Plos One
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Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical Trial
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy can diminish fibromyalgia syndrome--prospective clinical trial.
Fibromyalgia Syndrome (FMS) is a persistent and debilitating disorder estimated to impair the quality of life of 2-4% of the population, with 9:1 female-to-male incidence ratio. FMS is an important representative example of central nervous system sensitization and is associated with abnormal brain activity. Key symptoms include chronic widespread pain, allodynia and diffuse tenderness, along with fatigue and sleep disturbance. The syndrome is still elusive and refractory. The goal of this study was to evaluate the effect of hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) on symptoms and brain activity in FMS. ⋯ The study provides evidence that HBOT can improve the symptoms and life quality of FMS patients. Moreover, it shows that HBOT can induce neuroplasticity and significantly rectify abnormal brain activity in pain related areas of FMS patients.
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Brain structural alterations and neuropsychiatric symptoms have been described repeatedly in Fabry disease, yet cognitive deficits have been shown to be only mild. Here, we aimed to investigate neuropsychiatric symptoms and brain structure longitudinally. We expected no clinically relevant increase of neuropsychiatric symptoms in parallel to increased brain structural alterations. ⋯ This investigation demonstrates clinical stability in cognitive function, while pronounced hippocampal atrophy is apparent throughout the 8 years. Our middle-aged Fabry patients appeared to compensate successfully for progressive hippocampal volume loss. The hippocampal volume decline indicates brain regional neuronal involvement in Fabry disease.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical Trial
Laryngoscope and a new tracheal tube assist lightwand intubation in difficult airways due to unstable cervical spine.
The WEI Jet Endotracheal Tube (WEI JET) is a new tracheal tube that facilitates both oxygenation and ventilation during the process of intubation and assists tracheal intubation in patients with difficult airway. We evaluated the effectiveness and usefulness of the WEI JET in combination with lightwand under direct laryngoscopy in difficult tracheal intubation due to unstable cervical spine. ⋯ The combined use of WEI JET under direct laryngoscopy helps to assist tracheal intubation and improves oxygenation during intubation in patients with difficult airway secondary to unstable spine disorders.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Patient Empowerment Improved Perioperative Quality of Care in Cancer Patients Aged ≥ 65 Years - A Randomized Controlled Trial.
This randomized controlled, clinical prospective interventional trial was aimed at exploring the effect of patient empowerment on short- and long-term outcomes after major oncologic surgery in elderly cancer patients. ⋯ Patient empowerment through information booklet and diary keeping did not shorten the postoperative LOS in elderly onco-surgical patients, but improved quality of care regarding postoperative pain. Postoperative length of stay is influenced by pre-operative nutritional state, pre-operative functional impairment, severity of surgery, and length of anesthesia.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
Importance of simultaneous evaluation of multiple risk factors for hemodialysis patients' mortality and development of a novel index: dialysis outcomes and practice patterns study.
For hemodialysis (HD) patients, many risk factors for death are associated with each other intricately. However, they are often considered separately in clinical settings. We evaluated the maintenance HD patients' risk of death within one year from multiple risk factors simultaneously considering their interrelationships using a novel index (survival index, SI) for HD patients in the United States developed using data from the Dialysis Outcomes and Practice Patterns Study (DOPPS). ⋯ Results of this study suggest that the simultaneous evaluation of multiple risk factors can more accurately assess patients' prognosis and identify patients at an increased risk of death than single factors.