{"title":"Assisted suicide and euthanasia: bad medicine, bad ethics, bad public policy.","authors":"Daniel P Sulmasy","doi":"10.23736/S0375-9393.25.18905-0","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.23736/S0375-9393.25.18905-0","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The legal permissibility of physician assisted suicide and/or euthanasia in particular jurisdictions does not entail that these are ethically good practices. In this article, I argue that physician assisted suicide and euthanasia represent bad medicine, bad ethics, and bad public policy. For these reasons, even where they are legally permissible, physicians should refuse participation and should work collectively to restore legal prohibitions.</p>","PeriodicalId":18522,"journal":{"name":"Minerva anestesiologica","volume":"91 4","pages":"343-349"},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2025-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144018151","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Highlights of the April 2025 issue.","authors":"Franco Cavaliere","doi":"10.23736/S0375-9393.25.19098-6","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.23736/S0375-9393.25.19098-6","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":18522,"journal":{"name":"Minerva anestesiologica","volume":"91 4","pages":"245-246"},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2025-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144033056","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Minerva anestesiologicaPub Date : 2025-04-01Epub Date: 2025-02-06DOI: 10.23736/S0375-9393.24.18468-4
Valentina De Giorgis, Myriam Brebion, Lauranne Ossé, Xavier Repessé, Ann-Marie Crowe, Gilles Orliaguet, Hawa Keita
{"title":"Performance of Shock Index as a predictor of severe postpartum hemorrhage following cesarean section under spinal anesthesia: a retrospective cohort study.","authors":"Valentina De Giorgis, Myriam Brebion, Lauranne Ossé, Xavier Repessé, Ann-Marie Crowe, Gilles Orliaguet, Hawa Keita","doi":"10.23736/S0375-9393.24.18468-4","DOIUrl":"10.23736/S0375-9393.24.18468-4","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>An early diagnosis of a postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) can be challenging. The Shock Index (SI), the ratio of heart rate to systolic blood pressure, appears to be a useful indicator for the early diagnosis of severe PPH after vaginal delivery. Our primary aim was to evaluate if the SI has a predictive value for severe PPH following cesarean section (C-section) under spinal anesthesia (SA) and its best predictive threshold.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Retrospective single-center trial including women scheduled for C-section under SA with prevention of maternal hypotension by phenylephrine, and complicated by PPH between 2019 and 2021. Women were divided into two groups: non-severe PPH (blood loss <1000 mL) versus severe PPH (blood loss ≥1000 mL). SI was calculated and compared between the groups at four different time points: T0: prior to C-section; T1: at incision; T2: 15 minutes from start of PPH; T3: end of PPH management. Using receiver operating characteristic curve, we calculated the area under the curve (AUC) and the best diagnostic threshold (sensitivity and specificity) for predicting severe PPH.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Overall, 129 patients were included, 26 (20.2%) with severe PPH. Median SI was significantly higher at T2 in the severe PPH group (1.14 (1.10-1.25) versus 1.0 (0.85-1.10), P<0.001), but not at other times of management. An SI value of ≥1.17 was the best threshold with an AUC of 0.81 (95% CI 0.72 to 0.90), a sensitivity of 0.42 and a specificity of 0.88.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>SI may be an early indicator of severe PPH during C-section under SA.</p>","PeriodicalId":18522,"journal":{"name":"Minerva anestesiologica","volume":" ","pages":"286-295"},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2025-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143256136","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Minerva anestesiologicaPub Date : 2025-04-01Epub Date: 2024-12-10DOI: 10.23736/S0375-9393.24.18680-4
Bahadir Ciftci, Ahmet Cetinkal, Selcuk Alver, Ali Ahiskalioglu
