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Background The clinical significance of lipid profile in gastric cancer remains unclear. The aim of the present study was to investigate the correlation between serum lipid profiles and patient clinical parameters as well as prognosis in gastric cancer. Methods The preoperative plasma lipid profile levels of 358 gastric cancer patients, who were operated in between 2001 and 2009, were retrospectively evaluated, and the correlation between these factors and patient clinical parameters as well as survival were analyzed. Results There was a significant association between serum high-density lipoprotein cholesterol level (HDL-C

Purpose: Studies involving mouse models and human uterine smooth muscle cells have shown that phenylephrine inhibits uterine contractions in non-pregnant mice and human in vitro cell via cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) signaling. However, there has been no limited exploration to date of the effect of phenylephrine on uterine contractions in clinical practice. This study aimed to compare the dose requirement of oxytocin with or without the infusion of prophylactic phenylephrine to prevent post spinal hypotension during cesarean delivery under combined spinal and epidural anesthesia.Methods: This was a double-blinded, single-center, randomized, control study. One hundred and sixty pregnant patients provided informed consent and were randomly allocated to the phenylephrine (phenylephrine infusion) and control (saline infusion) groups. Patients randomized to the phenylephrine group received an intravenous prophylactic phenylephrine infusion at a fixed rate of 0.5 μg/kg/min. The control group received a saline placebo at the same rate and used the same apparatus for delivery. After neonatal delivery and clamping of the umbilical cord, patients received a standard institutional oxytocin protocol. The primary outcome measure was the total dose of oxytocin administered during CD. Secondary outcomes including the proportion (%) of patients requiring a secondary uterotonic agent and estimated blood loss (EBL) in the first 24 h after surgery.Results: The median oxytocin dose administered was significantly higher in the phenylephrine group than in the control group [6.9 ± 2.5 international standardized units (IU) vs. 5.4 ± 2.4 IU, p = 0.0004]. The number of patients that required a secondary uterotonic agent was significantly higher in the phenylephrine group than in the control group (24.2% vs. 9.1%; p = 0.034). The EBL in the first 24-h postoperatively was similar between the two groups (467 ± 47 ml vs. 392 ± 38 ml; p = 0.22).Conclusions: Prophylactic infusion of phenylephrine used to prevent post-spinal hypotension during CD was associated with a higher dose of oxytocin. This has important clinical implications, as the suboptimal use of oxytocin is associated with an increased risk of postpartum hemorrhage and increased maternal morbidity and mortality. Further studies are now needed to confirm these findings.