PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of frozen gauze with normal saline on thirst and the oral health of patients with nasal surgery. METHODS: A quasi-experimental, nonequivalent control group pretest-post test design was used. Participants (n=52) received either gauze frozen with normal saline (n=26), or wet gauze (n=26). The subjective thirst level and oral health of the participants were assessed before the intervention, 30 minutes after the first intervention, 30 minutes after the second intervention, and 30 minutes after the third intervention. RESULTS: After oral hygiene was provided twice, the thirst level was improved in patients receiving the gauze frozen with normal saline. After oral hygiene was provided a third time, the thirst level was improved in patients receiving the gauze frozen with normal saline. CONCLUSION: Gauze frozen with normal saline can be effective for oral hygiene in reducing the thirst level and improving the oral health in nasal surgery patients.
Humans ; Nasal Surgical Procedures* ; Oral Health* ; Oral Hygiene ; Thirst*

There is no information on the effects of variable amounts of water given less than 2 hour before induction of general anesthesia, although most patients receive oral premedication at that time. We have studied the effect of the volume of water which should accompany diazepam 0.2 mg/kg oral premedication given 90 minutes before induction of anesthesia in 75 patients undergoing elective laparoscopic cholecystectomy. The patients, ASA physical status I, randomly assigned to one of five groups. Fifteen patients were received no premedication (group A), 15 patients 50 ml (group B), 15 patients 100 ml (group C), 15 patients 150 ml (group D), and 15 patients 200 ml of water (group E). Immediately following induction of anesthesia the gastric fluid was obtained by suction on a nasogastric tube and its volume and pH were measured. Gastric fluid volume showed no statistically significant differences among the groups. Values for pH among the groups were also similar. All premedication groups reported a reduction in thirst after water intake, while only group D reported significant anxiolysis. We conclude that 150 ml is the ideal amount of water given with oral prnedication 90 minutes before general anesthesia.
Anesthesia ; Anesthesia, General ; Anxiety* ; Cholecystectomy, Laparoscopic ; Diazepam* ; Drinking ; Humans ; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration* ; Premedication* ; Suction ; Thirst ; Water*

PURPOSE: In surgical procedures under general anesthesia, 6 to 8 hours of a nulla per os (NPO; nothing by mouth) has been regarded as essential for prevention of respiratory complication such as aspiration. However, recent studies have reported that oral intake of water and other clear fluids up to 2 hours before induction of anesthesia does not increase respiratory problems. The purpose of this pilot study is to investigate the safety and efficacy of a newly developed carbohydrate-rich solution in elective hernia repair surgery patients. METHODS: A group of 30 adult patients scheduled for elective surgeries under general anesthesia were enrolled. The enrolled study group of patients was permitted to drink a carbohydrate-rich solution until two hours before the operation without volume limitation. Respiratory complication was investigated in the patients using the carbohydrate-rich solution until two hours before induction of general anesthesia. The feelings of thirst, hunger sense were measured pre- and post-operatively. In addition, hoarseness of voice, nausea and vomiting were investigated post-operatively. Satisfaction regarding the short time of fasting was measured. Visual analogue scale (VAS) was used for measurement of these six variables. RESULTS: No patients showed serious respiratory complication such as dyspnea, desaturation. Eight of 30 study group patients complained of mild hoarseness. Most symptoms of hoarseness were mild, with VAS score less than 3 out of 10. Two patients complained 5 out of 10. Six patients felt nausea and 1 patient had vomiting. Pre/post-operative hunger sense and thirst feeling were 1.63/1.60 and 1.90/5.76, respectively. The satisfaction score was 3.00 out of 4. CONCLUSION: Allowing the administration of an oral carbohydrate-rich solution in elective surgery patients requiring general anesthesia is safe without serious respiratory complications and effective in providing satisfaction.
Adult* ; Anesthesia ; Anesthesia, General ; Dyspnea ; Fasting ; Herniorrhaphy ; Hoarseness ; Humans ; Hunger ; Nausea ; Pilot Projects* ; Thirst ; Vomiting ; Water

