Negative pressure wound therapy for soft tissue injuries around the foot and ankle

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>This study was performed to evaluate the results of negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) in patients with open wounds in the foot and ankle region.</p> <p>Materials and methods</p> <p>Using a NPWT device, 16 patients were prospectively treated for soft tissue injuries around the foot and ankle. Mean patient age was 32.8 years (range, 3–67 years). All patients had suffered an acute trauma, due to a traffic accident, a fall, or a crush injury, and all had wounds with underlying tendon or bone exposure. Necrotic tissues were debrided before applying NPWT. Dressings were changed every 3 or 4 days and treatment was continued for 18.4 days on average (range, 11–29 days).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Exposed tendons and bone were successfully covered with healthy granulation tissue in all cases except one. The sizes of soft tissue defects reduced from 56.4 cm²to 42.9 cm²after NPWT (mean decrease of 24%). In 15 of the 16 cases, coverage with granulation tissue was achieved and followed by a skin graft. A free flap was needed to cover exposed bone and tendon in one case. No major complication occurred that was directly attributable to treatment. In terms of minor complications, two patients suffered scar contracture of grafted skin.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>NPWT was found to facilitate the rapid formation of healthy granulation tissue on open wounds in the foot and ankle region, and thus, to shorten healing time and minimize secondary soft tissue defect coverage procedures.</p

Stroke

Previous observational studies reported that a lower serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] concentration is associated with a higher burden of cerebral small vessel disease (cSVD). The causality of this association is uncertain, but it would be clinically important, given that 25(OH)D can be a target for intervention. We tried to examine the causal effect of 25(OH)D concentration on cSVD-related phenotypes using a Mendelian randomization approach. Genetic instruments for each serum 25(OH)D concentration and cSVD-related phenotypes (lacunar stroke, white matter hyperintensity, cerebral microbleeds, and perivascular spaces) were derived from large-scale genome-wide association studies. We performed 2-sample Mendelian randomization analyses with multiple post hoc sensitivity analyses. A bidirectional Mendelian randomization approach was also used to explore the possibility of reverse causation. We failed to find any significant causal effect of 25(OH)D concentration on cSVD-related phenotypes (odds ratio [95% CI], 1.00 [0.87-1.16], 1.01 [0.96-1.07], 1.06 [0.85-1.33], 1.00 [0.97-1.03], 1.02 [0.99-1.04], 1.01 [0.99-1.04] for lacunar stroke, white matter hyperintensity, cerebral microbleeds, and white matter, basal ganglia, hippocampal perivascular spaces, respectively). These results were reproduced in the sensitivity analyses accounting for genetic pleiotropy. Conversely, when we examined the effects of cSVD phenotypes on 25(OH)D concentration, cerebral microbleeds were negatively associated with 25(OH)D concentration (0.94 [0.92-0.96]). Given the adequate statistical power (>0.8) of the analyses, our findings suggest that the previously reported association between 25(OH)D concentration and cSVD phenotypes might not be causal and partly attributed to reverse causation

Predictability of polygenic risk score for progression to dementia and its interaction with APOE ε4 in mild cognitive impairment

Background: The combinatorial effect of multiple genetic factors calculated as a polygenic risk score (PRS) has been studied to predict disease progression to Alzheimer's disease (AD) from mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Previous studies have investigated the performance of PRS in the prediction of disease progression to AD by including and excluding single nucleotide polymorphisms within the region surrounding the APOE gene. These studies may have missed the APOE genotype-specific predictability of PRS for disease progression to AD. Methods: We analyzed 732 MCI from the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative cohort, including those who progressed to AD within 5 years post-baseline (n = 270) and remained stable as MCI (n = 462). The predictability of PRS including and excluding the APOE region (PRS+APOE and PRS-APOE) on the conversion to AD and its interaction with the APOE ε4 carrier status were assessed using Cox regression analyses. Results: PRS+APOE (hazard ratio [HR] 1.468, 95% CI 1.335-1.615) and PRS-APOE (HR 1.293, 95% CI 1.157-1.445) were both associated with a significantly increased risk of MCI progression to dementia. The interaction between PRS+APOE and APOE ε4 carrier status was significant with a P-value of 0.0378. The association of PRSs with the progression risk was stronger in APOE ε4 non-carriers (PRS+APOE: HR 1.710, 95% CI 1.244-2.351; PRS-APOE: HR 1.429, 95% CI 1.182-1.728) than in APOE ε4 carriers (PRS+APOE: HR 1.167, 95% CI 1.005-1.355; PRS-APOE: HR 1.172, 95% CI 1.020-1.346). Conclusions: PRS could predict the conversion of MCI to dementia with a stronger association in APOE ε4 non-carriers than APOE ε4 carriers. This indicates PRS as a potential genetic predictor particularly for MCI with no APOE ε4 alleles

Who will benefit more from low-dose alteplase in acute ischemic stroke?

Objectives: Controversy persists over the benefits of low-dose versus standard-dose intravenous alteplase for the treatment of acute ischemic stroke. We sought to determine individual patient factors that contribute to the risk–benefit balance of low-dose alteplase treatment. Methods: Observational study using data from the Enhanced Control of Hypertension and Thrombolysis Stroke Study (ENCHANTED), an international, randomized, open-label, blinded-endpoint trial that assessed low-dose (0.6 mg/kg) versus standard-dose (0.9 mg/kg) intravenous alteplase in acute ischemic stroke patients. Logistic regression models were used to estimate the benefit of good functional outcome (scores 0 or 1 on the modified Rankin scale at 90 days) and risk (symptomatic intracerebral hemorrhage), under both regimens for individual patients. The net advantage for low-dose, relative to standard-dose, alteplase was calculated by dividing excess benefit by excess risk according to a combination of patient characteristics. The algorithms were externally validated in a nationwide acute stroke registry database in South Korea. Results: Patients with an estimated net advantage from low-dose alteplase, compared with without, were younger (mean age of 66 vs. 75 years), had lower systolic blood pressure (148 vs. 160 mm Hg), lower National Institute of Health Stroke Scale score (median of 8 vs. 16), and no atrial fibrillation (10.3% vs. 97.4%), diabetes mellitus (19.2% vs. 22.4%), or premorbid symptoms (defined by modified Rankin scale = 1) (16.3% vs. 37.8%). Conclusion: Use of low-dose alteplase may be preferable in acute ischemic stroke patients with a combination of favorable characteristics, including younger age, lower systolic blood pressure, mild neurological impairment, and no atrial fibrillation, diabetes mellitus, or premorbid symptoms.</p

Safety and Efficacy of Second-Generation Everolimus-Eluting Xience V Stents Versus Zotarolimus-Eluting Resolute Stents in Real-World Practice Patient-Related and Stent-Related Outcomes From the Multicenter Prospective EXCELLENT and RESOLUTE-Korea Registries

ObjectivesThis study sought to compare the safety and efficacy of the Xience V/Promus everolimus-eluting stent (EES) (Abbott Vascular, Temecula, California) with the Endeavor Resolute zotarolimus-eluting stent (ZES-R) (Medtronic Cardiovascular, Santa Rosa, California) in “all-comer” cohorts.BackgroundOnly 2 randomized controlled trials have compared these stents.MethodsThe EXCELLENT (Efficacy of Xience/Promus Versus Cypher to Reduce Late Loss After Stenting) and RESOLUTE-Korea registries prospectively enrolled 3,056 patients treated with the EES and 1,998 patients treated with the ZES-R, respectively, without exclusions. Stent-related composite outcomes (target lesion failure [TLF]) and patient-related composite outcomes were compared in crude and propensity score-matched analyses.ResultsOf 5,054 patients, 3,830 (75.8%) had off-label indication (2,217 treated with EES and 1,613 treated with ZES-R). The stent-related outcome (82 [2.7%] vs. 58 [2.9%], p = 0.662) and the patient-related outcome (225 [7.4%] vs. 153 [7.7%], p = 0.702) did not differ between EES and ZES-R, respectively, at 1 year, which was corroborated by similar results from the propensity score-matched cohort. The rate of definite or probable stent thrombosis (18 [0.6%] vs. 7 [0.4%], p = 0.306) also was similar. In multivariate analysis, off-label indication was the strongest predictor of TLF (adjusted hazard ratio: 2.882; 95% confidence interval: 1.226 to 6.779; p = 0.015).ConclusionsIn this robust real-world registry with unrestricted use of EES and ZES-R, both stents showed comparable safety and efficacy at 1-year follow-up. Overall incidences of TLF and definite stent thrombosis were low, even in the patients with off-label indication, suggesting excellent safety and efficacy of both types of second-generation drug-eluting stents

Responses and adverse effects of carboplatin-based chemotherapy for pediatric intracranial germ cell tumors

PurposeCisplatin-based chemotherapy has been commonly used for the treatment of intracranial germ cell tumors (IC-GCTs). However, this treatment exhibits some adverse effects such as renal problems and hearing difficulty. Carboplatin-based chemotherapy was administered to pediatric patients with IC-GCTs from August 2004 at the Samsung Medical Center. In this study, we assessed the responses and adverse effects of carboplatin-based chemotherapy in pediatric IC-GCTs patients according to the risk group, and compared the results with those of the previous cisplatin-based chemotherapy.MethodsWe examined 35 patients (27 men and 8 women) diagnosed with IC-GCTs between August 2004 and April 2008 and received risk-adapted carboplatin-based chemotherapy at the Samsung Medical Center. Patients were divided into either low-risk (LR) or high-risk (HR) groups and a retrospective analysis was performed using information from the medical records.ResultsAlthough hematological complications were common, hearing difficulties or grade 3 or 4 creatinine level elevation were not observed in patients who underwent carboplatin-based chemotherapy. The frequency of febrile neutropenia did not differ between the risk groups. The overall survival was 100% and event-free survival (EFS) was 95.7%. The EFS rate was 100% in the LR group and 90% in the HR group, respectively.ConclusionDespite their common occurrence in high-risk patients, no lethal hematological complications were associated with carboplatin-based treatment. The current carboplatin-based chemotherapy protocol is safe and effective for the treatment of pediatric patients with IC-GCTs