Leukotriene receptor antagonist therapy

Leukotriene receptor antagonists (LTRA) are a new class of drugs for asthma treatment, available in tablet form. Their unique mechanism of action results in a combination of both bronchodilator and anti-inflammatory effects. While their optimal place in asthma management is still under review, LTRA represent an important advance in asthma pharmacotherapy.     

类风湿关节炎常用药物治疗方案及进展

类风湿性关节炎(RA)是一种以非化脓性增生性滑膜炎为主的对称性自身免疫性疾病,最初会影响小关节,逐渐发展为大关节,最后影响皮肤、眼睛、心脏、肾脏和肺部.RA发病机制特殊,目前虽诊疗手段繁多,却暂无完美诊疗手段.现有的用于治疗RA的药物诸如甲氨蝶呤类慢性抗风湿类药物(DMARDs)、类固醇(GC)、非类固醇消炎药(NSA...     

Anaphylaxis: current state of knowledge for the modern physician

Anaphylaxis is a severe, potentially fatal, hypersensitivity reaction of rapid onset. It may trigger life-threatening cardiopulmonary compromise, often with skin and mucosal changes such as urticaria and angioedema. The prevalence of anaphylaxis is increasing and the number of cases of fatal anaphylaxis appears to be rising. Food, insect stings, and drugs are the most common triggers. Novel triggers are increasingly seen and include delayed anaphylaxis to red meat, food-dependent exercise-induced reactions and anaphylaxis to monoclonal antibodies. Anaphylaxis is usually IgE mediated, but other mechanisms also play a role for example direct mast cells activation. Differential diagnosis is discussed including asthma, syncope and shock; excessive endogenous histamine, food related syndromes, and some rare diagnoses. Intramuscular epinephrine is first line treatment. The role of other drugs is reviewed. Timed and serial serum tryptase measurements help to confirm the diagnosis. Long-term management is necessary to minimise the risk of recurrence and includes identification of the trigger(s), management of risk factors, education on avoidance and a formalised treatment plan with an epinephrine auto-injector if appropriate. Every patient who has experienced anaphylaxis should be referred to an allergy clinic for appropriate management. This is endorsed by many national guidelines (eg, UK NICE). Anaphylaxis is often misdiagnosed or miscoded as, for example, asthma or food allergy. Most doctors will encounter a patient with anaphylaxis in their career and should to be familiar with the clinical features, management and mechanisms of this potentially fatal condition.     

Anti-leukotrienes in Childhood Asthma

Bronchial asthma is an inflammatory condition. The inflammatory actions of leukotrienes (LT) B4, C4, D4, and E4 have been shown experimentally to play a role in inflammatory mechanisms, producing asthma. Antileukotrienes (ALT) or leukotrienes antagonists (LA) is a new class of anti-asthma drugs with anti-inflammatory role. LT modifiers from the groups of 5 lipoxygenase inhibitor and Cys LT1 receptor antagonists, are found useful in asthma therapy. LAs are of main use in young infants and toddler with recurrent wheezing, children with moderate to severe chronic asthma on steroid therapy and in allergic rhinitis. In chronic asthma they are required to be used for prolonged periods with other anti-asthma agents. Except for Montelukast and Zafirlukast, which can be used in children above two and six years of age respectively, the paediatric use of other agents is yet to be established. However, these agents are essentially safe. The cost of LAs is reasonably high. At present, with available evidence, these drugs are considered promising in management of asthma in children. However, there is need to do more long term clinical trials for ascertaining their effectivity in different types of asthma to compare their effects with long acting B2 agnoists and chromones, so as to optimally explore their utility.Key Words: Antileukotrienes, Asthma, Children, LeukotrienesAsthma is an inflammatory disease. The effective therapeutic intervention is based on use of anti-inflammatory drugs. At present, steroids are being used in aerosol/oral and parenteral forms. Corticosteroid therapy has inherent difficulties of administration and side effects. Therefore, newer group of drugs called ALT, LA or leukotrienes modifiers are being explored. The ALT represent a new class of mediator specific, anti-inflammatory anti-asthma drugs. Consequent to the studies showing their effectiveness in paediatric age group, ALT are soon going to establish their place in childhood asthma management [1, 2].     

