Safety of general anesthesia in patients previously tested negative for malignant hyperthermia susceptibility

Abstract

Anesthetic management and outcome were examined in patients with negative in vitro contracture tests for malignant hyperthermia (MH). Contracture testing was performed in a standardized fashion using 3% halothane alone and incremental doses of caffeine alone. Medical records were examined for 54 anesthetic exposures in 42 MH(-) patients who had received anesthesia since their MH testing. Sixteen patients received anesthesia with known MH triggering agents on 23 occasions, all without incident. In six MH(-) patients with previous masseter muscle rigidity, no adverse reactions occurred in response to volatile anesthetic agents. Succinylcholine was avoided in these patients. Eleven MH(-) patients were managed as if MH-susceptible, although it was known that these patients had tested MH(-). Two of these patients also received prophylactic iv dantrolene. These results suggest that 'triggering' anesthetic agents may be safely administered to patients who test MH(-) by in vitro contracture testing. However, until the anesthetic experience of larger numbers of MH(-) patients is known, these results should be interpreted cautiously.