A prediction model for difficult intubation using skeletal features in patients affected by apnea-hypopnea syndrome.

BACKGROUND: Obstructive sleep apnea-hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS) has been linked to increased risk of perioperative morbidity and mortality because of difficult intubation (DI). However, there is a lack of clinically validated tools to identify OSAHS patients who are likely to have an increased the risk of DI. METHODS: For model development, a prospective cohort study included patients with OSAHS who underwent elective surgery between September 2018 to December 2020. The outcome was DI and classified according to the Cormack-Lehane grading. Conventional airway assessment tests, skeletal features, and the severity of OSAHS were recorded, and LASSO regression was used. Validation was performed on an external sample of patients from the same hospital between January 2021 and December 2021. RESULTS: The development (prevalence of DI: 44%) and validation cohorts (prevalence of DI: 32%) included 247 and 82 patients, respectively. Based on the result of LASSO, age and four skeletal features (thyromental height, maximum mandibular protrusion, mandibulohyoid distance, and neck hypokinesis grade) were included in the final model. Discrimination and calibration of the model were satisfactory with high AUC (0.97), sensitivity (88.5%), specificity (94.6%), accuracy (92.7%), PPV (88.5%) and NPV (94.6%) from external validation. CONCLUSIONS: Our study developed and externally validated a DI prediction model using skeletal features in OSAHS patients. The final model had an NPV of nearly 95%, suggesting that a simple nomogram including only five predictors was quite helpful for ruling out the presence of difficult intubation in OSAHS patients who underwent elective surgery.

Age-related changes in the risk of high blood pressure.

Background and aims: Understanding the age-related trend of risk in high blood pressure (BP) is important for preventing heart failure and cardiovascular diseases. But such a trend is still underexplored. This study aims to (a) depict the relationship of BP patterns with age, and (b) understand the trend of high BP prevalence over time in different age groups. Materials and methods: Health check-up data with an observational period of 8 years (January 1, 2011, to December 31, 2018) was used as the data source. A total of 71,468 participants aged over 18 years old with complete information on weight, height, age, gender, glucose, triglyceride, total cholesterol, systolic (SBP), and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) were included for analysis. Generalized additive models were adopted to explore the relationship between the risk of high BP and age. Variance analysis was conducted by testing the trend of high BP prevalence in age groups over time. Results: Risk of high SBP showed a continuous rise from age 35 to 79 years and a concurrent early increase in the risk of high DBP; after age 50-65 years, high DBP risk declined. The risk of SBP rises linearly with age for men, whereas increases non-linearly for women. In addition, a significant increasing trend of high SBP risk among middle-aged people was found during the past decade, men experienced a later but longer period of increase in high SBP than women. Conclusion: The high SBP risk progresses more rapidly in the early lifetime in women, compared to the lifetime thereafter. Thresholds of increasing trend of SBP suggest a possible need for hypertension screening in China after the age of 40.

Local infiltration vs epidural analgesia for postoperative pain control after total knee or hip arthroplasty: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

BACKGROUND: Inconsistent results have been obtained regarding postoperative pain control using local infiltration and epidural analgesia for patients after total knee or hip arthroplasty (TKA and THA). We therefore conducted a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) to assess the efficacy and safety of local infiltration vs epidural analgesia for TKA and THA. METHODS: Electronic searches were conducted on PubMed, EmBase, and the Cochrane library to identify eligible RCTs conducted up to February 2020. Weighted mean difference (WMD) and relative risk with 95% confidence interval (95%CI) were applied to calculate pooled effect estimates between local infiltration and epidural analgesia using the random-effects model. RESULTS: Seven RCTs including a total of 412 TKA patients, and three RCTs including a total of 200 THA patients were selected for this meta-analysis. We noted that local infiltration was associated with lower visual analog scale (VAS) scores at rest after 48 hours (WMD: -1.31; 95%CI: -2.44 to -0.18; P = .024) and 72 hours (WMD: -0.95; 95%CI: -1.39 to -0.52; P < .001) for patients with TKA, while local infiltration significantly reduced VAS scores at rest after 12 hours for patients with THA (WMD: -1.00; 95%CI: -1.49 to -0.51; P < .001). Moreover, local infiltration was associated with lower VAS scores during movement after 48 hours in TKA patients (WMD: -1.08; 95%CI: -1.86 to -0.29; P = .007), while there were higher VAS scores during movement after 24 hours for patients with THA (WMD: 1.06; 95%CI: 0.67 to 1.45; P < .001). Furthermore, we noted that local infiltration was associated with higher flexion angles compared with epidural analgesia after 24 hours (WMD: 7.11; 95%CI: 2.30-11.93; P = .004), 48 hours (WMD: 6.69; 95%CI: 3.78 to 9.59; P < .001), and 72 hours (WMD: 5.19; 95%CI: 0.95-9.44; P = .016). There were no significant differences between local infiltration and epidural analgesia for the length of hospital stay, nausea, or wound infection. CONCLUSIONS: Local infiltration is superior to epidural analgesia for postoperative pain control after TKA, whereas for THA patients inconsistent results were obtained at various times.