The use of therapeutic medications for soft-tissue injuries in sports medicine

The use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) to treat most muscle, ligament and tendon injuries should be reassessed. They have, at best, a mild effect on relieving symptoms and are potentially deleterious to tissue healing. Soft-tissue injury associated with definite inflammatory conditions such as bursitis or synovitis or involving nerve impingement does warrant short-term treatment with NSAIDs. Paracetamol has similar efficacy to NSAIDs in soft-tissue injury, is cheaper, and has a lower side-effect profile. It is the analgesic of choice for most soft-tissue injury. Cyclo-oxygenase-2 (COX-2) inhibitors should not be used to treat soft-tissue injuries unless impingement is a major feature and non-selective NSAIDs are contraindicated (eg, coexisting gastric disorder), and the patient is not at cardiovascular risk. Corticosteroid injections for tendon injuries may achieve a mild to moderate reduction in pain for up to 6 weeks. However, they do not promote tendon healing, so should generally be used only when healing is not a critical goal. Promising new therapeutic treatments for soft-tissue injuries include topical glyceryl trinitrate, aprotinin injections, and prolotherapy.     

儿童哮喘在社区管理治疗中护士的作用

目的：探讨哮喘儿童的社区管理内容。方法：对980例哮喘儿童建立社区管理方法,包括建立和确定治疗目标,进行哮喘知识教育、药物介绍和其他方法的使用、患者规范化管理和个体化治疗。结果：80．6％以上患儿半年内未发作,给予降级治疗。结论：护士在儿童哮喘社区管理中起着重要作用。     

Prevalent and emerging therapies for osteoporosis

Osteoporosis and fractures associated with it constitute a real and serious socio-medical problem, which only recently has come to the forefront of social consciousness. With increasing number of exservicemen and their dependents, osteoporosis management has become very important in our setup. Currently available pharmacological therapies for prevention of fragility fractures are limited in scope, efficacy and acceptability to patients. Oral bisphosphonates are the standard treatment for osteoporosis which are associated with significant gastrointestinal side effects and thus poor patient compliance. Newer regimens, including intravenous (IV) formulations of bisphosphonates, have successfully come in vogue with greater patient compliance and equal or better benefits. The real need in osteoporosis treatment is for additional anabolic drugs. The only currently approved anabolic agent for treating osteoporosis is teriparatide (recombinant human parathyroid hormone 1–34), which stimulates new bone formation. Considerable efforts are being made to develop new, more effective treatment for osteoporosis. These novel drugs under trial include those primarily inhibiting osteoclastic bone resorption (like bisphosphonates) such as inhibitors of receptor activator of nuclear factor-kappa B ligand (RANKL) signalling, cathepsin K inhibitors, c-Src kinase inhibitors, integrin inhibitors, chloride channel inhibitors and the drugs with osteo-anabolic actions such as orally active parathyroid hormone (PTH) analogues, calcium sensing receptor antagonists, PTH-related peptide analogues and agents that induce osteoblast anabolism via pathways involving key, recently identified, molecular targets (wnt low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein-5 signalling; sclerostin antibodies).     

