A randomized,open-label study comparing low-dose clevudine plus adefovir combination therapy with clevudine monotherapy in naïve chronic hepatitis B patients

Purpose

Clevudine 30 mg showed potent antiviral activity with a marked post-treatment antiviral effect. However, long-term treatment with clevudine monotherapy induced resistance and myopathy in some cases. The objective of this study is to evaluate the preliminary efficacy and safety of the combination of clevudine 20 mg and adefovir compared to clevudine monotherapy.

Methods

Seventy-four patients were randomized to either a combination of clevudine 20 mg and adefovir or clevudine 20 or 30 mg and were treated for 2 years. The viral kinetics for 24 weeks, virological response [VR; hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA less than 300 copies/ml], and the biochemical response [BR; normal alanine aminotransferase (ALT)] were assessed.

Results

There was no difference in baseline characteristics among the three groups. Viral kinetics study showed no statistically significant difference among them during 24 weeks. The combination group showed 95 % virological response with a statistically significant difference compared to the clevudine 30 mg (67 %) and 20 mg (71 %) groups (p = 0.0376). Biochemical response rates were similar in all groups (78–94 %). No resistance was reported in the combination group, while 20 % of patients treated with clevudine 30 mg or 20 mg reported resistance during 2 years. Muscle-related symptoms such as myalgia (1 in clevudine 30 mg, 1 in the combination group) and muscle weakness (1 in clevudine 30 mg, 2 in clevudine 20 mg) were reported in five patients (7 %); of these, three patients discontinued the study.

Conclusion

We concluded that the combination of clevudine 20 mg and adefovir produced a potent antiviral response together with a good resistance profile compared to clevudine monotherapy at 96 weeks in this pilot study.     

Temporary Semi-Jailing Technique for Coil Embolization of Wide-Neck Aneurysm with Small Caliber Parent Artery Following Incomplete Clipping

The authors describe the use of a self-expandable stent in a temporary deployment for treatment of a very wide-neck A1 segment of anterior cerebral artery (ACA) aneurysm following incomplete clipping. A 39-year-old hypertensive man presenting with seizure-like movement underwent computed tomography, which showed acute subarachnoid hemorrhage and an A1 segment of ACA aneurysm with superior and inferior projection. He underwent surgical clipping of the aneurysm, but superior and posterior portion of wide-neck aneurysm remained. We decided to treat the remnant aneurysm using an endovascular modality. After selection of the aneurysm, coil packing was performed assisted by the temporary semi-jailing technique. The Enterprise stent (Cordis Neurovascular, Miami, FL, USA) was deployed and recaptured repeatedly for angiography to ensure safety of the small caliber parent artery. Successful semi-deployment and recapture of the stent allowed subtotal coil occlusion of the aneurysm with good anatomic and clinical results. No complications were encountered. The stent could be recaptured up to the point where the proximal end of the stent marker was aligned with distal marker band of the microcatheter, approximately 70% of the stent length. The temporary semi-jailing technique is feasible for wide-neck aneurysm with small caliber parent artery.     

Effects of chlorinated Pd precursors and preparation methods on properties and activity of Pd/TiO2 catalysts

We investigated the effects of Pd precursors and preparation methods on the physicochemical properties and performance of Pd/TiO₂ catalysts in the photocatalytic degradation of methyl violet. To confirm the influence of the precursors, Pd/TiO₂ catalysts were prepared via chemical reduction (CR) using four different Pd precursors. Additionally, to determine the effects of preparation methods, Pd/TiO₂ catalysts were fabricated using K₂PdCl₄ precursor via three different methods: CR, deposition–precipitation (DP), and impregnation. The CO chemisorption results showed that the catalyst prepared via DP using the K₂PdCl₄ precursor, i.e., Pd/TiO₂_K_DP, displayed the highest Pd dispersion of 12.42% owing to the stable formation of Pd(OH)₂, which strongly interacted with the –OH groups on the TiO₂ support. Although the catalyst prepared via CR using the Pd(NH₃)₄Cl₂·H₂O (PA) precursor, i.e., Pd/TiO₂_PA_CR, had the lowest Pd dispersion of 0.7%, it exhibited the highest absorption of 26% after 30 min in the dark. It was found that high Pd²⁺/Pd⁰ ratio in dark conditions adversely affected the absorption of MV owing to electrostatic repulsion between the cationic dyes and metal nanoparticles. However, the Pd dispersion and the specific surface area played a key role in the photocatalytic activity under UV irradiation. Pd/TiO₂_K_CR with higher Pd dispersion showed the highest photocatalytic activity and reaction rate of 0.0212 min⁻¹.

We investigated the effects of Pd precursors and preparation methods on the physicochemical properties and performance of Pd/TiO₂ catalysts in the photocatalytic degradation of methyl violet.     

An enhanced treatment effect can be expected from a higher serum thyroglobulin level after radioactive iodine therapy

Annals of Nuclear Medicine - The aim of this study was to investigate if increased serum thyroglobulin (Tg) levels after radioactive iodine (RAI) showed more therapeutic effects in patients with...