Intravenous iron infusion and newer non-dextran formulations.

There are several newer intravenous iron formulations to treat iron deficiency and its anaemia. Its use in the primary care setting has been infrequent compared to tertiary centres, due to historical concerns such as anaphylaxis. There is a lack of overall comparison among the intravenous formulations of iron.

Entyvio lengthen dose-interval study: lengthening vedolizumab dose interval and the risk of clinical relapse in inflammatory bowel disease.

Background: Vedolizumab (VDZ), an α4β7 anti-integrin antibody, is efficacious in the induction and maintenance of remission in ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn's disease (CD). In the GEMINI long-term safety study, enrolled patients received 4-weekly VDZ. Upon completion, patients were switched to 8-weekly VDZ in Australia.

Surgical and Locoregional Treatment of DCIS and Early-Invasive Breast Cancer.

Surgical and radiation therapy for DCIS and early stage 1 and 2 invasive breast cancer is detailed and described.

Ferumoxytol versus placebo in iron deficiency anemia: efficacy, safety, and quality of life in patients with gastrointestinal disorders.

Introduction: Iron deficiency anemia (IDA) is common in patients with gastrointestinal (GI) disorders and can adversely affect quality of life. Oral iron is poorly tolerated in many patients with GI disorders. Ferumoxytol is approved for the intravenous treatment of IDA in patients with chronic kidney disease.

Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy for Inflammatory Bowel Disease: 24-Month Data from a Randomised Controlled Trial.

Purpose: There is ongoing controversy on the effectiveness of psychotherapy in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). In the few small studies, cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT) has been shown to alleviate symptoms of anxiety or depression. However, there is little research on the impact of CBT on physical outcomes in IBD and no studies on long-term effectiveness of CBT.

Cognitive-behavioural therapy has no effect on disease activity but improves quality of life in subgroups of patients with inflammatory bowel disease: a pilot randomised controlled trial.

Background: Studies have demonstrated usefulness of cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT) in managing distress in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD); however, few have focused on IBD course. The present trial aimed to investigate whether adding CBT to standard treatment prolongs remission in IBD in comparison to standard therapy alone.

Methods: A 2-arm parallel pragmatic randomised controlled trial (+CBT - standard care plus either face-to-face (F2F) or online CBT over 10 weeks versus standard care alone (SC)) was conducted with adult patients in remission.

A Phase III, randomized, open-label trial of ferumoxytol compared with iron sucrose for the treatment of iron deficiency anemia in patients with a history of unsatisfactory oral iron therapy.

Iron deficiency anemia (IDA) is the most common form of anemia worldwide. Although oral iron is used as first-line treatment, many patients are unresponsive to or cannot take oral iron. This Phase III, open-label, non-inferiority study compared the efficacy and safety of ferumoxytol, a rapid, injectable intravenous (IV) iron product with low immunological reactivity and minimal detectable free iron, with IV iron sucrose in adults with IDA of any cause.

Relationship between disease severity and quality of life and assessment of health care utilization and cost for ulcerative colitis in Australia: a cross-sectional, observational study.

Background & Aims: The burden of ulcerative colitis (UC) in relation to disease severity is not well documented. This study quantitatively evaluated the relationship between disease activity and quality of life (QoL), as well as health care utilization, cost, and work-related impairment associated with UC in an Australian population.

Methods: A cross-sectional, noninterventional, observational study was performed in patients with a wide range of disease severity recruited during routine specialist consultations.

A randomized controlled trial of the efficacy and safety of CCX282-B, an orally-administered blocker of chemokine receptor CCR9, for patients with Crohn's disease.

Unlabelled: CCX282-B, also called vercirnon, is a specific, orally-administered chemokine receptor CCR9 antagonist that regulates migration and activation of inflammatory cells in the intestine. This randomized, placebo-controlled trial was conducted to evaluate the safety and efficacy of CCX282-B in 436 patients with Crohn's disease. Crohn's Disease Activity Index (CDAI) scores were 250-450 and C-reactive protein >7.

Clinical audit: recent practice in caring for patients with acute severe colitis compared with published guidelines--is there a problem?

Background: Acute severe colitis (ASC) is a serious condition with possible outcomes of emergency colectomy and mortality. Validated guidelines exist to help avoid these.

Aims: To examine local adherence to guidelines and identify (a) opportunities to improve care and (b) possible barriers to adherence.

Gastric emptying, incretin hormone secretion, and postprandial glycemia in cystic fibrosis--effects of pancreatic enzyme supplementation.

