Plos One
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Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical Trial
Using a low-sodium, high-potassium salt substitute to reduce blood pressure among Tibetans with high blood pressure: a patient-blinded randomized controlled trial.
To evaluate the effects of a low-sodium and high-potassium salt-substitute on lowering blood pressure (BP) among Tibetans living at high altitude (4300 meters). ⋯ Low sodium high potassium salt-substitute is effective in lowering both systolic and diastolic blood pressure and offers a simple, low-cost approach for hypertension control among Tibetans in China.
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This systematic review evaluated the effects of Chinese herbal medicine (CHM) plus routine pharmacotherapy (RP) on the objective outcome measures BODE index, 6-minute walk test (6MWT), and 6-minute walk distance (6MWD) in individuals with stable chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Searches were conducted of six English and Chinese databases (PubMed, EMBASE, CENTRAL, CINAHL, CNKI and CQVIP) from their inceptions until 18th November 2013 for randomized controlled trials involving oral administration of CHM plus RP compared to the same RP, with BODE Index and/or 6MWT/D as outcomes. Twenty-five studies were identified. ⋯ Clinically meaningful benefits for BODE Index and 6MWT were found in multiple studies. These therapeutic effects were promising but need to be interpreted with caution due to variations in the CHMs and RPs used and methodological weakness in the studies. These issues should be addressed in future trials.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Intraoperative maintenance of normoglycemia with insulin and glucose preserves verbal learning after cardiac surgery.
The hyperglycemic response to surgery may be a risk factor for cognitive dysfunction. We hypothesize that strict maintenance of normoglycemia during cardiac surgery preserves postoperative cognitive function. ⋯ Preserving intraoperative normoglycemia by intravenous insulin and glucose may prevent the impairment of memory function, both short and long-term, after cardiac surgery.
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To systematically review the literature on image-based telemedicine for medical expert consultation in acute care of injuries, considering system, user, and clinical aspects. ⋯ Image-based telemedicine systems for injury emergency care tend to support valid diagnosis and influence patient management. The evidence relates to a few clinical fields, and has substantial methodological shortcomings. As in the case of telemedicine in general, user and system quality aspects are poorly documented, both of which affect scale up of such programs.
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Multicenter Study Clinical Trial
Fibromyalgia patients had normal distraction related pain inhibition but cognitive impairment reflected in caudate nucleus and hippocampus during the Stroop Color Word Test.
The mechanisms causing cognitive problems in chronic pain patients are not well understood. We used the Stroop color word task (SCWT) to investigate distraction-induced analgesia, cognitive performance, and cerebral activation patterns in 29 fibromyalgia (FM) patients (mean age 49.8 years, range 25-64 years) and 31 healthy controls (HC) (mean age 46.3 years, range 20-63 years). In the first study, SCWT was used to investigate distraction-induced analgesia in FM patients. ⋯ This was reflected in a reduced activation of the caudate nucleus, lingual gyrus, temporal areas, and the hippocampus in FM patients compared to HC. In conclusion, we found normal pain inhibition during SWTC in FM patients. The cognitive difficulties seen in FM patients, reflected in longer RTs, were related to reduced activation of the caudate nucleus and hippocampus during incongruent SCWT, which most likely affected the mechanisms of cognitive learning in FM patients.