Limited options to treat hypoxemia during one-lung venti• lation (OLV) compared to open thoracotomy. Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) interferes with surgical exposure during video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS). Priority on rapid and complete lung collapse. • Possibility of prolonged periods of OLV. Particularly dur• ing the learning phase of the surgical team. Decreased posto...

Pain threshold was measured in 106 patients with rheumatoid arthritis, 50 with ankylosing spondylitis, and 50 normal controls using Keele's algometer. In rheumatoid arthritis patients with a low pain threshold had more severe pain for a greater part of the day and required more tablets for pain relief. In ankylosing spondylitis the pain threshold was higher and was not related to pain or analge...

Several recently developed analgesic techniques effectively control pain after major orthopaedic surgery. Neuraxial analgesia provided by epidural and spinal administration of local anesthetics and opioids provides the highest level of pain control; however, such therapy is highly invasive and labor intensive. Neuraxial analgesia is contraindicated in patients receiving low-molecular-weight hep...

BACKGROUND Pregnancy is associated with a higher spread of subarachnoid anaesthesia and increased pain threshold. The study was designed to assess the spread of subarachnoid block and the intra- and postoperative analgesic requirements in pregnant vs non-pregnant women. METHODS We assessed the level of subarachnoid anaesthesia after 1.8 ml of hyperbaric lidocaine 5% and the postoperative anal...

Bone metastases are the most common source of pain for patients with cancer. For pain that is refractory to conventional measures, microwave ablation (MWA) is an emerging alternative therapy. Studies show that MWA is effective in reducing pain and analgesic requirements while improving function. This article describes studies of MWA that include patients with bone metastases to a variety of loc...

Patients continue to suffer from pain despite their analgesic regimen and frequently from symptoms related to these interventions. This article describes the role that intrathecal analgesia may play in improving comfort for individuals experiencing refractory pain and/or symptoms of opioid therapy. Patient selection, staff education, institution requirements, medications, and titration guidelin...

BACKGROUND For most patients with cancer pain, the World Health Organization's three-step analgesic ladder provides adequate management with oral or transdermal options. However, some cancer patients are not well palliated with these approaches. METHODS The author reviews interventional options that include nerve blocks, spinal administration of local anesthetics, opioids, alpha-2 agonists, s...

Prescription opioid abuse is at epidemic levels. Opioids diverted from friends and family members who have legitimate prescriptions are a major source of abused prescription opioids. Nurses are vital to any effort to combat this public health crisis because they have the opportunity to provide essential anticipatory guidance every time a patient receives prescription medication. The purpose of ...

OBJECTIVE To systematically analyze the role of heated humidified carbon dioxide (CO2) in laparoscopy. METHODS Clinical trials on laparoscopic procedures using standard dry CO2 versus heated humidified CO2 for pneumoperitoneum were analyzed. RESULTS Ten randomized controlled trials on 565 patients were analyzed. In both the fixed and random effect models, postoperative pain was significantl...

background prevention or management of pain is an important objective in root canal treatment. post-endodontic pain has always been an important concern for patients and clinicians. informing patients regarding the possibility of postendodontic pain and drug administration for its management can improve their trust in dentists, raise their pain threshold and increase their tendency to seek furt...