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News Noonan's Syndrome – History and Present
The genetically determined syndrome linking congenital heart defect with a typical facial phenotype is named after Jacqueline Noonan, a pediatric cardiologist who practiced in the second half of the 20th century. She was the first to recognize and describe it. In the following text, we will briefly introduce it and discuss the circumstances of its discovery.
News Comparison of Clinical Outcomes of TKA Implantation: ATTUNE vs. SIGMA
The ATTUNE total knee arthroplasty (TKA) system was introduced to the market in 2013 as a successor to the popular SIGMA system. The new type of knee endoprosthesis is designed to provide better stability and mobility than the previous implant. Several studies have evaluated the clinical outcomes of the implantation of both types of endoprostheses.
News Benefits of Combining Olopatadine and Mometasone in the Treatment of Allergic Rhinitis
Ryaltris is indicated for adults and adolescents aged 12 years and older for the treatment of moderate to severe nasal symptoms associated with allergic rhinitis (AR). The active ingredient of the preparation is a fixed combination of locally acting antihistamine olopatadine hydrochloride and corticosteroid mometasone furoate. Its efficacy and safety have been confirmed by numerous clinical studies, compared to placebo, as well as other drugs used in the treatment of AR.
News Cenobamate − A Case Study from Slovak Real Practice
Cenobamate is indicated for adjunctive therapy of focal seizures with or without secondary generalization in adult patients who have not achieved sufficient results with previous treatment with at least 2 antiepileptics. This new anti-seizure medication with a dual mechanism of action thus brings another therapeutic option for patients refractory to treatment. At the November 34th Slovak-Czech Epileptology Congress in Bratislava, during a symposium titled “Is there hope for a quality life with epilepsy?” doc. MUDr. Eva Feketeová, PhD., from the Neurological Clinic LF UPJŠ and UNLP in Košice shared her first experiences with cenobamate in clinical practice.
News Odor in Incontinence is a Common Concern of Patients
Urinary incontinence represents a significant stigma, which usually deprives the affected person of all social contact, work and leisure activities, as well as intimate life. According to statistics, fears of odor contribute significantly to this isolation, almost in 40% of cases.
News Effect of Short-Term and Long-Term Stress on Heart Rate Variability
Acute and chronic stress significantly affects the cardiovascular (CV) system. The study presented below examines the effects of both acute and chronic stress on heart rate variability in 50 healthy individuals.
News Interstitial Lung Processes and Their Fibrotic Progression
Interstitial lung processes (ILPs) include more than 200 clinical units that share diffuse involvement of lung tissue and thus have similar clinical, radiological, and functional findings. However, their broad differential diagnosis is particularly problematic.
News When and why to consider the diagnosis of myasthenia gravis in neurological practice, and what treatment options do we currently have?
Myasthenia gravis (MG) is a clinically heterogeneous disease characterized by fluctuating muscle weakness and fatigability that worsens after physical exertion or mental stress. Accurate diagnosis is essential because treatment can lead to permanent remission and full functional capacity of the patient.
News CYP Enzyme? Cytochrome P450 2D6 and Drug Metabolism
The CYP2D6 isoenzyme of cytochrome P450 participates in the metabolism of approximately 20% of commonly used drugs. Genetic variants of this enzyme are very common, leading to significant inter-individual variability in drug metabolism rates. Let’s take a closer look at one of the reasons why the same drug may work very well in one patient, not at all in another, and may cause serious side effects in a third.
News Levothyroxine and the Interchangeability of Preparations Containing It
Levothyroxine is a synthetic thyroid hormone used to treat patients with hypothyroidism, which affects approximately 1-2% of the younger population and increases with age, especially in women. Levothyroxine is a drug with a narrow therapeutic window, and its bioavailability is influenced by many factors, including consumed foods, medications, and beverages.
News Successful Resection of a Rectosigmoid Tumor After Long-term Induction Biochemotherapy – A Case Report
Neoadjuvant treatment (chemoradiotherapy) for colorectal cancer is regularly used in advanced rectal tumors, with the goal of reducing the tumor size for the surgeon and ensuring the best possible radical outcome for the patient. In metastatic tumors of the remaining parts of the digestive tract, we talk more about induction treatment, which uses a combination of targeted therapy and chemotherapy for the same purpose – reducing the extent of the tumor disease and possibly enabling surgery including radical removal of metastatic foci. The duration of this treatment is usually up to 6 months followed by surgery (surgeries). The following case report describes a successful surgical solution in a patient with an advanced sigmoid tumor even after more than 3 years of combination chemotherapy and targeted therapy.
