BackgroundEmergency abdominal surgery carries a 15% to 20% short-term mortality rate. Postoperative medical complications are strongly associated with increased mortality. Recent research suggests that timely recognition and effective management of complications may reduce mortality. The aim of the present trial is to evaluate the effect of postoperative intermediate care following emergency major abdominal surgery in high-risk patients.Methods and designThe InCare trial is a randomised, parallel-group, non-blinded clinical trial with 1:1 allocation. Patients undergoing emergency laparotomy or laparoscopic surgery with a perioperative Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II score of 10 or above, who are ready to be transferred to the surgical ward within 24 h of surgery are allocated to either intermediate care for 48 h, or surgical ward care. The primary outcome measure is all-cause 30-day mortality. We aim to enrol 400 patients in seven Danish hospitals. The sample size allows us to detect or refute a 34% relative risk reduction of mortality with 80% power.DiscussionThis trial evaluates the benefits and possible harm of intermediate care. The results may potentially influence the survival of many high-risk surgical patients. As a pioneer trial in the area, it will provide important data on the feasibility of future large-scale randomised clinical trials evaluating different levels of postoperative care.Trial registrationClinicaltrials.gov identifier: NCT01209663
The role of the antrum on vagally mediated pancreatic secretion was studied in 8 conscious dogs prepared with chronic pancreatic and gastric fistulae. After completion of control studies 6 were subjected to antrectomy and 2 to antroneurolysis (to interrupt submucosal nerve connections); secretory studies were repeated. With the animals secreting in response to secretin(0.03 u per kg-min) or secretin with cholecystokinin (0.05 u per kg-min), the following were administered: 1) insulin 0.2 u/kg; 2) atropine 0.2 and 0.4 mg/kg; 3) insulin after atropine. Insulin hypoglycemia elicited a marked enzyme response. Both antrectomy and antroneurolysis markedly reduced (80%) the enzyme response to insulin hypoglycemia. Atropine 0.2 mg/kg abolished the insulin response and at 0.4 mg/kg inhibited (50%) the enzyme response to cholecystokinin; these effects were unaltered by antrectomy or antroneurolysis. These experiments suggest that the pancreatic enzyme response to insulin hypoglycemia is predominantly mediated through the vagal release of antral gastrin. Furthermore, antrectomy and antroneurolysis do not affect the enzyme response to cholecystokinin nor do they alter the inhibitory effects of atropine. The inhibitio- by atropine suggests that a cholinergic background exerts a permissive effect on CCK-mediated enzyme secretion.
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