Mivacurium chloride (BW B1090U) is a new, short-acting non-depolarizing neuromuscular blocking agent. It is a synthetic bis-benzylisoquinolinium diester, which is hydrolysed rapidly by plasma cholinesterase. This study compares mivacurium, atracurium and vecuronium by continuous i.v. infusion. The duration of mivacurium infusion ranged from 29.5 to 286 min. The steady state infusion rates neces...

This study was undertaken to see if infants are more sensitive than children to a combination of atracurium and vecuronium in an equipotent dose ratio: (microgram: microgram) 5:1 in infants and 4:1 in children. We studied 15 infants (1-11 months old) and 15 children (3-10 yr old) during nitrous oxide-oxygen-alfentanil anaesthesia. Neuromuscular function was recorded by adductor pollicis EMG. An...

The doses of atracurium (by infusion) required to maintain steady-state (90-95%) neuromuscular block were assessed in 75 children aged 9 days to 17 yr during balanced anaesthesia. Following the intubating dose of atracurium 0.4 mg kg-1 and after the recovery of single twitch to 5-10% of control (monitored by evoked EMG of hypothenar muscle), an infusion of atracurium 0.5 mg kg-1 h-1 was started...

Vecuronium (initial dose 0.1 mg kg-1; incremental doses 0.04 mg kg-1) was given to 21 normal and 21 anephric patients. There were no gross differences between the two groups in the effect or in the duration of action of either initial or incremental doses, except in two anephric patients who were resistant to the agent. Reversal with neostigmine was satisfactory. In normal patients the initial ...

train-of-four on a peripheral nerve stimulator and sustained head lifting. General anaesthesia for ECT has three main functions: lack of awareness of the therapy; modification of the motor effects of the fit to prevent injury; fast recovery of reflexes and consciousness enabling early airway protection. Suxamethonium is the best neuromuscular blocking drug for ECT, because of its short duration...

For atracurium, as for other neuromuscular blocking agents, the determination of potency in children has been assessed using the evoked response of the adductor muscle of the thumb. This response has been evaluated either by an electromyogram (EMG) or by a recording of the force of contraction through a force displacement transducer. The method of stimulation was either the train-of-four (2 Hz,...

OBJECTIVES To assess the effectiveness of low doses of neostigmine in the reversion of residual non-polarising neuromuscular blockade (RNMB). MATERIAL AND METHODS The work involved one hundred and nineteen adult patients, ASA I-III, anaesthetised with fentanyl, thiopental, O2-N2O-isoflurane and atracurium (n=62) or vecuronium (n=57). RNMB was monitored with continuous electromyography of addu...

BACKGROUND Corticosteroids interact with neuromuscular blocking agents. However, experimental data are contradictory: enhancement and attenuation of the neuromuscular block has been observed. This study tested the influence of long-term medication with prednisolone on atracurium-induced neuromuscular block. METHODS Sixty patients with chronic inflammatory bowel disease undergoing elective abd...

trachea [2]. For this reason, fibreoptic endotracheal intubation is advisable. Ljunghall and colleagues showed that patients with HPT who were apparently asymptomatic preoperatively did not have defects of their neuromuscular transmission that were of clinical significance [5]. In asymptomatic pHPT neither consistent abnormality of neuromuscular transmission nor abnormal muscle structure was fo...

Atracurium besylate, 2,2'-(3,11-dioxo-4,10-dioxatridecylene)-bis-[6,7-dimethoxy-1-(3,4-dimethoxy-benzyl)-2-methyl-1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinolinium] dibenzenesulphonate, is one of a new series of competitive neuromuscular blocking agents. An i.v. dose of 0.25 mg kg-1 produced complete paralysis in anaesthetized cats, dogs and rhesus monkeys; paralysis was of medium duration and was readily antag...