Xenon anaesthesia for laparoscopic cholecystectomy in a patient with multiple chemical sensitivity

Xenon anaesthesia for laparoscopic cholecystectomy in a patient with multiple chemical sensitivity
http://bja.oxfordjournals.org/content/107/4/645.short?rss=1

C. Stoppe,
J. Cremer,
S. Rex,
G. Schälte,
A. V. Fahlenkamp,
R. Rossaint,
R. Rosch,
D. O. Bauerschlag and
M. Coburn*
+ Author Affiliations
Aachen, Germany
E-mail: mcoburn@ukaachen.de

"The management of general anaesthesia in patients suffering from multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS) poses a challenge. MCS was described first in the 1940s. 1 2 It occurs in response to diverse stimuli and emerges after exposure to usually harmless doses of environmental chemicals or medications. The pathophysiology of MCS is still only poorly understood. Hypotheses include triggers from unspecific allergic or toxic exposure and neurobiological sensitization. 3 4 Therefore, patients are exposed to a significant risk of adverse drug interactions while undergoing general anaesthesia. 5

The noble gas xenon offers many characteristics of an ideal anaesthetic including haemodynamic stability and rapid induction and emergence from anaesthesia, regardless of its duration. 6 7 Furthermore, as an inert gas, xenon is known to be independent of the patients' metabolism …"