Impact of previous hepatitis B infection on the clinical outcomes from chronic hepatitis C? A population-level analysis

Chronic coinfection with hepatitis C virus (HCV) and hepatitis B virus (HBV) is associated with adverse liver outcomes. The clinical impact of previous HBV infection on liver disease in HCV infection is unknown. We aimed at determining any association of previous HBV infection with liver outcomes using antibodies to the hepatitis B core antigen (HBcAb) positivity as a marker of exposure. The Scottish Hepatitis C Clinical Database containing data for all patients attending HCV clinics in participating health boards was linked to the HBV diagnostic registry and mortality data from Information Services Division, Scotland. Survival analyses with competing risks were constructed for time from the first appointment to decompensated cirrhosis, hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and liver-related mortality. Records of 8513 chronic HCV patients were included in the analyses (87 HBcAb positive and HBV surface antigen [HBsAg] positive, 1577 HBcAb positive and HBsAg negative, and 6849 HBcAb negative). Multivariate cause-specific proportional hazards models showed previous HBV infection (HBcAb positive and HBsAg negative) significantly increased the risks of decompensated cirrhosis (hazard ratio [HR]: 1.29, 95% CI: 1.01-1.65) and HCC (HR: 1.64, 95% CI: 1.09-2.49), but not liver-related death (HR: 1.02, 95% CI: 0.80-1.30). This is the largest study to date showing an association between previous HBV infection and certain adverse liver outcomes in HCV infection. Our analyses add significantly to evidence which suggests that HBV infection adversely affects liver health despite apparent clearance. This has important implications for HBV vaccination policy and indications for prioritization of HCV therapy.

Participation in research improves overall patient management: insights from the Global Rheumatic Heart Disease registry (REMEDY)

Background

Rheumatic heart disease (RHD) is a major public health problem in low– and middle–income countries (LMICs), with a paucity of high–quality trial data to improve patient outcomes. Investigators felt that involvement in a recent large, observational RHD study impacted positively on their practice, but this was poorly defined.

Aim

The purpose of this study was to document the experience of investigators and research team members from LMICs who participated in a prospective, multi–centre study, the global Rheumatic Heart Disease Registry (REMEDY), conducted in 25 centres in 14 countries from 2010 to 2012.

Methods

We conducted an online survey of site personnel to identify and quantify their experiences. Telephone interviews were conducted with a subset of respondents to gather additional qualitative data. We asked about their experiences, positive and negative, and about any changes in RHD management practices resulting from their participation in REMEDY as a registry site.

Results

The majority of respondents in both the survey and telephone interviews indicated that participation as a registry site improved their management of RHD patients. Administrative changes included increased attention to follow–up appointments and details in patient records. Clinical changes included increased use of penicillin prophylaxis, and more frequent INR monitoring and contraceptive counselling.

Conclusions

Our study demonstrates that participation in clinical research on RHD can have a positive impact on patient management. Furthermore, REMEDY has led to increased patient awareness and improved healthcare workers’ knowledge and efficiency in caring for RHD patients.

Autologous stem-cell transplantation after second-line brentuximab vedotin in relapsed or refractory Hodgkin lymphoma

Background

We previously demonstrated that brentuximab vedotin (BV) used as second-line therapy in patients with Hodgkin lymphoma is a tolerable and effective bridge to autologous hematopoietic cell transplantation (AHCT). Here, we report the post-AHCT outcomes of patients treated with second-line standard/fixed-dose BV and an additional cohort of patients where positron-emission tomography adapted dose-escalation of second-line BV was utilized.

Patients and methods

Patients on the dose-escalation cohort received 1.8 mg/kg of BV intravenously every 3 weeks for two cycles. Patients in complete remission (CR) after two cycles received two additional cycles of BV at 1.8 mg/kg, while patients with stable disease or partial response were escalated to 2.4 mg/kg for two cycles. All patients, regardless of treatment cohort, proceeded directly to AHCT or received additional pre-AHCT therapy at the discretion of the treating physician based on remission status after second-line BV.

