Music and Health

Music therapy is the use of intervention to accomplish individual goals within a therapeutic relationship by a professional who has completed an approved music therapy programme. Music has several physiological effects including positive effects on mood, a reduction of anxiety, stress and a lowering of blood pressure. There are several types of music therapy. Music therapy procedures are structured as either receptive or active. Music therapy methods include music recreation, improvisation, composition, listening and receptive experience. In modern health care, music has several applications in the perioperative setting, neurology, family medicine, paediatrics, obstetrics, interventional procedures, the critical care unit, pain management, palliative care and cancer. Though it has some limitations, there is ample scientific evidence to support the beneficial use of music therapy as a low-cost therapy with no side effect in various clinical situations in current health care settings. This article describes the various applications of music in modern health care.

The Stress of COVID-19: Playing Havoc with the Hormones-A Review

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus- 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has affected millions of people across the world engendering an unprecedented pandemic. Coronavirus disease (COVID)-19 can present asymptomatic or in the form of the acute respiratory syndrome, viral pneumonia,or sepsis. Due to the novelty of the disease, the endocrine manifestations are not fully understood. It becomes indispensable to address the underlying endocrine disruptions contributing to the severe form of illness and thereby increasing the mortality.We discuss here the SARS-CoV-2 virus and endocrine reverberations based on the research with structurally similar SARS-COV-1. SARS-CoV-2 enters the body via its attachment to the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptors. Apart from lungs,ACE2 expression on various organs can lead to endocrine perturbations.In COVID-19 infection, pre-existing endocrine disorders warrant cautious management and may require replacement therapy. COVID-19 and its repercussions on hormones are discussed extensively in this review

Hydatidiform mole: A sour encounter with a grapy case

Hydatidiform mole cases are usually uncomplicated. However, few cases can be associated with perioperative complications of a critical nature, which can lead to substantial mortality and morbidity. Here is a report of one such case, which, in spite of extensive perioperative management, led to mortality

Scholarly peer reviewing′: The art, its joys and woes

Research and publications are an important part of academics. Nowadays, there is an increasing trend amongst professionals including anaesthesiologists to submit scientific articles to journals for publication. Most journals are peer-reviewed which means that the articles they publish go through the peer review process. Peer review is carried out for assessing the inadequacies of research and manuscript preparation so that the best papers are published in a journal. Although peer review is a key part of the process for the publishing of medical research, there are some limitations in the system. Keeping this in mind, all aspects of peer reviewing were searched from books and journals for full text from PubMed and Google search. The information so gathered is presented in this article which focuses on the general aspects of the peer review process

Chronic fluorosis: The disease and its anaesthetic implications

Chronic fluorosis is a widespread disease-related to the ingestion of high levels of fluoride through water and food. Prolonged ingestion of fluoride adversely affects the teeth, bones and other organs and alters their anatomy and physiology. Fluoride excess is a risk factor in cardiovascular disease and other major diseases, including hypothyroidism, diabetes and obesity. Although anaesthesiologists may be aware of its skeletal and dental manifestations, other systemic manifestations, some of which may impact anaesthetic management are relatively unknown. Keeping this in mind, the topic of chronic fluorosis was hand searched from textbooks, scientific journals and electronically through Google, PubMed and other scientific databases. This article concentrates on the effect of chronic fluorosis on various organ systems, its clinical features, diagnosis and the anaesthetic implications of the disease

Unusual Manifestations after a Case of Carotid Body Tumour Excision: A Case Report

Carotid body tumours are rare tumours arising from chemoreceptor cells at the bifurcation of carotid artery. They are highly vascular and mostly benign but with potential to turn into malignancy. Even though tumours are nearly always non functional, catecholamineproducing tumours do exist and can produce paroxysmal hypertension. As surgical removal is the commonest mode of treatment, anaesthetic management poses several challenges. Here we report a case of carotid body tumour excision with an eventful perioperative course

The role of melatonin in anaesthesia and critical care

Melatonin is a neurohormone secreted by the pineal gland. It is widely present in both plant and animal sources. In several countries, it is sold over the counter as tablets and as food supplement or additive. Currently, it is most often used to prevent jet lag and to induce sleep. It has been and is being used in several clinical trials with different therapeutic approaches. It has sedative, analgesic, anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidative and chronobiotic effects. In the present review, the potential therapeutic benefits of melatonin in anaesthesia and critical care are presented. This article aims to review the physiological properties of melatonin and how these could prove useful for several clinical applications in perioperative management, critical care and pain medicine. The topic was handsearched from textbooks and journals and electronically from PubMed, and Google scholar using text words

A comparison of two different proportions of ketofol with fentanyl-propofol for sedoanalgesia for tubal sterilization by minilaparotomy: A randomized double-blind trial

Background: Ketofol is a combination of ketamine and propofol in a single syringe which can be prepared in any desired concentration. Several gynecological procedures like tubal sterilization are of short duration and just require analgesia and moderate sedation. A study was conducted to compare two different proportions of ketofol, with reference to the duration and level of sedation, quality of analgesia, hemodynamic and respiratory profiles, and to compare all the above effects with the well-tried propofol-fentanyl combination. Materials and Methods: This prospective randomized double-blind study was conducted on 60 adult females scheduled for elective tubal sterilization by minilaparotomy. Patients received a slow bolus injection followed by small aliquots of ketofol containing ketamine: Propofol (1:1) (group A), ketamine: Propofol (1:2) (group B), and fentanyl: Propofol (group C) to a predetermined sedation level using Ramsay Sedation Scale. Vital signs, oxygen saturation, and incidence of any side effects were recorded. Results: Ketofol in groups A and B was comparable in onset of sedation (A: 1.59 ± 0.58 min, B: 1.60 ± 0.72 min), intraoperative sedation scores (A: 5.60 ± 0.5, B: 5.85 ± 0.3), and recovery times (A: 4 ± 1 min, B: 3.5 ± 0.67 min). There was no significant difference in the hemodynamic and respiratory profile of ketofol in groups A, B, and C. Considering the onset of sedation, intraoperative sedation score, and recovery time, group C (fentanyl-propofol) patients were less sedated than their counterparts in ketofol group A and B. Furthermore, considering the verbal rating scale for pain at 15 min postoperatively, group C patients had poor analgesia compared to group A and B. Conclusion: Though ketofol in a ratio of 1:2 provides better sedation level compared to the other groups, both ketofol ratios (1:1 and 1:2) were similar in terms of providing hemodynamic and respiratory stability and producing adverse effects

Music and Health

Music therapy is the use of intervention to accomplish individual goals within a therapeutic relationship by a professional who has completed an approved music therapy programme. Music has several physiological effects including positive effects on mood, a reduction of anxiety, stress and a lowering of blood pressure. There are several types of music therapy. Music therapy procedures are structured as either receptive or active. Music therapy methods include music recreation, improvisation, composition, listening and receptive experience. In modern health care, music has several applications in the perioperative setting, neurology, family medicine, paediatrics, obstetrics, interventional procedures, the critical care unit, pain management, palliative care and cancer. Though it has some limitations, there is ample scientific evidence to support the beneficial use of music therapy as a low-cost therapy with no side effect in various clinical situations in current health care settings. This article describes the various applications of music in modern health care.