BackgroundAgitation is very common in the intensive care unit (ICU). The causes include pain, delirium, underlying disease, withdrawal syndrome, and some drug treatments. The practical goal of ICU treatment is to find an appropriate sedation regimen to reduce pain, restlessness, and delirium. Previous trials have examined the use of dexmedetomidine, but no trials have evaluated the efficacy and safety of ciprofol, a new sedative drug.MethodsThis study was a multicenter, single-blind, 3-arm parallel randomized controlled trial. ICU patients aged ≥ 18 years with agitation and delirium who met the eligibility criteria were included. The main outcome was the proportion of patients who needed additional study medication or midazolam due to agitation within 4 h after the first intravenous injection of the study medication. The secondary outcomes included the pass rate as indicated by a Richmond Agitation-Sedation Scale (RASS) score < +1, the effectiveness rate of improving delirium symptoms, the number of recurrences of agitation within 24 h, the incidence of rescue treatment, the dose and cost of analgesic and sedative drugs, the length and cost of ICU stay, and the 30-day survival period. The safety evaluation included the incidence of adverse events (hypotension, bradycardia, hypoxia, etc.) and the rate of endotracheal intubation. The subjects were randomly assigned to receive ciprofol, dexmedetomidine, or normal saline at a ratio of 1:1:1. The rates of additional drug administration within 4 h after the first injection of the study drug in the three groups were 40, 50, and 90%, respectively. A total sample size of 81 subjects was required to reach 90% power and an α of 0.05. Considering a 20% loss rate, 102 patients were enrolled and randomly assigned to the three groups in equal proportions.Ethics and communicationThis trial was approved by the Ethics Committee of Dalian Municipal Central Hospital. The communication plan includes presentations at scientific conferences, scientific publications, and presentations to the public through non-professional media.Clinical trial registrationwww.ClinicalTrials.gov, identifier ChiCTR220006 2799.

A complex and tight lacustrine carbonate reservoir is the main target reservoir in Qaidam Basin. The diagenesis of shallow-shore lake deposition has created a highly heterogeneous reservoir in both vertical and horizontal directions in terms of lithologies, pore structures, and permeability. The core analysis shows a wide variety of lithologies that include terrigenous clastics (quartz, orthoclase, and plagioclase), carbonate (calcite, dolomite, and ankerite), and evaporite minerals such as anhydrite, etc. Electron microscope analysis shows mainly intercrystallite pores with dolomite, dissolved pores, and microfractures. Associated with the complex lithology and pore structure, reservoir permeability is varied and is mostly less than 0.02mD. Evaluating and characterizing this complex reservoir to find a better pay zone was the objective of this study. To evaluate the lithologies, pore structures, porosities, and permeability in quantities accurately, the advanced gamma-ray spectroscopy logs, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) logs, and high-resolution micro-resistivity borehole image logs were acquired in some key wells. Integrated with core data such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), mercury injection capillary (MICP), the lithofacies, texture facies, and pore facies were classified based on the minerals from gamma-ray spectroscopy, the textures from borehole image, and the pore sizes from NMR. The combination of these three facies represents the reservoir quality. In the study area, the lithofacies were classified into four types, which are high carbonate content facies, middle carbonate content facies, high clay content facies, and high clastic content facies. The texture facies were classified into four types, which are massive texture, layered texture, dissolved texture, and algal texture. The pore structure facies were classified into four types, which are macro facies, meso facies, meso-micro facies, and microfacies. The better pay zone is the combination of high carbonate content facies, algal texture, and macro facies. The pay zone of the reservoir was well defined and mapped with the combination facies vertically and horizontally in the whole study area. The integrated solution described in this study leverages the advantages of advanced gamma-ray spectroscopy, NMR, borehole images, and core measurements. It develops a comprehensive understanding of the complex carbonate reservoir and provides the solution to pinpoint the sweet spots and place the horizontal well.