The efficacy of gabapentin in reducing pain intensity and postoperative nausea and vomiting following laparoscopic cholecystectomy: A meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: It is unknown whether gabapentin is effective in reducing acute pain following laparoscopic cholecystectomy. The purpose of the current meta-analysis was to evaluate the efficacy of gabapentin in reducing pain intensity and postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) after laparoscopic cholecystectomy. METHODS: All randomized controlled trials (RCTs) evaluating the efficacy of gabapentin in reducing pain intensity and PONV after laparoscopic cholecystectomy were searched on the following databases: PubMed, EMBASE, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), the Google database, the Chinese Wanfang database, and the China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI). The most recent literature search was conducted on March 21, 2017. Outcomes including visual analog scale (VAS) at 12 and 24 hours, total morphine consumption, and the occurrence of PONV. Continuous outcomes were expressed as the weighted mean difference (WMD) and 95% confidence interval (CI), and the one discontinuous outcome was expressed as risk ratio (RR) and 95% CI. Stata 12.0 software was used for meta-analysis. RESULTS: A total of 9 studies involving 966 patients were identified. In total, there were 484 gabapentin subjects and 482 controls. Compared with the control group, gabapentin was associated with lower VAS at 12 hours (WMD = -10.18, 95% CI: -17.36 to -2.80, P = .007) and 24 hours (WMD = -6.33, 95% CI: -8.41 to -4.25, P = .000), which was equivalent on a 110-point VAS scale to 10.18 points at 12 hours and 6.33 points at 24 hours. Compared with the control group, gabapentin was associated with less total morphine consumption by approximately 110.83 mg (WMD = -110.83, 95% CI: -183.25 to -38.42, P = .003). In addition, the occurrence of nausea and vomiting in gabapentin was decreased (25.2% vs 47.6, RR = 0.53, 95% CI: 0.44-0.63, P = .000). CONCLUSION: Gabapentin was efficacious in reducing postoperative pain, total morphine consumption, and morphine-related complications following laparoscopic cholecystectomy. In addition, there was a negative correlation between the gabapentin dosage and the occurrence of nausea and vomiting. The number of included studies is limited, and more studies are needed to verify the effects of gabapentin in laparoscopic cholecystectomy patients.

Remote ischemic preconditioning attenuates cardiopulmonary bypass-induced lung injury.

The use of cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) in cardiac surgeries is known to induce pathological changes in vital organs such as lungs. Remote ischemic preconditioning (RIPC) is a protective strategy that has shown to be able to reduce tissue damage related to ischemia-reperfusion injury (IRI). The current study seeks to evaluate the beneficial effects of limb RIPC on lung tissues and function in a rat CPB model. RIPC, which consisted of three cycles of 5-min ischemia and subsequently 5-min reperfusion, was induced in the hind limbs of the animals via a tourniquet. Bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid analysis and hematoxylin and eosin staining revealed that limb RIPC could significantly attenuate CPB-induced pulmonary injury, as evidenced by a combination of lower total BAL protein content, less severe alveolar wall thickening and reduced intra-alveolar neutrophil infiltration. Consistently, RIPC was also found to improve the proliferation capacity of the bronchioalveolar stem cells isolated from the lung tissues in rats subjected to surgical procedure with CPB. These beneficial effects translated into significantly improved lung function. Further investigation suggested that RIPC could up-regulate the serum levels of several anti-inflammatory cytokines such as interleukin (IL)-4 and 10, which might play a role in its pulmonoprotective effects. Taken together, the current study provided convincing evidence that limb RIPC could be a useful strategy for minimizing CPB-induced organ injuries in patients undergoing CPB surgery.