Immunization with an mRNA DTP vaccine protects against pertussis in rats.

Bordetella pertussis is a Gram-negative bacterium that is the causative agent of the respiratory disease known as pertussis. Since the switch to the acellular vaccines of DTaP and Tap, pertussis cases in the US have risen and cyclically fallen. We have observed that mRNA pertussis vaccines are immunogenic and protective in mice. Here, we further evaluated the pertussis toxoid mRNA antigen and refined the formulation based on optimal pertussis toxin neutralization in vivo. We next evaluated the mRNA pertussis vaccine in Sprague-Dawley rats using an aerosol B. pertussis challenge model paired with whole-body plethysmography to monitor coughing and respiratory function. Female Sprague-Dawley rats were primed and boosted with either commercially available vaccines (DTaP or wP-DTP), an mRNA-DTP vaccine, or mock-vaccinated. The mRNA-DTP vaccine was immunogenic in rats and induced antigen-specific IgG antibodies comparable to DTaP. Rats were then aerosol challenged with a streptomycin-resistant emerging clinical isolate D420Sm1. Bacterial burden was assessed at days 1 and 9 post-challenge, and the mRNA vaccine reduced burden equal to both DTaP and wP-DTP. Whole-body plethysmography revealed that mRNA-DTP vaccinated rats were well protected against coughing which was comparable to the non-challenged group. These data suggest that an mRNA-DTP vaccine is immunogenic in rats and provides protection against aerosolized B. pertussis challenge in Sprague-Dawley rats.

On the efficacy of facial masks to suppress the spreading of pathogen-carrying saliva particles during human respiratory events: Insights gained via high-fidelity numerical modeling.

Respiratory fluid dynamics is integral to comprehending the transmission of infectious diseases and the effectiveness of interventions such as face masks and social distancing. In this research, we present our recent studies that investigate respiratory particle transport via high-fidelity large eddy simulation coupled with the Lagrangian particle tracking method. Based on our numerical simulation results for human respiratory events with and without face masks, we demonstrate that facial masks could significantly suppress particle spreading. The studied respiratory events include coughing and normal breathing through mouth and nose. Using the Lagrangian particle tracking simulation results, we elucidated the transport pathways of saliva particles during inhalation and exhalation of breathing cycles, contributing to our understanding of respiratory physiology and potential disease transmission routes. Our findings underscore the importance of respiratory fluid dynamics research in informing public health strategies to reduce the spread of respiratory infections. Combining advanced mathematical modeling techniques with experimental data will help future research on airborne disease transmission dynamics and the effectiveness of preventive measures such as face masks.

Efficacy of intratracheal dexmedetomidine on recovery from general anaesthesia in paediatric patients undergoing lower abdominal surgeries: A randomised controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: This study investigated the effectiveness of intratracheal dexmedetomidine in reducing untoward laryngeal responses in paediatrics undergoing lower abdominal surgeries. METHODS: This trial included 60 patients divided into two groups scheduled for lower abdominal surgeries. Group D were given intratracheal dexmedetomidine at a dosage of 0.5mg/kg, while Group C received intratracheal saline (0.9%). The cough severity score, the Paediatric Objective Pain Scale for pain assessment, awareness, extubation, emergence agitation score, Ramsay sedation score and adverse effects were recorded. RESULTS: There was a significant difference in the incidence of coughing severity between Groups D and C both at extubation and after five minutes of extubation (p < 0.001). The median scores of the Paediatric Objective Pain Scales and the median agitation scales of Group D were significantly lower over the first four hours (p < 0.050). The mean time to first request rescue analgesia was significantly longer in the D group than in the control group (p < 0.001). The mean total consumption of rescue analgesia in the first 24 hours postoperatively was significantly lower in the dexmedetomidine group (p < 0.050). Awareness and extubation times were comparable in both groups, and none of the subjects reported any adverse effects. CONCLUSION: In the current study, lower abdominal surgery patients who received intratracheal dexmedetomidine at a dose of 0.5mg/kg 30 minutes before the completion of the procedure experienced smooth extubation and balanced anaesthetic recovery.

