Home › Research › Inflammation and the immune system
The Post-Anaesthesia N-acetylcysteine Cognitive Evaluation (PANACEA) trial: study protocol for a randomised controlled trial
Skvarc DR, Dean OM, Byrne LK, Gray LJ, Ives K, Lane SE, Lewis M, Osborne C et al.. Trials, 2016-08-09
Topic: Brain proteins, microglia and lab models
Background Some degree of cognitive decline after surgery occurs in as many as one quarter of elderly surgical patients, and this decline is associated with increased morbidity and mortality. There is clinical evidence to suggest that NAC may be beneficial in preventing the cognitive decline associated with both acute physiological insults and dementia-related disorders. It is hypothesised that the perioperative administration of NAC will reduce the degree of postoperative cognitive changes at early and long-term follow-up, as measured by changes on individual measures of the neurocognitive battery, when compared with placebo.
Key findings
- Background Some degree of cognitive decline after surgery occurs in as many as one quarter of elderly surgical patients, and this decline is associated with increased morbidity and mortality.
- There is clinical evidence to suggest that NAC may be beneficial in preventing the cognitive decline associated with both acute physiological insults and dementia-related disorders.
- It is hypothesised that the perioperative administration of NAC will reduce the degree of postoperative cognitive changes at early and long-term follow-up, as measured by changes on individual measures of the neurocognitive battery, when compared with placebo.
Why it matters
This record describes the protocol for the PANACEA trial, a randomised study testing whether giving N-acetylcysteine (NAC) around the time of surgery reduces cognitive changes after surgery compared with placebo. The background notes that some cognitive decline follows surgery in as many as one quarter of elderly surgical patients. Results are not included in this record.
Study details
- Study designlongitudinal study
- Evidence strengthHigh
How this study scored 53/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal, and it is a randomised controlled trial. Scored zero for sample size and effect reported because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Trials) |
| Journal's citation record | 1 / 4 | Trials: journal h-index 132 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 11 / 12 | A randomised controlled trial (from PubMed type “Randomized Controlled Trial”) |
| Strength of evidence | 5 / 5 | Rated “high” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 1 / 5 | 2016 — within 20 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 3 / 3 | Studied in people (pubmed indexes it as a clinical or observational study) |
| Randomised / blinded | 1 / 2 | Randomised (as stated in the record) |
| Times cited | 3 / 7 | Cited 16 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 1 / 5 | 1.3 citations a year over 12 year(s) since 2016 |
| Impact for its field and year | 2 / 6 | Cited 2.6× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 1 / 6 | Cited by 1 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 0 / 4 | Cited 1 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 1 / 4 | Last-listed author Andrew Marriott: h-index 7 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 0 / 3 | Deakin University: institution h-index 641 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 2 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 4 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 27502769) |
| Free to read | 2 / 2 | Free to read |
| Total | 53 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
Full text: free to read — OpenAlex lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 6 Feb 1020).
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. The record's author list ends in “et al.”, so not every author is named. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Skvarc, D. R., Dean, O. M., Byrne, L. K., Gray, L. J., Ives, K., Lane, S. E., et al. (2016). The Post-Anaesthesia N-acetylcysteine Cognitive Evaluation (PANACEA) trial: study protocol for a randomised controlled trial. Trials. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13063-016-1529-4
Vancouver
Skvarc DR, Dean OM, Byrne LK, Gray LJ, Ives K, Lane SE, et al. The Post-Anaesthesia N-acetylcysteine Cognitive Evaluation (PANACEA) trial: study protocol for a randomised controlled trial. Trials. 2016. doi:10.1186/s13063-016-1529-4. PMID: 27502769.
BibTeX
@article{skvarc2016-27502769,
author = {Skvarc, D. R. and Dean, O. M. and Byrne, L. K. and Gray, L. J. and Ives, K. and Lane, S. E. and Lewis, M. and Osborne, C. and others},
title = {{The Post-Anaesthesia N-acetylcysteine Cognitive Evaluation (PANACEA) trial: study protocol for a randomised controlled trial}},
journal = {Trials},
year = {2016},
doi = {10.1186/s13063-016-1529-4},
pmid = {27502769},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1186/s13063-016-1529-4}
}
Studies this one cites
Referenced by this study and also in the alzhub library, so you can read them here.
Later studies that cite this one
1 study in the alzhub library lists this one in its references.
Related studies in Inflammation and the immune system
Also tagged “double-blind”
783 studies in the library carry the topic tag “double-blind”; these are this study's neighbours in a fixed, alphabetical-by-hash tour of them, not the closest in content. All 783 tagged studies.