Acceptance of multiple injectable vaccines in a single immunization visit in The Gambia pre and post introduction of inactivated polio vaccine

BackgroundAs the World Health Organization (WHO) currently recommends that children be protected against 11 different pathogens, it is becoming increasingly necessary to administer multiple injectable vaccines during a single immunization visit. In this study we assess Gambian healthcare providers’ and infant caregivers’ attitudes and practices related to the administration of multiple injectable vaccines to a child at a single immunization visit before and after the 2015 introduction of inactivated polio vaccine (IPV). IPV introduction increased the number of injectable vaccines recommended for the 4-month immunization visit from two to three in The Gambia.MethodsWe conducted a cross-sectional questionnaire-based survey before and after the introduction of IPV at 4 months of age in a representative sample of all health facilities providing immunizations in The Gambia. Healthcare providers who administer vaccines at the selected health facilities and caregivers who brought infants for their 4 month immunization visit were surveyed.FindingsPrior to IPV introduction, 9.9% of healthcare providers and 35.7% of infant caregivers expressed concern about a child receiving more than 2 injections in a single visit. Nevertheless, 98.8% and 90.9% of infants received all required vaccinations for the visit before and after IPV introduction, respectively. The only reason why vaccines were not received was vaccine stock-outs. Infant caregivers generally agreed that vaccinators could be trusted to provide accurate information regarding the number of vaccines that a child needed.ConclusionHealthcare providers and infant caregivers in this resource limited setting accepted an increase in the number of injectable vaccines administered at a single visit even though some expressed concerns about the increase.     

Preclinical evaluation of injectable bone substitute materials

Injectable bone substitutes (IBSs) represent an attractive class of ready‐to‐use biomaterials, both ceramic‐ and polymer‐based, as they offer the potential benefit of minimally invasive surgery and optimal defect filling. Although in vitro assessments are the first step in the process of development, the safety and efficacy of an IBS strongly depend on validated preclinical research prior to clinical trials. However, the selection of a suitable preclinical model for performance evaluation of an IBS remains a challenge, as no gold standard exists to define the best animal model. In order to succeed in this attempt, we identified three stages of development, including (a) proof‐of‐principle, (b) predictive validity and (c) general scientific legitimacy, and the respective criteria that should be applied for such selection. The second part of this review provides an overview of commonly used animals for IBSs. Specifically, scientific papers published between January 1996 and March 2012 were retrieved that report the use of preclinical models for the evaluation of IBSs in situations requiring bone healing and bone augmentation. This review is meant not only to describe the currently available preclinical models for IBS application, but also to address critical considerations of such multi‐factorial evaluation models (including animal species, strain, age, anatomical site, defect size and type of bone), which can be indicative but in most cases edge away from the human reality. Consequently, the ultimate goal is to guide researchers toward a more careful and meaningful interpretation of the results of experiments using animal models and their clinical applications. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

抗精神病药长效针剂治疗精神分裂症的专家共识

精神分裂症是一种慢性、高复发性和高致残性疾病,预防复发是治疗过程中的关键。国内外治疗指南中推荐抗精神病药长效针剂为预防复发的重要治疗策略之一,并且目前已积累一定的研究数据。由于治疗指南更新的相对滞后,针对长效针剂的实际临床应用尚不能及时在指南中全面体现。基于此,在中华医学会精神医学分会精神分裂症协作组的组织下,由15位精神科专家组成了本共识的专家组,在系统总结长效针剂在精神分裂症全程治疗中的疗效和安全性数据基础上,针对临床实践者最关注的长效针剂实际临床应用问题,包括适用患者人群、用法用量、临床应用、常见不良反应及处理、特殊人群使用以及使用全程中的医患沟通要点给予了合理阐述,以期帮助医生在实践中规范合理地应用以改善患者的治疗及预后。     

Injectable in situ cross-linking hyaluronic acid/carboxymethyl cellulose based hydrogels for drug release

