The association of cytokine levels and postnatal factors with retinopathy of prematurity.

Purpose: Prematurity has been known to trigger several cellular pathways, leading to the clinical occurrence of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP). This study compared the levels of a panel of serum cytokines in premature infants with and without ROP.

Methods: This is a prospective observational study.

To B(enign) or Not to B: functionalisation of variant in a mild form of argininosuccinate lyase deficiency identified through newborn screening.

Argininosuccinate lyase (ASL) deficiency is an autosomal recessive disorder of the urea cycle with a diverse spectrum of clinical presentation that is detectable in newborn screening. We report an 8-year-old girl with ASL deficiency who was detected through newborn screening and was confirmed using biochemical and functional assay. She is compound heterozygous for a likely pathogenic variant NM_000048.

Effects of a portion design plate on food group guideline adherence among hospital staff.

Food group guideline adherence is vital to prevent obesity and diabetes. Various studies have demonstrated that environmental variables influence food intake behaviour. In the present study we examined the effect of a portion design plate with food group portion guidelines demarcated by coloured lines (ETE Plate™).

5-Alpha reductase inhibitors in men with an enlarged prostate: an evaluation of outcomes and therapeutic alternatives.

This article presents background information and highlights key findings from a managed care perspective related to enlarged prostate (EP) in Medicare-eligible patients. This article does not provide a comprehensive review of EP but instead attempts to increase the current understanding of EP through discussion of its prevalence in men aged > or =65 years, its associated economic burden, and some available treatment options. This supplement includes 3 additional articles, all of which present data from a naturalistic, managed care setting.

Comparative in vivo efficacy of meropenem, imipenem, and cefepime against Pseudomonas aeruginosa expressing MexA-MexB-OprM efflux pumps.

To identify the optimal pharmacodynamic exposures of meropenem, imipenem, and cefepime, and the emergence of resistance in vivo for Pseudomonas aeruginosa overexpressing MexA-MexB-OprM efflux pumps, we used the murine thigh model. Mice were challenged with P. aeruginosa isolates: PAO1 (K767 wild type), K767+ (MexA-MexB-OprM efflux mutant), and DeltaK767 (knockout strain).

Comparison of probability of target attainment calculated by Monte Carlo simulation with meropenem clinical and microbiological response for the treatment of complicated skin and skin structure infections.

Monte Carlo simulation is often used to predict the cumulative fraction of response (CFR) for antibiotics, but the relevance of these predictions to outcomes in humans has not been well studied. We compared the CFR for meropenem 500 mg every 8h against pathogens causing complicated skin and skin structure infections from a randomised, multicentre clinical trial with clinical response (CR) and microbiological response (MR). A population pharmacokinetic model was utilised to estimate pharmacokinetic parameters for 96 clinically evaluable patients with pathogen and minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) data available.

Pharmacodynamic modeling of imipenem-cilastatin, meropenem, and piperacillin-tazobactam for empiric therapy of skin and soft tissue infections: a report from the OPTAMA Program.

Background: The bactericidal exposures necessary for positive clinical outcomes among skin and soft tissue infections are largely dependent on interpatient pharmacokinetic variability and pathogen drug susceptibility. By simulating the probability of achieving target bactericidal exposures, the pharmacodynamics of three beta-lactam agents were compared against a range of pathogens implicated commonly in complicated skin and soft tissue infections.

Methods: Using Monte Carlo simulation, pharmacodynamic target attainment expressed as the percentage of the time interval during which the antibiotic concentration exceeded the minimal inhibitory concentration (%T > MIC) in serum and blister fluid was calculated for 5,000 simulated patients receiving imipenem-cilastatin 0.

Penetration, efflux and intracellular activity of tigecycline in human polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMNs).

Objectives: To evaluate the penetration, efflux and intracellular activity of tigecycline in human polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMNs).

Methods: PMNs were isolated from fresh whole blood and tested for viability and purity prior to use. Tigecycline drug uptake was evaluated by incubating 5 x 10(6) cells/mL at 37 degrees C up to 3 h at tigecycline concentrations of 1, 2, 5 and 10 mg/L.

Pharmacokinetic profile of tigecycline in serum and skin blister fluid of healthy subjects after multiple intravenous administrations.

The pharmacokinetics of tigecycline, when given as a 100-mg loading dose followed by 50 mg every 12 h, were determined in serum and blister fluid. The peak tigecycline concentration and half-life in serum were greater than those in blister fluid. Tigecycline penetrates into blister fluid well, with a mean penetration rate of 74%.

Pharmacokinetics of oritavancin in plasma and skin blister fluid following administration of a 200-milligram dose for 3 days or a single 800-milligram dose.

Oritavancin is a novel glycopeptide currently being developed for the treatment of complicated skin and skin structure infections (cSSSI), including those caused by multidrug resistant gram-positive pathogens. The disposition of oritavancin in skin structures was investigated using a cantharide-induced blister fluid model. Seventeen healthy male subjects received oritavancin, but only 16 subjects were evaluated after one subject discontinued study drug.

Determination of the in vivo pharmacodynamic profile of cefepime against extended-spectrum-beta-lactamase-producing Escherichia coli at various inocula.

Cefepime was evaluated in vivo against two inoculum sizes of four strains of Escherichia coli that produced extended-spectrum beta-lactamases (ESBLs) in a murine neutropenic thigh infection model to characterize the pharmacodynamic activity of cefepime in the presence of ESBL-producing bacteria and to evaluate if differences in lengths of cefepime exposure are required with various inocula. Three strains possessed a single enzyme each: TEM-10, TEM-12, and TEM-26. The fourth strain possessed two TEM-derived ESBLs and a third uncharacterized enzyme.