Matrix analysis for the identification of risk factors for choking and coughing while eating in disabled elderly individuals / 上海预防医学

ObjectiveTo identify factors related to the occurrence of choking and coughing while eating in the disabled elderly and conduct importance matrix analysis to provide a reference basis for controlling choking on food in the disabled elderly. MethodsA convenience sampling method was used to select 80 disabled elderly individuals in a hospital between October 2019 and April 2022 as the study population. The occurrence of choking and coughing while eating was recorded， and a questionnaire was administered to collect general information. Additionally， assessments were conducted using the intelligent mental status examination scale （MMSE）， oral health checklist （BOHSE）， eating assessment tool⁃10 （EAT-10）， and chewing function evaluations. Univariate and multifactorial analyses were conducted to analyze the influencing factors of choking and coughing while eating in the elderly with disabilities. ResultsThe incidence of choking and coughing while eating was 52.50% （42/80） among the 80 disabled elderly. The degree of disability （OR=2.895， 95%CI： 1.352‒6.201）， age （OR=4.040， 95%CI： 1.121‒14.562）， BOHSE score （OR=2.473， 95%CI： 1.002‒6.102）， EAT-10 score （OR=5.345， 95%CI： 2.112‒13.527）， and chewing function score （OR=3.453， 95%CI： 1.247‒9.562） were identified as risk factors for choking and coughing while eating in the disabled elderly. The MMSE score （OR=0.343， 95%CI： 0.135‒0.869） was identified as a protective factor. The importance matrix analysis indicated that EAT-10 score， MMSE score， and chewing function had high importance with slightly lower difficulty in improvement， and were thus listed as items in the priority improvement area. Age and degree of disability had high importance and high difficulty in improvement， and therefore belonged to the suboptimal improvement area. BOHS score was slightly lower both in importance and difficulty of improvement， entering the alternative improvement area. ConclusionAge， degree of disability， BOHSE score， EAT-10 score， and chewing function score are risk factors for the occurrence of choking and coughing while eating， while the MMSE score is a protective factor. The importance matrix analysis can provide a basis for targeted intervention in clinical practice.

Effects of body postures on respiratory muscle force and coughing in healthy people.

The respiratory muscle force determines the intensity of cough force. A greater cough force for cleaning the airways is essential for preventing and managing pneumonia. Body posture can affect the onset of aspiration pneumonia. However, the effects of body posture on the respiratory muscle and cough forces remain unclear. Thus, we aimed to explore the influence of the four body postures on respiratory muscle force, cough pressure, subjective ease of coughing, and pulmonary function in healthy individuals. Twenty healthy individuals were included in this study. Body postures were 0-degree supine, 30- and 60-degree semi-recumbent, and 90-degree sitting. The maximal inspiratory and expiratory pressures, maximal cough pressure, subjective ease of coughing, and pulmonary function, including peak expiratory flow, were evaluated. We set the measured values in the supine posture to 100% and showed the relative values. The 60-degree posture showed stronger inspiratory (125.1 ± 3.9%, mean ± standard error [SE]) and expiratory (116.4 ± 3.0%) muscle force, cough pressure, more subjective ease of coughing, and greater peak expiratory flow (113.4 ± 3.0%) than the supine posture. The sitting posture also showed greater inspiratory muscle force and peak expiratory flow than the supine posture. The correlation coefficient for the 60-degree posture showed that the maximal inspiratory pressure was moderately correlated with the maximal expiratory pressure (r = 0.512), cough pressure (r = 0.495), and peak expiratory flow (r = 0.558). The above findings suggest the advantage of keeping a 60-degree posture and avoiding the supine posture to generate a greater cough force in the prevention and management of pneumonia.

The Effect of Breathing and Coughing Exercises and Oxygen Therapy on Shoulder Pain and Analgesic Consumption After Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy: A Randomized Controlled Study.

