Publications by authors named "R P LINKER"
Background: Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic immune-mediated disease of the central nervous system affecting approximately 2.8 million people worldwide. In addition to genetic and environmental factors, various lifestyle factors contribute to disease development and progression.
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- Glioblastoma (GB) is a highly aggressive brain tumor with poor outcomes, and this study explored the impact of prediagnostic antibiotic use on treatment side effects and survival rates in GB patients.
- Out of 78 patients, those who used antibiotics before diagnosis experienced significantly higher rates of loss of appetite, nausea, myelosuppression, and lymphocytopenia compared to those who didn't use antibiotics.
- While antibiotic use was associated with increased toxicity symptoms and a potential trend towards shorter overall survival, it did not significantly affect overall or progression-free survival rates, indicating the need for further research on this relationship.
(1) Background: Clinical aspects like sex, age, Karnofsky Performance Scale (KPS) and psychosocial distress can affect the health-related quality of life (HR-QoL) and treatment satisfaction of patients with malignant isocitrate dehydrogenase wild-type (IDHwt) gliomas and caregivers. (2) Methods: We prospectively investigated the HR-QoL and patient/caregiver treatment satisfaction in a cross-sectional study with univariable and multiple regression analyses. Questionnaires were applied to investigate the HR-QoL (EORTC QLQ-C30, QLQ-BN20) and treatment satisfaction (EORTC PATSAT-C33).
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- The study investigates the impact of fingolimod treatment on heart rate (HR) and cardiovascular autonomic modulation in patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), particularly focusing on those who initially experienced prolonged HR slowing.
- It involves monitoring 34 patients before and after fingolimod initiation, measuring various cardiovascular parameters to assess changes in autonomic function.
- Findings indicate that while all patients experienced HR decreases after treatment, those with initial prolonged HR slowing showed persistent differences in HR and autonomic modulation six months later compared to those without this phenomenon.
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- Eculizumab (ECU) has shown effectiveness in preventing attacks in patients with aquaporin-4 (AQP4)-IgG seropositive neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders (NMOSDs) during a retrospective analysis in clinical settings between 2014 and 2022.
- A total of 52 patients were studied, with 88% being attack-free during treatment, and the annualized attack rate significantly decreased from 1.0 to 0.
- While common side effects included serious infections, five patients died from various complications, indicating a need for careful monitoring during long-term ECU therapy.