Objective To compare the efficacy of sedation with dexmedetomidine versus midazolam in mechanically ventilated patients.Methods Sixty patients aged 20-64 yr,with body mass index 21-25 kg/m2,APECHE Ⅱ score 10-25,requiring 24 h of nechanical ventilation in intensive care unit (ICU),were randomly divided into 2 groups (n=30 each): midazolam group (group M) and dexmedetomidine group (group D).A loading dose of midazolam 0.05 mg/kg was injected intravenously,followed by infusion at 0.03-0.20 mg· kg-1 · h-1 in group M.A loading dose of dexmedetomidine 1 μg/kg was injected intravenously,followed by infusion at 0.2-0.7 μg· kg-1 · h-1 in group D.Ramsay sedation score was maintained at 2-4.The satisfaction of the doctors in ICU with the sedative efficacy,hypotension and bradycardia were recorded.Delirium was recorded starting from the begging of sedation to 2 h after the end of sedation.The emergence time and occurrence of falling asleep again within 2 h after waking were also recorded.Results Compared with M group,the satisfactory level of the doctors in ICU with the sedative efficacy was significantly increased,the emergence time was significantly shortened and the incidences of falling asleep again within 2 h after waking and delirium were significantly decreased (P ＜ 0.05 or 0.01),and no significant change was found in the incidence of hypotension and bradycardia in group D (P ＞ 0.05).Conclusion The efficacy of sedation with dexmedetomidine is better than that of midazolam in mechanically ventilated patients.

Background Patients often suffer from a few complications of neurological and psychiatric problems after traumatic brain injury including damage of cognition, mental disorders and behavior problems. Damage of cognition is a common sequela in traumatic brain injury. Numerous researchers were focus on the cognition changes of patients with mild brain injury. But their conclusions are debatable. Executive function is one of the important components of cognition. In this study,we tried to find out the executive functional alterations of the patients with mild brain injury.Methods 159 patients with brain injury caused by transportation events and 68 normal controls were assessed executive function. The executive function tests included the block design in WAIS, the Stroop test, the verbal fluency and the modified version of Wisconsin card sorting test (M-WCST). These tests were applied to compare the scores of traumatic brain injury patients with various severities including mild, moderate, and severe and with different CT/MRI results.Results Patients with mild head injury got significantly lower scores on all tests than normal controls ( P＜0.01 ). But there was no significant difference between mild and moderate brain injury group. Except Stroop test and WCST categories, patients with mild brain injury got significantly lower scores on all other tests than those with severe brain injury ( P ＜0.05). In the brain injury cases with damage signs on CT/MRI, there was no significant difference on scores of all tests except block design tests among brain injury patients with various severities. Among the brain injury cases without any damage signs on CT/MRI, there was no significant difference on scores of all tests among brain injury patients with various severities. The correlation analysis showed that scores of block design and verbal fluency test were negatively related to the severity of brain injury( P＜0.05). The age and the education level of the patients had negative and positive correlation, respectively, to executive function.Conclusions The executive function of patients with mild brain injury was impaired when the medication was terminated. We should pay more attention to patients with mild brain injury by performing various tests for assessment of disability.

Purpose: From the perspective of positive psychology, our study aimed to explore depressive symptomsand psychological well-being among Chinese nurses, as well as analyze the impacts of characterstrengths, self-efficacy and social support on the mental health of nurses. Methods: A cross-sectional and descriptive design using five self-reported questionnaires was used toinvestigate a cohort of 4238 nurses during 2018. A structural equation modeling analysis was used toverify a hypothetical model linking character strengths, self-efficacy, social support, depressive symptoms,and psychological well-being. Results: The prevalence of depression among this cohort of Chinese nurses was 58.1%. The mean scoresfor caring, inquisitiveness, and self-control were 19.93 (SD = 2.82), 15.94 (SD = 3.00), and 16.34(SD = 2.95), respectively. The hypothesized model was a good fit of the data (x2/df = 1.77, p = .183, rootmean square error of approximation = 0.04, goodness of fit index = 1.00, comparative fit index = 1.00,TuckereLewis index = 1.00). Except for the path from self-control to depression, the other hypotheticalpaths investigated were statistically significant. Conclusion Character strengths were directly and positively associated with psychological well-being.Inquisitiveness was the strongest direct protective factor for depression. In addition, characterstrengths indirectly alleviated depression and increased psychological well-being through mediatingvariables of social support and self-efficacy. This study should alert nurse managers that more attentionshould be paid to the character strengths and mental health of nurses. This study provides evidence forinterventions based on character strengths as a management strategy to support the mental health ofnurses.

Purpose: From the perspective of positive psychology, our study aimed to explore depressive symptomsand psychological well-being among Chinese nurses, as well as analyze the impacts of characterstrengths, self-efficacy and social support on the mental health of nurses. Methods: A cross-sectional and descriptive design using five self-reported questionnaires was used toinvestigate a cohort of 4238 nurses during 2018. A structural equation modeling analysis was used toverify a hypothetical model linking character strengths, self-efficacy, social support, depressive symptoms,and psychological well-being. Results: The prevalence of depression among this cohort of Chinese nurses was 58.1%. The mean scoresfor caring, inquisitiveness, and self-control were 19.93 (SD = 2.82), 15.94 (SD = 3.00), and 16.34(SD = 2.95), respectively. The hypothesized model was a good fit of the data (x2/df = 1.77, p = .183, rootmean square error of approximation = 0.04, goodness of fit index = 1.00, comparative fit index = 1.00,TuckereLewis index = 1.00). Except for the path from self-control to depression, the other hypotheticalpaths investigated were statistically significant. Conclusion Character strengths were directly and positively associated with psychological well-being.Inquisitiveness was the strongest direct protective factor for depression. In addition, characterstrengths indirectly alleviated depression and increased psychological well-being through mediatingvariables of social support and self-efficacy. This study should alert nurse managers that more attentionshould be paid to the character strengths and mental health of nurses. This study provides evidence forinterventions based on character strengths as a management strategy to support the mental health ofnurses.