From glass to life: a commentary on the assessment of the reproductive potential of cryopreserved human oocytes

Journal of Assisted Reproduction and Genetics -     

Evaluating the diagnostic utility of new line immunoassays for myositis antibodies in clinical practice: a retrospective study

Journal of Neurology - Myositis-associated antibodies (MAA) and myositis-specific antibodies (MSA) are detected in patients with idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIM); their role as diagnostic...     

Comprehensive long-term safety of adalimumab from 18 clinical trials in adult patients with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis

Adalimumab is a powerful drug used to treat psoriasis, that has been specially designed to mimic normal human molecules, and for this reason it is classed as a ‘biological’ drug. It reduces inflammation by inhibiting the activity of a chemical ‘cytokine’ in the body called ‘tumour necrosis factor alpha’ (TNF-alpha). The aim of this study, from the USA, was to assess long-term safety for patients with psoriasis receiving adalimumab. The authors looked at data from 3727 patients receiving the drug as part of 18 different clinical trials in which adverse events (AEs, meaning unwanted side effects while on the drug) were recorded. Overall, there were 16,536 AEs during 5429.7 patient years (304.6 AEs for every 100 patient years). Patient years (PYs) means the number of patients, multiplied by the amount of time they were included in the study. Most common AEs were nasopharyngitis (a common throat complaint), upper respiratory infection, and headache (23.7, 12.9, and 7.9 AEs per 100 PYs, respectively). Incidence rates for serious infections, tuberculosis, and opportunistic infections were 1.8, 0.3, and 0.02 AEs per 100 PYs, respectively. Incidence of malignancy (cancer) excluding non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC) was 0.8 AEs per 100 PYs. Incidences of NMSC and melanoma were 0.6 and 0.2 AEs per 100 PYs, respectively. The authors conclude that AE rates remained stable in this analysis of patients with psoriasis receiving adalimumab; no new safety signals (such as increased AEs) were identified compared with earlier studies.     

Importance of basic therapy in psoriasis

Die Basistherapie spielt bei Psoriasis vulgaris eine wichtige Rolle. Dies gilt unabhängig vom Schweregrad der Erkrankung oder dem angewendeten Therapiekonzept. Sie trägt dazu bei, Symptome wie Juckreiz und Schuppenbildung zu vermindern, Exazerbationen zu reduzieren und somit die Remission nach einer erfolgreichen Therapie zu verlängern. Entsprechend kann durch eine adäquate Basistherapie auch die stark beeinträchtigte Lebensqualität von Psoriasis‐Patienten positiv beeinflusst werden. Bedauerlicherweise wird jedoch der Stellenwert einer Basistherapie bei Psoriasis noch immer unterschätzt. Im folgenden Review wird anhand von Studiendaten die Effizienz und das Potenzial der Basistherapie aufgezeigt und auf neue Daten und Entwicklungen in diesem Bereich eingegangen.     

Psychological Functioning of Slovene Adults during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Does Resilience Matter?

Psychiatric Quarterly - As a public health emergency, a pandemic increases susceptibility to unfavourable psychological outcomes. The aim of the present study was to investigate the buffering role...     

Correlation of 3-T MRI and CT findings with patient symptoms and treatment outcome in radiofrequency ablation of osteoid osteoma

ObjectiveThe aim of this prospective study was to evaluate pre- and post-treatment MRI and CT findings of osteoid osteoma (OO) patients treated with radiofrequency thermo-ablation (RFTA) and to compare these findings with visual analog scale (VAS) scores.MethodsSixteen patients (4 females and 12 males; mean age of 18.87 ± 8.75 years (range: 8–37)) with OO were examined with CT and MRI, at baseline and at an average of 3 months following the procedure. On pre- and post-procedural CT and MRIs, OO-related findings were recorded. Treatment success was evaluated with VAS scores.ResultsBaseline VAS scores were 8 or 9 and follow-up scores were 0 or 1, indicating no early recurrences.Nidus diameters decreased significantly after the procedure (p = 0.027, p = 0.002, and p = 0.002; and p = 0.001, p = 0.001, p = 0.001 for AP, ML and CC nidus diameters for CT and MRI, respectively).The mean nidus volume were significantly decreased after the procedure (p = 0.001, for CT and MRI).On post-procedural images, cortical thickening, the signal intensity and contrast enhancement of the nidus and the extent of periostitis were significantly decreased (p = 0.019, p = 0.001, p = 0.001 and p = 0.034, respectively). There was no significant change in nidus calcification, perinidal cortical and intramedullary sclerosis, periosteal reaction, bone deformity, bone marrow and soft tissue edema, joint effusion and synovitis after the procedure (p = 0.253, p = 0.062, p = 0.245, p = 1, p = 1, p = 0.429, p = 0.371, p = 0.625, p = 1).ConclusionAlthough the changes in imaging findings may be helpful in early follow-up of OO patients treated with RFTA, these changes alone cannot be used with accuracy in predicting treatment response.Level of EvidenceLevel IV, Therapeutic Study.