A comparison between two educational methods in the rehabilitation of the microstomia in systemic sclerosis: a randomized controlled trial

2019 ◽  
Vol 33 (11) ◽  
pp. 1747-1756
Author(s):  
Claudia Uras ◽  
Simona Mastroeni ◽  
Stefano Tabolli ◽  
Cinzia Masini ◽  
Sabatino Pallotta ◽  
...  

Objective: To test the effectiveness of an educational intervention including “face to face” training, compared to a standard information program, to reduce microstomia in women with systemic sclerosis. Design: Single-blind, two-arm, randomized controlled study with a 12-month follow-up period. Setting: Hospital wards of a large Italian dermatological reference center. Subjects: Female inpatients with diagnosis of systemic sclerosis. Interventions: For both groups an information brochure and an audio-visual DVD were developed specifically for the study. The control group was assigned to educational materials alone (i.e. brochures and DVD), while the experimental group, in addition to the same educational materials, received specific “face-to-face” interventions, repeated at each follow-up visit. Main measures: Primary outcome was measurement of the opening of the mouth. Secondary outcomes was the self-reported mouth disability. Results: The intention-to-treat analysis included 63 patients. Compared to the baseline measurement, we observed an increase of the mouth opening of 0.31 cm (95% confidence interval: 0.13–0.49), P = 0.003; in the control group, the increase was 0.13 cm (95% confidence interval: 0.01–0.25), P = 0.06. The difference in improvement between the two groups was not statistically significant ( P = 0.10); however, it reached statistical significance in the per-protocol analysis (39 patients, P = 0.02). Conclusion: Face-to-face nursing rehabilitation training seems to improve microstomia to a greater extent, when compared to a standard intervention based only on written and audio-visual materials.

Author(s):  
Héctor Guerrero-Tapia ◽  
Rodrigo Martín-Baeza ◽  
Rubén Cuesta-Barriuso

Background. Abdominal and lumbo-pelvic stability alterations may be the origin of lower limb injuries, such as adductor pathology in soccer players. Imbalance can be caused by both intrinsic and extrinsic factors. Methods: In this randomized controlled trial over 8 weeks, 25 female footballers were randomly allocated to an experimental group (isometric abdominal training and gluteus medius-specific training) or a control group (isometric abdominal training). Evaluations were performed at baseline, at the end of the intervention and after a 4-week follow-up period. The exercise protocol in common for both groups included three exercises: Plank, Lateral plank and Bird dog. Specific exercises for the gluteus medius were: Pelvic drop and Stabilization of the gluteus medius in knee valgus. Outcome measures were lumbar-pelvic stability and adductor strength. Results: After the intervention, there was an increase in lumbo-pelvic stability in both groups, being greater in the control group than in the experimental group (mean differences [MD]: 4.84 vs. MD: 9.58; p < 0.01) with differences in the analysis of repeated measures (p < 0.001), but not in group interaction (p = 0.26). Changes were found in adductor strength in the experimental group (MD: −2.48; p < 0.001 in the left adductor; MD: −1.48; p < 0.01 in right adductor) and control group (MD: −1.68; p < 0.001 in the left adductor; MD: −2.05; p < 0.001 in the right adductor) after the intervention, with differences in the analysis of repeated measures in left (p < 0.001) and right (p < 0.001) adductor strength. Conclusions: An abdominal and gluteal training protocol shows no advantage over a protocol of abdominal training alone for lumbo-pelvic stability and adductor strength, while improvements in both variables are maintained at four weeks follow-up.