Early Acute Kidney Injury Associated with Liver Transplantation: A Retrospective Case-Control Study.

BACKGROUND A retrospective case-control study was carried out to assess the occurrence of acute kidney injury (AKI) in liver transplantation (LT) recipients and its related risk factors. MATERIAL AND METHODS The study enrolled 131 patients undergoing LT from December 2017 to June 2019 at Beijing Tsinghua Chang Gung Hospital, China. AKI and its classification were defined according to KDIGO guidelines. We collected patients' demographic characteristics and perioperative parameters, and identified independent risk factors of AKI by multivariate logistic regression analysis. RESULTS We included 122 patients in analysis. AKI occurred in 52 (42.6%) patients (22.1% stage I, 8.2% stage II, and 12.3% stage III). AKI was notably associated with 12 factors: sex, body mass index (BMI), hepatic etiology, MELD score, ascites, prothrombin time (PT), international normalized ratio of prothrombin time (INR), preoperative total bilirubin (TBIL), operative time, total fluid intake, fresh frozen plasma (FFP), and estimated blood loss (EBL) (P<0.05). The factors independently associated with AKI were BMI (adjusted odds ratio: 0.605, 95% confidence interval: 0.425-0.859; P=0.005) and intraoperative FFP infusion (adjusted odds ratio: 0.998, 95% confidence interval: 0.995-1.000; P=0.047). Compared with the non-AKI group, the AKI group showed higher likelihood of renal replacement therapy (RRT), and longer ICU and hospital stays, higher in-hospital mortality, and higher hospitalization costs (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS There is a high risk of AKI in patients undergoing LT. BMI and intraoperative FFP infusion are factors independently correlated with AKI. AKI can result in extended hospital stays and higher hospitalization expenses.

Intermittent epidural bolus versus continuous epidural infusions for labor analgesia: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

There are inconsistent results regarding the efficacy and safety of intermittent epidural bolus (IPB) versus continuous epidural infusions (CPI) for labor analgesia. This study used a meta-analytic approach to assess the safety and treatment efficacy of IPB versus CPI for labor analgesia based on randomized controlled trials (RCTs). Four electronic databases were used to identify eligible RCTs. Pooled effect estimates at 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated using a random-effects model. Twenty-two RCTs with 2,573 parturients were selected for final analysis. The findings revealed no significant differences between IPB and CPI for the incidences of cesarean and instrumental delivery. IPB was shown to be associated with shorter total duration of labor [weighted mean difference (WMD): -21.46; 95% CI: -25.07 to -17.85; P < 0.001], duration of the first of stage of labor (WMD: -13.41; 95% CI: -21.01 to -5.81; P = 0.001), and duration of the second stage of labor (WMD: -4.98; 95% CI: -9.32 to -0.63; P = 0.025). Furthermore, IPB significantly reduced the incidences of required anesthetic interventions compared with CPI [relative risk (RR): 0.61; 95% CI: 0.39-0.95; P = 0.030], whereas there was no significant difference between IPB and CPI for the time required in the first anesthetic intervention (WMD: 7.73; 95% CI: -33.68-49.15; P = 0.714). The local anesthetic IPB (bupivacaine equivalents) was associated with lower milligrams per hour of local anesthetic (WMD: -0.89; 95% CI: -1.41 to -0.36; P = 0.001) and better maternal satisfaction (WMD: 8.76; 95% CI: 4.18-13.35; P < 0.001). There were no significant differences between IPB and CPI for the risk of adverse events. This study found that parturients with IPB have short total duration of labor and duration of the first and second stage of labor, reduced requirements for additional anesthetic interventions, and improved maternal satisfaction.

