Publications by authors named "Machiel Smid"
Background: Haloperidol at high dosage is associated with QTc prolongation and polymorphic ventricular arrhythmia but the effects of low-dose haloperidol remain unknown.
Objective: To evaluate the effects of low-dose haloperidol on QTc-duration in frail hospitalized elderly patients with delirium.
Methods: A prospective observational study including hospitalized patients aged ≥70 years with Groningen Frailty Index-score > 3.
Article Synopsis
- Neuropsychological assessments (NPA) were evaluated to determine their added value alongside standard clinical evaluations in memory clinic patients.
- In a study with 221 patients, NPA led to significant changes in diagnoses: 22% of syndromal diagnoses and 15% of etiological diagnoses were updated based on NPA findings.
- The inclusion of NPA improved diagnostic accuracy by 18% for syndromal diagnoses and increased clinician confidence by 6-7% overall, especially benefiting patients with subjective cognitive impairment (SCI) and mild cognitive impairment (MCI).
Objectives: First, to estimate the added value of a clinical decision support system (CDSS) in the performance of medication reviews in hospitalised elderly. Second, to identify the limitations of the current CDSS by analysing generated drug-related problems (DRPs).
Methods: Medication reviews were performed in patients admitted to the geriatric ward of the Zuyderland medical centre.
Article Synopsis
- Limited information exists on how Alzheimer's disease (AD) biomarkers in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) affect short-term prognoses alongside standard diagnostic assessments.
- In a study involving 114 memory clinic patients, experts evaluated cognitive and functional symptoms based on routine tests, both with and without CSF biomarkers, to see how well they could predict clinical decline over 2 years.
- The findings showed no significant difference in prediction accuracy between assessments with (74%) and without (79%) CSF biomarkers, indicating that standard diagnostic methods alone can make fairly accurate predictions about the progression of symptoms in suspected cognitive disorders.
Background: Thrombin is a key protease in coagulation also implicated in complex pathology including atherosclerosis. To address the role of thrombin in relation to myocardial infarction (MI) we explored thrombin generation analysis in plasma from patients and controls that had participated in the Glasgow MI Study (GLAMIS).
Methods: Thrombin generation at 1 and 2 pM TF and with and without thrombomodulin (TM) was performed on plasmas from 356 subjects (171 cases, 185 age and sex matched controls) from GLAMIS collected between 3 and 9 months after the MI event.
Despite increased pulsatile stress, thrombotic rather than hemorrhagic events represent a major complication of hypertension. The pathophysiology of thrombosis in hypertension involves the interaction among vascular endothelium and particularly the renin-angiotensin and kallikrein-kinin systems. Because hypertension is often associated with some degree of inflammation, the combination of chronic inflammation and chronic shear stress may convert the normal anticoagulant endothelium into a procoagulant surface, expressing tissue factor.
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