J Formos Med Assoc
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To investigate the clinical presentation and survival outcomes of patients with both a high prostate-specific antigen (PSA) value and non-metastatic prostate cancer (PC). ⋯ Patients with a high PSA value were not destined to have metastatic PC. Non-metastatic PC patients with a high PSA level obtained a survival benefit from local prostate-definitive treatments.
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Major trauma has been one of the leading causes of morbidity, mortality, and functional disability, resulting in substantial societal burden. The aim of this study was to estimate the trends in burden of adult major trauma in Taiwan during 2003-2015. ⋯ There is a consistently increasing trend in incidence and mortality of major trauma in Taiwan, especially among elderly people. For Taiwan, an aged society beginning since 2018, the challenge should be tackled more effectively in the coming decades.
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Telemedicine helps to provide the safe management of stroke patients in the emergency department (ED) and has been used worldwide. However, we had limited experience of telestroke in Taiwan. We aimed to identify the quality of telestroke and compare it with the original face-to-face consultation model. ⋯ In the ED, consultation via the telestroke program provides equal quality to the original face-to-face consultation model to manage ischemic stroke.
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Donepezil was approved for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease (AD) but causes variable therapeutic responses. Thus, identifying specific genetic polymorphisms, which can predict a therapeutic response to donepezil, would enable a development of personalized strategy to treatment for patients with AD. The research aimed to exam the impact of the cytochrome P450 2D6 (CYP2D6) single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) rs1080985 on the concentration of and therapeutic response to donepezil in AD. ⋯ The CYP2D6 SNP rs1080985 might be a useful pharmacogenetic marker of the long-term therapeutic response to donepezil in patients with AD.
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The frontier of onco-nephrology, particularly renal complications of cancer and treatment, remains unexplored. We revisit the fundamental tool of diagnosing kidney disease, renal biopsy, in cancer patients with renal manifestation. ⋯ Renal biopsy may improve diagnostic accuracy and assist in treatment guidance of cancer patients with renal manifestation. Renal biopsy should be encouraged with clinical indication. Collaboration between oncologists and nephrologists is of paramount importance to provide more comprehensive care for caner patients.