2020 ◽  
Vol 23 (6) ◽  
pp. E897-E901
Author(s):  
Qiliang Zhang ◽  
Ning Xu ◽  
Shuting Huang ◽  
Qiang Chen ◽  
Hua Cao

Background: This study explored the clinical effect of implementing WeChat-based preoperative health education for parents of children with restrictive ventricular septal defect. Methods: A prospective randomized controlled study was conducted in a provincial hospital on the southeast coast of China. Participants were randomly divided into an intervention (WeChat) group (n = 35) and a control group (leaflet) group (n = 35). The study explored the parents’ knowledge of preoperative care, the follow-up rate, and complications of children with restrictive ventricular septal defect. Results: The score of preoperative care knowledge of the WeChat group (66.9 ± 3.5) was significantly higher than that of the leaflet group (47.3 ± 6.3) (P = .006). Compared with the score of care knowledge at the first visit, the score of the WeChat group at the preoperation was significantly higher (P < .05), whereas the increase in the score of the leaflet group was not significant. The rate of lost follow-up in the WeChat group (0%) was significantly lower than in the leaflet group (16.7%) (P = .02). The complications in the leaflet group were significantly higher than in the WeChat group. Conclusions: Using WeChat to provide preoperative health education to parents of children with restrictive ventricular septal defect can effectively enhance the parents’ knowledge of preoperative care and reduce the occurrence of complications and loss to follow-up.


Blood ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 134 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 1870-1870
Author(s):  
Kaini Shen ◽  
Yujun Dong ◽  
Weijun Fu ◽  
Yu Wu ◽  
Zhongxia Huang ◽  
...  

【Introduction 】There is ongoing unmet need for effective therapies in Mayo 2004 stage II-III amyloid light-chain (AL) amyloidosis patients, who undergo early death due to cardiac dysfunction. Lately, in vitro studies demonstrated that doxycycline could induce disruption of fibril formation in transgenic mouse model of AL amyloidosis. Matched case-control study of standard chemotherapy with or without doxycycline confirmed higher hematological response, cardiac responses and superior survival with doxycycline in AL patients. However, the possible advantage of doxycycline on lower early mortality and better long-term survival has not been evaluated in a randomized controlled clinical trial. We designed a randomized unblinded controlled study to investigate the efficacy and safety of co-administration of oral doxycycline with bortezomib-cyclophosphamide-dexamethasone (BCD) regimen in treatment-naïve AL amyloidosis patients with Mayo 2004 stage II-III disease. 【Methods 】The randomized unblinded controlled study took place in 12 hospitals in China. Eligible participants were adults with a confirmed diagnosis of AL amyloidosis, whose Mayo 2004 stage were II or III. Enrolled patients were randomly allocated to receive either doxycycline combined with BCD or BCD alone as initial treatment. We chose stratified blocked randomization (block size of 4) to ensure Mayo stage II and III were evenly distributed between doxycycline group and control group. For both two groups, patients will receive 1.3mg/m2of subcutaneous bortezomib and 40mg of oral or intravenous dexamethasone on days 1, 8, 15 and 22, and 300mg/m2oral or intravenous cyclophosphamide on days 1, 8 and 15 of a 35-day cycle. This process was repeated for 9 cycles. Doxycycline was given orally 100mg twice daily for the experimental group. The primary endpoint is progression-free survival. Secondary endpoints include overall survival, adverse events, hematological response, organ response and safety of treatment. This trial has been registered with ClinicalTrials.gov (number NCT03401372) and recruitment and follow-up are ongoing. We planned to enroll a total of 140 participants. 【Results 】Between April 21st, 2018 and June 30th, 2019, 111 patients were enrolled and randomly assigned to receive doxycycline plus BCD (n=56) or BCD alone (n=55) (Figure 1). The baseline characteristics were shown in Table 1. The median age was 61 (range, 41-78) years with a male: female ratio of 1.64:1. Mayo 2004 stage II disease was present in 28 patients in the control group and 29 patients in the doxycycline group. Mayo 2004 stage III disease was present in 27 patients in the control group and 27 patients in the doxycycline group. The median cTnI was 0.10 (range, 0-1.92) μg/L, NT-proBNP 3647 (range, 271-20507) pg/mL, and dFLC 205.30 (50.28-791.90) mg/L, with no significant difference between either group. Organ involvement included the heart (100%), kidney (61.3%), liver (14.4%), peripheral nerves (10.8%) and gastrointestinal tract (5.4%). The percentage of hepatic involvement and 24-hour urine protein were higher in the doxycycline group. The median duration of doxycycline was 5.9 months. Only one patient discontinued doxycycline due to toxicity (Grade 2 rash). Till now, the median follow-up time was 6.1 months and no patients were lost to follow-up. Fourteen patients have completed 9 cycles of chemotherapy. In total, 22 patients died and disease progression occurred in 3 patients. Two patients discontinued treatment due to withdrawal of consent and one of them proceeded to autologous stem cell transplantation. Three patients discontinued study drug owing to unacceptable diarrhea and received second-line treatment based on ixazomib or melphalan afterwards. The grade 3/4 adverse effects were developed in 8 patients (1 infection, 1 mucositis and 6 diarrhea) in the control group and 6 patients (1 infection, 1 arrhythmia, 1 kidney dysfunction and 3 diarrhea) in the doxycycline group. 【Conclusions 】Our data suggested that addition of doxycycline to standard bortezomib-based chemotherapy was an tolerable regimen for treating patients with AL amyloidosis. If this protocol could significantly improve survival and organ response needs to be confirmed with further follow-up. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.


