Warm Cupping of the Posterior Thorax in Combination with Standard Conventional Therapy for ARDS in COVID-19 Patients in ICU: a Case Series.

Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is commonly found in critically ill patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). As a non-pharmacological treatment of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), cupping has been clinically used for respiratory symptoms. We sequentially identified a series of patients with COVID-19 with ARDS who were admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU). Warm cupping of the posterior thorax was performed for seven days. We collected longitudinal severity scores on cough, breathlessness, chest tightness, type of oxygen therapy, and oxygen saturation (SpO2). We hereby report the changes in the severity scores in a series of eight patients who received 21 sessions of cupping in addition to conventional treatments. All patients reported improvement in symptom scores that was matched by an increase in SpO2 by as much as 3.16%. All patients were discharged and did not require the use of a mechanical ventilator. The results suggest that combining cupping with conventional treatment may provide a good prognosis for patients with COVID-19 with ARDS.

The Iranian Study of Opium and Cancer (IROPICAN): Rationale, Design, and Initial Findings.

BACKGROUND: The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) recently classified opium use as a Group 1 carcinogen. However, much remains to be studied on the relation between opium and cancer. We designed the Iranian Opium and Cancer (IROPICAN) study to further investigate the association of opium use and cancers of the head and neck, bladder, lung, and colon and rectum. In this paper, we describe the rationale, design, and some initial results of the IROPICAN Study. METHODS: The IROPICAN is a multi-center case-control study conducted in 10 provinces of Iran. The cases were all histologically confirmed and the controls were selected from hospital visitors who were free of cancer, were not family members or friends of the cancer patients, and were visiting the hospital for reasons other than their own ailment. The questionnaires included detailed questions on opium use (including age at initiation, duration, frequency, typical amount, and route), and potential confounders, such as tobacco use (e.g., cigarettes, nass and water-pipe), and dietary factors. Biological samples, including blood and saliva, were also collected. RESULTS: The validation and pilot phases showed reasonably good validity, with sensitivities of 70% and 69% for the cases and controls, respectively, in reporting opium use. The results also showed excellent reliability, with intra-class correlation coefficients of 0.96 for ever opium use and 0.88 (95% CI: 0.80, 0.92) for regular opium use. In the main phase, we recruited 3299 cancer cases (99% response rate) and 3477 hospital visitor controls (89% response rate). The proportion of ever-use of opium was 40% among cases and 18% among controls. CONCLUSION: The IROPICAN study will serve as a major resource in studies addressing the effect of opium on risk of cancers of the head and neck, bladder, lung, and colon and rectum.

An ultra-low dose of naloxone added to lidocaine or lidocaine-fentanyl mixture prolongs axillary brachial plexus blockade.

INTRODUCTION: In this prospective, randomized, double-blind study, we evaluated the effect of an ultra-low dose of naloxone added to lidocaine and fentanyl mixture on the onset and duration of axillary brachial plexus block. METHODS: One hundred twelve patients scheduled for elective forearm surgery under axillary brachial plexus block were randomly allocated to receive 34 mL lidocaine 1.5% with 3 mL of isotonic saline chloride (control group, n = 28), 34 mL lidocaine 1.5% with 2 mL (100 microg) of fentanyl and 1 mL of isotonic saline chloride (fentanyl group, n = 28), 34 mL lidocaine 1.5% with 2 mL saline chloride and 100 ng (1 mL) naloxone (naloxone group, n = 28), or 34 mL lidocaine 1.5% with 2 mL (100 microg) of fentanyl and 100 ng (1 mL) naloxone (naloxone + fentanyl group, n = 28). A multiple stimulation technique was used in all patients. After performing the block, sensory and motor blockades of radial, median, musculocutaneous, and ulnar nerves were recorded at 5, 15, and 30 min. The onset time of the sensory and motor blockades was defined as the time between the last injection and the total abolition of the pinprick response and complete paralysis, respectively. The duration of sensory and motor blocks was considered as the time interval between the complete block and the first postoperative pain and complete recovery of motor functions. RESULTS: Sensory and motor onset times were longer in the naloxone (sensory onset time: 15 +/- 3, and motor onset time: 21 +/- 4) and naloxone + fentanyl group than control or fentanyl groups (sensory onset time: 10 +/- 3 min in control group, 10 +/- 4 min in fentanyl group, and 17 +/- 3 min in naloxone + fentanyl group, motor onset time: 15 +/- 5 min in control group, 14 +/- 7 min in fentanyl group, and 17.3 +/- 3.4 min in naloxone + fentanyl group) (P < 0.001). The duration of time to first postoperative pain and motor blockade was significantly longer in the naloxone (92 +/- 10 and 115 +/- 10 min) and naloxone + fentanyl groups (98 +/- 12 and 122 +/- 16 min) than control (68 +/- 7 and 89 +/- 11 min) and fentanyl groups (68 +/- 11 and 90 +/- 12 min) (P < 0.001). The time to first postoperative pain was significantly longer in the naloxone and naloxone + fentanyl groups than in the control or fentanyl groups (P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The addition of an ultra-low dose of naloxone to lidocaine 1.5% solution with or without fentanyl solution in axillary brachial plexus block prolongs the time to first postoperative pain and motor blockade but also lengthens the onset time.