News Through Obstacles to the Stars – Path to Developing a Healthy Gut Microbiota in Children: What Blocks It and What Helps?
The gut microbiota is acquired by an individual during the first 2 years of life. The main source is the mother’s microbiota. Obstacles to the formation of an adequate microbiota include inappropriate composition of the mother’s microbiota, absence of vaginal birth and breastfeeding, as well as artificial feeding and antibiotic treatment in the child. We provide a summary of current findings on the adverse effects of planned cesarean sections on the child’s microbiome, as recently published in Critical Reviews in Microbiology.
News Options for Systemic Therapy of Advanced Stage Small Cell Lung Cancer
Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) is the most aggressive type of lung tumor. Although it responds well to chemotherapy and radiotherapy, due to the early onset of treatment resistance, the 5-year survival rate is less than 10%. After more than 30 years of very limited progress in treating advanced SCLC patients, immune checkpoint inhibitors (checkpoints) have been introduced to the market, significantly prolonging survival. What are the current recommendations for treating patients with advanced SCLC?
News Anabolic Antiosteoporotic Treatment as a First Step in Patients with Very High Fracture Risk
According to the 2022 opinion of the ESCEO (European Society for Clinical and Economic Aspects of Osteoporosis, Osteoarthritis and Musculoskeletal Diseases) working group, it is advisable to identify patients with osteoporosis who have a very high risk of fracture and to use an anabolic antiosteoporotic drug as the initial pharmacotherapeutic intervention, followed by necessary antiresorptive treatment to be addressed over the entire expected length of life.
News Artificial Intelligence Helps in Selecting Influenza Strains for Vaccine Production
Vaccination is one of the most important and effective preventive measures in the fight against seasonal epidemics caused by influenza viruses each year. For vaccines to work, they must match the currently circulating influenza strains. The timely selection of appropriate influenza strains, which will be the most widespread in the population in the upcoming period, and their yield are crucial for vaccine development. The new MAIVeSS (Machine-learning Assisted Influenza Vaccine Strain Selection) method, which uses artificial intelligence and machine learning algorithms for direct analysis of clinical samples, could help with this process.
News Distribution and Localization of Specifically Modified Exosomes Can Improve the Treatment of Muscular Dystrophies
A research team from several Milanese universities, in a study published in Nature Nanotechnology, focused on developing a new method for muscular dystrophy therapy. Specifically modified exosomes were enriched with the protein annexin A1 and delivered into dystrophic muscle cells using ferromagnetic nanotubes guided by an external magnetic field. This triggered healing processes in damaged cells and tissues in a mouse model.
News Effectiveness of Bisoprolol in Patients with Cardiac Arrhythmias – A Systematic Review of Studies
Last year, a Franco-Romanian team published a study that conducted a systematic review of existing evidence on bisoprolol in the context of arrhythmia treatment. The authors noted that bisoprolol, like other beta-blockers (BB), is used for a variety of cardiovascular diseases, but it is not mentioned in the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) guidelines for managing patients with ventricular arrhythmias and preventing sudden cardiac death.
News The Brain, Too, Has Its Midlife Crisis. How Do These Changes Relate to the Risk of Dementia in Old Age?
The human brain undergoes rapid changes during certain developmental periods. Childhood, adolescence, and advanced old age undoubtedly belong to these. For much of adulthood, it seems that nothing much actually happens. However, it turns out that the brain’s clock begins to accelerate around 40–50 years of age. What impact do these gradual changes have on our future health?
News Tiapride versus Haloperidol in the Therapy of Aggressiveness and Agitation in Elderly Patients with Cognitive Impairment
Acute restlessness, agitation, and aggression can be associated with psychiatric disorders but also be manifestations of somatic illnesses. Psychomotor agitation combined with disorientation is typical, for example, in older individuals with cognitive impairments. The primary goal of therapy is to calm the patient, most often using antipsychotics. The clinical study presented below compared the efficacy and safety of the antipsychotics haloperidol and tiapride versus placebo in patients with acute agitation and aggression who were diagnosed with mild to moderate cognitive impairment.