{"title":"Quadro-iliac plane block for lumbar multi-level instrumentation surgery: far away from the surgical area.","authors":"Bahadir Ciftci, Ahmet Cetinkal, Selcuk Alver, Ali Ahiskalioglu","doi":"10.23736/S0375-9393.24.18680-4","DOIUrl":"10.23736/S0375-9393.24.18680-4","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":18522,"journal":{"name":"Minerva anestesiologica","volume":" ","pages":"358-359"},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2025-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142801274","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Ying Huang, Jia Li, Jianbo Zhang, Jie Chen, Yang Zhou, Wen Liao, Dongxue Li
{"title":"Effectiveness of left nasal nasogastric tube placement with right head-tilt in anesthetized patients: a randomized controlled trial.","authors":"Ying Huang, Jia Li, Jianbo Zhang, Jie Chen, Yang Zhou, Wen Liao, Dongxue Li","doi":"10.23736/S0375-9393.25.18636-7","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.23736/S0375-9393.25.18636-7","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Patients undergoing general anesthesia frequently encounter difficulties when the conventional nasogastric tube (NGT) is placed, resulting in low success rates. This study investigates a novel, free-hand, and blind technique aimed at enhancing the first-attempt success rate without the need for any medium.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>One hundred and thirty-two eligible patients were randomly allocated to either the experimental group or the control group. In the experimental group, patients' heads were turned 45-90° to the right while in the supine position, and the NGT was inserted vertically through the left nasal cavity. In the control group, patients remained in a neutral supine position. All other procedures were the same between the two groups.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The experimental group had a significantly higher one-time success rate than the control group, 82.54% (52/63) versus 67.18% (43/64) (relative risk = 2.309; 95% CI: 1.003-5.315; P=0.046). There was no significant difference in complications (15.87% versus 28.13%; P=0.096) or in the time taken for placement and changes in vital signs between the groups.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Placing the NGT through the left nasal cavity with the head turned right in supine patients under general anesthesia significantly improves the one-time success rate without increasing complications.</p>","PeriodicalId":18522,"journal":{"name":"Minerva anestesiologica","volume":"91 4","pages":"268-277"},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2025-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144012220","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Minerva anestesiologicaPub Date : 2025-04-01Epub Date: 2025-03-27DOI: 10.23736/S0375-9393.25.18911-6
Alfredo Abad-Gurumeta, Manuel Á Gómez-Ríos
{"title":"Artificial intelligence in anesthesiology and critical care: transformative potential and unresolved ethical challenges. Not all that glitters is gold.","authors":"Alfredo Abad-Gurumeta, Manuel Á Gómez-Ríos","doi":"10.23736/S0375-9393.25.18911-6","DOIUrl":"10.23736/S0375-9393.25.18911-6","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":18522,"journal":{"name":"Minerva anestesiologica","volume":" ","pages":"254-256"},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2025-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143720529","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Minerva anestesiologicaPub Date : 2025-04-01Epub Date: 2025-02-06DOI: 10.23736/S0375-9393.24.18677-4
Yao Sun, Zengli Xiao, Huiying Zhao, Youzhong An
{"title":"Serum Dickkopf-3 as a biomarker for predicting acute kidney injury in postoperative intensive care patients.","authors":"Yao Sun, Zengli Xiao, Huiying Zhao, Youzhong An","doi":"10.23736/S0375-9393.24.18677-4","DOIUrl":"10.23736/S0375-9393.24.18677-4","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a common and significant complication in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), affecting more than half of all patients admitted. This condition is associated with increased morbidity and mortality, underscoring the urgent need for accurate and specific biomarkers to enable early diagnosis and intervention. Dickkopf-3 (DKK3) has emerged as a promising candidate biomarker for renal injury.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We conducted a single-center, prospective cohort study from March 1 to July 1, 2023, enrolling 166 non-cardiac postoperative patients admitted to the ICU. Serum and urinary DKK3 levels were quantified using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kits. A multifactorial logistic regression model was constructed, incorporating changes in serum creatinine (ΔScr), cystatin C (CysC), serum DKK3 levels, and the serum DKK3 to urine DKK3 ratio.