The Journal of international medical research
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This study investigated the prevalence, risk factors and rate of recognition of anxiety and depression in 50 patients hospitalized for exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Using the Primary Care Evaluation of Mental Disorders questionnaire, 13 patients were identified as having depression, four had anxiety and eight had a combination of the two. ⋯ Two patients were referred to a mental health specialist during their hospitalization, indicating a low rate of recognition. The results suggest that patients with mental disorders are referred and admitted to hospital earlier in the course of a COPD exacerbation due to earlier and more intense perception of dyspnoea.
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This study investigated the ability of the Physiological and Operative Severity Score for Enumeration of Mortality and Morbidity (POSSUM) scoring system to predict postoperative morbidity (complication rate) and compared the ability of POSSUM and four other scoring systems (Portsmouth POSSUM [p-POSSUM], colorectal POSSUM [cr-POSSUM], Association of Coloproctology of Great Britain and Ireland [ACPGBI] and Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II [APACHE II]) to predict mortality within 30 days in 1695 patients undergoing surgery for colorectal cancer. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve, Student's t-test and the χ(2)-test were used to estimate the predictive ability of these scoring systems. The observed complication rate of 38.7% was not significantly different to the rate of 36.3% predicted by the POSSUM scoring system (observed : expected [O : E] ratio 1.07). ⋯ For predicting mortality, POSSUM had an O : E ratio of 0.37, compared with p-POSSUM O : E ratio 1.00, cr-POSSUM O : E ratio 0.91, APACHE II O : E ratio 0.31 and ACPGBI O : E ratio 1.41. It was concluded that the POSSUM scoring system had high value for predicting the risk of morbidity following colorectal cancer resection. For predicting postoperative mortality, p-POSSUM, cr-POSSUM and ACPGBI were superior to POSSUM and APACHE II, however ROC curve analysis showed that cr-POSSUM and ACPGI discriminated best between survivors and non-survivors, so were more accurate predictors of postoperative mortality than the other three scoring systems.
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Meta Analysis
Meta-analysis of the efficacy and safety of bronchial thermoplasty in patients with moderate-to-severe persistent asthma.
This meta-analysis assessed the efficacy and safety of a novel intervention for asthma, bronchial thermoplasty (BT), in patients with moderate-to-severe persistent asthma. An electronic literature search identified three randomized controlled trials (RCT) of BT that recruited 421 patients in total. Outcomes of interest were the Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire (AQLQ) score, morning peak expiratory flow (PEF), tolerability and safety. ⋯ There were more respiratory adverse events and hospitalizations for adverse respiratory events with BT than with medications or sham treatment during the treatment period, but most events resolved, on average, within a week. This effect of BT treatment was not seen during the posttreatment period. Additional long-term RCT are required to confirm whether BT provides benefit to patients with moderate-to-severe persistent asthma.
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Editorial Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study
A randomized, double-blind trial of palonosetron compared with ondansetron in preventing postoperative nausea and vomiting after gynaecological laparoscopic surgery.
This randomized, double-blind study evaluated the relative efficacy of palonosetron (a new, selective 5-hydroxytryptamine type 3 [5-HT(3)] receptor antagonist) and ondansetron in preventing postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) in patients undergoing gynaecological laparoscopic surgery. Patients received either palonosetron 0.075 mg (n = 45) or ondansetron 8 mg (n = 45), intravenously, immediately before induction of general anaesthesia. ⋯ There were no significant statistical differences in the visual analogue scale for nausea. In conclusion, palonosetron 0.075 mg was more effective than ondansetron 8 mg in preventing PONV.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study
Comparison of an intraoperative infusion of dexmedetomidine or remifentanil on perioperative haemodynamics, hypnosis and sedation, and postoperative pain control.
This prospective, randomized, double-blind study compared the effects of dexmedetomidine and remifentanil on haemodynamic stability, sedation and postoperative pain control in the postanaesthetic care unit (PACU). Fifty consecutive patients scheduled for total laparoscopic hysterectomy were randomly assigned to receive infusions of either dexmedetomidine (1 μg/kg) i.v. over 10 min followed by 0.2 - 0.7 μg/kg per h continuous i.v. infusion or remifentanil (0.8 - 1.2 μg/kg) i.v. over 1 min followed by 0.05 - 0.1 μg/kg i.v. per min, starting at the end of surgery to the time in the PACU. ⋯ Blood pressure and heart rate in the dexmedetomidine group were significantly lower than that recorded in the remifentanil group in the PACU. Dexmedetomidine, at the doses used in this study, had a significant advantage over remifentanil in terms of postoperative haemodynamic stability.