Efficacy of Ceftazidime and Cefepime in the Management of COVID-19 Patients: Single Center Report from Egypt

The purpose of this study was to explore the value of using cefepime and ceftazidime in treating patients with COVID-19. A total of 370 (162 males) patients, with RT-PCR-confirmed cases of COVID-19, were included in the study. Out of them, 260 patients were treated with cefepime or ceftazidime, with the addition of steroids to the treatment. Patients were divided into three groups: Group 1: patients treated with cefepime (124 patients); Group 2: patients treated with ceftazidime (136 patients); Group 3 (control group): patients treated according to the WHO guidelines and the Egyptian COVID-19 management protocol (110 patients)/ Each group was classified into three age groups: 18–30, 31–60, and >60 years. The dose of either cefepime or ceftazidime was 1000 mg twice daily for five days. Eight milligrams of dexamethasone were used as the steroidal drug. Careful follow-ups for the patients were carried out. In vitro and in silico Mpro enzyme assays were performed to investigate the antiviral potential of both antibiotics. The mean recovery time for Group 1 was 12 days, for Group 2 was 13 days, and for Group 3 (control) was 19 days. No deaths were recorded, and all patients were recovered without any complications. For Group 1, the recovery time was 10, 12, and 16 days for the age groups 18–30, 30–60, and >60 years, respectively. For Group 2, the recovery time was 11, 13, and 15 days for the age groups 18–30, 30–60, and >60 years, respectively. For Group 3 (control), the recovery time was 15, 16, and 17 days for the age groups 18–30, 30–60, and >60 years, respectively. Both ceftazidime and cefepime showed very good inhibitory activity towards SARS CoV-2′s Mpro, with IC50 values of 1.81 µM and 8.53 µM, respectively. In conclusion, ceftazidime and cefepime are efficient for the management of moderate and severe cases of COVID-19 due to their potential anti-SARS CoV-2 activity and low side effects, and, hence, the currently used complex multidrug treatment protocol can be replaced by the simpler one proposed in this study.

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Effect of Different Finishing and Polishing Methods for Color Stability of the E-Max Dental Ceramics: In vitro Study

Bioscience Biotechnology Research Communications ◽

10.21786/bbrc/14.4.21 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 14 (4) ◽

pp. 1508-1513

Author(s):

Ibraheem F Alshiddi

Keyword(s):

Surface Brightness ◽

Color Stability ◽

Color Measurement ◽

Control Group ◽

Group 4 ◽

Significant Difference ◽

Group 3 ◽

Group 2 ◽

Group 1

In order to assess the influence of finishing and polishing on the surface brightness and color stability of the ceramic veneer, fifty specimens were fabricated with 10 mm diameter and 2 mm thickness using IPS E-Max Ceramic. After glazing, 10 specimens were untouched as control group, and the other 40 specimens were abraded using 125µm diamond bur to create surface roughness. Forty specimens were divided into four groups (n=10), in group 1: specimens were finished using diamond point, in group 2 specimens’ surface was polished with a polishing kit, Group 3: Each specimen surface was polished with the polishing kit as in protocol 2 and was polished a polishing past and group 4 Each specimen was glazed by heating at 621℃ for 3 minutes followed by a temperature increase of 83℃/min up to 918℃ for 30 seconds. Color measurement was performed using spectrophotometer. Color stability data were analyzed using two-way ANOVA and Tukey’s HSD test (α=0.05). For Ra values, paired-samples t-tests were used to analyze the data and compare groups. The change in L and E showed a significant difference among the study groups; (group 1, group 2, group 3 and group 4) with respect to three variables L, a and b. A significant difference was noted when compared each group with the control; however, only group 2 showed a significant difference from group 4; the remaining groups demonstrated similar findings for all three variables. The study displayed a significant impact of the finishing and polishing technique on the surface brightness and color stability of ceramic restoration. However, it was evident that combination of two or three polishing techniques which includes polish kit and glaze enhances the surface finish and adds color stability by alternating the yellow – blue axis (increase in b) and red- green axis (decrease in a).

