Economic evaluation of palliative gastrointestinal surgery for advanced cancer patients with malignant bowel obstruction: A systematic review.

Background: Palliative surgery reduces debilitating symptoms attributable to cancer, and the intent is to improve health-related quality of life. Malignant bowel obstruction is a common indication. Despite positive clinical outcomes, there is a shortage of economic evaluation evidence to support wider adoption of palliative surgery.

Cost-effectiveness of a short-course antibiotic treatment strategy for the treatment of ventilator-associated pneumonia: an economic analysis of the REGARD-VAP trial.

Background: The REGARD-VAP trial showed that individualised shortened antibiotic therapy was non-inferior to usual care for mortality and pneumonia recurrence in patients with ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP). We aimed to assess the cost-effectiveness of an individualised shortened antibiotic therapy approach in this planned economic analysis.

Methods: REGARD-VAP was a phase 4, multicentre, open-label, randomised trial to assess a short-course antibiotic treatment strategy for treatment of VAP.

Earth's ambipolar electrostatic field and its role in ion escape to space.

Cold plasma of ionospheric origin has recently been found to be a much larger contributor to the magnetosphere of Earth than expected. Numerous competing mechanisms have been postulated to drive ion escape to space, including heating and acceleration by wave-particle interactions and a global electrostatic field between the ionosphere and space (called the ambipolar or polarization field). Observations of heated O ions in the magnetosphere are consistent with resonant wave-particle interactions.

Single-Molecule Fingerprinting Reveals Different Growth Mechanisms in Seed Amplification Assays for Different Polymorphs of α-Synuclein Fibrils.

α-Synuclein (αSyn) aggregates, detected in the biofluids of patients with Parkinson's disease (PD), have the ability to catalyze their own aggregation, leading to an increase in the number and size of aggregates. This self-templated amplification is used by newly developed assays to diagnose Parkinson's disease and turns the presence of αSyn aggregates into a biomarker of the disease. It has become evident that αSyn can form fibrils with slightly different structures, called "strains" or polymorphs, but little is known about their differential reactivity in diagnostic assays.

Impact of central-line-associated bloodstream infections and catheter-related bloodstream infections: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Accurate effect estimates are needed to inform input parameters of health economic models. Central-line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs) and catheter-related bloodstream infections (CRBSIs) are different definitions used for central-line bloodstream infections and may represent dissimilar patients, but previous meta-analyses did not differentiate between CLABSIs/CRBSIs.

Aim: To determine outcome effect estimates in CLABSI and CRBSI patients, compared to uninfected patients.

Understanding the use of evidence-based medical therapy in patients with peripheral artery disease: A qualitative study using the Tailored Implementation for Chronic Diseases Framework.

Introduction: The global burden of peripheral artery disease (PAD) has been increasing. Guidelines for PAD recommend evidence-based medical therapy (EBMT) to reduce the risks of cardiovascular events and death but the implementation of this is highly variable. This study aimed to understand the current practices regarding EBMT prescription in PAD patients and the key barriers and facilitators for implementing PAD guidelines.

Impact of a prospective feedback loop aimed at reducing non-beneficial treatments in older people admitted to hospital and potentially nearing the end of life. A cluster stepped-wedge randomised controlled trial.

Objectives: To investigate if a prospective feedback loop that flags older patients at risk of death can reduce non-beneficial treatment at end of life.

Design: Prospective stepped-wedge cluster randomised trial with usual care and intervention phases.

Setting: Three large tertiary public hospitals in south-east Queensland, Australia.

Oral care practices and hospital-acquired pneumonia prevention: A national survey of Australian nurses.

Background: Hospital-acquired pneumonia (HAP) also known as non-ventilator associated pneumonia, is one of the most common infections acquired in hospitalised patients. Improving oral hygiene appears to reduce the incidence of HAP. This study aimed to describe current practices, barriers and facilitators, knowledge and educational preferences of registered nurses performing oral health care in the Australian hospital setting, with a focus on the prevention of HAP.

The cost-effectiveness of including liquid biopsy into molecular profiling strategies for newly diagnosed advanced non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer in an Asian population.

