Sample records for age guidelines update

  1. Human Papillomavirus Vaccination Guideline Update: American Cancer Society Guideline Endorsement

    PubMed Central

    Saslow, Debbie; Andrews, Kimberly S.; Manassaram-Baptiste, Deana; Loomer, Lacey; Lam, Kristina E.; Fisher-Borne, Marcie; Smith, Robert A.; Fontham, Elizabeth T. H.

    2017-01-01

    The American Cancer Society (ACS) reviewed and updated its guideline on human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination based on a methodologic and content review of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) HPV vaccination recommendations. A literature review was performed to supplement the evidence considered by the ACIP and to address new vaccine formulations and recommendations as well as new data on population outcomes since publication of the 2007 ACS guideline. The ACS Guideline Development Group determined that the evidence supports ACS endorsement of the ACIP recommendations, with one qualifying statement related to late vaccination. The ACS recommends vaccination of all children at ages 11 and 12 years to protect against HPV infections that lead to several cancers and precancers. Late vaccination for those not vaccinated at the recommended ages should be completed as soon as possible, and individuals should be informed that vaccination may not be effective at older ages. PMID:27434803

  2. Updates on human papillomavirus and genital warts and counseling messages from the 2010 Sexually Transmitted Diseases Treatment Guidelines.

    PubMed

    Dunne, Eileen F; Friedman, Allison; Datta, S Deblina; Markowitz, Lauri E; Workowski, Kimberly A

    2011-12-01

    In April 2009, experts on sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) were convened to review updates on STD prevention and treatment in preparation for the revision of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) STD Treatment Guidelines. At this meeting, there was a discussion of important updates on human papillomavirus (HPV), genital warts, and cervical cancer screening. Key questions were identified with assistance from an expert panel, and systematic reviews of the literature were conducted searching the English-language literature of the PubMed computerized database (US National Library of Medicine). The available evidence was reviewed, and new information was incorporated in the 2010 CDC STD Treatment Guidelines. Two HPV vaccines are now available, the quadrivalent HPV vaccine and the bivalent HPV vaccine; either vaccine is recommended routinely for girls aged 11 or 12 years. The quadrivalent HPV vaccine may be given to boys and men aged 9-26 years. A new patient-applied treatment option for genital warts, sinecatechins 15% ointment, is available and recommended for treatment of external genital warts. This product is a mixture of active ingredients (catechins) from green tea. Finally, updated counseling guidelines and messages about HPV, genital warts, and cervical cancer are included. This manuscript highlights updates to the 2010 CDC STD Treatment Guidelines for HPV and genital warts. Important additions to the 2010 STD Treatment Guidelines include information on prophylactic HPV vaccine recommendations, new patient-applied treatment options for genital warts, and counseling messages for patients on HPV, genital warts, cervical cancer screening, and HPV tests.

  3. The Saudi Initiative for Asthma - 2016 update: Guidelines for the diagnosis and management of asthma in adults and children

    PubMed Central

    Al-Moamary, Mohamed S.; Alhaider, Sami A.; Idrees, Majdy M.; Al Ghobain, Mohammed O.; Zeitouni, Mohammed O.; Al-Harbi, Adel S.; Yousef, Abdullah A.; Al-Matar, Hussain; Alorainy, Hassan S.; Al-Hajjaj, Mohamed S.

    2016-01-01

    This is an updated guideline for the diagnosis and management of asthma, developed by the Saudi Initiative for Asthma (SINA) group, a subsidiary of the Saudi Thoracic Society. The main objective of SINA is to have guidelines that are up to date, simple to understand and easy to use by nonasthma specialists, including primary care and general practice physicians. SINA approach is mainly based on symptom control and assessment of risk as it is the ultimate goal of treatment. The new SINA guidelines include updates of acute and chronic asthma management, with more emphasis on the use of asthma control in the management of asthma in adults and children, inclusion of a new medication appendix, and keeping consistency on the management at different age groups. The section on asthma in children is rewritten and expanded where the approach is stratified based on the age. The guidelines are constructed based on the available evidence, local literature, and the current situation in Saudi Arabia. There is also an emphasis on patient–doctor partnership in the management that also includes a self-management plan. PMID:26933455

  4. Canadian Thoracic Society 2012 guideline update: Diagnosis and management of asthma in preschoolers, children and adults

    PubMed Central

    Lougheed, M Diane; Lemiere, Catherine; Ducharme, Francine M; Licskai, Chris; Dell, Sharon D; Rowe, Brian H; FitzGerald, Mark; Leigh, Richard; Watson, Wade; Boulet, Louis-Philippe

