Pre-operative prevalence of asymptomatic carriers of COVID-19 in hospitals in Catalonia during the first wave after the resumption of surgical activity.

INTRODUCTION: The COVID-19 pandemic led to the cancellation of non-essential surgical procedures in March 2020. With the resumption of surgical activity, patients undergoing surgery were one of the first population groups to be systematically tested for PCR. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 carriers after the resumption of non-essential surgical activity. METHODS: Retrospective multicenter observational study of patients scheduled for surgery or undergoing emergency surgery in Catalonia between 20 April and 31 May 2020. The microbiological results of preoperative PCR tests and clinical records were reviewed, and an epidemiological survey was conducted on patients with positive PCR for SARS-CoV-2. RESULTS: A total of 10,838 patients scheduled for surgery or who underwent emergency surgery were screened for COVID-19. One hundred and eighteen patients (1.09%) were positive for SARS-CoV-2 in the 72 h prior to surgery. The prevalence of asymptomatic carriers was 0.7% (IC95%: 0.6%-0.9%). The first week of the study presented the highest prevalence of asymptomatic carriers [1.9% (CI95%:1.1%-3.2%)]. CONCLUSIONS: The low levels of asymptomatic carriers of COVID-19 infection obtained in the surgical population of hospitals in Catalonia after the resumption of surgical activity, shows that most patients were able to undergo surgical procedures without the risks of COVID-19 associated complications in the perioperative period.

Avoid Postoperative Pain To Prevent Its Chronification: A Narrative Review.

Acute postoperative pain is a normal and expected part of the patient's postsurgical trajectory, and its intensity, severity, and duration vary with surgery-related and patient factors. In a subset of patients, postoperative pain does not resolve as the tissue heals but instead transitions to chronic postoperative pain, a challenging condition to treat and one associated with decreased quality of life, sleep and mood disorders, and neuropathy. Promptly and adequately treating acute postoperative pain can reduce the risk that it will transition into chronic postoperative pain. Numerous agents are available that may help treat postoperative pain, including nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, opioids, antidepressants, anticonvulsants, and others. In this connection, it is also important to consider patient factors, such as mental health status and comorbidities, as well as the type and duration of surgery. A multimodal approach is recommended, which uses two or more agents with complementary mechanisms of action, working at different targets. Multimodal analgesia may also reduce adverse events and lessen opioid consumption after surgery. A particularly useful fixed-dose combination product is dexketoprofen/tramadol (DEX-TRA), which is safe and effective in numerous clinical trials. This review is based on a presentation from the Roma Pain Days scientific sessions of 2021.

The Patient-Centered Approach in Rheumatologic Painful Diseases: A Narrative Review.

A patient-centric approach to pain control represents a paradigm shift in analgesia and one that is both easy to endorse but challenging to execute. As pain mechanisms become increasingly elucidated, the understanding of pain has changed to encompass its complexities. Multiple types and mechanisms of pain have been described, and pain must be seen through the subjective experience of the patient. Earlier descriptions of pain based on intensity are one-dimensional and do not fully encompass the experience of pain. Thus, treating rheumatology patients or any patient in pain requires an understanding of the primary or secondary nature of the pain, underlying conditions, and patient factors such as anxiety, depression, fearfulness, and catastrophizing, all of which can shape and change the nature of the pain. Further, it is important to manage patient expectations concerning chronic pain as complete pain relief may not be possible, but a Patient Acceptable Symptomatic State (PASS) may serve. Functional goals are often more meaningful to patients than pain scores. Pharmacologic therapy for pain must consider side effects as well as analgesia. Patient-centered pain control requires a focus on wellness and disease prevention, personalized care plans, education, support for self-care, and may involve coordination across disciplines to help the patient meet personally meaningful objectives. While patient-centric care has become a buzzword in modern medicine, it is extremely relevant and may be very beneficial to pain patients.

Delivery of Multimodal Analgesia to Effectively Treat Acute Pain: A Review From Roma Pain Days.

It is crucial that acute pain be promptly and adequately treated in order to prevent it from transitioning to chronic pain, a devastating and sometimes permanent condition that is challenging to treat and associated with disability, reduced quality of life, and depression. Guidelines for the treatment of acute low-back pain (LBP) are predicated on assumptions that all acute LBP is benign, temporary, and traditionally treated with a "wait and see" approach. LBP is far from a monolithic condition: etiology, the presence of underlying conditions, mental health status, social situation, patient's age and occupation, and comorbidities all present different risk factors for chronic LBP that should be considered in treating acute LBP or other forms of acute pain. A multimodal approach to acute pain has been shown to be safe and effective. In particular, the combination product of oral dexketoprofen and tramadol has been shown effective in controlling acute pain, which spares the use of opioids and is well tolerated. Chronic pain must be viewed as a global health crisis, and the timely and adequate control of acute painful conditions is a good strategy to reduce its prevalence. Experts at Roma Pain Days discussed this important topic which is the foundation of this review.

Pre-operative prevalence of asymptomatic carriers of COVID-19 in hospitals in Catalonia during the first wave after the resumption of surgical activity. / Prevalencia preoperatoria de portadores asintomáticos de COVID-19 en hospitales de Cataluña durante la primera ola tras el reinicio de la actividad quirúrgica.

INTRODUCTION: The COVID-19 pandemic led to the cancellation of non-essential surgical procedures in March 2020. With the resumption of surgical activity, patients undergoing surgery were one of the first population groups to be systematically tested for PCR. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 carriers after the resumption of non-essential surgical activity. METHODS: Retrospective multicenter observational study of patients scheduled for surgery or undergoing emergency surgery in Catalonia between 20 April and 31 May 2020. The microbiological results of preoperative PCR tests and clinical records were reviewed, and an epidemiological survey was conducted on patients with positive PCR for SARS-CoV-2. RESULTS: A total of 10,838 patients scheduled for surgery or who underwent emergency surgery were screened for COVID-19. One hundred and eighteen patients (1.09%) were positive for SARS-CoV-2 in the 72hours prior to surgery. The prevalence of asymptomatic carriers was 0.7% (95%CI: 0.6% - 0.9%). The first week of the study presented the highest prevalence of asymptomatic carriers [1.9% (95%CI: 1.1%-3.2%)]. CONCLUSIONS: The low levels of asymptomatic carriers of COVID-19 infection obtained in the surgical population of hospitals in Catalonia after the resumption of surgical activity, shows that most patients were able to undergo surgical procedures without the risks of COVID-19 associated complications in the perioperative period.

Las Unidades del Dolor en la era COVID-19 / The Pain Units in the COVID-19 era

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