ABSTRACT
Perioperative pain management for thoracic surgery plays a vital role in recovery and improved outcomes. In this retrospective study we compare three different regional anesthesia techniques utilized at one institute to provide postoperative analgesia for thoracic surgery. Continuous thoracic epidural analgesia (TEA), thoracic paravertebral block (PVB) and erector spinae plane (ESP) block are compared for postoperative pain management, opioid requirements, postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV), respiratory events and length of stay. In this study, pairwise comparisons were also performed among the regional techniques with respect to mentioned outcomes.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Ultrasound-guided regional anesthesia is increasingly used in the perioperative period but performance requires a mastery of regional ultrasound anatomy. We aimed to study whether the use of generative retrieval to learn ultrasound anatomy would improve long-term recall. METHODS: Fourth-year medical students without prior training in ultrasound techniques were randomized into standard practice (SP) and generative retrieval (GR) groups. An initial pre-test consisted of 74 regional anesthesia ultrasound images testing common anatomic structures. During the study/learning session, GR participants were required to verbally identify an unlabeled anatomical structure within 10 seconds of the ultrasound image appearing on the screen. A labeled image of the structure was then shown to the GR participant for 5 seconds. SP participants viewed the same ultrasound images labeled with the correct anatomical structure for 15 seconds. Retention was tested at 1 week and 1 month following the study session. Participants completed a satisfaction survey after each session. RESULTS: Forty-five medical students were enrolled with forty included in the analysis. There was no statistically significant difference in baseline scores (GR = 11.5 ± 4.9; SP = 11.2 ± 6.2; P = 0.84). There was no difference in scores at both the 1-week (SP = 54.5 ± 13.3; GR = 53.9 ± 10.5; P = 0.88) and 1-month (SP = 54.0 ± 14.5; GR = 50.7 ± 11.1; P = 0.42) time points. There was no statistically significant difference in learner satisfaction metrics between the groups. CONCLUSIONS: The use of generative retrieval practice to learn regional anesthesia ultrasound anatomy did not yield significant differences in learning and retention compared with standard learning.
ABSTRACT
The objective of this study was to determine the extent to which a low level of trans-10, cis-12 (10,12) conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) decreases adiposity and increases browning in overweight mice, its dependence on inflammatory signaling and potential synergistic effects of daily exercise. Young, Sv129 male mice were fed a high-fat diet for 5 weeks to make them fat and glucose intolerant and then switch them to a low-fat diet with or without 0.1% 10,12 CLA, sodium salicylate or exercise for another 7 weeks. 10,12 CLA decreased white adipose tissue (WAT) and brown adipose tissue mass, and increased the messenger RNA and protein levels, and activities of enzymes associated with thermogenesis or fatty acid oxidation in WAT. Mice fed 10,12 CLA had lower body temperatures compared to controls during cold exposure, which coincided with decreased adiposity. Although sodium salicylate decreased 10,12 CLA-mediated increases in markers of inflammation in WAT, it did not affect other outcomes. Exercise had no further effect on the outcomes measured. Collectively, these data indicate that 10,12 CLA-mediated reduction of adiposity is independent of inflammatory signaling, and possibly due to up-regulation of fatty acid oxidation and heat production in order to regulate body temperature. Although this low level of 10,12 CLA reduced adiposity in overweight mice, hepatomegaly and inflammation are major health concerns.
