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Aim:This study was carried out as a cross-sectional study to evaluate the relationships between obesity awareness, emotional eating, and obesity in middle school children.Materials and Methods:The sample of the study comprised a total of 421 children who were 10-14 years of age and attended the fifth, sixth, seventh, or eighth grades. The data were collected using a socio-demographic data collection form, the Obesity Awareness scale, and the Emotional Eating scale. The heights and weights of the children were measured by the researchers and their body mass index (BMI) percentiles were calculated. The data were analyzed using Pearson’s correlation analyses.Results:Of the children, 14.7% were obese, and 13.8% were overweight according to the BMI percentile. There was no relationship between obesity, obesity awareness, and emotional eating (p>0.05).Conclusion:The study found that emotional eating and obesity awareness did not affect middle school children’s obesity.

Aim: the aims of this study were to explore the infantile colic in infants from 1-6 months of age, and the mother's practices to eliminate colic and the relationships between infantile colic scores and sample characteristics. Materials and Methods: This descriptive study included 232 mothers of infants who were admitted to the hospital for child monitoring at two university hospitals in the Aegean region. Information on demographics, colic characteristics, and practices of mothers to eliminate colic was collected. Results: According to reports of the mothers, 67.2% of the infants had colic, and 28.5% of the infants met all of the Wessel criteria. the average scale score of infantile colic was 65.2 +/- 12.6. To eliminate the colic, 67.6% of the mothers held their infants on their lap, 68.7% rocked them, 63.2% changed the position of their infants, 57.4% massaged the infants' bellies, and 37.1% stated that they used a warm application. Conclusion: One out of every three-four babies in the study met the diagnosis of infantile colic according to Wessel criteria's. the average score obtained from the infantile colic scale is quite high. Mothers usually use behavioral methods to prevent and reduce colic symptoms, they also use pharmacological and traditional methods in this study.

Amaç: İlaç hataları, tıbbi hataların en sık görülen önlenebilir nedenidir. Pediatrik popülasyonda erişkinlerden daha sık görülür ve daha zararlıdır. Bu çalışmanın amacı kanserli çocuğu olan ebeveynlerin ilaç hatalarına ilişkin algılarını değerlendirmektir. Gereç ve Yöntem: Kesitsel tanımlayıcı tipteki araştırmanın örneklemini kemoterapi tedavisi gören 100 kanserli çocuğun ebeveyni oluşturmuştur. Araştırma verilerinin toplanmasında “Ebeveynlerin İlaç Uygulama Güvenliği Algısı, İlaç Uygulama Hatalarından Çocuğu Korumak İçin Kullandığı Yöntemler ve Sağlık Çalışanlarıyla İşbirliğine İlişkin İsteği ve Tutumlarına" ilişkin bir anket kullanılmıştır.Bulgular: Ebeveynlerin %7’sinin gerçek bir ilaç hatası ile karşılaştığı, karşılaşılan ilaç hatasının %3’ünün yanlış ilaç olduğu saptanmıştır. Ebeveynlerin %68’inin tedavisi sırasında ilaç hatası oluşma ihtimalini düşündüğü saptanmıştır. Ebeveynlerin %37’sinin hemşireye çocuğuma uygulayacağı ilacın doğru ilaç olduğunu kontrol edip etmediğini sorarım, %61’inin doktorlara/hemşirelere güveniyorum, onları kontrol etmem, %92’sinin ilaç uygulaması sırasında bir hataya tanık olduğum zaman rapor ederim ifadelerine evet cevabı verdikleri belirlenmiştir. Sonuç: Ebeveynlerin ilaç uygulama hatalarından çocuğu korumak için kullanılan yöntemlere ilişkin farkındalıklarının bazı uygulamalarda yetersiz iken bazılarında yeterli olduğu, ilaç uygulama hatalarına karşı sağlık çalışanlarıyla işbirliğine istekli oldukları saptanmıştır. Anahtar Kelimeler: İlaç hatası, çocuk, kanser, ebeveyn, algı., Aim: To evaluate perceptions of parents of children with cancer about medications errors.Materials and Methods: The sample of the study with a cross-sectional descriptive design consisted of parents of 100 children with cancer who received chemotherapy treatment. "The Parents’ Perceptions of Drug Application Security,” “The Methods Used by Parents to Protect Their Children from Medication Errors,” and “The Parents’ Willingness and Attitudes Toward Collaboration with Health Care Professionals" was used to collect research data.Results: It was found that 7% of the parents confronted with a real medication error; of these, 3% medication errors occurred in the form of wrong drug administration. It was also determined that 68% of the parents thought about the possibility of a medication error occurring during their children treatment. The parents responded as “yes” with the corresponding percentage to the following statements: “I always ask the nurse check whether the drug that he/she will administer on my child is the right drug” (37%), “I trust doctors/nurses, so I do not check them” (61%), and “If I encounter with a wrong drug administration, I definitely report it to the relevant authorities” (92%). Conclusions: The participant parents' awareness of the methods to protect their children from medication errors was found to be inadequate in some applications, but adequate in some others. It was also determined that they were willing to cooperate with health care professionals against medication errors.

