Relapse outcomes, safety, and treatment patterns in patients diagnosed with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis and initiated on subcutaneous interferon β-1a or dimethyl fumarate: a real-world study.

Objective: To estimate real-world treatment patterns, safety, and relapse outcomes of subcutaneous (sc) interferon (IFN) β-1a (Rebif) vs dimethyl fumarate (DMF; Tecfidera), to treat relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS).

Methods: A US retrospective chart review of 450 randomly selected adults newly diagnosed with RRMS who received sc IFN β-1a (n = 143) or DMF (n = 307) was conducted. Patients were either (a) treatment-naïve, initiating first-line treatment with sc IFN β-1a or DMF, or (b) previously treated, switching to sc IFN β-1a or DMF.

Quality Improvement in Management of Acute Coronary Syndrome: Continuing Medical Education and Peer Coaching Improve Antiplatelet Medication Adherence and Reduce Hospital Readmissions.

Background: Reducing hospital readmissions and improving patient adherence to antiplatelet medications after an acute coronary syndrome (ACS) event are important goals for improving patient health and decreasing healthcare costs. Nearly half of patients will have a secondary event within 1 year of the initial ACS event. Quality improvement (QI) initiatives that include continuing medical education and peer coaching may improve physician practice patterns and, therefore, patient outcomes.

The Economic Impact of Levothyroxine Dose Adjustments: the CONTROL HE Study.

Background: In general, hypothyroidism can be adequately treated with a consistent daily dose of levothyroxine. However, the need for levothyroxine dose adjustments is frequent in clinical practice. The extent to which levothyroxine dose adjustments increase the utilization of healthcare resources has not previously been described in the clinical literature.

Persistency, medication prescribing patterns, and medical resource use associated with multiple sclerosis patients receiving oral disease-modifying therapies: a retrospective medical record review.

Background: In the US, the approved multiple sclerosis (MS) oral disease-modifying therapies (ODMTs) are fingolimod (FTY), teriflunomide (TFN), and dimethyl fumarate (DMF). FTY and TFN are recommended with once-daily doses with no up-titration, whereas DMF treatment is recommended twice-daily (BID) and is initiated with a 7-day starter dose of 120 mg BID before up-titration to the maintenance dose of 240 mg BID. Limited information exists regarding real-world ODMT prescribing patterns to aid physician/patient decision-making.

Replication-dependent and transcription-dependent mechanisms of DNA double-strand break induction by the topoisomerase 2-targeting drug etoposide.

Etoposide is a DNA topoisomerase 2-targeting drug widely used for the treatment of cancer. The cytoxicity of etoposide correlates with the generation of DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs), but the mechanism of how it induces DSBs in cells is still poorly understood. Catalytically, etoposide inhibits the re-ligation reaction of Top2 after it nicks the two strands of DNA, trapping it in a cleavable complex consisting of two Top2 subunits covalently linked to the 5' ends of DNA (Top2cc).