The multifaceted problem of sharply rising opioid prescribing and related overdose deaths, which peaked in 2009, has been further analyzed by a research group in a recently published paper PM R 2014 Jan 9. The Stanford University team used 1997-2009 data from the large National Ambulatory and National Health Ambulatory Medical Care Surveys from the […]
Read MorePublished in Anesth Analg. 2014 Jul;119(1):137-40. Authors: Buck D et al Abstract An otherwise healthy 11-month-old, 8-kg infant presented for an elective circumcision. After a penile block with an excessive dose of 0.5% bupivacaine, the patient progressed to ventricular tachycardia. He was resuscitated with intralipid and had an uneventful recovery. The case was classified as […]
Read MoreLocal infiltration analgesia (LIA) provides effective analgesia early after total knee arthroplasty but has limited efficacy after total hip arthroplasty, according to results of a systematic review. “LIA should preferably be used in combination with evidence-based multimodal systemic analgesia,” Dr. Lasse O. Andersen from Bispebjerg Hospital in Copenhagen, Denmark told Reuters Health by email. “For […]
Read MoreBy implementing protocols that restrict the use of erythropoietin-stimulating agents (ESAs), hospitals can successfully cut costs while maintaining an equivalent level of patient care, according to two recent studies. At St. John Hospital and Medical Center in Detroit, a policy that delayed ESA administration to certain patients decreased ESA purchases by more than $16,000 per […]
Read MorePublished in Br J Anaesth. 2014;112(5):784-787. Authors: S. Kozek-Langenecker, D. Fries, D. R. Spahn, K. Zacharowski A recent systematic review, ‘Fibrinogen concentrate in bleeding patients’, published by The Cochrane Collaboration, aimed to assess the benefits and harms of fibrinogen concentrate compared with placebo or other treatments in bleeding patients. We agree with the authors finding […]
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