Implementation of harm reduction in Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia

Harm reduction (HR) interventions began in Central-Eastern Europe and Central Asia in the mid-1980s with the establishment of substitution treatment (ST) in Yugoslavia. In the mid-1990s, the first needle and syringe programmes (NSPs) opened in selected countries following the outbreaks of HIV among injecting drug users (IDUs). The number of NSPs continues to increase via a combination of international and state funding with large expansions made possible via the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. While ST is still unaccepted in several countries, others have made some progress which is especially visible in South Eastern and Central Europe and the Baltic States. Development of regional networking including Central and Eastern European HR Network and a number of national networks helped to coordinate joint advocacy effort and in some cases sustain HR services. Activism of drug users and people living with HIV (PLWH) increased in the region in the last several years and helped to better link HR with the affected communities. Still a number of challenges remain important for the movement today such as repressive drug policies; stigma and discrimination of IDUs, PLWH, sex workers and inmates, including poor access to prevention and treatment; lack of important components of HR work such as naloxone distribution and hepatitis B vaccination, prevention in prisons; issues of quality control; sustaining services after finishing of major international projects; reaching of adequate coverage and others.     

Obstacles in provision of anti-retroviral treatment to drug users in Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia: a regional overview

Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia is currently the region with the fastest growing HIV epidemic, mainly among injecting drug users (IDUs). This study explored access to anti-retroviral (ARV) treatment among IDUs and evaluated obstacles to gaining access to treatment. Semi-structured questionnaires were collected from 21 countries from agencies which deliver services to IDUs (N=55), including AIDS centres, drug treatment institutions and Non-governmental Organisations. Results showed that there was poor access to ARV treatment for IDUs. The major obstacles reported were: limited range of institutions for the provision of ARVs, lack of treatment due to high cost of ARVs, lack of clear policies and regulations in providing treatment for IDUs, lack of infrastructure and trained staff to provide treatment, and in some countries, absence of mechanisms such as methadone substitution programmes to support IDUs receiving ARV. There is a need for human and capital resources to bring ARV treatment to IDU populations in the region. Regulations and treatment protocols need to be developed to address this particular group of HIV positive clients to insure better adherence and monitoring of clients with HCV co-infection. Integration of provision of ARV treatment with drug treatment and low-threshold services is advised. Substitution therapy should be advocated for in countries where it is not available or where access is limited. Finally, more research needs to be conducted to understand what will work best in each country, region or setting.     

Controlling HIV among people who inject drugs in Eastern Europe and Central Asia: Insights from modelling

BackgroundAlthough there is evidence of the effectiveness of needle and syringe programme (NSP), opioid substitution therapy (OST) and antiretroviral therapy (ART) in reducing HIV prevalence, most Central and Eastern European sub-regions still have low or no coverage of most or all of these interventions.MethodsWe conducted a modelling analysis to consider the potential impact on HIV incidence and prevalence of OST, NSP and ART in three illustrative epidemic scenarios: Russia (St. Petersburg); Estonia (Tallinn) and Tajikistan (Dushanbe). For each intervention, we consider the coverage needed of each intervention separately or in combination to: (1) achieve a 30% or 50% relative reduction in HIV incidence or prevalence over 10 years; and (2) reduce HIV incidence to below 1% or HIV prevalence below 10% after 20 years. A sensitivity analysis for St. Petersburg considered the implications of greater on no risk heterogeneity, none or more sexual HIV transmission, like-with-like mixing, different injecting cessation rates and assuming a lower HIV acute phase cofactor.ResultsFor St. Petersburg, when OST, NSP and ART are combined, only 14% coverage of each intervention is required to achieve a 30% reduction in HIV incidence over 10 years. Similar findings are obtained for Tallinn and Dushanbe. In order to achieve the same reductions in HIV prevalence over 10 years, over double the coverage level is required relative to what was needed to achieve the same reduction in HIV incidence in that setting. To either reduce HIV incidence to less than 1% or HIV prevalence to less than 10% over 20 years, with all interventions combined, projections suggest that very high coverage levels of 74–85% are generally required for the higher prevalence settings of Tallinn and St. Petersburg, whereas lower coverage levels (23–34%) are needed in Dushanbe. Coverage requirements are robust to increased sexual HIV transmission, risk heterogeneity and like-with-like mixing, as well as to assuming a lower HIV acute phase cofactor or different injecting cessation rate.ConclusionThe projections suggest that high but achievable coverage levels of NSP can result in large decreases (30%) in HIV incidence in settings with high HIV prevalence among PWID. Required coverage levels are much lower when interventions are combined or in lower prevalence settings. However, even when all three interventions are combined, the targets of reducing HIV incidence to less than 1% or prevalence to less than 10% in 20 years may be hard to achieve except in lower prevalence settings.     

