Author: Dr Clemens

Uncategorized Published - 6 July, 2015    By - Dr Clemens
Prepare for Questions on Cannabis as an Analgesic

Physicians must become better prepared to answer patients’ questions about cannabis because its use in medicine is exploding, according to a leading researcher. “It’s high time we got up to speed with the language and the issues around communication on this,” said Mark Ware, MBBS, MSc, from McGill University Health Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. […]

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Uncategorized Published - 6 July, 2015    By - Dr Clemens
Anesthesia Before Age 4 May Affect IQ, Language Comprehension

Children who underwent surgery with general anesthesia before 4 years of age later scored lower on tests for listening comprehension and performance IQ than children who did not undergo anesthesia, in a study for June Pediatrics has revealed. Although the researchers failed to find the kind of measurable neuronal deletion seen in animal studies of anesthesia […]

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Uncategorized Published - 6 July, 2015    By - Dr Clemens
Predictors of Swallowing Dysfunction During Deep Sedation with Propofol

Authors: Marco G et al., Anesth Analg 2015 Jun 3; Increasing body-mass index, age, and propofol dose were predictors of swallowing impairment and aspiration in this single-center observational study. Deep sedation is becoming increasingly popular in a variety of clinical settings to facilitate medical and surgical procedures. Sedatives have the potential to affect swallowing function and protective […]

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Uncategorized Published - 3 July, 2015    By - Dr Clemens
Pharmaceutical Opioid Use and Dependence among People Living with Chronic Pain: Associations Observed within the Pain and Opioids in Treatment (POINT) Cohort.

Authors: Campbell G et al; Pain Med, 2015 May 22 OBJECTIVE: There is increasing concern about the appropriateness of prescribing pharmaceutical opioids for chronic non-cancer pain (CNCP), given the risks of problematic use and dependence. This article examines pharmaceutical opioid dose and dependence and examines the correlates of each. DESIGN: Baseline data were obtained from a […]

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Uncategorized Published - 3 July, 2015    By - Dr Clemens
FDA OKs First Patient-Controlled Patch for Postop Pain

The US Food and Drug Administration has approved fentanyl iontophoretic transdermal system (Ionsys, The Medicines Co), the first needle-free, patient-controlled, preprogrammed fentanyl delivery system for management of acute postoperative pain in adults requiring opioid analgesia in the hospital, according to a company news release. Ionsys is a “novel alternative” to traditional intravenous patient-controlled analgesia that uses […]

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Uncategorized Published - 3 July, 2015    By - Dr Clemens
Analgesic use before and after oral anticoagulant initiation–a population-based study in Finland

Eur J Clin Pharmacol 2015 Jun;71(6):723-32 Authors: Ilomaki J et al PURPOSE: Due to potential drug-drug interactions and subsequent bleeding risk, analgesic use should be reviewed when an oral anticoagulant is initiated. The aim of this study was to compare use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and other analgesics before and after oral anticoagulant initiation. METHODS: All […]

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Uncategorized Published - 3 July, 2015    By - Dr Clemens
Postoperative recovery after anesthesia in morbidly obese patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

Authors: Liu FL et al; Can J Anaesth. 2015 May PURPOSE: Obese patients present a challenge to safe general anesthesia because of impaired cardiopulmonary physiology and increased risks of aspiration and acute upper airway obstruction. Since studies are lacking regarding the postoperative effects on recovery from general anesthesia in morbidly obese patients, we conducted a systematic […]

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Uncategorized Published - 3 July, 2015    By - Dr Clemens
FDA warns that Maquet’s anesthesia system could lead to a fatal stop in ventilation

Troubled Maquet’s woes continue. On the heels of a permanent injunction from the Department of Justice that resulted in the halt of manufacturing at one of its facilities, the suspension of 5 of its devices from the market and a $6 million fine, the FDA just warned practitioners that the company’s Flow-i Anesthesia Systems have a problem that […]

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Uncategorized Published - 3 July, 2015    By - Dr Clemens
Does Brain Stimulation Help Treat Low Back Pain?

Authors: Luedtke K et al., BMJ 2015 350:h1640 A study of transcranial stimulation preceding behavioral cognitive therapy does not support the effectiveness of this procedure for the treatment of low back pain. Chronic low back pain is a frequent and costly problem for which few interventions are effective. Chronic low back pain is characterized by a number […]

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Uncategorized Published - 2 July, 2015    By - Dr Clemens
Readmission Location Linked to Post-Surgical Mortality Rates

Patients with complications after major surgery are 26% more likely to survive if they return to the hospital where they had their operation, researchers find. Patients with complications after major surgery have better survival odds if they’re readmitted to the same hospital where the surgery was performed, throwing into doubt the assumption that travel long […]

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