The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved extended-release hydrocodone bitartrate (Hysingla ER), an opioid analgesic to treat pain severe enough to require daily, around-the-clock, long-term opioid treatment and for which alternative treatment options are inadequate. Hydrocodone bitartrate ER has properties that are expected to reduce, but not totally prevent, abuse of the drug […]
Read MoreThis is for our pain providers. Researchers have found that current evidence does not support the routine use of minimally invasive surgery to remove herniated disc material pressing on the nerve root or spinal cord in the neck or lower back. In comparing it with open surgery, researchers found that while minimally invasive surgery for […]
Read MoreHealthy liver donors may be at increased risk for blood clots after hepatectomy, Japanese researchers have found. The retrospective study looked at 55 adult donors, all from the University of Tokyo Hospital, and found that hepatectomy influenced coagulation status, especially in the extrinsic pathway of coagulation. According to the study, one-third of the healthy liver […]
Read MoreBut overall opioid use unchanged in this lap chole study Preliminary data indicate reduced postoperative/post-discharge nausea and vomiting (PONV/PDNV) and improved patient satisfaction after a single dose of IV acetaminophen in patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy, compared with traditional opioid-based anesthetics. Despite this, the overall amount of opioid administered intraoperatively and in the postanesthesia care unit […]
Read MoreAuthors: Smith PK et al., N Engl J Med 2014 Nov 18; Although a combined procedure may improve mitral regurgitation, other measures were not as positive. The potential benefit of adding mitral valve repair (MVR) to coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) in patients with moderate mitral regurgitation (MR) is uncertain. In this multicenter trial (NCT00806988), 301 patients […]
Read MoreWhen performing deep sedation in children undergoing magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) studies, anesthesiologists often are on the lookout for a drug that will not inhibit airway patency. A trial by a group of Buffalo researchers has concluded that dexmedetomidine may be one such alternative, as it causes no more airway collapses than propofol in these […]
Read MorePublished in Acta Anaesthesiologica Scandinavica (Mar 2015) Authors: Kim Y, et al BACKGROUND Intravenous or volatile agents reduce respiratory function, which can result in respiratory complications in geriatric patients. We hypothesised that there would be no differences in lung function between anaesthesia established using either drug. METHODS Elderly patients were randomly assigned to receive either propofol […]
Read MorePublished in American Journal of the Medical Sciences: January 2015 – Volume 349 – Issue 1 – p 61–66 Authors: Cykert, Samuel MD et al Background: Patients with early-stage lung cancer often have comorbid illnesses and fear debility and death when contemplating surgery. However, data that compare physical function of patients who receive surgery with […]
Read MoreThis is for our providers who treat pain patients. Guideline-discordant management of headache — for example, use of advanced imaging and referral to other physicians — roughly doubled from 1999 to 2010, according to a study in the Journal of General Internal Medicine. Using data from two national surveys, researchers studied nearly 9400 outpatient visits for […]
Read MorePublished in International Anesthesiology Clinics:Winter 2015 – Volume 53 – Issue 1 – p 23–38 Authors: Stippler, Martina MD et al Epidemiology Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in developed nations and accounts for almost one-third of all trauma-related deaths. Currently, 50,000 Americans die of TBI-related complications annually, and […]
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