An unexpected benefit from enhanced 2009 H1N1 influenza surveillance

Nosocomial outbreaks of influenza are reportable in New York State, but reporting compliance is unknown. We describe a surveillance system, instituted during the 2009 H1N1 outbreak, that coincidently allowed for the identification of influenza outbreaks in long-term care facilities.     

我国消化内镜传统诊治项目开展现状与分析:169家医院调查报告

目的 调查分析我国消化内镜传统诊治项目(常规胃肠镜检查、息肉切除等)开展状况.方法 以国内不同省份的各级医院消化内镜单元(室)为调查对象,采用电子邮件或电话问卷方式对我国消化内镜传统诊治项目开展状况进行调查分析.率的比较采用X2检验.结果 自2010年5月至11月,共有169家医院纳入本次调查,分布于28个省,占国内大陆省份的90.3％ (28/31),其中147家医院可开展消化内镜操作,占87.0％.在这147家医院中,所有医院(100％)均可开展常规胃镜检查,93.9％(138/147)的医院可开展肠镜检查,二、三级医院肠镜开展率(97.8％、100％)高于一级医院(25.0％,x2=60.9,P＜0.01);所有三级医院(100％)和79.8％(71/89)的二级医院能开展内镜下息肉切除术,明显高于一级医院(16.7％,x2=20.0,P＜0.01);在147家医院中,共有74家开展经内镜逆行胰胆管造影(ERCP),占50.3％,其中76.1％(35/46)的三级医院、43.8％(39/89)的二级医院可开展ERCP,三级医院高于二级医院(x2=12.7,P＜0.01);12家已开展消化内镜操作的一级医院中,均未开展ERCP、超声内镜检查(EUS)及食管静脉套扎+硬化(EVL+ EVS)治疗.结论 常规胃肠镜检查在我国二、三级医院已普及,一级医院还有较大提升空间;ERCP术及EVL+ EVS等传统消化内镜介入操作在三级医院较普及,二级医院有待提高.     

英夫利西治疗克罗恩病的疗效评价及对黏膜愈合影响的初步研究

目的 评价克罗恩病(CD)患者使用英夫利西(IFX)的疗效及对黏膜愈合和促进瘘管闭合的影响.方法 收集2007年9月至2011年2月上海交通大学医学院附属瑞金医院消化科使用IFX治疗的CD患者的临床资料,回顾性分析IFX的疗效和安全性.IFX治疗后疗效评价内容包括实验室指标、临床疗效、瘘管治疗疗效和黏膜修复.统计学处理采用t检验和Wilcoxon符号秩和检验.结果 共22例患者纳入本次研究,男11例,女11例,平均29.3岁.予IFX 5～I0 mg/kg剂量在第0、2、6周诱导缓解治疗,随后每隔8周维持治疗.22例患者中,有16例活动性CD,1例中途退出,其余15例在治疗第14周时,11例缓解、2例临床有效、2例无效.14周时克罗恩病活动指数(CDAI)评分(112±80)和ESR[( 13±11)mm/1 h]与0周时的(186±88)、(21±15)mm/1 h相比均下降(Z值分别为-2.712和-2.378,P值分别=0.04和0.007).10例有瘘管的患者中2例无效退出,8例患者的瘘管对IFX部分反应;6例在维持治疗期间持续有反应,但未见瘘管完全闭合消失.7例患者在使用IFX治疗5次(24周)后内镜复查,治疗后简化克罗恩病内镜评分(SES-CD)评分(3.21±2.89)较治疗前(5.86±3.02)下降(Z=-2.38,P＝0.018).9例患者共发生11次不良事件,以输注反应、呼吸道感染多见,无严重不良反应发生.结论 IFX可快速改善患者临床症状,安全性高.而且IFX在黏膜愈合和瘘管治疗方面的作用可在用药早期显现.     

Análisis coste-efectividad de dabigatrán para la prevención de ictus y embolia sistémica en fibrilación auricular no valvular en España

Introduction and objectives

Assessment of the cost-effectiveness of dabigatran for the prevention of stroke and systemic embolism in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation in Spain, from the perspective of the National Health System.

