Internal medicine journal
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Internal medicine journal · Sep 2022
Solid pancreas transplant outcomes with increased donor and recipient ages compared to reference ages: A systematic review.
Increased recipient and donor age are associated with worse solid organ pancreas transplant outcomes. However, donor and recipient age criteria vary between jurisdictions. We systematically reviewed studies reporting the association between transplanting older recipients and donors beyond current Transplantation Society of Australia and New Zealand (TSANZ) limits with solid pancreas transplant outcomes. ⋯ Increased donor or recipient age alone should not absolutely contraindicate solid pancreas transplantation, especially if other risk predictors are minimised.
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Internal medicine journal · Sep 2022
Prevalence, causes and associated mortality of hypercalcaemia in modern hospital care.
Studies examining hypercalcaemia in inpatients were largely published over 20 years ago, and it is likely the epidemiology of hypercalcaemia has changed related to increased lifespan and changes in the prevalence of the underlying causes such as malignancy. ⋯ Hypercalcaemia occurred in ~1% of admissions with main causes being malignancy and primary hyperparathyroidism, similar to historical studies. Hypercalcaemia in hospitalised patients is associated with high mortality and higher levels may be a marker for more severe underlying disease.
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Internal medicine journal · Sep 2022
Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma: A consensus practice statement from the Australasian Lymphoma Alliance.
Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is the most common lymphoma subtype, accounting for 30-40% of lymphoma diagnoses. Although aggressive, cure is achievable in approximately 60% of cases with primary chemoimmunotherapy, and in a further substantial minority by salvage therapy and autologous stem cell transplantation. ⋯ However, there remain several areas of controversy including the most appropriate prognostic markers, central nervous system prophylaxis and the optimal treatment for patients with high-risk disease. This position statement presents an evidence-based synthesis of the literature for application in Australasian practice.
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Laboratory biomarkers to estimate the severity of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) are crucial during the pandemic since resource allocation must be carefully planned. ⋯ Our single-centre pilot study determined that total IgE levels may be a negative prognostic factor for clinical progression in patients hospitalised due to COVID-19 infection. Future studies are required to determine the impact of individuals' underlying immune predispositions on outcomes of COVID-19 infections.
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Internal medicine journal · Sep 2022
Research Activities in General Medicine: A Scoping Survey by the Internal Medicine Society of Australia and New Zealand (IMSANZ).
In developing an effective framework for a collaborative research network (RN) that supports members involved in research, the Internal Medicine Society of Australia and New Zealand (IMSANZ) required a better understanding of the current level of research activity and engagement by general physicians, and factors influencing such engagement. ⋯ This study has profiled the constraints faced by general physicians in conducting high-quality collaborative research and provides insights into what is needed to support greater research engagement, through development of a discipline-specific clinical RN.