Trials
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Opioids are still widely prescribed to long-term pain patients although they are no longer recommended for long-term treatments due to poor evidence for long-term efficacy, risks of serious side effects, and the possibility of inducing opioid hyperalgesia. In a Cochrane study from 2017, the authors identified an urgent need for more randomized controlled trials investigating the efficiency and effects of opioid tapering. The study aimed to assess (1) the efficiency of a structured intervention in causing stable reductions of opioid consumption in a population with long-term non-malignant pain and (2) effects on pain, pain cognitions, physical and mental health, quality of life, and functioning in response to opioid tapering. ⋯ A better understanding of the efficiency and effects of opioid tapering could possibly facilitate attempts to taper opioid treatments, which might prove beneficial for both the individual and society.
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Critically ill patients with COVID-19 are an especially susceptible population to develop post-intensive care syndrome (PICS) due to acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Patients can suffer acute severe pain and may have long-term mental, cognitive, and functional health deterioration after discharge. However, few controlled trials are evaluating interventions for the prevention and treatment of PICS. The study hypothesis is that a specific care program based on early therapeutic education and psychological intervention improves the quality of life of patients at risk of developing PICS and chronic pain after COVID-19. The primary objective is to determine whether the program is superior to standard-of-care on health-related quality of life at 6 months after hospital discharge. The secondary objectives are to determine whether the intervention is superior to standard-of-care on health-related quality of life, incidence of chronic pain and degree of functional limitation, incidence of anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress syndrome at 3 and 6 months after hospital discharge. ⋯ This is the first randomized clinical trial assessing the effectiveness of an early care therapeutic education, and psychological intervention program for the management of PICS and chronic pain after COVID-19. The intervention will serve as proof of the need to implement early care programs at an early stage, having an incalculable impact given the current scenario of the pandemic.
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Sub-Saharan Africa continues to carry a high burden of communicable diseases such as TB and HIV and non-communicable diseases such as hypertension and other cardiovascular conditions. Although investment in research has led to advances in improvements in outcomes, a lot still remains to be done to build research capacity in health. Like many other regions in the world, Sub-Saharan Africa suffers from a critical shortage of biostatisticians and clinical trial methodologists. ⋯ Fogarty International Center of the National Institutes of Health.
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This study aims to investigate the efficacy of curcumin-piperine co-supplementation on oxidative stress factors, clinical symptoms, and mortality rate in patients with coronavirus (COVID-19) admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU).
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Intravenous fluid therapy represents the most common intervention critically ill patients are exposed to. Hyperchloremia and metabolic acidosis associated with 0.9% sodium chloride have been observed to lead to worse outcomes, including mortality. Balanced solutions, such as Plasma-Lyte 148 and Compound Sodium Lactate, represent potential alternatives but the evidence on optimal fluid choices in critically ill children remains scarce. This study aims to demonstrate whether balanced solutions, when used as intravenous fluid therapy, are able to reduce the incidence of a rise in serum chloride level compared to 0.9% sodium chloride in critically ill children. ⋯ This study tests three types of intravenous fluid therapy in order to compare the risk of hyperchloremia associated with normal saline versus balanced solutions. This pragmatic study is thereby assessing the most common intervention in paediatric critical care. This is a single-centre open-label study with no blinding at the level of delivery of the intervention. Certain paediatric intensive care unit (PICU) patient groups such as those admitted with a cardiac condition or following a traumatic brain injury are excluded from this study.