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to determine the effect of breathing and coughing exercises and oxygen therapy on shoulder pain and analgesic consumption after laparoscopic cholecystectomy. DESIGN: A randomized controlled intervention study. METHODS: The sample included 105 patients who underwent elective laparoscopic cholecystectomy at the general surgery clinic of a tertiary center. Breathing and coughing exercises were applied to groups 1 and 2 of the intervention group, from the fourth hour after surgery. In addition, 2 liters per minute O2 treatment was applied to group 2 during the first hour after surgery, while the control group did not recieve the interventions. FINDINGS: After surgery, a statistically significant difference was found in favor of the intervention groups in pain levels at the 12th hour (P < .05). There was a negative and statistically significant difference between pain levels and SpO2 values in all groups (P < .05). Non-opioids were consumed in lower amounts in the intervention groups (P > .05), while opioids were consumed only in the control group. CONCLUSIONS: Breathing and coughing exercises and oxygen therapy after laparoscopic cholecystectomy reduced shoulder pain and the amount of analgesic consumption.

Efecto de la técnica de la tos durante la inyección subcutánea de heparina sobre la severidad del dolor y la satisfacción individual / Effect of the coughing technique during subcutaneous heparin injection on pain severity and individual satisfaction / Efeito da técnica de tosse durante injeção subcutânea de heparina na intensidade da dor e satisfação individual

Objetivo: examinar el efecto de la técnica de tos de mediana intensidad durante la inyección subcutánea de heparina de bajo peso molecular sobre la severidad del dolor y la satisfacción individual en pacientes de cirugía general. Método: estudio prospectivo, cuasi experimental, que incluyó a 100 pacientes a los que se les prescribió una inyección subcutánea de heparina de bajo peso molecular una vez cada 24 horas. Cada paciente recibió dos inyecciones por el mismo investigador utilizando técnica de inyección estándar con técnica de tos de intensidad media y solo técnica de inyección estándar. Resultados: hubo una diferencia estadísticamente significativa entre las puntuaciones medias de los pacientes sobre la intensidad del dolor y los niveles de satisfacción después de las inyecciones administradas por las dos técnicas (p= 0,000). Además, se encontró que el género afectó la severidad del dolor relacionado con la inyección, pero no afectó el nivel de satisfacción individual. Conclusión: se encontró que la técnica de tos de intensidad media reduce la severidad del dolor y aumenta la satisfacción del paciente de cirugía general que reciben inyecciones subcutáneas de heparina de bajo peso molecular. Registro del ensayo: NCT05681338.

Objective: to examine the effect of the medium intensity coughing technique during subcutaneous low molecular weight heparin injection on pain severity and individual satisfaction in general surgery patients. Method: the prospective, quasi-experimental study included 100 patients who had been prescribed a subcutaneous low molecular weight heparin injection once in 24 hours. Each patient received two injections by the same researcher, one using the standard injection technique with medium intensity coughing technique and the other only the standard injection technique. Results: there was a statistically significant difference between patients' mean scores on pain severity and satisfaction levels after injections administered by the two techniques (p= 0.000). Also, it was found that gender affected pain severity relating to the injection but did not affect the level of individual satisfaction. Conclusion: the medium intensity coughing technique was found to reduce pain severity and increase patient satisfaction in general surgery patients receiving subcutaneous low molecular weight heparin injections. Trial registration: NCT05681338.

Objetivo: examinar o efeito da técnica de tosse de média intensidade durante injeção subcutânea de heparina de baixo peso molecular na intensidade da dor e satisfação individual em pacientes submetidos à cirurgia geral. Método: estudo prospetivo, quasi experimental que incluiu 100 pacientes que haviam recebido uma injeção subcutânea de heparina de baixo peso molecular em 24 horas. Cada paciente recebeu duas injeções pelo mesmo pesquisador usando a técnica de injeção padrão com técnica de tosse de média intensidade e apenas técnica de injeção padrão. Resultados: houve diferença estatisticamente significativa entre as pontuações médias dos pacientes quanto à gravidade da dor e níveis de satisfação após as injeções administradas pelas duas técnicas (p = 0,000). Além disso, verificou-se que o sexo do paciente afetou a intensidade da dor relacionada à injeção, mas não afetou o nível de satisfação individual. Conclusão: a técnica de tosse de média intensidade reduz a intensidade da dor e aumenta a satisfação de pacientes submetidos à cirurgia geral recebendo injeções subcutâneas de heparina de baixo peso molecular. Registro do ensaio clínico: NCT05681338.

