Relative Forgiveness of Different Allopurinol Implementation Patterns in People with Gout and their Impact on Clinical Outcomes: a Simulation Study.

Background And Objective: Adherence to urate-lowering therapy among people with gout is poor, so it is important to understand which day-to-day medication-taking ('implementation') patterns are most likely to lead to suboptimal serum urate concentrations and worsen clinical outcomes. This study aimed to (1) determine the relative forgiveness (RF) of allopurinol with hypothetical and real-life implementation patterns in people with gout, (2) explore the use of RF as a means of identifying suboptimal implementation patterns, (3) assess the impact of suboptimal implementation patterns on clinical outcomes.

Methods: A simulation study was conducted using a pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic model for allopurinol and serum urate to determine the RF of allopurinol implementation patterns.

Effect of Postbiotic CECT 7347 on Gastrointestinal Symptoms, Serum Biochemistry, and Intestinal Microbiota in Healthy Adults: A Randomised, Parallel, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Pilot Study.

Objectives: A randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled pilot trial was conducted to assess the effect of heat-treated CECT 7347 (HT-ES1) in healthy adults with mild to moderate digestive symptoms. A total of 60 participants were recruited and received either HT-ES1 or an identical placebo for 8 weeks with a further follow-up at week 10.

Methods: This study monitored changes in the total Gastrointestinal Symptom Rating Scale for IBS score (GSRS-IBS), Irritable Bowel Syndrome Symptom Severity Scale (IBS-SSS), IBS Quality of Life index (IBS-QoL), gut microbiome using 16S rRNA sequencing, and the Visceral Sensitivity Index, as well as a range of biochemical markers, anthropometric parameters, and adverse events.

The impact of a multi-faceted intervention on non-prescription dispensing of antibiotics by urban community pharmacies in Indonesia: a mixed methods evaluation.

Introduction: Non-prescription antibiotic dispensing is prevalent among community pharmacies in several low- and middle-income countries. We evaluated the impact of a multi-faceted intervention to address this challenge in urban community pharmacies in Indonesia.

Methods: A pre-post quasi-experimental study was carried out in Semarang city from January to August 2022 to evaluate a 7-month long intervention comprising: (1) online educational sessions for pharmacists; (2) awareness campaign targeting customers; (3) peer visits; and (4) pharmacy branding and pharmacist certification.

Hierarchically Structured Biodegradable Microspheres Promote Therapeutic Angiogenesis.

Promoting neovascularization is a prerequisite for many tissue engineering applications and the treatment of cardiovascular disease. Delivery of a pro-angiogenic stimulus via acellular materials offers several benefits over biological therapies but has been hampered by interaction of the implanted material with the innate immune response. However, macrophages, a key component of the innate immune response, release a plurality of soluble factors that can be harnessed to stimulate neovascularization and restore blood flow to damaged tissue.

Use of, time to, and type of first add-on anti-hyperglycaemic therapy to metformin in Australia, 2018-2022.

Aims: The aim of this study was to examine contemporary trends in the use of, time to, and type of first add-on anti-hyperglycaemic therapy to metformin in Australia.

Methods: We used the dispensing records of a 10% random sample of Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) eligible people. We included people aged 40 years and older initiating metformin from 1 January 2018 to 31 December 2020.

Psychometric evaluation of the Adherence to Refills and Medications Scale (ARMS) in Australians living with gout.

This study aimed to examine psychometric properties of the Adherence to Refills and Medications Scale (ARMS) in people with gout. We conducted exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and tested internal consistency (ordinal and Cronbach's alpha coefficients) and agreement (intraclass correlation coefficient (2,1)) in ARMS scores across three timepoints (baseline, 6, and 12 months) in 487 people with gout. The Kruskal-Wallis test, Spearman's rank, Kendall's tau-b correlations, and logistic regression were used to examine the criterion-related validity of the ARMS and factors associated with the ARMS.

Meta-analysis and systematic review of gout prevalence in the heart/lung transplantation population.

Introduction: Gout may complicate solid organ transplantation with potentially serious consequences. An accurate prevalence of gout in this population is unknown.

Objectives: This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of gout in the heart and/or lung transplantation population through a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Economic evaluations of therapeutic drug monitoring interventions in acute hospital-based settings: A systematic review.

Aims: Therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) aims to optimize drug therapy. As demand on health resources increases, and the technology underpinning TDM becomes more sophisticated, the economic benefits of TDM in hospitals is unclear. The aim of this systematic review was to summarize the economic evidence that could be used to support investment in TDM in hospital settings.

Injectable biodegradable microcarriers for iPSC expansion and cardiomyocyte differentiation.

Cell therapy is a potential novel treatment for cardiac regeneration and numerous studies have attempted to transplant cells to regenerate the myocardium lost during myocardial infarction. To date, only minimal improvements to cardiac function have been reported. This is likely to be the result of low cell retention and survival following transplantation.

A potential novel treatment for cirrhosis-related ascites: Empagliflozin is safe and tolerable in advanced chronic liver disease.

Aims: Advanced chronic liver disease and advanced chronic liver disease-related ascites have a high mortality. The pharmacological treatment of ascites and fluid overload has changed little over time. Empagliflozin, a sodium-glucose cotransporter type 2 inhibitor is an untested potential novel treatment in cirrhosis, as it has survival benefits in heart failure, which has similar pathophysiological fluid overload mechanisms.

An Investigation into the Effects of Processing Factors on the Properties and Scaling-Up Potential of Propranolol-Loaded Chitosan Nanogels.