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97 PRELIMINARY DESCRIPTIVE STUDY OF EQUINE PLACENTA GENERATED AFTER TRANSFER OF IN VIVO- AND IN VITRO-PRODUCED EMBRYOS

Reproduction Fertility and Development ◽

10.1071/rdv29n1ab97 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 29 (1) ◽

pp. 156 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

A. Lanci ◽

J. Mariella ◽

B. Merlo ◽

C. Castagnetti ◽

E. Iacono

Keyword(s):

Embryo Transfer ◽

Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection ◽

Reproductive Technologies ◽

Control Group ◽

Placental Development ◽

Group 3 ◽

Group 2 ◽

Group 1

Placental changes associated with artificial reproductive technologies have been described in several species, but little information is available in horses. Joy et al. (2012) reported that human placentas from intracytoplasmic sperm injection derived embryos were heavier and thicker than those produced after natural conception. Despite the most growing interest and efficiency of artificial reproductive technologies in equine species, only recently, Pozor et al. (2016) described placental abnormalities in pregnancies generated by somatic cell NT, but there are no studies on equine placenta generated by intracytoplasmic sperm injection and traditional embryo transfer. In the present preliminary study, macroscopic differences of placentas generated after transfer of in vitro- or in vivo-produced embryos were registered. Twelve Standardbred recipient mares with pregnancy generated after transfer of in vivo-derived (Group 1) and in vitro-derived (Group 2) embryos were enrolled; 10 Standardbred mares with pregnancy derived by traditional AI were included as control (Group 3). All pregnancies were physiological, and newborn foals were healthy. Mare age, parity, length of pregnancy, gross evaluation and weight of placenta, total length of umbilical cord (UC), length of UC, number of UC coils, foal sex, and weight at birth were registered. Collected data are listed in Table 1 and are expressed as mean ± standard deviation. Differences between groups were evaluated by 1-way ANOVA, and the difference in proportion of overweight placentas was evaluated with the Fisher test. The gross evaluation of placenta revealed 8/12 placentas (2/4 Group 1; 6/8 Group 2) were heavier than 11% (Madigan, 1997) due to oedema of the chorioallantois. No overweight placentas were registered in Group 3. In Group 1, 1/4 placentas had villous hypoplasia, and in Group 2, 1/8 placentas had cystic pouches on the UC. There were no significant differences among groups. However, the proportion of overweight placentas between Group 2 (6/8) and Group 3 (0/10) approached significance (P = 0.06). Although preliminary, the results of the present study suggest that production of equine embryos in vitro may lead to alterations in placental development. Several studies in cattle and sheep have suggested that alterations in the placentas of pregnancies derived from in vitro-produced embryos are related to effects of culture on epigenetic regulation. Less is known in the horse about the effects of in vitro embryo production on placental development; thus, further research in this area is necessary. Table 1. Characteristics of full-term placentas derived from AI or embryo transfer with in vivo- and in vitro-produced embryos

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Effect of the number of thermocycles on microleakage of resin composite restorations

Pesquisa Odontológica Brasileira ◽

10.1590/s1517-74912003000400008 ◽

2003 ◽

Vol 17 (4) ◽

pp. 337-341 ◽

Cited By ~ 14

Author(s):

Flávia Bittencourt Pazinatto ◽

Bruno Barbosa Campos ◽

Leonardo César Costa ◽

Maria Teresa Atta

Keyword(s):

Resin Composite ◽

Control Group ◽

Group 4 ◽

Thermal Changes ◽

Group 3 ◽

Group 5 ◽

Group 2 ◽

Number Of Cycles ◽

Group 1

Thermocycling simulates, in vitro, thermal changes that occur in the oral cavity. The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of the number of cycles on microleakage. Class V cavities (1.5 mm deep, 3 mm in height and 3 mm in width) were prepared in bovine teeth, restored with a Single Bond/Z250 restorative system (3M/ESPE) and then divided into five groups of ten teeth each: group 1 was not thermocycled (control group), and groups 2, 3, 4 and 5 were thermocycled 500, 1,000, 2,500 and 5,000 times, respectively (5º-55º ± 2ºC, 15 s dwell time). The teeth were immersed in 0.5% basic fuchsin aqueous solution for 24 h, sectioned and the sections with the highest degree of microleakage were selected, scanned and the extent of dye penetration was measured by the ImageTool program. The results submitted to one-way ANOVA showed no significant differences between the groups (p > 0.05). The averages of microleakage values in millimeters were: group 1 (3.92); group 2 (3.13); group 3 (4.48); group 4 (4.33) and group 5 (3.42). Thus, it was concluded that there is no relation between the increase of the number of cycles and the increase in microleakage.

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A symmetric hypocorrection of myopia by FemtoLASIK in patients with presbyopia

Russian Ophthalmological Journal ◽

10.21516/2072-0076-2018-11-4-43-48 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 11 (4) ◽

pp. 43-48 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

N. V. Khodzhabekyan ◽

A. T. Khandzhyan ◽

E. P. Tarutta

Keyword(s):

Age Groups ◽

Control Group ◽

Age Group ◽

Corneal Hydration ◽

Flap Thickness ◽

Group 3 ◽

Group 2 ◽

Possible Cause ◽

Group 1

Purpose: to evaluate the results of symmetric binocular hypocorrection of myopia with FemtoLasik surgery in patients with presbyopia of various age groups.Material and methods. 33 patients (66 eyes) with myopic refraction, aged 36 to 50, were operated by FemtoLasik. The intended Femto Flap thickness was 100 μm. The patients were divided into three groups depending on age; group 1 included 16 patients (32 eyes) aged 39–44, group 2 had 12 patients (24 eyes) aged 45–50, and group 3 (controls) was composed of 5 patients (10 eyes) of pre-presbyopic age (36–38 years).Results. The symmetric binocular hypocorrection proved efficient in 35 % of cases in the group 1 and 50 % of cases in group 2. In the control group the intended and obtained values coincided in all 100 % of cases.Conclusion. A possible cause of the discrepancy between the intended and the obtained hypocorrection effect may be a reduced corneal hydration of patients older than 39 years.

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Functional genioplasty in growing patients

The Angle Orthodontist ◽

10.2319/030414-152.1 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 85 (3) ◽

pp. 360-373 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Sylvain Chamberland ◽

William R. Proffit ◽

Pier-Eric Chamberland

Keyword(s):

Orthodontic Treatment ◽

Age Groups ◽

Control Group ◽

Bone Apposition ◽

Younger Patients ◽

Mandibular Growth ◽

Group 3 ◽

Group 2 ◽

Inferior Border ◽

Group 1

ABSTRACT Objective: To evaluate the role of age as a moderator of bone regeneration patterns and symphysis remodeling after genioplasty. Method: Fifty-four patients who underwent genioplasty at the end of their orthodontic treatment were divided into three age groups: younger than 15 years at the time of surgery (group 1), 15 to 19 years (group 2), and 20 years or older (group 3). Twenty-three patients who did not accept genioplasty and had a follow-up radiograph 2 years after the end of their orthodontic treatment were used as a control group. Patients were evaluated at three time points: immediate preoperative (T1), immediate postoperative (T2,) and 2 years postsurgery (T3). Results: The mean genial advancement at surgery was similar for the three age groups, but the extent of remodeling around the repositioned chin was greater in group 1, less in group 2, and still less in group 3. Symphysis thickness increased significantly during the 2-year postsurgery interval for the three groups, and this increase was significantly greater in group 1 than in group 3. Remodeling above and behind the repositioned chin also was greater in the younger patients. This was related to greater vertical growth of the dentoalveolar process in the younger patients. There was no evidence of a deleterious effect on mandibular growth. Conclusion: The outcomes of forward-upward genioplasty include increased symphysis thickness, bone apposition above B point, and remodeling at the inferior border. When indications for this type of genioplasty are recognized, early surgical correction (before age 15) produces a better outcome in terms of bone remodeling. (Angle Orthod. 2015;85:360–373.)

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Secretion of inhibin B by human prepubertal testicular cells in culture

Acta Endocrinologica ◽

10.1530/eje.0.1420481 ◽

2000 ◽

pp. 481-485 ◽

Cited By ~ 12

Author(s):

E Berensztein ◽

N Saraco ◽

A Belgorosky ◽

MA Rivarola

Keyword(s):

