Efficacy and Safety of Onartuzumab in Combination With First-Line Bevacizumab- or Pemetrexed-Based Chemotherapy Regimens in Advanced Non-Squamous Non–Small-Cell Lung Cancer

Background

Onartuzumab is a monovalent monoclonal antibody that binds with the extracellular domain of the MET receptor. Given the role of MET in non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), we investigated whether onartuzumab added to first-line chemotherapy efficacy in non-squamous NSCLC.

Significance of admission hypoalbuminemia in acute intracerebral hemorrhage

Low levels of serum albumin may increase the risk of infections and mortality in critically ill patients. We tested the hypothesis that admission hypoalbuminemia predicted infectious complications and poor outcome in subjects with acute intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). We analyzed a single center cohort of ICH patients collected between 1994 and 2015. Pneumonia, urinary tract infection and sepsis were retrospectively identified, according to validated criteria. Serum albumin was measured on admission and hypoalbuminemia was defined as total albumin ≤3.5 g/dL. The association between albumin levels, infections, and mortality at 90 days was tested with multivariable logistic regression analyses. A total of 2010 patients were included (median age 74 years, 54.5% males) of whom 444 (22.1%) had hypoalbuminemia on admission and 763 (38%) died within 90 days. The frequency of pneumonia, urinary tract infection, and sepsis was 19.9, 15.1, and 2.7%, respectively. Hypoalbuminemic patients had lower admission Glasgow coma scale, higher frequency of intraventricular hemorrhage and were more likely to have a history of chronic kidney or liver disease. After adjustment for potential confounders, hypoalbuminemia was an independent predictor of pneumonia [odds ratio (OR) 1.76, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.34–2.33, p < 0.001] and sepsis (OR 2.29, 95% CI 1.22–4.30, p = 0.010). Low levels of albumin were also independently associated with higher mortality at 90 days (OR 1.78, 95% CI 1.30–2.44, p < 0.001). In conclusion, early hypoalbuminemia is common and predicts poor outcome in ICH patients. Increased susceptibility to pneumonia and sepsis may be the pathophysiological mechanism underlying this association.     

Sensory Clusters of Adults With and Without Autism Spectrum Conditions

We identified clusters of atypical sensory functioning adults with ASC by hierarchical cluster analysis. A new scale for commonly self-reported sensory reactivity was used as a measure. In a low frequency group (n?=?37), all subscale scores were relatively low, in particular atypical sensory/motor reactivity. In the intermediate group (n?=?17) hyperreactivity, sensory interests and sensory/motor issues were significantly elevated in relation to the first group, but not hyporeactivity. In a high frequency subgroup (n?=?17) all subscale scores were significantly elevated and co-occurrence of hyper- and hyporeactivity was evident. In a population sample, a cluster of low scorers (n?=?136) and high scorers relative to the other cluster (n?=?26) was found. Identification of atypical sensory reactivity is important for targeting support.     

Efficacy of rasagiline and selegiline in Parkinson’s disease: a head-to-head 3-year retrospective case–control study

Journal of Neurology - Monoamine oxidase type B (MAO-B) inhibitors, such as selegiline and rasagiline, can be used as monotherapy or adjuvant therapy to levodopa in Parkinson’s disease (PD)....     

Congenital anomalies of lumbosacral spine: A pictorial review

Congenital malformations of the lumbosacral spine include spinal dysraphism and caudal anomalies. Most often, these malformations are discovered prenatally or in early infancy, but some are not diagnosed until late childhood or adulthood. The purpose of this pictorial review is to illustrate the multi‐modality imaging characteristics in these complex anomalies and to provide a systematic radiological approach aiming at improving diagnostic accuracy.     

Imaging findings of familial Mediterranean fever

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to study the imaging findings of familial Mediterranean fever (FMF). MATERIALS AND METHODS: We performed a retrospective review of the medical records and imaging studies of 38 patients with proven FMF, diagnosed between 1992 and 2002. RESULTS: The most common clinical manifestation was recurrent peritoneal attacks with abdominal pain (76.3%) and fever (42.1%). Abdominal imaging findings included ileus (n=12), splenomegaly (n=5), hepatomegaly (n=2), ascitis (n=2), focal peritonitis (n=2), mesenteric streaking (n=1), and enlarged mesenteric lymph node (n=1). One patient developed fatal peritoneal mesothelioma, and 13.1% of the patients developed amyloidosis with sonographic findings of renal parenchymal disease or cardiomyopathy. Arthritis was second in frequency, occurring in 34.2% of patients; radiographs were normal (n=4) or showed joint effusion and periarticular soft tissue swelling (n=4) due to synovitis. One patient developed seronegative destructive arthropathy. Skin lesions were noted in 23.6% of patients. Pleuritis was encountered in 13.1% and pericarditis in 5.2%. Polyarteritis nodosa (PAN) was present in two patients, multiple sclerosis in one, and autoimmune hemolytic anemia in one patient. CONCLUSION: FMF predominantly involves abdominal viscera but can affect other organs. The majority of patients have nonspecific imaging findings, and the radiologic diagnosis is rarely considered. Amyloidosis, mesothelioma, and destructive arthropathy are potential serious complications of FMF. PAN, multiple sclerosis, and autoimmune hemolytic anemia are probably rare associations or rather than coincident with FMF.     

Everyday memory functioning in obsessive- compulsive disorder.

Memory performance in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is discussed as a pathogenetic risk factor for the emergence of OCD, particularly checking compulsions. At present, however, findings are mixed and little is known about memory performance in tasks relevant to everyday functioning in patients with OCD. For the present study, memory performance was assessed in 31 patients diagnosed with OCD and 33 healthy controls with the Rivermead Behavioural Memory Test (RBMT), which covers a wide range of verbal and nonverbal memory components as well as prospective memory. OCD patients performed comparably to healthy controls on the memory task for verbal, nonverbal, and prospective memory (p > .1). According to norm values, memory performance was unimpaired in most OCD patients. The present findings further challenge a broad account of the "memory deficit" hypothesis of OCD and compulsive checking, respectively.