A consideration of general anesthesia with a presentation of instruments / by Frederic Griffith.

  • Griffith, Frederic.
Date:
[1903]
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: A consideration of general anesthesia with a presentation of instruments / by Frederic Griffith. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The Royal College of Surgeons of England. The original may be consulted at The Royal College of Surgeons of England.

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    importance than the operation, and the operator should at all times keep the anesthetist informed as to the prog- ress of the surgical work. The anesthetist bearing in mind that he could kill any patient with his inhaler, should seek to balance so wisely the depth of anesthesia to the operation as to imitate sleep and not death. Methods.—(General anesthesia.) Have the patient’s bowels thoroughly flushed during the previous 24 hours with calomel, 16 mg. (£ gr.), every 30 minutes until .13 gm. (2 grs.) are given. Follow with Epsom salts, 30 gms. (1 oz.), in divided dose, or castor-oil, 15 cc. to 30 cc. oz. to 1 oz). Administer a hot soapsuds enema the morning of the operation, if needed ; empty the bladder, allow no food within 6 hours before operation. Exam- ine the heart, lungs and urine. Remove all superfluous garments and attire the patient in clothes to be worn subsequently. Carefully conserve body heat by blanket- ing, avoiding at all times unnecessary skin exposure. Remove anything loose from the mouth, taking note of dental work. Place the patient in a recumbent position, with the head level or a little below the body, turned away from the direction of the operator. If a woman, remove hairpins, plait hair, and have it well wrapped up in a towel (this lessens postoperative nausea). Protect patient’s eyes with a towel, the skin of the mouth, nose and cheeks, with, vaselin. Instruct the patient calmly to listen for your voice and to keep the hands tightly clasped ; the tighter the better and the quicker will sleep be produced (Bodine). Allow no other voices or noise. The implements, beside the inhalers, which are requisite, are a wooden screw, gag, tongue-forceps, a curved needle threaded with silk for tongue suture, swabs fastened to sticks or forceps, sterile hypodermic syringe and needle. The drugs needed are tincture iodin (renders site of puncture sterile); strychnia, 2 mg. to 5 mg. (^ gr. to ^ gr.); atropin sulfate, .4 mg. to .6 mg. gr. to ^ gr.); whisky. In the event of an emergency, loosen the clothes about waist and neck, removing corsets if a woman. Use lavage if undigested food rises. Empty the bladder (catheter), and rectum (enema). Examine heart, lungs, urine. Watch in all cases the patient’s face, the respira- tory movements and pulse (radial preferable, though a single-eared stethoscope attached over the precordial region gives constant information while allowing the
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