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Chronic Pain Management Guidelines: Time for Review.

The American Association of Nurse Anesthesiology (AANA) Board of Directors in November 2021 approved updated Chronic Pain Management Guidelines. Input was collected from various stakeholders, including the AANA Practice Committee, AANA staff, subject matter experts, and feedback from the Nonsurgical Pain Management Advisory Panel. A 2-week open comment period was held to solicit feedback from AANA membership on the draft document. The document adopted the recently revised definition of pain by the International Association for the Study of Pain.

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Successful management of dural venous sinus thrombosis secondary to ulcerative colitis in a pediatric patient: A case report.

Cerebral venous sinus thrombosis secondary to inflammatory bowel disease is a clinically rare and challenging entity with serious sequela. We preset a case of a 15-year-old female patient who was recently diagnosed with ulcerative colitis and had been suffering from headache for 4 days duration. During the diagnostic workup, computed tomography (CT) venography revealed Dural venous sinus thrombosis in the left transverse sinus extending into the left sigmoid sinus and the upper third of the left internal jugular vein as well as into the sinus confluence with non-occlusive filling defects in the superior sagittal sinus. Anticoagulant therapy with enoxaparin was initiated and the patient is being monitored in an outpatient setting regularly. Post-discharge disease course was uneventful. CT venography performed after 3 months illustrated partial recanalization of both left transverse and sigmoid sinuses. CVST is a rare extraintestinal manifestation of ulcerative colitis with significant morbidity and mortality which requires a high level of suspicion to establish a clear diagnosis. In spite the fact that CVST is rare, it should be ruled out in inflammatory bowel disease patients with new onset seizures, headache, along with focal, and non-focal neurologic symptoms.

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Extra-Axial Cystic Meningioma without Dural Attachment in an Adult: Case Report and Review of Literature.

Intraparenchymal meningiomas, meningiomas without dural attachment, and cystic meningioma are atypical and extremely rare, especially in adults. Only four cases of intraparenchymal cystic meningioma without dural attachment have been reported. A 47-year-old female presented with an altered sensorium. She had a progressive bifrontal headache for 2 months. Computed tomography scan of the brain showed an 8 cm × 6 cm cystic lesion with a solid component in the left frontoparietal region with a midline shift. The solid part of the lesion was enhancing on contrast but the cyst rim was not. Intraoperatively, the cyst was filled with amber-colored fluid, which was drained, and the solid component was completely excised. Histopathological examination of the solid tumor component confirmed cystic meningioma. At 2 years of follow-up, she has no evidence of recurrence. We report the fifth case of this very rare entity and review the literature.

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PREECLAMPSIA COMPLICATED WITH PULMONARY EDEMA IN NEWLY DIAGNOSED PERIPARTUM DILATED CARDIOMYOPATHY: CASE REPORT.

Pulmonary edema is one of the most serious complications of preeclampsia that should be ruled out in case of dyspnea in a pregnant woman. The prognosis is generally good, however it can indicate underlying unrecognized dilated cardiomyopathy.

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Effectiveness of whole-body vibration exercise and core stabilization exercise in chronic non-specific low back pain: A randomized-controlled study.

The aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of whole-body vibration exercise (WBVE) and core stabilization exercise (CSE) on pain, muscle strength, and functional recovery in patients with chronic non-specific low back pain (NLBP).

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Post-COVID-19 Pulmonary Infarction Complicated by Spontaneous Pneumothorax: A Case Report.

Pulmonary cavitation is an atypical finding in COVID-19 patients. In this rare case report, a 63-year-old woman (35 days from COVID-19 symptom onset) presented to our emergency department with acute chest pain and shortness of breath. A chest X-ray established right-sided total pneumothorax, hence a tube thoracostomy was performed. Due to a persistent air leak, chest computed tomography was performed, which showed areas of lung consolidation and a cavitary mass in the upper lobe of the right lung. The woman undertook a thoracoscopy, which established multiple petechiae on the lung surface and a bronchopleural fistula of the right lung's upper lobe. The treatment of choice was an atypical lung resection to remove the necrotic cavitary lesion. Histological and microbiological examination of the resected lung specimen showed a bland (aseptic) cavitary pulmonary infarct. Pulmonary infarction is a rare cause of cavitation in COVID-19 patients, nonetheless, something that should be considered in those presenting with respiratory symptoms or complications during or post-COVID-19.

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Factors affecting prevalence of neurological symptoms among workers at gasoline stations in Rayong Province, Thailand.