Purpose The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of the applications of external cold and vibration and blowing soap bubbles during phlebotomy in children aged between 3 and 6 years. Design This study is a randomized controlled trial. Methods The sample was obtained using block randomization. Children were divided into three groups: “external cold and vibration group,” “blowing soap bubbles group,” and “control group.” Children, their parents, the nurse, and the researcher rated the children's pain during phlebotomy. Findings A statistically significant difference between groups was found on pain scores. Pain scores were lower in the groups of external cold and vibration, and blowing soap bubbles than the control group. Conclusions The methods of external cold and vibration and blowing soap bubbles had a pain relieving effect in children aged between 3 and 6 years during phlebotomy.

Purpose: This study aimed to evaluate the Turkish validity and reliability of the revised version of the Cancer Patients Needs Questionnaire (rCPNQ-T) for parents whose children with cancer.Materials and methods: This methodological study conducted on 142 parents of children with cancer in Turkey’s southeast region. Data were collected with sociodemographic form and the rCPNQ-T.Results: The parents’ average age was 33.2±6.9 and most of them were a mother. Their children’s average age was 6.1±3.6, 72.5% diagnosed with acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL). According to expert opinions, the content validity index was found to be 0.87, the total Cronbach's α coefficient of the questionnaire was 0.94, and the Cronbach's α coefficient of the sub-dimensions was ranged from 0.77 to 0.92.Conclusion: The validity and reliability analyses showed that the rCPNQ-T is a valid and reliable measurement questionnaire, accepted as 4 dimensions (informational, emotional, psychosocial, and practical needs) and 26 items. This scale can be used to determine the parents’ needs of children with cancer., Amaç: Bu çalışmanın amacı kanserli çocukların ebeveynleri için kanserli hasta gereksinimleri soru formu revize versiyonunun (rKHGSF-T) Türkçe geçerlik ve güvenirlik çalışmasını yapmaktır.Gereç ve yöntem: Metodolojik çalışma, Türkiye'nin güneydoğu bölgesinde kanserli çocuğa sahip 142 ebeveyn ile yapıldı. Veriler sosyodemografik form ve rCPNQ-T ile toplandı.Bulgular: Ebeveynlerin yaş ortalamasının 33,2±6,9 ve çoğunun anne olduğu belirlendi. Çocukların yaş ortalamasının 6,1±3,6 ve %72,5'inin akut lenfositik lösemili (ALL) olduğu saptandı. Uzman görüşlerine göre soru formunun kapsam geçerlilik indeksinin 0,87, anketin toplam Cronbach's α katsayısının 0,94, alt boyutlarının Cronbach's α katsayısının ise 0,77-0,92 arasında olduğu saptandı. Sonuç: Geçerlilik ve güvenilirlik çalışmasına göre rCPNQ-T’nin, 4 alt boyut (bilgi, duygusal, psikososyal ve uygulama gereksinimi) ve 26 madde olarak geçerli ve güvenilir bir soru formu olduğu belirlenmiştir. Bu ölçme anketi kanserli çocukların ebeveynlerinin gereksinimlerini belirlemek için kullanılabilir.

