Treatment with fostamatinib in patients with immune thrombocytopenia: Experience from the Andalusian region in Spain-The Fostasur Study.

Immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) is characterized by low platelet counts (PLTs) and an increased risk of bleeding. Fostamatinib, a spleen tyrosine kinase inhibitor, has been approved as a second-line treatment for ITP. Real-world data on fostamatinib are lacking.

Epidemiology and prognosis of patients with a history of cancer admitted to intensive care. A multicenter observational study.

Objective: To assess the epidemiology and outcome at discharge of cancer patients requiring admission to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU).

Design: A descriptive observational study was made of data from the ENVIN-HELICS registry, combined with specifically compiled variables. Comparisons were made between patients with and without neoplastic disease, and groups of cancer patients with a poorer outcome were identified.

Usefulness of point-of-care ultrasound for the evaluation of non-traumatic eye emergencies.

The role of clinical ultrasound or Point-of-Care Ultrasound (POCUS) in patients with urgent pathology has expanded exponentially in recent years. With clinical ultrasound, physicians can make a quick assessment and decide how to act in time critical situations. Ocular ultrasound is one of the most recently developed applications.

Prevalence of advanced heart failure and use of palliative care in admitted patients: Findings from the EPICTER study.

Introduction And Aim: Palliative care in patients with advanced heart failure is strongly recommended by Clinical Practice Guidelines. We aimed to calculate the prevalence of advanced heart failure in admitted patients, to describe their management, and to analyse the factors that influence their referral to specialised palliative care.

Patients And Methods: Cross-sectional, multicentre study that consecutively included patients admitted for heart failure in 74 Spanish hospitals.

Long-term impact of an educational antimicrobial stewardship programme in primary care on infections caused by extended-spectrum β-lactamase-producing Escherichia coli in the community: an interrupted time-series analysis.

Background: There is little evidence on the ecological effect and sustainability of antimicrobial stewardship programmes (ASPs) in primary-care settings. We aimed to determine whether a multimodal, educational ASP would be sustainable in the long-term and reduce the incidence of infections caused by extended-spectrum β-lactamase-producing Escherichia coli in the community by optimising antibiotic use.

Methods: We did this quasi-experimental intervention study in 214 primary health centres of four primary health-care districts in Andalusia, Spain.

[Infantile atypical hand-foot-mouth disease with features of eczema herpeticum and acrodermatitis].

Hand-foot-mouth disease can present atypically, including forms with more numerous lesions and/or morphologically different from the classic presentation. It may even mimic other viral diseases. We present the case of a 2-year-old child previously diagnosed with atopic dermatitis, who presented with papules and umbilicated vesicles affecting the perioral area and limbs, predominantly in pressure areas, as well as in areas with previous atopic lesions.

[Appropriateness of antibiotic prescribing in paediatric patients in a hospital emergency department].

Introduction: Antibiotics represent one of the most widely prescribed therapeutic agents in children. It has been estimated that 30-50% of antibiotic prescriptions for this population are inappropriate. In this scenario, analysis of prescription data provides an invaluable source of information as a basis for implementing strategies for improvement in this field.

Environmental sampling protocol devised and implemented to resolve a nosocomial outbreak due to carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella oxytoca.

We describe a method for investigating wet foci in the hospital environment of a nosocomial outbreak due to carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella oxytoca. By searching in areas that are usually inaccessible, by immersing sampling swabs in thioglycolate broth, and by concentrating the sampled water, reservoirs of infection that would have gone unnoticed can be detected.

[Neurological complications of tick-borne relapsing fever].

Introduction: Tick-borne relapsing fever (TBRF) can cause neurological complications. There are hardly any studies in Spain on this subject.

Aim: To study the prevalence and clinical characteristics of neurological complications of patients with TBRF.

[Henoch-Schonlein purpura involving the penis: a case report].

Schonlein-Henoch purpura accounts for the majority of cases of systemic vasculitis in children. Classical presentation is characterized by palpable purpura, glomerulonephritis, arthralgias and abdominal pain. Although genitourinary manifestations, in form of testicular and scrotal involvement, have been widely described, penile involvement remains an extremely rare complication.

HbA1c measurement and relationship to incident stroke.

Aims: To determine the proportion of people with diabetes who have HbA1c measured, what proportion achieve an HbA1c level of < 58 mmol/mol (7.5%), the frequency of testing and if there was any change in HbA1c level in the year before and the year after an incident stroke.

Methods: This study used the Secure Anonymised Information Linkage (SAIL) databank, which stores hospital data for the whole of Wales and ~ 65% of Welsh general practice records, to identify cases of stroke in patients with diabetes between 2000 and 2010.

[Importance of hypertensive left ventricular hypertrophy in patients with ischemic events of the heart or brain].

Introduction And Objective: Hypertensive left ventricular hypertrophy (H-LVH) is a potentially modifiable vascular risk factor (VRF) often overlooked in clinical practice. We aimed to evaluate the frequency of H-LVH in patients with coronary heart disease (CHD) or ischemic stroke (IS).

Patients And Methods: We retrospectively assessed all the echocardiography studies of patients admitted with the diagnosis CHD or IS over a 4-year period.

Doppler ultrasound study and venous mapping in chronic venous insufficiency.

Chronic venous insufficiency of the lower limbs is very prevalent. In recent decades, Doppler ultrasound has become the method of choice to study this condition, and it is considered essential when surgery is indicated. This article aims to establish a method for the examination, including venous mapping and preoperative marking.

[Tight control of blood pressure after ischemic stroke is associated with nocturnal hypotension episodes].

Aim: To evaluate whether a tighter blood pressure (BP) control in patients with recent ischemic stroke is associated with the presence of nocturnal hypotension (NHP) episodes.

Patients And Methods: We included one hundred consecutive patients who had been discharged for ischemic stroke in the previous six months. To evaluate adequacy of BP control in these patients office BP and 24-h ambulatory BP monitoring values were used.

Treatment of hyperglycaemia in patients with acute stroke.

The proportion of diabetic patients who are hospitalised for stroke has been increasing in recent years, currently reaching almost a third of all cases of stroke. In addition, about half of patients with acute stroke present hyperglycaemia in the first hours of the stroke. Although hyperglycaemia in the acute phase of stroke is associated with a poor prognosis, its treatment is currently a topic of debate.

[Statins in the secondary prevention of stroke: New evidence from the SPARCL Study].

Until recently there was little evidence that statin therapy reduced the risk of stroke recurrence. The SPARCL trial, published in 2006, was the first trial to show the benefits of statin therapy in preventing recurrent stroke. The SPARCL trial showed that treatment with atorvastatin 80mg/day reduced recurrent stroke in patients with a recent stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA).