Centrality evolution of the charged-particle pseudorapidity density over a broad pseudorapidity range in Pb-Pb collisions at root s(NN)=2.76TeV

Peer reviewe

Death without Previous Hospital Readmission in Patients with Heart Failure with Reduced Ejection Fraction—A New Endpoint from Old Clinical Trials

Background: Most of the drugs approved and registered for use in heart failure (HF) therapy were examined in randomized clinical trials (RCTs) with the primary composite endpoint of death or hospital readmission. This study aimed to analyze the rates of the newly calculated event: death without prior hospital readmission, in HFrEF patients in large RCTs to show that the newly defined endpoint probably delivers additional data on the structure of the composite endpoint and helps to interpret the results of interventional studies. Methods: This study included RCTs on therapeutic interventions in HF patients. A literature search was performed, and 31 trials in which death without hospital admission could be calculated were included in the analyses. The death without a prior hospital admission endpoint was calculated as the difference between the composite endpoint rate (death or hospital readmission) and the readmission rate. The differences in the new endpoint between the study groups were calculated. Result: The death rates without prior hospital admission were lower in the intervention groups in five trials. In the SENIORS study, significant differences were found in the primary (composite) and death without previous hospital admission endpoints. In the ACCLAIM, VEST, and GISSI-HF STATIN trials, death without previous hospital admission was the only endpoint with a significant difference between the study groups. Moreover, the new endpoint rates were higher in the intervention group in the latter two studies. Conclusions: The new endpoint describing patients who died without prior hospital admission might be useful in previous and future interventional studies to provide additional data on the structure of the composite endpoint. Some therapies might reduce death without previous hospital admission rates, which could be beneficial, even without a reduction in overall long-term mortality

Assessment of Serum Nitrogen Species and Inflammatory Parameters in Relapsing-Remitting Multiple Sclerosis Patients Treated with Different Therapeutic Approaches

The role of nitric oxide and its reactive derivatives (NOx) is well known in the pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis, which is an inflammatory disease while NOx seems to be important in coordinating inflammatory response. The purpose of the present study was to assess serum NOx as one of the nitrogen species and inflammatory parameters in relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis patients and to compare the effectiveness of various types of disease-modifying therapies that reduce nitric oxide and inflammatory biomarkers. Elevated NOx level was observed in patients who received the first-line disease-modifying therapy (interferons beta-1a and beta-1b) in comparison with the subjects treated with the second-line disease-modifying therapy (natalizumab; fingolimod) and healthy controls without significant differences in C-reactive protein and interleukin-1 beta. A negative correlation was observed between serum NOx level and the duration of multiple sclerosis confirmed in the whole study population and in subjects treated with the first-line agents. Only serum NOx, concentration could reveal a potential efficacy of disease-modifying therapy with a better reduction in NOx level due to the second-line agents of disease-modifying therapy