Medicine
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Comparative Study
Effects of an Avocado-based Mediterranean Diet on Serum Lipids for Secondary Prevention after Ischemic Stroke Trial (ADD-SPISE): Study protocol.
A poor or unhealthy diet is responsible for an important fraction of ischemic stroke risk. Adherence to dietary patterns, such as the Mediterranean diet, rich in monounsaturated fatty acids mainly from olive oil, is associated with a lower stroke risk. Furthermore, lowering low-density cholesterol (LDL-C) levels decreases stroke recurrence. Interestingly, Avocado-substituted diets, which are also rich in monounsaturated fatty acids, significantly decrease LDL cholesterol levels. This study aims to evaluate whether a Mediterranean diet based on Avocados reduces LDL-C compared to a low-fat high-complex carbohydrate diet after 3 months of the intervention in patients who had a recent acute ischemic stroke. The trial will also assess safety and feasibility. ⋯ The study is registered under ADDSPISE at www.clinicaltrials.gov. Identifier NCT03524742. Protocol ID CAS-605 version 3.0 (May 2nd, 2019).
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Review Case Reports
Atezolizumab and bevacizumab-induced encephalitis in advanced hepatocellular carcinoma: Case report and literature review.
On the basis of the results of the IMBRAVE-150 trial, the combination of atezolizumab, a programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1) antibody, as well as bevacizumab, a vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) antibody, represents a promising novel first-line therapy in patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Despite favorable safety data, serious adverse events have been described. However, central nervous system complications such as encephalitis have rarely been reported. We present the case of a 70-year-old woman with hepatitis C virus (HCV)-related liver cirrhosis and advanced HCC who developed severe encephalitis after only one cycle of atezolizumab/bevacizumab. ⋯ This case illustrates that rapid immunosuppressive treatment with prednisolone can result in remission even of severe encephalitis. We discuss this case in the context of available literature and previously reported cases of atezolizumab-induced encephalitis in different tumor entities, highlighting the diagnostic challenges in oncologic patients treated with immune checkpoint-inhibitors.
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Meta Analysis
Flow-diverting device versus coil embolization for unruptured intracranial aneurysm: A meta-analysis.
Both coil embolization (CE) and flow-diverting device (FDD) placement are widely used for treatment of intracranial aneurysms (IAs). The aim of this meta-analysis is to compare the relative clinical safety and efficacy of FDD and CE for the treatment of unruptured IAs. ⋯ FDDs can be used to effectively and safely treat large and giant IAs, achieving higher rates of complete occlusion than CE treatment. For non-large/giant IAs, we observed comparable efficacy between FDD and CE treatments.
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Sphenoid sinus pseudoaneurysm arising from the cavernous segment of the internal carotid artery (ICA) caused by traumatic vessel injury is rare, and rarer is a concomitant carotid-cavernous fistula (CCF). In particular, delayed subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) due to pseudoaneurysm rupture has not been reported to-date in literature. Here, we report a case of sphenoid sinus pseudoaneurysm with CCF presenting with delayed SAH. ⋯ Sphenoid sinus pseudoaneurysm and CCF rarely occur following head trauma through a series of processes involving fracture of the lateral wall of the sphenoid sinus and ICA cavernous segment injury. Sphenoid sinus pseudoaneurysm may present as SAH through intracranial rupture with concomitant superior wall fracture of the sphenoid sinus. Therefore, early diagnosis using CT or magnetic resonance angiography and appropriate treatment through understanding the disease mechanism is necessary.
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Observational Study
Ropivacaine continuous wound infusion after mastectomy with immediate autologous breast reconstruction: A retrospective observational study.
Continuous wound infusion usually provides postoperative analgesia as a multimodal analgesia with systemic opioid use. When continuous wound infusion of local anesthetics (LA) supports successful postoperative analgesia without systemic opioid use, the side effects of opioid can be reduced. Nevertheless, continuous wound infusion after mastectomy with immediate autologous breast reconstruction leads to concerns about wound healing. ⋯ The satisfaction score of analgesia in the ON-Q group was comparable with that of the patients in the IV PCA group. This study demonstrates that single use of continuous wound infusion showed comparable analgesia with fentanyl-based IV PCA in patients who underwent mastectomy with immediate autologous breast reconstruction. Furthermore, the continuous infusion of LA directly on the surgical site did not significantly affect wound healing.