The Pediatric Anesthesia Emergence Delirium scale and the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario Score were used for the assessment of postoperative emergence agitation and pain, respectively. Emergence agitation was more common in the control group than in the magnesium group (23 (72%) and 12 (36%), respectively (p = 0.004)), with a relative risk of 0.51 (95% CI 0.31–0.84), an absolute risk reduction of 0.35 (95% CI 0.10–0.54), and
number needed to treat of 3 (95% CI 2–9). Postoperative pain scores were comparable in the two groups. Magnesium sulphate reduces the incidence and severity of emergence agitation in children undergoing adenotonsillectomy using sevoflurane anaesthesia and is not associated with increased postoperative side-effects or delayed
recovery.