Establishing priorities for European collaboration in communicable disease surveillance

Background: Several collaborations in communicable disease surveillancehave developed between European Union member states. Involvementin these activities takes time and money. It is vital that collaborationsare established in areas most likely to be beneficial. An exercisewas undertaken to inform national surveillance centres and theEuropean Commission as to priority areas for the developmentof collaborations. Methods: A modified Delphi exercise was undertakenamongst the heads of centres with responsibilities for surveillanceat national level in the member states of the EU. Participantsdeveloped, agreed and ranked criteria for developing collaborations.A list of communicable diseases and syndromes was then rankedusing a Likert-type scale. Three rounds were undertaken. Betweenrounds, scores and a ranking were fed back showing where participantshad ranked items, compared to the overall mean and rank distribution.For the third round participants were asked to use a categoricalscale, nominating six or ten high priority disease areas. Results:Response rates were 87.5% for round 1, 44% round 2 and 87% round3. The low round 2 response rate appeared to be because respondentsdid not wish to alter their rankings. The six high priorityareas were outbreaks of gastroenteritis/food poisoning, CID/otherslow virus infections, serious imported diseases, legionellosis,antimicrobial resistance and tuberculosis. When participantsgave ten high priority areas meningococcal disease, travel advice,vaccination/immunization and influenza were also included. Thefinal lists were accepted at the meeting of participants. Conclusions:The process was successful in developing both a priority listand consensus.     

The effects of nisoldipine on the total ischaemic burden: the results of the ROCKET study

This study was designed to examine the effects of nisoldipine(relative to placebo), a new dihydropyridine calcium entry blockingagent, in the treatment of silent ischaemia in conventionaldoses. A total of 409 patients with proven coronary artery diseasewere screened and of this 64 had at least six episodes or atotal duration of 30 mm of ST segment depression (1 mm lastingat least 1 min) over 48 h. Fifty-two patients ultimately completeda randomized double-blind cross-over study comparing nisoldipine5 mg twice a day, nisoldipine 10 mg daily and placebo. There was a reduction in the ST segment integral and numberof episodes of ST segment depression when compared to placeboon treatment with nisoldipine 5 mg twice a day and nisoldipine10 mg daily. However, the confidence limits were wide and crossedthe no-treatment effect line. In addition, the nisoldipine dosesneither affected the circadian distribution of ischaemic episodesnor caused an alteration of the workload achieved either atpeak exercise or at 1 mm ST segment depression measured 24 hafter nidoldipine 10 mg or 12 h after nisoldipine 5 mg. We conclude that frequent silent ischaemia in patients withproven coronary artery disease is relatively uncommon, it accountsfor approximately 16% of patients with positive exercise. Inthese patients nisoldipine, given as 5mg twice a day and 10mg daily, showed no significant therapeutic effects, eitheron the frequency or severity of silent ischaemia. New formulationsof slow release nisoldipine are consequently being developedso that a fuller 24 h therapeutic profile may be obtained.     

The effects of nisoldipine on the total ischaemic burden: the results of the ROCKET study

This study was designed to examine the effects of nisoldipine(relative to placebo), a new dihydropyridine calcium entry blockingagent, in the treatment of silent ischaemia in conventionaldoses. A total of 409 patients with proven coronary artery diseasewere screened and of this 64 had at least six episodes or atotal duration of 30 mm of ST segment depression (1 mm lastingat least 1 min) over 48 h. Fifty-two patients ultimately completeda randomized double-blind cross-over study comparing nisoldipine5 mg twice a day, nisoldipine 10 mg daily and placebo. There was a reduction in the ST segment integral and numberof episodes of ST segment depression when compared to placeboon treatment with nisoldipine 5 mg twice a day and nisoldipine10 mg daily. However, the confidence limits were wide and crossedthe no-treatment effect line. In addition, the nisoldipine dosesneither affected the circadian distribution of ischaemic episodesnor caused an alteration of the workload achieved either atpeak exercise or at 1 mm ST segment depression measured 24 hafter nidoldipine 10 mg or 12 h after nisoldipine 5 mg. We conclude that frequent silent ischaemia in patients withproven coronary artery disease is relatively uncommon, it accountsfor approximately 16% of patients with positive exercise. Inthese patients nisoldipine, given as 5mg twice a day and 10mg daily, showed no significant therapeutic effects, eitheron the frequency or severity of silent ischaemia. New formulationsof slow release nisoldipine are consequently being developedso that a fuller 24 h therapeutic profile may be obtained.     

