Isr Med Assoc J
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
The familial Mediterranean fever (FMF) 50 score: does it work in a controlled clinical trial? Re-analysis of the trial of rilonacept for patients with colchicine-resistant or intolerant FMF.
The familial Mediterranean fever 50 score (FMF50) score was recently devised to define response to treatment and as an outcome measure for clinical trials of FMF. ⋯ The proposed FMF50 score did not differentiate well between responders and non-responders compared to the a priori defined primary outcome measure in this successful controlled study.
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Scleroderma lung disease (ILD-SSc) is treated mainly with cyclophosphamide (CYC). The effectiveness of CYC was judged after 12-24 months in most reports. ⋯ In patients with ILD-SSc, CYC stabilized the reduction of FVC during treatment, but this effect was not persistent. The vascular characteristic of ILD-SSc (DLCO) was not affected by CYC treatment. CYC rapidly improved the mRSS. This effect could be achieved with at least 6 G of CYC. Higher rates of annual reduction in FVC and DLCO in the first 4 years indicate the narrow window of opportunity and raise the question regarding ongoing immunosuppression following CYC infusions.
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Observational Study
Clinical characteristics and survival of patients with diabetes mellitus following non-traumatic lower extremity amputation.
Diabetes mellitus-related lower extremity amputation is a major complication severely affecting patient survival and quality of life. ⋯ In this population-based study the incidence rate of non-traumatic amputations in diabetes patients between January 2002 and December 2009 decreased slightly. However, one year mortality rates after the surgery did not decline and remained high, stressing the need for a multidisciplinary effort to prevent amputations in diabetes patients.