Methods

Adaptation of a Markov chain model that simulates the natural history of the disease over the lifetime of a cohort of 10 000 patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation. Model comparators were warfarin in a first scenario, and a real world prescribing pattern in a second scenario, in which 60% of the patients were treated with vitamin K antagonists, 30% with acetylsalicylic acid, and 10% received no treatment. Deterministic and probabilistic sensitivity analyses were performed.

Results

Dabigatran reduced the occurrence of clinical events in both scenarios, providing gains in quantity and quality of life. The incremental cost-effectiveness ratio for dabigatran compared to warfarin was 17 581 euros/quality-adjusted life year gained and 14 118 euros/quality-adjusted life year gained when compared to the real world prescribing pattern. Efficiency in subgroups was demonstrated. When the social costs were incorporated into the analysis, dabigatran was found to be a dominant strategy (ie, more effective and less costly). The model proved to be robust.

Conclusions

From the perspective of the Spanish National Health System, dabigatran is an efficient strategy for the prevention of stroke in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation compared to warfarin and to the real-world prescribing pattern; incremental cost-effectiveness ratios were below the 30 000 euros/quality-adjusted life year threshold in both scenarios. Dabigatran would also be a dominant strategy from the societal perspective, providing society with a more effective therapy at a lower cost compared to the other 2 alternatives.Full English text available from:www.revespcardiol.org     

Analysis of non-HLA genomic risk factors in HLA-matched unrelated donor hematopoietic cell transplantation for chronic myeloid leukemia

Background

Allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation is the main curative therapy for patients with chronic myeloid leukemia who do not respond to tyrosine kinase inhibitors. It has been proposed that non-human leukocyte antigen gene polymorphisms influence outcome after hematopoietic cell transplantation and could be used alongside traditional patient-donor and transplant characteristics to create a recipient risk profile associated with allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation.

Design and Methods

A previous study from the European Group for Blood and Marrow Transplantation showed that the absence of recipient tumor necrosis factor receptor II, absence of donor interleukin 10 ATA/ACC and presence of donor interleukin 1 receptor antagonist allele 2 genotypes were associated with decreased survival and increased non-relapse mortality in adult patients with chronic myeloid leukemia undergoing myeloablative human leukocyte antigen-identical sibling transplantation. To explore these associations in unrelated donor transplantation, these polymorphisms were genotyped in 383 adult patients with chronic myeloid leukemia who underwent hematopoietic cell transplantation from unrelated donors matched for 10/10 human leukocyte antigens.

Results

The polymorphisms were not associated with overall survival, non-relapse mortality, relapse or acute graft-versus-host disease in the unrelated donor cohort. Comparison of the unrelated donor and human leukocyte antigen-identical sibling cohorts showed differences in survival and clinical characteristics.

Conclusions

We did not confirm that non-human leukocyte antigen polymorphisms were associated with outcomes in myeloablative unrelated donor hematopoietic cell transplantation for chronic myeloid leukemia, possibly because of the strong association between clinical variables and outcome which masked more subtle genetic effects.     

Hypocellular acute myeloid leukemia in adults: analysis of the clinical outcome of 123 patients

Background

The hypocellular variant of acute myeloid leukemia accounts for less than 10% of all cases of adult acute myeloid leukemia. It is defined by having less than 20 percent of cellular bone marrow in a biopsy at presentation. It is unclear in the literature whether the outcome of hypocellular acute myeloid leukemia differs from that of non-hypocellular acute myeloid leukemia.

Design and Methods

We retrospectively analyzed all the cases reported to be hypocellular acute myeloid leukemia between 2000 and 2009. A second pathology review was conducted and the diagnosis was confirmed in all cases.