奥马珠单抗在嗜酸细胞性肉芽肿性多血管炎中应用的研究进展

嗜酸细胞性肉芽肿性多血管炎(eosinophilia granulomatosis polyangiitis,EGPA)是一种临床少见但可累及全身多系统的自身免疫性疾病。当前诱导EGPA缓解和预防复发的药物主要是糖皮质激素和免疫抑制剂,患者在治疗过程中常出现复发和皮质类固醇依赖相关的问题,因此亟需新的治疗方法。奥马珠单抗(omalizumab,OMA)是一种人源化抗IgE单克隆抗体,在我国于2017年8月获批用于中重度变应性哮喘的治疗,已有超过3万例哮喘患者接受治疗,应用前景广阔。近年来OMA在EGPA中的应用研究日益增多,本文对近年来国内外使用OMA治疗EGPA的临床研究包括潜在药理机制、临床获益及不良反应等进行综述,为奥马珠单抗的相关临床治疗研究提供参考。     

A knowledge of asthma in school children: a survey among primary school teachers

A survey was carried out among primary school teachers in the district of Kota Bharu, Malaysia to assess the level of knowledge on asthma and its management. Our findings revealed that primary school teachers were less informed about the management and treatment of asthma. They were relatively more knowledgeable about the causes and symptomatology of asthma. The majority of respondents had misunderstanding regarding the effect of rain, smoking and cold weather on asthma. It is important that teachers should be able to recognise symptoms of an asthmatic attack or take the necessary precautions to avoid such an attack. Many teachers agreed on the need to have an asthma education programme in their teaching curriculum.     

The unwelcome visitor

Gout is a chronic, progressive inflammatory disease with intermittent arthritic flares, which should not be regarded as a minor inconvenience or nuisance. It can be effectively controlled when the patient's serum urate level is reduced to less than 360 μmol/l (6 mg/dL) by consistent use of urate-lowering pharmacotherapy. Colchicine prophylaxis for gouty flares during titration of urate-lowering therapy has been underused. Holistic long-term management of gout must encompass patient education, evidence-based dietary advice, screening and aggressive treatment of comorbidities such as hypertension, diabetes mellitus, dyslipidaemia and renal impairment. Acute therapies for recurrent attacks with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, colchicine and/or corticosteroids should be used judiciously, especially in the elderly, due to the risk of toxicities. With appreciation of the underlying pathogenesis and artful use of the limited drug options, control of gout can be effectively achieved, bringing tremendous satisfaction to the patient and doctor.     

The risk of asthma mortality with inhaled long acting beta-agonists

This article reviews the available evidence as to whether inhaled long acting beta-agonists (LABA) increase the risk of asthma mortality and considers the implications for the use of this treatment in the management of asthma. Randomised controlled trials suggest that LABAs prescribed as monotherapy may increase the risk of asthma death in certain circumstances, such as the unsupervised "off-label" use without concomitant inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) treatment in patients with unstable asthma. However, there is also evidence that the use of LABAs in conjunction with ICS treatment in adult asthma as recommended in current guidelines is not associated with an increased risk of asthma mortality. The only way in which a prescriber can ensure that a patient with asthma takes LABA treatment in conjunction with ICS is through a combination ICS/LABA product, an approach which may have additional therapeutic advantages. We propose that in the management of asthma, a case can now be made to limit the availability of LABAs to combination LABA/ICS therapy.     

Prevalent and Emerging Therapies for Osteoporosis

Osteoporosis and fractures associated with it constitute a real and serious socio-medical problem, which only recently has come to the forefront of social consciousness. With increasing number of exservicemen and their dependents, osteoporosis management has become very important in our setup. Currently available pharmacological therapies for prevention of fragility fractures are limited in scope, efficacy and acceptability to patients. Oral bisphosphonates are the standard treatment for osteoporosis which are associated with significant gastrointestinal side effects and thus poor patient compliance. Newer regimens, including intravenous (IV) formulations of bisphosphonates, have successfully come in vogue with greater patient compliance and equal or better benefits. The real need in osteoporosis treatment is for additional anabolic drugs. The only currently approved anabolic agent for treating osteoporosis is teriparatide (recombinant human parathyroid hormone 1–34), which stimulates new bone formation. Considerable efforts are being made to develop new, more effective treatment for osteoporosis. These novel drugs under trial include those primarily inhibiting osteoclastic bone resorption (like bisphosphonates) such as inhibitors of receptor activator of nuclear factor-kappa B ligand (RANKL) signalling, cathepsin K inhibitors, c-Src kinase inhibitors, integrin inhibitors, chloride channel inhibitors and the drugs with osteo-anabolic actions such as orally active parathyroid hormone (PTH) analogues, calcium sensing receptor antagonists, PTH-related peptide analogues and agents that induce osteoblast anabolism via pathways involving key, recently identified, molecular targets (wnt low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein-5 signalling; sclerostin antibodies).Key Words: Osteoporosis, Prevalent, Emerging therapies     

