Background. Endothelial dysfunction and cardiomyopathy are considered to be important vascular complications associated with diabetes. This study was designed to investigate whether capsaicin (CAP), a selective TRPV1 agonist, could prevent diabetes-induced endothelial dysfunction and cardiomyopathy. Methods. Male Sprague Dawley rats aged 8 weeks were injected intraperitoneally with streptozotocin (STZ, 50 mg/kg) to establish the diabetes model. The diabetic rats were randomly divided into the untreated diabetes group (DM, 10/group) and diabetes plus CAP treatment group (DM+CAP, 10/group); meanwhile, the nondiabetic healthy rats were used as normal controls (10/group). DM+CAP group were treated with CAP by gavage for 8 weeks. The cultured mouse vascular endothelial cells were exposed to different concentrations of glucose in the presence or absence of CAP treatment. The TRPV1 inhibitor capsazepine (CPZ) and eNOS inhibitor L-NAME were used in vivo and in vitro experiment. Results. CAP treatment significantly decreased the serum total cholesterol (TC) and total triglyceride (TG) and ameliorated the pathogenesis and fibrosis in the heart, while did not significantly improve plasma glucose level and the body weights of diabetic rats. In addition, CAP enhanced the expression of TRPV1 and eNOS in the heart and normalized the vascular permeability under diabetic state. Similarly, CAP treatment also increased nitric oxide and reduced reactive oxygen species. The same results were observed in cultured mouse vascular endothelial cells by CAP treatment. These beneficial effects of CAP were abolished by either CPZ or L-NAME. Conclusions. CAP might protect against hyperglycemia-induced endothelial dysfunction and diabetic cardiomyopathy through TRPV1/eNOS pathway.
Background: Postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) is a common and disturbing problem in patients undergoing ambulatory thyroidectomy. This prospective trial aimed to explore whether dexmedetomidine (DEX) combined with azasetron (AZA) can further drop the incidence of PONV in patients undergoing ambulatory thyroidectomy compared with AZA.Methods: This single-center, randomized, double-blind trial involved 172 adult patients undergoing ambulatory thyroidectomy. The individuals were randomized to DEX + AZA group and AZA group. In the DEX + AZA group, patients received dexmedetomidine 0.5 μg kg−1 for 10 min and then the infusion rate was held at 0.1 μg kg−1 h−1 until the completion of the operation, while the same amount of 0.9% saline in the AZA group. At the completion of the surgery, 10 mg azasetron was administered to every patient in both groups. The primary outcome was the incidence of 24 h PONV after ambulatory thyroidectomy. The secondary outcomes included residence time in recovery room, pain scores, severity of nausea, and adverse events.Results: No significant difference was found in the incidence of 24-h PONV between the DEX + AZA group and the AZA group [36% (30 of 84) vs. 38% (32 of 84); relative risk, 0.94; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.63–1.40; P = 0.749]. The incidence of severe nausea was similar between the DEX + AZA group and the AZA group [57% (12 of 21) vs. 43% (9 of 21); relative risk, 1.33; 95% CI, 0.72–2.50; P = 0.355].Conclusions: Intraoperative dexmedetomidine combined with azasetron failed to drop the incidence of 24-h PONV compared with azasetron alone in patients undergoing ambulatory thyroidectomy.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.