Sodium is the principal solute in the extracellular compartment and the major component of serum osmolality. In normal persons in the steady state, sodium homeostasis is achieved by a balance between the dietary intake and the urinary output of sodium, whereas in intermittent hemodialysis patients, sodium balance depends on dietary intake and sodium removal during hemodialysis. Thus, the main goal of hemodialysis is to remove precisely the amount of sodium that has accumulated during the interdialytic period. Sodium removal during hemodialysis occurs via convective (~78%) and diffusive losses (~22%) between dialysate and plasma sodium concentration. The latter (the sodium gradient) is an important factor in the 'fine tuning' of sodium balance during intermittent hemodialysis. Most use fixed dialysate sodium concentrations, but each patient has his/her own plasma sodium concentrations pre-hemodialysis, which are quite reproducible and stable in the long-term. Thus, in many patients, a fixed dialysate sodium concentration will cause a persistent positive sodium balance during dialysis, which could possibly cause increased thirst, interdialytic weight gain, and mortality. Several methods will be discussed to reduce positive sodium balance, including sodium alignment.
Dialysis ; Homeostasis ; Humans ; Osmolar Concentration ; Plasma ; Renal Dialysis ; Sodium ; Thirst ; Weight Gain

The antianginal effect of oral nicorandil was examined on 15 subjects with angina pectoris who had not been improved by previous treatment with beta blocker and/or calcium antagonists. Nicorandil, 5mg tid, was added to their previous regimen which were composed of beta blocker and/or calcium antagonists, and patients were followed up at least for 6 weeks. The following results were obtained; 1) Frequences of anginal attack were markedly reduced in 11(73%) of 15 patients after the use of nicorandil. 2) After the use of nicorandil, ST segment depression and T wave inversions were improved in 10(66.7%) of 15 patients. 3) In 10 patients who had been taken nicorandil over 12 weeks, 9 patients showed sustained improvement in clinical status, but no significant side effect was noted. 4) In two patients who had undergone exercise tolerance test, significant prolongation in exercise duration were noted. 5) The adverse effects of nicorandil were as follows; headache in 3, insomnia in 3, excessive perspiration, dizziness, thirst, constipation and facial fiushing in 1, respectively.
Angina Pectoris* ; Calcium ; Constipation ; Depression ; Dizziness ; Exercise Tolerance ; Headache ; Humans ; Nicorandil* ; Sleep Initiation and Maintenance Disorders ; Thirst

Anatomical lesions of hypothalamic area associated with hypodipsic hypernatremia have been reported only rarely. We report here a case of hypodipsic hypernatremia induced by a hypothalamic lesion. A 25-yr-old man, who had been treated with radiation for hypothalamic tumor 5-yr before, was admitted for evaluation of hypernatremia and hypokalemia. He never felt thirst despite the elevated plasma osmolality and usually refused to drink intentionally. Plasma arginine vasopressin (AVP) level was normal despite the severe hypernatremic hyperosmolar state and urine was not properly concentrated, while AVP secretion was rapidly induced by water deprivation and urine osmolality also progressively increased to the near maximum concentration range. All of these findings were consistent with an isolated defect in osmoregulation of thirst, which was considered as the cause of chronic hypernatremia in the patient without an absolute deficiency in AVP secretion. Hypokalemia could be induced by activation of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system as a result of volume depletion. However, inappropriately low values of plasma aldosterone levels despite high plasma renin activity could not induce symptomatic hypokalemia and metabolic alkalosis. The relatively low serum aldosterone levels compared with high plasma renin activity might result from hypernatremia. Hypernatremia and hypokalemia were gradually corrected by intentional water intake only.
Adult ; Argipressin/*secretion ; Case Report ; Human ; Hypernatremia/*etiology ; Hypothalamic Neoplasms/*metabolism ; Male ; Osmolar Concentration ; *Thirst

