J Postgrad Med
-
Editorial Comment
Improving peri-operative patient care: the surgical safety checklist.
-
Surgical care is an essential component of health care of children worldwide. Incidences of congenital anomalies, trauma, cancers and acquired diseases continue to rise and along with that the impact of surgical intervention on public health system also increases. It then becomes essential that the surgical teams make the procedures safe and error proof. The World Health Organization (WHO) has instituted the surgical checklist as a global initiative to improve surgical safety. ⋯ Our study supports the use of the checklist as an essential safety tool and reinforcement of the same. The checklist may act as a valuable prompt to focus the team, to ensure that even the simple things have been cared for.
-
Heart failure (HF) is a complex clinical syndrome that can result from any structural or functional cardiac disorders that impairs the ability of the ventricle to fill with or eject blood. Despite effective medical interventions, mortality and morbidity remain substantial. There have been significant advances in the therapy of HF in recent decades, such as the introduction of beta-blockers and antagonists of the renin-angiotensin system but still there is a major unmet need for better therapies for HF. ⋯ Various novel pathways, molecular sites have been identified, which contribute to the progression of the disease. By targeting these sites, newer pharmacological agents have been developed, which can play a promising role in the treatment of HF. This article focuses on recent advancements in pharmacotherapy of HF, which include agents targeting myocardial contractility, cytokines and inflammation, fibrosis and remodeling, myocardial metabolism, oxidative stress, and other newly defined pathways.