International journal of obstetric anesthesia
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Int J Obstet Anesth · Dec 2016
Stimulation of contractions in pregnant human myometrium is associated with 5-HT3 receptors.
Serotonin (5-HT) is known to play an important role in regulating uterine contractions. However, the specific receptors involved have not been well characterized. We evaluated whether 5-HT3 receptors exist in human myometrium, and their effects on myometrial contractility when stimulated by a 5-HT3 agonist. ⋯ 5-HT3 receptors are expressed on non-pregnant and pregnant uteri. RS56812 enhanced myometrial contractions, but this was not affected by granisetron, the mechanism of which requires further investigation.
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Int J Obstet Anesth · Dec 2016
Nine-year audit of post-dural puncture headache in a tertiary obstetric hospital in Singapore.
The KK Women's and Children's Hospital is a tertiary obstetric unit with approximately 11000 deliveries per year. Epidural analgesia is used in about 40% of laboring women. We reviewed the incidence and management of post-dural puncture headache over a nine-year period. ⋯ A retrospective audit over a nine-year period at a tertiary teaching hospital found the overall incidence of post-dural puncture headache and associated events to be 0.15%, with a decreasing trend coinciding with improvement in the teaching and supervision of trainees in labor epidural procedures.
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Int J Obstet Anesth · Dec 2016
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter StudyDose-response of intrathecal morphine when administered with intravenous ketorolac for post-cesarean analgesia: a two-center, prospective, randomized, blinded trial.
The appropriate dose of intrathecal morphine for post-cesarean analgesia is unclear. With the inclusion of routine non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, the required dose of morphine may be significantly less than the 200-300μg common a decade ago. We performed a two-center, prospective, randomized, blinded trial comparing three doses of intrathecal morphine, combined with routine intravenous ketorolac, in 144 healthy women undergoing elective cesarean delivery. ⋯ The dose-response relationship of intrathecal morphine for multimodal post-cesarean analgesia suggests that 50μg produces analgesia similar to that produced by either 100μg or 150μg.
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Int J Obstet Anesth · Dec 2016
Meta AnalysisClinical effectiveness of transversus abdominis plane (TAP) blocks for pain relief after caesarean section: a meta-analysis.
The effectiveness of transversus abdominis plane (TAP) blocks for acute pain relief after caesarean section, in comparison to normal practice, remains uncertain. ⋯ TAP blocks provide effective analgesia after caesarean section; however, additional benefits are more difficult to demonstrate when long-acting intrathecal opioids are administered.
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The first author, a patient who underwent elective caesarean section and felt pain necessitating conversion to general anaesthesia, describes the experience with particular reference to the perceived poor communication between her and her anaesthetist. This extended from the preoperative visit to the information provided to her general practitioner after discharge. She makes several suggestions which would have made her experience, and those of other patients in similar circumstances, less traumatic. The second author, who had no involvement in events and works in a different Trust, comments upon the events from the perspective of an obstetric anaesthetist.