Knowledge and awareness of warning signs about Lung cancer among Pharmacy and Nursing undergraduates in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia - an observational study.

Background: Cancer is becoming more common, regardless of gender or type. Cancer was determined to be the leading cause of death, with lung cancer (LC) patients having the highest rate of cancer-related deaths. The purpose of this study was to analyze undergraduates' knowledge and awareness of LC early warning signs in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Methods: Between May and September 2022, a cross-sectional, prospective paper-based survey-type study was conducted among undergraduates (n=202) from the faculty of pharmacy and nursing at King Saud University (KSU) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The data was gathered from third and fourth-year undergraduates. The statistical package for social science (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, U.S.) was used to perform the analysis. Results: The mean age of the undergraduates was 22.47 ± 2.35(SD) years. Most of them were from nursing 54% (n=109), while 46% (n=93) belonged to a pharmacy. In terms of awareness of warning signs of lung cancer, 48.6% of the students believed that unexplained weight loss, followed by persistent chest infection (36.6%) and cough that does not go away easily (37.6%). Over 45.1 % of students opted that coughing up blood, pain during the cough (46.5%), and worsening or change in an existing cough (42.1%) were reported as a sign of LC. In this study, the overall good awareness score was 60(29.7%). The awareness was significantly associated with gender (p = 0.0001), the course of study (p=0.018), the educational level (p = 0.003), smoking cigarettes (p = 0.003), and chronic disease status (p = 0.0001). Conclusion: Undergraduates attending university in this study indicated various levels of awareness of LC symptoms. The undergraduate's educational background, study program, and gender all greatly influence their level of awareness. It is necessary to inform future medical professionals about this growing condition.

High peak inspiratory pressure may be associated with intraoperative coughing during neurosurgery under general anesthesia without neuromuscular blockade: a retrospective study.

BACKGROUND: The endotracheal cuff pressure depends on the airway pressure during positive-pressure ventilation. A high endotracheal cuff pressure may be related to intraoperative coughing, which can be detrimental during neurosurgery. We investigated the incidence of intraoperative coughing and its association with peak inspiratory pressure (PIP) during neurosurgery under general anesthesia without neuromuscular blockade. METHODS: This retrospective study divided 1656 neurosurgical patients who underwent total intravenous anesthesia without additional neuromuscular blockade after tracheal intubation into high (PIP > 21.6 cmH2O, n = 318) and low (PIP ≤ 21.6 cmH2O, n = 1338) PIP groups. After propensity score matching, 206 patients were selected in each group. Demographic, preoperative, surgical, and anesthetic data were collected retrospectively from electronic medical records and continuous ventilator, infusion pump, and bispectral index data from a data registry. RESULTS: Intraoperative coughing occurred in 30 (1.8%) patients, including 9 (0.5%) during the main surgical procedure. Intraoperative coughing was more frequent in the high PIP group than in the low PIP group before (14/318 [4.4%] vs. 16/1338 [1.2%], P < 0.001) and after (13/206 [6.3%] vs. 1/206 [0.5%], P = 0.003) propensity score matching. In multivariable logistic regression analysis after propensity score matching, a high PIP (odds ratio [95% confidence interval] 14.22 [1.81-111.73], P = 0.012), tidal volume divided by predicted body weight (mL/kg, 1.36 [1.09-1.69], P = 0.006), and surgical duration (min, 1.01 [1.00-1.01], P = 0.025) predicted intraoperative coughing. CONCLUSION: The incidence of intraoperative coughing was 1.8% in neurosurgical patients undergoing general anesthesia without neuromuscular blockade and might be associated with a high PIP.

A rare case of drug sensitive adult-onset temporal lobe epilepsy due to a focal cortical dysplasia revealed by ictal coughing: First report in sub-Saharan Africa.

This case suggests that clinicians should consider seizures as a differential diagnosis of paroxystic cough with loss of consciousness. Focal cortical dysplasia should equally be screened for with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans even in adults with epilepsy in sub-Saharan Africa.

