Background The incidence of complications after heart surgery is a critical factor in disability, deaths, lengthening hospital stays, and increasing treatment costs. The metabolic balance of certain hormones and electrolytes is necessary for proper cardiac function. In children, various biochemical conditions may cause calcium depletion during heart surgery. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of calcium gluconate administration during cardiopulmonary bypass on hemodynamic variables and clinical outcomes in infants undergoing open-heart surgery. This study was conducted at Rajaie Cardiovascular Medical and Research Center in 2021 using a controlled randomized clinical trial. A total of 60 patients with open-heart surgery weighing up to 10 kg were included in the study. The first group received an intravenous injection of calcium gluconate 20 min after opening the aortic clamp, and the second group was monitored as a control group. Data collection tools included checklists containing demographics, surgical information, and intensive care unit measures. Results The Chi-square test or Fisher's exact test showed that the frequency distribution of gender, blood group, Rhesus factor (RH), and clinical diagnosis in the two groups of intervention and control was not statistically significant (p < 0.05). The mean and standard deviation of Ejection Fraction (EF) changes (before and after) were 13.27 ± 9.16 in the intervention group and 8.31 ± 9.80 in the control group (p = 0.065). The results of two-way repeated measures ANOVA showed that mean systolic blood pressure (p = 0.030), mean diastolic blood pressure (p = 0.021), mean heart rate (p = 0.025), mean arterial pressure (p = 0.020), mean pH (p < 0.001), and mean hemoglobin (p = 0.018) in the intervention, and control groups were statistically significant. Conclusions In the present study, unlike systolic pressure, mean diastolic blood pressure decreased, and mean arterial pressure increased significantly. As a result, the slope of changes during the study period was different in the intervention and control groups.

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Background and Aim: Every year, traumatic brain injuries lead to more than one million admissions to emergency rooms and more than 50,000 deaths, and millions of disabilities worldwide, among all ages and genders. This study aimed to examine the effects of selenium added to oral nutritional therapy on the mortality rate and length of hospital stay in patients with subarachnoid hemorrhage admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) for six months. Methods and Materials/Patients: This clinical trial included 100 patients admitted to the ICU of Loghman Hakim Hospital, Tehran, Iran. These patients were then randomly assigned to intervention or control groups. Standard oral solutions were administered to both groups according to recommended guidelines. Along with the standard nutritional intake, the participants in the intervention group were given 1000 μg of selenium (Selenase-Biosyn, Germany) on the first day of feeding, dissolved in 100 mL of normal saline for 30 minutes, followed by 500μg of selenium daily for 10 days. We screened patients for GCS, and APACHE-II scores, as well as cortisol levels on days 1 and 10. Results: The APACHE-II mean score on the 10th day was significantly different between the two groups, and this was also true before the intervention. In terms of mortality rates, there was no significant difference between the control group and the intervention group. Neither the control group nor the intervention group spent significantly more time in ICU. Conclusion: The effects of selenium on other variables were unclear, although mortality rates did not differ significantly between the two groups. Considering the confounding variables through regression analysis, the APACHE-II variable was negatively impacted by selenium, but taking into account the significant effect of age, a definitive conclusion cannot be made.