A series of injectable in situ cross-linking hyaluronic acid/carboxymethyl cellulose based hydrogels (HA/CMC) was prepared via disulfide bonds by the oxidation of dissolved oxygen. The results showed that HA/CMC hydrogels exhibited tunable gelling time, appropriate rheology properties, high swelling ratio, good stability, and sustained drug release ability. The gelling time of HA/CMC hydrogels ranged from 1.4 to 7.0 min, and the values of the storage modulus, complex shear modulus, dynamic viscosity, and yield stress of HA3/CMC3 hydrogel were about 5869 Pa, 5870 Pa, 587 Pa·s, and 1969 Pa, respectively. The degradation percentage of HA1/CMC1, HA2/CMC2, and HA3/CMC3 hydrogels were about 60, 49, and 41% after incubating 42 days, and the in vitro cumulative release percentage of BSA from HA1/CMC1, HA2/CMC2, and HA3/CMC3 drug-loaded hydrogels were about 99, 91, and 82% after 30 days. The series of injectable in situ cross-linking HA/CMC hydrogels exhibited good comprehensive performance, signifying that these hydrogels could be potentially used in the fields of short- and medium-term controlled drug release, cell encapsulation, regenerative medicine, and tissue engineering.     

"Mixing triptans": patient satisfaction

(Headache 2011;51:135‐140) Background.— Although some patients may prefer using an oral triptan other than sumatriptan and injectable sumatriptan to treat an attack of persistent migraine, administration of 2 different triptans within a 24‐hour period currently is contradicted. Objective.— We sought to determine patient satisfaction with an acute migraine treatment regimen wherein patients were permitted to administer an oral triptan other than sumatriptan and injectable sumatriptan within 24 hours of one another Methods.— We evaluated a consecutive series of migraine patients who either had tried and failed oral sumatriptan or were using another oral triptan and were satisfied with it. We advised subjects that they could administer their oral triptan and injectable sumatriptan within a single 24‐hour period (but not within 2 hours of one another); we termed such treatment “mixing triptans.” We asked all subjects to keep detailed written headache diaries for the 6‐month treatment period, and at the 6‐month end‐of‐study visit we asked subjects who had treated at least 3 migraine attacks by mixing triptans to rate their satisfaction with that treatment according to a 5‐point Likert scale. Results.— Of the 200 subjects enrolled, 132 (66%) used an oral triptan other than sumatriptan and injectable sumatriptan within a 24‐hour period on at least 3 occasions. At their final follow‐up visits, 117 (89%) of the 132 reported themselves “very satisfied” or “satisfied” with this specific treatment regimen. No serious adverse events were recorded. Conclusion.— The option of sequentially using an oral triptan other than sumatriptan and injectable sumatriptan to treat a given attack of migraine appears to correlate with a high rate of patient satisfaction. While in our subject population this treatment regimen was well tolerated, our study results do not suffice to establish the safety of “mixing triptans.”     

可注射磷酸钙骨水泥对不同骨质椎弓根螺钉的强化作用

目的评价不同骨质疏松程度条件下,可注射性磷酸钙骨水泥对椎弓根螺钉稳定性强化作用,为其应用于合并有骨质疏松症的患者脊柱手术提供力学理论基础。方法采用新鲜尸体脊柱标本,根据骨密度检测结果,按临床诊断标准分成骨质正常、骨量减少、骨质疏松和重度骨质疏松四个水平;然后,每个骨密度水平,分直接置入椎弓根螺钉（对照组）和用可注射性磷酸钙骨水泥强化钉道后置入椎弓根螺钉（钉道强化组）,各12枚,进行螺钉轴向拔出实验,测定最大拔出力、刚度和能量吸收值三项指标,进行组间的对比分析。结果骨密度水平从正常下降到重度疏松程度,最大拔出力、刚度、能量吸收值均随之下降,同种置钉方法组间存在显著性差异（P〈0.05）。骨质疏松条件下钉道强化组最大拔出力、刚度、能量吸收值与骨量减少条件下对照组的比较,两者无显著性差异（P〉0.05）;但是,重度骨质疏松条件下钉道强化组的最大拔出力、刚度、能量吸收值均显著性低于骨量减少条件下对照组的（P〈0.05）。结论可注射性磷酸钙骨水泥强化钉道后可以提高椎弓根螺钉的稳定性,尤其是骨质疏松条件下经钉道强化后可以达到需要固定强度。