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Introduction In this study we are aiming to evaluate the changes of serum serotonin and its association with pain in patients suffering from chronic low back pain before and after lumbar discectomy surgery. Patients and Methods A prospective study was performed on the patients referring to the outpatient clinic in Besat hospital, Hamadan University of Medical Sciences, Hamadan, Iran, during 2016. A 2 mL fasting blood sample was collected from each patient at preoperative day 1 and postoperative day 14 and they were measured for level of serum serotonin. Besides, all patients were asked for severity of their low back pain in preoperative day 1 and postoperative day 14 and scored their pain from zero to ten using a Numerical Rating Scale. Results Forty patients with the mean age of 47 ± 13 yrs/old (range 25–77) including 15 (37.5%) males were enrolled into the study. The overall mean score of preoperative pain was significantly decreased from 7.4 ± 2.18 (range 4–10) to the postoperative pain score 3.87 ± 2.92 (range 0–10) (P < .001). The overall levels of pre- and postoperative serum serotonin were 3.37 ± 1.27 (range 1.1–6.4) and 3.58 ± 1.32 (range .94–7.1) ng/mL, respectively, with no significant difference (P = .09). The levels of pre- and postoperative serum serotonin were significantly higher in males and patients older than 50 yrs/old compared to the females and patients younger than 50 yrs/old, respectively (P = .03 and .005, respectively). A significant inverse correlation between the postoperative levels of pain and serum serotonin was observed (r = -.36 and P = .02). Conclusion A negative medium strength linear relationship may exist between the postoperative serum serotonin and low back pain.

Objective: The goal of this research was to investigate the efficacy of perioperative manual acupuncture in the LV 3 and LI 4 points for lessening hemodynamic changes during endotracheal intubation in patients who were receiving anesthesia. Materials and Methods: This double-blinded randomized controlled study enrolled patients who were undergoing endotracheal intubation, in 2015-2016, during general anesthesia in the general surgery department of the Imam Khomeini Hospital complex, in the Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Iran. The patients were randomly allocated into 2 groups with 30 patients in each group. In the treatment group, acupuncture needles were placed at LV 3 and LI 4, whereas, in the control group, the needles were placed 1 cm lateral to these points. Systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), mean arterial blood pressure (MAP), and heart rate (HR) before and after placing the acupuncture needles, after induction, immediately, 1 minute, and 3 minutes after intubation were measured and recorded prospectively. Results: The patients had a mean age of 44.45-12.72 years and included 35 (58.3%) males. Before acupuncture, demographic data, mean blood pressure (BP), and mean HR of the patients were not significantly different in the treatment and control groups. The mean SBP, DBP, MAP, and HR of all patients changed over time significantly (P < 0.001 for all). In the treatment group, mean SBP, DBP, and MAP changes immediately after the needles were placed were significantly less than those in the control group (P = 0.033, 0.024, and 0.024, respectively). Conclusions: Although acupuncture could have a very-short-term effect that reduces BP during endotracheal intubation, hemodynamic changes might not be prevented during endotracheal intubation.

Background and Objective:Pain is a common postoperative complaint, and the use of analgesics before surgical trauma can effectively prevent peripheral and central sensitization. We aimed to compare the preemptive effects of ibuprofen and celecoxib on post-operative pain after lower abdominal surgery in addicted patients. Materials and Methods: In this clinical trial, after obtaining informed consent, 114 addicted patients undergoing lower abdominal surgery were randomly divided into three groups of 38. The first group was given a 200 mg dose of oral celecoxib, 400 mg of ibuprofen was orally administered to patients in the second group, and the third group was given redsop hcrats as placebo by a nurse who prepared these drugs in the form of capsules. Postoperative pain was assessed by using a 10-cm ruler as the visual analogue scale at intervals of 1 and 6 hours after surgery. Postoperative opioid consumption was recorded in those periods. The obtained data were analyzed using the appropriate statistical tests in SPSS software. Results: Mean pain scores at 1 hour after surgery were not significantly different across the three groups, whereas at 6 hours after surgery, pain scores were significantly lower in the ibuprofen and celecoxib groups in comparison to the placebo group (P=0.001 and P=0.005, respectively). Postoperative nausea and vomiting was not significantly different among the three groups. Conclusion: Despite the significant difference in mean pain scores among the study groups, the opioid consumption doses were not significantly different among the groups. Thus, the preemptive prescription of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs in addicted patient does not have any noticeable effects.