Malignant Hyperthermia: Lethal Anesthesia Allergy (MUST TELL doctor)

Malignant hyperthermia is the lethal anesthesia allergy. Here’s what you need to tell your doctor before surgery to keep you safe!

This video/speech/channel DOES NOT CONSTITUTE MEDICAL ADVICE. Patients with medical concerns should contact their physician. If your concern is an emergency, immediately call 911. This information is not a recommendation for ANY THERAPY. Some substances referenced in this content may be illegal, and this content is not a recommendation for, or endorsement of, their use in any way.
Remember that preparing for surgery can help you have a safer, more comfortable surgery experience. That’s means less pain, anxiety, nausea, and fear.

Here’s a summary:
• Malignant hyperthermia is a rare genetic condition that makes you susceptible to life threatening muscular contractions when exposed to certain anesthetic agents
• The incidence of malignant hyperthermia is low, around one in hundreds of thousands
• Although it's rare, malignant hyperthermia has a very high mortality, around 5 to 10%, even in the modern day
• You need to tell your anesthesiologist if you have a first-degree blood relative with a history of malignant hyperthermia, like a brother, sister, mother, or father
• Your doctors regularly run drills to prepare us for these catastrophic scenarios, to make sure that we keep you safe when the unexpected happens during your surgery

[denniscrumbley]

Thank you for this video. I had 2 MH episodes in the early 1980's and didn't know what they were and no one told me until the 1990's when I shared these experiences with a nurse. The first time the contractions were so bad that I fell on the floor b/c no one was there w/me. The second time I remember hearing what I call organized chaos as the doctors and nurses were holding my body down on the bed and yelling for this and that, etc. I was aware that my body was violently convulsing. It was terrifying. I now wear a medical alert chain around my neck.

[rachaelhohmann]

I had surgery in 2022 and developed malignant Hyperthermia halfway through the surgery. it took the hospital 4.5 hours and 20 different doctors (who all gave me a different med when they came in) before they finally figured it out. I almost died

[rebeccayoung]

My daughter took Haldol as a teenager thinking it was Valium. I knew immediately what was happening because I was a nurse in a prison. I gave her Benadryl and her body returned to normal but later that night the muscle locking returned. I took her to the ER and she was admitted along with several of her friends. Malignant Neuro Syndrome can be fatal and her temperature kept rising and she was arched backwards. Begging for help. I had to tell the doctor what to do. Thankfully, she survived.

[dawn-from-the-lab]

My family is an MH family. My grandmother had an MH reaction during surgery and then 2-3 years later my younger brother had a reaction. Now everyone in the family is treated as MH patients.
The most frustrating thing about all of this is that the hospital that almost killed my grandmother still refuses to acknowledge that she had an MH reaction despite other family members having reactions since then and they had to give her dantrolene to treat her.

[babiesandbuddies]

It runs on my husband's side of the family. Neither he or our kids have been diagnosed with it, but our local surgical center treats them as though they have it - and always schedule their appointments early in the morning.

[عربيهنري]

Very interesting, thanks for the video, Anthony. Found you via Peter Santenello's channel a while back. Would love to see more content of this length/scope from you.

[ddemolitionlvrs]

I just had this happen to me on May 10, 2022
I'm trying to learn more about this and just how close I was to moving on with this life. My wife told me that it hit me when they were in the process of bringing me out of the anesthesia while still in the operation room. I just had a lamenectomy and decompression surgery on my lower back so I was in there for 7 hours. By the time they could get me stabilized and moved into ICU, she told me I was over 12 hours from the time I went in till they could move me. Thank you for how well you described what happens.

[thiennguyen]

thank you, can you please tell us how much to give?

[heidiboxer-]

Very interesting! This was explained very well!!!

