Potentially inappropriate prescribing and drug-drug interactions among elderly Chinese nursing home residents in Macao.

Background: The ageing of the population has become a concern all over the world, including Macao. In general, older people are more prone to adverse drug events which can result from potentially inappropriate medication (PIM) use and drug-drug interactions (DDIs).

Objective: This study was designed to evaluate the prevalence of PIM use and DDIs among elderly nursing home residents in Macao, and to find out the factors associated with these drug-related problems.

Peritubular capillary basement membrane multilayering on electron microscopy: a useful marker of early chronic antibody-mediated damage.

Background: Chronic antibody-mediated rejection is an important cause of late graft failure. Developing an early marker of the disease may allow diagnosis and treatment before irreversible graft damage has occurred. The aim of this study was to assess whether, on electron microscopy examination, peritubular capillary (PTC) basement membrane multilayering precedes and predicts the development of transplant glomerulopathy (TG).

ABO incompatible living renal transplantation with a steroid sparing protocol.

Background: ABO incompatible (ABOi) live-donor renal transplantation is a successful and accepted form of treatment for patients with renal failure. Although there is significant controversy as to how antiblood group antibodies should be removed and their resynthesis prevented, subsequent immunosuppressive regimes have all involved steroids. We and other groups have successfully used steroid sparing regimes for conventional ABO compatible transplantation and this study describes the use of our steroid sparing protocol in ABOi transplantation.