Results

Of the 20 patients enrolled to the BV dose-escalation cohort, 8 patients underwent BV dose-escalation. BV escalation was well-tolerated, but no patients who were escalated converted to CR. Of 56 evaluable patients treated across cohorts, the overall response rate (ORR) to second-line BV was 75% with 43% CR. Twenty-eight (50%) patients proceeded directly to AHCT without post-BV chemotherapy, and a total of 50 patients proceeded to AHCT. Thirteen patients received consolidative post-AHCT therapy with either radiation, BV, or a PD-1 inhibitor. After AHCT, the 2-year progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival were 67% and 93%, respectively. The 2-year PFS among patients in CR at the time of AHCT (n = 37) was 71% compared with 54% in patients not in CR (p = 0.12). The 2-year PFS in patients who proceeded to AHCT directly after receiving BV alone was 77%.

Conclusions

Second-line BV is an effective bridge to AHCT that produces responses of sufficient depth to provide durable remission in conjunction with AHCT (clinicaltrials.gov: NCT01393717).

HMGCR-associated myositis: a New Zealand case series and estimate of incidence

Statins are one of the most commonly prescribed drugs in New Zealand, with 525 772 or 16.5% of the adult New Zealand population prescribed a statin between June 2013 and July 2014. While generally well-tolerated, statins are known to cause a range of muscle-related side effects, ranging from myalgia to life-threatening rhabdomyolysis. Recently, it has been recognised that in rare instances, statins can induce an immune-mediated necrotising myositis with antibodies against 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A reductase (HMGCR), the enzymatic target of statins. In 2014, anti-HMGCR antibody testing was introduced to Canterbury Health Laboratories (CHL), with this being the only laboratory in New Zealand performing this test during the period of this case series. This article describes an index case and characterises the clinical features of a subsequent 12-month series. From this series, we estimated the yearly incidence of HMGCR-associated myositis at 1.7/million/year or ~1/90 000 New Zealand statin users.

Comparing cardiovascular risk factors, disease and treatment in participants with rheumatoid arthritis and without arthritis in a population based stud

Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) is associated with a significant increase in mortality compared to the general population, with cardiovascular disease (CVD) the leading cause of death. The aim of this study is to compare the prevalence and treatment of modifiable CV risk factors and history of CVD in those with RA and those without arthritis in Ireland. Data from the Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing (TILDA), a population-representative cohort study of people in Ireland aged 50 or over, was used. Participants with RA (n=457) were twice as likely to be obese (OR 2.02, 95% CI 1.99 to 2.06) compared to those without arthritis (n=4,063). Participants with RA were also more likely to be physically inactive (OR 1.73, 95% CI 1.69 to 1.76) and taking antihypertensive medication than those without arthritis. Exercise can have a beneficial impact on CVD and specific interventions to increase physical activity in those with RA may be warranted.

A protein-truncating R179X variant in RNF186 confers protection against ulcerative colitis

Protein-truncating variants protective against human disease provide in vivo validation of therapeutic targets. Here we used targeted sequencing to conduct a search for protein-truncating variants conferring protection against inflammatory bowel disease exploiting knowledge of common variants associated with the same disease. Through replication genotyping and imputation we found that a predicted protein-truncating variant (rs36095412, p.R179X, genotyped in 11,148 ulcerative colitis patients and 295,446 controls, MAF=up to 0.78%) in RNF186, a single-exon ring finger E3 ligase with strong colonic expression, protects against ulcerative colitis (overall P=6.89 × 10(-7), odds ratio=0.30). We further demonstrate that the truncated protein exhibits reduced expression and altered subcellular localization, suggesting the protective mechanism may reside in the loss of an interaction or function via mislocalization and/or loss of an essential transmembrane domain.

Supra-treatment threshold neonatal jaundice: Incidence in HIV-exposed compared to non-exposed neonates at Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital in Blantyre, Malawi

INTRODUCTION

Jaundice is the yellowish pigmentation of the skin, sclera, and mucous membranes resulting from bilirubin deposition. Children born to mothers with HIV are more likely to be born premature, with low birth weight, and to become septic-all risk factors for neonatal jaundice. Further, there has been a change in the prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) of HIV guidelines from single-dose nevirapine to a six-week course, all of which theoretically put HIV-exposed newborns at greater risk of developing neonatal jaundice.