Cell Cultures ◽

Age Groups ◽

Inhibin B ◽

Human Testis ◽

Secretory Product ◽

Paracrine Factors ◽

Group 3 ◽

Group 2 ◽

Group 1

OBJECTIVE: Inhibin B is a secretory product of Sertoli cells of the human testis. It has been reported that serum levels of inhibin B in infant boys, peaking at 3 months of age, exceed levels in adult men. The aim of this study was to evaluate inhibin B secretion in primary prepubertal mixed testicular cell cultures, prepared from testes collected at necropsy. DESIGN AND METHODS: Cell cultures were divided into three age groups on the basis of differences in testicular histology: group 1 (n = 7), 1- to 10-day-old newborns, group 2 (n = 7), 1- to 9-month-old infants, and group 3 (n = 8), 12- to 84-month-old children. Cells were maintained in culture for 6 days, harvested and counted. In some samples, during the last 4 days, cells were stimulated with 10ng/ml highly purified human (h) LH (n = 9), 2 ng/ml recombinant human (rh) FSH (n = 9) or 50 ng/ml rhGH (n = 4). On day 6, the secretion of inhibin B and testosterone into the medium was estimated in triplicate. Inhibin B was determined by ELISA and testosterone by RIA. RESULTS: Median (range) inhibin B secretion was 465 (225-1007), 275 (107-298), and 58 (15-184) pg/million cells.24h in groups 1, 2 and 3 respectively. A logarithmic transformation of these values was performed to normalize data. Mean+/-s.d. of transformed inhibin B secretion in group 1 was significantly higher than in group 2 or 3 (P<0.005) and the values for groups 1 and 2 were significantly higher than that for group 3 (P< 0.005). No significant correlation between testosterone and inhibin B secretion into the medium was found when the 22 culture samples were analyzed as a whole. Inhibin B secretion was significantly increased after stimulation with highly purified hLH, rhFSH and rhGH (P < 0.05) and a significant positive correlation between inhibin B and testosterone was found under both hLH and rhFSH stimulation. CONCLUSIONS: It is concluded that cells collected from newborns have the highest capacity to secrete inhibin B in vitro, and that this capacity decreases with age during the first years of life. Since no data are available on serum inhibin levels in newborns, it is possible that concentrations at 3 months of age do not represent a post-natal peak but a declining level of high newborn values. As expected, FSH stimulated inhibin B secretion in culture. LH stimulation was probably mediated by paracrine factors secreted by interstitial cells. Finally, our results add new evidence of the involvement of GH in testicular maturation.

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THU0227 CAFFEINE INTAKE MODULATES DISEASE ACTIVITY AND CYTOKINES LEVELS IN SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS PATIENTS

Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases ◽

10.1136/annrheumdis-2020-eular.2100 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 79 (Suppl 1) ◽

pp. 340.2-341

Author(s):

V. Orefice ◽

F. Ceccarelli ◽

C. Barbati ◽

R. Lucchetti ◽

G. Olivieri ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Disease Activity ◽

Lupus Erythematosus ◽

Caffeine Intake ◽

Caffeine Consumption ◽

Group 4 ◽

Group 3 ◽

Group 2 ◽

The Impact ◽

Group 1

Background:Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease mainly affecting women of childbearing age. The interplay between genetic and environmental factors may contribute to disease pathogenesis1. At today, no robust data are available about the possible contribute of diet in SLE. Caffeine, one of the most widely consumed products in the world, seems to interact with multiple components of the immune system by acting as a non-specific phosphodiesterase inhibitor2.In vitrodose-dependent treatment with caffeine seems to down-regulate mRNA levels of key inflammation-related genes and similarly reduce levels of different pro-inflammatory cytokines3.Objectives:We evaluated the impact of caffeine consumption on SLE-related disease phenotype and activity, in terms of clinimetric assessment and cytokines levels.Methods:We performed a cross-sectional study, enrolling consecutive patients and reporting their clinical and laboratory data. Disease activity was assessed by SLE Disease Activity Index 2000 (SLEDAI-2k)4. Caffeine intake was evaluated by a 7-day food frequency questionnaire, including all the main sources of caffeine. As previously reported, patients were divided in four groups according to the daily caffeine intake: <29.1 mg/day (group 1), 29.2-153.7 mg/day (group 2), 153.8-376.5 mg/day (group 3) and >376.6 mg/day (group 4)5. At the end of questionnaire filling, blood samples were collected from each patient to assess cytokines levels. These were assessed by using a panel by Bio-Plex assays to measure the levels of IL-6, IL-10, IL-17, IL-27, IFN-γ, IFN-α and Blys.Results:We enrolled 89 SLE patients (F/M 87/2, median age 46 years, IQR 14; median disease duration 144 months, IQR 150). The median intake of caffeine was 195 mg/day (IQR 160.5). At the time of the enrollment, 8 patients (8.9%) referred a caffeine intake < 29.1 mg/day (group 1), 27 patients (30.3%) between 29.2 and 153.7 mg/day (group 2), 45 patients (51%) between 153.8 and 376.5 mg/day (group 3) and 9 patients (10.1%) >376.6 mg/day (group 4). A negative correlation between the levels of caffeine and disease activity, evaluated with SLEDAI-2K, was observed (p=0.01, r=-0.26). By comparing the four groups, a significant higher prevalence of lupus nephritis, neuropsychiatric involvement, haematological manifestations, hypocomplementemia and anti-dsDNA positivity was observed in patients with less intake of caffeine (figure 1 A-E). Furthermore, patients with less intake of caffeine showed a significant more frequent use of glucocorticoids [group 4: 22.2%,versusgroup 1 (50.0%, p=0.0001), group 2 (55.5%, p=0.0001), group 3 (40.0%, p=0.009)]. Moving on cytokines analysis, a negative correlation between daily caffeine consumption and serum level of IFNγ was found (p=0.03, r=-0.2) (figure 2A); furthermore, patients with more caffeine intake showed significant lower levels of IFNα (p=0.02, figure 2B), IL-17 (p=0.01, figure 2C) and IL-6 (p=0.003, figure 2D).Conclusion:This is the first report demonstrating the impact of caffeine on SLE disease activity status, as demonstrated by the inverse correlation between its intake and both SLEDAI-2k values and cytokines levels. Moreover, in our cohort, patients with less caffeine consumption seems to have a more severe disease phenotype, especially in terms of renal and neuropsychiatric involvement. Our results seem to suggest a possible immunoregulatory dose-dependent effect of caffeine, through the modulation of serum cytokine levels, as already suggested byin vitroanalysis.References:[1]Kaul et alNat. Rev. Dis. Prim.2016; 2. Aronsen et alEurop Joul of Pharm2014; 3. Iris et alClin Immun.2018; 4. Gladman et al J Rheumatol. 2002; 5. Mikuls et alArth Rheum2002Disclosure of Interests:Valeria Orefice: None declared, Fulvia Ceccarelli: None declared, cristiana barbati: None declared, Ramona Lucchetti: None declared, Giulio Olivieri: None declared, enrica cipriano: None declared, Francesco Natalucci: None declared, Carlo Perricone: None declared, Francesca Romana Spinelli Grant/research support from: Pfizer, Consultant of: Novartis, Gilead, Lilly, Sanofi, Celgene, Speakers bureau: Lilly, cristiano alessandri Grant/research support from: Pfizer, Guido Valesini: None declared, Fabrizio Conti Speakers bureau: BMS, Lilly, Abbvie, Pfizer, Sanofi