[AVToth]

While OR staff are trained in this emergency few ever see it. I have. I was an OR nurse, in the late '80s. One of our OB docs had a pt scheduled for c-section. He asked if I could be assigned to her for pre-op through recovery because she was terrified, she was a heroine addict, supposedly clean since discovering she was pregnant. She refused epidural because she was afraid of the needle, so while general for c-section isn't great, you just have to be quick. He was right about her terror, she was clinging to me as we took her back. When everyone was in place, no messing around, clock is ticking. Surgeon gave the nod, all was good. I always made sure that I was holding pts hand and close in case anything was needed during inducting. Pentathol was given and as soon as she was under he began intubation. I remember his hands starting to shake and persperation just starting to flow off her. It felt like forever, but couldn't have been even a minute, he couldn't get the scope in because she was rigid and was trying to get it out without braking her teeth or jaw. We looked at each other, said hyperthermia. I ran to push the code button and the OB started what was the fastest c-section I've ever seen. If Mama is burning up, by then had burned up, her O2, baby was in big trouble. The WORST was her waking up in the middle and looking me in the eye, begging almost. She came through it like a champ and I checked on her the next day. She was so happy that I'd been with her, stayed by her she wanted to give me something. I didn't know what her employment was but she asked me if I let my husband go to "titty bars". I just told her I'd never told him he couldn't. She had a friend with her and the friend gave me a business card. My pt told me "You tell him to come to the club and show this at the door. I guarantee he'll have a good time". Sadly, in my rush to get home I misplaced the card. HIPPA, that's it, I had to throw the card away because it might've, surely, no doubt would've been a gross violation of HIPPA. I had no choice, while I would love to have given that card to hubby, I couldn't risk even the slightest possibility of breaking a law.😉 I did tell him about the card, I know it's here somewhere, must've dropped it. I did accept in the spirit it was given. She saw it as the best she could do and she needed to give me something. When a person with nothing, gives you what they have that is of value in their eyes, you accept it gratefully. Everyone needs dignity.

In conclusion to this book length comment, when she was awake and alert afterwards, she confessed that she had taken a little bump of cocaine before walking into the hospital. She said she told her dr. When I asked him, he said he didn't want to embarrass her. I told the anesthesiologist, he was PISSED.
Baby contracted one of the TORCH viruses and died but I don't know which or how long it lived.

[waverunner]

What scares me most is the number of people in areas where muscle relaxants are routinely given close to Willy nilly and how succinylcholine remains first drug of choice in ER settings with sometimes very lax knowledge of medical conditions patients have are unknown and no bracelet is found.
I was an ER nurse and can attest to this. I now have myself and family members list succinylcholine as an allergy!
Like you mentioned MH is not a widespread problem but deadly and damn scary if you have to respond to an emergency from it.

[paigezander]

This happened to me in Arkansas Childrens Hospital in 1977 I was 4 and can remember being counted backward by the nurse we made it to 91 but I can’t remember anything else until I finally went home a week later I would like to know more about awake episodes

[allhonor]

It would suck if you were that small percentage that did not know they had it and did not know their family. Thank you for the information.

[m.m.m.c.a.k.e]

Thank you, kindly. How would one know if this happened? Surgical report indicating

[smileme]

I was afraid of this. Thank you for the fantastic explanation. You are so caring.

[missyjo]

We have MH in our family but didn't know until a baby died if it in the 60's. They did family studies in Leeds hospital and realised it was MH, we had to have muscle biopsies then but now they can tell with blood tests. My mum had it and had many operations before having the biopsy and finding she had it. It missed me and one brother, but my other brother has it and his daughter has it. I had ear surgery that took over 4 hours and they knew that we had MH in the family and I don't have it, but they still used Dantrolene on me and cleaned all the machines. You would think everything would have gone fine, but it turns our I stopped breathing after extubation and they had to do cpr. Seems I'm allergic to propofol. Gave the anaesthetist team a bit of a scare.

[mombythec]

I had MH after a percutaneous giant kidney stone removal. I remember at least 7 doctors standing around me when I was waking up, I couldn’t speak and they were just saying she’s burning up! The main doctor was coaching them looking for the correct response and my eyes were bugging out of my head while I’m thinking “take your time” 🙄 not lol. I had a rough recovery, I’ve had anesthesia over 17 times and that was the only one I had MH with.

[robertmckelvey]

What about if it happens after you're at home and 50 minutes away from the children's hospital

[andreamachacova]

Thank you for this video. (RN one year inn)

[keyone]

I survived MH during an acute appendicitis surgery last month at John Muir hospital in the Bay Area. I'm the first person in my family to show an MH reaction 😢