Internal medicine journal
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It is unclear what the risk of allergic reactions is with appropriately given dilute i.v. redback spider antivenom (RBSAV). Ninety-five i.v. administrations of RBSAV referred from January 2001 to November 2006 were reviewed. ⋯ In 32 patients followed up for 2 weeks, three (10%) developed serum sickness. RBSAV given i.v. had a low reaction rate.
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Internal medicine journal · Dec 2007
Delirium in elderly general medical inpatients: a prospective study.
More than 49% of all US hospital days are spent caring for patients with delirium. There are few Australian data on this important condition. The aim of the study was to determine the prevalence and incidence of delirium in older medical inpatients in a metropolitan teaching hospital, the incidence of known risk factors and current practice in identifying and managing patients at risk of this condition. ⋯ Pre-existing cognitive impairment and admission AMTS are strong predictors of delirium. Despite this, formal cognitive assessment is not routinely carried out in elderly medical patients. Recognition of delirium may be improved by routine cognitive assessment in elderly medical patients.
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Internal medicine journal · Dec 2007
Patterns of analgesic and anti-inflammatory medicine use by Australian veterans.
We examined analgesic and anti-inflammatory medicine use by Australian veterans before and after the introduction of selective Cox-2 inhibitors. ⋯ This study shows very high levels of Cox-2 inhibitor use during the 6-year period. Cox-2-selective agents were more likely to be taken continuously and at higher doses than non-selective NSAIDs. This is relevant in view of the cardiovascular toxicity of this group of medicines. The study shows the value of using unit record dispensing data to assess drug use patterns. Linking dispensing records to hospital separation and mortality data will further enhance our ability to monitor drug safety.