Published in Acta Anaesthesiol Scand Authors: Kurita G, Benthien et al BACKGROUND The present systematic review analysed the existing evidence of analgesic efficacy and side effects of opioids without and with adjuvant analgesics delivered by neuraxial route (epidural and subarachnoid) in adult patients with cancer. METHODS Search strategy was elaborated with words related to cancer, […]
Read MorePublished in Anesthesia & Analgesia: March 2015 AUTHORS: Bauchat, Jeanette R. MD et BACKGROUND: Neuraxial analgesic techniques are the most effective form of labor analgesia. Small studies (9-21 patients), conducted 10 to 20 years ago, demonstrated successful neuraxial labor analgesia in only 50% to 66% of patients with surgical correction for scoliosis. Newer surgical techniques […]
Read MorePublished in Anesthesia & Analgesia: March 2015 Authors: Hyder, Joseph A. MD, PhD et al BACKGROUND: A patient undergoing surgery may receive anesthesia care from several anesthesia providers. The safety of anesthesia care transitions has not been evaluated. Using unconditional and conditional multivariable logistic regression models, we tested whether the number of attending anesthesiologists involved […]
Read MorePublished in Anesthesia & Analgesia: March 2015 Authors: Butwick, Alexander J. MBBS, FRCA, MS et BACKGROUND: Racial and ethnic disparities have been identified in the provision of neuraxial labor analgesia. These disparities may exist in other key aspects of obstetric anesthesia care. We sought to determine whether racial/ethnic disparities exist in mode of anesthesia for […]
Read MorePublished in Anesthesia & Analgesia: March 2015 Authors: Igarashi, Toru MD et al BACKGROUND: Neutrophil-derived lipocalin-2 exerts bacteriostatic effects through retardation of iron uptake by the Gram-negative organisms like Escherichia coli. We tested the hypothesis that the expression of lipocalin-2, a bacteriostatic protein, was upregulated by induction of surgical site infection (SSI) with E coli […]
Read MorePatients with severe chronic pain who undergo implantation with an investigational high-frequency spinal cord stimulation (SCS) device show twice the magnitude of pain relief and remission compared with those receiving a conventional, lower-frequency SCS device, according to results from the first randomized clinical study of the technology. “Spinal cord stimulation has been used for approximately […]
Read MoreDistraction was the greatest risk factor by far for new-onset acute low back pain (LBP), according to a new case-crossover study. The study in the issue of Arthritis Care & Research, also found that onset was most likely between 7:00 am and noon, that LBP risk was substantially increased by a number of modifiable physical and […]
Read MoreProgress report cites awareness gaps among caregivers. One in three Americans enters a hospital malnourished, which increases their risk for adverse events, such as surgical site infections, postoperative pneumonia and the development of pressure ulcers. So with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) withholding payment to hospitals for 11 of these preventable conditions, […]
Read MoreAlthough hypertonic saline solution helps control intracranial hypertension and symptomatic hyponatremia in critically ill patients with sub arachnoid hemorrhage (SAH), such treatment appears to come at a cost: Hypertonic saline, or high sodium exposure, significantly increases the odds of developing acute kidney injury (AKI) in this already-fragile patient population. “When you look at subarachnoid hemorrhage, […]
Read MoreCumbersome though it may be, perioperative continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) is a boon to obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) patients undergoing surgery, according to a meta-analysis. Researchers from Toronto Western Hospital found that CPAP reduces the perioperative Apnea–Hypopnea Index (AHI) and hospital length of stay (LOS) in this at-risk patient population. “We already know that […]
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