    2012-01-01

    BACKGROUND: In 2010, the Canadian Thoracic Society (CTS) published a Consensus Summary for the diagnosis and management of asthma in children six years of age and older, and adults, including an updated Asthma Management Continuum. The CTS Asthma Clinical Assembly subsequently began a formal clinical practice guideline update process, focusing, in this first iteration, on topics of controversy and/or gaps in the previous guidelines. METHODS: Four clinical questions were identified as a focus for the updated guideline: the role of noninvasive measurements of airway inflammation for the adjustment of anti-inflammatory therapy; the initiation of adjunct therapy to inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) for uncontrolled asthma; the role of a single inhaler of an ICS/long-acting beta2-agonist combination as a reliever, and as a reliever and a controller; and the escalation of controller medication for acute loss of asthma control as part of a self-management action plan. The expert panel followed an adaptation process to identify and appraise existing guidelines on the specified topics. In addition, literature searches were performed to identify relevant systematic reviews and randomized controlled trials. The panel formally assessed and graded the evidence, and made 34 recommendations. RESULTS: The updated guideline recommendations outline a role for inclusion of assessment of sputum eosinophils, in addition to standard measures of asthma control, to guide adjustment of controller therapy in adults with moderate to severe asthma. Appraisal of the evidence regarding which adjunct controller therapy to add to ICS and at what ICS dose to begin adjunct therapy in children and adults with poor asthma control supported the 2010 CTS Consensus Summary recommendations. New recommendations for the adjustment of controller medication within written action plans are provided. Finally, priority areas for future research were identified. CONCLUSIONS: The present clinical practice guideline is the first update of the CTS Asthma Guidelines following the Canadian Respiratory Guidelines Committee’s new guideline development process. Tools and strategies to support guideline implementation will be developed and the CTS will continue to regularly provide updates reflecting new evidence. PMID:22536582

  5. Recommendations for kidney disease guideline updating: a report by the KDIGO Methods Committee

    PubMed Central

    Uhlig, Katrin; Berns, Jeffrey S.; Carville, Serena; Chan, Wiley; Cheung, Michael; Guyatt, Gordon H.; Hart, Allyson; Lewis, Sandra Zelman; Tonelli, Marcello; Webster, Angela C.; Wilt, Timothy J.; Kasiske, Bertram L.

    2017-01-01

    Updating rather than de novo guideline development now accounts for the majority of guideline activities for many guideline development organizations, including Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO), an international kidney disease guideline development entity that has produced guidelines on kidney diseases since 2008. Increasingly, guideline developers are moving away from updating at fixed intervals in favor of more flexible approaches that use periodic expert assessment of guideline currency (with or without an updated systematic review) to determine the need for updating. Determining the need for guideline updating in an efficient, transparent, and timely manner is challenging, and updating of systematic reviews and guidelines is labor intensive. Ideally, guidelines should be updated dynamically when new evidence indicates a need for a substantive change in the guideline based on a priori criteria. This dynamic updating (sometimes referred to as a living guideline model) can be facilitated with the use of integrated electronic platforms that allow updating of specific recommendations. This report summarizes consensus-based recommendations from a panel of guideline methodology professionals on how to keep KDIGO guidelines up to date. PMID:26994574

  6. 2017 American Heart Association Focused Update on Pediatric Basic Life Support and Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Quality: An Update to the American Heart Association Guidelines for Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation and Emergency Cardiovascular Care.

    PubMed

    Atkins, Dianne L; de Caen, Allan R; Berger, Stuart; Samson, Ricardo A; Schexnayder, Stephen M; Joyner, Benny L; Bigham, Blair L; Niles, Dana E; Duff, Jonathan P; Hunt, Elizabeth A; Meaney, Peter A

    2018-01-02

    This focused update to the American Heart Association guidelines for cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and emergency cardiovascular care follows the Pediatric Task Force of the International Liaison Committee on Resuscitation evidence review. It aligns with the International Liaison Committee on Resuscitation's continuous evidence review process, and updates are published when the International Liaison Committee on Resuscitation completes a literature review based on new science. This update provides the evidence review and treatment recommendation for chest compression-only CPR versus CPR using chest compressions with rescue breaths for children <18 years of age. Four large database studies were available for review, including 2 published after the "2015 American Heart Association Guidelines Update for Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation and Emergency Cardiovascular Care." Two demonstrated worse 30-day outcomes with chest compression-only CPR for children 1 through 18 years of age, whereas 2 studies documented no difference between chest compression-only CPR and CPR using chest compressions with rescue breaths. When the results were analyzed for infants <1 year of age, CPR using chest compressions with rescue breaths was better than no CPR but was no different from chest compression-only CPR in 1 study, whereas another study observed no differences among chest compression-only CPR, CPR using chest compressions with rescue breaths, and no CPR. CPR using chest compressions with rescue breaths should be provided for infants and children in cardiac arrest. If bystanders are unwilling or unable to deliver rescue breaths, we recommend that rescuers provide chest compressions for infants and children. © 2017 American Heart Association, Inc.

  7. Missed connections: Unintended consequences of updated cervical cancer screening guidelines on screening rates for sexually transmitted infections.

