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TECHNOLOGY, COMPUTING, AND SIMULATION

AnaConDa® Reflection Filter: Bench and Patient Evaluation of Safety and Volatile Anesthetic Conservation

From the Anesthesia and Intensive Care Unit, Angers Teaching Hospital, Angers, France.

BACKGROUND: The AnaConDa® filter permits administration of volatile anesthetic without the use of an anesthesia machine. It is intended for use in the intensive care unit.

METHODS: We studied the AnaConDa® reflection filter on the bench and in anesthetized patients. The bench analysis used a test lung, a gas analyzer, an intensive care ventilator, the AnaConDa® filter, and a syringe pump. We studied a range of tidal volume, respiratory rate, and positive end-expiratory pressure values. We simulated errors during syringe refilling and patient transportation. In 15 anesthetized patients, we used the AnaConDa® with constant ventilation variables, a constant sevoflurane infusion rate (4–5 mL/h), and two consecutive fresh gas flow levels.

RESULTS: In the bench study, the expired volatile anesthetic fraction decreased linearly with respiratory frequency at constant minute ventilation, and decreased markedly in a hyperbolical manner when tidal volume increased at a constant respiratory rate. Changing the positive end-expiratory pressure level and inspiration/expiration ratio did not modify the AnaConDa®’s performance. Several safety failures were observed: refilling caused a transient change in AnaConDa® output because of a pumping effect, and a standard Luer lock made it possible to connect the halogenate syringe on an IV infusion line. In anesthetized patients, reducing fresh gas flow from 8 to 1 L/min led to a median 40% increase in the expired volatile anesthetic fraction.

CONCLUSIONS: This study shows that the device is generally reliable, but that there are several conditions under which it might deliver more anesthetic than intended.

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