The AnaConDa Brings Volatile Anesthetics to the ICU

Traditionally, if you need to sedate an intubated patient in the ICU, the go-to agents are midazolam or propofol. However, waking these patients up when trying to extubate can be a lengthy ordeal due to the long half-time and accumulation of these drugs. Volatile anesthetics like isofluorane or sevofluorane, usually used in the operating room, have a much quicker wake-up time, but the size and cost of an anesthesia machine make them impractical for use in the ICU.
Sedana Medical (Uppsala, Sweden) seems to have overcome this limitation with the introduction of the AnaConDa (Anesthetic Conserving Device). The device features a syringe pump that delivers Isofluorane or Sevofluorane to a small carbon-fiber device which goes in-line with a traditional ICU ventilator. In many ways, this can be considered a disposable anesthetic vaporizer.

This month’s Anesthesia & Analgesia features a study that validated this device in an ICU setting and found that it is quite accurate (end-tidal concentration was within 13% of target concentration). Advantages of this device, in addition to quick wake-ups, include lower cost of the equipment as compared to traditional vaporizers and an overall decreased consumption of anesthetic.
Abstract in A&A: The Accuracy of the Anesthetic Conserving Device (Anaconda) as an Alternative to the Classical Vaporizer in Anesthesia
Product page: The AnaConDa …