Articles: human.
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For decades after the identification of mpox in humans in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in 1970, the disease was largely confined to the rural areas of Central and West Africa and thus did not garner broad attention. On August 13, 2024, mpox was declared a Public Health Emergency of Continental Security (PHECS) by the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), a notice that was followed the next day by a declaration of a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) by the World Health Organization. ⋯ The high mpox disease burden in Africa, especially in the DRC - with a rising number of cases, high case fatality rate, and high degree of spread to other previously mpox-free African countries - is cause for increased international concern. Case detection, contact tracing, public health measures, and affordable vaccines are needed to implement interventions in the DRC to reduce the risk of global spread of the virus.
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Xenotransplantation offers a potential solution to the organ shortage crisis. A 62-year-old hemodialysis-dependent man with long-standing diabetes, advanced vasculopathy, and marked dialysis-access challenges received a gene-edited porcine kidney with 69 genomic edits, including deletion of three glycan antigens, inactivation of porcine endogenous retroviruses, and insertion of seven human transgenes. ⋯ After a T-cell-mediated rejection episode on day 8, intensified immunosuppression reversed rejection. Despite sustained kidney function, the patient died from unexpected, sudden cardiac causes on day 52; autopsy revealed severe coronary artery disease and ventricular scarring without evident xenograft rejection. (Funded by Massachusetts General Hospital and eGenesis.).
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Obinutuzumab, a humanized type II anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody, provided significantly better renal responses than placebo in a phase 2 trial involving patients with lupus nephritis receiving standard therapy. ⋯ Among adults with active lupus nephritis, obinutuzumab plus standard therapy was more efficacious than standard therapy alone in providing a complete renal response. (Funded by F. Hoffmann-La Roche; REGENCY ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT04221477.).
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Despite the frequent use of ropivacaine and bupivacaine, there is limited guidance on redosing of these medications following an initial bolus. Intermittent redosing is a clinical practice in the setting of nerve catheters, often utilizing large doses. Comparatively, theoretical elimination rates are available from pharmacokinetic studies, providing estimates on total body content of these drugs. We hypothesized that published redosing of bupivacaine and ropivacaine in clinical literature comported with safe elimination of the drugs based on pharmacokinetic studies. ⋯ Clinically reported redosing of bupivacaine and ropivacaine in the published literature reflect the slowest pharmacokinetic elimination based on human studies. The combined data without evidence of toxicity permit us to make practical recommendations about safe redosing of these agents.