Neurology India
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Epidural steroid injection is widely used to treat the short and long-term symptoms of low back and radicular pain. To the best of our knowledge, the influence of transforaminal epidural steroid injection (TFSI) combined with caudal epidural steroid injection (CESI) on pain intensity, patient satisfaction, and quality of life in lumbar radiculopathy has not been examined. ⋯ In patients with lower lumbar radiculopathy, a combined TFSI + CESI technique offers superior short and long-term pain relief, quality of life, and long-term patient satisfaction, than when TFSI is performed alone.
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To assess the risk of perioperative stroke on in-hospital morbidity and mortality following combined coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) and carotid endarterectomy (CEA). ⋯ A strong association was found to exist between perioperative stroke and in-hospital mortality and morbidity after combined CABG and CEA. CEA procedures are thought to mitigate the high stroke rate of 3-5% post-CABG, but our study found that combined procedures exhibit a similar stroke risk undercutting their effectiveness. Further investigative studies on combined CABG+CEA are needed to assess risk-stratification for better patient selection and examine other preventative strategies to minimize the risk of ischemic strokes.