Comparison of Normal Saline and Alkalinized 2% Lignocaine to Reduce Emergence Phenomenon and Post-Intubation Morbidities: A Prospective, Double-Blind, Randomized Study.

BACKGROUND:  Endotracheal intubation for airway management in general anesthesia is associated with post-intubation morbidities due to tracheal mucosa injury caused by endotracheal tube (ETT) cuff. Nitrous oxide (N2O) diffuses into tracheal tube cuffs filled with air. The rate of diffusion of N2O through the membrane is proportional to its concentration gradient. High-volume low-pressure cuffs expand with only a slight increase in pressure until fully inflated. At this point, owing to the inelasticity of the material, the cuff pressure rises rapidly. This increased pressure can damage the tracheal mucosa. This phenomenon can be avoided, if we inflate the cuff with either a liquid or a gas mixture identical to the inspired gas and monitor the cuff pressure and volume at regular intervals. When lignocaine is used to inflate the ETT cuff, it diffuses to the underlying tracheal mucosa. Thus reducing local irritation and inflammation of the airway through its local anesthetic action. Alkalinization of lignocaine increases its rate of diffusion across the ETT cuff. It also reduces the dose of local anesthetic required to achieve the desired result. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES:  We sought to determine the benefits of filling the ETT cuff with alkalinized lignocaine 2% over normal saline, to prevent ETT-induced emergence phenomenon and reduce the incidence of post-intubation morbidities like sore throat, hoarseness, and nausea. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This prospective, randomized, double-blind, and comparative study was done at a multispecialty hospital. A total of 120 individuals of American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) physical status 1 and 2, posted for surgery under general anesthesia, were randomly selected and divided into two groups: alkalinized 2% lignocaine group (group L) and normal saline group (group S). After induction of general anesthesia, the airway was secured with appropriate-sized ETT. The ETT cuff was inflated with either of the study media. Continuous cuff pressure monitoring was done to keep cuff pressure below 30 centimeters of water (cm of H2O), at all times. At extubation, the response was evaluated in terms of percentage change in heart rate (HR) and blood pressure from baseline, coughing, bucking, and restlessness. All the surgeries lasted more than two hours. Post-operatively, the patients were evaluated for sore throat and hoarseness, at regular intervals of up to 24 hours. OBSERVATIONS AND RESULTS: ETT cuff pressure was initially less in group S, which rose to a significantly higher level at extubation, compared to group L (p <0.001). At extubation, there was a significant increase in HR and systolic blood pressure (SBP) from baseline, in group S than in group L (p <0.001 and p=0.001, respectively). The incidence of cough and restlessness was less in group L, compared to group S (p<0.001 and p=0.002, respectively). Mean extubation time and emergence time was more in group S than in group L (p<0.001). Post-operatively, the incidence and severity of sore throat were significantly higher in group S than in group L (p<0.001). Meanwhile, the incidence of hoarseness and nausea was comparable in the two groups. CONCLUSION:  Continuous ETT cuff pressure monitoring helps to keep cuff pressure below tracheal mucosa capillary occlusion pressure. Filling the ETT cuff with alkalinized lignocaine further reduces extubation response and post-intubation morbidities.

MSCCov19Net: multi-branch deep learning model for COVID-19 detection from cough sounds.

Coronavirus has an impact on millions of lives and has been added to the important pandemics that continue to affect with its variants. Since it is transmitted through the respiratory tract, it has had significant effects on public health and social relations. Isolating people who are COVID positive can minimize the transmission, therefore several exams are proposed to detect the virus such as reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), chest X-Ray, and computed tomography (CT). However, these methods suffer from either a low detection rate or high radiation dosage, along with being expensive. In this study, deep neural network-based model capable of detecting coronavirus from only coughing sound, which is fast, remotely operable and has no harmful side effects, has been proposed. The proposed multi-branch model takes M el Frequency Cepstral Coefficients (MFCC), S pectrogram, and C hromagram as inputs and is abbreviated as MSCCov19Net. The system is trained on publicly available crowdsourced datasets, and tested on two unseen (used only for testing) clinical and non-clinical datasets. Experimental outcomes represent that the proposed system outperforms the 6 popular deep learning architectures on four datasets by representing a better generalization ability. The proposed system has reached an accuracy of 61.5 % in Virufy and 90.4 % in NoCoCoDa for unseen test datasets.

