Development and Validation of a Model to Identify Alzheimer's Disease and Related Syndromes in Administrative Data.

Background: Administrative data are used in the field of Alzheimer's Disease and Related Syndromes (ADRS), however their performance to identify ADRS is unknown.

Objective: i) To develop and validate a model to identify ADRS prevalent cases in French administrative data (SNDS), ii) to identify factors associated with false negatives.

Methods: Retrospective cohort of subjects ≥ 65 years, living in South-Western France, who attended a memory clinic between April and December 2013.

Use of health insurance data to identify and quantify the prevalence of main comorbidities in lung cancer patients.

Background: Identifying comorbidities in lung cancer patients is a complex process in population-based studies and no gold standard exists. The current study aims to identify and measure the main comorbidities using administrative health insurance data, which were available on a population-based level.

Method: A literature search was conducted to identify comorbidities in lung cancer patients and to select Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical codes to measure them.

Cure of cancer for seven cancer sites in the Flemish Region.

Cumulative relative survival curves for many cancers reach a plateau several years after diagnosis, indicating that the cancer survivor group has reached "statistical" cure. Parametric mixture cure model analysis on grouped relative survival curves provide an interesting way to determine the proportion of statistically cured cases and the mean survival time of the fatal cases in particular for population-based cancer registries. Based on the relative survival data from the Belgian Cancer Registry, parametric cure models were applied to seven cancer sites (cervix, colon, corpus uteri, skin melanoma, pancreas, stomach and oesophagus), at the Flemish Regional level for the incidence period 1999-2011.

Seasonal variation in cutaneous melanoma incidence, link with recent UV levels: a population-based study in Belgium (2006-2011).

Our objective was to test the hypothesis of a short-term late-promoting effect of ultraviolet (UV) exposure on the development of cutaneous melanoma as an explanation for the summer peak in melanoma incidence. Therefore, we studied seasonal variation in melanoma incidence in relation to recent UV levels by direct UV measurements. Data from the Belgian Cancer Registry on invasive cutaneous melanoma diagnosed during 2006-2011 were used for analysis.

Is melanoma survival influenced by month of diagnosis?

Background: Despite being a well-documented phenomenon, seasonal variation in the incidence of cutaneous melanoma is poorly understood, and data on the seasonality of melanoma survival are scarce. We sought to explore the seasonal variation in melanoma incidence and survival in Belgium and to assess the characteristics and outcomes of cases diagnosed during the seasonal peak.

Methods: All cases of invasive cutaneous melanoma-patients over 15 years of age and registered by the Belgian Cancer Registry (BCR) from 2004 to 2009-were included (n=9782).

Does a central review platform improve the quality of radiotherapy for rectal cancer? Results of a national quality assurance project.

Background And Purpose: Quality assurance (QA) for radiation treatment has become a priority since poorly delivered radiotherapy can negatively influence patient outcome. Within a national project we evaluated the feasibility of a central review platform and its role in improving uniformity of clinical target volume (CTV) delineation in daily practice.

Material And Methods: All Belgian radiotherapy departments were invited to participate and were asked to upload CTVs for rectal cancer treatment onto a secured server.

Do patients diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease benefit from a psycho-educational programme for family caregivers? A randomised controlled study.

Objective: The Aide dans la Maladie d'Alzheimer (AIDMA) study was conducted to determine whether a psycho-educational programme (PEP) for primary caregivers in addition to standard anti-dementia drugs for patients improves caregivers' psychological condition and patients' activities of daily life.

Method: Multicentre randomised controlled intervention trial. One hundred and sixty-seven dyads 'patient-caregiver' were recruited from 15 French memory clinics and randomised in two parallel groups.

Accuracy of C-reactive protein, procalcitonin, and mid-regional pro-atrial natriuretic peptide to guide site of care of community-acquired pneumonia.

Background: The use at bedside of C-reactive protein (CRP), procalcitonin (PCT) or mid-regional pro-atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) has been advocated to help management of patients with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) in emergency medicine.

Objective: To assess the effectiveness of CRP, PCT, and ANP measures in assisting emergency physicians deciding hospital admission for CAP with low risk of complication.

Design: Multicenter, prospective, observational study with blind evaluation.

Can metabolic abnormalities after a fall predict short term mortality in elderly patients?

Morbidity related is important in older adults who fall and are consequently referred to emergency departments (ED). The aim of this study is to determine 6-month all-causes mortality in patients over 75 years referred to an emergency department after a fall at home, and to define the criteria associated with death. The design was a prospective observational study with a 6-month follow-up in an Emergency Department of a tertiary teaching hospital, Paris, France.

Do ED staffs have a role to play in the prevention of repeat falls in elderly patients?

Background: Fall-related morbidity is a serious public health issue in older adults referred to emergency departments (EDs). Emergency physicians mostly focus on immediate injuries, whereas the specific assessment of functional consequences and opportunities for prevention remain scarce. The aim of this study was to determine the factors influencing 6-month independence.

Immunological efficacy of a three-dose schedule of hepatitis A vaccine in HIV-infected adults: HEPAVAC study.

Background: The immunogenicity of vaccines, including vaccine against hepatitis A virus (HAV), is impaired in patients with HIV infection, requiring revised immunization regimens.

Methods: We evaluated the immunological efficacy and safety of a 3-dose schedule of hepatitis A vaccine in HIV-infected adults. HAV-seronegative HIV-infected adults were randomized to receive either 3 doses of 1440 UI of hepatitis A vaccine (HAVRIX; GlaxoSmithKline, Marly le Roi, France) at weeks 0, 4, and 24 (46 patients) or 2 doses 24 weeks apart (49 patients).

Effect of sublingual administration of interferon-alpha on the immune response to influenza vaccination in institutionalized elderly individuals.

A randomized double-blind placebo-controlled study was conducted to determine the effect of sublingual administration of IFNalpha on the immune response to influenza vaccination in elderly institutionalized individuals. Sublingual administration of 10 million IU of IFNalpha immediately prior to vaccination, reduced the geometric mean haemagglutination inhibitory (HAI) and IgG2 circulating antibody titers, and the secretory IgA (sIgA) response in saliva, to the New York strain of influenza A virus, 21 days post-vaccination, without detectable drug-related local or systemic toxicity. IFN treatment did not inhibit the immune response to the other components of the vaccine; the New Caledonia strain of influenza A virus, or the Jiangsu strain of influenza B virus.