Rao AG, Nashwan AJ. Cognitive clarity in colon surgery: The dexmedetomidine advantage. World J Gastrointest Surg 2024; 16(11): 3629-3631 [DOI: 10.4240/wjgs.v16.i11.3629]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Abdulqadir J Nashwan, MSc, PhD, Research Scientist, Department of Nursing and Midwifery Research, Hamad Medical Corporation, Rayyan Road, Doha 3050, Qatar. anashwan@hamad.qa
Research Domain of This Article
Gastroenterology & Hepatology
Article-Type of This Article
Letter to the Editor
Open-Access Policy of This Article
This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
World J Gastrointest Surg. Nov 27, 2024; 16(11): 3629-3631 Published online Nov 27, 2024. doi: 10.4240/wjgs.v16.i11.3629
Cognitive clarity in colon surgery: The dexmedetomidine advantage
Asad G Rao, Abdulqadir J Nashwan
Asad G Rao, Department of Clinical Medicine, Dow Medical College, Karachi 74200, Pakistan
Abdulqadir J Nashwan, Department of Nursing and Midwifery Research, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha 3050, Qatar
Author contributions: Rao AG and Nashwan AJ wrote the draft and critically reviewed the literature.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Abdulqadir J Nashwan, MSc, PhD, Research Scientist, Department of Nursing and Midwifery Research, Hamad Medical Corporation, Rayyan Road, Doha 3050, Qatar. anashwan@hamad.qa
Received: July 23, 2024 Revised: October 10, 2024 Accepted: October 14, 2024 Published online: November 27, 2024 Processing time: 99 Days and 10.2 Hours
Abstract
Colon cancer is one of the most prevalent cancers globally, especially in the older age group. A large number of older patients undergoing surgery for colon cancer suffer from postoperative cognitive dysfunction (POCD). The trial by Bu et al demonstrated that dexmedetomidine (Dex) significantly reduced the incidence of POCD compared to placebo in individuals undergoing colon cancer surgery. Additionally, better cerebral oxygenation and lower cerebral injury markers were reported with the use of Dex. The trial has some limitations, such as a single-center design and a smaller sample size, and further studies with larger patient populations and robust multi-center designs are warranted to establish these findings.
Core Tip: This letter highlights the trial by Bu et al, which reveals that dexmedetomidine can significantly reduce the incidence of postoperative cognitive dysfunction and improve cerebral oxygenation in elderly patients undergoing radical colon cancer surgery. Despite several limitations, the study reflects profound clinical implications while suggesting additional research and innovative approaches to treatment.
