scholarly journals What Are Appropriate Initial and Salvage Therapies for Patients with Thrombotic Thrombocyopenic Purpura (TTP)?

2004 ◽  
Vol 47 (1) ◽  
pp. 59-60
Author(s):  
Leo McCarthy ◽  
Atillio Orazi ◽  
Charles Miraglia ◽  
Daniel Waxman ◽  
Elaine Skipworth ◽  
...  

Although much has been learned about the pathophysiologic process of thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP), both diagnostically and therapeutically, since its initial description by Moschowitz in 1924, its etiology and treatments remain, in many instances, problematic. Thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura remains a rare entity whose etiology is usually unknown, but several drugs and infections have now been implicated in its development. Although treatment by plasma exchange has gained worldwide acceptance, the optimal exchange media is not known, nor the volume and duration of exchange therapy, not appropriate salvage therapies. Without the benefit of randomized controlled trials, its treatment, to a large extent, remains not evidence-based but “eminence-based“, making the same mistakes with increasing confidence over decades.

Hematology ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 2017 (1) ◽  
pp. 632-638 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey L. Winters

Abstract Thrombotic microangiopathies (TMAs) are a diverse group of disorders that are characterized by common clinical and laboratory features. The most commonly thought-of TMA is thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP). Because of the marked improvement in patient mortality associated with the use of therapeutic plasma exchange (TPE) in TTP, this therapy has been applied to all of the TMAs. The issue, however, is that the pathophysiology varies and in many instances may represent a disorder of the endothelium and not the blood; in some cases, the pathophysiology is unknown. The use of TPE is further obscured by a lack of strong supporting literature on its use, with most consisting of case series and case reports; controlled or randomized controlled trials are lacking. Evidence supporting the use of TPE in the treatment of TMAs (other than TTP and TMA–complement mediated) is lacking, and therefore its role is uncertain. With the greater availability of genetic testing for mutations involving complement regulatory genes and complement pathway components, there seems to be a percentage of TMA cases, other than TMA–complement mediated, in which complement pathway mutations are involved in some patients. The ability of TPE to remove abnormal complement pathway components and replace them with normal components may support its use in some patients with TMAs other than TTP and TMA–complement mediated.


1997 ◽  
Vol 111 (7) ◽  
pp. 611-613 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. W. Ah-See ◽  
N. C. Molony ◽  
A. G. D. Maran

AbstractThere is a growth in the demand for clinical practice to be evidence based. Recent years have seen a rise in the number of randomized controlled clinical trials (RCTS). Such trials while acknowledged as the gold standard for evidence can be difficult to perform in surgical specialities. We have recently identified a low proportion of RCTS in the otolaryngology literature. Our aim was to identify any trend in the number of published RCTS within the ENT literature over a 30-year period and to identify which areas of our speciality lend themselves to this form of study design. A Medline search of 10 prominent journals published between 1966 and 1995 was performed. Two hundred and ninety-six RCTS were identified. Only five were published before 1980. Two hundred (71 per cent) of RCTS were in the areas of otology and rhinology. An encouraging trend is seen in RCTS within ENT literature.


2021 ◽  
pp. 384-390
Author(s):  
Omolara A. Fatiregun ◽  
Temiloluwa Oluokun ◽  
Nwamaka N. Lasebikan ◽  
Emmanuella Nwachukwu ◽  
Abiola A. Ibraheem ◽  
...  

PURPOSE Breast cancer is the most common malignancy in women worldwide. In Nigeria, it accounts for 22.7% of all new cancer cases among women. Evidence-based medicine (EBM) entails using the results from healthcare research to enhance the clinical decision-making process and develop evidence-based treatment guidelines. Level 1 and 2 studies, such as randomized controlled trials, meta-analyses, and systematic reviews of randomized controlled trials, yield more robust types of evidence. This study reviewed the levels of evidence of breast cancer publications in Nigeria. METHODS We conducted an electronic literature search of all studies published on breast cancer in Nigeria from January 1961 to August 2019. We reviewed all the articles found under the search term “Breast Cancer in Nigeria” on medical databases. RESULTS Our search identified 2,242 publications. One thousand two hundred fifty duplicates were removed, and 520 were excluded. A total of 472 articles were considered eligible for this review. Most of these articles were case series or reports (30.7%), qualitative studies (15.7%), followed by cross-sectional studies (13.3%), laboratory studies (12.9%), case-control studies (6.1%), case reports (7%), and cohort (5.7%). CONCLUSION Breast cancer research in Nigeria is yet to produce much evidence of the types considered to best support EBM. The scarcity of data hampers the implementation of EBM in Nigeria. Currently, most treatment guidelines are adapted from those developed in other countries, despite genetic differences among populations and different environmental influencing factors.


2012 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 21-24
Author(s):  
Mohammad A. Bajubair

Objectives: Not all practice guidelines on oral treatment of Type 2 diabetes were consistent with available evidences. Our aim was to explore the necessity of following the new clinical evidences in treatment of diabetes mellitus Type 2 in clinical practice and the availability of randomized controlled trials in literature used. Methods: Cross-sectional interview survey of 20 physicians in the Internal Medicine Departments in Althawra Teaching Hospital, University of Sana'a, Yemen, to understand the drug used in T2DM in regards to the clinically evidenced trials. The three commonly used literatures were studied for the availability of randomized controlled trials s and the systematic reviews. Results: Examples of drugs to be considered in special correlation and contradiction were metformin and thiazolidinediones (rosi-, pioglitazone). Fear of lactic acidosis was seen in 45% of physicians. Ischemic Heart disease and failure represent the commonest cause of glitazones avoidance, especially for rosiglitazone (100% vs. 50% for pioglitazone). Example of drugs used were with no agreements of their benefit are gabapentin (35%) and neurobion (30%) for neuropathy prevention. In the side effect consideration, metformin was still considered dangerous, and B-blockers hesitation in ischemic heart disease prevention. The main source of information used by physicians was Davidson's Medicine, British national formulary and pharmaceutical marketing leaflets. Conclusions: Inconsistency between the tested physicians may be improved by better access and implementation of evidence-based therapy and guidelines in T2DM.


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