Antibiotic policies in Central Eastern Europe

To assess the antibiotic policies in Central Eastern European (CEE) countries, a questionnaire on the prevalence of resistance, antibiotic consumption data for ambulatory and hospital care and antibiotic policies, was mailed to national representatives. Data on antibiotic resistance and consumption of antibiotics at national levels are limited and vary considerably among countries. The importance of surveillance data in altering perceptions of the prevalence of resistance is shown by the comparison of surveillance data and interview data. Interview data without surveillance data produced the widest range of estimates of the prevalence of resistance in streptococcus pneumonia -5% in Lithuania and 82% in Belarus. The average consumption of antibiotics in ambulatory care in eight CEE countries in 2001 was 19.35 defined daily doses (DDD)/1000 inhabitants per day, (range 13.1 - 24.8 DDD) and in hospitals in six CEE countries was 2.2 DDD/1000 inhabitants per day (range 1.3-4.5). Over the counter sales of antibiotics are available in some countries. Antibiotic policy interventions do not exist or only apply to specific problems or interventions. Better implementation of antibiotic interventions and education on antibiotic use should be a high priority in this region. An effective strategy requires close co-operation, consultations and partnership at national and international level in particular, via existing international organisations.     

Vitamin D receptor polymorphisms and renal cancer risk in Central and Eastern Europe

Previous studies investigated the role of vitamin D intake and cancer risk. The kidney is a major organ for vitamin D metabolism, activity, and calcium homeostasis; therefore, it was hypothesized that dietary vitamin D intake and polymorphisms in the vitamin D receptor (VDR) gene may modify renal cell carcinoma (RCC) risk. Three common VDR gene polymorphisms (BsmI, FokI, TaqI) were evaluated among 925 RCC cases and 1192 controls enrolled in a hospital-based case-control study conducted in Central and Eastern Europe. Overall associations with RCC risk were not observed; however, subgroup analyses revealed associations after stratification by median age of diagnosis and family history of cancer. Among subjects over 60 yr, reduced risks were observed among carriers of the f alleles in the FokI single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) (odds ratio [OR] = 0.61 for Ff and OR = 0.74 for ff genotypes) compared to subjects with the FF genotype (P trend = 0.04; P interaction = 0.004). Subjects with the BB BsmI genotype and a positive family history of cancer had lower risk compared to subjects with the bb allele (OR = 0.60; 95% CI: 0.33-1.1; P trend = 0.05). Genotype associations with these subgroups were not modified when dietary sources of vitamin D or calcium were considered. Additional studies of genetic variation in the VDR gene are warranted.     

狂犬病患者的护理及临终关怀

目的 探讨狂犬病患者的护理方法和临终关怀的方式,用最大努力减轻患者和家属的痛苦及心理负担.方法 分析我院8例狂犬病患者的病情变化和护理过程,认真记录病情发展,严密观察患者病情变化,认真进行护理评估,严格执行消毒隔离,做好对症护理,重视患者和家属的心理护理.结果 患者痛苦和家属的心理压力减轻,没有疾病传播.结论 基础护理,消毒隔离,临终关怀和心理护理在减轻狂犬病患者和家属的痛苦及心理负担中具有良好效果.     

