BIS-guided sedation prevents the cough reaction of patients under general anaesthesia caused by extubation: a randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: The multiple modes of SARS-CoV-2 transmission including airborne, droplet, contact and faecal-oral transmissions that cause coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) contribute to a public threat to the lives of people worldwide. Heavy aerosol production by coughing and the big peak expiratory flow in patients with respiratory infections (especially SARS-CoV-2) during recovery from general anaesthesia are the highest risk factors for infection in healthcare workers. To perform sedation before extubation significantly reduced the incidence of coughing during recovery from general anaesthesia. However, there are few studies on endotracheal tube removal under BIS-guided sedation in postanaesthesia care unit (PACU). We speculated that the BIS-guided sedation with dexmedetomidine and propofol would better prevent coughing caused by tracheal extubation and reducing peak expiratory flow. METHODS: Patients with general anaesthesia were randomly assigned to Group S (dexmedetomidine was infused in the operating room for 30 min, and the bispectral index (BIS) value was maintained 60-70 by infusion propofol at 0.5~1.5 µg/ml in the PACU until the endotracheal tubes were pulled out) and Group C (no dexmedetomidine and propofol treatment, replaced with the saline treatment). The incidence of coughing, agitation and active extubation, endotracheal tube tolerance and the peak expiratory flow at spontaneous breathing and at extubation were assessed. RESULTS: A total of 101 patients were randomly assigned to Group S (51 cases) and Group C (50 cases). The incidence of coughing, agitation and active extubation was significantly lower (1(51), 0(51) and 0(51), respectively) in Group S than (11(50), 8(50) and 5(50), respectively) in Group C (p < 0.05 or p < 0.01, respectively); the scores of cough were significantly reduced (1(1, 1)) in Group S than (1(1, 2)) in Group C (p < 0.01); and the endotracheal tube tolerance was significantly improved (0(0, 1)) in Group S than (1(1, 3)) in Group C (p < 0.001). The peak expiratory flow at spontaneous breathing and at extubation was significantly reduced (5(5, 7) and 6.5(6, 8), respectively) in Group S than (8(5, 10) and 21(9, 32)) in Group C (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: BIS-guided sedation with dexmedetomidine and propofol significantly prevented coughing and reduced peak expiratory flow during recovery from general anaesthesia, which may play an important role in preventing medical staff from contracting COVID-19. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Chinese Clinical Trial Registry: ChiCTR2200058429 (registration date: 09-04-2022) "retrospectively registered".

Compound lidocaine/prilocaine cream combined with tetracaine prevents cough caused by extubation after general anaesthesia: a randomised controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Coughing caused by tracheal extubation is common following general anaesthesia. Heavy aerosol production by coughing during recovery from general anaesthesia in patients with respiratory infections (especially COVID-19) may be one of the highest risk factors for infection in healthcare workers. The application of local anaesthetics to the endotracheal tube is an effective method to reduce coughing. The most commonly used anaesthetics are compound lidocaine/prilocaine cream and tetracaine spray. However, coughing still occurs when the two anaesthetics are used alone. We speculated that the application of compound lidocaine/prilocaine combined with tetracaine spray would better prevent coughing caused by tracheal extubation. METHODS: Patients scheduled for laparoscopic cholecystectomy or cholecystectomy combined with common bile duct exploration under general anaesthesia were randomly assigned to Group C (saline spray), Group L (2 g compound lidocaine/prilocaine cream contains 5 mg of lidocaine and 5 mg prilocaine)), Group T (tetracaine) and Group F (compound lidocaine/prilocaine cream combined with tetracaine). The incidence of coughing, the endotracheal tube tolerance assessment, the incidence of agitation, the active extubation rate, the incidence of postoperative pharyngeal pain and the incidence of postoperative cough were recorded and analysed. Systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), heart rate (HR), and the plasma concentrations of epinephrine and norepinephrine were measured immediately before extubation and 1 min after extubation. RESULTS: A total of 211 patients were randomly assigned to Group C (53 cases), Group L (52 cases), Group T (52 cases) and Group F (54 cases). The primary result is assessment of the incidence of cough. The patients emerged from general anaesthesia, 96% of Group C had cough, which was significantly reduced in Group L (61.5%, P < 0.001), Group T (75%, P < 0.05) and Group F (22.2%, P < 0.001). Group F had a significantly reduced incidence of cough compared to Group L and Group T (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01, respectively). The secondary results were assessed. The endotracheal tube tolerance score in Group C ((1, 3) 4, P < 0.001) was higher than Group L ((0, 1) 2), Group T ((0, 1.25) 3) and Group F ((0, 0) 1). Group F had a significantly lower score than Group L and Group T (P < 0.05, P < 0.01, respectively). The incidence of agitation and the active extubation rate were also higher in Group C (96.2% and 71.7%, respectively, P < 0.001) than Group L (48.1% and 15.4%, respectively), Group T (61.5% and 26.9%, respectively) and Group F (17.3% and 7.7%, respectively). Blood pressure, HR and plasma concentrations of epinephrine and norepinephrine were significantly higher in Group C than in all other groups at the time of extubation and 1 min after extubation (P < 0.001). Group F exhibited significantly reduced blood pressure, heart rate and plasma concentrations of epinephrine and norepinephrine compared to Group L and Group T (P < 0.05, P < 0.01 or P < 0.001, respectively). The incidence of postoperative pharyngeal pain and the incidence of postoperative cough were not significantly different among the groups. CONCLUSIONS: Compound lidocaine/prilocaine cream combined with tetracaine may be a more effective approach for preventing coughing and stabilising circulation during extubation following general anaesthesia. This may play an important role in preventing medical staff from contracting respiratory infectious diseases. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Chinese Clinical Trial Registry: ChiCTR2200058429 (registration date: 09-04-2022) "retrospectively registered".

Differences and prediction of imaging characteristics of COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 viral pneumonia: A multicenter study.

To study the differences in imaging characteristics and prediction of COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 viral pneumonia through chest CT.Chest CT data of 128 cases of COVID-19 and 47 cases of non-COVID-19 viral pneumonia confirmed by several hospitals were retrospectively collected, the imaging performance was evaluated and recorded, different imaging features were statistically analyzed, and a prediction model and independent predicted imaging features were obtained by multivariable analysis.COVID-19 was more likely than non-COVID-19 pneumonia to have a high-grade ground glass opacities (P = .01), extensive lesion distribution (P < .001), mixed lesions of varying sizes (27.7% vs 57.0%, P = .001), subpleural prominence (23.4% vs 86.7%, P < .001), and lower lobe prominence (48.9% vs 82.0%, P < .001). However, peribronchial interstitial thickening was more likely to occur in non-COVID-19 viral pneumonia (36.2% vs 19.5%, P = .022). The statistically significant differences from multivariable analysis were the degree of ground glass opacities (P = .001), lesion distribution (P = .045), lesion size (P = .020), subpleural prominence (P < .001), and lower lobe prominence (P = .041). The sensitivity and specificity of the model were 94.5% and 76.6%, respectively, with an AUC of 0.91.The imaging characteristics of COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 viral pneumonia are different, and the prediction model can further improve the specificity of chest CT diagnosis.