BMC anesthesiology
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Is heat pain detection threshold associated with the area of secondary hyperalgesia following brief thermal sensitization? A study of healthy volunteers - design and detailed plan of analysis.
Several factors are believed to influence the development and experience of pain. Human clinical pain models are central tools, in the investigation of basic physiologic pain responses, and can be applied in patients as well as in healthy volunteers. Each clinical pain model investigates different aspects of the human pain response. Brief thermal sensitization induces a mild burn injury, resulting in development of primary hyperalgesia at the site of stimulation, and secondary hyperalgesia surrounding the site of stimulation. Central sensitization is believed to play an important role in the development of secondary hyperalgesia; however, a possible association of secondary hyperalgesia following brief thermal sensitization and other heat pain models remains unknown. Our aim with this study is to investigate how close the heat pain detection threshold is associated with the size of the area of secondary hyperalgesia induced by the clinical heat pain model: Brief thermal sensitization. ⋯ The area of secondary hyperalgesia may serve as a quantitative measure of the central sensitization induced by cutaneous heat stimulation, and thus may be a biomarker of an individual's pain sensitivity. The number of studies investigating secondary hyperalgesia is growing; however basic knowledge of the physiologic aspects of secondary hyperalgesia in humans is still incomplete. We therefore find it interesting to investigate if HPDT, a known quantitative sensory test, is associated with areas of secondary hyperalgesia following brief thermal sensitization
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Internationally, there is no consensus on how to best deal with admission requests in cases of full ICU bed occupancy. Knowledge about the degree of dissension and insight into the reasons for this dissension is lacking. Information about the opinion of ICU physicians can be used to improve decision-making regarding allocation of ICU resources. The aim of this study was to: Assess which factors play a role in the decision-making process regarding the admission of ICU patients; Assess the adherence to a Dutch guideline pertaining to rationing of ICU resources; Investigate factors influencing the adherence to this guideline. ⋯ Dutch ICU physicians disagree about how to deal with admission requests in cases of full ICU bed occupancy. The results of this study contribute to the discussion about the fundamental principles regarding admission of ICU patients in case of full bed occupancy.
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Observational Study
Abdominal girth and vertebral column length can adjust spinal anesthesia for lower limb surgery, a prospective, observational study.
Studies have shown that abdominal girth and vertebral column length have high predictive value for spinal spread after administering a dose of plain bupivacaine. we designed a study to identify the specific correlations between abdominal girth, vertebral column length and a 0.5% dosage of plain bupivacaine, which should provide a minimum upper block level (T12) and a suitable upper block level (T10) for lower limb surgeries. ⋯ Our data indicated that vertebral column length and abdominal girth were strongly correlated with the dosage of intrathecal plain bupivacaine for the loss of pinprick discrimination at T12 and T10. The two regression equations were YT12 = 3.547 + 0.045X1-0.044X2 and YT10 = 3.848 + 0.047X1- 0.046X2 (Y, 0.5% plain bupivacaine volume; X1, vertebral column length;and X 2, abdominal girth), which can accurately predict the minimum and suitable intrathecal bupivacaine dose for lower limb surgery to a great extent, separately.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Effect of lateral femoral cutaneous nerve-block on pain after total hip arthroplasty: a randomised, blinded, placebo-controlled trial.
Total hip arthroplasty (THA) is a common procedure associated with moderate postoperative pain. No nerve block without loss of motor function has been documented for THA. We hypothesised that an ultrasound-guided lateral femoral cutaneous nerve (LFCN) block added to a multimodal postoperative pain regimen would reduce postoperative pain after THA. ⋯ Pain scores, opioid use, time to mobilisation, and length of stay were low in both Group Ropivacaine and Group Placebo. We found no added analgesic effect of a LFCN-block when combined with paracetamol and ibuprofen after THA by the posterior approach.
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Persistently variable success has been experienced in locally translating even well-grounded national clinical practice guidelines, including in the perioperative setting. We have sought greater applicability and acceptance of clinical practice guidelines and protocols with our novel Perioperative Risk Optimization and Management Planning Tool (PROMPT™). This study was undertaken to survey our institutional perioperative clinicians regarding (a) their qualitative recommendations for (b) their quantitative perceptions of the relative importance of a series of clinical issues and patient medical conditions as potential topics for creating a PROMPT™. ⋯ Our qualitative clinician stakeholder survey generated a comprehensive roster of clinical issues and patient medical conditions. Our subsequent quantitative clinician stakeholder survey indicated that there is generally strong agreement among anesthesiologists/certified registered nurse anesthetists and surgeons about the relative importance of these clinical issues and patient medical conditions as potential topics for perioperative optimization and risk management.