Retrospective observational studies: Lights and shadows for medical writers.

A retrospective study (by definition non-interventional) is a purely observational review and/or reassessment of database records with the aim of analyzing previous events of interest. The ethical and scientific standards for conducting biomedical research with humans have been established in international guidelines. Nevertheless, the reporting of ethical considerations in human research is not yet agreed upon globally, although some progress has been made in recent years.

Glucose Metabolism and Insulin Response to Oral Glucose Tolerance Test (OGTT) in Prepubertal Patients with Transfusion-Dependent β-thalassemia (TDT): A Long-Term Retrospective Analysis.

Background: Glucose dysregulation (GD), including prediabetes and diabetes mellitus (DM), is a common complication of transfusion-dependent β-thalassemia (TDT) patients. The prevalence increases with age and magnitude of iron overload, affecting a significant proportion of patients. According to the international guidelines, the development of GD is frequently asymptomatic.

The Pancreatic changes affecting glucose homeostasis in transfusion dependent β- thalassemia (TDT): a short review.

Background: The natural history of the glycometabolic state in transfusion-dependent β-thalassemia (TDT) patients is characterized by a deterioration of glucose tolerance over time.

Aims: This review depicts our current knowledges on the complex and multifacet pathophysiologic mechanisms implicated in the development of alteration of glucose homeostasis in patients with TDT.

Search Strategy: A systematic search was done on December 2020 including Web of Science (ISI), Scopus,  PubMed, Embase, and Scholar for papers published in the last 20 years.

Oncology practice during COVID-19 pandemic: a fast response is the best response.

The first confirmed case of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Brasil was reported on February 25th, 2020, and by April 3rd, 8076 were confirmed in the country. As COVID-19 disease incidence escalates in Brasil, management of cancer patients requires immediate action and oncology clinics are urged to establish a contingency plan. We have installed a COVID-19 Management Committee to elaborate and implement best practices to assist cancer outpatients as well as to provide a safe environment for clinical staff and other employees at the outpatient clinics.

Prevalence, attitude and practice of self-medication among adolescents and the paradigm of dysmenorrhea self-care management in different countries.

Self-medication (SM) is an important worldwide public health issue affecting children and adolescents. The pattern of SM varies in different communities, affected by factors such as age, sex, income, expense, self-care orientation, educational level and medical knowledge. It is a fairly common practice: for minor health problems, it often provides cheap, rapid, and convenient solutions, outside of the health care system of many countries.