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Inaugural Byron Kakulas medal awarded to Perioperative Medicine Team

A research team dedicated to making anaesthesia and surgery safer and more comfortable for babies and children has been awarded an inaugural Byron Kakulas Medal by WA’s Perron Institute.

Funding boost to help turn research into practical change

Research projects sharing in a $2.1 million funding boost will seek to translate research findings into changes that benefit patients and help the health system run more efficiently.

Efficacy of a hybrid technique of simultaneous videolaryngoscopy with flexible bronchoscopy in children with difficult direct laryngoscopy in the Pediatric Difficult Intubation Registry

Children with difficult tracheal intubation are at increased risk of severe complications, including hypoxaemia and cardiac arrest. Increasing experience with the simultaneous use of videolaryngoscopy and flexible bronchoscopy (hybrid) in adults led us to hypothesise that this hybrid technique could be used safely and effectively in children under general anaesthesia.

Feasibility of upper airway collapsibility measurements in anesthetized children

Patients with a propensity for upper airway obstruction, including those with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), are vulnerable in the perioperative period. OSA is an increasingly common disorder in children and, when present, is associated with an increased risk of perioperative respiratory adverse events (PRAE),1 morbidity, and mortality. Therefore, identifying at-risk patients is vital to provide tailored perioperative anesthetic management.

Beta Agonists for Prevention of Respiratory Adverse Events in Children Undergoing Adenotonsillectomy: Long-Acting, Short Acting, or Not Acting

Adenotonsillectomy is one of the most common surgical interventions in children, and while generally safe, it is associated with a risk of significant adverse events. In this issue, Kim et al report a prospective randomized controlled study comparing preoperative use of a tulobuterol (longacting beta agonist) dermal patch with placebo on the incidence of perioperative respiratory adverse events (PRAEs) in children undergoing adenotonsillectomy.

The effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on paediatric anaesthesia research as evidenced by the contrasting recruitment experiences of centres in Australia and Scotland

Britta Regli-von Ungern-Sternberg AM FAHMS MD, PhD, DEAA, FANZA Chair of Paediatric anaesthesia, University of Western Australia; Consultant

A review of pediatric fasting guidelines and strategies to help children manage preoperative fasting

Fasting for surgery is a routine step in the preoperative preparation for surgery. There have however been increasing concerns with regard to the high incidence of prolonged fasting in children, and the subsequent psycho-social distress and physiological consequences that this poses.

Propofol, Anesthesia, and Neurocognitive Outcomes in Patients with Pediatric Leukemia: Are We Missing the Forest for the Trees?

Britta Regli-von Ungern-Sternberg AM FAHMS MD, PhD, DEAA, FANZA Chair of Paediatric anaesthesia, University of Western Australia; Consultant

Preoperative preparation of children with upper respiratory tract infection: a focussed narrative review

This review summarises the current evidence for the perioperative preparation in children with upper respiratory tract infections (URTI), including COVID-19 infection. URTI, including COVID-19 infection, are common and frequent in children who present for elective surgery. Children with URTI are at increased risk of perioperative respiratory adverse events.

Predicting obstructive sleep apnoea and perioperative respiratory adverse events in children: role of upper airway collapsibility measurements

Obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) and perioperative respiratory adverse events are significant risks for anaesthesia in children undergoing adenotonsillectomy. Upper airway collapse is a crucial feature of OSA that contributes to respiratory adverse events. A measure of upper airway collapsibility to identify undiagnosed OSA can help guide perioperative management. We investigated the utility of pharyngeal closing pressure for predicting OSA and respiratory adverse events.