Canadian journal of anaesthesia = Journal canadien d'anesthésie
-
Pain is a common symptom associated with advanced cancer. An estimated 66.4% of people with advanced cancer experience pain from their disease or treatment. Pain management is an essential component of palliative care. ⋯ Interventional analgesia procedures may be appropriate and necessary to manage complex, cancer-related pain. This narrative review uses a theoretical case to highlight core principles of palliative care and interventional anesthesia, and the importance of collaborative, interdisciplinary care. An overview and discussion of pragmatic considerations of peripheral nervous system interventional analgesic procedures and neuraxial analgesia infusions are provided.
-
Probiotics may prevent healthcare-associated infections, such as ventilator-associated pneumonia, Clostridioides difficile-associated diarrhea, and other adverse outcomes. Despite their potential benefits, there are no summative data examining the cost-effectiveness of probiotics in hospitalized patients. This systematic review summarized studies evaluating the economic impact of using probiotics in hospitalized adult patients. ⋯ Probiotics may be an economically attractive intervention for preventing ventilator-associated pneumonia, Clostridioides difficile-associated diarrhea, and antibiotic-associated diarrhea in hospitalized adult patients. Nevertheless, certainty about their cost-effectiveness evidence is very low. Future RCTs examining probiotics should incorporate cost data to inform bedside practice, clinical guidelines, and healthcare policy.
-
Although a maxillary nerve (MN) block reportedly provides satisfactory analgesia for midface surgery and chronic maxillofacial pain syndromes, a safe and reliable MN block technique has not been reported. The goal of this anatomical study was to quantify the various angles and depth of the block needle, as well as to evaluate the impact of volume on the extent of injectate spread that might influence anesthetic coverage and block-related complications. ⋯ We showed that 5 mL of injectate far exceeds the capacity of the PPF, leading to drug spread outside of the PPF. Moreover, we found that 1 mL of injectate largely covered the nerve, suggesting a more efficacious and safer block procedure. This finding will need confirmation in future clinical studies.
-
Intraoperative hypoglycemia can result in devastating neurologic injury if not promptly diagnosed and treated. Few studies have defined risk factors for intraoperative hypoglycemia. The authors sought to characterize children with intraoperative hypoglycemia and determine independent risk factors. ⋯ Young age, weight for age < 5th percentile, developmental delay, having a gastric or jejunal tube, and abdominal surgery were independent risk factors for intraoperative hypoglycemia in children. Frequent monitoring of blood glucose and judicious isotonic dextrose administration may be warranted in these children.