CGRP and Visceral Pain: The Role of Sex Hormones in In Vitro Experiment.

A large number of studies have showed that women reported feeling pain more acutely than men. In support of this hypothesis, many research groups proved that in different animals model of pain the sex hormones regulate the somatic and visceral sensitivity to different noxious stimuli. Therefore, in this study, we went to evaluate if estrogen hormones by regulating the CGRP levels are implicated during the visceral pain transmission. Toward this aim, we have investigated the effect of 17ß-estradiol in regulating the synthesis and release of CGRP, as well as the expression levels of the opioid receptor of type K. In order to gain information about the potential effects of 17ß-estradiol on K-opioid receptor expression and activity, we have cultured F11 cells. Our results revealed that, when F11 cells were short-term exposed (30 min) to 17ß-estradiol, the expression of the opioid K receptor was not significantly modified. We carried out enzyme immunoassay analysis to evaluate the potential effects of short-term exposure to 17-estradiol (30 min) on the release of CGRP in F11 cells. The results obtained showed that 17ß-estradiol at the dose of 100 nM is able to induce the release of CGRP from F11 cells; whereas, a higher dose of 17ß-estradiol (200 nM) did not produce significant effects when compared to control. In conclusion, all these findings suggest that the 17ß-estradiol-regulated release of CGRP could at least in part provide a rational explanation for the difference of gender in the visceral pain sensitivity. J. Cell. Biochem. 118: 510-517, 2017. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Treatment of ischemic pain in patients suffering from peripheral vasculopathy with transdermal buprenorphine plus epidural morphine with ropivacaine vs. epidural morphine with ropivacaine.

AIM: This study compared the efficacy and safety of buprenorphine transdermal delivery system with peridural infusion of morphine and ropivacaine to peridural infusion alone for the control of ischemic pain in patients suffering from peripheral vasculopathy. METHODS: Eighty-six patients were randomized into two groups. In the first group, a buprenorphine patch 35 microg/hour TTDS (transtec transdermal device plus ropivacaine and morphine) was applied, and a peridural infusion of ropivacaine/morphine (200 mg + 2 mg) was established. In the second group, ropivacaine and morphine analgesia was obtained using a peridural infusion and a placebo patch. The primary efficacy parameter was the visual analog scale score for pain. Secondary parameters of efficacy were the short-form McGill Pain Questionnaire scores and a score for pain interference with sleep obtained from patient diaries evaluated every week for a period of 4 weeks. RESULTS: Subjects in the TTDS group reported a reduction in pain, increased sleep, and a lower incidence of side effects compared with the control group. CONCLUSION: Transdermal buprenorphine use resulted in significant pain relief with excellent patient satisfaction, which may translate into improvement in mood and quality of life.

Combined intrapleural and intrabronchial injection of fibrin glue for closing alveolar pleural fistula: a case report.

BACKGROUND: The treatment of persistent air leak is a challenge. Herein, we reported the combined intrabronchial and intrapleural injection of fibrin glue using fiber bronchoscopy to seal off an alveolar pleura fistula developed following necrotizing pneumonia in high-risk patient. CASE PRESENTATION: A 74-year-old man was intubated in emergency for acute ischemic stroke. Percutaneous dilatational tracheostomy was then performed, and 15 days later patient returned to spontaneous breathing. However, he developed alveolar pleural fistula following necrotizing pneumonia with persistent air leaks. The intrabronchial and intrapleural injection of fibrin glue using fiber bronchoscopy sealed off the alveolar pleura fistula after that other endoscopic treatments as bronchial valve and intrabronchial fibrin glue application had failed. CONCLUSIONS: Our strategy is safe and easy to reproduce. It represents an additional method in the armamentarium of the physicians for the management of PAL when all standard strategies are unfeasible or fail.

The analgesic effect of betamethasone administered to outpatients before conscious sedation in gynecologic and obstetric surgery.

Conscious sedation, used with or without peripheral or central blocks, is an elective anesthetic technique used for many outpatient procedures. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of a single pre-anesthetic dose of betamethasone (4 mg) on intraoperative and postoperative pain in 380 women, 18 to 75 years old, undergoing gynecologic and obstetric surgery (diagnostic curettage, operative and diagnostic hysteroscopy, conization, minilaparoscopy, cone biopsy, endometrial ablation, assisted reproduction techniques, and induced and therapeutic abortion) in a outpatient service. In this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study, the patients were divided into two equal groups according to a computer-generated randomized list. One group received 4 mg of betamethasone i.v. as a premedication (group B), whereas the placebo group (group P) received only saline. All patients underwent the same sedation, associated with a peripheral block. Pain was evaluated using a 5-point verbal rating scale during surgery, after 2 h, and on discharge. In group B, intraoperative and postoperative pain was significantly less frequent than in group P (P < 0.001). Consequently, fewer women belonging to group B requested additional analgesic drugs during and after surgery (P < 0.01). Patients in group B also experienced a greater degree of satisfaction (P < 0.01). Briefly, a single dose of betamethasone seemed to reduce the incidence and severity of perioperative pain after gynecologic outpatient surgery.

