Plos One
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Serum vitamin D in patients with chronic obstructive lung disease does not correlate with mortality--results from a 10-year prospective cohort study.
Recent studies have found vitamin D (25-OHD) deficiency and insufficiency to be common among patients with COPD. Serum level of 25-OHD seems to correlate to pulmonary function, COPD disease staging, and increased susceptibility to respiratory infections. We wanted to investigate whether vitamin D deficiency or insufficiency was associated with mortality rate in patients suffering from advanced COPD. ⋯ Serum level of 25-OHD does not seem to be associated with mortality rate, suggesting no or only a minor role of 25-OHD in disease progression in patients with moderate to very severe COPD.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Postoperative neurocognitive dysfunction in patients undergoing cardiac surgery after remote ischemic preconditioning: a double-blind randomized controlled pilot study.
Remote ischemic preconditioning (RIPC) has been shown to enhance the tolerance of remote organs to cope with a subsequent ischemic event. We hypothesized that RIPC reduces postoperative neurocognitive dysfunction (POCD) in patients undergoing complex cardiac surgery. ⋯ We failed to demonstrate efficacy of a RIPC protocol with respect to incidence and severity of POCD and secondary outcome variables in patients undergoing a wide range of cardiac surgery. Therefore, definitive large-scale multicenter trials are needed.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
Analysis of serum inflammatory mediators identifies unique dynamic networks associated with death and spontaneous survival in pediatric acute liver failure.
Tools to predict death or spontaneous survival are necessary to inform liver transplantation (LTx) decisions in pediatric acute liver failure (PALF), but such tools are not available. Recent data suggest that immune/inflammatory dysregulation occurs in the setting of acute liver failure. We hypothesized that specific, dynamic, and measurable patterns of immune/inflammatory dysregulation will correlate with outcomes in PALF. ⋯ The application of DBN analysis of inflammatory mediators in this small patient sample appears to differentiate survivors from non-survivors in PALF. Patterns associated with LTx pre-transplant were more like those seen in spontaneous survivors than in those who died. DBN-based analyses might lead to a better prediction of outcome in PALF, and could also have more general utility in other complex diseases with an inflammatory etiology.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
The effect of three-monthly albendazole treatment on malarial parasitemia and allergy: a household-based cluster-randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.
Helminth infections are proposed to have immunomodulatory activities affecting health outcomes either detrimentally or beneficially. We evaluated the effects of albendazole treatment, every three months for 21 months, on STH, malarial parasitemia and allergy. ⋯ The study indicates that intensive community treatment of 3 monthly albendazole administration for 21 months over two years leads to a reduction in STH. This degree of reduction appears safe without any increased risk of malaria or allergies.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
Outcomes of a Geriatric Liaison Intervention to Prevent the Development of Postoperative Delirium in Frail Elderly Cancer Patients: Report on a Multicentre, Randomized, Controlled Trial.
Delirium is a serious and common postoperative complication, especially in frail elderly patients. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of a geriatric liaison intervention in comparison with standard care on the incidence of postoperative delirium in frail elderly cancer patients treated with an elective surgical procedure for a solid tumour. ⋯ Within this study, a geriatric liaison intervention based on frailty for the prevention of postoperative delirium in frail elderly cancer patients undergoing elective surgery for a solid tumour has not proven to be effective.