Acta Clin Belg
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We evaluated azacitidine (Vidaza(®)) safety and efficacy in patients with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), acute myeloid leukaemia (AML), and chronic myelomonocytic leukaemia (CMML), in a real-life setting. Treatment response, dose, and schedule were assessed. ⋯ Our data support previous findings that azacitidine has a clinically acceptable safety profile and shows efficacy.
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Critical illness represents a major challenge for the human body, implicating that an adequate stress response is indispensable for survival. Therefore, for a long time, activation of the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal axis was assumed to be increased to respond to this stressful situation. Recent novel insights, however, provided evidence that the HPA-axis is regulated differently during critical illness. ⋯ Yet, the concomitant low ACTH levels, explained by negative feedback inhibition, could lead to an understimulation of the adrenal gland and affect adrenal structure and function, given the crucial role of ACTH for adrenal gland maintenance. This side-effect could negatively affect outcome predominantly in the prolonged phase of critical illness and could explain the increased incidence of adrenal failure in these patients. Altogether, novel findings represent a paradigm shift in our current understanding of HPA-axis regulation during critical illness and redirect future research perspectives with an urgent need to well-designed clinical trials to further explore HPA-axis functioning during critical illness.
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The D-dimer level, fibrinogen level, and D-dimer/fibrinogen ratio are used in the diagnosis of pulmonary embolism, but results vary. We evaluated these parameters in the diagnosis of pulmonary embolism in emergency clinic patients. ⋯ A D-dimer level <0·35 μg/ml may exclude the diagnosis of pulmonary embolism. At a D-dimer cutoff 0·5 μg/ml and D-dimer/fibrinogen ratio cutoff 1·0, the D-dimer/fibrinogen ratio may have better specificity than D-dimer level in the diagnosis of pulmonary embolism, but the D-dimer/fibrinogen ratio may lack sufficient specificity in screening.
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Case Reports
Friable coronary arteries are link between pathogenesis and treatment of spontaneous coronary artery dissection.
Spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD) is increasingly being diagnosed as the cause of an acute coronary syndrome, especially in young patients. We report the case of a 32-year-old woman with postpartum SCAD of the left main and left anterior descending coronary artery which required the implantation of two drug-eluting stents. We present a literature study that correlates the pathogenesis of SCAD to the treatment options. ⋯ The coronary arteries of these SCAD patients are friable and should be approached with caution. Percutaneous coronary intervention has a reported success rate of only 65% and may cause propagation of the dissection. Lately, more and more authors suggest the possibility of a conservative approach in the absence of remaining cardiac ischaemia, even in this era of percutaneous stent implantation.