» Articles » PMID: 29946498

Rapid Sequence Intubation in Traumatic Brain-injured Adults

Overview
Journal Cureus
Date 2018 Jun 28
PMID 29946498
Citations 6
Authors
Affiliations
Soon will be listed here.
Abstract

Deciding on proper medication administration for the traumatic brain injury (TBI) patient undergoing intubation can be daunting and confusing. Pretreatment with lidocaine and/or vecuronium is no longer recommended; however, high-dose fentanyl can be utilized to help blunt the sympathetic stimulation of intubation. Induction with etomidate is recommended; however, ketamine can be considered in the proper patient population, such as those with hypotension. Paralysis can be performed with either succinylcholine or rocuronium, with the caveat that rocuronium can lead to delays in proper neurological examinations due to prolonged paralysis. Recommendations for post-intubation continuous sedation medications include a combination propofol and fentanyl in the normotensive/hypertensive patient population. A combination midazolam and fentanyl or ketamine alone can be considered in the hypotensive patient.

Citing Articles

The diverse effects of ketamine, jack-of-all-trades: a narrative review.

Richards N, Howell S, Bellamy M, Beck J Br J Anaesth. 2025; 134(3):649-661.

PMID: 39753406 PMC: 11867090. DOI: 10.1016/j.bja.2024.11.018.


Diagnosis and management of elevated intracranial pressure in the emergency department.

Patel S, Maria-Rios J, Parikh A, Okorie O Int J Emerg Med. 2023; 16(1):72.

PMID: 37833652 PMC: 10571389. DOI: 10.1186/s12245-023-00540-x.


Effects of intubation technique on intracranial pressure: a cadaveric study.

McCormack E, Aysenne A, Cardona J, Chaiyamoon A, Bui C, Dumont A Neurosurg Rev. 2023; 46(1):88.

PMID: 37067697 DOI: 10.1007/s10143-023-01996-4.


Exogenous Ketones and Lactate as a Potential Therapeutic Intervention for Brain Injury and Neurodegenerative Conditions.

Omori N, Woo G, Mansor L Front Hum Neurosci. 2022; 16:846183.

PMID: 36267349 PMC: 9577611. DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2022.846183.


Posttraumatic midazolam administration does not influence brain damage after experimental traumatic brain injury.

Sebastiani A, Bender S, Schafer M, Thal S BMC Anesthesiol. 2022; 22(1):60.

PMID: 35246037 PMC: 8896377. DOI: 10.1186/s12871-022-01592-x.


References
1.
Kawaguchi M, Furuya H, Patel P . Neuroprotective effects of anesthetic agents. J Anesth. 2005; 19(2):150-6. DOI: 10.1007/s00540-005-0305-5. View

2.
Rudy E, Turner B, Baun M, Stone K, Brucia J . Endotracheal suctioning in adults with head injury. Heart Lung. 1991; 20(6):667-74. View

3.
Patanwala A, Erstad B, Roe D, Sakles J . Succinylcholine Is Associated with Increased Mortality When Used for Rapid Sequence Intubation of Severely Brain Injured Patients in the Emergency Department. Pharmacotherapy. 2016; 36(1):57-63. DOI: 10.1002/phar.1683. View

4.
Sperry R, Bailey P, Reichman M, Peterson J, Petersen P, Pace N . Fentanyl and sufentanil increase intracranial pressure in head trauma patients. Anesthesiology. 1992; 77(3):416-20. DOI: 10.1097/00000542-199209000-00002. View

5.
Lin C, Chen K, Shih C, Seak C, Hsu K . The prognostic factors of hypotension after rapid sequence intubation. Am J Emerg Med. 2008; 26(8):845-51. DOI: 10.1016/j.ajem.2007.11.027. View