Re: propofol infusion syndrome Originally Posted by gwenith
I have to say that I was not as aware of this but then Propofol is ONLY used for 24 - 48 hours here. It is never used for long term sedation and we tend to use lesser amounts. Cost of the drug is one reason why we have limited use but the other is we have a higher patient nurse ratio in Australia and that leads to lower sedation levels.
How does higher patient/nurse ratio reduce the need for sedation ?
We work one-to-one and use propofol for induction of anaesthesia and to control ICP, if we can reduce it or take it off we do. In critical head injuries (particularly in young people) it is not unusual to use propofol, midazolam, morphine, and a paralysing agent. We try to keep within the recommended 4mgs/kg/hr.
I'd be interested to know what other units use as an alternative outside of the usual opiates and benzodiazepines for unstable ICP.
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