Results

One hundred twenty-three (9%) patients were identified: patients with hypocellular acute myeloid leukemia were older than those with non-hypocellular acute myeloid leukemia (P=0.009) and more frequently presented with cytopenias (P<0.001). Forty-one patients with hypocellular acute myeloid leukemia had an antecedent hematologic disorder and 11 patients had received prior chemo-radiotherapy for non-hematopoietic neoplasms. On multivariate analysis, overall survival, remission duration and event-free survival were comparable to those of other patients with acute myeloid leukemia.

Conclusions

The outcome of hypocellular acute myeloid leukemia does not differ from that of non-hypocellular acute myeloid leukemia.     

Benefit from autologous stem cell transplantation in primary refractory myeloma? Different outcomes in progressive versus stable disease

Background

Several studies of autologous stem cell transplantation in primary refractory myeloma have produced encouraging results. However, the outcome of primary refractory patients with stable disease has not been analyzed separately from the outcome of patients with progressive disease.

Design and Methods

In the Spanish Myeloma Group 2000 trial, 80 patients with primary refractory myeloma (49 with stable disease and 31 with progressive disease), i.e. who were refractory to initial chemotherapy, were scheduled for tandem transplants (double autologous transplant or a single autologous transplant followed by an allogeneic transplant). Patients with primary refractory disease included those who never achieved a minimal response (≥25% M-protein decrease) or better. Responses were assessed using the European Bone Marrow Transplant criteria.

Results

There were no significant differences in the rates of partial response or better between patients with stable or progressive disease. However, 38% of the patients with stable disease at the time of transplantation remained in a stable condition or achieved a minimal response after transplantation versus 7% in the group with progressive disease (P=0.0017) and the rate of early progression after transplantation was significantly higher among the group with progressive disease at the time of transplantation (22% versus 2%; P=0.0043). After a median follow-up of 6.6 years, the median survival after first transplant of the whole series was 2.3 years. Progression-free and overall survival from the first transplant were shorter in patients with progressive disease (0.6 versus 2.3 years, P=0.00004 and 1.1 versus 6 years, P=0.00002, respectively).

Conclusions

Our results show that patients with progressive refractory myeloma do not benefit from autologous transplantation, while patients with stable disease have an outcome comparable to those with chemosensitive disease. (ClinicalTrials.gov:{"type":"clinical-trial","attrs":{"text":"NCT00560053","term_id":"NCT00560053"}}NCT00560053)     

Transitioning outcome measures: relationship between the CMTPedS and CMTNSv2 in children,adolescents, and young adults with Charcot‐Marie‐Tooth disease

Long‐term studies of Charcot‐Marie‐Tooth (CMT) disease across the entire lifespan require stable endpoints that measure the same underlying construct (e.g., disability). The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between the CMT Pediatric Scale (CMTPedS) and the adult CMT Neuropathy Score (CMTNSv2) in 203 children, adolescents, and young adults with CMT. There was a moderate curvilinear correlation between the CMTPedS and the CMTNSv2 (Spearman's rho ρ = 0.716, p < 0.0001), although there appears to be a floor effect of the CMTNSv2 in patients with a milder CMT phenotype. Univariate analyses indicate that the relationship between the CMTPedS and CMTNSv2 scores improves with worsening disease severity and advancing age. Although one universal scale throughout life would be ideal, our data supports the transition from the CMTPedS in childhood to the CMTNSv2 in adulthood as a continuum of measuring lifelong disability in patients with CMT.     

Setting a Research Agenda to Inform Intensive Comprehensive Aphasia Programs

Abstract

Research into intensive comprehensive aphasia programs (ICAPs) has yet to show that this service delivery model is efficacious, effective, has cost utility, or can be broadly implemented. This article describes a phased research approach to the study of ICAPs and sets out a research agenda that considers not only the specific issues surrounding ICAPs, but also the phase of the research. Current ICAP research is in the early phases, with dosing and outcome measurement as prime considerations as well as refinement of the best treatment protocol. Later phases of ICAP research are outlined, and the need for larger scale collaborative funded research is recognized. The need for more rapid translation into practice is also acknowledged, and the use of hybrid models of phased research is encouraged within the ICAP research agenda.