Reconstruction of the nasal tip including the columella and soft triangle using a mastoid composite graft.

This paper describes the use of a composite graft from the mastoid area consisting of full-thickness skin peripherally and selectively localised fascia-fat tissue underneath the skin centrally for immediate reconstruction of moderate defects of the nasal tip including the columella and soft triangle. Mastoid composite grafting is a simple and safe procedure that avoids partial graft loss and provides adequate augmentation of soft tissue, easy reshaping of the new nostril rim, minimal post-operative shrinkage, and no donor-site morbidity. Then, it results in a satisfactory nasal appearance with adequate tip projection and symmetry. This procedure may represent a preferred method of nasal tip reconstruction.     

Target-controlled infusion of alfentanil for postoperative analgesia: a feasibility study and pharmacodynamic evaluation in the early postoperative period

We have examined the feasibility of target-controlled infusion of alfentanil (TCIA) and the pharmacodynamics of alfentanil in the early postoperative period. Patients were allocated randomly to one of the three groups to receive balanced anaesthesia with bolus injections of fentanyl (group F), sufentanil (group S) or alfentanil (group A). In the recovery room all patients received the same analgesic regimen, comprising TCIA. To evaluate the efficacy of postoperative analgesia, pain scores were measured on a visual analogue scale (VAS) and patients indicated a need for additional analgesia. EC50, the concentration at which, with a 50% probability, patients reported adequate analgesia, was estimated using logistic regression. Six patients did not complain of pain. The time from the last intraoperative bolus injection of opioid until patients complained of postoperative pain was shorter (P < 0.05) in group A (mean 68 min) than in group F (101 min) and group S (136 min). The time to onset of satisfactory analgesia was comparable in the three groups (median 18 min in group F, 15 min in group S and 14 min in group A). EC50 of alfentanil was determined in 28 patients; mean values were 26 ng ml-1 (group F), 39 ng ml-1 (group S) and 52 ng ml-1 (group A). We conclude that TCIA, under the conditions studied, resulted in a fast onset of adequate analgesia, irrespective of the opioid administered during operation. Also, there was no effect of opioids administered during operation on postoperative pharmacodynamics of alfentanil.      

Piperacillin-Tazobactam Pharmacokinetics in Patients With Intraabdominal Infections

Study Objective . To determine the appropriate compartmental and noncompartmental pharmacokinetic parameters for intravenous piperacillin and tazobactam. Design . Sequential selection of patients entered into a randomized, open-label clinical efficacy trial. Setting . Los Angeles County-University of Southern California Medical Center. Participants . Sequential sample of 18 patients admitted for intraabdominal infections and consented into a comparative antibiotic trial. Interventions . Patients received piperacillin 4 g plus tazobactam 500 mg by intravenous intermittent infusion every 8 hours. Measurements and Main Results . The estimated noncompartmental pharmacokinetic parameters (mean ± SD) for piperacillin and tazobactam, respectively, were as follows: maximum concentration in plasma 218.7 ± 48.9 μg/ml and 27.8 ± 9.1 μg/ml; half-life 1.07 ± 0.22 hours and 1.00 ± 0.27 hours; elimination rate constant 0.67 ± 0.13 hr⁻¹ and 0.73 ± 0.18 hr⁻¹; area under the concentration-time curve from zero hour to infinity 288.5 ± 71.25 mg·hr/L and 36.3 ± 9.55 mg·hr/L; total plasma clearance 14.75 ± 3.93 L/hour and 14.78 ± 4.39 L/hour; renal clearance 5.69 ± 1.94 L/hour and 7.85 ± 3.37 L/hour; volume of distribution at steady state 21.00 ± 4.18 L and 22.47 ± 8.27 L; and mean residence time 1.72 ± 0.29 hours and 1.79 ± 0.35 hours. Conclusion . Our findings were similar to those in other surgical patient models. The two-compartmental model best described piperacillin and tazobactam disposition in our patients. Bayesian analyses of the two-compartment models of piperacillin and tazobactam were able to predict trough, peak, and 2-hour postadministration levels without bias.     

Plasma concentrations of epidural bupivacaine in mother and newborn: 0.125% versus 0.375%

Central venous plasma concentrations of bupivacaine were determined in two groups of 15 parturients each who were given epidural analgesia for labor and vaginal delivery. One group received 10 ml of 0.125% bupivacaine plus epinephrine 1:800,000, the other group received 7 ml of 0.375% bupivacaine plus epinephrine 1:800,000. Plasma concentrations of bupivacaine in the umbilical venous (UV) and the umbilical arterial (UA) blood of their babies were also determined. The mean UA, UV, and maternal central venous (MV) plasma concentrations of bupivacaine differed significantly between the two groups: in patients given 0.375% bupivacaine UA values were 63% higher (P less than 0.01), UV values were 57% higher (P less than 0.01), and the MV values were 34% higher (P less than 0.05) than in patients given 0.125% bupivacaine. The measured plasma concentrations speak in favor of the less concentrated solution of bupivacaine in epidural analgesia for obstetrics. Seven milliliters of bupivacaine 0.375% is suitable for epidural analgesia in obstetrics but a low concentration-low dose technique, using 10 ml of bupivacaine 0.125% plus epinephrine 1:800,000 is safer. It provides good analgesia with minimal or no motor block and is associated with low maternal and neonatal plasma concentrations of bupivacaine, well below toxic levels and, to our knowledge, lower than in any other study.     

