Postgraduate medical journal
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Review Meta Analysis
Aprepitant for postoperative nausea and vomiting: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) is an important clinical problem. Aprepitant is a relatively new agent for this condition which may be superior to other treatment. A systematic review was performed after searching a number of medical databases for controlled trials comparing aprepitant with conventional antiemetics published up to 25 April 2015 using the following keywords: 'Aprepitant for PONV', 'Aprepitant versus 5-HT3 antagonists' and 'NK-1 versus 5-HT3 for PONV'. ⋯ Efficacy for vomiting prevention was demonstrated for 40 mg, 80 mg and 125 mg without major adverse effects. For vomiting comparison there was significant unexplainable heterogeneity (67.9% and 71.5% for POD1 and POD2, respectively). We conclude that (1) aprepitant reduces the incidence of vomiting on both POD1 and POD2, but there is an unexplained heterogeneity which lowers the strength of the evidence; (2) complete freedom from PONV on POD1 is highest for aprepitant with minimum need for rescue; and (3) oral aprepitant (80 mg) provides an effective and safe sustained antivomiting effect.
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Review Historical Article
Pathophysiology of type 1 and type 2 diabetes mellitus: a 90-year perspective.
Diabetes mellitus is a complex metabolic disorder associated with an increased risk of microvascular and macrovascular disease; its main clinical characteristic is hyperglycaemia. The last century has been characterised by remarkable advances in our understanding of the mechanisms leading to hyperglycaemia. The central role of insulin in glucose metabolism regulation was clearly demonstrated during the early 1920s, when Banting, Best, Collip and Macleod successfully reduced blood glucose levels and glycosuria in a patient treated with a substance purified from bovine pancreata. ⋯ Furthermore, a central role for insulin resistance in the development of a cluster of cardiometabolic alterations (dyslipidaemia, inflammation, high blood pressure) was suggested. Possibly as a consequence of the secular changes in diabetes risk factors, in the last 10 years the limitation of a simple distinction between 'type I' and 'type II' diabetes has been increasingly recognised, with subjects showing the coexistence of insulin resistance and immune activation against β-cells. With the advancement of our cellular and molecular understanding of diabetes, a more pathophysiological classification that overcomes the historical and simple 'glucocentric' view could result in a better patient phenotyping and therapeutic approach.
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Traumatic brain injury (TBI) constitutes injury that occurs to the brain as a result of trauma. It should be appreciated as a heterogeneous, dynamic pathophysiological process that starts from the moment of impact and continues over time with sequelae potentially seen many years after the initial event. Primary traumatic brain lesions that may occur at the moment of impact include contusions, haematomas, parenchymal fractures and diffuse axonal injury. ⋯ Various global collaborative research groups have been established in an effort to combine imaging data with clinical and epidemiological information to provide much needed evidence for improvement in the characterisation and classification of TBI and in the identity of the most effective clinical care for this patient cohort. However, analysis of collaborative imaging data is challenging: the diverse spectrum of image acquisition and postprocessing limits reproducibility, and there is a requirement for a robust quality assurance initiative. Future clinical use of advanced neuroimaging should ensure standardised approaches to image acquisition and analysis, which can be used at the individual level, with the expectation that future neuroimaging advances, personalised to the patient, may improve prognostic accuracy and facilitate the development of new therapies.
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Although survival has improved significantly in recent years, prematurity remains a major cause of infant and childhood mortality and morbidity. Preterm births (<37 weeks of gestation) account for 8% of live births representing >50,000 live births each year in the UK. Preterm birth, irrespective of whether babies require neonatal intensive care, is associated with increased respiratory symptoms, partially reversible airflow obstruction and abnormal thoracic imaging in childhood and in young adulthood compared with those born at term. ⋯ They are often labelled as asthmatic although the underlying mechanisms are likely to be very different. Smoking cessation, maintaining physical fitness, annual influenza immunisation and a general healthy lifestyle should be endorsed irrespective of any symptoms. There are a number of clinical and research priorities to maximise the quality of life and lung health in the longer term not least understanding the underlying mechanisms and optimising treatment, rather than extrapolating from other airway diseases.
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Multicenter Study
Clinical and diagnostic findings in patients with elevated cerebrospinal bilirubin.
Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) spectroscopy can identify subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH) when CT is negative in patients presenting with acute severe headache. The primary objective of this study was to evaluate the clinical use and usefulness of CSF spectrophotometry. Secondary objectives were to identify other causes of elevated CSF bilirubin, to analyse headache descriptions and to compare clinical features in patients with an elevated CSF bilirubin among those with and without an intracranial vascular cause of SAH (avSAH). ⋯ CSF bilirubin measurement has an important role in identifying avSAH in CT-negative patients presenting with a thunderclap headache. Better clinical selection of patients is required as CSF spectrophotometry, although sensitive, is not specific for SAH.