“三位一体”哮喘教育管理模式在社区哮喘患者中的应用效果研究

目的探讨“三位一体”哮喘教育管理模式在社区哮喘患者中的应用效果。方法选取深圳市福永街道塘尾社区的231例哮喘患者为研究对象,2010年（观察组）对其采用“三位一体”哮喘教育管理模式进行干预,然后将观察组调查结果与2009年（对照组）未进行干预的结果进行对比,将两年的哮喘控制情况、治疗依从性、非预约就诊、急诊、住院情况、相关知识掌握情况、预防意识、药物正确使用方法及生存质量进行统计及比较。结果观察组的哮喘控制情况、治疗依从性及生存质量均优于对照组,非预约就诊、急诊、住院情况均好于对照组,相关知识掌握情况较佳率高于对照组,预防意识强于对照组,药物正确使用方法掌握率高于对照组,P均〈0．05,均有显著性差异。结论“三位一体”哮喘教育管理模式在社区哮喘患者中的应用效果良好．综合优势突出。     

支气管哮喘治疗新策略

支气管哮喘(简称哮喘)是多基因参与的、以慢性气道炎症、气道高反应性及气道重塑为特征的症候群。缓解哮喘急性发作,控制哮喘发生,长期控制以嗜酸粒细胞、肥大细胞、单核细胞、淋巴细胞浸润为特征的气道炎症,抑制气道重塑,是目前治疗的新策略。本文对常用药物的使用,患者教育,以及呼吸道感染与哮喘的关系进行了综述,对临床实践具有一定的指导意义。     

New perspectives in allergic asthma.

Major advances have recently been made in both the diagnosis and the treatment of allergic asthma. The radioallergosorbent test (RAST), which measures allergen specificity of lgE antibodies in vitro, offers as good results as direct skin tests for allergy, without the inconvenience, discomfort and risk for the patient of the latter. However, the RAST must be done in a radioisotope laboratory, and standardized extracts of test allergens are lacking. Several new drugs, administered by inhalation and relatively free from serious side effects, are highly effective in treating asthma. Disodium cromoglycate, believed to stabilize tissue mast cells, protects particularly against exercise- or antigen-induced bronchospasm, and often permits reduction or withdrawal of corticosteroid therapy. Some acetonides or esters of glucocorticoids, because of their greatly increased topical anti-inflammatory activity, are effective in doses too small to cause serious systemic side effects. With the most topically effective, beclomethasone dipropionate, systemic corticosteroid therapy can usually be reduced or withdrawn, but recovery of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal function may be delayed; the drug regimens should therefore overlap.     

