70 research outputs found
Adherence to Triple Single-Pill Combination of Perindopril/Indapamide/Amlodipine: Findings from Real-World Analysis in Italy
Introduction: Single-pill combination therapy for hypertension is recognized to improve adherence to treatment. However, less is known about the benefits of triple single-pill combinations. This retrospective observational analysis aimed to assess changes in adherence when treatment was switched from perindopril (PER)/indapamide (IND) + amlodipine (AML) to PER/IND/AML single-pill combination, in Italian clinical practice.
Methods: This analysis used data extracted from administrative databases of Italian healthcare entities. Adult patients receiving PER/IND/AML were selected, and the prescription date was considered as the index date. Among them, those who had a prescription for PER/IND + AML during the 12 months before the index date and a prescription of PER/IND/AML during 6 months of follow-up were included. Adherence was calculated as the proportion of days covered (PDC: PDC < 40%, non-adherent; PDC = 40-79%, partially adherent; PDC â„ 80%, adherent).
Results: Among the identified patients, 158 were exposed users and were included in the analysis. When patients were compared before and after switch to triple single-pill combination, the proportion of adherent patients was significantly higher with PER/IND/AML single-pill combination (75.3%) than with PER/IND + AML combination (44.3%) (P < 0.05). Conversely, the proportion of non-adherent patients was lower with the PER/IND/AML single-pill combination (14.6%) vs PER/IND + AML (17.7%) (P < 0.001).
Conclusion: This real-world analysis showed that switching to a triple single-pill combination could offer an opportunity to improve adherence to antihypertensive treatment in real-life clinical practice
Hands-On Parameter Search for Neural Simulations by a MIDI-Controller
Computational neuroscientists frequently encounter the challenge of parameter fitting â exploring a usually high dimensional variable space to find a parameter set that reproduces an experimental data set. One common approach is using automated search algorithms such as gradient descent or genetic algorithms. However, these approaches suffer several shortcomings related to their lack of understanding the underlying question, such as defining a suitable error function or getting stuck in local minima. Another widespread approach is manual parameter fitting using a keyboard or a mouse, evaluating different parameter sets following the users intuition. However, this process is often cumbersome and time-intensive. Here, we present a new method for manual parameter fitting. A MIDI controller provides input to the simulation software, where model parameters are then tuned according to the knob and slider positions on the device. The model is immediately updated on every parameter change, continuously plotting the latest results. Given reasonably short simulation times of less than one second, we find this method to be highly efficient in quickly determining good parameter sets. Our approach bears a close resemblance to tuning the sound of an analog synthesizer, giving the user a very good intuition of the problem at hand, such as immediate feedback if and how results are affected by specific parameter changes. In addition to be used in research, our approach should be an ideal teaching tool, allowing students to interactively explore complex models such as Hodgkin-Huxley or dynamical systems
Folding of the apolipoprotein A1 driven by the salt concentration as a possible mechanism to improve cholesterol trapping
The folding of the cholesterol trapping apolipoprotein A1 in aqueous solution
at increasing ionic strength is studied using atomically detailed molecular
dynamics simulations. We calculate various structural properties to
characterize the conformation of the protein, such as the radius of gyration,
the radial distribution function and the end to end distance. Additionally we
report information using tools specifically tailored for the characterization
of proteins, such as the mean smallest distance matrix and the Ramachandran
plot. We find that two qualitatively different configurations of this protein
are preferred, one where the protein is extended, and one where it forms loops
or closed structures. It is argued that the latter promote the association of
the protein with cholesterol and other fatty acids.Comment: 14 pages, 6 figures. To appear in "Selected Topics of Computational
and Experimental Fluid Mechanics", Springer, J. Klapp, G. Ru\'iz, A. Medina,
A. L\'opez & L. Di G. Sigalotti (eds.), 201
Reconstructing a Deuteronomistic Athaliah in the (South) African context: A critique of the patriarchal perception of women
A new method to approximate the field of movements of 1-DOF linkages with lower-pairs
Vitamin D status predicts reproductive fitness in a wild sheep population
Vitamin D deficiency has been associated with the development of many human diseases, and with poor reproductive performance in laboratory rodents. We currently have no idea how natural selection directly acts on variation in vitamin D metabolism due to a total lack of studies in wild animals. Here, we measured serum 25 hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) concentrations in female Soay sheep that were part of a long-term field study on St Kilda. We found that total 25(OH)D was strongly influenced by age, and that light coloured sheep had higher 25(OH)D(3) (but not 25(OH)D(2)) concentrations than dark sheep. The coat colour polymorphism in Soay sheep is controlled by a single locus, suggesting vitamin D status is heritable in this population. We also observed a very strong relationship between total 25(OH)D concentrations in summer and a eweâs fecundity the following spring. This resulted in a positive association between total 25(OH)D and the number of lambs produced that survived their first year of life, an important component of female reproductive fitness. Our study provides the first insight into naturally-occurring variation in vitamin D metabolites, and offers the first evidence that vitamin D status is both heritable and under natural selection in the wild
Linking fine root and understory vegetation to channel erosion in forested hillslopes of southwestern China
MORPHOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS AND FORAGE PRODUCTIVITY OF IRRIGATED CACTUS PEAR UNDER DIFFERENT CUTTING INTENSITIES
Risk perception by endangered European bison Bison bonasus is context (condition) dependent
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