Doppler haemodynamic assessment of clinically and echocardiographically normal mitral and aortic Allcarbon valve prostheses

Doppler echocardiographic characteristics of normally functioningAllcarbon prostheses were studied in 149 consecutive patientswith 157 valves in the mitral (n=73) and aortic (n=84) positionswhose function was considered normal by clinical and echocardiographicevaluation. In the mitral position, the mean gradient and theeffective mitral orifice area were not significantly differentin either the 25-mm or the 31-mm size valves (from 5±1to 4±1 mmHg and from 2.2±0.6 to 2.8±0.9cm², respectively; P=ns for both). Conversely, peak gradientwas significantly and inversely correlated to actual orificearea (r=–0.70; P<0.0006), decreasing from 15±3mmHg in the 25-mm size valve to 9±1 mmHg in the 31-mmsize. In the aortic position, the mean gradient was 29±8 mmHgin the 19-mm size valve; it decreased to 8±2 mmHg inthe 29-mm size. Effective prosthetic aortic valve area, calculatedusing the continuity equation, ranged between 0.9±0.1cm² for the 19-mm size valve to 4.1±0.7 cm² for the 29-mmsize. By analysis of variance, effective prosthetic aortic valvearea differentiated various valve sizes (F=25.3; P<0.0001)better than peak (F=5.34; P=0.012) or mean (F=4.34; P=0.0052)gradients alone, and it correlated better with actual orificearea (r=0.89, r=–0.70 and r=–0.65, respectively).This study provides the normal range for Doppler haemodynamiccharacteristics of the various sizes of the Allcarbon valvein the mitral and aortic positions so that prosthetic malfunctioncan be identified.     

The risk of revision in total knee arthroplasty is not affected by previous high tibial osteotomy: A 15-year follow-up of 32,476 total knee arthroplasties in the Norwegian Arthroplasty Register

Background and purpose — Previous studies have found different outcomes after revision of knee arthroplasties performed after high tibial osteotomy (HTO). We evaluated the risk of revision of total knee arthroplasty with or without previous HTO in a large registry material.Patients and methods — 31,077 primary TKAs were compared with 1,399 TKAs after HTO, using Kaplan-Meier 10-year survival percentages and adjusted Cox regression analysis.Results — The adjusted survival analyses showed similar survival in the 2 groups. The Kaplan-Meier 10-year survival was 93.8% in the primary TKA group and 92.6% in the TKA-post-HTO group. Adjusted RR was 0.97 (95% CI: 0.77–1.21; p = 0.8).Interpretation — In this registry-based study, previous high tibial osteotomy did not appear to compromise the results regarding risk of revision after total knee arthroplasty compared to primary knee arthroplasty.High tibial osteotomy (HTO) is a well-established joint preserving procedure for the treatment of medial knee osteoarthritis. The goal is to achieve unloading of the affected medial compartment of the knee to prevent or postpone the need for an artificial knee joint. This is performed by slightly overcorrecting the knee joint from varus malalignment to valgus or neutral position. Osteotomy was a standard treatment option for unicompartmental knee osteoarthritis in earlier years before knee arthroplasty was a surgical option, but osteotomy lost importance in the 1980s because of the success of knee replacement surgery (Smith et al. 2013). However, there has been an increase in osteotomies during the last 15 years, especially in younger patients in some countries (Seil et al. 2013). National arthroplasty registers have demonstrated higher risk of revision for knee arthroplasty in younger patients (under the age of 60) (NAR 2014, SKAR 2013). The 2 most commonly used methods for HTO are lateral closing wedge and medial opening wedge osteotomy. Both methods have shown improvement in knee pain and function (Naudie et al. 1999, van Raaij et al. 2008, Efe et al. 2011, W-Dahl et al. 2012). Nevertheless, some patients later require a second procedure, a total knee arthroplasty (Naudie et al. 1999), depending on the degree of osteoarthritis, their level of pain and function, and the degree of correction achieved. Although total knee arthroplasty appears to be technically more challenging after HTO in cases with severe overcorrection, bone stock loss, altered joint line (Figures 1 and ​and2),2), or patella infera, only a few studies have found inferior results compared to primary TKA (Windsor et al. 1988, Parvizi et al. 2004, Haslam et al. 2007, Farfalli et al. 2012). The aim of this study was to evaluate the risk of revision after TKA, comparing primary TKA with and without previous high tibial osteotomy using data from the Norwegian Arthroplasty Register (NAR).Open in a separate windowFigure 1.Example of extra-articular malalignment after high tibial osteotomy (HTO) with opening wedge technique. The red line on the left radiograph (a) indicates the mechanical axis lateral to the knee joint. The radiograph to the right (b) indicates the extra-articular angulation of the tibia in the osteotomy area.Open in a separate windowFigure 2.Example of intra-articular malalignment after high tibial osteotomy (WTO) with closing wedge technique. The solid red line indicates that the tibial plateau has been elevated medially and is not perpendicular to the tibial axis.     