Clinical course teaching in transport of critically ill patients: Small group methods.

Critically ill patient transfer is potentially risky and may be lead to morbidity and mortality. Physicians' skill is very important for safe transport. We want to evaluate the effect of clinical course teaching on the promotion of physicians' abilities in the transport of critically ill patients. In an interventional study, 320 interns, male and female, were taught about patient transfer in two groups include in one day clinical course as the small group system (n=160) and other group the lecture base learning (n=160). In the clinical course, each participant under observation of an anesthesiologist in the operation room and ICU was acquainted with mask ventilation, intubation and learned to work with a defibrillator, infusion pump, portable ventilator and pulse oximeter. In lecture group, the anesthesiologist explained the topics by video and dummy. At the end of education course, the interns' abilities were evaluated based on checklist method and scored by the project colleague in all educational items. Three hundred twenty interns, 122 males, and 198 females; were enrolled, two groups. The clinical course training caused improvements in the interns' knowledge and abilities in intubation and use of the defibrillator and portable ventilator vs.lecture group significantly (P<0.005). The males were better than females in laryngoscopy, but the progress of the females was significantly better than males (P=0.003). The rate of adverse events was reduced significantly after clinical course teaching (P=0.041) Clinical course teaching could promote interns' clinical competencies in the transport of critically ill patients.

Effects of preoperative magnesium sulphate on post-cesarean pain, a placebo controlled double blind study.

OBJECTIVE: To study the role of preoperative intravenous magnesium sulphate in decreasing post-cesarean pain and opioid requirement during first 24hrs. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In a double blind randomized clinical trial, prior to induction of general anesthesia, fifty elective cesarean candidates were randomly assigned to one of the two groups of placebo or magnesium sulfate. After surgery visual analogue scale (VAS) and infused morphine by PCA during 24 hrs were recorded. The data were analyzed by mann-Whitney -test, analysis of variance, and student t- test. RESULTS: VAS was significantly lower among patients in the magnesium sulphate group at intervals of 1(st), 6(th) & 12(th) hours after cesarean section (C/S) with the mean scales of (48.9 ± 19.6 VS 74.7 ± 18.4), (42.1 ± 0.9 VS 58.3 ± 16.5) and (25.2 ± 6.1VS 30 ± 8.1) respectively and p-value of <0.001, 0.002 and 0.05 respectively. However at 24 hrs there was no significant difference in VAS with mean VAS scales of 22.6 ± 4.5 VS 23.6 ± 4.9 and p-value of 0.49. The dose of infused Morphine during 24 hrs was significantly less in the magnesium sulphate group than the placebo group with the means of 4.36 ± 1.4 VS 7.02 ± 1.9 mg respectively (p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: Administration of bolus 50 mg/kg magnesium sulphate prior to induction of general anesthesia may significantly decreased the morphine requirement during immediate post operative period and can be recommended as one of the modalities of post-operative pain control in the pregnant patients.

Attenuation of Hemodynamic Responses to Laryngoscopy and Tracheal Intubation: Propacetamol versus Lidocaine-A Randomized Clinical Trial.

The purpose of this study is to assess the effects of propacetamol on attenuating hemodynamic responses subsequent laryngoscopy and tracheal intubation compared to lidocaine. In this randomized clinical trial, 62 patients with the American Anesthesiologists Society (ASA) class I/II who required laryngoscopy and tracheal intubation for elective surgery were assigned to receive propacetamol 2 g/I.V./infusion (group P) or lidocaine 1.5 mg/kg (group L) prior to laryngoscopy. Systolic and diastolic blood pressures (SBP, DBP), mean arterial pressure (MAP), and heart rate (HR) were recorded at baseline, before laryngoscopy and within nine minutes after intubation. In both groups P and L, MAP increased after laryngoscopy and the changes were statistically significant (P < 0.001). There were significant changes of HR in both groups after intubation (P < 0.02), but the trend of changes was different between two groups (P < 0.001). In group L, HR increased after intubation and its change was statistically significant within 9 minutes after intubation (P < 0.001), while in group P, HR remained stable after intubation (P = 0.8). Propacetamol 2 gr one hour prior intubation attenuates heart rate responses after laryngoscopy but is not effective to prevent acute alterations in blood pressure after intubation.