Is pre-emptive administration of ketamine a significant adjunction to intravenous morphine analgesia for controlling postoperative pain? A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate if the pre-emptive administration of ketamine would potentiate the effect of intravenous morphine analgesia in the management of post-thoracotomy pain. METHODS: This was a unicentre, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group, prospective study. Patients were randomly assigned to receive 1 mg/kg ketamine (ketamine group) or an equivalent dose of normal saline (placebo group) before thoracotomy in 1:1 ratio. All patients received postoperatively intravenous morphine administration as additional analgesic regimen. Primary end-point was the pain relief measured with Visual Analogue Scale at rest. The secondary end-points were the reduction of inflammatory response expressed by plasma C-reactive protein levels, the morphine consumption and the rate of side effects. The measurements were carried out 6, 12, 24, 36 and 48 hours postoperatively. RESULTS: A total of 75 patients were randomized of whom 38 were allocated to ketamine group and 37 to placebo group. Baseline characteristics were comparable. Ketamine compared with placebo group showed a significant reduction of pain scores (P = 0.01), C-reactive protein (P < 0.001) and morphine consumption (P < 0.001). No acute psychological side effects related to the use of ketamine were registered. CONCLUSIONS: The administration of ketamine before surgery may be an effective adjunct to intravenous morphine analgesia in acute post-thoracotomy pain management. In ketamine group, satisfaction of pain relief was significantly higher with a significant reduction of inflammatory response and morphine consumption compared with placebo group. Our results, if confirmed by larger studies, may be of clinical relevance in situations where epidural analgesia or other analgesic procedures different from systemic opioid analgesia are unavailable or contraindicated.

Subarachnoid analgesia in advanced labor: a comparison of subarachnoid analgesia and pudendal block in advanced labor: analgesic quality and obstetric outcome.

Pain control during labor is a primary objective of antalgic therapy. The use of the peridural as an elective procedure for labor analgesia is now corroborated by the international scientific community. Sometimes a combined spinal-peridural procedure is used together with the intrathecal administration of opioids to also cover the first stage of labor. Unfortunately, patients and/or gynecologists often request analgesia in a late stage of labor. The aim of our study was to evaluate the possibility of using a subarachnoid block alone for labor analgesia when this is requested at a late stage, that is, in advanced labor with cervical dilation greater than 7 cm. After approval by our ethics committee and the written and informed consent of the patients, 111 women were enrolled in this study and randomly divided into two groups. The first group (Group S: 55 patients) received a subarachnoid block with 2.5 mg hyperbaric bupivacaine + 25 mug fentanyl + 1 mL 10% glucose. A pudendal nerve block with 7 mL 2% mepivacaine in each side was administered to the second group (Group P: 56 patients). In both groups, careful maternal-fetal monitoring was conducted, and pain was scored on a numerical scale from 0 to 4, 10 minutes after placement of the block (time [T] 0), at delivery (T1), and at episiorrhaphy (T2). In all patients, we recorded any side effects, the Apgar score at birth and after 5 minutes, the administration of other analgesic and/or sedative drugs, the degree of satisfaction, and the time of hospitalization after delivery. Evaluations were performed by anesthesiologists unaware of patients' treatment group. The duration of spinal analgesia was considered to be the time from injection of study drugs to the time of the patient's first request for additional analgesia. In no cases were there any side effects worthy of note, and hospitalization never exceeded 72 hours. The Apgar score was always between 7 and 10. All except one of the women in Group S were satisfied or more than satisfied with their pain management, whereas 50 women in Group P expressed only moderate satisfaction or dissatisfaction (P < 0.0001). In most patients in Group S, complete analgesia was obtained. In Group P, however, 10 minutes after placement of the pudendal nerve block, 40 patients reported no improvement in pain symptomatology during contractions and only 16 reported less painful contractions (P < 0.0001). The duration of spinal analgesia (128 +/- 38 minutes) was enough in most cases for delivery to be completed. These results suggest that low-dose bupivacaine-fentanyl spinal analgesia represents an important option for pain relief in late labor, not the least because the procedure does not upset the dynamics of delivery or alter vital parameters and is welcomed by women in labor who are still able to collaborate actively in the birth of their baby.