Background: Bungarus caeruleus (common krait) bite during monsoon season is common in northwest India. Respiratory failure is responsible for high mortality in the victims. In this study we report our experience with manual ventilation using bag valve mask (BVM) in patients with neuroparalysis due to common krait bite.  Methods:This prospective study was conducted between June 2009 and December...

The effects of the local anesthetic bupivacaine on the oxidative phosphorylation in rat liver mitochondria were examined. Bupivacaine caused a maximum of about 7-fold stimulation of state 4 respiration at about 3 mM, released oligomycin-inhibited state 3 respiration, and activated ATPase to a similar extent to that by the weakly acidic uncoupler SF 6847. These effects were greatly enhanced by t...

BACKGROUND Noninvasive positive pressure ventilation (NPPV) using a face mask is the ventilatory mode of choice in selected patients experiencing acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). A high incidence of intolerance limits the use of this approach. OBJECTIVE To evaluate the sequential use of mask and helmet during NPPV in patients with severe exacerbation of COPD...

In early spring, red wood ants Formica polyctena are often observed clustering on the nest surface in large numbers basking in the sun. It has been hypothesized that sun-basking behaviour may contribute to nest heating because of both heat carriage into the nest by sun-basking workers, and catabolic heat production from the mobilization of the workers' lipid reserves. We investigated sun-baskin...

Various forms of high-frequency ventilation (HFV) have been described. HFV is broadly defined as artificial ventilation of the lungs with sub-deadspace tidal volumes delivered using supra-physiological frequencies. HFV has been used in anaesthesia and intensive care for special procedures and conditions since the 1960s. Clinical interest in the use and the technical evolution of HFV has develop...

Cardiac index was measured using thoracic bioimpedance (CIbi) and thermodilution (CItd) in 19 patients with proven sepsis, undergoing artificial ventilation of the lungs. There was a poor correlation between the techniques (r = 0.36, 242 data sets, regression line CIbi = 0.16 CItd + 2.56 litre min-1 m-2). The overall bias (CItd-CIbi) was 1.69 litre min-1 m-2 with limits of agreement (precision)...

To compare the accuracy of clinical observation and detailed respiratory recordings in identifying infants at high risk of developing pneumothoraces 10 infants, with idiopathic respiratory distress syndrome, were studied at three different ventilator rates. All infants with synchronous respiration at fast rates were correctly identified by clinical observation. The clinical signs used to identi...

[1] Recent suggestions to reduce the accumulation of anthropogenic carbon dioxide in the atmosphere have included ocean fertilization by artificial upwelling. Our coupled carbon‐climate model simulations suggest that artificial upwelling may, under most optimistic assumptions, be able to sequester atmospheric CO2 at a rate of about 0.9 PgC/yr. However, the model predicts that about 80% of the c...