Author(s):  
Asad Islam ◽  
HongQi Alexis Tan ◽  
Claire C. Bristow ◽  
Md Golam Hasnain ◽  
Russell Smyth ◽  
...  

Past studies that have designed interventions to reduce the prevalence of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) have typically provided onsite treatment to sex workers who tested positive, which were expensive and difficult to implement. The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of an intervention which tested for STIs and provided information on the closest treatment facility on reducing the prevalence of STIs among female brothel-based sex workers (BSWs) in Bangladesh. The study adopted a pre–post interventional design as well as a randomized controlled study design. A baseline sample and follow-up urine sample were collected to evaluate the prevalence of STIs among participants in the treatment, but not control group. A baseline survey and interviews were also conducted for both the groups. The study found a nonsignificant reduction from baseline to follow-up in STI prevalence among intervention participants (adjusted odds ratio [aOR]: 0.74; 95% CI: 0.38, 1.45). However, the participants in the intervention group were significantly more likely to have a repeat client (aOR: 1.60; 95% CI: 1.12, 2.29) and nonsignificantly less likely to engage with a client suspected of having an STI (aOR: 0.62; 95% CI: 0.39, 1.00) than participants in the control group. The intervention testing of STIs and providing information to the positive cases about nearest treatment facilities were not effective in reducing the prevalence of STIs among BSWs. Further study of the clinical and behavioral impacts of such efforts to reduce STIs among BSWs is warranted.


2012 ◽  
Vol 30 (5_suppl) ◽  
pp. LBA266-LBA266
Author(s):  
Takashi Saika ◽  
Tomoyasu Tsushima ◽  
Yasutomo Nasu ◽  
Hiromi Kumon ◽  

LBA266 Background: Although single intravesical instillation chemotherapy immediately after transurethral resection (TUR) is the standard treatment for non-muscle-invasive bladder tumors, 40% to 80% of tumors show intravesical recurrence. In this prospective randomized controlled study, we try to evaluate the prophylactic efficacy and safety of twice intravesical instillation using pirarubicin (THP) administered immediately after TUR and on the next day following TUR by comparison with single instillation immediately after TUR. Methods: Between 2005 and 2009, 250 patients with Ta and T1 solitary bladder carcinoma were enrolled in this study. Patients were randomized into two groups. Group A patients were treated with two intravesical instillations of THP 30 mg/50 ml saline immediately after TUR and within 24 hours. Group B patients were treated with single instillation of the same dose immediately after TUR as a control group. The primary endpoint was duration to the first recurrence, and the secondary endpoint was safety. Results: The enrollment was closed on 2009, and the follow-up phase is in process. Of the 250 patients, 125 in Group A and 125 in Group B could be evaluated as full analysis set. One hundred eight male and 17 female were in Group A, on the other hands, one hundred five male and 20 female were in Group B. Eighty-six cases (69%) in group A, and 88 cases (70%) in group B were primary tumor. Fifty-seven cases (46%) in group A, and 56 cases (45%) in group B were small tumor (less than 10mm). There was no difference between backgrounds of both groups. The randomization worked well. In this ad interim report, median follow up was 48 months. Two-year recurrence-free rates were 76.8% in group A and 67.5% in group B. Adverse reactions related to instillation were observed in about 20% of the patients. These toxicities were mild and transient. Only the incidence of frequency in group A was higher than that in group B (20% vs. 8%, p=0.0106). Conclusions: Intravesical instillation of THP 30 mg twice within 24 hours after TUR was effective as prophylactic therapy for non-muscle-invasive cancer with tolerable toxicity problems.