    PubMed

    Bogler, Tali; Farber, Allison; Stall, Nathan; Wijayasinghe, Sheila; Slater, Morgan; Guiang, Charlie; Glazier, Richard H

    2015-10-01

    To examine the effects of the updated 2012 cervical cancer screening guidelines on the rates of sexually transmitted infection (STI) screening in primary care. Retrospective chart review. Five academic family practice units at St Michael's Hospital in Toronto, Ont. Female patients, aged 19 to 25, who had at least 1 visit with a physician at 1 of the 5 academic family practice units during a 12-month period before (May 1, 2011, to April 30, 2012) or after (November 1, 2012, to October 31, 2013) the release of the updated guidelines. Number of women who received Papanicolaou tests or underwent STI screening; rates of STI screening performed during a Pap test or a periodic health examination; screening rates for HIV, syphilis, and hepatitis C; and the methods used for STI screening before and after the release of the updated guidelines. Results Before the release of the 2012 guidelines, 42 of 100 women had Pap tests and 40 of 100 women underwent STI screening. After the release of the guidelines, 17 of 100 women had Pap tests and 20 of 100 women received STI screening. Female patients were less likely to undergo STI screening under the 2012 guidelines compared with the 2005 guidelines (odds ratio 0.38, 95% CI 0.19 to 0.74; P = .003). Implementation of the 2012 cervical cancer screening guidelines was associated with lower rates of STI screening in the primary care setting. Primary care physicians should screen at-risk women for STIs at any clinically appropriate encounter and consider using noninvasive self-sampling methods.

  8. Reporting Items for Updated Clinical Guidelines: Checklist for the Reporting of Updated Guidelines (CheckUp)

    PubMed Central

    Vernooij, Robin W. M.; Alonso-Coello, Pablo; Brouwers, Melissa

    2017-01-01

    Background Scientific knowledge is in constant development. Consequently, regular review to assure the trustworthiness of clinical guidelines is required. However, there is still a lack of preferred reporting items of the updating process in updated clinical guidelines. The present article describes the development process of the Checklist for the Reporting of Updated Guidelines (CheckUp). Methods and Findings We developed an initial list of items based on an overview of research evidence on clinical guideline updating, the Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation (AGREE) II Instrument, and the advice of the CheckUp panel (n = 33 professionals). A multistep process was used to refine this list, including an assessment of ten existing updated clinical guidelines, interviews with key informants (response rate: 54.2%; 13/24), a three-round Delphi consensus survey with the CheckUp panel (33 participants), and an external review with clinical guideline methodologists (response rate: 90%; 53/59) and users (response rate: 55.6%; 10/18). CheckUp includes 16 items that address (1) the presentation of an updated guideline, (2) editorial independence, and (3) the methodology of the updating process. In this article, we present the methodology to develop CheckUp and include as a supplementary file an explanation and elaboration document. Conclusions CheckUp can be used to evaluate the completeness of reporting in updated guidelines and as a tool to inform guideline developers about reporting requirements. Editors may request its completion from guideline authors when submitting updated guidelines for publication. Adherence to CheckUp will likely enhance the comprehensiveness and transparency of clinical guideline updating for the benefit of patients and the public, health care professionals, and other relevant stakeholders. PMID:28072838

  9. Cervical cancer screening among women who attend sexually transmitted diseases (STD) clinics: background paper for 2010 STD Treatment Guidelines.

    PubMed

    Datta, S Deblina; Saraiya, Mona

    2011-12-01

    In April 2008, experts reviewed updates on sexually transmitted disease (STD) prevention and treatment in preparation for the revision of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) STD Treatment Guidelines. This included a review of cervical cancer screening in the STD clinical setting. Key questions were identified with assistance from an expert panel. Reviews of the literature were conducted using the PubMed computerized database and shared with the panel. Updated information was incorporated in the 2010 CDC STD Treatment Guidelines. We recommend that STD clinics offering cervical screening services screen and treat women according to guidelines by the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology, the American Cancer Society, the US Preventive Services Task Force, and the American Society for Colposcopists and Cervical Pathologists. New to the 2010 guidelines are higher age for initiating cervical screening (age ≥ 21 years) and less frequent intervals of screening (at least every 3 years). New recommendations include new technologies, such as liquid-based cytology and high-risk human papillomavirus (HPV) DNA tests. Liquid-based technologies are not recommended over conventional testing. HPV DNA tests are recommended as adjunct tests and with new indications for use in cervical screening and management. Stronger recommendations were issued for STD clinics offering cervical screening services to have protocols in place for follow-up of test results and referral (eg, colposcopy). Important additions to the 2010 STD Treatment Guidelines include information on updated algorithms for screening and management of women and recommendations for use of liquid-based cytology and high-risk HPV testing.

