The effectiveness of valerian acupressure on the sleep of ICU patients: a randomized clinical trial

BackgroundSeverely ill patients often experience problems with sleep. Either acupressure or valerian aromatherapy are reported as helpful in promoting sleep.ObjectivesThe purpose of this study was to explore the effectiveness of valerian acupressure on the sleep of patients in the intensive care unit (ICU).DesignA randomized clinical trial.SettingA 42-bed adult intensive care unit.ParticipantsForty-one subjects in the experimental group and 44 subjects in the control group.MethodsThe measurement included observation, and actigraphy measures during 10 pm–6 am, and the Stanford Sleepiness Scale (SSS) measures on the next morning. Experimental groups received valerian acupressure on the Shenmen, Neiguan, and Yongquan acupoints between 7 pm and 10 pm of the second day while control groups received regular treatment. Heart rate was measured for 5 min before and after valerian acupressure present for HR variability analysis to measure relaxation response.ResultsThe results indicated that after receiving valerian acupressure, patients’ sleeping hours increased, wake frequency reduced and SSS grades declined. The HR variability data indicated relaxation response immediately after valerian acupressure.ConclusionThis study supports the hypothesis that valerian acupressure on the Shenmen, Neiguan, and Yongquan acupoints could improve the sleeping time and quality of ICU patients.     

体感振动音乐放松疗法改善亚健康状态身心症状的临床对照研究

目的：探讨体感振动音乐放松疗法对亚健康状态心身症状的干预疗效。方法：用亚健康状态简易症状量表和匹兹堡睡眠质量指数量表（PSQI）对680例在职职工进行筛选，将符合亚健康状态的162例随机抽取一半分为干预组（81例）和对照组（81例）进行临床对照研究，两组均通过自学《简易健康指导手册》进行健康教育，干预组加做体感振动音乐放松疗法。两组分别于干预前、后填写简易症状量表和SCL-90进行疗效评估。结果：①以量表总分减分率≥30％作为疗效的评判标准，干预组躯体症状和心理症状的有效率分别为67．9％和50．6％．与对照组比较差异有显著性意义（P〈0．05）。②比较治疗后各量表因子分，干预组的疲劳感觉、疼痛感觉、抑郁症状、焦虑症状、躯体化、强迫症状、精神病性和敌对因子分均低于对照组，其差异有显著性意义（P〈0．05或P〈0．01）。结论：体感振动音乐放松疗法可同时缓解和改善身心两方面症状，应用简便，无损伤性，易被患者接受。     

Effect of aromatherapy on symptoms of dysmenorrhea in college students: A randomized placebo-controlled clinical trial

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to explore the effect of aromatherapy on menstrual cramps and symptoms of dysmenorrhea. DESIGN: The study was a randomized placebo-controlled trial. SUBJECTS: The subjects were 67 female college students who rated their menstrual cramps to be greater than 6 on a 10-point visual analogue scale, who had no systemic or reproductive diseases, and who did not use contraceptive drugs. INTERVENTION: Subjects were randomized into three groups: (1) an experimental group (n = 25) who received aromatherapy, (2) a placebo group (n = 20), and (3) a control group (n = 22). Aromatherapy was applied topically to the experimental group in the form of an abdominal massage using two drops of lavender (Lavandula officinalis), one drop of clary sage (Salvia sclarea), and one drop of rose (Rosa centifolia) in 5 cc of almond oil. The placebo group received the same treatment but with almond oil only, and the control group received no treatment. OUTCOME MEASURES: The menstrual cramps levels was assessed using a visual analogue scale and severity of dysmenorrhea was measured with a verbal multidimensional scoring system. RESULTS: The menstrual cramps were significantly lowered in the aromatherapy group than in the other two groups at both post-test time points (first and second day of menstruation after treatment). From the multiple regression aromatherapy was found to be associated with the changes in menstrual cramp levels (first day: Beta = -2.48, 95% CI: -3.68 to -1.29, p < 0.001; second day: Beta = -1.97, 95% CI: -3.66 to -0.29, p = 0.02 and the severity of dysmenorrhea (first day: Beta = 0.31, 95% CI: 0.05 to 0.57, p = 0.02; second day: Beta = 0.33, 95% CI: 0.10 to 0.56, p = 0.006) than that found in the other two groups. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that aromatherapy using topically applied lavender, clary sage, and rose is effective in decreasing the severity of menstrual cramps. Aromatherapy can be offered as part of the nursing care to women experiencing menstrual cramps or dysmenorrhea.     