Nutrients ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 899
Author(s):  
Hidehiko Nakano ◽  
Hideki Hashimoto ◽  
Masaki Mochizuki ◽  
Hiromu Naraba ◽  
Yuji Takahashi ◽  
...  

The effects of beta-hydroxy-beta-methylbutyrate (HMB) complex administration and the significance of titin, a biomarker of muscle injury, in elderly minor trauma patients in acute phase has not been established. In this single-center, randomized controlled study, trauma patients aged ≥ 70 years with an injury severity score < 16 were included. Titin values on days 1 and 3 were measured and the intervention group received HMB complex (2.4 g of HMB + 14 g of glutamine + 14 g of arginine) and the control group received glutamine complex (7.2 g of protein including 6 g of glutamine). The cross-sectional area of the rectus femoris (RFCSA) on ultrasound, grip strength, and the Barthel Index were assessed on the first day of rehabilitation and after 2 weeks. We analyzed 24 HMB and 25 control participants. Titin values on day 3 correlated with grip strength (r = −0.34, p = 0.03) and the Barthel Index (r = −0.39, p = 0.01) at follow-up. HMB complex supplementation had no effect on the RFCSA (2.41 vs. 2.45 cm2, p = 0.887), grip strength (13.3 vs. 13.1 kg, p = 0.946), or the Barthel Index (20.0 vs. 50.0, p = 0.404) at follow-up. Titin values might associate with subsequent physical function. Short-term HMB complex supplementation from acute phase did not ameliorate muscle injury.


Author(s):  
Manas Chatterjee ◽  
Shekhar Neema ◽  
Gopalsing Rameshsing Rajput

Background: Melasma is the commonest cause of facial hypermelanosis in skin type IV-VI. First-line treatment includes a triple combination containing topical corticosteroid and hydroquinone which have side effects on prolonged use. Chemical peels are a second-line management option with the laser being used in refractory cases, but the worsening of hyperpigmentation in darker skin types can occur following laser therapy. Sunscreen is a must to prevent relapses. Aims and Objectives: (i) To compare the effects of treatment with a proprietary combination (phenyl ethyl resorcinol, nonapeptide-1, aminoethyl phosphinic acid, antioxidants and sunscreen) versus sunscreen alone in limiting or reducing, melasma and preventing recurrence as a maintenance regimen after the initial use of triple combination,(ii) to evaluate the safety of the formulation studied, and (iii) to study the improvement of the quality of life of the patients after using the study formulation versus placebo. Methods: It was a prospective double-blinded parallel-group randomized controlled pilot study. A total of 46 subjects were recruited by consecutive sampling methods and randomized to 23 each in case and control groups. The study period was eight months with three phases. Phase 1 constituted the application of triple combination for eight weeks by both groups followed by phase 2 with the case group applying proprietary medicine and the control group applying sunscreen. Phase 3 was a follow-up period to see the sustenance of results in both groups as well as any evidence of relapses. Sunscreen was applied in all three phases. Results: Case group in the study showed improvement in the melasma severity score and mean melanin index as measured by mexameter but it did not attain statistical significance as compared to the control group. The melasma area and severity index score showed a consistent reduction in the case group, whereas it increased in the control group from baseline. Limitations: Small sample size and a short follow-up period of our study were major limitations. Conclusion: The proprietary combination, which has sunscreen as one of its constituents, is more effective in maintaining remission after triple combination without any added inconvenience of application of two separate preparations as compared to sunscreen alone.


