Portal de Periódicos da CAPES

Sevoflurane as a sole anaesthetic for thymectomy in myasthenia gravis

2000; Wiley; Volume: 44; Issue: 3 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1034/j.1399-6576.2000.440324.x

1399-6576

U Kiran, Mahbuba Choudhury, Nita Saxena, Priya Kapoor,

Pituitary Gland Disorders and Treatments

Myasthenia gravis is a challenging situation for anaesthesiologists due to its neuromuscular involvement. The main concerns are respiratory muscle weakness and side effects due to a heavy dose of anticholinesterases. This limits the use of sedatives, hypnotics and muscle relaxants. Inhalational anaesthetics are best suited. We describe our experience with sevoflurane as a sole anaesthetic in a child having juvenile-type myasthenia gravis with thymoma, who underwent thymectomy by midsternal incision. Very smooth and short duration of induction (35 s) and easy intubation within 60 s without use of muscle relaxant were the remarkable features. Sevoflurane in oxygen and nitrous oxide (MAC=0.5-0.7) was used for maintenance of anaesthesia. Recovery was smooth and fast with no residual respiratory insufficiency. Hence we found sevoflurane to be a highly suitable agent for thymectomy in mysthenia gravis.