Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med., Vol 150, No. 5, 11 1994, 1441-1443.
Prolonged weakness after the withdrawal of atracurium [published erratum appears in Am J Respir Crit Care Med 1995 Feb;151(2 Pt 1):578]
CA Manthous and W Chatila
Bridgeport Hospital, CT 06610.
Prolonged weakness after the use of neuromuscular blocking agents is an
increasingly recognized iatrogenic complication of critical care.
Vecuronium and pancuronium have been associated with this syndrome, but few
cases of atracurium-associated prolonged paresis have heretofore been
reported. Many practitioners have thus chosen to use atracurium instead of
longer-acting neuromuscular blockers when muscle relaxation is required in
the supportive management of critically ill patients. We here report a case
of prolonged paresis after the administration of atracurium.
