BMC research notes
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study
No significant improvement of cardiovascular disease risk indicators by a lifestyle intervention in people with familial hypercholesterolemia compared to usual care: results of a randomised controlled trial.
People with Familial Hypercholesterolemia (FH) may benefit from lifestyle changes supporting their primary treatment of dyslipidaemia. This project evaluated the efficacy of an individualised tailored lifestyle intervention on lipids (low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), total cholesterol (TC) and triglycerides), systolic blood pressure, glucose, body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference in people with FH. ⋯ This project suggests that an individually tailored lifestyle intervention did not have an additional effect in improving CVD risk indicators among people with FH. The cumulative effect of many small improvements in all indicators on long term CVD risk remains to be assessed in future studies.
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Fever is one of the most commonly observed abnormal signs in patients with critical illness. However, there is a paucity of evidence to guide the management of febrile patients without acute brain injury and little is known about the biologic response to treatment of fever. As such, observational studies suggest that the treatment of fever is inconsistent. This pilot clinical trial will assess the safety and feasibility of treating febrile critically ill adult patients with an aggressive versus a permissive temperature control strategy. The biologic response to these two different temperature control strategies will also be assessed through analysis of a panel of inflammatory mediators. ⋯ Results from this study will lead to a better understanding of the inflammatory effects of anti-pyretic therapy and will evaluate the feasibility of a future clinical trial to establish the best treatment of fever observed in nearly one half of patients admitted to adult ICUs.
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Multicenter Study
Understanding unintentional childhood home injuries: pilot surveillance data from Karachi, Pakistan.
Childhood injuries, an important public health issue, globally affects more than 95% of children living in low-and middle-income countries. The objective of this study is to describe the epidemiology of childhood unintentional injuries in Karachi, Pakistan with a specific focus on those occurring within the home environment. ⋯ Childhood injury surveillance system provides valuable in-depth information on child injuries. The majority of these unintentional childhood injuries occur at home; with falls, dog bites and burns being the most common types of unintentional childhood home injuries. Specific surveillance systems for child injuries can provide new and valuable information for countries like Pakistan.
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The literature on the cost-effectiveness of statin drugs in primary prevention of coronary heart disease is complex. The objective of this study is to compare the disparate results of recent cost-effectiveness analyses of statins. ⋯ Drug price is the primary determinant of statin cost-effectiveness within a given risk group. As more statin drugs become generic, patients at low risk for coronary disease may be treated cost-effectively. Though many factors must be weighed in any medical decision, from a cost-effectiveness perspective, statins may now be considered an appropriate therapy for many patients at low risk for heart disease.
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Comparative Study
Comparability of tympanic and oral mercury thermometers at high ambient temperatures.
Body temperature can be measured in seconds with tympanic thermometers as opposed to minutes with mercury ones. The aim of this study was to compare tympanic and oral mercury thermometer measurements under high ambient field temperatures. ⋯ Clinically significant differences were not observed between oral and tympanic temperature measurements at high ambient temperatures in a rural tropical setting.