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Elevated serum DKK3 levels were significantly associated with an increased incidence of AKI and a composite outcome of adverse events (AKI or death). The multifactorial logistic regression model exhibited excellent performance, with an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) of 0.98. Decision curve analysis (DCA) demonstrated a net clinical benefit of utilizing serum DKK3 levels to guide treatment decisions, particularly at higher risk thresholds.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Serum DKK3 is a robust diagnostic biomarker for AKI, effectively stratifying patients based on protein levels. The predictive model that incorporates DKK3 provides a valuable tool for clinical decision-making in the ICU setting. Further validation in larger and more diverse populations is warranted.</p>","PeriodicalId":18522,"journal":{"name":"Minerva anestesiologica","volume":" ","pages":"306-313"},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2025-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143256223","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Minerva anestesiologicaPub Date : 2025-04-01Epub Date: 2025-02-06DOI: 10.23736/S0375-9393.24.18697-X
Ali Ahiskalioglu, Yunus E Karapinar, Yusuf Dagci, Ahmet M Yayik, Bahadir Ciftci, Serkan Tulgar
{"title":"An alternative sonographic approach to infraspinatus-teres minor interfascial plane block: make it easy.","authors":"Ali Ahiskalioglu, Yunus E Karapinar, Yusuf Dagci, Ahmet M Yayik, Bahadir Ciftci, Serkan Tulgar","doi":"10.23736/S0375-9393.24.18697-X","DOIUrl":"10.23736/S0375-9393.24.18697-X","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":18522,"journal":{"name":"Minerva anestesiologica","volume":" ","pages":"359-361"},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2025-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143256129","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Minerva anestesiologicaPub Date : 2025-04-01Epub Date: 2024-11-12DOI: 10.23736/S0375-9393.24.18373-3
Jinwen Huang, Xia Liu, Lingkai Wang, Lei Zhu, Donggang He, Ruijuan Liu, Wenjun Yan
{"title":"Regional analgesia techniques following nephrectomy: a systematic review and network meta-analysis.","authors":"Jinwen Huang, Xia Liu, Lingkai Wang, Lei Zhu, Donggang He, Ruijuan Liu, Wenjun Yan","doi":"10.23736/S0375-9393.24.18373-3","DOIUrl":"10.23736/S0375-9393.24.18373-3","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>This network meta-analysis (NMA) was performed to assess the relative efficacy and safety of various regional analgesic techniques used in patients undergoing partial nephrectomy or nephrectomy.</p><p><strong>Evidence acquisition: </strong>Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) evaluating different regional analgesia techniques in patients who underwent partial nephrectomy or nephrectomy were retrieved from databases, including PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and the Cochrane Library, from inception to January 2024. The NMA was made by using Stata 15.1 softwares. The certainty of evidence was assessed by using CINeMA.</p><p><strong>Evidence synthesis: </strong>We included 27 trials with 1852 patients and 14 techniques. Postoperative resting pain scores within 24 hours were decreased by erector spinae plane block (ESPB), thoracic paravertebral block (TPVB), intrathecal morphine (IM), retrolaminar block (RLB). Postoperative movement pain scores within 24 hours were decreased by ESPB, TPVB, lateral quadratus lumborum block (QLB-L), transversus abdominis plane block. Postoperative opiates consumption within 24 hours were decreased most by QLB-L, followed by transmuscular QLB (QLB-TM), TPVB, and IM. Postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) were decreased by RLB, anterior QLB approach at the lateral supra-arcuate ligament (QLB-LSAL). Length of hospital stay were decreased by TPVB, ESPB.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>This available evidence suggests that ESPB and TPVB are more likely to reduce pain scores within 24 hours and shorten the length of hospital stay. QLB-L and QLB-TM are more likely to reduce the cumulative opiates consumption within 24 hours. RLB and QLB-LSAL are more likely to decrease the incidence of PONV. The wound infiltration (WI), intraperitoneal instillation (IPI), and WI+IPI are less likely to be effective.</p>","PeriodicalId":18522,"journal":{"name":"Minerva anestesiologica","volume":" ","pages":"314-324"},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2025-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142624058","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}