Chitosan-triphosphate (TPP) nanogels are widely studied drug delivery carrier systems, typically prepared via a simple mixing process. However, the effects of the processing factors on nanogel production have not been extensively explored, despite the importance of understanding and standardising such factors to allow upscaling and commercial usage. This study aims to systematically evaluate the effects of various fabrication and processing factors on the properties of nanogels using a Design of Experiment approach.

The experiences and perspectives of people with gout on urate self-monitoring.

Introduction: Gout management remains suboptimal despite safe and effective urate-lowering therapy. Self-monitoring of urate may improve gout management, however, the acceptability of urate self-monitoring by people with gout is unknown. The aim of this study was to explore the experiences of urate self-monitoring in people with gout.

Evaluation of Published Population Pharmacokinetic Models to Inform Tacrolimus Therapy in Adult Lung Transplant Recipients.

Background: The applicability of currently available tacrolimus population pharmacokinetic models in guiding dosing for lung transplant recipients is unclear. In this study, the predictive performance of relevant tacrolimus population pharmacokinetic models was evaluated for adult lung transplant recipients.

Methods: Data from 43 lung transplant recipients (1021 tacrolimus concentrations) administered an immediate-release oral formulation of tacrolimus were used to evaluate the predictive performance of 17 published population pharmacokinetic models for tacrolimus.

CT-Visible Microspheres Enable Whole-Body In Vivo Tracking of Injectable Tissue Engineering Scaffolds.

Targeted delivery and retention are essential requirements for implantable tissue-engineered products. Non-invasive imaging methods that can confirm location, retention, and biodistribution of transplanted cells attached to implanted tissue engineering scaffolds will be invaluable for the optimization and enhancement of regenerative therapies. To address this need, an injectable tissue engineering scaffold consisting of highly porous microspheres compatible with transplantation of cells is modified to contain the computed tomography (CT) contrast agent barium sulphate (BaSO).

Geographic variation in sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitor and glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist use in people with type 2 diabetes in New South Wales, Australia.

Aim: Sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitors (SGLT2is) and glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RAs) improve glycaemic control and cardio-renal outcomes for people with type 2 diabetes (T2D). However, geographic and socio-economic variation in use is not well understood.

Methods: We identified 367 829 New South Wales residents aged ≥40 years who dispensed metformin in 2020 as a proxy for T2D.

Patient-Led Urate Self-Monitoring to Improve Clinical Outcomes in People With Gout: A Feasibility Study.

Objective: Self-monitored point-of-care urate-measuring devices are an underexplored strategy to improve adherence to urate-lowering therapy and clinical outcomes in gout. This study observed patient-led urate self-monitoring practice and assessed its influence on allopurinol adherence, urate control, and health-related quality of life.

Methods: People with gout (n = 31) and prescribed allopurinol self-monitored their urate concentrations (HumaSens2.

Qualitative study of challenges with recruitment of hospitals into a cluster controlled trial of clinical decision support in Australia.

Objective: To identify barriers to hospital participation in controlled cluster trials of clinical decision support (CDS) and potential strategies for addressing barriers.

Design: Qualitative descriptive design comprising semistructured interviews.

Setting: Five hospitals in New South Wales and one hospital in Queensland, Australia.

Drug-Drug Interactions and Actual Harm to Hospitalized Patients: A Multicentre Study Examining the Prevalence Pre- and Post-Electronic Medication System Implementation.

Introduction: Drug-drug interactions (DDIs) have potential to cause patient harm, including lowering therapeutic efficacy. This study aimed to (i) determine the prevalence of potential DDIs (pDDIs); clinically relevant DDIs (cDDIs), that is, DDIs that could lead to patient harm, taking into account a patient's individual clinical profile, drug effects and severity of potential harmful outcome; and subsequent actual harm among hospitalized patients and (ii) examine the impact of transitioning from paper-based medication charts to electronic medication management (eMM) on DDIs and patient harms.

Methods: This was a secondary analysis of the control arm of a controlled pre-post study.

Opioids for Acute Musculoskeletal Pain: A Systematic Review with Meta-Analysis.

Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of opioids for people with acute musculoskeletal pain against placebo.

Study Design: Systematic review and meta-analyses of randomised, placebo-controlled trials of opioid analgesics for acute musculoskeletal pain in any setting. The primary outcomes were pain and disability at the immediate timepoint (< 24 h).

Lithium-loaded GelMA-Phosphate glass fibre constructs: Implications for astrocyte response.

Combinations of different biomaterials with their own advantages as well as functionalization with other components have long been implemented in tissue engineering to improve the performance of the overall material. Biomaterials, particularly hydrogel platforms, have shown great potential for delivering compounds such as drugs, growth factors, and neurotrophic factors, as well as cells, in neural tissue engineering applications. In central the nervous system, astrocyte reactivity and glial scar formation are significant and complex challenges to tackle for neural and functional recovery.

Estimation of adherence to urate-lowering therapy in people living with gout using Australia's Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme and patient-reported dosing.

Aims: The aim of this study was to estimate adherence to urate-lowering therapy (ULT), predominately allopurinol, from Australia's Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) claims database in association with (1) patient-reported doses and (2) World Health Organization's (WHO) defined daily doses (DDD), namely, allopurinol (400 mg/day) or febuxostat (80 mg/day).

Methods: Proportion of days covered (PDC) was calculated in 108 Gout App (Gout APP) trial participants with at least two recorded ULT dispensings in an approximately 12-month period before provision of intervention or control apps. Adherence was defined as PDC ≥80%.