A Complication of Stellate Ganglion Block?

Abstract: Stellate ganglion block is commonly used to treat the sympathetically maintained pain which may occur in one‐third of patients with complex regional pain syndrome type 1. A complication that followed a single block and presented a diagnostic dilemma for the ophthalmologist is reported.     

A literature review exploring how healthcare professionals contribute to the assessment and control of postoperative pain in older people

Little research has examined the care older people receive in the acute surgical setting. Although pain assessment and management are judged to be a priority in nursing, often pain, in older people, is undermanaged for a variety of reasons. Factors such as stoicism, communication and ageism can shape both the patients’ and nurses’ attitude towards the perception of pain which subsequently affects pain management. Through a review of the literature, this paper aims to: (i) identify how healthcare professionals contribute to the assessment and control of postoperative pain in older people and (ii) explore potential barriers to achieving more advantageous pain control in this group. It is suggested that to improve pain management there is a need to individualize pain assessment for older people and to assist clinicians with enhancing their education and decision‐making abilities in this field. This may best be achieved by supporting a programme of change to develop the skills of staff and encouraging learning through reflective practice. There is however a need for further research in this area.     

丙氧氨酚与酮咯酸治疗癌痛的比较

晚期肿瘤疼痛病人３１例（男性１７例，女性１４例，年龄５０±５１４ａ），用丙氧氨酚２片，ｐｏ，ｔｉｄ，共７ｄ。相似病人３０例（男性１６例，女性１４例，年龄５１±１３ａ），用酮咯酸１０ｍｇ，ｐｏ，ｑｉｄ，共７ｄ。结果：疼痛强度（标尺法）２组均有降低；显效时间前组（丙氧氨酚）快于后组（酮咯酸）；药效维持时间后组长于前组；不良反应前组嗜睡多于后组，而胃肠道不适少于后组。     

放射治疗71例骨转移癌止痛效果分析

目的观察低于常规剂量的2种分割方式治疗骨转移性疼痛的疗效。方法71例恶性肿瘤晚期骨转移患者,总计93处骨转移灶,根据疼痛程度及行动受限程度,采取2种均低于常规剂量的分割方式进行放射治疗,分别为Dm30Gy/10f/2W,Dm30Gy/6f/2W。观察疼痛缓解情况。结果2种分割方式止痛有效率分别为88%、95%。两组间无显著差异性(P>0.05)。与国内多数文献报告的结果接近。结论低于常规剂量的分割方式对转移性骨痛疗效与常规剂量的分割方式的疗效相当,且简便易行。     

A New and Alternative Leads Positioning for Complex Regional Pain Syndrome Treatment: Paraforaminal Stimulation

We present a case of a female patient suffering from type I complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) who developed “mirror imaging” of her CRPS and was successfully treated with dual spinal cord stimulation (SCS) in the paraforaminal epidural space. This patient initially had unilateral pain that was unsuccessfully treated with midline SCS and single‐lead lateral epidural lead placement “paraforaminally.” One year later, because we believed that paraforaminal stimulation would preferentially stimulate primary sensitized afferents innervating the painful area, we reperformed SCS with two leads positioned laterally and paraforaminally close to the roots within the epidural space. After repositioning and after 1 year of paraforaminal stimulation, there was significant improvement in the patient's symptoms, resolving all unilateral and “mirrored” symptoms. We conclude that paraforaminal stimulation may be a valid therapeutic option for the treatment of CRPS.     

Postoperative analgesia: pain by choice? The influence of patient attitudes and patient education

Postoperative pain control can be unsatisfactory for a variety of reasons, including patients' attitudes towards pain treatment itself. To assess patients' expectations and their influence on postoperative analgesia, as well as the prevalence of pain following common gynaecological surgery, a prospective study was performed in 166 patients with either adbominal hysterectomy, mastectomy, laparoscopy or uterine curettage. After a first postoperative period with routine on-demand analgesia, a nurse specialised in pain treatment discussed the purposes and risks of pain treatment with the patients and cared for these patients in the second, subsequent study period. Following this discussion, 30 of 40 patients refusing analgesics in the first study period agreed to be given pain medication. In the groups with hysterectomy or mastectomy, pain control improved in the second postoperative period, even though the doses of analgesics administered were generally lower. Education of patients regarding the aims and risks of pain therapy is an essential part of pain control and can lead to an improvement of postoperative analgesia.     

A comprehensive strategy for the evaluation and triage of the chest pain patient: A cost comparison study

BACKGROUND: Our objective was to determine the cost-effectiveness of a comprehensive, risk-based triage system, composed of multiple critical pathways, with the use of early myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI) in low-risk patients. We found previously that a chest pain evaluation system that uses MPI in low-risk patients was safe and effective, but the cost-effectiveness of this approach was not studied. METHODS AND RESULTS: We compared two groups. The Acute Cardiac Team (ACT) group (n = 874) was assigned prospectively to 1 of 4 risk levels by emergency department (ED) physicians. Level 1, 2, and 3 patients were admitted; level 4 patients were evaluated in the ED. Level 3 and 4 patients underwent ED MPI. The control group (n = 713) represented consecutive patients evaluated in the prior year according to standard care and assigned retrospectively to an ACT level based on the presenting electrocardiographic and clinical data. Record and hospital administrative data were assessed for clinical variables, outcomes, lengths of stay, and all expenses incurred within 30 days of the index visit. The baseline characteristics of the two groups were similar, including age, sex, myocardial infarction prevalence, and 30-day revascularization rates within each level or between the two groups. Mean costs per encounter were reduced for the ACT patients for each level, which was significant when all patients were compared ($5,030 +/- $7,081 vs $6,044 +/- $10,432, P =.02). Use of MPI in the low-risk patients was associated with reduced costs (level 3, $4,958 +/- $4,948 vs $5,051 +/- $7,036; level 4, $1,529 +/- $2,664 vs $1,794 +/- $6,854) and was associated with a significantly lower angiography rate and shorter length of stay. CONCLUSIONS: Implementation of a comprehensive strategy for chest pain evaluation and triage reduced overall costs for patients with chest pain on presentation. Acute MPI in the ED setting did not increase net cost.     

Localized pleural plaques and lung cancer.

In a mass chest radiography survey conducted in 1971 for 7,986 residents of three Finnish communities, 604 subjects (7.6%) with pleural plaques but not other asbestos-related radiographic signs were identified. The same number of referents, each individually matched to each plaque carrier on sex, birth year, and community, was selected from among persons in the same source population with no pleural plaques. The two groups were followed for investigation of incidence of lung cancer during 1972-1989. Twenty-eight of those with plaques and 25 referents contracted lung cancer (crude conditional RR = 1.1; CL95 = 0.7, 1.9). The application of the proportional hazards model, with adjustment for sex, age, and residence, resulted in a hazard ratio of 1.1 (CL = 0.6, 1.8). The risk ratio estimate may be biased; hence, the result is inconclusive in regard to the predictive assessment of lung cancer risk among carriers of pleural plaques.     

老年人食道病变呈心绞痛样胸痛13例分析

13例有心绞痛样胸痛的住院病人入院均诊有冠心病心绞痛,后均经ECG、8例心脏“B”超、核素心肌灌注及24小时动态ECG各2例,确诊冠心病5例,不支持冠心病8例;后均行GI,并同时行胃镜、食管24小时pH测定及压力测定各2例,确诊有胃食管反流疾病(GERD),本组自胸痛症状出现至GERD确诊病程平均29.5个月(0.5～120个月),报告2例典型病例,讨论了误漏诊原因,探讨了老年人食管性胸痛的诊疗程序。