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Optimal Propofol Plasma Concentration during Upper Gastrointestinal Endoscopy in Young, Middle-aged, and Elderly Patients

Anesthesiology ◽

10.1097/00000542-200009000-00014 ◽

2000 ◽

Vol 93 (3) ◽

pp. 662-669 ◽

Cited By ~ 44

Author(s):

Tomiei Kazama ◽

Ken Takeuchi ◽

Kazuyuki Ikeda ◽

Takehiko Ikeda ◽

Mutsuhito Kikura ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Plasma Concentrations ◽

Age Groups ◽

Young Patients ◽

Upper Gastrointestinal Endoscopy ◽

Hemodynamic Responses ◽

Verbal Command ◽

Group 3 ◽

Group 2 ◽

Somatic Response ◽

Group 1

Background Suitable propofol plasma concentrations during gastroscopy have not been determined for suppressing somatic and hemodynamic responses in different age groups. Methods Propofol sedation at target plasma concentrations from 0.5 to 4.0 microgram/ml were performed randomly in three groups of patients (23 per group) who were undergoing elective outpatient gastroscopy: ages 17-49 yr (group 1), 50-69 yr (group 2), and 70-89 yr (group 3). Plasma propofol concentration in which 50% of patients do not respond to these different stimuli were determined by logistic regression: verbal command (Cp50ls), somatic response to gastroscopy (Cp50endo), and gag response to gastroscopy (Cp50gag). Hemodynamic responses were also investigated in the different age groups. Results Cp50ls concentrations were 2.23 microgram/ml (group 1), 1.75 microgram/ml (group 2), and 1.40 microgram/ml (group 3). The Cp50endo values in groups 1 and 2 were 2.87 and 2.34 microgram/ml, respectively, which were significantly higher than their respective Cp50ls values. Cp50endo value in group 3 was 1.64 microgram/ml, which was close to its Cp50ls value. Because of a high degree of interpatient variability, Cp50gag could not be defined. Systolic blood pressure response decreased with increasing propofol concentrations. Conclusions The authors determined the propofol concentration necessary for gastroscopy and showed that increasing age reduces it. Propofol concentration that suppresses somatic response induces loss of consciousness in almost all young patients.

