Articles: cations.
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The spread of pain across body locations remains poorly understood but may provide important insights into the encoding of sensory features of noxious stimuli by populations of neurons. In this psychophysical experiment, we hypothesized that more intense noxious stimuli would lead to spread of pain, but more intense light stimuli would not produce perceptual radiation. Fifty healthy volunteers (27 females, 23 males, ages 14-44 years) participated in this study wherein noxious stimuli (43, 45, 47, and 49°C) were applied to glabrous (hand) and hairy skin (forearm) skin with 5-second and 10-second durations. ⋯ Pain radiation was more pronounced in hairy than glabrous skin (P < 0.05) and was more pronounced with longer stimulus duration (P < 0.001). Pain intensity explained only 14% of the pain radiation variability. The relative independence of the pain radiation from pain intensity indicates that distinct components of population coding mechanisms may be involved in the spatial representation of pain vs intensity coding.
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Adult trauma centers, including combined pediatric/adult centers (CPACs), see high volumes of penetrating trauma. Few studies have compared outcomes of adolescents presenting with gunshot wounds (GSWSs) at CPACs vs. pediatric only hospitals (POHs). This study aimed to compare injury patterns, complications, and mortality for adolescents sustaining GSWs presenting to CPACs vs POHs, hypothesizing decreased associated risk of complications and mortality at CPACs. ⋯ Adolescent GSW patients had similar associated risk of mortality and complications when comparing POHs to CPACs. This suggests that adolescents with GSWs receive similar care at both CPACs and POHs. Additional research is warranted to corroborate these findings.
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This study compared the clinical and economic outcomes of laparoscopic (LLR) and open liver resection (OLR) for all hepatectomies, including minor and major hepatectomies. ⋯ LLR is a safe and cost-effective alternative to OLR. While LLR has higher initial procedural costs, these are offset by significant reductions in postoperative major complications, LOS, and total costs.