Articles: postoperative.
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Delirium is known to be a predictor of adverse outcomes. In a prospective study Abelha and colleagues showed that postoperative delirium was an independent risk factor for deterioration in functional capacity following discharge. ⋯ Early mobilisation of ICU patients has been demonstrated to decrease delirium and improve functional outcomes. Resources should be directed to appropriate, progressive mobilisation of all critically ill patients as a priority.
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Practice Guideline
Peri-operative care of the elderly 2014 : Association of Anaesthetists of Great Britain and Ireland.
Increasing numbers of elderly patients are undergoing an increasing variety of surgical procedures. There is an age-related decline in physiological reserve, which may be compounded by illness, cognitive decline, frailty and polypharmacy. Compared with younger surgical patients, the elderly are at relatively higher risk of mortality and morbidity after elective and (especially) emergency surgery. ⋯ Anaesthetists must not ration surgical or critical care on the basis of age, but must be involved in discussions about the utility of surgery and/or resuscitation. The evidence base informing peri-operative care for the elderly remains poor. Anaesthetists are strongly encouraged to become involved in national audit projects and outcomes research specifically involving elderly surgical patients.
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Clinical Trial
Median effective dose (ED50) of paracetamol and morphine for postoperative pain: a study of interaction.
Paracetamol is widely used to treat postoperative pain and is well known for its morphine-sparing effect. Therefore, the effect of morphine-paracetamol combination can be synergistic, additive, or infra-additive. The primary aim of our study is to define the median effective analgesic doses (ED₅₀s) of paracetamol, morphine, and the combination of both. Also, the nature of the interaction for postoperative pain after moderately painful surgery using an up-and-down method and isobolographic analysis was determined. ⋯ Our study showed that the combination of the paracetamol and morphine produces an additive analgesic effect. Clinical trial registration NCT01366313.
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Valid methods are needed to identify anesthesia resident performance gaps early in training. However, many assessment tools in medicine have not been properly validated. The authors designed and tested use of a behaviorally anchored scale, as part of a multiscenario simulation-based assessment system, to identify high- and low-performing residents with regard to domains of greatest concern to expert anesthesiology faculty. ⋯ The study provides initial evidence to support the validity of a simulation-based performance assessment system for identifying critical gaps in safe anesthesia resident performance early in training.
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Anasthesiol Intensivmed Notfallmed Schmerzther · Jan 2014
Review[Coagulation disorders in the context of cardiac surgery - Clinical basics and mechanism based therapy].
Intra- and postoperative bleeding disorders are common in cardiac surgery. The etiology of perioperative coagulopathy frequently becomes apparent as a combination of several acquired and inherited disorders. ⋯ Point-of-care-systems can provide fast bed-sided analysis, which contribute to early diagnosis and intervention. Individual and regularly revised algorithms, adapted to the individualized institutional infrastructure, may facilitate resource-saving treatment of perioperative coagulopathy.