Objective: To develop a simple clinical decision rule that could increase the yield of serum and urine protein electrophoresis (SPE/UPE) without loss of sensitivity.
Design: A cross-sectional study of inpatients with a SPE/UPE performed over a 5-year period (2001-2006) with complete data on electrolytes, globulins, full blood count, creatinine, age, and gender.
Setting: A tertiary-care general teaching hospital serving the Hunter Valley in New South Wales, with a referral population of over 1 million.
Participants: A total of 14,374 adult patients admitted between January 2001-November 2006.
Main Outcome Measures: Paraprotein on serum and/or urine protein electrophoresis (SPE/UPE).
Results: Five points were assigned for globulin > 41 g/l, 3 points for age > or = 60, 2 points for each of hemoglobin < 121 and male gender, and 1 point for estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) < 60. Total scores of 0-5, 6-10, and > or = 11 corresponded to positive likelihood ratios of an abnormal SPE/UPE of 1, 2.5, and 6.6, respectively. The predictive ability of this model was strong, with an area under the curve of approximately 0.8. Results in the validation set were almost identical.
Conclusion: A clinical decision rule using simple clinical variables has the potential to improve the yield of SPE/UPE. This rule however needs to be verified prospectively.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11606-008-0712-z | DOI Listing |
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Coordinator of the International Head and Neck Scientific Group, Padua, Italy.
Introduction: Laryngeal chondrosarcoma (CS) is a rare indolent malignant tumor. High-grade (G3), dedifferentiated (DD), and myxoid (MY) CSs are considered more aggressive subtypes due to their metastatic potential and relatively poor outcomes. The aim of this systematic review is to evaluate treatment modalities and survival outcomes in patients affected by these rarer CS subtypes.
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Corneoplastic Unit and Eye Bank, Queen Victoria Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, East Grinstead, UK.
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Ophthalmol Ther
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Dr. Rolf M. Schwiete Center for Limbal Stem Cell and Congenital Aniridia Research, Saarland University, Homburg, Saar, Germany.
Introduction: Congenital aniridia is increasingly recognized as part of a complex syndrome with numerous ocular developmental anomalies and non-ocular systemic manifestations. This requires comprehensive care and treatment of affected patients. Our purpose was to analyze systemic diseases in patients with congenital aniridia within the Homburg Aniridia Registry.
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Department of Medicine, Nephrology Division, University of Verona, Verona, Italy.
Introduction: Pain is one of the most frequently reported symptoms in hemodialyzed (HD) patients, with prevalence rates between 33% and 82%. Risk factors for chronic pain in HD patients are older age, long-lasting dialysis history, several concomitant diseases, malnutrition, and others. However, chronic pain assessment in HD patients is rarely performed by specialists in pain medicine, with relevant consequences in terms of diagnostic and treatment accuracy.
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Faculty of Medicine, Department of Emergency Medicine, Akdeniz University, Antalya, Turkey.
Patients presenting with suspected acute coronary syndrome (ACS) in the emergency department (ED) require rapid and accurate electrocardiographic (ECG) evaluation. This study aims to assess conventional ECG markers for diagnosing non-ST-elevation ACS (NSTE-ACS) in patients with chest discomfort and right bundle branch block (RBBB). A nested case-control design was employed to compare patients with RBBB admitted to the ED for suspected cardiac ischemia, focusing on those who developed NSTE-ACS versus those who did not.
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