Spravato Safety Holds Up Long-Term for Treatment-Resistant Depression
NASHVILLE — Esketamine nasal spray (Spravato) showed consistent long-term safety outcomes for patients with treatment-resistant depression (TRD), according to follow-up data from the SUSTAIN-3 trial. In the open-label, phase III study, intermittent dosing of esketamine for up to 6.5 years had a similar safety profile as dosing for up to 1 year, according to Reina […]
Intensive Pretransplant Consolidation in Older AML Fails to Improve Results
HOUSTON — Intensive consolidation treatment before allogeneic stem-cell transplant did not improve outcomes in older patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), a retrospective comparison showed. Relapse-free survival (RFS) at 2 years was virtually identical for patients who received intensive consolidation therapy (51%) and those who did not (50%). The intensive-therapy group had a trend toward […]
Complete PCI Better for Older MI Patients Too
AMSTERDAM — Complete revascularization improved outcomes over culprit-lesion-only stenting in older acute myocardial infarction (MI) patients, the FIRE trial affirmed. Among a population ages 75 and older, the composite risk of death, MI, stroke, or any revascularization came out a relative 27% less common when addressing all the stenosed vessels during the same hospitalization (15.7% […]
Iron Infusions Narrowly Miss the Mark for Clinical Benefit in Heart Failure
AMSTERDAM — Ferric carboxymaltose (FCM) did not go so far as to improve hard outcomes in people with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) and iron deficiency in the well-powered HEART-FID trial, and it is questionable whether it is headed in that direction based on the totality of the evidence. Between study participants randomized […]
Surgery May Improve Dysphagia Outcomes in Kids With Sleep Apnea
Undergoing adenotonsillectomy may improve dysphagia outcomes in children with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and tonsil hypertrophy compared with watchful waiting with supportive care (WWSC), a secondary analysis of the randomized CHAT trial suggested. After 7 months, the prevalence of dysphagia — difficulty in swallowing — decreased by 21.3% (95% CI 13.5-28.9) in patients who underwent […]
Opinion | Who Is to Blame for the Rampant Overtreatment of Peripheral Artery Disease?
Hicks is an associate professor of surgery and a director of clinical outcomes research. The recent New York Times article highlighting inappropriate treatment patterns among patients with peripheral artery disease (PAD) has made a serious but much needed impact on patients and physicians alike. The article is complemented by a series of ProPublica articles that […]
Study Questions Relationship Between Hospital Competition and Surgical Quality
Outcomes after high-risk elective surgery did not have a clear relationship with a hospital’s local competitive landscape, a study using nationally representative Medicare data suggested. Hospitals in the highest-competition U.S. markets had mixed postsurgical outcomes compared with those in the lowest-competition markets: risk-adjusted 30-day mortality was lower for pancreatectomy (OR 0.93, 95% CI 0.91-0.95), rectal […]
Success With HIV-to-HIV Kidney Transplants
Three people living with HIV had promising outcomes after donating kidneys to three others with HIV, according to a prospective study within the HOPE in Action Multicenter Consortium. Among the three living donors, grade 3 or higher nephrectomy-related adverse events occurred in two donors after donation, including a medically managed ileus and a laparoscopically repaired […]
Protein found to protect females against obesity
Associated with poorer mental health outcomes and reduced quality of life, obesity is on the rise in the United States. Currently, more than 30% of American adults are classified as obese. A risk factor for several diseases, including diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and COVID-19, obesity is an important and growing public health concern. Using a mouse […]
MIND Diet Trial Reports Brain Findings
AMSTERDAM — Changes in cognition and brain MRI outcomes did not differ significantly over 3 years in overweight or obese people with a family history of dementia who followed the MIND diet — a hybrid of the Mediterranean diet and the DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet — compared with those who followed a […]