Publications by authors named "Martin Bialik"
Purpose: To evaluate the association between levonorgestrel-releasing intrauterine system (LNG-IUS) use and breast cancer (BC) risk.
Methods: A cohort of all Maccabi Healthcare Services (MHS) female members aged 40-50 years between 1/2003 and 12/2013 was used to identify LNG-IUS users as "cases," and 2 age-matched non-users as "controls." Exclusion criteria included: prior BC diagnosis, prior (5 years pre-study) and subsequent treatment with other female hormones or prophylactic tamoxifen.
Article Synopsis
- A study analyzed the link between low magnesium levels (hypomagnesemia) and the risk of developing atrial fibrillation (AF) over a long term, using data from a cohort of over 162,000 individuals.
- Results indicated that both mild and moderate hypomagnesemia were significantly associated with a higher risk of AF; specifically, the lowest magnesium levels showed a 21% increased risk compared to middle levels.
- However, no significant association was found within a short follow-up period of 3 months, suggesting that the connection between low magnesium and AF may be more relevant over longer durations rather than being a direct cause.
Evidence for the association between hypomagnesemia and proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), highlighted by the 2011 FDA Drug Safety Communication, rests mainly on studies in hospitalized patients. Our objectives were to determine the prevalence of hypomagnesemia and its association with PPIs in the community setting. We performed a retrospective cross-sectional analysis of a large health maintenance organization administrative database, including ambulatory patients with ≥1 serum magnesium concentrations between 2008 and 2011, the lowest referred to as "index magnesium.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: In controlled trials, dual therapy with angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACE-I) and angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs) is associated with hyperkalemia and decreased renal function, but there is no information about these adverse effects in clinical practice.
Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the incidence of hyperkalemia and decreased renal function during dual therapy (ACE-I plus ARB) in a community-based setting.
Methods: In a retrospective cohort database study, we identified patients who received ARBs added to ongoing ACE-I therapy and who had at least 1 measurement of serum creatinine and potassium during each treatment period.
Endoxifen, the most active metabolite of the prodrug tamoxifen, is produced by cytochrome P450 CYP2D6. Breast cancer patients treated with tamoxifen who have reduced CYP2D6 activity, related to either genetic variation or drug inhibition, may have inferior outcomes. To assess the effect of concomitant CYP2D6 inhibiting drug use on clinical outcomes of breast cancer patients treated with adjuvant tamoxifen.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: To compare death rates of diabetic men and women relative to the general population and to identify sex-specific risk factors for all-cause mortality.
Study Design And Settings: In the current historical prospective cohort study, standardized mortality ratios (SMRs) were calculated for 19,657 men and women with diabetes in a large Israeli health care organization compared to the mortality in the general population from 1999 to 2003. In addition, sex-specific survival analyses were performed for men and women separately using baseline data obtained between 1995 and 1999.