title: Ketamine for long-term sedation and analgesia of a burn patient.
abstract: We present a case in which ketamine was used for long-term sedation and analgesia of a burn patient. Under escalating opiate dosages, the patient had developed persistent ileus as well as abdominal distension that caused respiratory compromise, without receiving sufficient analgesia. The opiate-sparing effect of the continuous ketamine infusion was more than 90%. The ileus resolved within 24 h. The quality of sedation also changed favorably. There were no obvious adverse effects of ketamine.
authors.affiliation: *Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts; and †Department of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine, Tübingen University Hospital, Tübingen, Germany.
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Edrich
authors.forename: Andrew D
authors.initials: AD
authors.lastname: Friedrich
authors.forename: Holger K
authors.initials: HK
authors.lastname: Eltzschig
authors.forename: Thomas W
authors.initials: TW
authors.lastname: Felbinger
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000700:Analgesics / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D002056:Burns / Q000188:drug therapy*; D006801:Humans; D006993:Hypnotics and Sedatives / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D007649:Ketamine / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008297:Male
chemical_list: D000700:Analgesics; D006993:Hypnotics and Sedatives; D007649:Ketamine