Effect of remimazolam vs. propofol on hemodynamics during general anesthesia induction in elderly patients: Single-center, randomized controlled trial.

The current study aimed to compare the effects between remimazolam and propofol on hemodynamic stability during the induction of general anesthesia in elderly patients. We used propofol at a rate of 60 mg/(kg·h) in the propofol group (group P) or remimazolam at a rate of 6 mg/(kg·h) in the remimazolam group (group R) for the induction. A processed electroencephalogram was used to determine whether the induction was successful and when to stop the infusion of the study drug. We measured when patients entered the operating room (T 0), when the induction was successful (T 1), and when before (T 2) and 5 min after successful endotracheal intubation (T 3). We found that mean arterial pressure (MAP) was lower at T 1-3, compared with T 0 in both groups, but higher at T 2 in the group R, while ΔMAP T0-T2 and ΔMAP max were smaller in the group R (ΔMAP T0-T2: the difference between MAP at time point T 0 and T 2, ΔMAP max: the difference between MAP at time point T 0 and the lowest value from T 0 to T 3). Cardiac index and stroke volume index did not differ between groups, whereas systemic vascular resistance index was higher at T 1-3 in the group R. These findings show that remimazolam, compared with propofol, better maintains hemodynamic stability during the induction, which may be attributed to its ability to better maintain systemic vascular resistance levels.

Prevalence of dry eye disease in Mongolians at high altitude in China: the Henan eye study.

PURPOSE: To estimate the prevalence of dry eye disease, analyze the associations between dry eye symptoms and signs, and identify the risk factors in an elderly Mongolian population at high altitude in China. METHODS: A population-based survey was conducted in 2006. A total of 2,486 Mongolians age 40 and older were selected. Symptoms of dry eye were assessed using a 6-item validated questionnaire. Dry eye disease was defined if participants reported one or more symptoms often or all the time. Positive signs included a tear-film breakup time of or= 1 in one or both eyes. Presence of dry eye symptoms and positive signs were analyzed. Correlations between symptoms and signs, and risk factors were evaluated in a multivariate model. RESULTS: Of the 1,816 participants, 50.1% (95% confidence interval, 47.8-52.4) were symptomatic. Tear-film breakup time of or= 1 was 6.0% (95% confidence interval, 4.9-7.1). The correlation between dry eye symptoms and positive signs (tear-film breakup time of or=1 [r = 0.361, P < 0.001]) were statistically significant. Independent risk factors included increased age, age-related cataract and pterygium. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrates a high prevalence rate of dry eye disease in a Mongolian population. Dry eye signs were significantly associated with dry eye symptoms.