The vicious cycle of frailty and pain: a two-sided causal relationship revealed.

Background: The decline in physiological functions in the older people is frequently accompanied with pain and frailty, yet the causal connection between frailty and pain remains uncertain. In this study, we utilized a two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) approach to investigate the potential causal association between frailty and pain.

Methods: Two-sample bidirectional MR was conducted using summary data from genome-wide association studies to examine the potential causal relationship between frailty (defined by the frailty index and frailty phenotype) and pain.

Effect of remimazolam on intra-operative hypotension: Systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials.

Background: Hypotension is common during anaesthesia. Increasing number of studies have reported that remimazolam may be associated with lower incidence of intra-operative hypotension compared with other anaesthetics. However, the results remain controversial.

Analgesic Efficacy of an Ultrasound-Guided Transversus Thoracis Plane Block Combined with an Intermediate Cervical Plexus Block on Postoperative Pain Relief After Trans-Areolar Endoscopic Thyroidectomy: A Single Center Prospective Randomized Controlled Study.

Purpose: This study aimed to investigate the analgesic effect of ultrasound-guided transversus thoracis plane block (TTPB) combined with intermediate cervical plexus block (ICPB) in the early postoperative period after trans-areolar endoscopic thyroidectomy.

Patients And Methods: A total of 62 female patients undergoing trans-areolar endoscopic thyroidectomy were randomly classified to the TTPB combined with ICPB group with ropivacaine (block group) or superficial cervical plexus block group (control group). The primary outcome measures were resting visual analogue scale (VAS) in the chest area at 6 h after surgery.

Pyrolytic preparation and modification of carbon black recovered from waste tyres.

The medium temperature pyrolysis process using a fixed-bed reactor at atmospheric pressure was utilised to recover carbon black from motorcycle and automobile tyres. Experimental results have shown that the ash and volatile contents of several recovered carbon blacks are high, the elongation at break of the vulcanised natural rubber filled with recovered carbon blacks from motorcycle tyres is better than that from motorcycle tyres and standard carbon black 7#, while the other mechanical properties are worse. In order to improve the reinforcing effect of recovered carbon blacks, the modification of recovered carbon black was performed by high-energy electron bombardment and non-oxidising acid.

Comparison of Percutaneous Nephrolithotomy Under Regional versus General Anesthesia: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.

The aim of the present meta-analysis was to systematically examine the literature and to identify of the results of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) comparing the efficacy and safety of regional anesthesia (RA) versus general anesthesia (GA) for percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL). An exhaustive electronic literature search of PubMed, Embase, and Web of science was performed until March 2018. Nine prospective RCTs concluding 858 patients comparing the use of RA to GA for PCNL were included.