Purpose: Port needle insertions are painful and distressing for Pediatric Hematology-Oncology patients. Virtual Reality (VR) can be used during needle-related procedures in these patients. This study aimed to investigate the effect of VR distraction during access to the venous port with a Huber needle in reducing needle-related pain, fear, and anxiety of children and adolescents with cancer. Methods: This randomized controlled study used a parallel trial design guided by the CONSORT checklist. The sample of children (n = 42) was allocated to the VR group (n = 21) and the control group (n = 21). Port needle related pain was assessed using the Wong-Baker Faces Pain Rating Scale after the procedure. Before and after the port needle insertion procedure, anxiety and fear assessed using self-and parent-report using the Children & rsquo;s Anxiety Meter and Child Fear Scale. The primary outcome was the patient-reported pain scores after the procedure and fear and anxiety scores before and after the procedure. Pain, anxiety, and fear scores of the two groups and within groups were analyzed and also Spearman correlation analysis was used. Results: Self-reported pain scores of patients in the VR and control group were 2.4 +/- 1.8 and 5.3 +/- 1.8, respectively. This study found a statistically significant difference between groups in pain scores (p < .001). A statistically significant difference was found between groups according to the self-and parent-reported fear and anxiety scores after the procedure. Self-reported fear scores in the VR and control group were 0.8 +/- 0.9, 2.0 +/- 1.0, self-reported anxiety scores were 2.9 +/- 2.0, 5.4 +/- 2.0, respectively (p < .001). Conclusion: Virtual reality is an effective distraction method in reducing port needle-related pain, fear, and anxiety in Pediatric Hematology-Oncology patients. ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04093154.

Aim: Oral care is a standard practice used to reduce ventilator-associated pneumonia in intensive care units and in the treatment of chemotherapy-induced oral mucositis. This research examines the oral care practices of pediatric nurses. Materials and Methods: This is a descriptive and cross-sectional study. Its sample was composed of 90 nurses working in the pediatric services of a university hospital in western Turkey from March to December 2016. the research data was collected using a sociodemographic data form and the Oral Care Practices Information Form. Results: of the nurses, 62.2% had received oral care education. There were statistical differences in oral diagnosis in terms of clinic, work shift, the making of oral diagnoses before each oral care practice, oral care frequency and the number of patients with impaired oral mucosal integrity (p

WOS: 000456832200005 Aim: Mothers have different needs, depending on their cultural and religious backgrounds, and these need to be known and acknowledged by the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) professional staff. To date, limited studies have been conducted in Turkey, a majority Muslim country, which analyzes the needs of mothers whose children are in PICU. The purpose of this study was to explore parents' needs in a child hospital's PICU in Turkey. Materials and Methods: A descriptive exploratory qualitative study. Individual, semi-structured interviews of a purposive sample of 9 mothers were carried out between December 2013 and May 2014. The mothers who were enrolled to participate in the interviews were with an average age of 27.4 years in PICU of a major children's hospital in Turkey. Results: In the content analysis, the main themes of "being sure of receiving the best care, having needs fulfilled, being able to cope with emotional feelings" were created. Conclusion: This study presents the disruptions during the PICU process, the fact that it is a difficult process for the mothers and they have many needs during this process and these needs have to be fulfilled.