2015 ◽  
Vol 18;4 (4;18) ◽  
pp. 307-316
Author(s):  
Ramsin M. Benyamin

Background: Epidural steroid injections (ESIs) are commonly used for treatment of symptomatic lumbar spinal stenosis (LSS). ESIs are generally administered after failure of conservative therapy. For LSS patients suffering from neurogenic claudication, the mild® procedure provides an alternative to ESIs via minimally invasive lumbar decompression. Both ESIs and mild offer interventional pain treatment options for LSS patients experiencing neurogenic claudication refractory to more conservative therapies. Study Design: Prospective, multi-center, randomized controlled, clinical study. Setting: Twenty-six interventional pain management centers throughout the United States. Objective: To compare patient outcomes following treatment with either mild or ESIs in LSS patients with neurogenic claudication and having verified ligamentum flavum hypertrophy. Methods: Study participants include Medicare beneficiaries who meet study inclusion/exclusion criteria. Eligible patients will be randomized in a 1:1 ratio to one of 2 treatment arms, mild (treatment group) or ESI (control group). Each study group will include approximately 150 patients who have experienced neurogenic claudication symptoms for ≥ 3 months duration who have failed to respond to physical therapy, home exercise programs, and oral analgesics. Those randomized to mild are prohibited from receiving lumbar ESIs during the study period, while those randomized to ESI may receive ESIs up to 4 times per year. Patient assessments will occur at baseline, 6 months, and one year. An additional assessment will be conducted for the mild patient group at 2 years. Outcome Measures: The primary efficacy outcome measure is the proportion of Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) responders from baseline to one year follow-up in the treatment group (mild) versus the control group (ESI). ODI responders are defined as those patients achieving the validated Minimal Important Change (MIC) of ≥ 10 point improvement in ODI from baseline to follow-up as a clinically significant efficacy threshold. Secondary efficacy outcome measures include the proportion of Zurich Claudication Questionnaire (ZCQ) and Numeric Pain Rating Scale (NPRS) responders from baseline to follow-up using validated MIC thresholds. Improvement in ZCQ domains of ≥ 0.5 is considered significant, and a Patient Satisfaction score of at least 2.5 represents a satisfied patient. A reduction of ≥ 2 points in NPRS is considered significant pain relief. The primary safety outcome measure is the incidence of device- and/or procedure-related adverse events. Results: Descriptive summaries will be presented by randomized group for all outcome measures at baseline and follow-up time points. Inferential statistical analysis will be conducted to determine significant differences related to functional improvement, pain relief, and safety outcomes. Primary study results will be presented based on one-year follow-up data, with an interim analysis report when 6-month follow-up data become available. Limitations: Patients are not blinded due to significant differences in treatment protocols between study groups. Also, since neither study arm is focused on treatment of radicular pain, there may be a higher non-responder rate for both groups versus standard of care due to study restrictions on adjunctive pain therapies. Conclusions: This prospective, multi-center, randomized controlled study will provide Level I evidence of the safety and effectiveness of mild versus ESIs in managing neurogenic claudication symptoms in LSS patients. Key words: mild, lumbar spinal stenosis, LSS, epidural steroid injection, neurogenic claudication, ligamentum flavum


2018 ◽  
Vol 46 (6) ◽  
pp. 1424-1431 ◽  
Author(s):  
You-Zhi Cai ◽  
Chi Zhang ◽  
Ri-Long Jin ◽  
Tong Shen ◽  
Peng-Cheng Gu ◽  
...  

