Exp Ther Med
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The efficacy and safety of physiotherapeutic prophylaxis for venous thromboembolism in critically ill patients with heparin contraindication remains unclear. In the present study it was hypothesized that physiotherapy prophylaxis with intermittent pneumatic compression (IPC) would be safe and effective for patients unable to receive low-molecular-weight heparin (LMWH). In addition, this study investigated whether a combined therapy of IPC with LMWH would be more effective for the prophylaxis of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) in critical patients. ⋯ Patients exhibited an improved response to LMWH + ICP compared with IPC or LMWH alone, while no significant difference was detected between the IPC and LMWH groups. These results were applicable to patients that had a Wells score of ≥3; however, no significant differences in DVT incidence were observed among the patients who had a Wells score of <3. In this observational study, LMWH + ICP appeared to be more effective than either treatment alone in treating critically ill trauma patients with severe injuries that are at high risk for VTE and bleeding simultaneously.
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Heart rate variability (HRV) obtained using photoplethysmography (PPG), which is also known as pulse rate variability (PRV), has already been used in clinical practice. However, it is uncertain whether PRV reflects changes in autonomic nervous function accurately. The aim of the present study was to evaluate quantitatively the effect of alterations in the sympathovagal balance on the agreement between PRV and HRV from electrocardiographs (ECG). ⋯ All indices had very strong correlations [Pearson's correlation coefficients (CC)>0.99] and PRV had a minor but highly significant (P<0.001) increase for the majority of the variability indices, when compared with HRV. During apnea, the discrepancy of the short-term variability indices between PRV and HRV became sizeable with a BAr>0.3 and a minimum CC of 0.96. In conclusion, a decrease of LF/HF caused a marginal inaccuracy of PRV in the indication of sympathovagal balance, while sympathetic activation increased differences in short-term variability between PRV and HRV.
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Neuropathic pain, which is characterized by hyperalgesia, allodynia and spontaneous pain, is one of the most painful symptoms that can be experienced in the clinic. It often occurs as a result of injury to the peripheral nerves, dorsal root ganglion (DRG), spinal cord or brain. The renin-angiotensin system (RAS) plays an important role in nociception. ⋯ Compared with the sham control groups, CCI significantly decreased the paw withdrawal latency and threshold, and this was markedly improved and aggravated by intrathecal injection of the selective Mas agonist Ang-(1-7) and the selective Mas inhibitor D-Pro7-Ang-(1-7), respectively. In conclusion, this study has provided the first evidence, to the best of our knowledge, that the Mas expression in DRG neurons is time-dependently induced by chronic nerve injury and that the intrathecal activation and inhibition of Mas can improve and aggravate CCI-induced neuropathic pain, respectively. This study has provided novel insights into the pathophysiological process of neuropathic pain and suggests that the Ang-(1-7)/Mas axis could be an effective therapeutic target for neuropathic pain, warranting further study.
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Intactable epilepsy (IE) is relatively common in pediatric epilepsy. The resistance mechanism of IE has been previously investigated. Multidrug-resistant associated protein 1 (MRP1) and MRP2 are associated with drug transport. ⋯ The mean relative expression of MRP1 and MRP2 protein in the peripheral blood mononuclear cells of children with IE (MRP1, 2.027±0.034; MRP2, 1.902±0.021) was higher than that in children with epilepsy controlled by AEDs (MRP1, 1.131±0.042; MRP2, 1.086±0.027) and healthy children without epilepsy (MRP1, 1.093±0.023; MRP2, 1.045±0.018) (P<0.01). The difference in the MRP1 and MRP2 mRNA and protein expression between the children with epilepsy controlled by AEDs and healthy children without epilepsy was not statistically significant (P>0.05). In conclusion, a higher expression of MRP1 and MRP2 in the peripheral blood mononuclear cells of children with IE may be relevant to the drug-resistant mechanism of IE.
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The use of intravenous dexmedetomidine during surgery has been shown to suppress inflammatory cytokines peri-operatively. It has also been demonstrated that dexmedetomidine may benefit cognitive function in elderly patients following surgery; however, it is not clear whether dexmedetomidine reduces postoperative cognitive dysfunction (POCD) via the suppression of inflammatory cytokines. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of dexmedetomidine on early POCD and inflammatory cytokines in elderly patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC). ⋯ In the DEX group compared with the control group, IL-1β, IL-6 and CRP levels were markedly decreased at 6 h and 1 day after surgery (P<0.01). Concentrations of IL-1β, IL-6 and CRP were significantly higher in patients who developed POCD on day 1 following surgery than in the patients who did not develop POCD (P<0.05). The findings of the current study support the hypothesis that dexmedetomidine administration during anesthesia decreases the incidence of early POCD, most likely by the mechanism of reduction of the inflammatory response level.