终末期患者宁养服务前生活质量的临床分析

目的:描述和比较终末期患者与其他生存时间较长的患者接受宁养服务前生活质量(quality of life,QOL)的差异。方法:按建立宁养关系后接受宁养服务时间的长短将宁养患者分为生存时间短于2周的终末组,生存时间长于2周的对照组,其中1634例患者接受宁养服务前完成疼痛评分、总QOL评分和QOL的12项指标的全面评估,回顾性分析终末组201例和对照组1433例患者疼痛评分和QOL的差异。疼痛评分和QOL状况分别用NRS量表和中国QOL量表,第一次家访时由患者自我评估。结果:统计学结果表明两组患者的性别分布、中位年龄、原发肿瘤分布及合并远处转移的发生率均无明显差异,一般情况是均衡的;接受宁养服务前终末期患者与对照组相比:疼痛评分明显较高,均值分别为6.8和6.3,有明显统计学差异(P<0.001);总QOL评分明显较低,均值分别为27.9和31.4,有明显统计学差异(P<0.001);QOL的12项指标中,躯体方面的不适更明显;心理方面除自身对疾病的认识无差异外,精神和对治疗的态度等指标明显较差;而社会人际关系方面两组无明显差异。结论:宁养患者需要身、心、灵等方面的全人照护,终末期患者身、心、灵等方面的损害更加严重,需要更强的宁养服务照护。     

运用PCNE分类系统处理抗凝门诊中的药物相关问题

探讨欧洲药学监护联盟(PCNE)分类系统在抗凝门诊药物相关问题(DRPs)中的作用。采用PCNE分类系统9.0版对抗凝门诊每一个病例进行药学监护,分析其中的DRPs,并且对存在的DRPs进行系统而标准的分析、归类及干预,实现连贯的药学监护模式。PCNE可提高临床药师在抗凝门诊药学监护中的效率,实现药学监护模式的精准化与标准化。     

Pharmacoeconomic and clinical implications of sequential therapy for metastatic renal cell carcinoma patients in Central and Eastern Europe

Introduction: The incidence and mortality rates of kidney cancer in the Central and Eastern European (CEE) region are among the highest in the world. Access to second and subsequent lines of metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC) therapies is highly varied in the region. Despite the increasing body of evidence supporting the clinical benefit of multiple lines of treatment, access to treatment beyond first line is restricted in many of these countries.

Areas covered: The adoption of targeted therapies for the first-line treatment of mRCC in the region was slow and faced many obstacles. In order to evaluate the current status of treatment beyond the first-line setting in the CEE region, this review examines the availability and reimbursement of mRCC drugs and clinical practice in institutions that treat patients with mRCC.

Expert opinion: This review highlights the need to raise awareness among physicians, payers and regulators on clinical trial and cost-effectiveness data regarding the treatment of mRCC beyond the first line. The obstacles to mRCC drug access highlighted in this review need to be overcome to ensure that patients are receiving the best treatment available.     

Clinical trials in Russia and Eastern Europe: recruitment and quality

OBJECTIVE: To review the current situation of clinical trials in Russia and Eastern Europe. FINDINGS: The volume of clinical trials in these territories is increasing. The quality of the data obtained, ethical care and compliance with Good Clinical Practice guidelines is at least as good as anywhere else. United States Food and Drug Administration inspection data indicate that sites in these countries are often superior to those elsewhere. Large-scale clinical trials conducted in these territories have been subsequently published in mainstream journals. Territory-specific attention must be paid to communications' equipment and language. However, this is countered, for example, by the fact that most clinical research associates in Russia hold degrees in medicine, that patients with previously untreated disease are more easily found than in North America or Western Europe, and the participation of large, purpose-built, healthcare institutions. CONCLUSION: Eastern Europe and Russia are well-established locales for clinical trials. These territories offer a solution to the competition for patients among clinical trials in North America or Western Europe.