Minerva anestesiologica
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Minerva anestesiologica · Oct 2010
Review Comparative StudyContent development for EUROPEAN GUIDELINES on the use of opioids for cancer pain: a systematic review and Expert Consensus Study.
Workpackage 3.1 (WP 3.1), within the European Palliative Research Collaborative (EPCRC), was aimed at critically revising and updating the European Association for Palliative Care recommendations on cancer pain management. The aim of this paper is to report the results of the first phase in the revision process which consists of a literature review and an expert consensus about the contents to be considered relevant in the development of the new guidelines. A systematic literature search was carried out from 2001 to 2008 through various databases including Medline, Cinahl, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Embase and Google. ⋯ Through the responses given by the experts (25 after the first round and 19 after the second) and after a revision by the WP 3.1 local and steering committees, a final list of 22 topics was generated to answer all identified key-points. Each of these topics will be the object of systematic literature reviews. The final version of the "Evidence-based guidelines for the use of opioid analgesics in the treatment of cancer pain: the EAPC recommendations" will be based on the results of the 22 systematic literature reviews.
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Minerva anestesiologica · Oct 2010
Clinical TrialMultimodal prevention of pain, nausea and vomiting after breast cancer surgery.
Despite many one- or two-modal attempts to relieve postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) and pain, postoperative issues following breast cancer surgery remain a substantial problem. Therefore, the aim of this explorative, hypothesis-generating study was to evaluate the effect of a multimodal, opiate-sparing, evidence-based regimen for prevention of PONV and pain. ⋯ A multimodal, opiate-sparing regimen to prevent pain and PONV seems to be more effective than one- or two-component regimens on PONV and pain after breast cancer surgery, a result which calls for large-scale multi-center or randomized studies.
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Minerva anestesiologica · Oct 2010
Central venous pressure during the post-anhepatic phase is not associated with early postoperative outcomes following orthotopic liver transplantation.
Fluid management during orthotopic liver transplantation poses unique challenges for the anesthesiologist. Maintenance of hypovolemia as indicated by low central venous pressure has been associated with reduced blood loss and improved outcomes in some studies, but with higher 30-day mortality and increased incidence of renal dysfunction in others. The primary aim was to evaluate the association of central venous pressure management after liver allograft reperfusion with immediate postoperative patient outcomes. ⋯ Maintaining a lower central venous pressure during the post-anhepatic phase during orthotopic liver transplantation is not associated with any benefit in terms of immediate postoperative allograft function, graft survival or patient survival.
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Arginine vasopressin (AVP) and its synthetic, long-acting analog terlipressin (TP) are potent alternative vasoconstrictors in the treatment of septic patients with catecholamine-refractive vasodilatatory shock. The results from one large randomized clinical trial suggest that AVP plus norepinephrine (NE) infusion is as safe and effective as treatment with NE alone in patients with septic shock. Because the desired effects of vasopressin analogs are basically related to their vasopressinergic effects via the V1a receptor, more selective V1 agonists, such as TP, may be more potent in reversing sepsis-related arterial hypotension. ⋯ However, because clinical data on the administration of TP in patients with sepsis are limited, it should not currently be used beyond the scope of controlled trials. The optimal time point for the initiation of therapy with vasopressin analogs has yet to be determined. While AVP and TP are commonly used as last-resort therapies in severe septic shock, some evidence supports the initiation of treatment in a less severe state of the disease.
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Minerva anestesiologica · Oct 2010
ReviewPseudomonas aeruginosa: acute lung injury or ventilator-associated pneumonia?
Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa) is a Gram-negative, aerobic, rod-shaped and polar-flagella bacterium with unipolar motility. Furthermore, it is an opportunistic pathogen responsible for ventilator-acquired pneumonia (VAP). VAP due to P. aeruginosa is usually multidrug-resistant and associated with severe infection and increased mortality. The goals of this review are as follows: (I) to present selected recent epidemiological literature characterizing the population at risk of P. aeruginosa pneumonia, (II) to describe some of the virulence factors of P. aeruginosa that are related to infection, and (III) to illustrate clinical outcomes of ventilated patients with large burdens of P. aeruginosa as well as the mechanism by which this bacterium may evade the host immune response.