A Real-World Comparison of Drug Trough Levels between Patients Experiencing a Secondary Nonimmune Loss of Response and Those Maintaining a Response to Infliximab on Long-Term Maintenance Therapy for Inflammatory Bowel Disease.

Introduction: A secondary loss of response (LOR) to infliximab (IFX) therapy for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is typically associated with low IFX trough levels, often with high levels of neutralizing antibodies to IFX (ATI). A small subset of patients on long-term therapy experience a "nonimmune" LOR, without ATI and with desired IFX trough levels ≥5 μg/mL, regarded as a LOR to the mechanism of action of IFX. However, this currently accepted IFX goal level is largely derived from observations of patients within the first year of therapy and may not apply to those on treatment beyond 1 year.

Transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation attenuates inflammatory bowel disease in children: a proof-of-concept clinical trial.

Background: Vagus nerve stimulation is an investigational anti-inflammatory therapy targeting the nervous system to modulate immune activity. This study evaluated the efficacy and safety of transcutaneous auricular VNS (ta-VNS) in patients with pediatric-onset Crohn's disease (CD) or ulcerative colitis (UC).

Methods: Participants were 10-21 years of age with mild/moderate CD or UC and fecal calprotectin (FC) > 200 ug/g within 4 weeks of study entry.

Implementing physician education to increase lung cancer screening uptake.

Aim: Lung cancer (LC) is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. The US Preventive Services Task Force and National Comprehensive Cancer Network recommend annual low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) for eligible adults. We conducted a study to assess physician LDCT referral patterns.

Efficacy of ketamine mouthwash in the management of oral and pharyngeal toxicity associated with head and neck chemoradiotherapy: protocol for a phase II, Simon's two-stage trial.

Introduction: Curative intent treatment of head and neck cancer (HNC) is frequently radiation therapy over 7 weeks with concurrent chemotherapy. This regimen is effective but carries a burden of toxicity leading to severe pain and treatment breaks portending inferior outcomes. Conventional palliation methods include opioids, anticonvulsants and local anaesthetics.

Inpatient utilization of immune checkpoint inhibitors and clinical outcomes.

Introduction: Retrospective studies have suggested that patients with poor performance status treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors have shorter overall survival and poorer response rates. This study was undertaken to investigate the possible relationships between inpatient immune checkpoint inhibitor use and clinical outcomes.

Methods: This was a retrospective chart review of cancer patients who received an immune checkpoint inhibitor while hospitalized from 1 January 2016 to 30 December 2020.

Malpractice litigation in elective lumbar spinal fusion: a comprehensive review of reported legal claims in the U.S. in the past 50 years.

Background Context: In the U.S., medical malpractice litigation is associated with significant financial costs and often leads to the practice of defensive medicine.

Missed Opportunities? An Observational Analysis of Lung Cancer Screening Utilization Amongst Patients With Lung Cancer.

Lung cancer (LC) is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. The U.S.

Quality-of-Care Implications of Antimicrobial Prescription Patterns for Acute Respiratory Tract Infections.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that half of the antibiotic prescriptions for acute respiratory tract infections (ARTIs) in ambulatory care settings are unnecessary. To better understand the quality-of-care implications of prescription patterns for ARTIs, we conducted a retrospective chart review of outpatient ARTI visits, across a large integrated health system, and examined the association of patient characteristics with receiving antimicrobials, as well as the association between receiving antimicrobials and healthcare utilization (outpatient and emergency department visits). We found that 55.

External validation of the IMPROVE-DD risk assessment model for venous thromboembolism among inpatients with COVID-19.

There is a need to discriminate which COVID-19 inpatients are at higher risk for venous thromboembolism (VTE) to inform prophylaxis strategies. The IMPROVE-DD VTE risk assessment model (RAM) has previously demonstrated good discrimination in non-COVID populations. We aimed to externally validate the IMPROVE-DD VTE RAM in medical patients hospitalized with COVID-19.

A real world analysis of first line treatment of advanced EGFR mutated non-small cell lung cancer: A multi-center, retrospective study.

Introduction: The recently published FLAURA trial demonstrated that osimertinib has remarkable efficacy in front-line setting for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). While this has transformed current practice, there are no effective treatments following progression on osimertinib. The aim of our study was to compare progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) between patients initiated on osimertinib to those started on other TKIs.

Survival models to support shared decision-making about advance care planning for people with advanced stage cystic fibrosis.

Background: For people with advanced stage cystic fibrosis (CF), tailored survival estimates could facilitate preparation for decision-making in the event of acutely deteriorating respiratory function.

Methods: We used the US CF Foundation national database (2008-2013) to identify adult people with incident advanced stage CF (forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1) ≤45% predicted). Using the lasso method for variable selection, we divided the dataset into training and validation samples (2:1), and developed two multivariable Cox proportional hazards models to calculate probabilities of survival from baseline (T0 model), and from 1 year after (T12 model).