Medicine
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Multicenter Study Observational Study
Serum Gamma-Glutamyltransferase Levels Predict Mortality in Patients With Peritoneal Dialysis.
Serum gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT) level has been considered marker of oxidative stress as well as liver function. Serum GGT level has been reported to be associated with the mortality in hemodialysis patients. However, it is not well established whether serum GGT level is associated with all-cause mortality in peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients. ⋯ The multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that higher tertiles significantly associated with higher risk for all-cause mortality (tertile 2: hazard ratio [HR] 2.08, 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.17-3.72, P = 0.013; tertile 3: HR 1.83, 95% CI, 1.04-3.22, P = 0.035) in using tertile 1 as the reference group after adjusting for clinical variables. Our study demonstrated that high serum GGT levels were an independent risk factor for all-cause mortality in PD patients. Our findings suggest that serum GGT levels might be a useful biomarker to predict all-cause mortality in PD patients.
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Multicenter Study Observational Study
Association Between Diabetic Macular Edema and Cardiovascular Events in Type 2 Diabetes Patients: A Multicenter Observational Study.
Diabetic macular edema (DME) is the main cause of visual loss associated with diabetes but any association between DME and cardiovascular events is unclear. This study aims to describe the possible association between DME and cardiovascular events in a multicenter cross-sectional study of patients with type 2 diabetes. Two thousand eight hundred seven patients with type 2 diabetes were recruited from diabetes and nephrology clinical institutional centers participating in the DIAB 2 NEPHROGENE study focusing on diabetic complications. ⋯ Only the prior history of lower limb amputation was strongly associated with DME in univariate and multivariate analyses, whereas no association was found with regard to myocardial infarction or stroke. Moreover, both major (n = 32) and minor lower limb (n = 96) amputations were similarly associated with DME, with respective odds ratio of 3.7 (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.77-7.74; P = 0.0012) and of 4.29 (95% CI, 2.79-6.61; P < 0.001). DME is strongly and independently associated with lower limb amputation in type 2 diabetic patients.
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Multicenter Study Observational Study
Efficacy of Appropriate Antimicrobial Therapy on the Survival of Patients With Carbapenem Nonsusceptible Klebsiella Pneumoniae Infection: A Multicenter Study in Taiwan.
The impact of antimicrobial treatment on the outcome of carbapenem nonsusceptible Klebsiella pneumoniae (CnsKP) infections needs to be elucidated. This nationwide, multicenter study was conducted to evaluate the impact of appropriate antimicrobial therapy on 14-day mortality among patients with CnsKP infection in Taiwan. Patients with CnsKP infections from 11 medical centers and 4 regional hospitals in Taiwan were enrolled in 2013. ⋯ A subgroup analysis revealed that the benefit of appropriate therapy was limited to patients with higher APACHE II scores (HR for patients with scores >15 and ≤35, 0.46; 95% CI 0.23-0.92; and for those with scores >35, 0.14; 95% CI, 0.02-0.99). In conclusion, appropriate antimicrobial therapy significantly reduces 14-day mortality for CnsKP infections. Survival benefit is more notable among more severely ill patients.
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Multicenter Study
Fatal Events in Cancer Patients Receiving Anticoagulant Therapy for Venous Thromboembolism.
In cancer patients treated for venous thromboembolism (VTE), including deep-vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE), analyzing mortality associated with recurrent VTE or major bleeding is needed to determine the optimal duration of anticoagulation. This was a cohort study using the Registro Informatizado de Enfermedad TromboEmbólica (RIETE) Registry database to compare rates of fatal recurrent PE and fatal bleeding in cancer patients receiving anticoagulation for VTE. As of January 2013, 44,794 patients were enrolled in RIETE, of whom 7911 (18%) had active cancer. ⋯ During the first 3 months of anticoagulation, there were 59 (1.4%) fatal PE recurrences and 77 (1.9%) fatal bleeds. Beyond the third month, there were 3 fatal PE recurrences and 23 fatal bleeds. In RIETE cancer patients, the rate of fatal recurrent PE or fatal bleeding was much higher within the first 3 months of anticoagulation therapy.