Highly specific reasons for nonadherence to antiretroviral therapy: results from the German adherence study.

Background: Reasons for and frequency of nonadherence to antiretroviral therapy (ART) may have changed due to pharmacological improvements. In addition, the importance of known non-pharmacologic reasons for nonadherence is unclear.

Methods: We performed a cross-sectional, noninterventional, multicenter study to identify current reasons for nonadherence.

Reasons for encounters and psychiatric comorbidity in an urban Bavarian primary care out-of-hour service - results of a cross sectional study.

Background: International studies have shown a contribution of psychiatric comorbidity to high utilization rates in out-of-hour primary care (OOHC). Up to now, the impact of psychiatric comorbidity in German OOHC remains unclear. Therefore, we aimed to investigate reasons for encounter (RFE), possible psychiatric comorbidity, utilization rates, and a possible association between utilization rate and psychiatric comorbidity among patients of an urban OOHC unit.

Epidemiological, genetic, and clinical characterization by age of newly diagnosed acute myeloid leukemia based on an academic population-based registry study (AMLSG BiO).

We describe genetic and clinical characteristics of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients according to age from an academic population-based registry. Adult patients with newly diagnosed AML at 63 centers in Germany and Austria were followed within the AMLSG BiO registry (NCT01252485). Between January 1, 2012, and December 31, 2014, data of 3525 patients with AML (45% women) were collected.

Impact of regional socioeconomic variation on coordination and cost of ambulatory care: investigation of claims data from Bavaria, Germany.

Objectives: A considerable proportion of regional variation in healthcare use and health expenditures is to date still unexplained. The aim was to investigate regional differences in the gatekeeping role of general practitioners and to identify relevant explanatory variables at patient and district level in Bavaria, Germany.

Design: Retrospective routine data analysis using claims data held by the Bavarian Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians.

Impact of expansion and redifferentiation under hypothermia on chondrogenic capacity of cultured human septal chondrocytes.

A critical limitation in the cultivation of cartilage for tissue engineering is the dedifferentiation in chondrocytes, mainly during in vitro amplification. Despite many previous studies investigating the influence of various conditions, no data exist concerning the effects of hypothermia. Our aim has been to influence chondrocyte dedifferentiation in vitro by hypothermic conditions.

First case of human peritoneal cysticercosis mimicking peritoneal carcinosis: necessity of laparoscopy and histologic assessment for the correct diagnosis.

Correct diagnosis of peritoneal infectious disease can be extremely difficult due to non-specific clinical features. Thus, careful assessment with thorough histopathological work-up is essential. Here, we report the first case of human peritoneal cysticercosis mimicking peritoneal carcinosis.

TFIIA transcriptional activity is controlled by a 'cleave-and-run' Exportin-1/Taspase 1-switch.

Transcription factor TFIIA is controlled by complex regulatory networks including proteolysis by the protease Taspase 1, though the full impact of cleavage remains elusive. Here, we demonstrate that in contrast to the general assumption, de novo produced TFIIA is rapidly confined to the cytoplasm via an evolutionary conserved nuclear export signal (NES, amino acids 21VINDVRDIFL30), interacting with the nuclear export receptor Exportin-1/chromosomal region maintenance 1 (Crm1). Chemical export inhibition or genetic inactivation of the NES not only promotes TFIIA's nuclear localization but also affects its transcriptional activity.

A novel statistical model for analyzing data of a systematic review generates optimal cutoff values for fractional exhaled nitric oxide for asthma diagnosis.

Objectives: Measurement of fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FE) might substitute bronchial provocation for diagnosing asthma. However, optimal FE thresholds for diagnosing asthma remain unclear. We reanalyzed data collected for a systematic review investigating the diagnostic accuracy of FE measurement to exploit all available thresholds under consideration of pretest probabilities using a newly developed statistical model.

Self-help guidebook improved quality of life for patients with irritable bowel syndrome.

Background: The primary aim of our study was to evaluate the impact of a comprehensive self-help guidebook on the disease related quality of life for patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). The secondary aim was to evaluate whether the guidebook is less effective in IBS patients with depression, somatization disorder or panic disorder as a psychiatric comorbidity.

Methods: Prospective observational study.

Endotoxin tolerance in mast cells, its consequences for IgE-mediated signalling, and the effects of BCL3 deficiency.

Stimulation with lipopolysaccharide (LPS; endotoxin) not only causes rapid production of proinflammatory cytokines, but also induces a state of LPS hypo-responsiveness to a second LPS stimulation (endotoxin tolerance (ET)). Murine bone marrow-derived MCs (BMMCs) and peritoneal MCs (PMCs) developed ET as shown by an abrogated production of Il6/Tnf RNAs and IL-6/TNF-α proteins. In naive BMMCs, LPS stimulation induced a transient decline in the trimethylation of lysine 9 of the core histone H3 (H3K9me3), a suppressive chromatin mark, at the Il6/Tnf promoters, which correlated with p50(NFκB) and p65(NFκB) binding.

Clinical Significance of Intraluminal Contrast Enhancement in Patients with Spontaneous Cervical Artery Dissection: A Black-Blood MRI Study.

