Home  About us  Contact
 

Drotrecogin Alfa (drotrecogin + alfa)

Distribution by Scientific Domains
Medical Sciences100%

Selected Abstracts

Drotrecogin alfa: Too early to give it early

EMERGENCY MEDICINE AUSTRALASIA, Issue 2 2005
Brendon Smith FACEM Senior Staff Specialist
No abstract is available for this article. [source]

Use of activated protein C has no avail in the early phase of acute pancreatitis

HPB, Issue 6 2008
Sinan Akay
Abstract Objectives. Sepsis and acute pancreatitis have similar pathogenetic mechanisms that have been implicated in the progression of multiple organ failure. Drotrecogin alfa, an analogue of endogenous protein C, reduces mortality in clinical sepsis. Our objective was to evaluate the early therapeutic effects of activated protein C (APC) in a rat model of acute necrotizing pancreatitis. Subjects and method. Acute necrotizing pancreatitis was induced by intraductal injection of 5% Na taurocholate. Hourly bolus injections of saline or recombinant human APC (drotrecogin alfa) was commenced via femoral venous catheter four hours after the induction of acute pancreatitis. The experiment was terminated nine hours after pancratitis induction. Animals in group one (n=20) had a sham operation while animals in group two (n=20) received saline and animals in group three (n=20) received drotrecogin alfa boluses after acute pancreatitis induction. Pancreatic tissue for histopathologic scores and myeloperoxidase, glutathione reductase, glutathione peroxidase, and catalase activites were collected, and blood for serum amylase, urea, creatinine, and inleukin-6 measurements was withdrawn. Results. Serum amylase activity was significantly lower in the APC treated group than the untreated group (17,435±432 U/L vs. 27,426±118 U/L, respectively). While the serum interleukin-6 concentration in the APC untreated group was significantly lower than the treated group (970±323 pg/mL vs. 330±368 pg/mL, respectively). Conclusion. In the early phase of acute pancreatitis, drotrecogin alfa treatment did not result in a significant improvement in oxidative and inflammatory parameters or renal functions. [source]

Activated protein C (Xigris®) treatment in sepsis: a drug in trouble

ACTA ANAESTHESIOLOGICA SCANDINAVICA, Issue 8 2006
B. Gårdlund
Drotrecogin alfa (activated) or recombinant human activated protein C (rhAPC) has been registered for use as adjuvant treatment in severe sepsis since 2001 under the trade name Xigris® essentially based on the results from one large clinical trial (the PROWESS trial). In a recently published second randomized clinical trial (the ADDRESS trial), enrolling patients with severe sepsis but with less risk of death, no effect of the treatment was shown, not even a trend to a positive effect in the subgroup of patients with a high risk of death that would match the present prescription label for Xigris®. In addition, a large randomized, placebo-controlled trial with rhAPC in paediatric sepsis has recently been terminated prematurely because of lack of efficacy. Altogether, the robustness of the data supporting the use of rhAPC in treating patients with severe sepsis may indeed be questioned. A confirmatory clinical trial is required before rhAPC can be used with confidence. The side-effects and the cost of rhAPC are well documented but its efficacy is not. [source]

Use of activated protein C has no avail in the early phase of acute pancreatitis

HPB, Issue 6 2008
Sinan Akay
Abstract Objectives. Sepsis and acute pancreatitis have similar pathogenetic mechanisms that have been implicated in the progression of multiple organ failure. Drotrecogin alfa, an analogue of endogenous protein C, reduces mortality in clinical sepsis. Our objective was to evaluate the early therapeutic effects of activated protein C (APC) in a rat model of acute necrotizing pancreatitis. Subjects and method. Acute necrotizing pancreatitis was induced by intraductal injection of 5% Na taurocholate. Hourly bolus injections of saline or recombinant human APC (drotrecogin alfa) was commenced via femoral venous catheter four hours after the induction of acute pancreatitis. The experiment was terminated nine hours after pancratitis induction. Animals in group one (n=20) had a sham operation while animals in group two (n=20) received saline and animals in group three (n=20) received drotrecogin alfa boluses after acute pancreatitis induction. Pancreatic tissue for histopathologic scores and myeloperoxidase, glutathione reductase, glutathione peroxidase, and catalase activites were collected, and blood for serum amylase, urea, creatinine, and inleukin-6 measurements was withdrawn. Results. Serum amylase activity was significantly lower in the APC treated group than the untreated group (17,435±432 U/L vs. 27,426±118 U/L, respectively). While the serum interleukin-6 concentration in the APC untreated group was significantly lower than the treated group (970±323 pg/mL vs. 330±368 pg/mL, respectively). Conclusion. In the early phase of acute pancreatitis, drotrecogin alfa treatment did not result in a significant improvement in oxidative and inflammatory parameters or renal functions. [source]