Bmc Med
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Cell replacement therapies in Parkinson's disease (PD) aim to provide long-lasting relief of patients' symptoms. Previous clinical trials using transplantation of human fetal ventral mesencephalic (hfVM) tissue in the striata of PD patients have provided proof-of-principle that such grafts can restore striatal dopaminergic (DA-ergic) function. The transplants survive, reinnervate the striatum, and generate adequate symptomatic relief in some patients for more than a decade following operation. ⋯ There is a range of emerging sources of SCs for generating a DA-ergic fate in vitro. However, the translation of these efforts in vivo currently lacks efficacy and sustainability. A successful, clinically competitive SC therapy in PD needs to produce long-lasting symptomatic relief without side effects while counteracting PD progression.
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Review Meta Analysis
Lifestyle interventions for overweight and obese pregnant women to improve pregnancy outcome: systematic review and meta-analysis.
Overweight and obesity pose a big challenge to pregnancy as they are associated with adverse maternal and perinatal outcome. Evidence of lifestyle intervention resulting in improved pregnancy outcome is conflicting. Hence the objective of this study is to determine the efficacy of antenatal dietary, activity, behaviour or lifestyle interventions in overweight and obese pregnant women to improve maternal and perinatal outcomes. ⋯ Antenatal lifestyle intervention is associated with restricted gestational weight gain and a trend towards a reduced prevalence of gestational diabetes in the overweight and obese population. These findings need to be interpreted with caution as the available studies were of poor to medium quality.
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Sepsis is the clinical syndrome derived from the host response to an infection and severe sepsis is the leading cause of death in critically ill patients. Several biomarkers have been tested for use in diagnosis and prognostication in patients with sepsis. ⋯ On the other hand, suPAR levels have been shown to predict outcome in various kinds of bacteremia and recent data suggest they may have predictive value, similar to that of severity scores, in critically ill patients. This narrative review provides a descriptive overview of the clinical value of this biomarker in the diagnosis, prognosis and therapeutic guidance of sepsis.
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Intensive care unit-acquired weakness (ICUAW) has been recognized as an important and persistent complication in survivors of critical illness. The absence of a consistent nomenclature and diagnostic criteria for ICUAW has made research in this area challenging. ⋯ Ultimately, the implementation of such a strategy would require a shift in the knowledge and culture within the ICU, and may be facilitated by novel technology and patient care strategies. The purpose of this article is to briefly review the diagnosis, risk factors, and management of ICUAW, and to discuss some of the barriers and novel treatments to improve outcomes for our ICU survivors.