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Antagonist Therapy (antagonist + therapy)
Selected AbstractsEvaluation of the cost-effectiveness of Helicobacter pylori eradication triple therapy vs. conventional therapy for ulcers in JapanALIMENTARY PHARMACOLOGY & THERAPEUTICS, Issue 11 2001S. Ikeda Background: Helicobacter pylori eradication triple therapy with a combination of lansoprazole, amoxicillin and clarithromycin was approved in Japan in September 2000. Aim: To compare the cost-effectiveness of this eradication therapy with conventional histamine-2 receptor antagonist therapy in Japan. Methods: We established two Markov models for gastric and duodenal ulcers. The model design was based on the Japanese H. pylori eradication guideline and a specialist's opinions, and the model inputs were obtained from a literature review. The models predict the direct medical costs, number of disease-free days and cost per disease-free day for 5 years. Results: In the gastric ulcer model, the expected total costs of eradication and conventional therapies per patient were ¥169 719 and ¥390 921, respectively; the expected numbers of disease-free days were 1454 days and 1313 days, respectively. In the duodenal ulcer model, the expected total costs were ¥134 786 and ¥324 689, respectively; the expected numbers of disease-free days were 1503 days and 1387 days, respectively. The sensitivity analyses showed that the results of the base case analysis were robust. Conclusions: This eradication therapy is less costly and more effective than conventional therapy for the treatment of gastric and duodenal ulcers in a Japanese medical setting. [source] Response to IL-1-Receptor Antagonist in a Child with Familial Cold Autoinflammatory SyndromePEDIATRIC DERMATOLOGY, Issue 1 2007Susan M. O'Connell M.R.C.P.I. They appear to represent a continuum of one disease characterized by IL-1-mediated inflammation. Until recently, these conditions have been difficult to treat; however, with the advent of IL-1-receptor antagonist therapy, many reports of successful treatment of patients with these autoinflammatory diseases have emerged in the past 2 years. We describe an 8-year-old girl, diagnosed with Familial cold auto-inflammatory syndrome, confirmed by presence of a novel CIAS1 mutation, who was refractory to symptomatic treatment. As frequent attacks of urticaria and associated arthralgia had a debilitating effect on the child's lifestyle, a trial of IL-1-receptor antagonist (anakinra) was instituted. Dramatic sustained clinical improvement was evident within days and serum amyloid and C-reactive protein levels normalized within a month. Although several authors have reported successful use of this agent in children with chronic infantile neurologic, cutaneous, articular syndrome, we believe ours is the first report of successful treatment with anakinra in a young child with familial cold auto-inflammatory syndrome. [source] Effect of chronic ,-blockade on peri-operative outcome in patients undergoing non-cardiac surgery: an analysis of observational and case control studies*ANAESTHESIA, Issue 6 2004J. W. Giles Summary Little is known about the effect of chronic ,-adrenoceptor antagonist therapy during the peri-operative period in patients undergoing non-cardiac surgery. We conducted a literature review to identify studies examining the relationship between chronic therapy and adverse peri-operative outcome. Eighteen studies were identified in which it was possible to ascertain the incidence of adverse cardiac outcomes in those patients who were and were not receiving chronic ,-blocker therapy. None of the studies demonstrated a protective effect of chronic ,-blockade. The results of these studies were then combined and a cumulative odds ratio calculated for the likelihood of myocardial infarction, cardiac death and major cardiac complications. Patients receiving chronic ,-blocker therapy were more likely to suffer a myocardial infarction (p < 0.05). These findings differ from the published effects of acute ,-blockade. Reasons for this discrepancy are considered. [source] Association of the response to tumor necrosis factor antagonists with plasma type I interferon activity and interferon-,/, ratios in rheumatoid arthritis patients: A post hoc analysis of a predominantly Hispanic cohortARTHRITIS & RHEUMATISM, Issue 2 2010Clio P. Mavragani Objective Despite the substantial clinical efficacy of tumor necrosis factor , (TNF,) antagonist therapy in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), some patients respond poorly to such agents. Since an interferon (IFN) signature is variably expressed among RA patients, we investigated whether plasma type I IFN activity might predict the response to TNF antagonist therapy. Methods RA patients (n = 35), the majority of whom were Hispanic, from a single center were evaluated before and after initiation of TNF antagonist therapy. As controls, 12 RA patients from the same center who were not treated with a TNF antagonist were studied. Plasma type I IFN activity was measured using a reporter cell assay, and disease status was assessed using the Disease Activity Score in 28 joints (DAS28). Levels of interleukin-1 receptor antagonist (IL-1Ra) were determined in baseline plasma samples using a commercial enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The clinical response was classified according to the European League Against Rheumatism criteria for improvement in RA. Results Plasma type I IFN activity at baseline was significantly associated with clinical response (odds ratio 1.36 [95% confidence interval 1.05,1.76], P = 0.020), with high baseline IFN activity associated with a good response. Changes in DAS28 scores were greater among patients with a baseline plasma IFN,/, ratio >0.8 (indicating elevated plasma IFN, levels). Consistent with the capacity of IFN, to induce IL-1Ra, elevated baseline IL-1Ra levels were associated with better