Schedules for Self-monitoring Blood Pressure: A Systematic Review.

Background: Self-monitoring of blood pressure better predicts prognosis than clinic measurement, is popular with patients, and endorsed in hypertension guidelines. However, there is uncertainty over the optimal self-monitoring schedule. We therefore aimed to determine the optimum schedule to predict future cardiovascular events and determine "true" underlying blood pressure.

Basal Insulin Regimens for Adults with Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus: A Systematic Review and Network Meta-Analysis.

Objective: To assess the relative efficacy and safety of basal insulin regimens in adults with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM).

Methods: A systematic review and Bayesian network meta-analysis (NMA) of randomized controlled trials comparing two or more basal insulin regimens were conducted. The following basal insulin regimens were included: Neutral Protamine Hagedorn (iNPH) (once [od], twice [bid], and four times daily [qid]), insulin detemir (iDet) (od and bid), insulin glargine 100 IU (iGlarg) (od), and insulin degludec (iDegl) (od).

Synopsis of the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence guideline for prevention of delirium.

Description: Delirium is common, is often underrecognized, and is associated with poor outcomes and high costs. In July 2010, the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence released a guideline that addressed diagnosis, prevention, and management of delirium. This synopsis focuses on the main recommendations about prevention of delirium.

Piloting the development of a cost-effective evidence-informed clinical pathway: managing hypertension in Jordanian primary care.

Objectives: The UK's National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) and the Jordan office of the Medicines Transparency Alliance embarked on a pilot project to design an evidence-based guideline for cost-effective pharmacological treatment of essential hypertension in Jordan. The project's objectives were to directly address a major health problem for Jordan by producing a guideline; and to delineate the strengths and weaknesses of Jordan's healthcare process to allow similar future efforts to be planned more efficiently.

Methods: The pilot spanned a period of approximately 8 months.

Value of information in the osteoarthritis setting: cost effectiveness of COX-2 selective inhibitors, traditional NSAIDs and proton pump inhibitors.

Background: Recent National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) guidance recommended that when traditional NSAIDs or cyclo-oxygenase (COX)-2 selective inhibitors are used by people with osteoarthritis (OA), they should be prescribed along with a proton pump inhibitor (PPI). However, specific recommendations about the type of NSAID or COX-2 could not be made due to high levels of uncertainty in the economic evaluation.

Objective: To investigate the value of obtaining further evidence to inform the economic evaluation of NSAIDs, COX-2s and PPIs for people with OA.

A human domain antibody and Lewis b glycoconjugate that inhibit binding of Helicobacter pylori to Lewis b receptor and adhesion to human gastric epithelium.

Increasing antibiotic resistance has prompted development of alternative approaches to antimicrobial therapy, including blocking microbial adhesion to host receptors. The BabA adhesin of Helicobacter pylori binds to fucosylated blood group antigens, such as the Lewis(b) antigens in human primate gastric mucosa. We have isolated a human domain antibody specific for BabA that inhibits binding of BabA to Lewis(b) and prevents adhesion of H.

Cost effectiveness of COX 2 selective inhibitors and traditional NSAIDs alone or in combination with a proton pump inhibitor for people with osteoarthritis.

Objectives: To investigate the cost effectiveness of cyclo-oxygenase-2 (COX 2) selective inhibitors and traditional non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), and the addition of proton pump inhibitors to these treatments, for people with osteoarthritis.

Design: An economic evaluation using a Markov model and data from a systematic review was conducted. Estimates of cardiovascular and gastrointestinal adverse events were based on data from three large randomised controlled trials, and observational data were used for sensitivity analyses.

Withdrawal of disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objective: To define the effects of withdrawing disease-modifying antirheumatic drug (DMARD) treatment from patients with established rheumatoid arthritis (RA) receiving stable, effective long-term DMARD treatment.

Methods: A systematic literature search was conducted. Studies were included that were of high quality and enrolled adults with RA over 2 years' duration.

Human domain antibodies against virulence traits of Candida albicans inhibit fungus adherence to vaginal epithelium and protect against experimental vaginal candidiasis.

Antibody variable domains (domain antibodies [DAbs]) are genetically engineered antibody fragments that include individual heavy-chain (VH) or kappa-chain (Vkappa) variable domains and lack the Fc region. Human DAbs against the 65-kDa mannoprotein (MP65) or the secretory aspartyl proteinase (SAP)-2 of Candida albicans (monospecific DAbs) or against both fungal antigens (heterodimeric, bispecific DAbs) were generated from phage expression libraries. Both monospecific and bispecific DAbs inhibited fungus adherence to the epithelial cells of rat vagina and accelerated the clearance of vaginal infection with the fungus.

Bactericidal and anti-adhesive properties of culinary and medicinal plants against Helicobacter pylori.

Aim: To investigate the bactericidal and anti-adhesive properties of 25 plants against Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori).

Methods: Twenty-five plants were boiled in water to produce aqueous extracts that simulate the effect of cooking.

Helicobacter pylori: current status and future prospects.

Helicobacter pylori is a global pathogen that causes severe gastrointestinal diseases leading to a significant morbidity and mortality. There is an effective treatment for peptic ulcer disease, however, this is being compromised by an increase in the prevalence of antibiotic resistance. Although alternative rescue regimens have been advocated, the best strategy would be to prevent disease, especially in the case of gastric cancer for which there is still no treatment.

Comparison of image analysis software packages in the assessment of adhesion of microorganisms to mucosal epithelium using confocal laser scanning microscopy.

We have compared current image analysis software packages in order to find the most useful one for assessing microbial adhesion and inhibition of adhesion to tissue sections. We have used organisms of different sizes, the bacterium Helicobacter pylori and the yeast Candida albicans. Adhesion of FITC-labelled H.

Innate immunity and pathogen-host interaction.

The skin and contiguous mucosal surfaces define the primary locus of interaction between host and micro-organisms. In this review, we focus on the innate immune system in the mucosa, which manages to deal with invading pathogens, the mechanisms that organisms have evolved in order to circumvent this primary defensive barrier and, finally, potential therapeutic manipulation of the innate immune system that was the focus of meeting at a Euroconference/Workshop on "Novel Strategies of Mucosal Immunisation through Exploitation of Mechanisms of Innate Immunity in Pathogen-Host Interaction", which was held in Siena, Italy, November 2002.