Irish journal of medical science
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The national early warning score (NEWS) was developed to detect the early signs of patient deterioration with a view to instituting higher levels of care. There is a concern about the sensitivity of the NEWS score in patients with chronic hypoxaemic conditions. ⋯ In medical patients admitted to a Model 2 hospital with chronic respiratory illness, the 'respiratory variables' of the NEWS score are poor discriminators of patients who are clinically deteriorating. Better tools (such as the CREWS score) are required to distinguish acutely ill from chronically ill patients with respiratory disease in Model 2 hospitals.
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Detrusor overactivity (DO) is one of the most frequent bladder dysfunctions in children up to the age of 18. Nowadays, the only way to confirm DO is by urodynamic investigation, which is an invasive procedure. Among the many mediators influencing bladder function, nerve growth factor (NGF) plays an important role. The present study was designed to measure urinary NGF (uNGF) levels in patients with DO diagnosed by urodynamic study in comparison with healthy controls. ⋯ 1. The uNGF level could be used for detecting DO in children and adolescents. 2. Measuring uNGF level is a simple, noninvasive procedure and very useful for choosing therapy in patients with DO in various clinical conditions.
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The aim of this study was to investigate the dynamic characteristics and changing trends of ambulatory blood pressure in patients with hypertension and coronary heart disease before and after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), and to determine the effects of PCI on the ambulatory blood pressure of patients with hypertension and coronary heart disease. ⋯ PCI can significantly improve the autonomic nerve function and ambulatory blood pressure indices of patients with hypertension and coronary heart disease.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study
A randomized controlled trial comparing polyethylene glycol + ascorbic acid with sodium picosulphate + magnesium citrate solution for bowel cleansing prior to colonoscopy.
Adequate bowel cleansing which is acceptable to the patient is a prerequisite for safe and effective colonoscopy. A 2-L polyethylene glycol solution containing ascorbic acid and electrolytes (PEG-Asc) is an alternative to sodium picosulphate + magnesium citrate (SPS-Mg) for bowel preparation. The aim of the current study is to compare PEG-Asc to SPS-Mg in terms of tolerability and efficacy. ⋯ More patients find PEG-Asc to taste unpleasant and to be a more distressing preparation than SPS-Mg. However, there was no detectable difference between PEG-Asc and SPS-Mg in bowel cleansing prior to colonoscopy.
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Somatosensory-evoked potentials (SSEPs) are widely used for intraoperative spinal cord monitoring. Although many general anesthetics inhibit SSEPs, etomidate has been reported to boost SSEPs. This clinical study aimed to test whether etomidate doses less than 0.3 mg/kg amplify SSEP monitoring. ⋯ Small doses of etomidate that were less than 0.3 mg/kg had dose-related amplification effects on SSEP monitoring.