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The association of prior bariatric surgery (BS) with infection rate and prognosis of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) remains unclear. We conducted a meta-analysis of observational studies to address this issue.We searched databases including MEDLINE, Embase, and CENTRAL from inception to May, 2022. The primary outcome was risk of mortality, while secondary outcomes included risk of hospital/intensive care unit (ICU) admission, mechanical ventilation, acute kidney injury (AKI), and infection rate.Eleven studies involving 151,475 patients were analyzed. Meta-analysis showed lower risks of mortality [odd ratio (OR)= 0.42, 95% CI: 0.27-0.65, p 0.001, IOur results showed a correlation between prior BS and less severe COVID-19, which warrants further investigations to verify.

Mindfulness meditation (MM) and its alignment with the mind-body perspective of health in Chinese cultures indicate its potential to benefit Chinese patients with psychosis. This is the first systematic review and meta-analysis to address the following questions: (1) Does MM improve clinical, well-being, and third-wave outcomes (i.e., mindfulness, acceptance, and compassion levels) among Chinese patients with psychosis? (2) What are the patient- and/or intervention-specific factors that moderate the efficacy of MM? (3) Are improvements on third-wave outcomes associated with improvements on clinical and well-being outcomes? (4) What are the mechanisms underlying the effects of MM? Evidence synthesized from 23 relevant articles (20 studies) involving 1749 patients showed that (1) MM improved a wide range of patients' outcomes, most consistently and sustainably for insight, rehospitalization duration, recovery rate, and social functioning; (2) age and duration of illness, but not the cumulated intervention hours, moderated the overall efficacy of MM; (3) post-MM improvements on mindfulness and on clinical and well-being outcomes were related, and (4) the effects of MM on patients' outcomes may be driven by its ability to promote positive changes in personal growth and enhance one's coping with the illness and its symptoms. Our data showed preliminary support for the benefits of MM in Chinese patients with psychosis. However, results should be considered in light of the varying quality of included studies and their heterogeneity in multiple aspects. Further research is needed to deduce the sustainability of MM's effects, its active ingredients, underlying mechanisms, and additional moderators of its efficacy.

Background Despite the known positive correlation between exercise and weight loss following bariatric surgery as well as the established association of hemoglobin level with maximal aerobic power and endurance performance, the correlation between preoperative hemoglobin concentration (Pre-Hb) and postoperative weight loss remains unknown. Object This study aimed at assessing the association of Pre-Hb with postoperative percentage weight loss (%WL) at 3, 6, 12 and 24 months after surgery. Setting A single tertiary referral center Methods Outcomes of 282 patients undergoing laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy at the four timepoints within a 24-month follow-up period were assessed. The primary study endpoint was the relationship between Pre-Hb and postoperative %WL at 12-month follow-up. Results The 282 patients had a mean preoperative body mass index (Pre-BMI) of 39.0 ± 4.5 kg/m 2 with a slight female predominance (57.4%). Follow-up data were available for 221 of 282 (78.4%) patients (mean %WL: 30.9 ± 6.6 %) at one year. Pearson’s correlation showed that Pre-Hb correlated positively with Post-Hb (r=0.778, p p p =0.331). Multiple linear regression analyses including baseline variables of age, sex, Pre-BMI, and diabetes revealed that Pre-Hb, age and Pre-BMI were independent predictors of %WL. There was no evidence of multicollinearity among these variables. Conclusion The present study showed a potential positive relationship between preoperative hemoglobin concentration and postoperative weight loss. Further well-design large-scale studies are warranted to clarify the impact of hemoglobin level on postoperative weight loss in this patient population.

Background: Patient-controlled epidural analgesia (PCEA) with background infusion provides better analgesia than the use of a demand dose alone but might be associated with more consumption of PCEA solution and adverse effects. Therefore, we conducted this retrospective study to evaluate the influence of parameters of the drug delivery system on the PCEA requirements of patients receiving thoracic or upper abdominal surgeries. Methods: Patients having operations involving the chest or upper abdomen with postoperative PCEA were included in the analyses. A standardized analgesic solution of bupivacaine (0.0625%) and fentanyl (1 μg/mL) was used for all patients. The cumulative doses of PCEA on the first, second and third postoperative days were recorded. Collected data included patient demographics and their quantity of PCEA. A general linear model was used to compare within-subject time effects and between-subject effects. Interactions with time between subjects were also examined. Results: A total of 228 patients (68 females, 160 males) were included in the study. The PCEA requirements decreased gradually over time (p < 0.001). Patients with lower body mass index had a greater difference in their PCEA requirement between the first and second postoperative days (p < 0.001). For variables related to PCEA usage, patients using PCEA with the 30-minute lockout interval used less PCEA infusate per day (p = 0.04 for main effect, p = 0.02 for interaction with time). Moreover, a longer lockout interval was not associated with poorer analgesic effects (p = 0.48). Other parameters had no significant influence on daily PCEA requirements. Conclusion: Patients receiving PCEA with a 30-minute lockout and background infusion used the least amount of PCEA infusate and the differences increased over time. Further investigations are recommended to evaluate potential benefits and drawbacks of a longer lockout interval.