Early treatment with aspirin plus extended-release dipyridamole for transient ischaemic attack or ischaemic stroke within 24 h of symptom onset (EARLY trial): a randomised, open-label, blinded-endpoint trial.

Background: Little is known about the best antiplatelet treatment immediately after ischaemic stroke or transient ischaemic attack (TIA). The EARLY trial aimed to compare outcome in patients given aspirin plus extended-release dipyridamole twice daily either within 24 h of stroke or TIA or after 7 days of aspirin monotherapy.

Methods: In 46 stroke units in Germany, patients aged 18 years or more who presented with symptoms of an acute ischaemic stroke that caused a measurable neurological deficit (National Institutes of Health stroke scale score < or =20) were randomly assigned to receive 25 mg aspirin plus 200 mg extended-release dipyridamole open-label twice daily or 100 mg aspirin monotherapy open-label once daily for 7 days.

Prescription and tolerability of meloxicam in day-to-day practice: postmarketing observational cohort study of 13,307 patients in Germany.

The goal of this study was to obtain data for prescription habits, tolerability for patients at high risk, and clinical effectiveness of meloxicam administered at 7.5 mg and 15 mg for various rheumatic diseases under real world prescribing conditions. This was a 3-month large-scale prospective observational cohort study in 4000 medical practices throughout Germany shortly after the introduction of meloxicam.

Gender differences in routine treatment of depressed outpatients with the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor sertraline.

Gender is known to have an influence on medical treatment and the prescribing and outcome of drug treatment. This has also been suggested for selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). To examine sex differences in the treatment with the SSRI sertraline in routine treatment of depression, data from a 6-month prospective drug utilization observation study on 3,858 women and 1,594 men were analysed for gender differences.