No abstract

Objective: The objective of the study was to evaluate the efficacy of ultrasound-guided transversus abdominis plane (TAP) block versus caudal block for post-operative analgesia with levobupivacaine and dexamethasone as additive in extraperitoneal lower abdominal surgeries in pediatrics as there is no available literature showing the same. Methods: This is a randomized control study carried out between two groups among 50 children (1–8 years of age), both sexes, posted for elective extraperitoneal lower abdominal surgeries after taking informed consent from parents. Fifty children were randomly allocated into two groups, 25 in each group. Caudal epidural (CE) group received general anesthesia and caudal block with 1 ml/kg of 0.2% levobupivacaine and 0.1 mg/kg dexamethasone. TAP group received general anesthesia and ultrasound-guided TAP block with 0.5 ml/kg of 0.2% levobupivacaine and 0.1 mg/kg dexamethasone. Data were collected by means of pre-designed format with pre-/post-operative assessment with standardized scores. Results: The mean age of the patients was 4.84 (SD=2.29). Mean face, legs, activity, cry, and consolability score was low and non-significant before shifting the patient (<2 h post-operative [post-op]) in both the groups. Thereafter from 2 to 12 h, the mean score increased to 4.92 (SD=2.72) in the CE group and 2.92 (SD=2.17) in the TAP group and the difference was statistically significant at 2 h, 4 h, 6 h, and 12 h postoperatively. Mean time to rescue analgesia in the CE group was 4.96 h (SD=4.32) and 5.52 h (SD=7.53) in the TAP group and difference was statistically significant (p=0.000). Mean total rescue analgesic requirement for the CE and TAP groups was 298.40 mg (SD=170.70) and 111.40 mg (SD=138.81) and the difference was also significant. Post-operative complications such as urinary retention and motor blockade were seen in 28% of CE patients, while none of the patients experienced post-operative nausea/vomiting. Conclusions: Our study showed significant increase in duration of post-operative analgesia among TAP patients with reduced requirement of rescue analgesics and lesser post-operative complications as compared to CE patients

The pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic studies indicated that the vesicular gels show better results compared to PROXYM®. The correlation coefficient value between PK and PD was found to be 0.9635. Graphical abstract ᅟ.

Epilepsy is a very common disorder, characterized by seizures, which take various forms and result from episodic neuronal discharges, the form of the seizure depending on the part of the brain affected. There is no recognition cause, although it may develop after brain damage, such as trauma, infection or trauma, and other kinds of neurological diseases. Epilepsy is treated mainly with drugs, though brain surgery may be used for severe cases. Sodium channel blockers are generally used in the treatment of seizures, e.g.: phenytoin, carbamazepine, sodium valproate. The aim of this study is to develop sustained release matrix tablet of phenytoin sodium using eudragit-RL100, eudragit-RS100, HPMC-E15, ethyl cellulose (N-14), Chitosan and HPMC as release controlling factor and to evaluate drug release parameters as per various release kinetic models. The formulated tablets were also characterized by physical and chemical parameters and results were found in acceptable limits. Different dissolution models were applied to drug release data in order to evaluate release mechanisms and kinetics. Criteria for selecting the most appropriate model were based on linearity (coefficient of correlation). Based on "n" value (0.168) the drug release was follows Fickian diffusion. Also the drug release mechanism was best explained by Higuchi order (correlation value is 0.9063) by using this polymer.

Inventory models create a lot of interest due to its ready applicability at various practical situations. One of the most important considerations in developing the inventory models for deteriorating items is that the deteriorated item is thrown as waste. But in some practical situations at food and vegetable markets, the deteriorated items are sold for certain discounts. In this paper, we developed and analysed an economic order quantity model for deteriorating items with seconds sale. Here, it is assumed that the lifetime of the commodity is random and follows a two-component mixture of Weibull distribution. It is further assumed that the deteriorated items are sold with certain discounts. Assuming that the demand is a linear function of the selling price, the instantaneous state of inventory is derived by maximising the profit rate function. The optimal ordering and pricing policies are determined. The sensitivity of the model with respect to the parameters and costs is also studied. It is observed that the second sale has a significant impact on the optimal ordering quantity and pricing policies. This model also includes many of the earlier models as particular cases for specific values of the parameters.