Background: Due to the highly organized tissue and avascular nature of the rotator cuff, rotator cuff tears have limited ability to heal after the tendon is reinserted directly on the greater tubercle of the humerus. Consequently, retears are among the most common complications after rotator cuff repair. Augmentation of rotator cuff repairs with patches has been an active area of research in recent years to reduce retear rate. Hypothesis: Graft augmentation with 3D collagen could prevent retears of the repaired tendon and improve tendon-bone healing in moderate to large rotator cuff tears. Study Design: Randomized controlled study; Level of evidence, 2. Methods: A prospective, randomized controlled study was performed in a consecutive series of 112 patients age 50 to 85 years who underwent rotator cuff repair with the suture-bridge technique (58 patients, control group) or the suture-bridge technique augmented with 3-dimensional (3D) collagen (54 patients, study group). All patients were followed for 28.2 months (range, 24-36 months). Visual analog scale score for pain, University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) shoulder score, and Constant score were determined. Magnetic resonance imaging was performed pre- and postoperatively (at a minimum of 24 months) to evaluate the integrity of the rotator cuff and the retear rate of the repaired tendon. Three patients in each group had biopsies at nearly 24 months after surgery with histological assessment and transmission electron microscopy. Results: A total of 104 patients completed the final follow-up. At the 12-month follow-up, the UCLA shoulder score was 28.1 ± 1.9 in the study group, which was significantly better than that in the control group (26.9 ± 2.1, P = .002). The Constant score was also significantly better in the study group (87.1 ± 3.2) than in the control group (84.9 ± 4.2, P = .003). However, at the final follow-up, no significant differences were found in the UCLA shoulder scores (29.4 ± 1.9 in the control group and 30.0 ± 1.6 in the study group, P = .052) or Constant scores (89.9 ± 3.2 in the control group and 90.8 ± 3.5 in the study group, P = .18). In terms of structural integrity, more patients in the study group had a favorable type I retear grade (18/51) than in the control group (10/53) ( P = .06). The postoperative retear rate was 34.0% in the control group and 13.7% in the study group, thus indicating a significantly lower retear rate in the study group ( P = .02). Biopsy specimens of the tendon-bone interface in 6 patients revealed more bone formation and more aligned fibers with larger diameters in the study group than in the control group. No intraoperative or postoperative complications were noted in either group. Conclusion: 3D collagen augmentation could provide effective treatment of moderate to large rotator cuff tears, providing substantial functional improvement, and could reduce the retear rate. This technique could also promote new tendon-bone formation, thus exerting a prominent effect on tendon-bone healing.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Meiping Xu ◽  
Fuhao Zheng ◽  
Tingting Peng ◽  
Chunxiao Wang ◽  
Jiangtao Lou ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Intermittent exotropia (IXT) is the most common type of exotropia in China. Surgery is usually required to align the eye deviation to maintain or obtain better binocular visual function. However, there is a high rate of exodrift or recurrence in surgically treated patients. Orthoptic therapy is sometimes recommended for IXT patients after surgery. However, there is a lack of high-quality randomized controlled trials to prove that orthoptic therapy could be an effective supplement to surgical treatment for IXT patients. This study was designed to confirm such an application. This report describes the design and methodology of the Intermittent Exotropia Post-operative Treatment Clinical Trial, which is the first large-sample, blank-controlled, randomized clinical trial. Methods A total of 136 IXT patients (aged 7 to 17 years) will be enrolled and assigned to the orthoptic therapy group or blank control group according to a simple randomization scheme. Patients in the orthoptic therapy group will receive at least 2 months of orthoptic therapy, such as anti-suppression, vergence, and accommodation training. Patients in the blank control group will receive only refractive correction. All enrolled patients will need regular follow-up observation until 2 years after surgery. The primary outcome will be the proportion of participants meeting suboptimal surgical outcomes in this 2-year follow-up, which is defined as (1) exodeviation of 10 prism diopters (PD) at distance or near using the simultaneous prism and cover test (SPCT) or (2) loss of 2 or more octaves of stereoacuity from baseline, at any masked follow-up visit examination. The secondary outcomes will be the exodeviation at distance and near using the simultaneous prism and alternate cover test (PACT), magnitude of fusional convergence, stereoacuity, and accommodation. Measurements will be taken at baseline and at the 6-, 12-, 18-, and 24-month follow-ups. Discussion To the best of our knowledge, this will be the first prospective, randomized controlled study of binocular training in IXT patients after surgery. The aim of this work is to confirm the efficacy of orthoptic therapy in reducing the proportion of recurrence among IXT patients after surgery and improving binocular vision function. Trial registration: Chinese Clinical Trial Registry ChiCTR1900026891. Registered on 25 October 2019.


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