  10. Guidelines for Adolescent Depression in Primary Care (GLAD-PC): Part II. Treatment and Ongoing Management.

    PubMed

    Cheung, Amy H; Zuckerbrot, Rachel A; Jensen, Peter S; Laraque, Danielle; Stein, Ruth E K

    2018-02-26

    To update clinical practice guidelines to assist primary care (PC) in the screening and assessment of depression. In this second part of the updated guidelines, we address treatment and ongoing management of adolescent depression in the PC setting. By using a combination of evidence- and consensus-based methodologies, the guidelines were updated in 2 phases as informed by (1) current scientific evidence (published and unpublished) and (2) revision and iteration among the steering committee, including youth and families with lived experience. These updated guidelines are targeted for youth aged 10 to 21 years and offer recommendations for the management of adolescent depression in PC, including (1) active monitoring of mildly depressed youth, (2) treatment with evidence-based medication and psychotherapeutic approaches in cases of moderate and/or severe depression, (3) close monitoring of side effects, (4) consultation and comanagement of care with mental health specialists, (5) ongoing tracking of outcomes, and (6) specific steps to be taken in instances of partial or no improvement after an initial treatment has begun. The strength of each recommendation and the grade of its evidence base are summarized. The Guidelines for Adolescent Depression in Primary Care cannot replace clinical judgment, and they should not be the sole source of guidance for adolescent depression management. Nonetheless, the guidelines may assist PC clinicians in the management of depressed adolescents in an era of great clinical need and a shortage of mental health specialists. Additional research concerning the management of depressed youth in PC is needed, including the usability, feasibility, and sustainability of guidelines, and determination of the extent to which the guidelines actually improve outcomes of depressed youth. Copyright © 2018 by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

  11. Guideline on terminology and definitions of updating clinical guidelines: The Updating Glossary.

    PubMed

    Martínez García, Laura; Pardo-Hernández, Hector; Sanabria, Andrea Juliana; Alonso-Coello, Pablo; Penman, Katrina; McFarlane, Emma

    2018-03-01

    The Guidelines International Network (G-I-N) Updating Guidelines Working Group launched an initiative to develop a glossary (the Updating Glossary) with domains, terms, definitions, and synonyms related to updating of clinical guidelines (CGs). The steering committee developed an initial list of domains, terms, definitions, and synonyms through brainstorming and discussion. The panel members participated in three rounds of feedback to discuss, refine, and clarify the proposed terms, definitions, and synonyms. Finally, the panel members were surveyed to assess their level of agreement regarding the glossary. Eighteen terms were identified and defined: (1) continuous updating, (2) decision to update, (3) fixed updating, (4) full updating, (5) impact of the new evidence, (6) partial updating, (7) prioritization process, (8) reporting process, (9) signal for an update, (10) surveillance process, (11) time of validity, (12) timeframe, (13) tools and resources, (14) up to date, (15) update cycle, (16) update unit, (17) updated version, and (18) updating strategy. Consensus was reached for all terms, definitions, and synonyms (median agreement scores ≥ 6); except for one term. The G-I-N Updating Guidelines Working Group assembled the Updating Glossary to facilitate and improve the knowledge exchange among CGs developers, researchers, and users. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  12. Updating contextualized clinical practice guidelines on stroke rehabilitation and low back pain management using a novel assessment framework that standardizes decisions.

    PubMed

    Gambito, Ephraim D V; Gonzalez-Suarez, Consuelo B; Grimmer, Karen A; Valdecañas, Carolina M; Dizon, Janine Margarita R; Beredo, Ma Eulalia J; Zamora, Marcelle Theresa G

    2015-11-04

    Clinical practice guidelines need to be regularly updated with current literature in order to remain relevant. This paper reports on the approach taken by the Philippine Academy of Rehabilitation Medicine (PARM). This dovetails with its writing guide, which underpinned its foundational work in contextualizing guidelines for stroke and low back pain (LBP) in 2011. Working groups of Filipino rehabilitation physicians and allied health practitioners met to reconsider and modify, where indicated, the 'typical' Filipino patient care pathways established in the foundation guidelines. New clinical guidelines on stroke and low back pain which had been published internationally in the last 3 years were identified using a search of electronic databases. The methodological quality of each guideline was assessed using the iCAHE Guideline Quality Checklist, and only those guidelines which provided full text references, evidence hierarchy and quality appraisal of the included literature, were included in the PARM update. Each of the PARM-endorsed recommendations was then reviewed, in light of new literature presented in the included clinical guidelines. A novel standard updating approach was developed based on the criteria reported by Johnston et al. (Int J Technol Assess Health Care 19(4):646-655, 2003) and then modified to incorporate wording from the foundational PARM writing guide. The new updating tool was debated, pilot-tested and agreed upon by the PARM working groups, before being applied to the guideline updating process. Ten new guidelines on stroke and eleven for low back pain were identified. Guideline quality scores were moderate to good, however not all guidelines comprehensively linked the evidence body underpinning recommendations with the literature. Consequently only five stroke and four low back pain guidelines were included. The modified PARM updating guide was applied by all working groups to ensure standardization of the wording of updated recommendations and the underpinning evidence bases. The updating tool provides a simple, standard and novel approach that incorporates evidence hierarchy and quality, and wordings of recommendations. It could be used efficiently by other guideline updaters particularly in developing countries, where resources for guideline development and updates are limited. When many people are involved in guideline writing, there is always the possibility of 'slippage' in use of wording and interpretation of evidence. The PARM updating tool provides a mechanism for maintaining a standard process for guideline updating processes that can be followed by clinicians with basic training in evidence-based practice principles.

