[Clinical evaluation of prostaglandin E1 during anesthesia in non-elderly and elderly patients]

The effects of prostaglandin E1 (PGE1) on blood pressure during anesthesia and the postoperative changes in organ functions were examined and compared in 358 cases. Two hundred and eighty patients were under 64 years of age and 128 patients were over 65 years. It was possible to control blood pressure satisfactorily with PGE1 in both non-elderly and elderly groups. However in the elderly group, it was more difficult to control blood pressure with PGE1 under NLA as compared with enflurane anesthesia. In both groups, urinary flow increased during and after the administration of PGE1, and the livers and kidneys showed neither dysfunction nor deterioration after operation. We had very few incidences of side effects with this drug. PGE1 is also considered safe and useful for elderly people during and after surgery.