Medicina
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Case Reports Randomized Controlled Trial
Eccentric Exercises on the Board with 17-Degree Decline Are Equally Effective as Eccentric Exercises on the Standard 25-Degree Decline Board in the Treatment of Patellar Tendinopathy.
Background and Objectives: Patellar tendinopathy is one of the most significant problems in jumping and running athletes. Eccentric quadriceps exercise has been introduced into the therapy of patients with patellar tendinopathy in order to avoid weakening the tendon during rehabilitation. The use of decline boards with a decline angle of 25° has been the cornerstone of therapy over the last two decades. ⋯ We conclude that both treatment options provide similar short-term and midterm benefits regarding improvements in pain and clinical scores. The improvement in clinical scores does not depend on age, sex, BMI, or the professional sport of the patient. Conclusions: Our findings encourage changes in the decline angle of the board in the case of a patient's discomfort in order to achieve better compliance without affecting the recovery.
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Background and Objectives: There is increasing evidence that patients with dysphagia often have limited access to suitable oral dosage forms, especially when administered via an enteral feeding tube (FT). In addition, there is a lack of clear and readily available information from drug manufacturers on how to administer medications to patients with dysphagia. This study aimed to develop a practical guide for healthcare professionals to increase the safe and effective administration of oral medications to patients with dysphagia. ⋯ The guideline contained 343 active pharmaceutical ingredients and 19 fixed-dose combinations. Conclusions: Knowledge about proper medication preparation and administration for patients with swallowing difficulties is limited but essential. It is crucial to encourage drug manufacturers to provide this information as a standard to ensure the safe and effective use of medications for all patient groups.
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Background: Hypokalemia is associated with considerable morbidity and mortality, highlighting the timely correction of potassium levels as a critical medical consideration. However, the management of mild hypokalemia remains a subject of ongoing debate. This study explores the relationship between potassium replacement in the emergency department (ED) and hospital mortality in patients with mild hypokalemia. ⋯ After adjusting for confounding factors using propensity score analysis, there was no significant difference in hospital mortality between the potassium replacement and control groups (adjusted odds ratio 0.81, 95% CI 0.36-1.79, p = 0.60). Conclusions: This study's findings indicate that replacing potassium in the ED may not lower the risk of hospital mortality in patients with mild hypokalemia. Consequently, the customary practice of potassium replacement in hospitalized patients may lack justification, and deferring the replacement until after patients leave the ED could be considered.
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Background and Objectives: Thyroid disease has been associated with autoimmune disorders. As systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a systemic autoimmune disease with diverse manifestations spanning across all organ systems, the relationship of SLE with thyroid disorders needs investigation. In particular, the relationship of SLE with autoimmune thyroid disease has attracted the interest of the research community. ⋯ Thyroid peroxidase (TPOab) and thyroglobulin (Tgab) antibodies were detected in 20/45 and 15/45 of the SLE population and in 7/45 and 5/45 of the controls, respectively (p < 0.05, chi-square test). Conclusions: In conclusion, the incidence of clinical thyroid disease is greater amongst SLE patients than in a control population, and in a significant number of these patients, antithyroid antibodies are detectable. Thus, a subset of lupus patients appears to be predisposed to the development of thyroid disease, and this should be considered when evaluating patients with SLE.
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Background and Objectives: A potential role of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in the pathophysiology of infantile hemangiomas (IH) is thought to be plausible. The primary objective of this study was to investigate the importance of determining VEGF serum levels at various stages of IH growth in children. Materials and Methods: A nested case-control study was conducted. ⋯ The control group had significantly higher serum VEGF levels than the patient group in both the proliferation phase (p = 0.009) and the involution phase (p = 0.019). In the proliferation phase, a multivariate regression model explained 15% of the variance in the dependent variable, without significant predictor variables, while in the involution phase, it explained 21% of the variance in the dependent variable, and the history of invasive prenatal procedures stood out as a significant predictor variable positively associated with serum VEGF levels (beta coefficient = 0.33; p = 0.043). Conclusions: Although IH is thought to be the result of the dysregulation of angiogenesis and vasculogenesis under the influence of angiogenic factors, especially VEGF, this study did not demonstrate that VEGF serum levels in the proliferation phase of hemangioma growth were higher than those in the involution phase, or in relation to the control group.