Objectives: Liquid biopsy is complementary to tissue biopsy for lung cancer profiling, yet evidence of the cost-effectiveness is limited. This could retard implementation and reimbursement in clinical practice. The aim of this study is to estimate the cost-effectiveness of profiling strategies that include liquid biopsy and to identify the optimal profiling approach for newly diagnosed advanced non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in an Asian population using Singapore as an example.

Strategies to improve implementation of cascade testing in hereditary cancer syndromes: a systematic review.

Hereditary cancer syndromes constitute approximately 10% of all cancers. Cascade testing involves testing of at-risk relatives to determine if they carry the familial pathogenic variant. Despite growing efforts targeted at improving cascade testing uptake, current literature continues to reflect poor rates of uptake, typically below 30%.

Process evaluation of a tailored nudge intervention to promote appropriate care and treatment of older patients at the end-of-life.

Background: Non-beneficial treatment affects a considerable proportion of older people in hospital, and some will choose to decline invasive treatments when they are approaching the end of their life. The Intervention for Appropriate Care and Treatment (InterACT) intervention was a 12-month stepped wedge randomised controlled trial with an embedded process evaluation in three hospitals in Brisbane, Australia. The aim was to increase appropriate care and treatment decisions for older people at the end-of-life, through implementing a nudge intervention in the form of a prospective feedback loop.

The Clinical and Cost-Effectiveness of an Individualized Nutritional CAre (INCA) Bundle versus Standard Care for Adults with Pressure Injuries Receiving Home Nursing Services: A Protocol for a Cluster Randomized and Pragmatic Clinical Trial with an Economic Evaluation.

Background: Pressure injuries (PIs) represent a significant healthcare challenge in Singapore among the aging population. These injuries contribute to increased morbidity, mortality, and healthcare expenditure. Existing research predominantly explores single-component interventions in hospital environments, often yielding limited success.

Prehabilitation programs - a systematic review of the economic evidence.

Introduction: Prehabilitation, which involves improving a patient's physical and psychological condition before surgery, has shown potential benefits but has yet to be extensively studied from an economic perspective. To address this gap, a systematic review was conducted to summarize existing economic evaluations of prehabilitation interventions.

Methods: The PRISMA Protocols 2015 checklist was followed.

From pilot to a multi-site trial: refining the Early Detection of Deterioration in Elderly Residents (EDDIE +) intervention.

Background: Early Detection of Deterioration in Elderly Residents (EDDIE +) is a multi-modal intervention focused on empowering nursing and personal care workers to identify and proactively manage deterioration of residents living in residential aged care (RAC) homes. Building on successful pilot trials conducted between 2014 and 2017, the intervention was refined for implementation in a stepped-wedge cluster randomised trial in 12 RAC homes from March 2021 to May 2022. We report the process used to transition from a small-scale pilot intervention to a multi-site intervention, detailing the intervention to enable future replication.

Community Opioid Dispensing after Injury (CODI): Cohort characteristics and opioid dispensing patterns.

Background: Despite a focus of opioid-related research internationally, there is limited understanding of long-term opioid use in adults following injury. We analysed data from the 'Community Opioid Dispensing after Injury' data linkage study.

Aims: This paper aims to describe the baseline characteristics of the injured cohort and report opioid dispensing patterns following injury-related hospitalisations.

Cost-effectiveness of a real-time spatiotemporal mapping surveillance system for meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus prevention.

Objectives: An infection surveillance system based on a hospital's digital twin [4D-Disease Outbreak Surveillance System (4D-DOSS)] is being developed in Singapore. It offers near-real-time infection surveillance and mapping capabilities. This early economic modelling study was conducted, using meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) as the pathogen of interest, to assess the potential cost-effectiveness of 4D-DOSS.

Economic Evaluations of Imaging Biomarker-Driven Companion Diagnostics for Cancer: A Systematic Review.

Introduction: There is a boom in imaging biomarker-driven companion and complementary diagnostics (CDx) for cancer, which brings opportunity for personalized medicine. Whether adoption of these technologies is likely to be cost-effective is a relevant question, and studies on this topic are emerging. Despite the growing number of economic evaluations, no review of the methods used, quality of reporting, and potential risk of bias has been done.