Los problemas de la analgesia obstétrica / Problems in obstetric analgesia

A pesar de las múltiples declaraciones de los organismos internacionales, el manejo del dolor en el trabajo de parto y el parto es insuficiente debido a las barreras que impone el sistema de salud, pero también por las concepciones equivocadas sobre la analgesia epidural de las pacientes y, peor aún, también de enfermeras, obstetras y anestesiólogos. El presente artículo menciona el punto de vista de reconocidas instituciones internacionales sobre el tema, los problemas atribuibles al sistema de salud y discute las limitaciones que imponen los especialistas médicos, enfatizando, de manera particular, en las prevalecientes concepciones de obstetras y anestesiólogos, por las cuales una gran proporción de las maternas sufren, innecesariamente, de dolor durante el trabajo de parto y el parto.

Despite countless statements from international agencies, pain management during labor and delivery is insufficient due to the hurdles imposed by the health system, and also to the misconceptions regarding epidural analgesia among patients, but worse still, among nurses, obstetricians and anesthesiologists. This article mentions the point of view of outstanding international institutions on the subject, the problems that may be attributed to the health system, and the limitations imposed by specialists, emphasizing in particular the views prevailing among obstetricians and gynecologists that explain why a large proportion of women in child birth experience pain unnecessarily.

Is there any influence of breastfeeding on the cerebral blood flow? A review of 256 healthy newborns

OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether breastfeeding influence the cerebral blood-flow velocity. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The present study included 256 healthy term neonates, all of them with appropriate weight for gestational age, 50.8% being female. Pulsatility index, resistance index and mean velocity were measured during breastfeeding or resting in the anterior cerebral artery, in the left middle cerebral artery, and in the right middle cerebral artery of the neonates between their first 10 and 48 hours of life. The data were analyzed by means of a paired t-test, Brieger's f-test for analysis of variance and linear regression, with p < 0.01 being accepted as statistically significant. RESULTS: Mean resistance index decreased as the mean velocity increased significantly during breastfeeding. Pulsatility index values decreased as much as the resistance index, but in the right middle cerebral artery it was not statistically significant. CONCLUSION: Breastfeeding influences the cerebral blood flow velocities.

Guía de práctica clínica basada en la evidencia para el diagnóstico de disfagia en niños / Evidence-based practice guidelines for the diagnosis of dysphagia in children

Se presenta una guía basada en la evidencia para el diagnóstico de disfagia en niños. Se llevó a cabo una búsqueda de artículos indexados entre enero de 1996 y diciembre de 2007 en las bases de datos Medline, Lilacs y el registro Cochrane. Se hizo restricción por idioma a publicaciones en inglés y español y, por edad, solo se incluyó a la población pediátrica. Se complementó la exploración con artículos incluidos en la bibliografía de artículos primarios y citados en revisiones no sistemáticas. La estrategia de búsqueda produjo 605 artículos de los cuales se seleccionaron 58. El análisis de la validez de los artículos y el grado de recomendación se hicieron por consenso entre los investigadores. El desarrollo de la guía se basó en el instrumento AGREE (Appraisal of Guidelines Research and Evaluation) y en el modelo GRADE del Colegio Americano de Médicos del Tórax (Grading Strength of Recommendations and Quality of Evidence in Clinical Guidelines). El enfoque diagnóstico del niño con disfagia debe partir de la sospecha clínica. La anamnesis y el examen físico deben preceder a cualquier actividad diagnóstica. Se encontró que en niños con alta sospecha clínica de disfagia debe complementarse la evaluación clínica con la videofluoroscopia (Recomendación 1C), que es el estándar de oro para confirmar la presencia de aspiración o penetración de la vía aérea (Recomendación 1A). El ultrasonido es el método de elección en niños con disfagia asociada a anormalidades de la lengua. (Recomendación 1C). La electromiografía se puede utilizar como una prueba de tamizaje para niños mayores de cinco años con alteración de la musculatura facial (Recomendación 2B). La resonancia magnética nuclear es útil en pacientes con sospecha de lesiones cervicales que alteran la dinámica de la deglución (Recomendación 1C). Se concluye que los estudios diagnósticos disponibles tienen deficiencias metodológicas que no permiten hacer recomendaciones de mayor grado de validez.

We present an evidence-based guideline for the diagnosis of dysphagia in children. The articles included were retrieved by electronic search in Medline, Lilacs, and Cochrane databases. The search was restricted to those published between January 1996 and December 2007, in English or Spanish, and only to those including children (0-18 years). Manual search of papers cited by primary articles and non-systematic reviews was also done. The search strategy identified 605 articles and 58 were chosen for further analysis. Evaluation of the papers was carried out by all the authors and recommendations were done by consensus. The guideline was developed by using the AGREE instrument (Appraisal of Guidelines Research and Evaluation) and the GRADE model (Grading Strength of Recommendations and Quality of Evidence in Clinical Guidelines) from the American College of Chest Physicians. The diagnostic approach to children with dysphagia begins with clinical suspicion, and thorough clinical history and physical examination should precede any diagnostic test. We found that in children with clinical features that suggest dysphagia, videofluoroscopy is the recommended imaging technique to confirm this condition (Recommendation 1C). This test is considered to be the gold standard to demonstrate aspiration and/or penetration of contrast material into the airway (Recommendation 1A). Ultrasound is considered as the best diagnostic imaging technique in children with dysphagia associated with tongue abnormalities (Recommendation 1C). On the other hand, electromyography might be used as a screening test in children aged 5 years or more with disorders of the facial muscles (Recommendation 2B). Finally, magnetic resonance imaging seems to provide the best diagnostic yield in those children with cervical lesions responsible for disrupting deglutition dynamics (Recommendation 1C). In conclusion, available articles on diagnostic tests for dysphagia have serious methodological deficiencies and do not allow recommendations with better levels of evidence.