RESUMEN
During the pandemic era, quarantines might potentially have negative effects and disproportionately exacerbate health condition problems. We conducted this cross-sectional, national study to ascertain the prevalence of constant pain symptoms and how quarantines impacted the pain symptoms and identify the factors associated with constant pain to further guide reducing the prevalence of chronic pain for vulnerable people under the pandemic. The sociodemographic data, quarantine conditions, mental health situations and pain symptoms of the general population were collected. After adjusting for potential confounders, long-term quarantine (≥15 days) exposures were associated with an increased risk of constant pain complaints compared to those not under a quarantine (Odds Ratio (OR): 1.26; 95% Confidence Interval (CI): 1.03, 1.54; p = 0.026). Risk factors including unemployment (OR: 1.55), chronic disease history (OR: 2.38) and infection with COVID-19 (OR: 2.15), and any of mental health symptoms including depression, anxiety, insomnia and PTSD (OR: 5.44) were identified by a multivariable logistic regression. Additionally, mediation analysis revealed that the effects of the quarantine duration on pain symptoms were mediated by mental health symptoms (indirect effects: 0.075, p < 0.001). These results advocated that long-term quarantine measures were associated with an increased risk of experiencing pain, especially for vulnerable groups with COVID-19 infection and with mental health symptoms. The findings also suggest that reducing mental distress during the pandemic might contribute to reducing the burden of pain symptoms and prioritizing interventions for those experiencing a long-term quarantine.
RESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Ganglion impar block alone or pulsed radiofrequency alone are effective options for treating perineal pain. However, ganglion impar block combined with pulsed radiofrequency (GIB-PRF) for treating perineal pain is rare and the puncture is usually performed with X-ray or computed tomography guidance. AIM: To evaluate the safety and clinical efficacy of real-time ultrasound-guided GIB-PRF in treating perineal pain. METHODS: Thirty patients with perineal pain were included and were treated by GIB-PRF guided by real-time ultrasound imaging between January 2015 and December 2016. Complications were recorded to observe the safety of the ultrasound-guided GIB-PRF procedure, and visual analogue scale (VAS) scores at 24 h before and after treatment and 1, 3, and 6 mo later were analyzed to evaluate clinical efficacy. RESULTS: Ultrasound-guided GIB-PRF was performed successfully in all patients, and no complications occurred. Compared with pretreatment scores, the VAS scores were significantly lower (P < 0.05) at the four time points after treatment. The VAS scores at 1 and 3 mo were slightly lower than those at 24 h (P > 0.05) and were significantly lower at 6 mo after treatment (P < 0.05). There was a tendency toward lower VAS scores at 6 mo after treatment compared with those at 1 and 3 mo (P > 0.05). CONCLUSION: Ultrasound-guided GIB-PRF was a safe and effective way to treat perineal pain. The 6-mo short-term clinical efficacy was favorable, but the long-term outcomes need future study.
RESUMEN
The brain is one of the most important and intricate organs in our bodies. Interpreting brain function and illustrating the changes and molecular mechanisms during physiological or pathological processes are essential but sometimes difficult to achieve. In addition to histology, ethology and pharmacology, the development of transcriptomics alleviates this condition by enabling high-throughput observation of the brain at various levels of anatomical specificity. Moreover, because human brain samples are scarce, the brains of nonhuman primates are important alternative models. Here in this review, we summarize the applications of transcriptomics in nonhuman primate brain studies, including investigations of brain development, aging, toxic effects and diseases. Overall, as a powerful tool with developmental potential, transcriptomics has been widely utilized in neuroscience.