therapeutic outcomes (odds ratio 1.82 [95% confidence interval 1.1,3.29], P = 0.027). Conclusion The plasma type I IFN activity, the IFN,/, ratio, and the IL-1Ra level were predictive of the therapeutic response in TNF antagonist,treated RA patients, indicating that these parameters might define clinically meaningful subgroups of RA patients with distinct responses to therapeutic agents. [source] The future of folic acid antagonist therapy in rheumatoid arthritisARTHRITIS & RHEUMATISM, Issue 1 2009Christoph Fiehn First page of article [source] Does vascular endothelial growth factor play a role in interleukin-6 receptor antagonist therapy for rheumatoid arthritis?ARTHRITIS & RHEUMATISM, Issue 6 2003Julieta Gentiletti First page of article [source] Tumor necrosis factor antagonist therapy and lymphoma development: Twenty-six cases reported to the Food and Drug Administration,ARTHRITIS & RHEUMATISM, Issue 12 2002S. Lori Brown PhD Objective Etanercept and infliximab are tumor necrosis factor (TNF) antagonists that have been recently approved for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and Crohn's disease (CD). This study was undertaken to investigate the occurrence of lymphoproliferative disorders in patients treated with these agents. Methods Relevant data in the MedWatch postmarket adverse event surveillance system run by the US Food and Drug Administration were reviewed. Results We identified 26 cases of lymphoproliferative disorders following treatment with etanercept (18 cases) or infliximab (8 cases). The majority of cases (81%) were non-Hodgkin's lymphomas. The interval between initiation of therapy with etanercept or infliximab and the development of lymphoma was very short (median 8 weeks). In 2 instances (1 infliximab, 1 etanercept), lymphoma regression was observed following discontinuation of anti-TNF treatment, in the absence of specific cytotoxic therapy directed toward the lymphoma. Conclusion Although data from a case series such as this cannot establish a clear causal relationship between exposure to these medications and the risk of lymphoproliferative disease, the known predisposition of patients with RA and CD to lymphoma, the known excess of lymphoma in other immunosuppressed populations, and the known immunosuppressive effects of the anti-TNF drugs provide a biologic basis for concern and justification for the initiation of additional epidemiologic studies to formally evaluate this possible association. [source] Transcranial Doppler ultrasonography-directed intravenous glycoprotein IIb/IIIa receptor antagonist therapy to control transient cerebral microemboli before and after carotid endarterectomy,BRITISH JOURNAL OF SURGERY (NOW INCLUDES EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF SURGERY), Issue 6 2008D. van Dellen Background: Patients with a transient focal neurological deficit, critical carotid stenosis and/or microemboli detected by transcranial Doppler ultrasonography (TCD) have a significant risk of stroke. The effect of tirofiban, a selective glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitor, was assessed in patients with microembolic signals on TCD after transient ischaemic attacks or carotid endarterectomy (CEA). Methods: Thirty-three patients with microemboli on TCD (13 symptomatic preoperative, 19 postoperative, one both) were treated with tirofiban between 2002 and 2007. All patients had carotid stenosis greater than 70 per cent. TCD monitoring was used during and after tirofiban therapy. Results: The median (range) rate of microemboli decreased from 22 (4,260) per h before surgery and 81 (44,216) per h after surgery to 0 (0,9) per h in both groups (P < 0·001, Mann,Whitney U test). This occurred rapidly (preoperative median 30 min; postoperative median 45 min) and was well tolerated in all patients, with no serious adverse effects. Conclusion: Cerebral microemboli were controlled by tirofiban both before and after CEA. Further study is required to compare the relative efficacy of tirofiban and dextran. Copyright © 2008 British Journal of Surgery Society Ltd. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Overview of the relationship between ischemia and congestive heart failureCLINICAL CARDIOLOGY, Issue S4 2000PH.D., Willem J. Remme M.D. Abstract Ischemic heart disease is the principal etiology of heart failure in the Western world. Myocardial ischemia is important in cardiac remodeling, a process that leads to a progressive change in the shape and size of the heart and significantly worsens the prognosis of patients with heart failure. Preventing ischemic events, therefore, is an important goal in the management of patients with coronary artery disease. Statins have been shown to reduce the number of ischemic events in these patients, whereas the benefit of beta-blocker and aldosterone antagonist therapy on ischemic causes of heart failure remains unclear. Several large trials involving patients with asymptomatic left ventricular dysfunction after myocardial infarction or heart failure have shown that angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors reduce the incidence of progressive heart failure, death, and ischemic events, thus establishing ACE inhibitors as first-line therapy for these patients. Other lines of evidence have suggested that ACE inhibitor therapy may also benefit patients with preserved left ventricular function, a hypothesis that is being evaluated in three large, controlled, randomized trials. One of these trials, the Heart Outcomes Prevention Evaluation (HOPE) study, was terminated prematurely because it demonstrated the significant positive effects of the ACE inhibitor ramipril on cardiovascular outcomes in patients with coronary artery disease and preserved left ventricular function. A growing body of data confirms the relationship between ischemia and heart failure and the benefits of ACE inhibitor treatment in a broad range of high-risk patients. [source] |