School-based Streptococcal A Sore-throat Treatment Programs and Acute Rheumatic Fever Amongst Indigenous Māori: A Retrospective Cohort Study.

Background: Acute rheumatic fever (ARF) predominantly affects indigenous Māori schoolchildren in Bay of Plenty region, and more so male Māori students, especially when socioeconomically deprived. We evaluated the effectiveness of strategies for reducing ARF with group A streptococcal pharyngitis treatment in 2011-18.

Methods: We retrospectively assessed outcomes of 3 open cohorts of Māori schoolchildren receiving different interventions: Eastern Bay rural Cohort 1, mean deprivation decile 9.

Managing Postoperative Analgesic Failure: Tramadol Versus Morphine for Refractory Pain in the Post-Operative Recovery Unit.

Objective: This study aimed to discover whether co-analgesia with tramadol or additional morphine was more effective for patients who still had severe pain despite being given 10 mg intravenous morphine in the post-anesthesia care unit (PACU).

Methods: All eligible patients were consented and recruited to the trial pre-operatively, but only a small subgroup – whose pain was not successfully controlled (pain score 6/10 or more) after receiving 10 mg of morphine in the PACU—were then randomized to enter the trial and receive, in a double blinded fashion, the analgesic study drug; which consisted of either a further 10 mg of morphine, or 100 mg of tramadol, titrated intravenously to control their pain. The groups were compared as to: the time to readiness for discharge, the patient’s pain scores over time, and the presence of side effects.