This cross-sectional study was aimed at assessing the exposure to organic solvents and the factors affecting prevalence of neurological symptoms among workers at gas stations in Rayong Province. The sample included 200 workers at gas stations, including refueling staff, cashiers, food shop, coffee shop, and convenience store employees. Interview questionnaire included general information, work history, and neurological symptoms. Urine collection devices were used to detect organic solvents metabolized in urine, including t,t-muconic acid (t,t-MA), hippulic acid (HA), mandelic acid (MA), and methylhppuric acid (MHA).The results showed that the workers' medians (interquartile range: IQR) of the metabolized organic solvents were as follows: t,t-MA was 393.62 (244.59) µg/g Cr, HA was 0.32 (0.14) g/g Cr, MA was 0.06 (0.02) g/g Cr, and MHA was 0.40 (0.13) g/g Cr. For prevalence of neurological symptoms, top three symptoms were headache (49.0%), dizziness (42.5%), and stress/irritability (38.5%). Working at a gas station present was neurological symptoms more than in the past was 32.5%. According to the assessment of exposure to metabolized organic solvents and factors affecting the prevalence of neurological symptoms, overtime work ≥ 6 hours and HA content greater than quartiles Q3 had an effect on neurologic symptoms (OR=2.17; 95%CI=1.23-5.10 and OR=2.15; 95%CI=1.18- 4.76, respectively). In summary, time spent working in gas stations and exposure to toluene organic solvents can cause neurological symptoms. It is recommended to reduce overtime or add breaks during work shifts or shift changes. In addition, workers should be away from the solvent.

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“Moving on Up? Neighborhood Status and Racism-Related Distress among Black Americans”.

At all levels of socioeconomic status, Black Americans can expect to live shorter and sicker lives than their White counterparts. This study advances the perspective that anti-Black stigma from Whites precludes Blacks from reaping the full health rewards of higher status, particularly within the context of neighborhoods. To test this hypothesis, I merge census data with rich survey and biomarker data from the Nashville Stress and Health Study, a representative sample of Black and White adults from Davidson County, Tennessee (n = 1,252). Initially, I find that Blacks who reside in higher-status and mostly White communities exhibit lower levels of neuroendocrine stress hormones, relative to their peers living in disadvantaged Black neighborhoods. But Blacks in higher-status areas also report more perceived discrimination. In turn, perceived discrimination is associated with chronic bodily pain, as well as elevated stress hormones and blood pressure tied to high goal-striving stress, or fears of being blocked from reaching life goals. After accounting for racism-related stressors, Blacks exhibit comparable levels of physiological distress regardless of neighborhood context. The inverse is true for Whites, who report fewer stressors in higher-status neighborhoods, and less physiological distress than Blacks overall. Findings are discussed within the context of social evolutionary theories of the human brain and are dovetailed with broader racial health disparities in the United States.

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Predictive Clinical and Surgical Factors Associated with Recurrent Apoplexy in Pituitary Adenomas.

 Pituitary apoplexy is an uncommon clinical condition that can require urgent surgical intervention, but the factors resulting in recurrent apoplexy remain unclear. The purpose of this study is to determine the risks of a recurrent apoplexy and better understand the goals of surgical treatment.  A retrospective chart review was performed for all consecutive patients diagnosed and surgically treated for pituitary apoplexy from 2004 to 2021. Univariate analysis was performed to identify risk factors associated with recurrent apoplexy.  A total of 115 patients were diagnosed with pituitary apoplexy with 11 patients showing recurrent apoplexy. This occurred at a rate of 2.2 cases per 100 patient-years of follow-up. There were no major differences in demographic factors, such as hypertension or anticoagulation use. There were no differences in tumor locations, cavernous sinus invasion, or tumor volumes (6.84 ± 4.61 vs. 9.15 ± 8.45 cm,  = 0.5). Patients with recurrent apoplexy were less likely to present with headache (27.3%) or ophthalmoplegia (9.1%). Recurrent apoplexy was associated with prior radiation (0.0 vs. 27.3%,  = 0.0001) and prior subtotal resection (10.6 vs. 90.9%,  = 0.0001) compared with first time apoplexy. The mean time to recurrent apoplexy was 48.3 ± 76.9 months and no differences in overall follow-up were seen in this group.  Recurrent pituitary apoplexy represents a rare event with limited understanding of pathophysiology. Prior STR and radiation treatment are associated with an increased risk. The relatively long time from the first apoplectic event to a recurrence suggests long-term patient follow-up is necessary.

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Chronic Pain Management During a Pandemic: Evidence-Based Review.

Chronic pain is the leading cause of morbidity in the world and is strongly associated with physical and psychological disabilities. In this pandemic, most of the pain care centers are forced to shut their doors leaving patients in dismay and adding to their misery. A systematic review was performed following the recommendations of the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses statement. All research articles from March 2020 to September 15, 2020, available on PubMed, Google scholar, and EmBase were included in this study. The keywords used for data search were "chronic pain," "coronavirus," "pain management," "COVID-19," "drugs usage in covid-19," "recommendation," and "guidelines". This review summarizes findings from the current literature available worldwide from different databases regarding guidelines to practice during chronic pain in coronavirus disease (COVID) crisis. This article acts as a specimen on how to handle future pandemics. We concluded that chronic pain management is a fundamental right and telemedicine is the silver lining that can be used for primary, follow-up consultation and to address mental health issues in chronic pain patients. Outpatient department visits should be scheduled using "forward triage." Pain Interventions should be carried out if urgent or semi-urgent with necessary precautions. Reopening of elective procedures with COVID testing can be planned, considering pain interventions to be usually percutaneous, of short duration, and involving office procedures with minimal aerosol generation. Drugs contrib- uting to immune suppression, for example, strong opioids and steroids, should be avoided. Regenerative therapy can be used instead during pain interventions. Physicians are expected to follow the recommended government guidelines before prescribing any drugs.

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