  13. The updating of clinical practice guidelines: insights from an international survey

    PubMed Central

    2011-01-01

    Background Clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) have become increasingly popular, and the methodology to develop guidelines has evolved enormously. However, little attention has been given to the updating process, in contrast to the appraisal of the available literature. We conducted an international survey to identify current practices in CPG updating and explored the need to standardize and improve the methods. Methods We developed a questionnaire (28 items) based on a review of the existing literature about guideline updating and expert comments. We carried out the survey between March and July 2009, and it was sent by email to 106 institutions: 69 members of the Guidelines International Network who declared that they developed CPGs; 30 institutions included in the U.S. National Guideline Clearinghouse database that published more than 20 CPGs; and 7 institutions selected by an expert committee. Results Forty-four institutions answered the questionnaire (42% response rate). In the final analysis, 39 completed questionnaires were included. Thirty-six institutions (92%) reported that they update their guidelines. Thirty-one institutions (86%) have a formal procedure for updating their guidelines, and 19 (53%) have a formal procedure for deciding when a guideline becomes out of date. Institutions describe the process as moderately rigorous (36%) or acknowledge that it could certainly be more rigorous (36%). Twenty-two institutions (61%) alert guideline users on their website when a guideline is older than three to five years or when there is a risk of being outdated. Twenty-five institutions (64%) support the concept of "living guidelines," which are continuously monitored and updated. Eighteen institutions (46%) have plans to design a protocol to improve their guideline-updating process, and 21 (54%) are willing to share resources with other organizations. Conclusions Our study is the first to describe the process of updating CPGs among prominent guideline institutions across the world, providing a comprehensive picture of guideline updating. There is an urgent need to develop rigorous international standards for this process and to minimize duplication of effort internationally. PMID:21914177

  14. Decision-making in an era of cancer prevention via aspirin: New Zealand needs updated guidelines and risk calculators.

    PubMed

    Wilson, Nick; Selak, Vanessa; Blakely, Tony; Leung, William; Clarke, Philip; Jackson, Rod; Knight, Josh; Nghiem, Nhung

    2016-03-11

    Based on new systematic reviews of the evidence, the US Preventive Services Task Force has drafted updated guidelines on the use of low-dose aspirin for the primary prevention of both cardiovascular disease (CVD) and cancer. The Task Force generally recommends consideration of aspirin in adults aged 50-69 years with 10-year CVD risk of at least 10%, in who absolute health gain (reduction of CVD and cancer) is estimated to exceed absolute health loss (increase in bleeds). With the ongoing decline in CVD, current risk calculators for New Zealand are probably outdated, so it is difficult to be precise about what proportion of the population is in this risk category (roughly equivalent to 5-year CVD risk ≥5%). Nevertheless, we suspect that most smokers aged 50-69 years, and some non-smokers, would probably meet the new threshold for taking low-dose aspirin. The country therefore needs updated guidelines and risk calculators that are ideally informed by estimates of absolute net health gain (in quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs) per person) and cost-effectiveness. Other improvements to risk calculators include: epidemiological rigour (eg, by addressing competing mortality); providing enhanced graphical display of risk to enhance risk communication; and possibly capturing the issues of medication disutility and comparison with lifestyle changes.

  15. Evidence-based guidelines for fixing broken hips: an update.

    PubMed

    Chilov, Michael N; Cameron, Ian D; March, Lyn M

    2003-11-03

    To update evidence-based guidelines for the treatment of proximal femoral fractures published in the Journal in 1999. Systematic literature search of MEDLINE, CINAHL and EMBASE from January 1996 to September 2001 and the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (most recent issue searched - Issue 2, 2002). Randomised controlled trials and meta-analyses of all aspects of acute-care hospital treatment and rehabilitation of proximal femoral fractures among subjects aged 50 years and over with proximal femoral fractures not associated with metastatic disease or multiple trauma. All studies were read independently by two reviewers. Reviewers recorded individual study results, and an assessment of study quality and treatment conclusions according to Cochrane Collaboration protocols. If necessary, a third review was performed to reach consensus. 93 new studies were identified and 82 met our inclusion criteria. Recommendations for thromboprophylaxis, anaesthesia, surgical fixation of fractures and nutritional status have been altered to incorporate new evidence. Recommendations have been added regarding postoperative blood transfusion, the management of subtrochanteric fractures, and the type of surgical swabs which should be used. Although there have been few significant changes to the previous recommendations, updating the guidelines has required substantial effort. The common clinical problem of hip fracture should be treated according to the most up-to-date evidence to achieve the best possible outcomes and optimal utilisation of limited resources. Guideline updates also require resourcing.

