Publications by authors named "Matthew D Bloom"
Gastric pneumatosis, the presence of air within the stomach wall, is a very rare occurrence with poor outcomes. One of the most common mechanisms for gastric pneumatosis is gastric ischaemia, also a rare entity. Although patients with gastric ischaemia may require surgical intervention, they can often be treated with conservative measures such as a proton pump inhibitor, broad-spectrum antibiotics, nasogastric tube decompression, fluid resuscitation and total parenteral nutrition.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSodium glucose cotransporter-2 (SGLT2) inhibitors are glucose-lowering drugs with proven efficacy in treating type 2 diabetes mellitus, and more recently, have been shown to improve heart failure outcomes in patients without diabetes. A rare complication of SGLT2 inhibitor use is the development of euglycaemic diabetic ketoacidosis (EDKA), characterised by euglycaemia (blood glucose level <250 mg/dL), metabolic acidosis (arterial pH <7.3 and serum bicarbonate <18 mEq/L), and ketonaemia.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFArticle Synopsis
- Recent studies indicate an uptick in the use of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) in advanced cancer patients nearing the end of life, but detailed understanding of this trend is limited.
- A chart review of 97 patients who received ICIs in their last 30 days revealed that 40% received only one dose, with many having a poor performance status and high hospitalization rates.
- The findings suggest that while ICIs may offer potential benefits, careful consideration of factors like performance status and patient wishes is crucial for oncologists when making treatment decisions at the end of life.