Is on‐demand treatment effective in patients with severe haemophilia?

Summary. On‐demand therapy enables stopping haemorrhages rapidly, reducing joint pain and restoring joint mobility, but does not prevent the beginning and subsequent development of haemophilic arthropathy. The main objective of this study was to identify the clinical and orthopaedic status of severe haemophilic patients with bleeding phenotype receiving on‐demand treatment in Spain. We conducted an epidemiological, observational, retrospective study, recruiting 167 patients from 36 centres (92% of them with haemophilia A), median age at enrolment of 35 years. Forty per cent of the patients received a combination of on‐demand and short‐term prophylaxis regimen; the rest was under on‐demand treatment. One hundred and forty‐five patients (87%) reported at least one bleeding episode and 22 (13%) of the biologically severe patients had no bleeding phenotype. Seventy‐one per cent of the studied population presented established haemophilic arthropathy, reaching 80% if we exclude patients without bleeding phenotype. Forty‐three per cent of these patients had one or two joints affected, 28% of them had three or four affected joints, 20% reported five or six affected joints and 9% more than six injured joints. An increase in established haemophilic arthropathy with age was observed. Forty‐six patients underwent orthopaedic surgery at least once. These data show that on‐demand therapy is not effective in preventing the development of haemophilic arthropathy in severe haemophilic population with bleeding phenotype. Therefore, we suggest that the optimal treatment in these patients should be based on prophylaxis. We recommend analysing the reasons for ending prophylaxis, in case its reinstatement should be necessary.     

Pain and function in eight hundred and fifty nine patients comparing shoulder hemiprostheses, resurfacing prostheses, reversed total and conventional total prostheses

Purpose

Functional results of reversed total prostheses (RTP) have—to a very limited degree—been compared with those of other shoulder prosthesis types. The aim of our study was to compare results of four different types of shoulder prostheses in terms of function, pain, and quality of life (QoL).

Methods

Questionnaires were completed by 859 patients with shoulder prostheses registered in the Norwegian Arthroplasty Register. Patients with osteoarthritis (OA), rheumatoid arthritis (RA), or fracture sequela (FS) were included. Symptoms and function were assessed using the Oxford Shoulder Score (OSS, scale 0–48), and the EuroQoL-5D (EQ-5D) was used to assess QoL.

Results

Best functional results were obtained using conventional total prostheses (TPs) and RTPs —mean OSS improvement 18 and 16 units, respectively, vs 11 with hemiprostheses (HPs). For patients with OA, TPs performed best; for those with RA and FS, RTPs performed best; and those with HPs had the worst results in all diagnostic groups. The greatest improvement in QoL was seen in patients with TPs and RTPs.

Conclusions

Conventional TPs provide the best improvement in pain, function and QoL in OA patients; RTPs are superior in patients with RA and FS.