This study examined the effect of problematic Internet use, social appearance anxiety, and social media use on nursing students' nomophobia levels. This study was conducted with 755 undergraduate nursing students. Sociodemographic data were evaluated using percentages and means. The effect of problematic Internet use, social appearance anxiety, and social media use on nomophobia levels was assessed by simple linear regression analysis. The mean age of participants was 21.4 +/- 1.3; 82.5% were female, and 59.7% (n = 450) had adequate incomes. According to the regression analysis, nomophobia levels have a strong, positive, and significant relationship with the variables of problematic Internet use (beta = .39, P < .000), social appearance anxiety (beta = .27, P < .001), and social media dependency (beta = .28, P < .001). Examining the correlation between nursing students' problematic Internet use, social appearance anxiety, and social media use levels, nomophobia levels had a positively moderate relationship with problematic Internet use (r = 0.259, P < .001), social appearance anxiety (r = 0.320, P < .001), and social media use levels (r = 0.433, P < .001). There is a direct correlation between nomophobia levels and the variables of problematic Internet use, social appearance anxiety, and social media use.

Purpose To compare the effects of the care bundles including chlorhexidine dressing and advanced dressings on the catheter-related bloodstream infection (CRBSI) rates in pediatric hematology-oncology patients with central venous catheters (CVCs). Method Twenty-seven PHO patients were recruited to participate in a prospective, randomized study in Turkey. The researcher used care bundles with chlorhexidine dressing in the experimental group (n = 14), and care bundles with advanced dressings in the control group (n = 13). Results According to the study results, 28.6% of the patients in the experimental group had CRBSI, while this rate was 38.5% in the control group patients. The CRBSI rate in the experimental group was 3.9, and the control group had 4.4 per 1000 inpatient catheter days. There was no exit-site infection in the experimental group. However, the control group had 1.7 per 1000 inpatient catheter days. Conclusions Even though there was no difference between the two groups in which the researcher implemented care bundles with chlorhexidine dressing and advanced dressings in terms of CRBSI development, there was reduction in the CRBSI rates thanks to the care bundle approach. It is possible to control the CRBSI rates using care bundles in pediatric hematology-oncology patients.

Aim: Prevention of infiltration/extravasation (I/E) in pediatric patients is important. This study has examined the effect of an education program, which aims to prevent and manage pediatric I/E, on I/E rates in pediatric patients. Materials and Methods: This is a semi-experimental study with a single group pre-test/post-test design. A sample of 79 nursing staff and 289 IV catheters of 150 pediatric patients was investigated. Pediatric I/E training was given to the nurses and the effectiveness of the training program and I/E rates before and after the training were evaluated. Results: Compared to the pre-education phase, there was a significant increase in the mean scores of the nurses’ knowledge in the posteducation phase (t: 7,328; p

Aim and objectives Virtual reality (VR) can be used during painful procedures in children. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of two different VR methods on procedure-related pain, fear and anxiety of children aged 5-12 years old during blood draw. Methods This randomised controlled study used parallel trial design guided by the CONSORT checklist, see Supporting Information. The sample of children (n = 136) was allocated to the VR-Rollercoaster (n = 45), VR-Ocean Rift (n = 45) and control group (n = 46) using blocked randomisation. The primary outcome was pain scores after the blood draw and fear and anxiety scores before and after the blood draw. Before the blood draw, fear and anxiety scores were assessed using self-report and reports from the parents and the researcher using the Child Fear Scale and Children's Anxiety Meter. After the blood draw, level of pain experienced was assessed using the Wong-Baker Faces Pain Rating Scale and the fear and anxiety levels experienced by the children during the blood draw were re-evaluated. Results Pain scores were found to be lower in the VR-Rollercoaster group and the VR-Ocean Rift group. A statistical difference was found between groups according to self-, parent- and researcher-reported fear and anxiety scores after blood draw. While being in VR-Rollercoaster and VR-Ocean Rift group reduced children's fear and anxiety, being in the control group increased fear levels by 20% and anxiety levels by 34.1%. Conclusions VR is an effective method in reducing procedure-related pain, fear and anxiety in children aged 5-12 years old during blood draw. Relevance to clinical practice Evidence-based guidelines and protocols should be created for nonpharmacological methods such as VR for procedural pain and anxiety in children.

