Internal and emergency medicine
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Oral anticoagulants (OA) are effective drugs for treating and preventing the formation of blood clots in patients with atrial fibrillation, mechanical heart valves and venous thromboembolism but their therapeutic effect is always counterbalanced by an increased risk of bleeding. Direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) have brought advantages in the management of many patients, with evidence of a lower risk of intracranial bleeding in comparison to vitamin K antagonists (VKAs). However, due to the increased number of anticoagulated patients worldwide, major and life threatening OA-related bleeding is also increasing, and effective reversal strategies are needed. ⋯ There is an urgent need for well-designed studies in this field. In the meanwhile, to improve the correct use of available resources and patients' outcomes, we suggest a seven-element bundle for an optimal management of OA-associated major bleeding, including the implementation of fast turnaround time for laboratory tests in emergency, i.e. INR and DOAC plasma levels, and to build up a 'bleeding team' that includes experts of hemostasis, lab, trauma, emergency medicine, endoscopy, radiology, and surgery in every hospital.
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The primary study objective is to compare the outcomes of patients taking oral anticoagulant medications in two distinct populations treated according to different management models (comprehensive vs. usual care). (Design: regional prospective cohort study; setting: hospital admission data from two regions). Eligible partecipants were patients taking oral anticoagulant drugs (vitamin K antagonist or direct oral anticoagulants), residents in the Vicenza and Cremona districts from February 1st, 2016 to June 30th, 2017. Patients were identified by accessing the administrative databases of patient drug prescriptions. ⋯ Across the two cohorts, the risk of bleeding was lower in patients being treated with DOACs rather than warfarin (10/4574 vs. 42/8161 event/person-years, respectively, IRR 0.42 95% CI 0.19-0.86). We conclude that a comprehensive management model providing centralized dose prescription and follow-up may significantly reduce the rate of thromboembolic complications, without substantially increasing the number of bleeding complications. Patients treated with direct oral anticoagulants appear to have a rate of thromboembolic complications comparable to VKA patients under the best management model, with a reduction of major bleeding.
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To analyze the prognostic value of lactate levels for day-7 and in-hospital mortality, in septic patients with and without shock. In the period November 2011-December 2016, we enrolled 268 patients, admitted to our High-Dependency Unit with a diagnosis of sepsis. Lactate dosage was performed at ED-HDU admission (T0), after 2 h (T2), 6 h (T6) and 24 h (T24); lactate clearance was calculated at T2 and T6 [T2: ((LAC T0-LAC T2/LAC T0)*100)]; T6: [(LAC T0-LAC T6/LAC T0)*100]. ⋯ A Kaplan-MeIer analysis confirmed a significantly better day-7 survival in patients with T6 (with shock 86% vs 70%; without shock 93% vs 82, all p < 0.05) and T24 (with shock 86% vs 70%; without shock 93% vs 82, all p < 0.05) lactate ≤ 2 meq/L, compared with patients with higher levels. A T6 lactate clearance > 10% was more frequent among in-hospital survivors in the whole study population (57% vs 39%) and in patients with shock (74% vs 46%, all p < 0.05). Higher lactate levels and decreased clearance were associated with an increased short-term and intermediate-term mortality regardless of the presence of shock.
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High-dose benzodiazepine (BZD) abuse is emerging as a substance use disorder (SUD). The aim of the study is to explore the impact of high-dose lormetazepam (LMZ) abuse and the characteristics of patients affected by this SUD in a tertiary referral addiction unit. We have retrospectively evaluated 1112 patients admitted to the Addiction Medicine Unit, Verona University Hospital, Italy for detoxification from high-dose BZD dependence. ⋯ Jekyll tablets into an evil Mr. Hyde. Restriction to the market of LMZ oral formulation might reduce the risk of high-dose abuse.