The effect of dosing strategies on the therapeutic efficacy of artesunate-amodiaquine for uncomplicated malaria: a meta-analysis of individual patient data.

Background: Artesunate-amodiaquine (AS-AQ) is one of the most widely used artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACTs) to treat uncomplicated Plasmodium falciparum malaria in Africa. We investigated the impact of different dosing strategies on the efficacy of this combination for the treatment of falciparum malaria.

Methods: Individual patient data from AS-AQ clinical trials were pooled using the WorldWide Antimalarial Resistance Network (WWARN) standardised methodology.

Immunoassay for quantifying squamous cell carcinoma antigen in serum.

Background: Although the benefits of quantifying serum squamous cell carcinoma antigen (SCCa) have been reported, SCCa reagents were no longer available in the US by the late 1990s. Because SCCa quantification still has demonstrated clinical utility, we developed and validated a microtiter plate-based ELISA for measuring SCCa in serum.

Methods: We coated microtiter strips overnight with capture anti-SCCa monoclonal antibody, washed the wells, added blocking buffer, and lyophilized the strips.

Treatment of chronic hepatitis C in HIV/HCV-coinfection with interferon alpha-2b+ full-course vs. 16-week delayed ribavirin.

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected patients increasingly experience the consequences of chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) coinfection. This trial randomized 107 patients coinfected with HIV and HCV to receive 48 weeks of interferon alfa-2b (IFN) 3 million units three times weekly plus either a full course of ribavirin (RBV) at 800 mg/day (group A; n = 53) or 16 weeks of placebo, followed by RBV (group B; n = 54). The primary endpoint of sustained viral response (SVR) rate (undetectable HCV RNA at posttreatment week 24) was not different between groups A (11.