Cerebral arteriovenous oxygen content difference during barbiturate therapy in patients with acute brain damage.

This study evaluated the reliability of cerebral blood flow equivalent (CBFE), which was calculated as the reciprocal of cerebral arteriovenous oxygen content difference (C(av)DO2) as a monitor during barbiturate therapy in patients with cerebral ischemic insults. A barbiturate (thiamylal) was administered at a rate of 3 mg . kg-1 . hr-1 for 2-5 days to four patients who had suffered cardiac arrest, four with acute focal ischemia, two with postoperative brain edema after neurosurgery, and one with brain damage due to asphyxia. Four of the 11 patients completely recovered neurologically (recovery group), and others had neurological sequelae or died (nonrecovery group). The mean value of CBFE in the recovery group decreased significantly with barbiturate therapy to 13 +/- 1 ml blood/ml O2 from 39 +/- 3 ml blood/ml O2 but did not decrease in the nonrecovery group. We conclude that CBFE can be useful for monitoring the effect of barbiturate therapy in ischemic brain insults.