AIM

We carried out a study to determine the incidence of severe and clinical neonatal jaundice in HIV-exposed neonates admitted to the Chatinkha Nursery (CN) neonatal unit at Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital (QECH) in Blantyre.

METHODS

Over a period of four weeks, the incidence among non-exposed neonates was also determined for comparison between the two groups of infants. Clinical jaundice was defined as transcutaneous bilirubin levels greater than 5 mg/dL and severe jaundice as bilirubin levels above the age-specific treatment threshold according the QECH guidelines. Case notes of babies admitted were retrieved and information on birth date, gestational age, birth weight, HIV status of mother, type of feeding, mode of delivery, VDRL status of mother, serum bilirubin, duration of stay in CN, and outcome were extracted.

RESULTS

Of the 149 neonates who were recruited, 17 (11.4%) were HIV-exposed. One (5.88%) of the 17 HIV-exposed and 19 (14.4%) of 132 HIV-non-exposed infants developed severe jaundice requiring therapeutic intervention (p = 0.378). Eight (47%) of the HIV-exposed and 107 (81%) of the non-exposed neonates had clinical jaundice of bilirubin levels greater than 5 mg/dL (p < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

The study showed a significant difference in the incidence of clinical jaundice between the HIV-exposed and HIV-non-exposed neonates. Contrary to our hypothesis, however, the incidence was greater in HIV-non-exposed than in HIV-exposed infants.

HIV testing in Lanarkshire

INTRODUCTION

The 2008 UK National Guidelines for HIV testing were designed in order to decrease the proportion of people living with undiagnosed HIV infection.

AIMS

Two audits were conducted. The aim of Audit 1 was to determine the proportion of current medical inpatients with an indicator condition that had been tested for HIV. Audit 2 aimed to identify missed opportunities for testing prior to diagnosis among newly diagnosed individuals with HIV.

METHODS

Audit 1 involved a case note review looking for indicator conditions and HIV testing of all inpatients. Audit 2 analysed the hospital case notes of all new Lanarkshire HIV patients in 2010 for previous missed diagnostic opportunities.

RESULTS

In Audit 1, 36% (63/174) of medical inpatients had a current indicator condition. Of the total population, 1.7% (3/174) had what would be an AIDS-defining condition if they had a positive HIV test. However, only 11% (7/63) of individuals were appropriately HIV tested. For Audit 2, 64% (9/14) of newly diagnosed individuals had previous missed opportunities for diagnosis.

CONCLUSION

Increased education of clinical staff around testing guidelines is needed, as we have demonstrated that the 2008 guidelines are not being adhered to.

UK university students’ awareness of stroke early warning signs and the FAST campaign

Background:

The UK FAST (face, arm, speech, time) campaign aimed to increase awareness of stroke early warning signs (EWS) and the need to call 999. Research is needed to investigate the impact of this campaign among UK allied health professional (AHP) students and university students in general.

Methods:

Ethical approval was obtained from the university. A sample of 291 university students completed an online pilot questionnaire. Data regarding awareness of EWS, thrombolysis, the FAST campaign and the need to call 999 were collected, coded and analysed using descriptive statistics and independent sample t tests, a Mann-Whitney U test and multiple regression analyses.

Results:

Two thirds of students were aware of the FAST campaign, and the majority could name all four letters (48%). Overall, 62% could name 3 EWS and 94% knew to call 999. Awareness of the FAST campaign, being aged over 20 years and awareness of thrombolysis were significant predictors of greater EWS knowledge (P<0.001); however, firstaid training and personal experience of stroke were not. AHP students had significantly greater stroke awareness compared to non-AHP students.

Conclusions:

This study reports fairly good knowledge of stroke, suggesting the FAST campaign appears to have been somewhat successful in raising awareness within this sample. Opportunities exist for further development of knowledge, particularly the breadth of EWS known by AHP students.

Implications:

Stroke education in this population needs to be developed further to ensure sufficient knowledge as future potential bystanders and for AHP students as future healthcare professionals. Further research is warranted.