Effect of the Inspiratory Method and Timing of Voluntary Cough on Peak Cough Flow.

OBJECTIVE: To define the effect of the inspiratory method and cough timing on peak cough flow (PCF). METHODS: We investigated the effect of measurement conditions on PCF in healthy subjects (n=10). We then compared obstructive and restrictive pulmonary diseases (n=20) to assess for similar results in respiratory diseases. The PCF was measured under four conditions: before coughing, without maneuver 1 or with maneuver 2 a temporary respiratory pause (4-6 seconds) after rapid inspiration, and without maneuver 3 or with maneuver 4 a temporary respiratory pause after slow inspiration. After the measurements were completed, the PCF between the four conditions was compared for each subject group, and the effect size was calculated. RESULTS: PCF of maneuvers 1 and 3 were significantly higher than maneuver 4 in healthy subjects (476.34±102.05 L/min and 463.44±107.14 L/min vs. 429.54±116.83 L/min, p<0.01 and p<0.05, respectively) and patients with restrictive pulmonary disease (381.96±145.31 L/min, 354.60±157.36 L/min vs. 296.94±137.49 L/min, p<0.01 and p<0.05, respectively). In obstructive pulmonary disease, maneuver 1 was significantly higher than maneuver 4 (327.42±154.73 L/min vs. 279.48±141.10 L/min, p<0.05). The largest effect sizes were shown by maneuvers 4 and 1. CONCLUSION: PCF depends on changes in inspiratory speed before coughing and on temporary respiratory pauses after maximal inspiration. It will become necessary to unify the measurement methods for coughing strength and present appropriate coughing methods.

Relationship between Early Childhood Caries and Prolonged Coughing Episodes in a Cohort of Cambodian Children.

Studies have shown an association between Early Childhood Caries (ECC) and respiratory infections; however, most have been cross-sectional, and all have been in high-income countries. Inverse probability treatment weighting (IPTW) was applied to longitudinal data from the Cambodia Health and Nutrition Monitoring Study. An analytical sample of 1703 Cambodian children between 1- and 4-years old was used to examine the effect of caries incidence (ECC Activity) on the odds of a child subsequently experiencing an episode of prolonged coughing (>14 days) over the subsequent 18 m. ECC activity occurred among 523 children (30.7%) while prolonged coughing was observed among 235 children (13.8%). ECC activity increased the risk of prolonged coughing (RR 1.23; 95% CI 0.95, 1.58; Average treatment effect = 3%). Follow-up investigations are justified in order to examine whether ECC may be a modifiable risk factor for prevention of respiratory illness among young children.

Comparison of dexmedetomidine and remifentanil on reducing coughing during emergence from anesthesia with tracheal intubation: A meta-analysis.

Background: Dexmedetomidine and remifentanil are well known to suppress airway reflex during emergence from anesthesia, but which one is more effective is unclear. We conducted a meta-analysis to compare the effect of dexmedetomidine and remifentanil on reducing the occurrence of coughing. Methods: We systematically searched PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library for randomized controlled trials (published between 1 January 1950, and 30 December 2021; no language restrictions) comparing dexmedetomidine infusion with remifentanil infusion. The primary endpoint was the incidence of moderate to severe coughing during the recovery period. The secondary endpoints were the time of recovery and extubation, and residual sedation. We assessed pooled data by using a random-effects model. Results: Eight studies with 502 participants were included. The meta-analysis showed no statistically difference between dexmedetomidine and remifentanil in the occurrence of moderate to severe coughing during emergence from anesthesia (OR 1.45,95%CI 0.62-3.38), the extubation time (MD 0.93 min, 95%CI -0.28-2.14), and the residual sedation (OR 2.52, 95%CI 0.92-6.91). Compared with dexmedetomidine, the average recovery time of remifentanil was shorter (MD 3.88 min, 95%CI 1.01-6.75). Conclusion: Dexmedetomidine and remifentanil infusion had no difference in the occurrence of moderate to severe coughing during emergence from anesthesia. Clinical Trial Registration: https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/, identifier CRD42021239710.