EgeUn###, Central line–associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs) are still a major cause of morbidity and mortality in pediatric hematology-oncology patients in many countries. This cross-sectional study was a retrospective review of CLABSI in inpatient pediatric hematology-oncology cases with long-term central venous catheter at the Pediatric Hematology Department from January 2013 to June 2014. Characteristics of CLABSI events in pediatric patients with hematologic malignancies and related nonmalignant hematologic conditions are documented. CLABSI developed in 61.8% (n = 21) of the 34 hospitalized patients included in the study. The CLABSI rate was 7.8 per 1,000 inpatient central venous catheter days. Coagulase-negative staphylococci was the predominant pathogen in 47.6% of the patients with CLABSI. The high rate of CLABSI requires prevention strategies to reduce CLABSI immediately. This study provides guidance in prioritizing strategies for reducing rates of infection. © 2019 by Association of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Nurses.

Purpose The objective of this study was to evaluate children's postoperative symptoms at home after outpatient surgery through nurse-led telephone counseling and the effects of the nurse-led telephone counseling on parents’ state–trait anxiety scores. Design and Methods In this prospective randomized controlled study, nurse-led telephone counseling was provided every day to parents in the intervention group until they came for the follow-up visit. Parents of children (n = 54) ages 3–17 years who had undergone outpatient surgery for appendicitis, cholecystectomy, or ovarian cysts were eligible to participate in the study. On the first postoperative day and at the follow-up visit, the Spielberger State–Trait–Anxiety Inventory (STAI) was administered to parents who were randomly allocated to the intervention (n = 24) and control groups (n = 30). Results The parents reported on postoperative symptoms such as pain, activity levels, excretion, sleep, nutrition, and wound infection. While there was no difference in STAI scores for parents between the groups at the first postoperative day, there was a significant decrease in STAI scores in the intervention group versus the control group, with parents in the intervention group reporting lower anxiety scores. Practice Implications Our results suggest that nurse-led telephone counseling is effective at reducing anxiety in parents of children after outpatient surgery.

Purpose The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of the virtual reality (VR) and external cold and vibration methods on pain scores in children aged 7 to 12 years during phlebotomy. Design A randomized controlled study. Methods The sample of children (n = 121) was allocated to the groups (group 1, VR; group 2, external cold and vibration; group 3, control) by blocked randomization. Pain scores were assessed after the phlebotomy using self-report, parent's reports, report from the nurse who attempted the phlebotomy, and researchers' report with the Wong-Baker FACES scale. Findings Pain scores were determined to be lower in groups 1 and 2. Although there was no difference between the groups 1 and 2, a statistically significant difference was found between groups 1 or 2 and group 3 based on all pain scores. Conclusions Results suggest that VR and external cold and vibration are effective in reducing the pain in 7- to 12-year-old children during phlebotomy. VR can be used safely for the pain management of children who are growing up in the age of technology.

BackgroundAlthough staff spiritual care provision plays a key role in patient-centered care, there is insufficient information on international variance in attitudes toward spiritual care and its actual provision.MethodsA cross-sectional survey of the attitudes of Middle Eastern oncology physicians and nurses toward eight examples of staff provision of spiritual care: two questionnaire items concerned prayer, while six items related to applied information gathering, such as spiritual history taking, referrals, and encouraging patients in their spirituality. In addition, respondents reported on spiritual care provision for their last three advanced cancer patients.ResultsSeven hundred seventy responses were received from 14 countries (25% from countries with very high Human Development Index (HDI), 41% high, 29% medium, 5% low). Over 63% of respondents positively viewed the six applied information gathering items, while significantly more, over 76%, did so among respondents from very high HDI countries (p value range, p

