Rise and fall of oral health products with Canadian bloodroot extract.

The rhizome of Sanguinaria canadensis (SC, bloodroot) contains an active principle with antimicrobial, antiinflammatory, antioxidative and immunomodulatory effects. For this reason SC extract has been added to toothpastes and mouthwashes in various concentrations. When tested separately, neither the toothpastes nor the mouthwashes with SC extract had any demonstrable clinical effectiveness against dental plaque and gingivitis.

Efficacy of a benzocaine lozenge in the treatment of uncomplicated sore throat.

Benzocaine lozenges are popular in symptomatic treatment of acute sore throat. The aim of this study was to evaluate if sucking a benzocaine lozenge was superior to a placebo lozenge in patients with pain while swallowing. Volunteers with acute, uncomplicated sore throat received randomly and double-blind either a benzocaine 8 mg or a placebo lozenge.

Willow species and aspirin: different mechanism of actions.

Many believe that willow is the natural source of aspirin. However, willow species contain only a low quantity of the prodrug salicin which is metabolized during absorption into various salicylate derivatives. If calculated as salicylic acid, the daily salicin dose is insufficient to produce analgesia.

Audiovisual video eyeglass distraction during dental treatment in children.

Objective: To investigate the effect of audiovisual distraction (AVD) with video eyeglasses on the behavior of children undergoing dental restorative treatment and the satisfaction with this treatment as reported by children, parents, dental students, and experienced pediatric dentists.

Method And Materials: During restorative dental treatment, 61 children wore wireless audiovisual eyeglasses with earphones, and 59 received dental treatment under nitrous oxide sedation. A Frankl behavior rating score was assigned to each child.

Effects of virtual reality immersion and audiovisual distraction techniques for patients with pruritus.

Background: Virtual reality immersion (VRI), an advanced computer-generated technique, decreased subjective reports of pain in experimental and procedural medical therapies. Furthermore, VRI significantly reduced pain-related brain activity as measured by functional magnetic resonance imaging. Resemblance between anatomical and neuroendocrine pathways of pain and pruritus may prove VRI to be a suitable adjunct for basic and clinical studies of the complex aspects of pruritus.

Virtual reality immersion method of distraction to control experimental ischemic pain.

Background: Virtual reality immersion has been advocated as a new effective adjunct to drugs for pain control. The attenuation of pain perception and unpleasantness has been attributed to the patient's attention being diverted from the real, external environment through immersion in a virtual environment transmitted by an interactive 3-D software computer program via a VR helmet.

Objectives: To investigate whether VR immersion can extend the amount of time subjects can tolerate ischemic tourniquet pain.

The influence of electroconvulsive therapy on pain threshold and pain tolerance in major depression patients before, during and after treatment.

Despite the findings that pain and depression are not always directly linked, enough evidence suggest that a complex relationship between pain and depression exists. Using an electronic pressure algometer placed on the sternum, the changes in pressure pain threshold (PPThr) and pressure pain tolerance (PPTol) were evaluated in 19 patients affected by refractory major depression without psychotic features, throughout a full course of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) treatment. Measurements were done before the first treatment, after the 6th treatment and after the last treatment.

[Intravenous lignocaine for chronic pain: an 18-month experience].

Intravenous injection of lignocaine relieves pain in animals with experimentally induced pain, and in man, mainly those with neuropathic pain. 106 patients were treated with intravenous lignocaine during a period of 18 months (212 treatment sessions). Blood pressure, heart rate and pain scores were continuously monitored after an intravenous bolus of lignocaine, 1 mg/kg, followed by continuous infusion of lignocaine, 5 mg/kg during 1 hour.

Use of alfentanil for in vitro fertilization oocyte retrieval.

Study Objectives: To determine alfentanil levels with a specific radioimmunoassay in serum and ovarian follicular fluid.

Design: Observational study.

Setting: University hospital.

Assessment of pain threshold and pain tolerance in women in labour and in the early post-partum period by pressure algometry.

The changes in the pressure pain threshold (PPThr) and pressure pain tolerance (PPTol) in 41 parturients have been studied during the active phase of labour and in the early post-partum period. The sensitivity to pressure stimuli was examined with an electronic pressure algometer placed on the sternum during the interval between painful contractions, after extradural analgesia and 24 h after childbirth. Prior to extradural analgesia, mean (+/- SD), PPThr and PPTol were 4.

Bupivacaine wound infiltration in thyroid surgery reduces postoperative pain and opioid demand.

Control of postoperative pain is an important element in preventing the modification of the excitability of the dorsal horn neurons. We studied the efficacy of bupivacaine 0.5% wound infiltration for postoperative pain management following thyroid surgery.

Comparison between intranasal and intravenous midazolam sedation (with or without patient control) in a dental phobia clinic.

Two new modes of sedation; patient-controlled sedation (PCS) and intranasal sedation (INS) were compared with the traditional bolus intravenous sedation (BIVS) while delivering dental care to apprehensive patients in a specialized dental fear clinic. Effective sedation was evaluated in a randomized, prospective study in 42 ASA 1 and 2 patients, in a factorial design. Eighteen patients were sedated with .

Electronic pressure algometry of deep pain in healthy volunteers.

Deep pressure pain threshold (PPT) and pressure pain tolerance (PPtol) were measured by pressure algometry at the mastoid processes, external malleoli, and sternum in 24 healthy volunteers. The algometer consisted of a force displacement transducer with a 0.25 cm2 pressure tip linked to a recorder.

Dose-response effect of intrathecal alfentanil on canine lower urinary tract dynamics.

The effect of intrathecal (IT) administration of three different doses (1, 2.5, and 5 micrograms/kg) of alfentanil on lower urinary tract dynamics was examined by urodynamic studies, cystometrograms (CMG), and urethral pressure profiles (UPP) in seven anesthetized dogs. Simultaneous serum drug concentrations were determined by specific radioimmunoassay for time-response analysis.

Continuous epidural methadone treatment for cancer pain.

Seventy cancer patients suffering from visceral or somatic pain received continuous epidural methadone (EM) analgesia. Initially, 4 mg of 0.1% methadone was given three times daily.

[Patient-controlled i.v. morphine for acute postoperative pain].

The use of patient-controlled i.v. analgesia for postoperative pain relief in 60 cases is described.

[Fentanyl vs alfentanil anesthesia for in vitro fertilization].

In a prospective double-blind study, 36 women undergoing ultrasonically guided oocyte retrieval for in vitro fertilization (IVF) were examined. Anesthesia in 19 was based on alfentanil, up to 0.025 mg/kg and in 17, fentanyl, 0.

[The use of 0.5% bupivacaine by infiltration for analgesia during thyroidectomies].

We studied the postoperative analgesia in 25 patients scheduled for a thyroidectomy or a parathyroidectomy. In 15 patients we used wound infiltration of bupivacaine 0.5%.