Remifentanil Propofol Infusion in Pediatric Spinal Surgery

Study Summary

Total intravenous anesthesia(TIVA) is a commonly used anesthetic technique. Although TIVA can be accomplished with a variety of drug combinations, infusions of Propofol and Remifentanil are often used with dosage adjusted manually by the anesthesia provider.The pharmacokinetics of these drugs are well understood, and that knowledge has led to the development of computer controlled infusion pumps that can administer the drugs based upon pharmacokinetic models. Computer controlled infusion schemes automatically adjust the drug administration based upon pharmacokinetic models which typically dictate a tapering infusion scheme. When one considers the dosage of a computer controlled infusion it is obvious that manually imitating a similar scheme may be difficult.This study will evaluate manually controlled infusion schemes using the models built into the Applied Medical Visualizations (Medvis) display and compare the manual dosage schemes to the predicted effect site concentrations and pharmacodynamic effect.