Intranasal Ketamine for Procedural Sedation in Pediatric Laceration Repair: A Preliminary Report

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to compare the efficacy of 3 doses of intranasal ketamine (INK) for sedation of children from 1 to 7 years old requiring laceration repair. METHODS: This was a randomized, prospective, double-blind trial of children requiring sedation for laceration repair. Patients with simple lacerations were randomized by age to receive 3, 6, or 9 mg/kg INK. Adequacy and efficacy of sedation were measured with the Ramsay sedation score and the Observational Scale of Behavioral Distress-Revised. Serum ketamine and norketamine levels were drawn during the procedure. Sedation duration and adverse events were recorded. RESULTS: Of the 12 patients enrolled, 3 patients achieved adequate sedation, all at the 9-mg/kg dose. The study was suspended at that time as per predetermined criteria. CONCLUSIONS: Nine milligrams of INK per kilogram produced a significantly higher proportion of successful sedations than the 3- and 6-mg/kg doses.     

Sleep quality and its relationship with quality of life among high-risk pregnant women (gestational diabetes and hypertension)

Background: Sleep is one of the most basic human requirements. This research aims at determining the status of sleep quality and its relationship with quality of life among high-risk pregnant women in Tabriz, Iran, in 2015.

Materials and methods: This research was a sectional study done on 364 qualified women in 28–36 weeks of pregnancy suffering from mild preeclampsia and gestational diabetes. The sampling was done as convenience. Personal–social–midwifery questionnaire, Pittsburg sleep quality, and quality of life in pregnancy (QOL-ORAV) were used for gathering data. Multivariate linear regression model was used for determining the relationship between sleep quality and its subsets with quality of life and controlling confounders.

Findings: In the current study, the prevalence of sleep disturbance was 96.4%. Mean (SD) of the total score of sleep quality was 10.1 (4.1) and the total score of quality of life was 61.7 (17.3). According to Pearson’s correlation test, there was statistically significant relationship between quality of life and sleep quality and all its subsets except sleep duration and use of sleep medication (p?Discussion: The findings of current research show that sleep quality is low among high-risk pregnant women and quality of life is medium. So, it is necessary that required training is given by health cares for improving sleep quality and quality of life to mothers.     

Prevalence and correlates of chronic fatigue syndrome and post-traumatic stress disorder after the outbreak of the COVID-19

Journal of NeuroVirology - As the SARS-COV-2 becomes a global pandemic, many researchers have a concern about the long COVID-19 complications. Chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis...     

Factors that modulate olfactory dysfunction

The olfactory system is one of a few areas in the nervous system which is capable of regeneration throughout the life.Olfactory sensory neurons reside in the nasal cavity are continuously replenished with new neurons arising from stem cells.Some factors such as aging,neurodegenerative diseases,head trauma,brain tumor extraction and infection cause olfactory dysfunction which significantly influences physical wellbeing,quality of life,mental health,nutritional status,memory processes,identifying danger and is associated with increased mortality.Therefore,finding a treatment to improve olfactory dysfunction is needed.Recent research efforts in the field have shown some very promising new approaches to treat olfactory dysfunction.This review explores the current studies that have addressed therapeutic approaches to improve olfactory neuron regeneration based on cell transplantation therapy,modulation of physiological olfactory dysfunction and drug treatments.