Dexmedetomidine Attenuates Glutamate-Induced Cytotoxicity by Inhibiting the Mitochondrial-Mediated Apoptotic Pathway.

BACKGROUND Glutamate (GLU) is the most excitatory amino acid in the central nervous system and plays an important role in maintaining the normal function of the nervous system. During cerebral ischemia, massive release of GLU leads to neuronal necrosis and apoptosis. It has been reported that dexmedetomidine (DEX) possesses anti-oxidant and anti-apoptotic properties. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of DEX on GLU-induced neurotoxicity in PC12 cells. MATERIAL AND METHODS PC12 cells were treated with 20 mM GLU to establish an ischemia-induced injury model. Cell viability was accessed by MTT assay. MDA content and SOD activity were analyzed by assay kits. Apoptosis rate, ROS production, intracellular Ca²âº concentration, and MMP were evaluated by flow cytometry. Western blot analysis was performed to analyze expressions of caspase-3, caspase-9, cyt-c, bax, and bcl-2. RESULTS PC12 cells treated with GLU exhibited reduced cell viability and increased apoptosis rates, which were ameliorated by pretreatment with DEX. DEX significantly increased SOD activity, reduced content of MDA, and decreased production of ROS in PC12 cells. In addition, DEX clearly reduced the level of intracellular Ca²âº and attenuated the decline of MMP. Moreover, DEX notably reduced expressions of caspase-3, caspase-9, cyt-c, and bax and increased expression of bcl-2. CONCLUSIONS Our findings suggest that DEX can protect PC12 cells against GLU-induced cytotoxicity, which may be attributed to its anti-oxidative property and reduction of intracellular calcium overload, as well as its ability to inhibit the mitochondria-mediated apoptotic pathway.

Clinical study of ultrasound-guided transversus abdominis plane block for analgesia after cesarean section.

BACKGROUND: Patient-controlled intravenous analgesia (PCIA) and patient-controlled epidural analgesia are 2 common methods of maintaining analgesia after cesarean section. In recent years, transversus abdominis plane block (TAPB) has been gradually applied clinically to reduce opioid analgesics and has achieved good results. Therefore, we performed this study to compare the efficacy and side effects of TAPB and PCIA in analgesia after cesarean section. METHODS: One hundred patients who underwent cesarean section were randomly classified into 2 groups. Following surgery, one group underwent ultrasound-guided TAPB and the other group underwent PCIA. Pain intensity according to the visual analog scale (VAS; 0 for no pain and 10 for severe intolerable pain) was assessed at 2, 4, 6, 8, 12, and 24-hour postsurgery in both groups. The postoperative complication rate and patient satisfaction were also measured. RESULTS: No significant differences were found in the VAS scores between the groups (P > .05). However, the incidence of postoperative complications in the TAPB group was significantly lower than that in the PCIA group (P < .05). Furthermore, patient satisfaction in the TAPB group was significantly higher than that in the PCIA group (P < .05). CONCLUSION: This study demonstrated that ultrasound-guided TAPB can achieve the same analgesic effect as PCIA after cesarean section but with even higher patient satisfaction.

[Anesthetic effects of repeated dosing with propofol and vitamin C in mice].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the anesthetic effects of repeated administration of propofol combined with vitamin C in mice. METHODS: Forty mice were subjected to daily intraperitoneal injections of 80 mg/kg propofol (P80 group), 70 mg/kg propofol and 50 mg/kg vitamin C (P70+Vc50 group), 55 mg/kg propofol and 100 mg/kg vitamin C (P55+Vc100 group), or 50 mg/kg propofol and 200 mg/kg vitamin C (P50+Vc200 group) for 6 consecutive days, and the anesthesia induction time and anesthesia duration were recorded. RESULTS: Compared with the P80 group, the mice in P55 + Vc100 group and P50 + Vc200 group showed significantly shorter anesthesia duration on the first 3 days (P<0.05). In all the groups, anesthesia duration was significantly shortened in the following days compared with that on day 1 (P<0.01); anesthesia duration was shorter on day 3 than on day 2 in P50 + Vc200 group (P<0.01), and was shorter on days 4, 5, and 6 than on day 2 in all the groups (P<0.01). In all the groups, the rate of loss of righting reflex (LORR) decreased gradually with time in a similar pattern. CONCLUSION: Vitamin C can reduce the dose of propofol without obviously affecting the anesthetic effect to reduce the incidence of drug tolerance and potential dose-related side effects of propofol.