1,721,005 research outputs found
Anti-inflammatory: new trends in the treatment of the patient with systemic sclerosis
No full textBACKGROUND:
The treatment of systemic sclerosis is a difficult challenge because of the present lack of drugs definitely proven to alter the overall course of the disease.
OBJECTIVE:
To address the current guidelines and to analyze the perspectives opened by the availability of new drugs and the identification of previously unknown pathways.
METHODS:
The statements on current treatment are based on recently developed EULAR recommendations. The perspectives reflect the opinion of the authors on emerging topics.
RESULTS/CONCLUSION:
The treatment of systemic sclerosis has improved in recent years because a number of drugs have been shown to influence single disease manifestations. The identification of previously unknown pathways might open the way for further developments
Vascular complications of scleroderma
No full textSystemic sclerosis (SSc) is a multiorgan disease characterized by injury to vascular wall and extensive damage of the
microvessels. The injury of the vascular wall is characterized by the formation of megacapillaries and avascular areas. The reduced
capillary density leads to clinical manifestations such as digital ulcers. These lesions are extremely painful and lead to substantial
functional disability. Management of digital ulcers includes non-pharmacologic and pharmacologic modalities. Despite the
reduced blood flow and reduced partial oxygen pressure levels, there is paradoxically no evidence for a sufficient angiogenesis in
the skin of patients with SSc. Angiogenesis is strongly disturbed in SSc, as demonstrated by Nailfold Video-Capillaroscopy
changes, the damage of the vessels evolves progressively from early to late stages and is characterized by different morphological
aspects. Almost all patients develop Raynaud's phenomenon which, together with structural vasculopathy, results in ulceration
and critical digital ischemia. Many of the severe internal organ complications of SSc are vascular, including pulmonary arterial
hypertension (PAH) and scleroderma renal crisis. Structural vascular damage occurs in many vascular beds and contribute to
pulmonary, renal, cardiac and gastrointestinal complications. SSc has a high case-specific mortality due to organ-based
complications including PAH, lung fibrosis, renal failure and involvement of the gastrointestinal tract
Cyclophosphamide in systemic sclerosis: still in search of a 'real life' scenario
No full textn systemic sclerosis (SSc), there is no proven treatment to prevent disease progression. In a recent meta-analysis of three randomised controlled trials (RCTs) and six open prospective studies on cyclophosphamide (CYC), no significant changes in lung function were observed. However, CYC is associated with an improvement of Mahler's dyspnea index, short form-36 (physical and mental domains), and health-related quality of life, contributing to the amelioration of patients' functional status. Further RCTs on early SSc are needed to assess the real efficacy of CYC in inducing remission and increasing survival
Right ventricular function in patients with systemic sclerosis without pulmonary arterial hypertension
No full text
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
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