[Neuroleptanesthesia for a patient with mitochondrial encephalomyopathy]

This report describes a patient with mitochondrial encephalomyopathy who underwent an ophthalmic surgery under original neuroleptanesthesia. This 28-year-old female patient had been suffering from bilateral external ophthalmoplegia and blepharoptosis. Her preoperative neurological examination revealed a mitochondrial encephalomyopathy. Biopsy and blepharo-elevation for her left eyelid were scheduled. Anesthesia was induced with thiopental 5 mg.kg-1 and vecuronium 0.07 mg.kg-1, and maintained with total doses of 10 mg of droperidol, 400 micrograms of fentanyl and 4 mg of vecuronium. The patient recovered from anesthesia smoothly and her postoperative course was uneventful. Anesthetic management of patients with this disease and possible complications were discussed.