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News New Therapeutic Options in Light of Current Knowledge on the Pathogenesis of Atopic Dermatitis
Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic inflammatory skin disease characterized by intense itching and recurrent eczematous lesions. AD is diagnosed in 2 out of 10 children and often persists into adulthood. In developed countries, it is the most common skin disease with a lifetime prevalence exceeding 15%. However, it is also very diverse due to a wide range of clinical phenotypes reflecting various pathophysiological mechanisms and interactions between genetics, the immune system, and the environment. So, what have we learned about atopic dermatitis from recent research, and how has this translated into advances in its treatment?
News Medium to Long-term Results of PFC Sigma Total Knee Arthroplasty
The PFC Sigma knee implant was introduced in 1997. It is the most commonly used system for total knee arthroplasty in England and Wales, accounting for 34.9% of primary implantations in 2006. Studies evaluating medium to long-term implantation outcomes have shown that it is an implant with a high survival rate, low re-implantation rate, and very good clinical results.
News What situations can arise in PBC treatment with obeticholic acid? Answers provided by case studies from real practice at CKTCH
The Hradec Gastroenterology Days 2023 were traditionally held in March at the Educational Center of the Faculty of Medicine, Charles University, in the area of University Hospital Hradec Králové. The expert program included a lecture by MUDr. Libuše Husová, Ph.D., from the Cardio-surgical and Transplant Surgery Center Brno (CKTCH), who highlighted various situations that can arise during the treatment of primary biliary cholangitis (PBC) with three case studies.
News Intravenous Thrombolysis in Ischemic Stroke Patients on Dabigatran Treatment
What are the outcomes of performing intravenous thrombolysis in patients with acute ischemic stroke after reversing the anticoagulant effect of dabigatran with idarucizumab? The answer is provided by a data analysis from real-world clinical practice in stroke centers, published by Czech authors.
News Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on People with Schizophrenia Spectrum Disorders
The COVID-19 pandemic has a far-reaching impact on the physical and mental health of the global population. The current situation poses an undue burden on patients suffering from schizophrenia as well as other psychiatric disorders. According to recent studies, individuals with schizophrenia spectrum disorders have higher mortality rates and worsening disease progression or overall quality of life.
News Prenatal Phenotype of Children with Noonan Syndrome
Until recently, the various phenotypes of RASopathies were clinically diagnosed only after birth. However, we are now striving for the earliest possible diagnosis, sometimes even prenatally. Ultrasound examination of the fetus during screening tests, focusing on certain characteristic morphological changes, plays a crucial role in this. In the case of pathological findings on imaging methods, molecular genetic testing and monitoring of pregnancy in specialized centers are indicated.
News Efficacy and Safety of Ultrahypofractionated Proton Therapy in the Treatment of Prostate Cancer in Real-World Czech Practice
A team from the Prague Proton Therapy Center, led by Associate Professor Jiří Kubeš, published a study with nearly 300 patients in the prestigious International Journal of Radiation Oncology, Biology, Physics. It demonstrates the significant efficacy and low toxicity of the ultrahypofractionated proton therapy regimen in patients with prostate cancer. We summarize the main results.
News Dynamics of Allergy Development in Children
The prevalence of allergic diseases in children in developed countries has been steadily increasing in recent decades. Slovak authors attempted to describe the dynamics of the development of allergic symptoms in a prospective cohort of children who developed atopic dermatitis, rhinoconjunctivitis, wheezing, urticaria, or food allergy within the first 5 years of life.
News From Hell to the Light at the End of the Tunnel – A Task for Eletriptan
In recent months, under the spotlight of new biological treatments, the focus has been predominantly on the prophylactic treatment of migraines. However, we should not forget about acute therapy. In this indication, the pharmacological group of triptans is dominant. So, does eletriptan reliably stop the hell named a migraine attack? And is the response to this drug consistent?
News FLEX – A New Predictive Model for Assessing Follicular Lymphoma Risks
Overall survival of patients with advanced-stage follicular lymphoma (FL) who experience early disease progression after chemotherapy remains low. Currently used clinical prognostic models do not provide optimal sensitivity and specificity for identifying this patient subgroup. The presented study by an international team of authors introduced a new assessment index that achieves better outcomes.
News What Can We Expect from Sorafenib in the Treatment of Liver Cancer Affected by Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease?
Ubiquitous and increasingly common obesity is a risk factor for many cancers. Over the past 20 years, studies have linked obesity to higher incidences of breast and colorectal cancers, as well as hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) associated with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). What is the efficacy and safety of sorafenib in this patient population, and does it differ from patients with liver cancers caused by viral infection or alcohol abuse? This intrigued a team of researchers from Melbourne, Australia.
News Traveling with MS – Is Vaccination a Limitation?
What about the need for vaccination when traveling abroad? Which vaccines should you be cautious about? And how to time vaccination concerning disease activity and the individual medications used in multiple sclerosis (MS) therapy?
