Publications by authors named "P Orfanos"
Article Synopsis
- The study investigates how common hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis suppression is among kidney transplant recipients (KTRs) on low doses of glucocorticoids, highlighting that 27.5% had low cortisol levels.* -
- It found that KTRs with low cortisol levels tended to be older and longer post-transplant, with cortisol levels positively correlating with other hormones like ACTH and DHEAS.* -
- Despite increased HPA axis suppression in these patients, the study concluded that it was not linked to metabolic disorders like hypertension or diabetes, suggesting ACTH could be a useful biomarker for monitoring HPA activity.*
Objectives: There are limited real-life data regarding the efficacy and safety of rituximab (RTX) as a remission-maintenance agent in microscopic-polyangiitis (ΜPA) and granulomatosis-with-polyangiitis (GPA). We aimed to estimate the incidence and risk factors for relapses, as well serious-adverse-events (SAEs) in MPA/GPA patients during RTX-maintenance.
Methods: Retrospective cohort of newly-diagnosed/relapsing GPA/MPA patients who received RTX-maintenance (≥1 RTX-cycle, ≥6 months follow-up) following complete-remission (Birmingham-Vasculitis-Activity-Score-version-3 = 0 plus prednisolone ≤7.
Data on COVID-19 mortality among patients in intensive care units (ICUs) from Eastern and/or Southern European countries, including Greece, are limited. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the ICU mortality trends among critically ill COVID-19 patients during the first two years of the pandemic in Greece and to further investigate if certain patients' clinical characteristics contributed to this outcome. We conducted a multi-center retrospective observational study among five large university hospitals in Greece, between February 2020 and January 2022.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground And Aim: Although lifestyle factors have been repeatedly examined for their role on cardiovascular diseases, their composite effect has not been frequently explored. We aimed to investigate the relation of dietary patterns (DPs) and a health behavior index (HBI) with cardiovascular biomarkers.
Methods And Results: A cross-sectional analysis with data from 3461 US residents, participants in the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), was performed.
Article Synopsis
- Elevated lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)] is a significant genetic risk factor for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD), increasing the risk by 2-4 times, which is particularly concerning in patients undergoing secondary prevention.
- A systematic literature review was conducted to analyze studies from 2010 to 2022 that assessed the clinical impact of elevated Lp(a) levels, resulting in 61 studies, with 26 specifically addressing the burden of elevated levels on health outcomes.
- Key findings indicated that elevated Lp(a) levels are linked to a higher risk of major cardiovascular events, myocardial infarction, and cognitive impairments, showcasing a negative effect on patients' health-related quality of life, although meta-analysis was hindered by