A novel deep learning model to detect COVID-19 based on wavelet features extracted from Mel-scale spectrogram of patients' cough and breathing sounds.

The goal of this paper is to classify the various cough and breath sounds of COVID-19 artefacts in the signals from dynamic real-life environments. The main reason for choosing cough and breath sounds than other common symptoms to detect COVID-19 patients from the comfort of their homes, so that they do not overload the Medicare system and therefore do not unwittingly spread the disease by regularly monitoring themselves. The presented model includes two main phases. The first phase is the sound-to-image transformation, which is improved by the Mel-scale spectrogram approach. The second phase consists of extraction of features and classification using nine deep transfer models (ResNet18/34/50/100/101, GoogLeNet, SqueezeNet, MobileNetv2, and NasNetmobile). The dataset contains information data from almost 1600 people (1185 Male and 415 Female) from all over the world. Our classification model is the most accurate, its accuracy is 99.2% according to the SGDM optimizer. The accuracy is good enough that a large set of labelled cough and breath data may be used to check the possibility for generalization. The results demonstrate that ResNet18 is the best stable model for classifying cough and breath tones from a restricted dataset, with a sensitivity of 98.3% and a specificity of 97.8%. Finally, the presented model is shown to be more trustworthy and accurate than any other present model. Cough and breath study accuracy is promising enough to put extrapolation and generalization to the test.

Dexmedetomidine infusion for emergence coughing prevention in patients undergoing an endovascular interventional procedure: A randomized dose-finding trial.

OBJECTIVE: Dexmedetomidine has been introduced in emergence coughing, agitation, and shivering prevention. This study aimed to investigate the optimal dose of dexmedetomidine for emergence cough prophylaxis. METHODS: In this randomized, double-blinded, and prospective trial, 356 patients scheduled for an endovascular interventional procedure were randomly assigned to 0.3 (D 0.3), 0.4 (D 0.4), 0.5 (D 0.5), and 0.6 (D 0.6) µg·kg-1·h-1 dexmedetomidine rate, or saline control (C), from anesthesia induction until the end of surgery. The primary outcomes measured were cough grade and frequency. Additionally, groups were compared according to mean arterial pressure (MAP), heart rate, agitation, shivering, postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV), extubation time, sedation scores, and postoperative first night sleep quality (secondary outcomes). RESULTS: A total of 351 patients were included in the analysis. The respective incidences of D 0.3, D 0.4, and D 0.5 versus C group were: 78.6%, 68.6%, 53.4% and 42.9% vs 89.7% for cough (p = 0.002, p < 0.001, and p < 0.001 between group D 0.4, D 0.5 and D 0.6 vs C, respectively); 30%, 27.1%, 20.5%, 15.7% vs 44.1% for agitation (p = 0.04, p = 0.003, and p < 0.001 between group D 0.4, D 0.5 and D 0.6 vs C, respectively); 8.6%, 7.1%, 6.8%, 5.7% vs 22.1% for shivering (p = 0.027, p = 0.013, p = 0.01, and p = 0.01 between D 0.3, D 0.4, D 0.5 and D 0.6 vs C, respectively); and 52.9%, 57.1%, 42.5%, 44.3% vs 61.8% for poor sleep quality (p = 0.02 and p = 0.04 between group D 0.5 and D 0.6 vs C, respectively). D 0.4, D 0.5 and D 0.6 showed lower MAP during extubation, compared with the C group. Also, D 0.5 and D 0.6 presented a slight delay in extubation (3.1 and 3.3 min longer than C; p = 0.002 and p < 0.001, respectively). Meanwhile, the frequency of atropine, vasopressor administration, PONV and dizziness were similar to the control. CONCLUSIONS: Both 0.5 and 0.6 µg·kg-1·h-1 dexmedetomidine infusion rates effectively mitigated emergence coughing with prolonged extubation time, besides sleep disturbance. D 0.4, D 0.5, and D 0.6 reduced agitation and sustained hemodynamic stability. Finally, the four doses applied were effective in shivering attenuation.