Evaluation of circulating levels of Interleukin-10 and Interleukin-16 and dietary inflammatory index in Lebanese knee osteoarthritis patients.

Objectives: To investigate plasma concentrations of Interleukin-16 (IL-16) and Interleukin-10 (IL-10) in Lebanese knee osteoarthritis (KOA) patients and to examine the association between the diet-associated inflammation and increased risk for KOA.

Methods: A total of 208 study participants were assigned to one of the 3 groups: Diagnosed Knee Osteoarthritis group (DKOA) (N = 78); Undiagnosed Knee Osteoarthritis group (UKOA) (N = 60) and controls matched on age, sex and sociodemographic characteristics (N = 70). UKOA represents KOA features before they are altered by therapeutic intervention and lifestyle modifications that follow the diagnosis.

Nerve stimulator-guided pudendal nerve block vs general anesthesia for postoperative pain management after anterior and posterior vaginal wall repair: a prospective randomized trial.

Study Objective: Compare the effectiveness of nerve stimulator-guided pudendal nerve block (PNB) vs general anesthesia (GA) for anterior and posterior (AP) colporrhaphy in terms of pain relief and analgesic consumption within 24 and 48 hours postoperatively.

Design: Prospective randomized trial.

Patients: Fifty-seven patients whose ages ranged between 20 and 53 years scheduled to undergo AP colporrhaphy due to the presence of cystorectocele.

Effect of clonidine versus dexmedetomidine on pain control after laparoscopic gastric sleeve: A prospective, randomized, double-blinded study.

Background: The use of opioids in surgeries for morbidly obese patients could cause respiratory depression. Therefore, alternative analgesics are needed to improve anesthetic management for obese patients. The objective of this study was to compare the effect of dexmedetomidine and clonidine on pain as well as analgesic consumption at 24 h postoperatively in patients undergoing laparoscopic gastric sleeve.

Effect of one anesthetic exposure on long-term behavioral changes in children.

Study Objective: To determine the association between one anesthetic exposure and behavioral outcome at age 10 to 12 years.

Design: Retrospective comparative study.

Setting: University-affiliated pediatrics department.

The effectiveness of pudendal nerve block versus caudal block anesthesia for hypospadias in children.

Background: Caudal block (CB) has some disadvantages, one of which is its short duration of action after a single injection. For hypospadias repair, pudendal nerve block (PNB) might be a suitable alternative since it has been successfully used for analgesia for circumcision. We evaluated PNB compared with CB as measured by total analgesic consumption 24 hours postoperatively.

Guided paravertebral blocks with versus without clonidine for women undergoing breast surgery: a prospective double-blinded randomized study.

Background: Paravertebral blocks (PVBs) have been introduced as an alternative to general anesthesia for breast cancer surgeries. The addition of clonidine as an adjuvant in PVBs may enhance quality and duration of analgesia and significantly reduce the consumption of analgesics after breast surgery. In this prospective randomized double-blind study, we assessed the significance of adding clonidine to the anesthetic mixture for women undergoing mastectomy.

Bilateral guided cervical block for Zenker diverticulum excision in a patient with ankylosing spondylitis.

Patients with severe ankylosing spondylitis (AS) have difficulties in tracheal intubation. An 87-year-old man with severe AS was scheduled for Zenker diverticulum (ZD) excision. It was decided to proceed with combined bilateral cervical plexus blockade using a nerve stimulator.

Occipital nerve blockade for cervicogenic headache: a double-blind randomized controlled clinical trial.

Cervicogenic headache is a chronic hemicranial pain, usually occurring daily. This randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial evaluated the effectiveness of nerve stimulator-guided occipital nerve blockade in the treatment of cervicogenic headache. The reduction in analgesic consumption was the primary outcome measure.

Repetitive occipital nerve blockade for cervicogenic headache: expanded case report of 47 adults.

Purpose: To evaluate the repetitive occipital nerve blocks using a nerve stimulator in the treatment of cervicogenic headache.

Methods: This prospective noncomparative clinical interventional case-series study included 47 patients suffering from cervicogenic headache using a repetitive guided occipital nerve blockade.

Results: Forty-one patients (87%) required more than one injection to achieve six-month pain-relief period.

Thoracic paravertebral block: influence of the number of injections.

Background And Objectives: The purpose of this study was to assess the radiographic and clinical distribution of 1 to 4 paravertebral injections by use of the same total volume of local anesthetic mixture.

Methods: Sixty-nine patients scheduled for surgical interventions suitable for bilateral PVB were included in the study and were randomly assigned to 1 of 3 treatment groups. Group 1 received 4 paravertebral injections on one side versus 1 injection on the contralateral side (23 patients), group 2 received 4 injections versus 2 injections (23 patients), and group 3 received 4 injections versus 3 injections (23 patients).

Addition of clonidine and fentanyl: comparison between three different regional anesthetic techniques in circumcision.

Background: Several techniques have been used for alleviating post-circumcision pain with regional anesthetics being more effective than systemic opioids. Our aim was to compare the effectiveness of dorsal penile block, ring block (RB) and dorsal penile block associated with RB in reducing post-circumcision pain in children.

Methods: We conducted a prospective randomized double-blind clinical trial on 100 boys aged between 1 month and 5 years undergoing elective circumcision.

Nerve stimulator-guided paravertebral blockade combined with sevoflurane sedation versus general anesthesia with systemic analgesia for postherniorrhaphy pain relief in children: a prospective randomized trial.

Background: Improvement of the duration of postoperative analgesia is desirable in children undergoing inguinal hernia repair.

Methods: Fifty children aged 5-12 yr were prospectively randomized to receive either paravertebral nerve blockade or general anesthesia (sevoflurane-fentanyl-nitrous oxide-oxygen) combined with standardized postoperative systemic analgesia, both combined with light sevoflurane anesthesia, for inguinal hernia repair.

Results: Mean pain scores were significantly lower in paravertebral nerve blockade patients compared with patients treated with systemic analgesia during the entire 48-h observational period (P < 0.