Adequacy of Anaesthesia & Entropy Monitoring

Entropy measures the activity of the brain and has been shown to reflect the different phases of anaesthesia. The use of Entropy in adults has been found to reduce the use of certain hypnotic drugs, therefore, helping anaesthesiologists to tailor anaesthetic drugs for each patient, helping avoid unnecessarily deep states of hypnosis, including burst suppression that has been associated with increased risk of delirium.¹

With Entropy monitoring, it is possible to ensure faster emergence and recovery in the operating room. It is a tool for optimising the perioperative process and ensuring efficient patient flow.

NMT is the transfer of an impulse between a nerve and a muscle in the neuromuscular junction. NMT can be blocked by neuromuscular blocking agents—drugs which cause transient muscle relaxation and prevent the patient from moving and breathing spontaneously.

Post-operative residual curarization (PORC) incidence in PACU is estimated to be up to 45% after a single shot muscle relaxation.² Considering that about 230 million patients undergo a major surgery each year, about 100 patients per minute would suffer from discomfort, reduced ventilation capacity, double vision and a 4- to 5-times increased aspiration risk. Such residual effects have clinical consequences that can prolong hospitalization, particularly in vulnerable populations such as obese patients.

SPI is our proprietary parameter that reacts to haemodynamic responses caused by surgical stimuli and analgesic medications.³ By observing the SPI value and trend, clinicians can monitor real time adult patients’ responses to surgical stimuli and help optimise analgesia medications, saving valuable time and helping you optimise analgesia delivery.

Our algorithm uses two components of the photoplethysmographic signal when measured on GE HealthCare’s TruSignal™ SpO₂ finger sensors only. Published literature suggests that SPI-guided anaesthesia may result in lower remifentanil consumption, more stable haemodynamics and lower incidence of unwanted events.^4,5