Mayo Clinic proceedings
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Mayo Clinic proceedings · Feb 2008
ReviewTrastuzumab-induced cardiotoxicity: heart failure at the crossroads.
Trastuzumab, a drug targeting human epidermal growth factor receptor 2, improves survival rate in women with metastatic breast cancer. Symptomatic heart failure, a serious adverse effect of trastuzumab, occurs in 1% to 4% of patients treated with the antibody, whereas left ventricular ejection fraction declines substantially in 10% of patients. ⋯ Serial assessment of left ventricular function with 2-dimensional echocardiography or radionuclide ventriculography is the most practical means of monitoring cardiotoxicity. Patients who develop cardiotoxicity while receiving trastuzumab therapy generally improve once use of the agent is discontinued.
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Mayo Clinic proceedings · Feb 2008
Risk factors for venous thromboembolism in nursing home residents.
To determine risk factors for venous thromboembolism (VTE) among nursing home (NH) residents. ⋯ Administrative data from NHs reveal important VTE risk factors not routinely documented in hospital or ambulatory records. However, ascertainment of VTE from NH administrative data appears biased toward surviving cases, highlighting concerns about using such data to assess provider quality and pointing to the need for studies that track individuals through multiple data sources across institutional settings.