'Reprofessionalization' or 'occupational imperialism'?: some reflections on pharmacy in Britain

Drawing upon preliminary research findings, this paper considers whether pharmacists in Britain face a crisis in their occupational status and identity as a result of changes in their work and market situations. It further examines some of the ways in which they are responding to the challenges and opportunities presented. The paper also comments on the utility of the concepts of 'reprofessionalization' and 'occupational imperialism' in the study of British pharmacy.     

Gene expression patterns and profile changes pre- and post-erlotinib treatment in patients with metastatic breast cancer.

PURPOSE: To delineate gene expression patterns and profile changes in metastatic tumor biopsies at baseline and 1 month after treatment with the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) tyrosine kinase inhibitor erlotinib in patients with metastatic breast cancer. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: Patients were treated with 150 mg of oral erlotinib daily. Gene expression profiles were measured with Affymetrix U133A GeneChip and immunohistochemistry was used to validate microarray findings. RESULTS: Estrogen receptor (ER) status by immunohistochemistry is nearly coincided with the two major expression clusters determined by expression of genes using unsupervised hierarchical clustering analysis. One of 10 patients had an EGFR-positive tumor detected by both microarray and immunohistochemistry. In this tumor, tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases-3 and collagen type 1 alpha 2, which are the EGF-down-regulated growth repressors, were significantly increased by erlotinib. Gene changes in EGFR-negative tumors are those of G-protein-linked and cell surface receptor-linked signaling. Gene ontology comparison analysis pretreatment and posttreatment in EGFR-negative tumors revealed biological process categories that have more genes differentially expressed than expected by chance. Among 495 gene ontology categories, the significant differed gene ontology groups include G-protein-coupled receptor protein signaling (34 genes, P = 0.002) and cell surface receptor-linked signal transduction (74 genes, P = 0.007). CONCLUSIONS: ER status reflects the major difference in gene expression pattern in metastatic breast cancer. Erlotinib had effects on genes of EGFR signaling pathway in the EGFR-positive tumor and on gene ontology biological process categories or genes that have function in signal transduction in EGFR-negative tumors.     

The 5-Step family intervention in primary care: II. The views of primary healthcare professionals

Background: This is the second of two papers using qualitative methods from a study of an intervention for family members affected by close relatives' substance misuse problems.

Participants: 168 primary healthcare professionals (PHCPs: GPs, practice nurses and health visitors) working in general practices in two areas of England, and who took part in the study.

Data sources: Recruitment and post-session forms completed by PHCPs; telephone interviews with each PHCP 12 weeks after recruitment of a family member; interviews with PHCPs at the end of the study.

Results: At the end of the project PHCPs were overwhelmingly positive about the family member intervention and about primary care as the appropriate site. Difficulties were encountered, however, in identifying and engaging affected family members, who were often excluded on grounds of the complexity of their problems or the level of their distress. Shortage of PHCP time and other practice-related factors added to the difficulty. Active work by a PHCP was often necessary in order to make the link between presenting symptoms of physical or mental ill-health and the existence of a family substance misuse problem. When family members were identified and recruited, PHCPs were usually positive about what was achieved. Nearly all were in favour of an approach that combined giving a self-help manual with some follow-up contact with a family member as needed.

Conclusions: Taken in conjunction with statistical outcome findings of significant reductions in symptoms and changes in ways of coping, plus qualitative analysis of the views of family members, the present results encourage the view that a flexible form of this intervention should be developed for use in primary healthcare, and that further work should build on existing strengths and attempt to overcome weaknesses identified.     

Thyroid Hormone in the Treatment of Post-transplant Acute Tubular Necrosis (ATN)

Delayed graft function (DGF) in cadaver kidney transplants is a common problem and is often due to acute tubular necrosis (ATN). DGF in transplants may have a deleterious effect on long-term graft survival. Since thyroid hormone has been shown to hasten recovery from ATN in experimental models, we designed a trial to determine if a defined course of triiodothyronine (T3) would improve the short- or long-term outcome of patients with DGF in cadaveric transplants. A prospective, randomized, placebo controlled, double blind trial of T3 was carried out in patients with DGF in cadaveric renal transplants. End-points were percentage requiring dialysis, percentage recovering function, time to recovery and length of hospital stay. Long-term outcomes were percentage grafts functioning at 1 year and mean serum creatinine at 1 year. Forty-four patients were randomized to receive either T3 or placebo. Three patients were dropped from each group when early biopsies disclosed that DGF was due to rejection. The groups were well matched by age, cold ischemia time of the graft, and percentage reactivity to a random panel of antigens. Baseline thyroid function studies, including T3, reverse T3 (rT3), and thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) levels, were similar between the two groups and typical of 'euthyroid-sick syndrome'. T3 had no effect on percentage requiring dialysis, time to recovery, percentage recovering function, or length of stay. At 1 year follow-up, graft function was similar in both groups and significantly lower than that seen in patients with good initial function. Thyroid hormone, given early in the course of DGF in cadaver kidney recipients, had no effect on the course of DGF. Long-term graft function is impaired in patients who experience post-transplant DGF compared to those who have good initial function.     

