Deutsche medizinische Wochenschrift
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Cardiac biomarkers are an integral, guideline-recommended part of the diagnosis and follow-up of heart diseases. High sensitivity tests for troponin I or T allow for the early diagnosis of myocardial infarction. Rule-in and rule-out algorithms based on the dynamic of plasma concentrations in the first hour after admission improve safe, evidence-based decision making for patients with acute chest pain. ⋯ Whether and how this risk can be reduced requires further evaluation. Several novel biomarkers were recently discovered and characterised. Their place in cardiovascular medicine has yet to be defined.
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Dtsch. Med. Wochenschr. · May 2023
[Biomarkers in acute kidney injury - the search for the "renal troponin"].
The prognosis of acute kidney injury (AKI) is poor, partly due to significant limitations of the current functional marker-based definition, which results in too small therapeutic window to treat AKI. Therefore, AKI biomarkers are needed to detect AKI earlier. Classical filtration markers are serum creatinine and cystatin C, which, however, show clear limitations for AKI prediction. ⋯ The latter indicate a pre-injury phase with increased AKI risk. The one "renal troponin" will probably never be found because of heterogeneous renal structure and heterogeneous causes of AKI. However, AI-based models with inclusion of biomarkers could significantly improve AKI prediction and prognosis.
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In the palliative phase of disease, patients often suffer from a variety of distressing symptoms. Often, treatment is difficult because several problems exist at the same time and the necessary medications can cause side effects that require treatment. This article addresses important symptoms - other than pain - and provides treatment recommendations based on current literature.
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Many epidemiological studies found low plasma levels of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol (HDL-C) associated with an increased risk of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD). In cell culture and animal models, HDL particles show many anti-atherogenic actions. However, until now, clinical trials did not find any prevention of ASCVD events by drugs elevating HDL-C levels, at least not beyond statins. ⋯ Third, the vascular functions of HDL are not exerted by its cholesterol content (i.e. HDL-C), but by a variety of other molecules. Comprehensive knowledge of the structure-function-disease relationships of HDL particles and their molecules is a prerequisite for testing their physiological and pathogenic relevance and possibly for optimizing the diagnosis and treatment of persons with HDL-associated risk of ASCVD, but also for other diseases, such as diabetes, chronic kidney disease, infections, autoimmune and neurodegenerative diseases.