支气管哮喘患儿治疗前后血清IL-5、IL-10及肺功能变化的临床研究

目的探讨支气管哮喘患儿应用孟鲁司特治疗前后血清白介素-5（IL-5）、白介素-10（IL-10）及肺功能的变化,进-步为支气管哮喘的治疗方法提供指导依据。方法90例支气管哮喘患儿随机分为研究组和对照组各45例,两组均给予抗炎、吸氧、解痉、平喘等常规对症支持治疗,研究组在上述治疗的基础上联用孟鲁司特进行治疗,应用统计学方法对比分析两组的疗效,临床症状、体征改善情况以及治疗前后血清IL-5、IL-10及肺功能的变化情况。结果研究组的总有效率明显高于对照组（P〈0．05）。研究组临床症状、体征消失时间均短于对照组（P〈O．05）。研究组IL-5降低程度较对照组更明显（P〈0．05）,而IL-10较对照组升高更明显（P〈0．05）。两组的FEV1、FEV1／FVC、FEV1占预计值均较治疗前明显升高,且研究组肺功能改善程度较对照组更明显（P〈0．05）。结论支气管哮喘患儿应用孟鲁司特治疗疗效确切,可以明显改善患儿的临床症状及体征,改善患儿的肺功能,考虑可能是孟鲁司特通过上调IL-10,抑制炎症因子IL-5而发挥作用的。     

免疫调节抗抑郁治疗研究进展

近年来,免疫炎症在抑郁症中的作用受到人们的关注。大量研究表明免疫紊乱在抑郁症的发生中起重要作用,抑郁症患者表现出特征的免疫表型。免疫炎症可以和多种发病机制相互作用介导抑郁症的产生。因此,免疫调节正成为抗抑郁的辅助疗法。在临床治疗中,不仅抗抑郁剂具有抗炎作用,而且抗炎药物也显示出抗抑郁作用,这些药物主要包括非甾体抗炎药、他汀类药物和细胞因子抑制剂。此外,一些非药物治疗方法也具有免疫调节作用,主要有电休克疗法、迷走神经刺激、针灸和运动疗法等。但目前免疫调节治疗仍存在一些问题,如免疫调节治疗只对部分抑郁症亚型有效,且其疗效和安全性还有待评估。因此未来需要寻找更有效的生物标志物,确定免疫炎症相关抑郁症亚型,将有助于探索新的诊疗策略。     

放射性直肠炎治疗概况

放射性直肠炎是盆腔肿瘤患者接受放射治疗后常见的并发症,严重影响患者的生活质量,目前无公认有效的治疗措施。国内外对放射性直肠炎的治疗做了大量研究,药物治疗如类固醇灌肠剂、非固醇类抗炎剂、硫糖铝、甲醛等,其他手段有内镜下激光治疗、高压氧治疗以及外科治疗等,各具优缺点。     

儿童支气管哮喘治疗依从性情况及影响因素调查

目的探讨儿童支气管哮喘治疗依从性情况及影响因素。方法回顾性分析250例支气管哮喘患儿临床资料并采用问卷调查,了解家长与患儿依从性相关资料,评价依从性和哮喘控制水平。结果不同持续时间患儿哮喘控制水平存在显著性差异(P<0.05),119例(47.60%)存在不同程度的自行停药或减量等不遵医嘱行为,担心长期应用激素安全性是主要原因。患儿的年龄、性别、哮喘严重程度及家长文化程度、居住地、疾病认知评分、自费治疗与患儿治疗依从性有关(P<0.05),其中家长文化程度、疾病认知评分与儿童支气管治疗依从性呈正相关,是主要的影响因素(P<0.05)。结论儿童支气管哮喘依从性与哮喘控制水平有关,患儿依从性主要受到家长因素影响,加强对家长遵医行为的管理和哮喘相关知识的宣传教育是提高患儿治疗依从性的重要措施。     

抗乙型肝炎病毒药物与治疗的研究进展

由乙型肝炎病毒引起的乙型肝炎是一种发病率高、病死率高的传染病,现已成为全球性重大的公众健康问题。目前临床上应用和正在临床研究中的抗乙型肝炎病毒药物分为免疫调节剂、核苷类和非核苷类药物,但免疫调节剂的不良反应和核苷类药物耐药性病毒株的出现使得新颖抗乙型肝炎病毒药物的研究成为热点。现对近年来抗乙型肝炎病毒药物与治疗的研究进展予以阐述,并预测其发展趋势,以推动新型高效药物的研发。