Copy number variation burden does not predict severity of neurodevelopmental phenotype in children with a sex chromosome trisomy

Sex chromosome trisomies (SCTs) (XXX, XXY, and XYY karyotypes) are associated with an elevated risk of neurodevelopmental disorders. The range of severity of the phenotype is substantial. We considered whether this variable outcome was related to the presence of copy number variants (CNVs)—stretches of duplicated or deleted DNA. A sample of 125 children with an SCT were compared with 181 children of normal karyotype who had been given the same assessments. First, we compared the groups on measures of overall CNV burden: number of CNVs, total span of CNVs, and likely functional impact (probability of loss‐of‐function intolerance, pLI, summed over CNVs). Differences between groups were small relative to within‐group variance and not statistically significant on overall test. Next, we considered whether a measure of general neurodevelopmental impairment was predicted by pLI summed score, SCT versus comparison group, or the interaction between them. There was a substantial effect of SCT/comparison status but the pLI score was not predictive of outcomes in either group. We conclude that variable presence of CNVs is not a likely explanation for the wide phenotypic variation in children with SCTs. We discuss methodological challenges of testing whether CNVs are implicated in causing neurodevelopmental problems.     

Physical activity and motor skill outcomes of a 10-week intervention for children with intellectual and developmental disabilities ages 4–13: A pilot study

BackgroundChildren with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) often experience increased barriers to engaging in physical activity (PA) which can stem from lack of gross motor function (GMF) development. Intervening on GMF at an early age can create better opportunities for children with IDD to engage in regular PA. In turn, increased PA can improve health outcomes and increase social skills.ObjectiveThe primary objective of this pilot study was to explore the effectiveness of a community-based GMF-focused PA intervention for improving overall motor skills and PA for children with IDD.MethodsAll study participants (n = 24) engaged in 10 weeks of programming for 1 h each week. A convenience sample was utilized.ResultsResults indicated no statistically significant changes pre to post for motor skill scores. However, a visual analysis of mean changes showed a consistent pattern of increased scores from pre to post on most skills. Additionally, we found that a change in participant locomotor skills significantly predicted change in Moderate to Vigorous Physical Activity (MVPA), F (1,11) = 5.16, Adj R² = .26, p = .04.ConclusionsThese results suggest individualized attention on GMF may help to increase motor skills for children with IDD. This study adds to the small but growing amount of research examining the efficacy of community based adapted PA interventions. Further, study results should support continued exploration of effective approaches to address the motor delays experienced by children with IDD.     

Recirculatory and compartmental pharmacokinetic modeling of alfentanil in pigs: the influence of cardiac output

BACKGROUND: Cardiac output (CO) is likely to influence the pharmacokinetics of anesthetic drugs and should be accounted for in pharmacokinetic models. The influence of CO on the pharmacokinetic parameters of alfentanil in pigs was evaluated using compartmental and recirculatory models. METHODS: Twenty-four premedicated pigs were evaluated during halothane (0.6-2%) anesthesia. They were assigned randomly to one of three groups. One group served as control. In the other groups, the baseline CO was decreased or increased by 40% by pharmacologic intervention (propranolol or dobutamine). Boluses of alfentanil (2 mg) and indocyanine green (25 mg) were injected into the right atrium. Blood samples were taken for 150 min from the right atrium and aortic root. Arterial concentration-time curves of indocyanine green and alfentanil were analyzed using compartmental models (two-stage and mixed-effects approach) and a recirculatory model, which can describe lung uptake and early distribution. RESULTS: The CO of individual pigs varied from 1.33 to 6.44 l/min. Three-compartmental modeling showed that CO is a determinant of the central compartment volume (V1, r2 = 0.54), fast peripheral compartment volume (V2, r2 = 0.29), steady state distribution volume (Vss, r2 = 0.29), fast distribution clearance (Cl12, r2 = 0.39), and elimination clearance (Cl10, r2 = 0.51). Recirculatory modeling showed that CO is a determinant of total distribution volume (r2 = 0.48), elimination clearance (r2 = 0.54), and some distribution clearances. The pulmonary distribution volume was independent of CO. CONCLUSIONS: Cardiac output markedly influences the pharmacokinetics of alfentanil in pigs. Therefore, accounting for CO enhances the predictive value of pharmacokinetic models of alfentanil.     

First-pass lung uptake and pulmonary clearance of propofol: assessment with a recirculatory indocyanine green pharmacokinetic model

BACKGROUND: The principal site for elimination of propofol is the liver. The clearance of propofol exceeds hepatic blood flow; therefore, extrahepatic clearance is thought to contribute to its elimination. This study examined the pulmonary kinetics of propofol using part of an indocyanine green (ICG) recirculatory model. METHODS: Ten sheep, immobilized in a hammock, received injections of propofol (4 mg/kg) and ICG (25 mg) via two semipermanent catheters in the right internal jugular vein. Arterial blood samples were obtained from the carotid artery. The ICG injection was given for measurement of intravascular recirculatory parameters and determination of differences in propofol and ICG concentration-time profiles. No other medication was given during the experiment, and the sheep were not intubated. The arterial concentration-time curves of ICG were analyzed with a recirculatory model. The pulmonary uptake and elimination of propofol was analyzed with the central part of that model extended with a pulmonary tissue compartment allowing elimination from that compartment. RESULTS: During the experiment, cardiac output was 3.90+/-0.72 l/min (mean +/- SD). The blood volume in heart and lungs, measured with ICG, was 0.66+/-0.07 l. A pulmonary tissue compartment of 0.47+/-0.16 l was found for propofol. The pulmonary first-pass elimination of propofol was 1.14+/-0.23 l/min. Thirty percent of the dose was eliminated during the first pass through the lungs. CONCLUSIONS: Recirculatory modeling of ICG allows modeling of the first-pass pulmonary kinetics of propofol concurrently. Propofol undergoes extensive uptake and first-pass elimination in the lungs.