早期康复临床路径对缺血性脑卒中患者功能恢复影响的多中心、单盲、随机对照研究

目的:明确早期康复临床路径联合康复方案对缺血性脑卒中患者日常生活活动能力、运动功能的影响,为脑卒中早期康复临床路径的优化和推广提供数据支持。方法:符合纳入标准的缺血性脑卒中患者286例,随机分为临床路径组(n=143)和常规康复组(n=143)。临床路径组入组后进入脑卒中早期康复临床路径及相应的康复治疗方案,常规康复组采取一般康复治疗,不进入临床路径,对康复治疗内容及时间不做要求。分别于入组前和临床路径介入后第三周末(即出院时)采用改良Barthel指数(modified Barthel index,MBI)和Fugl-Meyer运动功能评分量表(Fugl-Meyer motor assessment scale,FMA)评估两组患者的日常活动能力和运动功能。结果:临床路径组康复治疗前后的MBI差值、MBI改善程度((MBI后-MBI前)(/100-MBI前)×100%)均显著高于常规康复组,差异有显著性意义(P0.05)。两组患者康复治疗前后FMA差值及FMA改善程度([FMA后-FMA前)/(100-FMA前)×100%]比较差异无显著性意义(P0.05)。结论:早期康复临床路径结合规范化的康复方案能提高缺血性脑卒中患者的日常活动能力的恢复。     

卡巴胆碱治疗感染后胃肠功能障碍患者的临床随机对照研究

目的:研究卡巴胆碱治疗感染后胃肠功能障碍患者的临床有效性和安全性.方法:选取2007年2月至2008年12月唐山市3家三级医院ICU 113例感染后胃肠功能障碍患者为研究对象,随机分为卡巴胆碱组(55例)和莫沙比利组(58例),分别观察患者治疗前、治疗后24、48、72 h及第7天肠管积气、积液情况,胃肠功能评分变化,临床总有效率.结果:与莫沙比利组比较,治疗后卡巴胆碱组患者肠管积气、积液情况明显改善,第7天胃肠功能评分明显降低,临床总有效率显著提高(P＜0.05).结论:卡巴胆碱可以改善感染后胃肠功能障碍患者的胃肠功能,具有胃肠保护作用.     

Effects of a standard versus comprehensive oral care protocol among intubated neuroscience ICU patients: results of a randomized controlled trial

The purpose of the study was to compare changes in oral health during intubation until 48 hours after extubation in neuroscience intensive care unit (ICU) patients enrolled in a standard or a comprehensive oral care protocol. The effects of manual toothbrushing (standard group, n = 31) were compared with those of tongue scraping, electric toothbrushing, and moisturizing (comprehensive group, n = 25) in intubated patients in a neuroscience ICU in a 2-year randomized clinical trial. Oral health was evaluated based on the Oral Assessment Guide (OAG) on enrollment, the day of extubation, and 48 hours after extubation. There were no significant differences in the frequency of the oral care protocol. Protocol compliance exceeded 91% in both groups. The total OAG score and all eight categories significantly deteriorated (Friedman test, p < .001, Bonferroni corrected) in the standard oral care group and did not return to baseline after extubation. Large effect sizes were present at all three points in this group. The total OAG score deteriorated during intubation within the comprehensive protocol group (Friedman test, p < .004) but returned to baseline status after extubation. In four categories, the ratings on tongue, mucous membranes, gingiva, and teeth did not deteriorate significantly over time. Published oral care protocols are substandard in promoting and maintaining oral health in intubated patients. A comprehensive oral care protocol, using a tongue scraper, an electrical toothbrush, and pharmacological moisturizers, was more effective for oral hygiene throughout intubation and after extubation than manual toothbrushing alone.     