Purpose Pain is very common among pediatric cancers. This study aimed to assess the reliability and validity of the Turkish version of the Adolescent Pediatric Pain Tool (APPT). Methods In this methodological study, language validity and content validity of the words in the third section of the scale, which was administered to children with cancer, were tested using the Q-sort method. The APPT was used to measure test-retest reliability once for each of the 1st, 2nd and 3rd weeks of the chemotherapy protocols for 30 children. A reliability test was conducted using the APPT for 96 children with cancer. Results The number of words included in the third section of the APPT was reduced to 56 following the completion of the language and content validity using the Q-sort method. In the test-retest method, results from the three measures taken showed that the intra-class correlation coefficient was good. The internal consistency of the scale was also good (α = .78) in terms of the total number of body areas marked on body outline diagram, pain severity, pain intensity ratings, total number of word descriptors, and total number of sensory, affective, evaluative and temporal word descriptors. Correlations were found between the total number of body areas marked on the body outline diagram and the total number of word descriptors (r = .53), the pain severity and pain intensity ratings (r = .95), and the total number of word descriptors (r = .38). Conclusions The Turkish version of the APPT was determined to be valid, reliable and easy to use for pediatric cancer patients.

Purpose To compare standardized flushing methods with aseptic non-touch technique; (1) Manually prepared syringes (2) Single-use prefilled flush syringes. Method Forty-eight PHO patients with Hickman or Port catheters were recruited to participate in a prospective, randomized study. Standardized flushing methods with aseptic non-touch technique (ANTT) using single-use pre-filled flush syringes (intervention group) or manually prepared syringes (control group) also included the pulsatile technique, use of 10-mL syringe size with 0.9% NaCl for flushing, flushing once a day, flushing training of the nurses. The effects of standardized flushing methods on occlusion and CLABSI evaluated. Results Of the patients in the intervention group, 8.7% (n: 2) had catheter occlusion , while this rate was 20.0% (n: 5) in the control group. Of the patients in the intervention group, 8.7% (n: 2) had CLABSI, while this rate was 36.0% (n: 9) in the control group. While there was no difference in occlusion, there was a difference between the groups in terms of CLABSI development. In the intervention group, CLABSI rate was 1.9/1000 per catheter-days, in the control group CLABSI rate was 10.1/1000 per catheter-days. In the intervention group, occlusion rate was 1.9/1000 per catheter-days, in the control group, occlusion rate was 5.6/1000 per catheter-days. Conclusion Standardized flushing and single-use prefilled flush syringes are effective in reducing CLABSI rates in PHO patients.

The aims of this study were to evaluate cancer related fatigue by children', mothers', and nurses' perspectives in recently diagnosed pediatric oncology patients, to evaluate levels of agreement between the fatigue scales, and to evaluate the relationships between fatigue and sample characteristics.The sample of this cohort, descriptive, correlational study consisted of 26 recently cancer diagnosed children between the ages of 7 and 12, receiving inpatient treatment in pediatric oncology/hematology units, their mothers and their nurses. The data about children's fatigue were collected using the Child Fatigue Scale-24 h, Parent Fatigue Scale-24 h and Staff Fatigue Scale-24 h, for two consecutive days in the second and third weeks of the patient's first chemotherapy treatment cycle.The mean scores of the Child Fatigue Scale-24 h showed the children's fatigue to be at a moderate level, a statistically significant difference was found between the CFS-24 h and PFS-24 h mean scores in the first and second measurement (p 0.05). The Intraclass correlation showed a good agreement between scales and repeated measurements for these scales.Fatigue in recently diagnosed cancer patients is an important symptom which is of particular concern to the children, their parents and nurses. The study showed that these three scales can be used alone an also used simultaneously, and also proved that these scales are reliable for repeated measurements.

WOS: 000406926000012, Extravasation is one of the most important complications that may be encountered during the implementation of chemotherapy drugs. Especially for children peripheral intravenous chemotherapy implementation in terms of extravasation is very risky. A 10 year-old female patient diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, received chemotheraphy treatment during a 33-day hospitalization period. Extravasation developed due to intravenous vincristine administration in the right antecubital area. Complete remission was achieved after 8 weeks. Although the case is an example of the administration error of chemotherapy agents, it draws attention to the direct intervention of extravasation and emphasizes the prolongation of the healing process. The case is presented under the guidance of nursing diagnoses.

