Neuro-Dol

The DRAMES (décès en relation avec l'abus de médicaments et de substances) registry is a French database of drug-related deaths (medications or illicit drugs) among drug users. The DTA (décès toxiques par antalgiques) registry is a French database of analgesic-related deaths among people without a history of drug abuse. Both registries are based on the collection of data on deaths for which forensic toxicology experts have performed analyses. In the present study, we included drug- and analgesic-related deaths occurring from January 2013 to December 2022 in France. Subject demographic characteristics and medical history, forensic autopsy findings and toxicology reports were evaluated. Among drug users (DRAMES registry), opioids used alone or in combination were the main contributor to drug-related deaths in France, as they are in most countries. However, licit methadone was the leading cause of opioid-related deaths (ahead of heroin) during the study period. The main trend was the dramatic increase in cocaine-related mortality. Among medical users of analgesics (DTA registry), tramadol was the leading cause of deaths throughout this period. A large-scale naloxone distribution program is urgently needed in France to prevent opioid overdoses, including among licit methadone users. However, our data do not support the hypothesis of an opioid crisis in France, although close monitoring is still required, particularly for oxycodone.

BackgroundThere is a lack of information about the organisation and management of clinical research personnel in Europe and of their professional activity in intensive care. We therefore conducted a cross-sectional survey among personnel currently working in a French intensive care research network that involves 41 centres nationwide. The aim of the survey was to describe the personnel’s personal and institutional organisation and management, their job perception in terms of satisfaction and stress, and suggestions for improvement.MethodsOver 3 months in 2023, the research personnel received an electronic questionnaire on their personal and professional profile, past and present training, workplace and functions currently performed, personal knowledge about job skills required, job satisfaction and stress by as measured on a rating scale, and suggested ways of improvement.ResultsNinety seven people replied to the questionnaire (a response rate of 71.3%), of whom 78 (57.3%) were sufficiently involved in intensive care to provide complete answers. This core sample had profiles in line with French recruitment policies and comprised mainly Bachelor/Master graduates, with nurses accounting for only 21.8%. The female to male ratio was 77:23%. Many responders declared to have a shared activity of technician (for investigation) and assistant (for quality control). More than 70% of the responders considered that most of the tasks required of each worker were major. Figures were much lower for project managers, who were few to take part in the survey. On a scale of 10, the median of job satisfaction was 7 for personal work organisation, 6 for training and for institutional organisation, and only 5 for personal career management. The median of job stress was 5 and was inversely correlated with satisfaction with career management. Respect of autonomy, work-sharing activity between investigation and quality control, a better career progression, financial reward for demanding tasks, and participation in unit staff meetings were the main suggestions to improve employee satisfaction.ConclusionThis nationwide survey provides a new insight into the activity of French clinical research personnel and points to ways to improve the quality and efficiency of this workforce.

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EDITORIAL article Front. Mol. Neurosci., 06 September 2022Sec. Pain Mechanisms and Modulators Volume 15 - 2022 | https://doi.org/10.3389/fnmol.2022.1025230

The aim of this study was to assess the impact of recent recommendations concerning regional anesthesia for breast cancer surgery, a nationwide practice survey was carried out. This cross-sectional electronic survey, conducted in 2021, collected answers from a panel of anesthetists currently working in French practicing centers. It addressed the sets of techniques they practiced for every type of surgical procedure and their perceptions of the difficulties and risks associated with these techniques. The practice of regional anesthesia was generally high (70%), involving all the current types of blocks. Surgeon-done infiltration was popular for lumpectomy only. For the other current procedures, the pectoralis nerve blocks were preferred to the paravertebral block, which was favored for mastectomies, when a lymph node harvesting was planned, or for immediate or delayed pedicle flap. Catheters were mostly used for mastectomies with pedicle flap. The erector spinae plane block was emergent. Whatever the type of block, regional anesthesia was preferentially started before surgery. Despite some deviations such as the adjunction of unlabeled molecules, the practice fitted well with the European recommendations, but training and within-center guidance lacked standardization. For each block, actual practice, perceived difficulty, and risk were inter-correlated, but paravertebral block - either practiced or not - was considered as more difficult and riskier to perform than any other. These encouraging results do not dispense with the need to improve anesthetic practices both in quantity and quality. Such improvement in the anatomic fit to the procedure and in the timing of blocks will also have to be considered.

The comments written by R. Otter et al. [...].