Published in Anaesth Crit Care and Pain. 2014;14(5):224-229 Authors: Susan M Nimmo MB ChB FRCA FFPMRCA FRCPEdin MSc Pain Medicine et al Many of the benefits of effective epidural analgesia for open abdominal surgery are soundly established. A well-managed epidural can provide excellent analgesia in the postoperative period allowing the patient to be pain free […]
Read MoreIn a drug safety communication issued today, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) says it is aware of recent reports “questioning” the safety of prescription and over-the-counter (OTC) pain medicines when used during pregnancy, but that it lacks adequate studies to change current recommendations. The benefits and risks of using prescription and OTC pain […]
Read MorePublished in Br J Anaesth. 2015 Feb;114(2):281-9 Authors: Rehberg B et BACKGROUND: The safety of patient-controlled i.v. analgesia (PCA) with remifentanil for obstetrical analgesia remains a matter of concern. The efficacy of remifentanil bolus application, that is, the coincidence between pain and remifentanil effect-site concentration, may be improved by forecasting contractions, but it is not […]
Read MorePublished in Br J Anaesth. 2015 Apr;114(4):605-14 Authors: Liu N et al BACKGROUND: We used an automated bispectral index (BIS)-guided dual-loop controller to determine propofol and remifentanil requirements during general anaesthesia in obese and lean surgical patients. METHODS: Obese patients, BMI>35 kg m(-2), and lean patients (<25 kg m(-2)) having laparoscopic procedures were prospectively evaluated […]
Read MorePublished in Br J Anaesth. 2015 Apr;114(4):663-8 Authors: Lee WK et al BACKGROUND: Two common general anaesthetic methods are total i.v. anaesthesia (TIVA) and inhalation anaesthesia, but it is unclear whether this affects the patient’s perception of their quality of recovery. The Quality of Recovery-40 questionnaire (QoR-40) is a valid and reliable method to evaluate […]
Read MorePublished in Br J Anaesth. 2015 Mar;114(3):423-9 Authors: Kranke P et al BACKGROUND: Postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) is common; ondansetron is often used as prophylaxis or for breakthrough episodes. Vestipitant is a neurokinin 1 (NK-1) receptor antagonist that is effective for prophylaxis, but its efficacy for treating established PONV is unknown. This study was […]
Read MorePublished in Br J Anaesth. 2015 Mar;114(3):384-95 Authors: Martinez V et al The role for tramadol in multimodal postsurgical analgesic strategies remains unclear. We undertook a systematic review to evaluate the utility of combining tramadol with morphine after surgery. We searched the MEDLINE, EMBASE, LILAC, Cochrane, and Clinical Trial Register databases for randomized, controlled studies […]
Read MorePublished in Clin J Pain. 2015 Jan;31(1):86-93 Authors: De Oliveira GS Jr et al OBJECTIVES: The effect of a single-dose systemic acetaminophen to treat postoperative pain has been previously quantified, but the effect of systemic acetaminophen to prevent postoperative pain is currently not well defined. The preventive analgesic effect of acetaminophen has yet to be […]
Read MorePublished in Br J Anaesth. 2015 Apr;114(4):640-5 Authors: Szental JA et al BACKGROUND: Laparoscopic cholecystectomy frequently results in significant immediate postoperative pain. A new pain monitor, analgesic nociception index (ANI(®)), based on heart rate variability, has recently been approved for intraoperative nociception monitoring. We designed a single-blind, parallel-group, randomized control trial to test the hypothesis […]
Read MorePublished in Br J Anaesth. 2015 Apr;114(4):634-9 Authors: Zou ZY et al BACKGROUND: To investigate the effects of different target plasma remifentanil concentrations on the minimum alveolar concentration of sevoflurane (MAC) for blocking adrenergic response (BAR) during laparoscopic gynaecological surgery with carbon dioxide insufflation. METHODS: Seventy-five gynaecological patients with ASA I-II undergoing laparoscopic surgery were […]
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