Accuracy of reporting the hyperdense middle cerebral artery sign as a function of clinical experience.

Background/aim: The hyperdense middle cerebral artery sign (HMCAS) is a useful clinical sign in the management of acute stroke and may alter time-critical decisions within an emergency setting. Though gold standards have been published, these are rarely used in clinical practice and scans tend to be reported subjectively. It is therefore possible that the level of experience of the doctor reporting the scan may impact on the accuracy of the reporting and hence patient management.

Greater trochanteric pain syndrome: defining the clinical syndrome.

Background: Effective treatment of hip pain improves population health and quality of life. Accurate differential diagnosis is fundamental to effective treatment. The diagnostic criteria for one common hip problem, greater trochanteric pain syndrome (GTPS) have not been well defined.

Renal safety of zoledronic acid with thalidomide in patients with myeloma: a pharmacokinetic and safety sub-study.

Background: Cases of impaired renal function have been reported in patients who had been treated with both zoledronic acid and thalidomide for myeloma. Hence, we conducted a safety study of zoledronic acid and thalidomide in myeloma patients participating in a trial of maintenance therapy.

Methods: Twenty-four patients who were enrolled in a large randomized trial of thalidomide vs no thalidomide maintenance therapy for myeloma, in which all patients also received zoledronic acid, were recruited to a pharmacokinetic and renal safety sub-study, and followed for up to 16 months.