News Expanded Hemodialysis as an Alternative to Hemodiafiltration
Expanded hemodialysis is a new type of therapy that effectively removes middle molecules from the blood of dialysis patients. The aim of the Spanish authors was to compare its efficiency with hemodiafiltration in terms of clearance of middle molecules in an open randomized clinical study.
News Spectrum of Mechanisms of Action of Fenfluramine in the Treatment of Rare Epilepsies
Fenfluramine (FFA) is an anticonvulsant used in the treatment of rare epilepsies such as Dravet syndrome and Lennox-Gastaut syndrome. In addition to effectively reducing seizure frequency, it also mitigates non-seizure comorbidities in patients with these conditions. Last year, Belgian authors published a detailed review of all its described mechanisms of action. They also explain how these mechanisms might contribute to the clinical benefits of FFA beyond seizure suppression, such as reducing the risk of sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP) or improving executive functions.
News Trazodone with Extended Release Improves Patient Compliance
Since 2015, the antidepressant trazodone is available in the Czech Republic in a controlled-release formulation. A sufficiently high plasma level for 24 hours without fluctuation allows for administration only once a day, while eliminating side effects.
News Biosimilar Drugs in Oncology
8 of the 10 most expensive drugs on the market are used in the treatment of cancer. Rising healthcare costs in recent decades have created a need to find strategies to limit these costs. Biosimilar preparations have the potential to partially replace existing original biological drugs and reduce the cost of cancer treatment. We therefore briefly summarize the basic information on the issue of biosimilars in terms of their benefits, safety, and interchangeability.
News Potential of Aloe to Reduce Severity of Symptoms in Patients with IBS − What Emerged from the Analysis of Fecal Microflora and Metabolite Profiles?
Current treatment options for irritable bowel syndrome (IBS − irritable bowel syndrome) are relatively limited. This increases interest in complementary and alternative therapy options with plant preparations. One modality used to alleviate IBS symptoms is Aloe barbadensis Mill. The aim of a clinical study by Swedish researchers was to assess the effect of aloe on IBS symptoms compared to a control treatment with inulin.
News Role of Chemoimmunotherapy in the Era of Rapid Development of CLL Treatment Strategies and Emergence of New Drugs
In the context of the significant advancements in the field of immunotherapy and evidence of its efficacy in the treatment of chronic lymphocytic leukemia, it is pertinent to ask how this will influence therapeutic strategies in the context of first-line treatment and what the role of chemoimmunotherapy will be in the algorithms for CLL. At the 2019 NCCN Annual Congress, a panel of experts, led by Professors William G. Wierda from Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and Jennifer R. Brown from Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, debated this topic.
News What did the first data from the pilot lung cancer screening show?
Czech pulmonologists have released the first interim results of this year's pilot testing of heavy smokers due to the risk of lung cancer. More than 4,000 patients passed through the hands of general practitioners, and 900 subsequently underwent low-dose CT examination. What other specific findings emerge from the data collection? And what challenges do the experts involved in this program face?
News Can Ketogenic Diet or Intermittent Fasting Help Patients with DM2 in Controlling Weight and Glycemia?
The foundation of managing type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM2) typically involves lifestyle adjustments, including dietary changes. Can intermittent fasting (IF) or the ketogenic diet (KD), popular dietary trends, help diabetics with weight loss and reduction of glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) levels? The answer was sought by authors of a systematic review and meta-analysis comparing IF or KD with other dietary regimes.
News Chemoimmunotherapy in the Treatment of Breast Cancer − Final Results of the IMpassion130 Study
According to international recommendations, treatment with the immune checkpoint inhibitor atezolizumab in combination with the cytostatic nab-paclitaxel is used for patients with locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer where PD-L1 protein expression is detected on the surface of tumor-infiltrating immune cells (IC). The final results regarding overall survival and long-term safety of this treatment in patients who participated in the registration study IMpassion130 were presented at this year's European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) congress, which was held virtually due to circumstances.
News Prediction of Cancer Aggressiveness: Prostate Health Index (PHI) as a Promising Future Marker
The Prostate Health Index (PHI) is a diagnostic blood test that combines the levels of prostate-specific antigen (PSA), free PSA (fPSA), and the isoform [-2]proPSA (p2PSA). Its use in prostate cancer diagnostics can reduce the number of unnecessary prostate biopsies compared to determining PSA alone. A recently published Czech study assessed the utility of PHI in evaluating the aggressiveness of prostate cancer. The study compared PHI values with the results of preoperative biopsy and postoperative prostate histology in men indicated for radical prostatectomy.
News Subclinical Hypothyroidism Associated with the Use of Allopurinol? What the Results of a Large Multicenter Study Suggested
Allopurinol is a widely used drug for the treatment of hyperuricemia and gout. The retrospective study presented below investigated whether its long-term use is associated with an increased risk of developing subclinical hypothyroidism.