ABSTRACT
Anesthetic complications include deleterious cardiovascular and respiratory effects, such as decreased cardiac output, hypercapnea, shunting and atelectasis due to peritoneal insufflation, and the extremes of patient positioning.1 Premedication, which includes the use of atropine, may alleviate these effects. The choice of anesthetic agent may differ in laparoscopic hernia surgery. For instance, nitrous oxide is avoided due to the increased incidence of bowel distention, which will obscure the view during laparoscopy. A balanced anesthetic technique using controlled ventilation with inhalation agents (sevoflurane, desflurane or isoflurane), intravenous opioids, and nondepolarizing muscle relaxants is preferred.2 Patient selection is important, and those patients at greater risk than usual for the above complications, such as premature infants or children with cardiopulmonary disease, should not be considered for laparoscopic herniorrhaphy.
