Acceptability of midazolam and melatonin as premedications for anxious children undergoing general anaesthesia: a qualitative interview study with children, caregivers and health professionals participating in the MAGIC trial.

Background: The acceptability of a children's premedication, prior to general anaesthesia (GA), is fundamental to ensuring positive clinical- and patient-reported outcomes. Midazolam, the current standard premedication, is known to have an unfavourable side-effects profile and presents a degree of risk which is accepted due to a need for compliance. Melatonin is a functionally diverse hormone with anxiolytic properties that offer potential benefits over midazolam.

Development and validation of metrics for assessment of ultrasound-guided fascial block skills.

Background: As few anaesthetists provide lumbar erector spinae block for disc surgery, there is a need to provide training to enable a randomised controlled trial investigating analgesia after painful spinal surgery (NIHR153170). The primary objective of the study was to develop and measure the construct validity of a checklist for assessment of skills in performing lumbar and thoracic erector spinae fascial plane injection using soft-embalmed Thiel cadavers.

Methods: Twenty-four UK consultant regional anaesthetists completed two iterations of a Delphi questionnaire.

Personalised versus standard text message prompts for increasing trial participant response to telephone follow-up: an embedded randomised controlled retention trial.

Background: Improving retention within randomised controlled trials is important. The effectiveness of different strategies can be assessed using a Study Within A Trial (SWAT). Previous research has shown personalised text message reminders improve clinic attendance rates; however, the results are mixed on improving postal questionnaire return.

The MAGIC trial: a pragmatic, multicentre, parallel, noninferiority, randomised trial of melatonin versus midazolam in the premedication of anxious children attending for elective surgery under general anaesthesia.

Background: Child anxiety before general anaesthesia and surgery is common. Midazolam is a commonly used premedication to address this. Melatonin is an alternative anxiolytic, however trials evaluating its efficacy in children have delivered conflicting results.

Patient advocate involvement in the design and conduct of breast cancer clinical trials requiring the collection of multiple biopsies.

Plain English Summary: Breast cancer is a diverse and varied disease. Recent research has shown that the collection of multiple biopsies before surgery can help researchers determine how the cancer is responding to treatment and can predict for long-term outcomes. However biopsies can be uncomfortable, and sometimes clinicians and research teams in hospitals may be reluctant to offer clinical trials requiring several biopsies to patients who have been recently diagnosed with breast cancer.