Context: Postprandial hyperglycemia is an important clinical problem in cystic fibrosis (CF), but the contribution of fat malabsorption, rapid gastric emptying, and the incretin axis has not been widely considered.

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate these aspects of gut function in nondiabetic CF patients.

Design And Setting: We conducted a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover study at a clinical research laboratory.

At last, a national health measurement survey program for Australia!

Objective assessment of the health of the population is the key to policy and planning.

Potentially avoidable surgery in inflammatory bowel disease: what proportion of patients come to resection without optimal preoperative therapy? A guidelines-based audit.

Background: Recently, promulgated inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) guidelines seek to decrease the need for surgery by improving disease control. However, resection rates remain static.

Aims: We therefore sought to determine the proportion of patients coming to surgery where preoperative management was not optimal according to guidelines.

Adverse clinical phenotype in inflammatory bowel disease: a cross sectional study identifying factors potentially amenable to change.

Background And Aim: A significant proportion with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) exhibit an adverse clinical phenotype reflected in endpoints like surgery and hospitalizations. We sought to identify clinico-demographic factors associated with these adverse consequences that may be amenable to change.

Methods: Over 6 months IBD patients visiting a metropolitan center were prospectively identified and given a comprehensive survey addressing patient knowledge, mental health and satisfaction with medical care along with other clinical data.

Do we know what patients want? The doctor-patient communication gap in functional gastrointestinal disorders.

Background & Aims: Understanding patients' expectations at initial consultation for functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGIDs) might influence future health care utilization. Ideally, patients and doctors would have a common understanding of the issues involved. We sought to investigate this with matched questionnaires.

Psychological problems in gastroenterology outpatients: A South Australian experience. Psychological co-morbidity in IBD, IBS and hepatitis C.

Background: In independent studies, IBD, IBS and HCV have each been associated with a substantially increased risk of psychological problems such as depression and anxiety and impairment of quality of life compared to the general healthy population. However, the relative psychological burden for each of these diagnoses is unknown as it has never been compared contemporaneously at one institution. Current local data are therefore needed to enable an evidence-based allocation of limited clinical psychological resources.

QTL for meat tenderness in the M. longissimus lumborum of cattle.

Meat tenderness has been difficult to improve using standard genetic selection. Marker assisted selection holds great promise if markers for meat tenderness can be identified. Here, we report quantitative trait loci (QTL) for beef tenderness identified in 598 animals of three Charolais-Brahman x Belmont Red pedigrees after screening the whole genome using 183 DNA markers.

Two-year combination antibiotic therapy with clarithromycin, rifabutin, and clofazimine for Crohn's disease.

Background & Aims: Mycobacterium avium subspecies paratuberculosis has been proposed as a cause of Crohn's disease. We report a prospective, parallel, placebo-controlled, double-blind, randomized trial of 2 years of clarithromycin, rifabutin, and clofazimine in active Crohn's disease, with a further year of follow-up.

Methods: Two hundred thirteen patients were randomized to clarithromycin 750 mg/day, rifabutin 450 mg/day, clofazimine 50 mg/day or placebo, in addition to a 16-week tapering course of prednisolone.

A meta-analytic assessment of a thyroglobulin marker for marbling in beef cattle.

A meta-analysis was undertaken reporting on the association between a polymorphism in the Thyroglobulin gene (TG5) and marbling in beef cattle. A Bayesian hierarchical model was adopted, with alternative representations assessed through sensitivity analysis. Based on the overall posterior means and posterior probabilities, there is substantial support for an additive association between the TG5 marker and marbling.

The socioeconomic gradient and chronic illness and associated risk factors in Australia.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the prevalence of major chronic diseases and their risk factors in different socioeconomic groups in the Australian population, in order to highlight the need for public policy initiatives to reduce socioeconomic inequalities in health. METHODS: Data were provided by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) from the 2001 National Health Survey (NHS) for selected chronic diseases and associated risk factors. Conditions selected were those, which form the National Health Priority Area (NHPA) conditions (other than injury, which has not been included in this paper, with its focus on chronic disease); plus other 'serious' chronic conditions, in line with the classification developed by Mathers; and for which sufficient cases were available for analysis by socioeconomic status.

Death, disease and diversity in Australia, 1951 to 2000.

There has been a substantial decline in mortality in Australia during the 20th century, with a major improvement in life expectancy. There has been a broad "health transition", from a pattern of high mortality from infectious diseases to one of lower overall mortality from non-communicable diseases and injury. From 1951, trends in death rates from major causes were evident, with the rise and partial fall of two epidemics (coronary heart disease and stroke, and lung cancer).