BMC research notes
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Knowledge of undisclosed corporate authorship ("ghostwriting") reduces the perceived credibility of antidepressant research: a randomized vignette study with experienced nurses.
There is much concern regarding undisclosed corporate authorship ("ghostwriting") in the peer-reviewed medical literature. However, there are no studies of how disclosure of ghostwriting alone impacts the perceived credibility of research results. ⋯ In this study, disclosure of ghostwriting resulted in lower perceived credibility ratings.
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Clinical Trial
Clonidine in the treatment of adolescent chronic fatigue syndrome: a pilot study for the NorCAPITAL trial.
This pilot study (ClinicalTrials.gov ID: NCT01507701) assessed the feasibility and safety of clonidine in adolescent chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS). Specifically, we assessed clonidine dosage in relation to a) plasma concentration levels, b) orthostatic cardiovascular responses, and c) possible adverse effects. ⋯ Clonidine 50 μg BID seems to be safe enough to proceed from a pilot study to a controlled trial in a select group of adolescents with CFS (ClinicalTrials.gov ID: NCT01040429).
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The high prevalence of pain reported in many epidemiological studies, and the degree to which this prevalence reflects severe pain is under discussion in the literature. The aim of the present study was to evaluate use of the simple neck pain questions commonly included in large epidemiological survey studies with respect to aspects of health. We investigated if and how an increase in number of days with pain is associated with reduction in health outcomes. ⋯ This study of young university students has demonstrated that simple neck pain survey questions capture features of pain that affect aspects of health such as perceived general health, sleep disturbance, mood in terms of stress and energy. Simple pain questions are more useful for group descriptions than for describing or following pain in an individual.
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In adult population with community acquired pneumonia high levels of pro-adrenomedullin (pro-ADM) have been shown to be predictors of worse prognosis. The role of this biomarker in pediatric patients had not been analyzed to date. The objective of this study is to know the levels of pro-ADM in children with community acquired pneumonia (CAP) and analyze the relation between these levels and the patients' prognosis. ⋯ In our sample of patients admitted to hospital with CAP, pro-ADM levels are related to the development of complications during hospitalization.
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Mitochondrial morphology is maintained by two distinct membrane events -fission and fusion. Altering these conserved processes can disrupt mitochondrial morphology and distribution, thereby disrupting the organelle's functionality and impeding cellular function. In higher eukaryotes, these processes are mediated by a family of dynamin-related proteins (DRP's). In the lower eukaryotes, for instance Dictyostelium discoideum, mitochondrial fission and fusion have been implicated but not yet established. To understand the overall mechanism of these dynamics across organisms, we developed an assay to identify fission and fusion events in Dictyostelium and to assess the involvement of the mitochondrial proteins, MidA, CluA, and two DRP's, DymA and DymB. ⋯ We have successfully demonstrated that Dictyostelium mitochondria undergo the dynamic processes of fission and fusion. The classical mediators of membrane dynamics - the DRP's - are not necessary for these dynamics, whereas CluA is necessary for both processes. This work contributes to our overall understanding of mitochondrial dynamics and ultimately will provide additional insight into mitochondrial disease.