A systematic review of economic evaluations of therapy in asthma.

Background: Asthma's cost-effectiveness is a major consideration in the evaluation of its treatment options. Our objective was to perform a systematic review of the cost-effectiveness of asthma medications.

Methods: We performed a systematic search of MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, OHE-HEED, Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Health Technology Assessments Database, NHS Economic Evaluation Database, and Web of Science and reviewed references from key articles between 1990 and Jan 2008.

Risk factors and outcomes associated with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease exacerbations requiring hospitalization.

Background: Acute respiratory exacerbations are the most frequent cause of medical visits, hospitalization and death for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients and, thus, exert a significant social and economic burden on society.

Objective: To identify the risk factors associated with hospital readmission(s) for acute exacerbation(s) of COPD (AECOPD).

Methods: A review of admission records from three large urban hospitals in Vancouver, British Columbia, identified 310 consecutive patients admitted for an AECOPD between April 1, 2001, and December 31, 2002.

Economic burden of asthma: a systematic review.

Background: Asthma is associated with enormous healthcare expenditures that include both direct and indirect costs. It is also associated with the loss of future potential earnings related to both morbidity and mortality. The objective of the study is to determine the burden of disease costs associated with asthma.

Risk factors of hospitalization and readmission of patients with COPD exacerbation--systematic review.

Background: Chronic obstructive lung disease (COPD) exacerbations are a significant cause of morbidity and mortality. Data regarding factors which causes or prevents exacerbations is very limited. The aim of this systematic review is to summarize the results from available studies to identify potential risk factors for hospital admission and/or re-admission among patients experiencing COPD exacerbations.

Application of oxidation-reduction assay for monitoring treatment of patients with pulmonary tuberculosis.

By oxidation-reduction assay, the viability of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in sputum specimens was evaluated. The technique is based on the Alamar Blue and Malachite Green dyes, which change their color in response to M. tuberculosis growth.

Congenital "transhaesio intestini tenuis supragastrica" in a 14-year-old girl - a rare case of internal hernia.

Intestinal obstruction caused by internal hernia is a rare condition. A 14-year-old girl who suffered from acute abdominal pain two days after appendectomy is presented. Abdominal sonography and plain abdominal x-ray showed dilated small bowel loops and air-fluid levels indicating mechanical intestinal obstruction.

Laparoscopic partial splenic resection.

Twenty domestic pigs with an average weight of 30 kg were subjected to laparoscopic partial splenic resection with the aim of determining the feasibility, reliability, and safety of this procedure. Unlike the human spleen, the pig spleen is perpendicular to the body's long axis, and it is long and slender. The parenchyma was severed through the middle third, where the organ is thickest.