The laterality of stop and go processes of the motor response in left-handed and right-handed individuals

The objective of the present study was to investigate whether the stop and go processes of the motor response are asymmetrical and whether the asymmetries are dependent on handedness and the response selection process that is engaged. Both right-handed and left-handed participants abducted either the left or right index finger in response to an imperative cue in the choice reaction time (choice RT) or the simple RT task. A stop cue was presented after the imperative cue with a probability of .25. When the stop cue was presented, the participants withheld the prepared response. On the choice RT task, left-handed participants had significantly shorter RT and stop signal reaction time (SSRT) with the left versus the right hand, whereas right-handers showed no difference between hands on either measure. In the simple RT task, the RT and SSRT were not significantly different between the groups or the response sides. These results indicate that both the stop and go processes of the prepared left-hand response are completed earlier than those of the right-hand response in left-handed individuals when the stimulus-response process involves a response selection process.     

Comparison of persistence and adherence between fixed-dose combinations and two-pill combinations in Japanese patients with type 2 diabetes

Objective: To compare treatment patterns, persistence and adherence between fixed-dose combinations (FDCs) and two-pill combinations (TPCs) of oral antidiabetic drug (OAD) classes in Japanese patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) using administrative claims databases (Japan Medical Data Center [JMDC] and Medical Data Vision [MDV]).

Methods: This was a retrospective, longitudinal cohort analysis conducted between 2011 and 2015, in patients with T2DM receiving OADs as FDC or TPC. Outcomes included prescribing patterns, treatment persistence and adherence.

Results: Data from 3474 and 3066 patients receiving FDCs, and 4325 and 5192 patients receiving TPCs from the JMDC and MDV databases, respectively, was extracted. The most common OAD combination received by over half of all patients was dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitor (DPP-4i) + thiazolidinediones (TZDs) (64.1% [JMDC] and 70.5% [MDV]). Overall, 12-month persistence rates were higher in patients receiving FDCs compared with TPCs (70.4 vs. 66.2% [JMDC], 75.6 vs. 55.7% [MDV]). In the JMDC population receiving FDCs or TPCs, persistence rates were highest with DPP-4i schedules (67.5–83.5%). Median time to discontinuation was significantly longer with biguanide?+?TZD, and DPP-4i?+?TZD FDC schedules (p < .05) than TPC; adherence rates were ≥80% across all antidiabetic drug classes in both database populations.

Conclusions: Persistence with and adherence to OADs in Japanese patients with T2DM were greater with FDCs than with TPCs, which may suggest increased patient satisfaction due to reduced treatment burden. Further studies are warranted to investigate the impact of adherence and persistence of FDCs of OADs on glycemic control.