Intravenous anesthetics exert a component of their actions via potentiating inhibitory neurotransmission mediated by γ-aminobutyric type-A receptors (GABAARs). Phasic and tonic inhibition is mediated by distinct populations of GABAARs, with the majority of phasic inhibition by subtypes composed of α1-3βγ2 subunits, whereas tonic inhibition is dependent on subtypes assembled from α4-6βδ subunits...

We tested the hypothesis that the solvent for etomidate was a factor in the incidence of pain and other side effects after injection, and that these were associated with histamine release. Nine of 10 volunteers who received etomidate in a propylene glycol formulation reported moderate to severe pain on injection; only one of 10 subjects who received a lipid emulsion formulation reported mild pa...

Volatile anesthetics have been shown to activate various two-pore (2P) domain K(+) (K(2P)) channels such as TASK-1 and TREK-1 (TWIK-related acid-sensitive K(+) channel), and mice deficient in these channels are resistant to halothane-induced anesthesia. Here, we investigated whether K(2P) channels were also potentially important targets of intravenous anesthetics. Whole cell patch-clamp techniq...

INTRODUCTION Anesthesia induction is often accompanied by a period of hemodynamic instability, which could be a significant problem in patients with compromised ventricular function. The aim of this study is to compare the hemodynamic responses to etomidate versus a combination of ketamine and propofol (ketofol) for anesthetic induction in patients with left ventricular dysfunction undergoing c...

The effects of methohexitone, Althesin, ketamine and etomidate on single fibre discharge of cardiac vagal efferents and on heart rate were studied in cats. Cardiac vagal efferents were inhibited markedly and regularly for equihypnotic doses of methohexitone (2.0 mg kg-1), Althesin (0.1 ml kg-1) and ketamine (5.0 mg kg-1), but not of etomidate (0.8 mg kg-1). These inhibitory effects were indepen...

Sedo-Analgesia in Neurologically Ill Patients: Guidelines Revisited To the Editor: We read with great interest the recent guidelines for the management of spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage in adults developed by Broderick et al.1 First of all we want to congratulate the authors for their excellent review about the appropriate management of these neurologically ill patients, but we would like...

In this study, we tried to find a safe as well as fast effective treatment for sedation and analgesia for intrathecal injection in childhood leukemia patients, relieving treatment difficulties and pain, increasing the success rate of single intrathecal injection.The patients were divided into the experimental group (fentanyl combined with etomidate) and the control group (lidocaine only) random...

The influence of aging on the pharmacodynamics of anaesthetic agents in the central nervous system remains poorly understood. As alpha-aminobutyric acid (GABA)-mediated neurotransmission appears to be an important target for anaesthetics in the brain, we hypothesized that aging could alter the sensitivity of the GABA carrier to anaesthetics. We have examined the effects of etomidate and propofo...

Ten patients with intracranial lesions, anaesthetized with thiopentone and nitrous oxide (70%) in oxygen (30%) received etomidate 0.2 mg kg-1 i.v. Ventilation was controlled in each patient. Intracranial pressure (i.c.p.) and mean arterial pressure (m.a.p.) were recorded. I.c.p. decreased significantly in all patients (0.01 greater than P greater than 0.001). Although PaCO2 decreased during the...