  16. Update in women's health.

    PubMed

    Ganschow, Pamela S; Jacobs, Elizabeth A; Mackinnon, Jennifer; Charney, Pamela

    2009-06-01

    The aim of this clinical update is to summarize articles and guidelines published in the last year with the potential to change current clinical practice as it relates to women's health. We used two independent search strategies to identify articles relevant to women's health published between March 1, 2007 and February 29, 2008. First, we reviewed the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews and journal indices from the ACP Journal Club, Annals of Internal Medicine, Archives of Internal Medicine, British Medical Journal, Circulation, Diabetes, JAMA, JGIM, Journal of Women's Health, Lancet, NEJM, Obstetrics and Gynecology, and Women's Health Journal Watch. Second, we performed a MEDLINE search using the medical subject heading term "sex factors." The authors, who all have clinical and/or research experience in the area of women's health, reviewed all article titles, abstracts, and, when indicated, full publications. We excluded articles related to obstetrical aspects of women's health focusing on those relevant to general internists. We had two acceptance criteria, scientific rigor and potential to impact women's health. We also identified new and/or updated women's health guidelines released during the same time period. We identified over 250 publications with potential relevance to women's health. Forty-six articles were selected for presentation as part of the Clinical Update, and nine were selected for a more detailed discussion in this paper. Evidence-based women's health guidelines are listed in Table 1. Table 1 Important Women's Health Guidelines in 2007-2008: New or Updated Topic Issuing organization Updated recommendations and comments Mammography screening in women 40-4917 ACP Individualized risk assessment and informed decision making should be used to guide decisions about mammography screening in this age group. To aid in the risk assessment, a discussion of the risk factors, which if present in a woman in her 40s increases her risk to above that of an average 50-year-old woman, is provided in the guidelines. In addition, available risk prediction models, such as the NIH Web site calculator (http://www.cancer.gov/bcrisktool/) can also be used to estimate quantitative breast cancer risk. This model was updated in 2008 with race-specific data for calculating risk in African-American women.18 The harms and benefits of mammography should be discussed and incorporated along with a woman's preferences and breast cancer risk profile into the decision on when to begin screening. If a woman decides to forgo mammography, the decision should be readdressed every 1 to 2 years. STD screening guidelines19 USPSTF and CDC Routine screening for this infection is now recommended for ALL sexually active women age 24 and under, based on the recent high prevalence estimates for chlamydia It is not recommended for women (pregnant or nonpregnant) age 25 and older, unless they are at increased risk for infection. STD treatment guidelines20 CDC Flouroquinolones are NO longer recommended for treatment of N. gonorrhea, due to increasing resistance (as high as 15% of isolates in 2006). For uncomplicated infections, treatment of gonorrhea should be initiated with ceftriaxone 125 mg IM or cefixime 400 mg PO and co-treatment for chlamydia infection (unless ruled out with testing). Recent estimates demonstrate that almost 50% of persons with gonorrhea have concomitant chlamydia infection21. STD = sexually transmitted disease, NIH = National Institutes of Health, ACP = American College of Physicians, USPSTF = United States Prevention Services Task Force, CDC = Centers for Disease Control.

  17. Differentiated thyroid cancer: A retrospective evaluation of the impact of changes to disease management guidelines on patients in South East Scotland.

    PubMed

    Williamson, A G; Wilmot, V; Ntala, C; Gibb, F W; Conn, B; Nixon, I J

    2018-06-05

    The British Thyroid Association (BTA) updated guidelines for the management of differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) in 2014. A key update was that patients with unifocal disease >10-≤40 mm in diameter, aged <45 years and with no other risk factors could be considered for lobectomy alone. The aim of this study was to retrospectively evaluate the potential impact of these changes on the management of DTC in South East Scotland, and to analyse the characteristics of lobes now potentially considered for observation rather than resection. Consecutive patients were identified through prospectively held regional MDT minutes from 2009 to 13. Data included age, pT, pN, M stage, tumour size, vascular invasion and extra-thyroidal extension. From a cohort of 281 patients, 22 (8%) could now be considered for lobectomy alone. Of these, 4 had disease in the contralateral lobe (18%), all of which were low-risk tumours with no influence on recommendation for radioactive remnant ablation (RRA). Analysis of all patients, regardless of age, with pT1-2N0M0 disease (n = 50) revealed 11 (22%) had contralateral disease. The presence of index multifocal disease was predictive of disease in the contralateral lobe. One patient (2%) had a finding in the contralateral lobe which may potentially influence the recommendation for RRA. In no cases did findings in the contralateral lobe elevate a patient to a group where RRA was routinely recommended by BTA guidelines. The updated BTA guidelines are likely to affect only 8% of our cohort. Further analysis questions the role of age in excluding patients from a conservative approach. Copyright © 2018 Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh (Scottish charity number SC005317) and Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  18. Radiation doses for pediatric nuclear medicine studies: comparing the North American consensus guidelines and the pediatric dosage card of the European Association of Nuclear Medicine.