 Recent studies have suggested that intraluminal thrombi show contrast enhancement on carotid black-blood T1w MRI. The aim of this study was to evaluate the significance of intraluminal contrast enhancement (iCE) regarding symptom status in patients with spontaneous cervical artery dissection (sCAD).  33 consecutive patients (19 men) with sCAD received a brain MRI (DIFF, T2w, T2*w, FLAIR) and a multi-sequence 3T-MRI with fat-saturated high-resolution black-blood T1w-sequences pre- and post-contrast, contrast-enhanced MR angiography and TOF images of carotid and vertebral arteries.

Cholecalciferol 20 000 IU Once Weekly in HIV-Positive Patients with Low Vitamin D Levels: Result from a Cohort Study.

Purpose: To evaluate efficacy and safety of 20 000 IU cholecalciferol weekly in HIV-infected patients.

Methods: Longitudinal data for 243 HIV-infected patients with paired 25-OH-vitamin D3 values for the same month in 2 consecutive years were stratified by the initiation of supplementation in this retrospective study.

Results: After 1 year of administration of cholecalciferol 20 000 IU weekly, about 78% of patients with initial vitamin D level <20 µg/L achieved vitamin D levels >20 µg/L and 42% achieved levels >30 µg/L.

Addiction: an underestimated problem in psoriasis health care.

Background: Psoriasis is a disease of enormous socio-economic impact. Despite approval of numerous highly efficient and costly therapies, a minor proportion of severely affected patients actually receives sufficient treatment.

Objective: To investigate whether addictions are associated with psoriasis and to develop evidence-based recommendations for dermatologists in their daily clinical practice in order to improve medical assessment of psoriasis and patients' quality of life.

Tissue-specific tumorigenesis: context matters.

How can we treat cancer more effectively? Traditionally, tumours from the same anatomical site are treated as one tumour entity. This concept has been challenged by recent breakthroughs in cancer genomics and translational research that have enabled molecular tumour profiling. The identification and validation of cancer drivers that are shared between different tumour types, spurred the new paradigm to target driver pathways across anatomical sites by off-label drug use, or within so-called basket or umbrella trials which are designed to test whether molecular alterations in one tumour entity can be extrapolated to all others.

Blood-based detection of RAS mutations to guide anti-EGFR therapy in colorectal cancer patients: concordance of results from circulating tumor DNA and tissue-based RAS testing.

An accurate blood-based RAS mutation assay to determine eligibility of metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) patients for anti-EGFR therapy would benefit clinical practice by better informing decisions to administer treatment independent of tissue availability. The objective of this study was to determine the level of concordance between plasma and tissue RAS mutation status in patients with mCRC to gauge whether blood-based RAS mutation testing is a viable alternative to standard-of-care RAS tumor testing. RAS testing was performed on plasma samples from newly diagnosed metastatic patients, or from recurrent mCRC patients using the highly sensitive digital PCR technology, BEAMing (beads, emulsions, amplification, and magnetics), and compared with DNA sequencing data of respective FFPE (formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded) tumor samples.

Ledipasvir plus sofosbuvir fixed-dose combination for 6 weeks in patients with acute hepatitis C virus genotype 1 monoinfection (HepNet Acute HCV IV): an open-label, single-arm, phase 2 study.

Background: Early treatment of acute hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection with interferon alfa is highly effective, but can be associated with frequent side-effects. We investigated the safety and efficacy of an interferon-free regimen for treatment of acute HCV infection.

Methods: In this prospective, open-label, multicentre, single-arm pilot study, we enrolled adults (≥18 years) with acute HCV genotype 1 monoinfection from ten centres in Germany.

Nonmelanoma skin cancer in mountain guides: high prevalence and lack of awareness warrant development of evidence-based prevention tools.

Aims Of The Study: Nonmelanoma skin cancer (NMSC) is the most common cancer in Switzerland and Europe. The main causative factor is exposure to ultraviolet radiation, which puts outdoor workers in general at a higher risk of developing NMSC than indoor workers. However, few studies have clinically examined the risk of developing NMSC to outdoor workers, especially mountain guides.

Community acquired respiratory virus infections in cancer patients-Guideline on diagnosis and management by the Infectious Diseases Working Party of the German Society for haematology and Medical Oncology.

Background: Community acquired viruses (CRVs) may cause severe disease in cancer patients. Thus, efforts should be made to diagnose CRV rapidly and manage CRV infections accordingly.

Methods: A panel of 18 clinicians from the Infectious Diseases Working Party of the German Society for Haematology and Medical Oncology have convened to assess the available literature and provide recommendations on the management of CRV infections including influenza, respiratory syncytial virus, parainfluenza virus, human metapneumovirus and adenovirus.

For and against Organ Donation and Transplantation: Intricate Facilitators and Barriers in Organ Donation Perceived by German Nurses and Doctors.

Background. Significant facilitators and barriers to organ donation and transplantation remain in the general public and even in health professionals. Negative attitudes of HPs have been identified as the most significant barrier to actual ODT.

Dolutegravir monotherapy as treatment de-escalation in HIV-infected adults with virological control: DoluMono cohort results.

Background: The potential toxicity of long-term antiretroviral therapy (ART) requires ongoing investigation of novel strategies for treatment of HIV-infected patients. Monotherapy with the integrase inhibitor (INSTI) dolutegravir (DTG) may offer a favourable safety profile. Additionally, DTG has a high barrier of resistance, crucial for successful maintenance of virological control.