Demographic, clinical and antibody characteristics of patients with digital ulcers in systemic sclerosis: data from the DUO Registry

OBJECTIVES: The Digital Ulcers Outcome (DUO) Registry was designed to describe the clinical and antibody characteristics, disease course and outcomes of patients with digital ulcers associated with systemic sclerosis (SSc). METHODS: The DUO Registry is a European, prospective, multicentre, observational, registry of SSc patients with ongoing digital ulcer disease, irrespective of treatment regimen. Data collected included demographics, SSc duration, SSc subset, internal organ manifestations, autoantibodies, previous and ongoing interventions and complications related to digital ulcers. RESULTS: Up to 19 November 2010 a total of 2439 patients had enrolled into the registry. Most were classified as either limited cutaneous SSc (lcSSc; 52.2%) or diffuse cutaneous SSc (dcSSc; 36.9%). Digital ulcers developed earlier in patients with dcSSc compared with lcSSc. Almost all patients (95.7%) tested positive for antinuclear antibodies, 45.2% for anti-scleroderma-70 and 43.6% for anticentromere antibodies (ACA). The first digital ulcer in the anti-scleroderma-70-positive patient cohort occurred approximately 5 years earlier than the ACA-positive patient group. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides data from a large cohort of SSc patients with a history of digital ulcers. The early occurrence and high frequency of digital ulcer complications are especially seen in patients with dcSSc and/or anti-scleroderma-70 antibodies

Nature and significance of a Cambro-Ordovician high-K, calc-alkaline sub-volcanic suite: The late- to post-orogenic Motru Dyke Swarm (Southern Carpathians, Romania)

SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Challenges Associated with Route of Administration in Neonatal Drug Delivery

The administration of drugs to neonates poses significant challenges. The aim of this review was to provide insight into some of these challenges and resolutions that may be encountered with several of the most commonly used routes of administration and dosage forms in neonatal care, including oral, parenteral, transdermal, intrapulmonary, and rectal. Important considerations include fluctuations in stomach pH hours to years after birth, the logistics of setting up an intravenous infusion, the need for reduced particle size for aerosol delivery to the developing neonatal lung, and variation in perirectal venous drainage. Additionally, some of the recently developed technologies for use in neonatal care are described. While the understanding of neonatal drug delivery has advanced over the past several decades, there is still a deficiency of technologies and formulations developed specifically for this population