title: Feasibility and safety of delivering xenon to patients undergoing coronary artery bypass graft surgery while on cardiopulmonary bypass: phase I study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Postoperative neurocognitive deficit is prevalent after cardiac surgery. Xenon may prevent or ameliorate acute neuronal injury, but it also may aggravate injury during cardiac surgery by increasing bubble embolism. Before embarking on a randomized clinical trial to test the safety and efficacy of xenon for postoperative neurocognitive deficit, we undertook a phase I study to investigate the safety of administering xenon to patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting while on cardiopulmonary bypass and to assess the practicability of our xenon delivery system.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sixteen patients scheduled for coronary artery bypass grafting surgery with hypothermic cardiopulmonary bypass gave their informed consent to participate in an open-label dose-escalation study (0, 20, 35, 50% xenon in oxygen and air). Xenon was delivered throughout surgery using both a standard anesthetic breathing circuit and the oxygenator. Gaseous and blood xenon partial pressures were measured five times before, during, and after cardiopulmonary bypass. Middle cerebral artery Doppler was used to assess embolic load, and major organ system function was assessed before and after surgery.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Middle cerebral artery Doppler showed no evidence of increased emboli with xenon. Patients receiving xenon had no major organ dysfunction: Troponin I and S100beta levels tended to be lower in patients receiving xenon. Up to 25 l xenon was used per patient. Xenon partial pressure in the blood tracked the delivered concentration throughout.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Xenon was safely and efficiently delivered to coronary artery bypass grafting patients while on cardiopulmonary bypass. Prevention of nervous system injury by xenon should be tested in a large placebo-controlled, randomized clinical trial.
authors.affiliation: Hammersmith Hospitals Trust, London, UK.
authors.forename: Geoffrey G
authors.initials: GG
authors.lastname: Lockwood
authors.forename: Nicholas P
authors.initials: NP
authors.lastname: Franks
authors.forename: Neil A
authors.initials: NA
authors.lastname: Downie
authors.forename: Kenneth M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Taylor
authors.forename: Mervyn
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Maze
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D002315:Cardiopulmonary Bypass; D001026:Coronary Artery Bypass; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009414:Nerve Growth Factors / Q000097:blood; D064568:S100 Calcium Binding Protein beta Subunit; D009418:S100 Proteins / Q000097:blood; D019210:Troponin I / Q000097:blood; D014978:Xenon / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects*
chemical_list: D009414:Nerve Growth Factors; D064568:S100 Calcium Binding Protein beta Subunit; D009418:S100 Proteins; D019210:Troponin I; D014978:Xenon