    PubMed

    Grant, Frederick D; Gelfand, Michael J; Drubach, Laura A; Treves, S Ted; Fahey, Frederic H

    2015-04-01

    Estimated radiation dose is important for assessing and communicating the risks and benefits of pediatric nuclear medicine studies. Radiation dose depends on the radiopharmaceutical, the administered activity, and patient factors such as age and size. Most radiation dose estimates for pediatric nuclear medicine have not been based on administered activities of radiopharmaceuticals recommended by established practice guidelines. The dosage card of the European Association of Nuclear Medicine (EANM) and the North American consensus guidelines each provide recommendations of administered activities of radiopharmaceuticals in children, but there are substantial differences between these two guidelines. For 12 commonly performed pediatric nuclear medicine studies, two established pediatric radiopharmaceutical administration guidelines were used to calculate updated radiation dose estimates and to compare the radiation exposure resulting from the recommendations of each of the guidelines. Estimated radiation doses were calculated for 12 common procedures in pediatric nuclear medicine using administered activities recommended by the dosage card of the EANM (version 1.5.2008) and the 2010 North American consensus guidelines for radiopharmaceutical administered activities in pediatrics. Based on standard models and nominal age-based weights, radiation dose was estimated for typical patients at ages 1, 5, 10 and 15 years and adult. The resulting effective doses were compared, with differences greater than 20% considered significant. Following either the EANM dosage card or the 2010 North American guidelines, the highest effective doses occur with radiopharmaceuticals labeled with fluorine-18 and iodine-123. In 24% of cases, following the North American consensus guidelines would result in a substantially higher radiation dose. The guidelines of the EANM dosage card would lead to a substantially higher radiation dose in 39% of all cases, and in 62% of cases in which patients were age 5 years or younger. For 12 commonly performed pediatric nuclear medicine studies, updated radiation dose estimates can guide efforts to reduce radiation exposure and provide current information for discussing radiation exposure and risk with referring physicians, patients and families. There can be substantial differences in radiation exposure for the same procedure, depending upon which of these two guidelines is followed. This discordance identifies opportunities for harmonization of the guidelines, which may lead to further reduction in nuclear medicine radiation doses in children.

  19. Clinical practice parameters for hemodynamic support of pediatric and neonatal septic shock: 2007 update from the American College of Critical Care Medicine

    PubMed Central

    Brierley, Joe; Carcillo, Joseph A.; Choong, Karen; Cornell, Tim; DeCaen, Allan; Deymann, Andreas; Doctor, Allan; Davis, Alan; Duff, John; Dugas, Marc-Andre; Duncan, Alan; Evans, Barry; Feldman, Jonathan; Felmet, Kathryn; Fisher, Gene; Frankel, Lorry; Jeffries, Howard; Greenwald, Bruce; Gutierrez, Juan; Hall, Mark; Han, Yong Y.; Hanson, James; Hazelzet, Jan; Hernan, Lynn; Kiff, Jane; Kissoon, Niranjan; Kon, Alexander; Irazusta, Jose; Lin, John; Lorts, Angie; Mariscalco, Michelle; Mehta, Renuka; Nadel, Simon; Nguyen, Trung; Nicholson, Carol; Peters, Mark; Okhuysen-Cawley, Regina; Poulton, Tom; Relves, Monica; Rodriguez, Agustin; Rozenfeld, Ranna; Schnitzler, Eduardo; Shanley, Tom; Skache, Sara; Skippen, Peter; Torres, Adalberto; von Dessauer, Bettina; Weingarten, Jacki; Yeh, Timothy; Zaritsky, Arno; Stojadinovic, Bonnie; Zimmerman, Jerry; Zuckerberg, Aaron

    2013-01-01

    Background The Institute of Medicine calls for the use of clinical guidelines and practice parameters to promote “best practices” and to improve patient outcomes. Objective 2007 update of the 2002 American College of Critical Care Medicine Clinical Guidelines for Hemodynamic Support of Neonates and Children with Septic Shock. Participants Society of Critical Care Medicine members with special interest in neonatal and pediatric septic shock were identified from general solicitation at the Society of Critical Care Medicine Educational and Scientific Symposia (2001–2006). Methods The Pubmed/MEDLINE literature database (1966–2006) was searched using the keywords and phrases: sepsis, septicemia, septic shock, endotoxemia, persistent pulmonary hypertension, nitric oxide, extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), and American College of Critical Care Medicine guidelines. Best practice centers that reported best outcomes were identified and their practices examined as models of care. Using a modified Delphi method, 30 experts graded new literature. Over 30 additional experts then reviewed the updated recommendations. The document was subsequently modified until there was greater than 90% expert consensus. Results The 2002 guidelines were widely disseminated, translated into Spanish and Portuguese, and incorporated into Society of Critical Care Medicine and AHA sanctioned recommendations. Centers that implemented the 2002 guidelines reported best practice outcomes (hospital mortality 1%–3% in previously healthy, and 7%– 10% in chronically ill children). Early use of 2002 guidelines was associated with improved outcome in the community hospital emergency department (number needed to treat = 3.3) and tertiary pediatric intensive care setting (number needed to treat = 3.6); every hour that went by without guideline adherence was associated with a 1.4-fold increased mortality risk. The updated 2007 guidelines continue to recognize an increased likelihood that children with septic shock, compared with adults, require 1) proportionally larger quantities of fluid, 2) inotrope and vasodilator therapies, 3) hydrocortisone for absolute adrenal insufficiency, and 4) ECMO for refractory shock. The major new recommendation in the 2007 update is earlier use of inotrope support through peripheral access until central access is attained. Conclusion The 2007 update continues to emphasize early use of age-specific therapies to attain time-sensitive goals, specifically recommending 1) first hour fluid resuscitation and inotrope therapy directed to goals of threshold heart rates, normal blood pressure, and capillary refill ≤2 secs, and 2) subsequent intensive care unit hemodynamic support directed to goals of central venous oxygen saturation >70% and cardiac index 3.3–6.0 L/min/m2. PMID:19325359

