Malignant hyperthermia manifests as a rapid and sustained rise in temperature in response to pharmacological triggering agents, e.g. inhalational anesthetics and the muscle relaxant suxamethonium. Other clinical signs include an increase in end-tidal CO2, increased O2 consumption, as well as tachycardia, and if untreated a malignant hyperthermia episode can result in death. The metabolic change...

It is 30 yr since the British Journal of Anaesthesia published the first consensus protocol for the laboratory diagnosis of malignant hyperthermia susceptibility from the European Malignant Hyperthermia Group. This has subsequently been used in more than 10 000 individuals worldwide to inform use of anaesthetic drugs in these patients with increased risk of developing malignant hyperthermia dur...

Letter to the Editor concerns the question of a discussion of awake porcine malignant hyperthermia that erroneously omits the awake human stress reaction of malignant hyperthermia.

Malignant hyperthermia is a rare anesthetic-related disorder. We present a case with unusual presentation. A boy aged 3 years and 9 months who was scheduled for Hotz's operation presented normally before the operation. Anesthesia was induced by atropine, thiopental and sevoflurane. Trachea intubation was facilitated by succinylcholine. Jaw stiffness was first noted although trachea was intubate...

A 22-year-old man with schizophrenia presented with cervical spine damage caused by a crush injury. Upon admission, we performed anterior cervical decompression and fusion of vertebrae C5, C6, and C7. The patient experienced treatment-resistant hyperthermia with a body temperature >40°C. He did not show any evidence of drug use that might induce malignant hyperthermia. He also did not exhibit s...