Effect of doxycycline on pre-menstrual syndrome: a double-blind randomized clinical trial

Thirty patients with well-defined symptoms of pre-menstrual syndrome were randomly treated with the antibiotic doxycycline or placebo. The antibiotic-treated group showed a highly significant reduction of symptoms. Subsequent antibiotic treatment of the original placebo group similarly diminished the symptoms in this group. A 6-month follow-up demonstrated that the improvement in symptom scores was permanent and independent from the presence of the antibiotic. Luteal phase endometrial biopsies showed a high incidence of out-of-phase endometrium. An unexpectedly high percentage of endometrial biopsy cultures yielded positive findings for mycoplasma, Chlamydia trachomatis and anaerobic bacteria. There were no characteristic hormonal changes in this study group. An infectious aetiology, possibly a sub-clinical endometrial or ovarian infection, behind certain cases of pre-menstrual syndrome is postulated.     

Effect of life review writing on depressive symptoms in older adults: a randomized controlled trial

OBJECTIVE. We examined the effects of engaging in the occupation-based intervention of life review through writing on expressed depressive symptoms as measured with the Geriatric Depression Scale in older adults residing in senior residences.METHOD. The study design was a randomized controlled trial that took place in four senior residences in New York City. Forty-five participants (23 treatment, 22 wait-list control) ≥65 yr old participated in the 8-wk, once-weekly autobiographical writing workshop, Share Your Life Story (Sierpina, 2002).RESULTS. Depressive symptoms were significantly less prevalent for the treatment group than for the control group after the 8-wk life review program (repeated-measures analysis of variance p = .03).CONCLUSION. The results suggest that the Share Your Life Story writing workshop is an effective occupation-based intervention for occupational therapists to use with older adults who reside in senior residences.     

A randomized trial of intravenous glutamine supplementation in trauma ICU patients

Purpose

To evaluate the effect of the intravenous (i.v.) l-alanyl-l-glutamine dipeptide supplementation during 5 days on clinical outcome in trauma patients admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU).

Methods

This was a prospective, randomized, double-blind, multicenter trial. Glutamine was not given as a component of nutrition but as an extra infusion. The primary outcome variable was the number of new infections within the first 14 days.

Results

We included 142 patients. There were no differences between groups in baseline characteristics. Up to 62 % of the patients in the placebo group and 63 % in the treatment group presented confirmed infections (p = 0.86). ICU length of stay was 14 days in both groups (p = 0.54). Hospital length of stay was 27 days in the placebo group and 29 in the treatment group (p = 0.88). ICU mortality was 4.2 % in both groups (p = 1). Sixty percent of the patients presented low glutamine levels before randomization. At the end of the treatment (6th day), 48 % of the patients maintained low glutamine levels (39 % of treated patients vs. 57 % in the placebo group). Patients with low glutamine levels at day 6 had more number of infections (58.8 vs. 80.9 %; p = 0.032) and longer ICU (9 vs. 20 days; p < 0.01) and hospital length of stay (24 vs. 41 days; p = 0.01).

Conclusions

There was no benefit with i.v. l-alanyl-l-glutamine dipeptide supplementation (0.5 g/kg body weight/day of the dipeptide) during 5 days in trauma patients admitted to the ICU. The i.v. glutamine supplementation was not enough to normalize the plasma glutamine levels in all patients. Low plasma glutamine levels at day 6 were associated with a worse outcome.     

Effect of nicotine lozenges on affective smoking withdrawal symptoms: secondary analysis of a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial

