Articles: patients.
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Journal of anesthesia · Jun 1997
Simple pain relief score by observers (PRSO) for assessing chronic pain.
In 56 patients with severe chronic pain, pain relief was evaluated by observation of changes in activities of daily life (ADL), drug intake, and patients' mood. The degree of pain relief was scored on the basis of these evaluations by a pain clinic physician, a nurse, and a member of the patient's family. The resulting score was termed "pain relief score by observers" (PRSO). ⋯ Although a significant correlation (rS=0.755,P<0.001) was demonstrated between the mean PRSO and VAS values, there was some dissociation between the two values in patients with underlying personal problems such as compensation lawsuits or job loss. The results suggest that an objective evaluation of pain relief is possible by PRSO alone without subjective assessment, and that PRSO can be used for patients with various types of pain. Combined assessment of pain relief by the VAS and PRSO methods may be useful to detect the influence of personal background factors in patients with chronic pain.
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Journal of anesthesia · Jun 1997
Right ventricular performance during hypotension induced by prostaglandin E1, nicardipine HCl, glycerine trinitrate, and isosorbide dinitrate.
This study investigated right ventricular (RV) performance during hypotensive anesthesia and compared the effect of the vasodilators prostaglandin E1 (PGE1), nicardipine HCl (Nic), glycerin trinitrate (GTN), and isosorbide dinitrate (ISDN) on RV function. Fifty patients were allocated into four groups [PGE1 (n=20), Nic (n=10), GTN (n=10), and ISDN (n=10)] in random order. Pulmonary and RV hemodynamics were measured using a rapid-response thermodilution catheter before and during induced hypotension, when systolic arterial pressure was maintained at 80 mmHg. ⋯ Nic was a useful alternative agent for hypotensive anesthesia. GTN and ISDN reduced RV preload and RVSV; however, cardiac output was maintained by increasing heart rate (HR). Therefore, such nitrates should be used under an adequate RV preload.
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Verbal rating scales (VRS), composed of ranked pain descriptors, are often employed in pain research. Factors that may influence the subjective pain intensity values, however, are not well established. In this study, 5 common pain descriptor adjectives were represented on a visual analogue scale (VAS) by a group of 80 dental students, by a group of 48 patients undergoing periodontal therapy, and by a group of 31 dental phobic patients. ⋯ No correlation was found with gender. The descriptors did not divide the analogue scale into equal segments. 71% of all subjects gave the adjective "mild" a lower pain intensity representation than the adjective "weak", while the order was reversed among remaining subjects. Findings cast doubt on the reliability of VRS and the data handling methods commonly adopted in clinical pain research.