Electroencephalogram spectral edge frequency, lower esophageal contractility, and autonomic responsiveness during general anesthesia.

Both the electroencephalogram (EEG) spectral edge frequency (SEF) and lower esophageal contractility (LEC) indices have been reported to be useful indicators of anesthetic depth. We designed a prospective study to evaluate the relationship between changes in these two variables and objective measurements of physiologic responsiveness to surgical stress (i.e., changes in hemodynamic variables and plasma levels of norepinephrine, epinephrine, total catecholamines, and vasopressin). Eighty-nine consenting adult males undergoing radical prostatectomy procedures under a standardized general anesthetic technique were studied according to a randomized, single-blinded protocol. General anesthesia was induced with 30 micrograms/kg intravenous (i.v.) alfentanil, 2.5 mg/kg i.v. thiopental, and 0.1 mg/kg i.v. vecuronium, and subsequently maintained with 0.5 microgram/kg/min alfentanil, nitrous oxide (N2O) 67% in oxygen, and 0.8 microgram/kg/min vecuronium. Following retropubic dissection, 81 patients (92%) manifested acute hypertensive responses, with mean arterial pressure increasing from 90 +/- 14 to 122 +/- 14 mm Hg (mean +/- SD). This acute hypertensive response was treated with one of three different treatment modalities (20 to 60 micrograms/kg i.v. alfentanil, 0.5 to 2.0% inspired isoflurane, or 0.05 to 0.15 mg/kg i.v. trimethaphan) to return the mean arterial pressure to within 10% of the preincisional (baseline) value within 5 to 10 minutes. Although the mean arterial pressure, heart rate, and plasma levels of catecholamines and vasopressin significantly increased following the surgical stimulus, and decreased after adjunctive therapy, the EEG-SEF and LEC index (LECI) values did not significantly change during these study intervals. Furthermore, using a logistic regression analysis, we observed that preincision EEG-SEF and LECI values could not predict whether patients would manifest a hypertensive response. Therefore, the EEG-SEF and LECI were unreliable indicators of anesthetic depth.