Background and Purpose— Early goal-directed hemodynamic therapy is of particular importance for adequate cerebral circulation of patients with vasospasm after subarachnoid hemorrhage but is often precluded by the invasiveness of established cardiac output determination using a pulmonary artery catheter. This study was undertaken to validate the usefulness of less invasive goal-directed hemodynamic monitoring by transpulmonary thermodilution technique in patients after subarachnoid hemorrhage. Methods— One hundred sixteen patients with subarachnoid hemorrhage who underwent surgical clipping within 24 hours of ictus were investigated. Validation of transpulmonary thermodilution-derived intermittent/continuous cardiac output and cardiac preload (global end diastolic volume) were compared with pulmonary artery catheter-derived reference cardiac output and pulmonary capillary wedge pressure or central venous pressure in 16 patients diagnosed with vasospasm. In a subsequent trial of 100 consecutive cases, clinical results between the new and standard management paradigms were compared. Results— Transpulmonary thermodilution-derived intermittent cardiac output and transpulmonary thermodilution-derived continuous cardiac output showed close agreement to catheter-derived reference cardiac output with high correlation ( r =0.85 and 0.77) and low percentage error (13.5% and 18.0%). Fluid responsiveness to defined volume loading was predicted better with global end diastolic volume than with pulmonary capillary wedge pressure and central venous pressure for larger receiver operating characteristic curve area. Patients receiving early goal-directed management by transpulmonary thermodilution experienced reduced frequencies of vasospasm and cardiopulmonary complications compared with those managed with standard therapy ( P <0.05), whereas their functional outcomes at 3 months were not different ( P =0.06). Conclusions— Goal-directed hemodynamic management guided by transpulmonary thermodilution appears to have a therapeutic advantage for optimizing the prognosis of patients with subarachnoid hemorrhage with vasospasm over conventional methods.

Background and Purpose— Optimal monitoring of cardiac output and intravascular volume is of paramount importance for good fluid management of patients with subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). The aim of this study was to demonstrate the feasibility of advanced hemodynamic monitoring with transpulmonary thermodilution and to provide descriptive data early after SAH. Methods— Forty-six patients with SAH treated within 24 hours of the ictus were investigated. Specific targets for cardiac index (≥3.0 L · min ⁻¹ · m ⁻² ), global end-diastolic volume index (700 to 900 mL/m ² ), and extravascular lung water index (≤14 mL/kg) were established by the single-indicator transpulmonary thermodilution technique, and a fluid management protocol emphasizing supplemental colloid administration was used to attain these targets. Plasma hormones related to stress and fluid regulation were also measured. Results— A higher cardiac index (mean value of 5.3 L · min ⁻¹ · m ⁻² ) and a lower global end-diastolic volume index (555 mL/m ² ) were observed on initial measurement, for which elevations of plasma adrenaline, noradrenaline, and cortisol were also detected. Cardiac index was progressively decreased (3.5 L · min ⁻¹ · m ⁻² ) and global end-diastolic volume index was normalized by fluid administration aimed at normovolemia. The extent of the initial hemodynamic and hormonal profile was greater in patients with a poor clinical status ( P <0.05). The extravascular lung water index was mildly elevated but within the target range throughout the study period. No patients developed pulmonary edema or congestive heart failure. Conclusions— The impact of sympathetic hyperactivity after SAH predisposes patients to a hyperdynamic and hypovolemic state, especially in those whose clinical status is poor. Bedside monitoring with the transpulmonary thermodilution system may be a powerful tool for the systemic management of such patients.

Recently, type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) has been reported to be strongly associated with Alzheimer’s disease (AD). This is partly due to insulin resistance in the brain. Insulin signaling and the number of insulin receptors may decline in the brain of T2DM patients, resulting in impaired synaptic formation, neuronal plasticity, and mitochondrial metabolism. In AD patients, hypometabolism of glucose in the brain is observed before the onset of symptoms. Amyloid-β accumulation, a main pathology of AD, also relates to impaired insulin action and glucose metabolism, although ketone metabolism is not affected. Therefore, the shift from glucose metabolism to ketone metabolism may be a reasonable pathway for neuronal protection. To promote ketone metabolism, medium-chain triglyceride (MCT) oil and a ketogenic diet could be introduced as an alternative source of energy in the brain of AD patients.

Objective—To evaluate dose-sparing effects of medetomidine-midazolam (MM), acepromazinebutorphanol (AB), and midazolam-butorphanol (MB) on the induction dose of thiopental and propofol and to examine cardiopulmonary changes in dogs. Animals—23 healthy Beagles. Procedure—Dogs were administered MM, AB, MB, or physiologic saline (0.9% NaCl) solution (PS) IM, and anesthesia was induced with thiopental or propofol. Cardiopulmonary measurements were obtained before and after administration of medication and 0, 5, 10, and 15 minutes after endotracheal intubation. Results—Induction doses were reduced significantly by preanesthetic administration of MM, AB, and MB (thiopental, 20, 45, and 46% after administration of PS; propofol, 42, 58, and 74% after administration of PS, respectively). Recovery time in dogs administered MM-thiopental or MM-propofol and AB-propofol were significantly prolonged, compared with recovery time in dogs administered PS-thiopental or PS-propofol. Relatively large cardiovascular changes were induced by administration of MM, which were sustained even after the induction of anesthesia. Administration of AB and MB induced cardiovascular changes during and immediately after endotracheal intubation that were significantly decreased by induction with thiopental or propofol. However, mild hypotension developed with AB-propofol. Apnea was observed in dogs administered MM during induction of anesthesia, but most respiratory variables did not change significantly. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance—Preanesthetic medication with MM greatly reduced the anesthesia induction dose of thiopental and propofol but caused noticeable cardiopulmonary changes. Preanesthetic medication with AB and MB moderately reduced the induction dose of thiopental and propofol and ameliorated cardiovascular changes induced by these anesthetics, although AB caused mild hypotension. (Am J Vet Res 2002;63:1671–1679)

Early hemodynamic assessment is of particular importance for adequate cerebral circulation in patients with aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH), but is often precluded by the invasiveness and complexity of the established cardiac output determination techniques. We examined the utility of an uncalibrated arterial pressure-based cardiac output monitor (FloTrac) for intraoperative and postoperative hemodynamic management after SAH. In 16 SAH patients undergoing surgical clipping, arterial pulse contour cardiac index, and stroke volume variation (SVV) were analyzed via the radial FloTrac system. The hemodynamic values after induction of anesthesia until 12 hours after surgery were compared with reference transpulmonary thermodilution cardiac index (TPCI), calibrated pulse contour CI, and global end-diastolic volume index determined by the PiCCO system and central venous pressure. Arterial pulse contour cardiac index underestimated CI as overall bias+/-SD of 0.57+/-0.44 L/min/m2 and 0.54+/-0.46 L/min/m2 compared with TPCI and calibrated pulse contour CI, resulting in a percentage error of 24.8% and 26.6%, respectively. Subgroup analysis revealed a percentage error of 29.3% for values obtained intraoperatively and 20.4% for values measured under spontaneously breathing after tracheal extubation. Better prediction of cardiac responsiveness to defined volume loading for increasing stroke volume index >10% was observed for SVV under mechanical ventilation with greater area under the receiver operating characteristics curve than that for global end-diastolic volume index or central venous pressure. These data suggest that the FloTrac underestimates the reference CI, and is not as reliable as transpulmonary thermodilution for perioperative hemodynamic monitoring after SAH. SVV is considered to be an acceptable preload indicator under mechanical ventilation.