This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a colleague Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in Web of Science Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Request Permissions Citing Articles Citing Articles via Web of Science (6) Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Dawidowicz, A. L. Articles by Fijalkowska, A. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Dawidowicz, A. L. Articles by Fijalkowska, A. Related Collections Neuroanesthesia Pharmacology

---

ANESTHETIC PHARMACOLOGY

Changes of Propofol Concentration in Cerebrospinal Fluid During Continuous Infusion

Andrzej L. Dawidowicz, PhD^*, Rafal Kalityski, MSc^*, Andrzej Nestorowicz, MD PhD, and Anna Fijalkowska, MD PhD

*Department of Chemical Physics and Physicochemical Separation Methods, Maria Curie-Sklodowska University; and Department of Anesthesiology and Intensive Therapy, University School of Medicine, Lublin, Poland

Address correspondence and reprint requests to Andrzej L. Dawidowicz, PhD, Department of Chemical Physics and Physicochemical Separation Methods, Faculty of Chemistry, Maria Curie-Sklodowska University, PL 20-031 Lublin, pl. Marii Curie-Sklodowskiej 3, Poland. Address e-mail to dawid{at}hermes umcs.lublin.pl.

We studied the changes in the propofol concentration in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in 14 patients, undergoing elective intracranial procedures, who were anesthetized with propofol administered by target-controlled infusion. During anesthesia, fentanyl and cisatracurium were administered as required. After intubation of the trachea, the lungs of the patients were ventilated to normocapnia with an oxygen-air mixture (FIO₂ = 0.33). Arterial blood and CSF samples (from an intraventricular drain) were collected between 90–180 min after the induction of anesthesia. Blood propofol concentrations were stable, between 5.0 ± 1.89 and 4.5 ± 1.7 µg/mL (mean ± SD). There was a significant decrease in the CSF propofol concentration, from 52.2 ± 35.01 ng/mL at 90 min to 28.6 ± 21.9 ng/mL at 150 min (P < 0.05). The CSF propofol concentration at 180 min (21.4 ± 14.0 ng/mL) was not significantly different from the concentration at 150 min. Some possible reasons for this decrease after commencing continuous intraventricular drainage are discussed.

IMPLICATIONS: Propofol concentrations in the cerebrospinal fluid in neurosurgical patients Propofol concentration in cerebrospinal fluid of investigated patients decreased significantly after starting intraventricular drainage, despite relatively steady blood propofol concentrations. These results supplement the limited information about propofol pharmacokinetics in the human central nervous system.