Preliminary outcomes and efficacy of the first 360 consecutive kyphoplasties for the treatment of painful osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures.

BACKGROUND CONTEXT: Osteoporosis is a major cause of morbidity in worldwide elderly populations. Patients may become susceptible to vertebral compression fractures (VCFs) from low-impact situations. For patients who have failed conventional, palliative medical therapy, kyphoplasty not only reduces pain associated with vertebral fractures, but also offers a minimally invasive procedure with the potential to address fracture reduction and spinal sagittal alignment. Kyphoplasty involves expanding an inflatable balloon tamp to create a cavity within a vertebral body before cement deposition. PURPOSE: To evaluate the safety and efficacy of kyphoplasty to reduce and fix painful osteoporotic VCFs. STUDY DESIGN/SETTING: A retrospective, single-arm cohort study of consecutive kyphoplasty patients treated at a single center. PATIENT SAMPLE: Three hundred sixty VCFs were treated during 254 kyphoplasty procedures on 222 osteoporotic patients (mean age, 76 years [range, 28-98]; 28% male and 72% female). OUTCOME MEASURES: Patient-reported pain ratings were examined. Cement extravasation was monitored by intraoperative fluoroscopy and on postoperative radiographs. Anterior and midline vertebral height were assessed from standing, lateral radiographs obtained preoperatively and postoperatively. The number of patients who returned with symptomatic, new fractures was monitored. Perioperative complications were recorded. Mean follow-up occurred 21 months after kyphoplasty (range, 6 months through 36 months). RESULTS: Immediate pain relief was reported by 89% of patients by the first follow-up visit. One patient experienced postoperative pain as a result of radiculopathy related to bone filler leakage into the foramen. The remaining patients had persistent pain and were diagnosed with either a new fracture or underlying degenerative disc disease. Greater than or equal to 20% restoration of lost vertebral height (anterior) was observed in 63% of fractures with an overall mean restoration of 30%, and > or = 20% restoration of lost vertebral height (midline) was detected in 69% of fractures with an overall mean restoration of 50%. In this cohort, 12% (30/254) of the patients required additional kyphoplasty procedures to treat 36 symptomatic, new adjacent and remote fractures. No device-related complications occurred. CONCLUSIONS: Kyphoplasty is a safe and effective, minimally invasive procedure for relief of pain associated with VCF. In our series we also demonstrated some restoration of vertebral height and partial correction of sagittal alignment.     

Orofacial dyskinesia, frontal lobe dysfunction, and coping in older people with psychosis.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether orofacial tardive dyskinesia (OTD) is associated with frontal lobe dysfunction and whether either are related to the coping abilities independent of psychiatric symptoms in older people with psychotic disorders. METHODS: A total of 52 patients, aged over 65 years or over, who satisfied International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision criteria for psychotic disorders (F20-F29) were recruited into the study. OTD was measured using the Abnormal Involuntary Movements Scale and Waddington et al.'s (1993) criteria. Neuropsychological measures were specifically selected to assess different aspects of frontal function and coping was measured using a semistructured interview. Psychiatric symptoms were assessed using the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS). RESULTS: Patients with OTD showed more severe global cognitive impairment compared to patients without OTD. Group differences on measures of frontal lobe dysfunction were not maintained following adjustment for global cognitive impairment. Patients with OTD did not differ from patients without OTD on coping measures. Scores on the general psychopathology subscale of the PANSS, which includes symptoms associated with depression and anxiety, consistently predicted patients' negative perceptions of stressors and appraisals of coping, but cognitive impairment did not predict coping independent of symptoms. CONCLUSION: The association between coping and general psychopathology in older patients with psychosis warrants further investigation as both variables may be amenable to psychological interventions.