PURPOSE: Thirst has been reported as an important source of distress for patients on hemodialysis. However, there is no instrument available that assesses thirst distress of Turkish patients on hemodialysis. Therefore, the aim of this study was to examine the psychometric properties of the Turkish version of the Thirst Distress Scale (TDS-T) for patients on hemodialysis. METHODS: This study was conducted methodologically. A convenience sample of 142 Turkish patients on hemodialysis participated in this study. Data were collected by using a questionnaire, the TDS-T and a visual analogue scale for thirst intensity. The analysis of data included descriptive statistics, the one-sample Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, Kruskal-Wallis test, Mann-Whitney U test, correlation coefficients and psychometric tests. RESULTS: The TDS-T demonstrated acceptable internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha coefficient = .81), good test-retest reliability (intraclass correlation coefficient = .88), and correlations with interdialytic weight gain values and thirst intensity scores (measured by visual analogue scale) indicating concurrent and convergent validity, respectively. Construct validity was supported by known-group comparisons. The results revealed a one-component structure of the instrument. CONCLUSIONS: The psychometric properties of the TDS-T were consistent with those reported in the original study. The TDS-T was found to be a valid and reliable tool for evaluating thirst distress in patients on hemodialysis.
Humans ; Methods ; Psychometrics ; Renal Dialysis* ; Reproducibility of Results* ; Thirst* ; Turkey ; Weight Gain ; Surveys and Questionnaires

It is well known that Rhododendron sclippenbashii contains the toxic material grayanotoxin. So, Koreans do not eat it, but they do eat azalea although it contains grayanotoxin. That is why there have been no reports about Rhododendron sclippenbashii intoxication after ingesting it intentionally, not accidentally. In this case, the patient was admitted to the emergency room with several toxic symptoms after intentionally consuming 50 blossoms of Rhododendron sclippenbashii to get rid of thirst. Treatment with saline infusion and atropine was successful and the outcome was favorable enough in this case to produce a complete cure without any sequelae at discharge. But toxic symptoms were seen for 24 hours, although the symptoms usually fade in 9 hours. Therefore, we should carefully treat and observe, for over 24 hours, the patient who intentionally ingests about 50 blossoms of Rhododendron sclippenbashii.
Adult ; Atropine ; Bradycardia ; Drug Combinations ; Emergencies ; Flowers ; Humans ; Intention ; Piperonyl Butoxide ; Pyrethrins ; Rhododendron ; Thirst

Backgrounds: The purpose of fasting before surgery is to minimize the volume of gastric contents. A short fast after solid food increases gastric volume, but a small drink of clear fluid 2 to 3 hours preoperatively decreases gastric volume. This investigation examined the effects of a small drink of clear fruit juice 2 to 3 hours prior to anesthesia on gastric volume, gastric pH, thirst and hunger. METHODS: Two hundred eighty children whose ages were five to ten years, scheduled for elective surgery were randomly assigned to one of 7 groups. Group 1 continued to fast but in the other 6 groups the children drank 2 ml/kg, 3 ml/kg, or 4 ml/kg of clear fruit juice (orange or grape) 2 to 3 hours preoperatively. The degree of thirsty and hunger was checked. The volume of gastric contents was measured by syringe and the pH by pH meter. RESULTS: The children who drank fruit juice preoperatively had decreased gastric volume. The gastric pH was not significantly different with that of the control group. The degree of thirst and hunger was not significantly different with that of the control group. CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that a small drink of fruit juice 2 to 3 hours preoperatively is more preferable than 8 hours fasting.
Anesthesia ; Child* ; Fasting ; Fruit* ; Humans ; Hunger ; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration* ; Syringes ; Thirst

Hypodipsic hypernatremia is characterized by chronic or recurrent episodes of severe hypernatermia associated with dehydration and a lack of thirst. This constellation of deficits suggests that the syndrome is due to hypodipsia of destruction of the hypothalamic osmoreceptors that regulate thirst and ADH secretion. We report a child with abnormalities of the central nervous system who had hypernatremia and a lack of thirst without detectable abnormalities in the osmoregulation of ADH secretion. The patient was a 11 month old female and her chief complaints were poor oral intake and weight gain. There were recurrent hypernatremia with hyperosmosis and normal level of plasma ADH. With intravenous rehydratin, oral intake was improved and plasma sodium level decreased.
Central Nervous System ; Child ; Dehydration ; Female ; Humans ; Hypernatremia* ; Infant ; Osmoregulation ; Plasma ; Sodium ; Thirst ; Weight Gain