Lidocaine Reducing Pain from Benzathine Penicillin Injection: A Controlled Trial

Postoperative cognitive dysfunction (POCD) is an event that alarms medical personnel owing to its adverse effects, including heightened morbidity and mortality rates, prolonged recovery times, and increased lengths of hospital stay and healthcare expenditure. The populations at high risk are elderly, critical patients, or complicated cases that need prolonged surgery in which the hemodynamics are not stable. Although guidelines have been established to facilitate the early diagnosis of POCD, its prevention is recommended for good patient outcomes. A preoperative assessment is a prerequisite for patient optimization before surgery. Intraoperative, enhanced-recovery protocols have been widely adopted to promote recovery following surgery. Frequent, postoperative assessments of patients’ vital signs and cognitive functions are required for early POCD detection. Patients diagnosed with POCD need regular follow-up, and proper patient counselling is paramount

Cutaneous Manifestations and Associated Systemic Findings of Patients with Zika Infections

Objective: This retrospective study explored the clinical characteristics and laboratory results of ZIKV infections, and compared them with those of other viral exanthems. Methods: The medical records of patients presenting with maculopapular viral exanthems between January 2017 and December 2018 were reviewed. The patients were divided into 2 two groups: ZIKV infections (confirmed by urine RT-PCR testing for ZIKV), and other viral exanthems. The clinical characteristics and laboratory results of complete blood counts of the two groups were compared. Results: In all, 104 viral-exanthem patients were reviewed, with 35 patients diagnosed with a ZIKV infection (33.7%) and 69 with other viral exanthems (66.3%). The mean age of the ZIKV-infected patients was significantly higher than that of the other-viral-exanthem group (43.6 vs 36.2 years; p-value = 0.005). A multivariate analysis revealed that the incidences of a family/close contact cluster, conjunctivitis, and myalgia were significantly associated with ZIKV infections. However, there were no significant associations between the laboratory results of the ZIKV and other-viral-exanthem groups. Conclusion: The ZIKV infection exhibits a prominent pattern recognition, including a family/close contact cluster, conjunctivitis, and myalgia, that can be used to distinguish it from other exanthematous viral diseases