BACKGROUND: The suggested mechanism for the effects of nicotine replacement medications such as nicotine lozenges on smoking abstinence is reduction in the withdrawal symptoms of emotional distress and craving (the subjective desire to smoke). OBJECTIVES: This study assessed the effect of nicotine lozenges on affective withdrawal symptoms (collectively termed emotional distress) and craving over 6 weeks of treatment and the role of emotional distress and craving in mediating the effect of the lozenges on smoking abstinence. METHODS: This was a secondary analysis of data from a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial of nicotine lozenges. High-dependence smokers (those who smoked their first cigarette of the day within 30 minutes of waking) were assigned to receive the 4-mg lozenge; low-dependence smokers (those who smoked their first cigarette of the day >30 minutes after waking) were assigned to receive the 2-mg lozenge. Participants were randomized to receive active or placebo lozenges within these dose and dependence strata. Smokers were to rate their withdrawal symptoms daily during the baseline week (while still smoking) and for 6 weeks after starting treatment. Study analyses included the effect of the active lozenge on affective symptoms (ie, anxiety; anger, irritability, or frustration; difficulty concentrating; restlessness; and depressed mood) during weeks 1 through 6 in high- and low-dependence smokers; the prospective associations between these symptoms and craving and subsequent abstinence; and the mediating influence of these symptoms on the lozenge's effect on abstinence. The analyses included smokers who provided symptom data for the baseline period and for at least week after the initiation of treatment. RESULTS: Of 1,818 smokers enrolled in the original study, this analysis included data from 1,144. The population was predominantly white, had a mean age ranging ranging from 40.65 to 46.01 years, and included slightly more women than men. The 2-mg lozenge did not have consistently significant effects on the withdrawal symptoms of emotional distress among low-dependence smokers; however, in high-dependence smokers, the 4-mg dose was associated with significant reductions versus placebo in overall emotional distress symptoms through week 4 (P < 0.001-P = 0.025), all individual symptoms through week 3 (P < 0.001-P = 0.035), and irritability and anxiety through week 4 (P = 0.002-P = 0.049). In the low-dependence group, the 2-mg lozenge was associated with significant reductions versus placebo in craving through week 3 (P = 0.012-P = 0.033), whereas in the high-dependence group, the 4-mg lozenge was associated with significant reductions in craving in each of the first 6 weeks (P < 0.001-P = 0.028). Among high-dependence smokers, both week-1 and week-2 emotional distress scores were associated with a return to smoking by week 6 (P < 0.001); among low dependence smokers, the association applied only to week-2 symptoms (P = 0.017). Week-1 and week-2 craving was associated with a return to smoking at week 6 in both groups (P < 0.001-P = 0.001). Emotional distress modestly and inconsistently mediated the effects of the lozenges, accounting for 3% to 13% of the treatment effects, whereas craving more strongly (though incompletely) mediated the treatment effects, particularly among high-dependence smokers, in whom it accounted for 29% to 39% of the treatment effects. CONCLUSIONS: In high-dependence smokers, the 4-mg nicotine lozenge significantly reduced all affective withdrawal symptoms through the first 4 weeks of treatment. Lozenge-related decreases in craving partially mediated the effect of treatment on abstinence, particularly in high-dependence smokers.     

Oral nystatin prophylaxis in surgical/trauma ICU patients: a randomised clinical trial

ABSTRACT: INTRODUCTION: Candida prophylaxis in ICU is still a matter of debate. Oral chemoprophylaxis has been advocated to reduce the incidence of Candida colonisation and infection. METHODS: We performed a randomised trial studying a single drug (nystatin) versus control in surgical/trauma ICU patients. Multiple-site testing for fungi was performed in each patient on ICU admission (T0) and subsequently every 3 days (T3, T6, T9, and so forth). The primary evaluation criterion was the time course of the corrected colonisation index. RESULTS: Ninety-nine patients were enrolled. At admission, 69 patients exhibited Candida colonisation: the most frequently colonised body sites were the stomach and the pharynx. The most frequent isolated species was Candida albicans. The corrected colonisation index was similar in the two groups at T0 (P = 0.36), while a significant statistical difference was observed between the treatment and control groups at T6 (median 0.14 and 0.33, respectively; P = 0.0016), at T9 (median 0.00 and 0.28, respectively; P = 0.0001), at T12 (median 0.00 and 0.41, respectively; P = 0.0008), and at T15 (median 0.00 and 0.42, respectively; P <0.0003). The same results were obtained in the subgroup of patients already colonised at ICU admission. CONCLUSION: This trial shows that nystatin prophylaxis significantly reduces fungal colonisation in surgical/trauma ICU patients, even if already colonised. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT01495039.     

心理护理在ICU机械通气撤机失败患者中的应用

目的探讨心理护理在改善ICU机械通气撤机失败患者心理状态及提高撤机成功率中的作用.方法选择17例符合撤机标准而撤机失败的ICU患者,予以分析心理原因及分别进行有针对性的心理护理.结果 17例患者在经过有针对性的心理护理后心理状态均有改善,最终撤机成功.结论心理护理能改善患者心理状态、增强患者自信心,从而提高撤机成功率.     

Effect of corticosteroids on the clinical course of community-acquired pneumonia: a randomized controlled trial

Introduction  

The benefit of corticosteroids as adjunctive treatment in patients with severe community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) requiring hospital admission remains unclear. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of corticosteroid treatment on outcomes in patients with CAP.