1,720,985 research outputs found
Photo-recall cutaneous reaction to gemcitabine
Get PDFCutaneous reactions attributable to chemotherapy too often result in a modification of patients’ treatment plan. Most treatments remain largely unproven: only small series or case reports may indicate possible treatment options. Main observations: We reported the case of a male patient with gemcitabine-induced skin reaction occurred after a cycle of therapy with carboplatin plus gemcitabine following a 21 days’ schedule. The patient came to our attention for an extensive, well-demarked, erythematous, lilaceous, warm indurated lesion, covering his dorsal faces of both hands, without systemic symptoms. Clobetasol propionate 0.05% ointment was prescribed as main therapy, followed by a cream containing boswellic acids. Conclusions: It is presumable that similar dermatological lesions consist in a ‘radiation recall reaction’ whereby an inflammatory reaction occurs in the area previously treated with radiotherapy or affected by a sun-burn in the past. In our patient, interestingly, there is no history of radiotherapy even if there is history of strong sun exposure. Pharmacological anti-inflammatory effect due to boswellic acids was studied and relieved only in radiation-induced dermatitis, and even if larger studies would have been set in order to have more effective results, it would be useful to study application of this compound in chemotherapy-induced cutaneous adverse reactions too
Pharmacokinetic drug evaluation of dalbavancin for the treatment of skin infections
No full textIntroduction: Acute bacterial skin and skin structure infections (ABSSIs), defined as a bacterial infection
of the skin with a lesion size area of at least 75 cm, are a leading cause of hospital admission and
ambulatory care visits worldwide. Dalbavancin is a lipoglycopeptide antibiotic recently approved by the
United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and by European Medicines Agency (EMA) for
ABSSSIs. The authors review and provide updates of efficacy and safety by several studies on
dalbavancin.
Areas covered: A PubMed search was performed for relevant literature. We especially focused our
attention on pharmacokinetics.
Expert opinion: Dalbavancin provides an important new therapy for management of ABSSI, maintaining
a spectrum of activity similar to vancomycin against gram-positive organisms. Use of dalbavancin,
with its 1-week-shot treatment, consist in a reduction of the length of hospital stay or in a reduction of
hospital admissions, with important cost savings
The Role of Pharmacogenetics in Chronic Plaque Psoriasis: Update of the Literature
No full textPsoriasis is a chronic inflammatory disease triggered by both genetic and
environmental factors. Systemic and biologic therapies used to treat
moderate-to-severe psoriasis show significant variability in efficacy, are
associated with various degrees of toxicity, and, for biologic therapies, are
expensive. There is a great need for non-invasive biomarkers to predict treatment
outcomes of these therapies and to individualize care for patients with
psoriasis. This article reviews currently recognized pharmacogenetic targets
related to the treatment of chronic plaque psoriasis, in particular to biologic
therapies. The use of pharmacogenetic and pharmacogenomic approaches to
genetically profile patients will allow therapies to be targeted more precisely
and safely to individual patients, to optimize the treatment of psoriasis, and
minimize unnecessary costs. Characterizing patients with psoriasis according to
common molecular mechanisms rather than by clinical phenotype may also allow more
selective therapeutic agents to be targeted to genetically distinct groups of
patients
Brodalumab for the treatment of psoriasis
No full textIntroduction: Psoriasis is a complex disease in which the alteration of the IL-23/Th17 axis appears to be crucial for its pathogenic mechanisms, and anti-IL17 agents are rapidly becoming important therapeutic tools. Brodalumab, a fully human Chinese hamster ovary cell-derived immunoglobulin G2 (IgG2) anti-IL- 17RA monoclonal antibody, is currently the most-developed treatment that binds to the IL-17RA. The authors review and provide updates of efficacy and safety by several studies on brodalumab.
Areas covered: A PubMed search was performed for relevant literature. Among the trials of brodalu- mab, the most common adverse events included nasopharyngitis, headache, upper respiratory tract infection, and arthralgia. Suicidal ideation and completed suicides had been observed in the brodalu- mab programme, although evidence to date was quoted as not suggesting a causal association. Expert commentary: By blocking the IL-17 receptor A, brodalumab antagonizes signaling from IL-17A, IL-17F, IL-17A/F and IL-25, and this probably contributes to the high efficacy observed in clinical trials. Considering the different therapeutic target and the potential biological implications that blocking IL- 17RA instead of IL-17A might have, brodalumab may not necessarily belong to the same class that includes secukinumab and ixekizumab, but it may be classified in a distinct group
Psoriasis in pregnancy: case series and literature review of data concerning exposure during pregnancy to ustekinumab
No full text
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Get PDFThe 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
Pharmacokinetic drug evaluation of brodalumab for the treatment of psoriasis
No full textPsoriasis is now understood to also be under the driving influence of the IL-17/IL-23 axis,
and the medical breakthrough of novel IL-17 inhibitor medications signals a paradigm shift in the way
psoriatic patients are managed medically.
Brodalumab, a fully human Chinese hamster ovary cell-derived immunoglobulin G2 (IgG2) anti-IL-17RA
monoclonal antibody, is currently the most-developed treatment that binds to the IL-17RA. The authors
review and provide updates of efficacy and safety by several studies on brodalumab.
Areas covered: A PubMed search was performed for relevant literature. Among the trials of brodalumab,
the most common adverse events included nasopharyngitis, headache, upper respiratory tract
infection, and arthralgia. Suicidal ideation and completed suicides had been observed in the brodalumab
programme, although evidence to date was quoted as not suggesting a causal association.
Expert opinion: Brodalumab provides an important new therapy for management of psoriasis, because
there remains a significant unmet patient need for new agents that can provide novel mechanisms of
action, rapid onset of effect, improved, and sustained total skin clearance, greater compliance, and
minimization of drug-specific safety concerns
Alexithymia and Plaque Psoriasis: Preliminary Investigation in a Clinical Sample of 250 Patients
No full text<b><i>Background/Aims:</i></b> Psoriasis as a dermatological disorder has complex effects on mental health and the psychological status of the patient. Many authors proposed that assessing how psoriasis affects a patient's life is better than a body surface area measurement for delineating psoriasis severity. Alexithymia is a personality dimension characterized by difficulty identifying feelings, difficulty describing feelings, and externally oriented thinking observed in many clinical conditions, especially in psychosomatic disorders. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of alexithymia in patients with plaque psoriasis compared with healthy participants, while taking into consideration demographic and clinical variables. <b><i>Methods:</i></b> We enrolled 250 patients with chronic plaque psoriasis, naïve to any systemic treatment, and 215 healthy individuals. The 20-item Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20) was used to assess alexithymia. Data analysis was done. <b><i>Results:</i></b> The mean TAS score was 53.5 (±15.3) for the patient group and 45.1 (±10.8) for controls (<i>p</i> < 0.0001). Compared to controls, the psoriasis group showed significant alexithymic features (32.4 vs. 9.3%), and no significant differences of alexithymia between patients with severe and mild psoriasis were observed. A significant relationship was determined between alexithymia and female gender and sensitive area involvement, such as the face, hands, and genital area. <b><i>Conclusion:</i></b> This study suggests that the assessment of alexithymia should be a part of the comprehensive care of patients with moderate to severe psoriasis. For this purpose, the TAS-20 is a useful and simple tool to be used in daily clinical practice.</jats:p
Variations on the Author
Get PDF“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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