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Evaluation of Gingival Microleakage in Class II Composite Restorations with Different Lining Techniques: An In Vitro Study

Scientifica ◽

10.1155/2015/896507 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 2015 ◽

pp. 1-6

Author(s):

Vedavathi Bore Gowda ◽

B. V. Sreenivasa Murthy ◽

Swaroop Hegde ◽

Swapna Devarasanahalli Venkataramanaswamy ◽

Veena Suresh Pai ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Study Groups ◽

Class Ii ◽

Composite Liner ◽

Flowable Composite ◽

Composite Restorations ◽

Group 4 ◽

Group 3 ◽

Group 2 ◽

Group 1

Aim. To compare the microleakage in class II composite restorations without a liner/with resin modified glass ionomer and flowable composite liner.Method. Forty standardized MO cavities were prepared on human permanent mandibular molars extracted for periodontal reasons and then divided into 4 groups of ten specimens. The cavity preparations were etched, rinsed, blot dried, and light cured and Adper Single Bond 2 is applied. Group 1 is restored with Filtek P60 packable composite in 2 mm oblique increments. Group 2 is precure group where 1 mm Filtek Z350 flowable liner is applied and light cured for 20 sec. Group 3 is the same as Group 2, but the liner was cocured with packable composite. In Group 4, 1 mm RMGIC, Fuji Lining LC is applied and cured for 20 sec. All the teeth were restored as in Group 1. The specimens were coated with nail varnish leaving 1 mm around the restoration, subjected to thermocycling, basic fuchsin dye penetration, sectioned mesiodistally, and observed under a stereomicroscope.Results. The mean leakage scores of the individual study groups were Group 1 (33.40), Group 2 (7.85), Group 3 (16.40), and Group 4 (24.35). Group 1 without a liner showed maximum leakage. Flowable composite liner precured was the best.

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Postoperative Morphine Use and Hyperalgesia Are Reduced by Preoperative but Not Intraoperative Epidural Analgesia

Anesthesiology ◽

10.1097/00000542-200306000-00023 ◽

2003 ◽

Vol 98 (6) ◽

pp. 1449-1460 ◽

Cited By ~ 78

Author(s):

Joel Katz ◽

Lorenzo Cohen ◽

Roger Schmid ◽

Vincent W.S. Chan ◽

Adarose Wowk

Keyword(s):

Morphine Consumption ◽

Gynecologic Surgery ◽

Control Group ◽

Epidural Administration ◽

Blinded Manner ◽

Group 3 ◽

Group 2 ◽

Double Blinded ◽

Postoperative Morphine ◽

Group 1

Background The aim of this study was to evaluate the postoperative morphine-sparing effects and reduction in pain and secondary mechanical hyperalgesia after preincisional or postincisional epidural administration of a local anesthetic and an opioid compared with a sham epidural control. Methods Patients undergoing major gynecologic surgery by laparotomy were randomly assigned to three groups and studied in a double-blinded manner. Group 1 received epidural lidocaine and fentanyl before incision and epidural saline 40 min after incision. Group 2 received epidural saline before incision and epidural lidocaine and fentanyl 40 min after incision. Group 3 received a sham epidural control (with saline injected into a catheter taped to the back) before and 40 min after incision. All patients underwent surgery with general anesthesia. Results One hundred forty-one patients completed the study (group 1, n = 45; group 2, n = 49; group 3, n = 47). Cumulative patient-controlled analgesia morphine consumption at 48 h was significantly lower (P = 0.04) in group 1 (89.8 +/- 43.3 mg) than group 3 (112.5 +/- 71.5 mg) but not group 2 (95.4 +/- 60.2 mg), although the hourly rate of morphine consumption between 24 and 48 h after surgery was significantly lower (P < 0.0009) in group 1 (1.25 +/- 0.02 mg/h) than group 2 (1.41 +/- 0.02 mg/h). Twenty-four hours after surgery, the visual analog scale pain score on movement was significantly less intense (P = 0.005) in group 1 (4.9 +/- 2.2 cm) than group 3 (6.0 +/- 2.6 cm) but not group 2 (5.3 +/- 2.5 cm), and the von Frey pain threshold near the wound was significantly higher (P = 0.03) in group 1 (6.4 +/- 0.6 log mg) than in group 3 (6.1 +/- 0.8 log mg) but not group 2 (6.2 +/- 0.7 log mg). Conclusions Preincisional administration of epidural lidocaine and fentanyl was associated with a significantly lower rate of morphine use, lower cumulative morphine consumption, and reduced hyperalgesia compared with a sham epidural condition. These results highlight the importance of including a standard treatment control group to avoid the problems of interpretation that arise when two-group studies of preemptive analgesia (preincisional vs. postsurgery) fail to find the anticipated effects.

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