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Twenty-five patients ASA II-IV suffering from diabetic foot that were previously scheduled for debridement or amputation (lower than the ankle) were recruited to receive the sciatic and femoral nerve block. All of the patients were placed supine, with the head of bed at an elevation of 30-45°. Sciatic and femoral nerves were blocked by the injection of 10 mL of 0.5 % ropivacaine into two sites using ultrasound guidance. The first site was 7-9 cm above the popliteal fossa, and the second site was in the middle of the groin. All 25 cases obtained a satisfactory analgesia effect. The mean total procedure time of the sciatic and femoral nerve block was less than 10 min (8.3 ± 2.7 min). The sensory onset time was 16.3 ± 6.5 min, and the duration of sensory block was 586 ± 144 min. The motor onset time was 28.6 ± 13.7 min, and the duration of motor block was 498 ± 255 min. None of the patients required additional analgesics. No remarkable circulatory or respiratory changes related to anesthesia were observed. Four of the patients exhibited nausea and vomiting and were treated effectively with 4 mg ondansetron i.v. One patient complained of weakness in the affected lower limb 2 days after surgery yet fully recovered the next day without any treatment. Our pilot study indicated that ultrasound-guided femoral and sciatic nerve block in supine position for surgical management of diabetic foot in critical patients is a safe and efficacious approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Transcutaneous electric acupoint stimulation (TEAS) has shown benefits when used peri-operatively. However, the role of numbers of areas with acupoint stimulation is still unclear. Therefore, we report the protocol of a randomized controlled trial of using TEAS in elderly patients subjected to gastrointestinal surgery, and comparing dual-acupoint and single-acupoint stimulation.Methods/design: A multicenter, randomized, controlled, three-arm design, large-scale trial is currently undergoing in four hospitals in China. Three hundred and forty-five participants are randomly assigned to three groups in a 1:1:1 ratio, receiving dual-acupoint TEAS, single-acupoint TEAS, and no stimulation, respectively. The primary outcome is incidence of pulmonary complications at 30 days after surgery. The secondary outcomes include the incidence of pulmonary complications at 3 days after surgery; the all-cause mortality within 30 days and 1 year after surgery; admission to the intensive care unit (ICU) and length of ICU stay within 30 days after surgery; the length of postoperative hospital stay; and medical costs during hospitalization after surgery.Discussion: The result of this trial (which will be available in September 2019) will confirm whether TEAS before and during anesthesia could alleviate the postoperative pulmonary complications after gastrointestinal surgery in elderly patients, and whether dual-acupoint stimulation is more effective than single-acupoint stimulation.Trials Registrations: ClinicalTrials.gov, ID: NCT03230045 . Registered on 10 July 2017. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A correction to the article "Early Administration of Propofol Protects Against Endotoxin-Induced Acute Lung Injury in Rats by Inhibiting the TGF-β1-Smad2 Dependent Pathway" is presented.