Med Klin
-
Nephropathy is one of the most important side effects of radiocontrast in patients with impaired renal function. Incidence is reported from 20% to 100% depending on underlying disease. For prevention of radiocontrast nephropathy a large number of substances were investigated in experimental and clinical studies. ⋯ In summary of these studies hydration is the most relevant and significant measure for prevention of radiocontrast nephropathy in patients at risk (i.e. serum creatinine > 1.5 mg/dl). 1 ml/kg body weight/h with 0.45% NaCl 12 h before and after administration of radiocontrast should be supplied. Hemodialysis is recommended if impaired renal function (serum creatinine > 3.5 mg/dl) is accompanied by additional risk factors, e.g. diabetes mellitus. The impact of dialysis therapy is not clarified by clinical studies.
-
Review Comparative Study
[Economic aspects of drug therapy exemplified by pravastatin. A socioeconomic analysis of cholesterol synthase enzyme inhibition in coronary heart disease patients].
Decision makers in the field of health services are increasingly forced to identify and realise the grounds for spendings and savings. Therefore, preventive measures of cardiovascular diseases are becoming more and more scrutinized. The present analysis is answering the question: Is secondary preventive lipid-lowering therapy with a cholesterol-synthesis-enzyme-(CSE-)inhibitor in patients with manifest coronary heart disease cost-effective in comparison to other already proven medical interventions? ⋯ The preventive use of pravastatin in patients with coronary heart disease can be estimated as cost-effective as compared with other medical interventions.
-
Despite ongoing intensive research using sophisticated new molecular tools and methods, the pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is still not completely understood. ⋯ Insights in the pathogenesis of RA provide options to develop new therapeutic strategies aimed at the inhibition of pathogenetic relevant processes.
-
Our investigation examined the influence of regular physical activity and sudden extrenious situations on the incidence of sudden cardiac death (scd) in two different Berlin districts with a total population of 219,251 in the examined age-groups. ⋯ The results show that the risk of scd for all persons regardless of their levels of regular physical activity and their preillness status is higher during strenuous activity than during inactivity. The increase of the risk for scd during activity is the highest for persons with sedentary lifestyles, whereas the risk increase for persons with active lifestyles is minimal. The protective effect of regular physical activity for scd by far exceeds the risk increase of the actual strenuous situation.