WOS: 000309476000021, PubMed ID: 22994723, This study was designed to adapt the Turkish versions of scales to evaluate fatigue in children with cancer from the perspectives of the children, parents and staff. The objective of this study was to validate "Child Fatigue Scale-24 hours" (CFS-24 hours), "Parent Fatigue Scale-24 hours" (PFS-24 hours) and "Staff Fatigue Scale-24 hours" (SFS-24 hours) for use in Turkish clinical research settings. Translation of the scales into Turkish and validity and reliability tests were performed. The validity of the translated scales was assessed with language validity and content validity. The reliability of the translated scales was assessed with internal consistency. The scales were evaluated by considering the following: calculation of the Cronbach alpha coefficient for parallel form reliability with 52 pediatric cancer patients, 86 parents and 43 nurses. The internal consistency was estimated as 0.88 for the Child Fatigue Scale -24 hours, 0.77 for the Parent Fatigue Scale-24 hours, and 0.72 for the Staff Fatigue Scale-24 hours (Cronbach's alpha). The Turkish version of the Child Fatigue Scale -24 hours, the Parent Fatigue Scale -24 hours and the Staff Fatigue Scale -24 hours were judged reliable and valid instruments to assess fatigue in children and showed good psychometric properties. These scales should assist in understanding to what extent initiatives can minimize or eliminate fatigue. Our scales are recommended for further studies and use in pediatric oncology clinics as routine measurements and nursing initiatives should be planned accordingly.

This study assessed the efficacy of a patient-controlled regional analgesia technique for either psoas compartment block or femoral nerve block after total knee replacement in 68 patients who were randomly divided into these two groups. All patients received 40 ml of 0.25% bupivacaine via femoral or psoas catheters before general anesthesia, and then, as patient-controlled regional analgesia, 10-ml boluses of 0.125% bupivacaine, with a lockout time of 60 min over 48 h. Pain scores, sensory block, supplemental analgesia, bupivacaine consumption, and side effects were recorded. All measured parameters were comparable in the two groups. Both techniques achieved a good quality of analgesia and satisfaction without any major side effect.

Objective: The aim of this study was to compare the analgesic efficacy and side effects of continuous epidural infusions of ropivacaine and ropivacaine–sufentanil mixtures after thoracotomy. Methods: Sixty-two patients scheduled for thoracic surgery were allocated in this prospective double-blinded randomised study. They received an epidural catheter inserted from thoracic 5–6 (Th5–6) interspace a day before surgery and were randomly assigned into two groups, sufentanil–ropivacaine group (Group SR, nZ31) and ropivacaine group (Group R, nZ31). Bolus dose of the study drugs, ropivacaine 0.2% or ropivacaine 0.2% and sufentanil 0.75 mg/ml calculated in ml according to the patient’s height was given through the epidural catheter before surgery. One hour after anaesthesia induction, another bolus was given and the epidural infusion was started (4.5–8 ml). Whenever visual analogue scale (VAS) scores were R4 during function, the patients received additional boluses and the infusion rate was increased by 1 ml/h. If the pain was not relieved after administration of two boluses, the patient was excluded from the study. Results: VAS at rest and during function was lower in ropivacaine–sufentanil group and the need for additional boluses and infusion rate increase was high in ropivacaine group (P!0.05). Ropivacaine–sufentanil infusion rate was decreased due to nausea and vomiting in two patients and due to CO2 retention in one patient. There was no statistically significant difference between the incidences of side effects except pruritus significantly higher in Group SR. The total epidural solution volume was more in Group R (P!0.05). Conclusions: The continuous epidural infusion of ropivacaine with sufentanil provided superior pain relief than ropivacaine alone without causing any severe side effect or postoperative pulmonary impairment. Q 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.