Anesthesia and analgesia
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Anesthesia and analgesia · Dec 2016
ReviewEpidural Local Anesthetics Versus Opioid-Based Analgesic Regimens for Postoperative Gastrointestinal Paralysis, Vomiting, and Pain After Abdominal Surgery: A Cochrane Review.
The aim of this review was to compare the effects of postoperative epidural analgesia with local anesthetics to postoperative systemic or epidural opioids in terms of return of gastrointestinal transit, postoperative pain control, postoperative vomiting, incidence of gastrointestinal anastomotic leak, hospital length of stay, and cost after abdominal surgery. ⋯ An epidural containing a local anesthetic, with or without the addition of an opioid, accelerates the return of the gastrointestinal transit (high quality of evidence). An epidural containing a local anesthetic with an opioid decreases pain after an abdominal surgery (moderate quality of evidence). An epidural containing a local anesthetic does not affect the incidence of vomiting or anastomotic leak (low quality of evidence). For an open surgery, an epidural containing a local anesthetic would reduce the length of hospital stay (very low quality of evidence).
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Anesthesia and analgesia · Dec 2016
Randomized Controlled TrialPerformance of the Angle Labor Pain Questionnaire During Initiation of Epidural Analgesia in Early Active Labor.
The Angle Labor Pain Questionnaire (A-LPQ) is a new, 22-item multidimensional psychometric questionnaire that measures the 5 most important dimensions of women's childbirth pain experiences using 5 subscales: The Enormity of the Pain, Fear/Anxiety, Uterine Contraction Pain, Birthing Pain, and Back Pain/Long Haul. Previous work showed that the A-LPQ has overall good psychometric properties and performance during early active labor in women without pain relief. The current study assessed the tool's sensitivity to change during initiation of labor epidural analgesia with the standardized response mean (SRM, primary outcome). ⋯ Findings support A-LPQ use for measurement of women's childbirth pain experiences during initiation of labor epidural analgesia during early active labor. Combined with our previous work, they also support the use of the A-LPQ in late labor and at delivery.
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Anesthesia and analgesia · Dec 2016
Multicenter Study Comparative StudyPatient Blood Management: An International Perspective.
This article describes practices in patient blood management (PBM) in 4 countries on different continents that may provide insights for anesthesiologists and other physicians working in global settings. The article has its foundation in the proceedings of a session at the 2014 AABB annual meeting during which international experts from England, Uganda, China, and Brazil presented the programs and implementation strategies in PBM developed in their respective countries. ⋯ Comparing PBM strategies from low-, middle-, and high-income countries, as described in this article, allows them to learn bidirectionally from one another and to work toward implementing innovative and preferably evidence-based strategies for improvement. Sharing and distributing knowledge from such programs will ultimately also improve transfusion outcomes and patient safety.
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Anesthesia and analgesia · Dec 2016
A Novel Device for the Evaluation of Hemostatic Function in Critical Care Settings.
Major surgical procedures often result in significant intra- and postoperative bleeding. The ability to identify the cause of the bleeding has the potential to reduce the transfusion of blood products and improve patient care. ⋯ The Quantra is based on Sonic Estimation of Elasticity via Resonance Sonorheometry, a proprietary technology that uses ultrasound to measure clot time and clot stiffness from changes in viscoelastic properties of whole blood during coagulation. We present results of internal validation and analytical performance testing of the technology and demonstrate the ability to characterize the key functional components of hemostasis.
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Anesthesia and analgesia · Dec 2016
Comparative Study Observational StudyPersistent Pain After Cesarean Delivery and Vaginal Delivery: A Prospective Cohort Study.
Persistent pain after cesarean delivery and vaginal delivery has been the subject of only a few research articles. The primary outcome of our prospective study was the incidence of persistent pain and its association to mode of delivery. We also studied the nature and intensity of pain after delivery. ⋯ The incidence of persistent pain at 1 year is greater after cesarean delivery than after vaginal delivery. Pain shortly after cesarean delivery and during vaginal delivery correlated with persistent pain.