Current medical research and opinion
-
This narrative review aims to provide a clinical perspective on the potential role of co-crystal of tramadol-celecoxib (CTC) in the management of acute moderate-to-severe pain by synthesizing the available preclinical and clinical data, with emphasis on phase 3 trials. ⋯ Results from phase 3 trials suggest that the modified physicochemical properties of tramadol and celecoxib in CTC translate into an improved clinical benefit-risk profile, including fewer opioid-related adverse effects due to lower overall opioid dosing.
-
For the past few years, microbial biofilms have been emerging as a significant threat to the modern healthcare system, and their prevalence and antibiotic resistance threat gradually increase daily among the human population. The biofilm has a remarkable impact in the field of infectious diseases, in particular healthcare-associated infections related to indwelling devices such as catheters, implants, artificial heart valves, and prosthetic joints. ⋯ After the extensive literature review, our observation exhibits a high predominance of biofilm formation among bacteria such as Escherichia sp., Streptococcus sp., Staphylococcus sp., and Pseudomonas sp., those are the most common biofilm-producing antibiotic-resistant bacteria among Indian patients with urinary tract infections and/or catheter-related infections, respiratory tract infections, dental infections, skin infections, and implant-associated infections. This review demonstrates that biofilm-associated bacterial infections constantly elevate in several pathological conditions along with the enhancement of the multi-drug resistance phenomenon.
-
Clinical Trial
CercaTest RedTM, a novel urine-based point-of-care test for the detection of preeclampsia.
Preeclampsia (PE) poses a serious threat to the health of the pregnant woman and her developing fetus due to the difficulty in diagnosing the condition. The disease can develop and worsen suddenly without noticeable signs and symptoms. Thus, there is an urgent need for a simple Point of Care Test (POCT) that improves accessibility to testing and can be used as an aid in the diagnosis of PE. CercaTest Red is a noninvasive detection kit for impending preeclampsia using urine from pregnant women. This is especially pertinent for women who have limited access to secondary/tertiary healthcare as those in remote settings, low-income countries or simply lack of out of hours laboratory services. ⋯ This test is easy to use, cost-effective and portable with short turnaround time and no laboratory instrument requirement. In the future, the test may have the potential to become quantitative using spectroscopy (Chinese Clinical Trial Registry No. ChiCTR1800017692).
-
Plain language resources (PLR) are lay summaries of clinical trial results or plain language summaries of publications, in digital/visual/language formats. They aim to provide accurate information in jargon-free, and easy-to-understand language that can meet the health information needs of the general public, especially patients and caregivers. These are typically developed by the study sponsors or investigators, or by national public health bodies, research hospitals, patient organizations, and non-profit organizations. ⋯ PLR are important resources for patients, with promising implications for individual as well as community health. However, they require appropriate oversight and standards to optimize their potential value. Hence, we also highlight recommendations and best practices from our reading of the literature, that aim to minimize these biases.
-
Observational Study
The role of lactate-to-albumin ratio to predict 30-day risk of death in patients with sepsis in the emergency department: a decision tree analysis.
Accurately estimating the prognosis of septic patients on arrival in the emergency department (ED) is clinically challenging. The lactate-to-albumin ratio (LAR) has recently been proposed to improve the predictive performance of septic patients admitted to the ICU. ⋯ The LAR can be used as an index to better predict the 30-day risk of death in septic patients.