Anesthesiology
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Comment Letter
Need for additional control in studies of epidural outcome.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical Trial
Postoperative morphine use and hyperalgesia are reduced by preoperative but not intraoperative epidural analgesia: implications for preemptive analgesia and the prevention of central sensitization.
The aim of this study was to evaluate the postoperative morphine-sparing effects and reduction in pain and secondary mechanical hyperalgesia after preincisional or postincisional epidural administration of a local anesthetic and an opioid compared with a sham epidural control. ⋯ Preincisional administration of epidural lidocaine and fentanyl was associated with a significantly lower rate of morphine use, lower cumulative morphine consumption, and reduced hyperalgesia compared with a sham epidural condition. These results highlight the importance of including a standard treatment control group to avoid the problems of interpretation that arise when two-group studies of preemptive analgesia (preincisional vs. postsurgery) fail to find the anticipated effects.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical Trial
Comparison of the parasacral approach and the posterior approach, with single- and double-injection techniques, to block the sciatic nerve.
The purpose of this study was to compare parasacral and Winnie's single- or double-injection approaches for sciatic nerve block. ⋯ Time to perform a parasacral block was short, and the parasacral approach had a high success rate and a short onset time. Therefore, this block might be a useful alternative to Winnie's modification for sciatic nerve block.
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Clinical Trial Controlled Clinical Trial
Bilateral intravenous regional anesthesia: a new method to test additives to local anesthetic solutions.
Ketorolac, when added to lidocaine, has been shown to reduce early tourniquet pain during intravenous regional anesthesia (i.v.RA) in patients. Although the effectiveness of ropivacaine 0.2% for i.v.RA is equal to that of lidocaine 0.5% but significantly reduces central nervous system side effects after release of the tourniquet, it provides no advantage with regard to tourniquet tolerance times. Simultaneous bilateral i.v.RA with ropivacaine 0.2% was used to test the hypothesis that ketorolac modifies tourniquet tolerance and to test whether drug combinations can be evaluated in one study session. ⋯ The addition of ketorolac to ropivacaine does not improve tourniquet tolerance. Minimal central nervous system side effects after tourniquet release suggest that a total of 60 ml ropivacaine 0.2% for bilateral i.v.RA is a useful model for comparison of i.v.RA drug combinations.
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Clinical Trial
Accelerometry of adductor pollicis muscle predicts recovery of respiratory function from neuromuscular blockade.
Residual paralysis increases the risk of pulmonary complications but is difficult to detect. To test the hypothesis that accelerometry predicts effects of residual paralysis on pulmonary and upper airway function, the authors related tests of pulmonary and pharyngeal function to accelerometry of adductor pollicis muscle in 12 partially paralyzed volunteers. ⋯ Impaired inspiratory flow and upper airway obstruction frequently occur during minimal neuromuscular blockade (TOF ratio 0.8), and extubation may put the patient at risk. Although a TOF ratio of unity predicts a high probability of adequate recovery from neuromuscular blockade, respiratory function can still be impaired.