  20. 75 FR 53643 - Examination Guidelines Update: Developments in the Obviousness Inquiry After KSR v.Teleflex

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-09-01

    ...The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO or Office) is issuing an update (2010 KSR Guidelines Update) to its obviousness guidelines for its personnel to be used when applying the law of obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103. This 2010 KSR Guidelines Update highlights case law developments on obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 since the 2007 decision by the United States Supreme Court (Supreme Court) in KSR Int'l Co. v. Teleflex Inc. These guidelines are intended to be used by Office personnel in conjunction with the guidance in the Manual of Patent Examining Procedure when applying the law of obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103. Members of the public are invited to provide comments on the 2010 KSR Guidelines Update. The Office is especially interested in receiving suggestions of recent decisional law in the field of obviousness that would have particular value as teaching tools.

  1. Towards a more transparent HTA process in Poland: new Polish HTA methodological guidelines

    PubMed Central

    Lach, Krzysztof; Dziwisz, Michal; Rémuzat, Cécile; Toumi, Mondher

    2017-01-01

    ABSTRACT Introduction: Health technology assessment (HTA) in Poland supports reimbursement decisions via the Polish HTA Agency (AOTMiT), whose guidelines were updated in 2016. Methods: We identified key changes introduced by the update and, before guideline publication, analysed discrepancies between AOTMiT assessments and the submitting marketing authorisation holders (MAHs) to elucidate the context of the update. We compared the clarity and detail of the new guidelines versus those of the UK’s National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). Results: The update specified more precise requirements for items such as indirect comparison or input data for economic modelling. Agency–MAH discrepancies relating to the subjects of the HTA update were found in 14.6% of published documents. The new Polish HTA guidelines were as clear and detailed as NICE’s on topics such as assessing quality of evidence and economic modelling, but were less informative when describing (for example) pairwise meta-analysis. Conclusions: The Polish HTA guidelines update demonstrates lessons learned from internal and external experiences. The new guidelines adhere more closely to UK HTA standards, being clearer and more informative. While the update is expected to reduce Agency–MAH discrepancies, there remain areas for development, such as providing templates to aid HTA submissions. PMID:28804603

  2. Breast Cancer Screening for Women at Average Risk: 2015 Guideline Update From the American Cancer Society.

    PubMed

    Oeffinger, Kevin C; Fontham, Elizabeth T H; Etzioni, Ruth; Herzig, Abbe; Michaelson, James S; Shih, Ya-Chen Tina; Walter, Louise C; Church, Timothy R; Flowers, Christopher R; LaMonte, Samuel J; Wolf, Andrew M D; DeSantis, Carol; Lortet-Tieulent, Joannie; Andrews, Kimberly; Manassaram-Baptiste, Deana; Saslow, Debbie; Smith, Robert A; Brawley, Otis W; Wender, Richard

    2015-10-20

    Breast cancer is a leading cause of premature mortality among US women. Early detection has been shown to be associated with reduced breast cancer morbidity and mortality. To update the American Cancer Society (ACS) 2003 breast cancer screening guideline for women at average risk for breast cancer. The ACS commissioned a systematic evidence review of the breast cancer screening literature to inform the update and a supplemental analysis of mammography registry data to address questions related to the screening interval. Formulation of recommendations was based on the quality of the evidence and judgment (incorporating values and preferences) about the balance of benefits and harms. Screening mammography in women aged 40 to 69 years is associated with a reduction in breast cancer deaths across a range of study designs, and inferential evidence supports breast cancer screening for women 70 years and older who are in good health. Estimates of the cumulative lifetime risk of false-positive examination results are greater if screening begins at younger ages because of the greater number of mammograms, as well as the higher recall rate in younger women. The quality of the evidence for overdiagnosis is not sufficient to estimate a lifetime risk with confidence. Analysis examining the screening interval demonstrates more favorable tumor characteristics when premenopausal women are screened annually vs biennially. Evidence does not support routine clinical breast examination as a screening method for women at average risk. The ACS recommends that women with an average risk of breast cancer should undergo regular screening mammography starting at age 45 years (strong recommendation). Women aged 45 to 54 years should be screened annually (qualified recommendation). Women 55 years and older should transition to biennial screening or have the opportunity to continue screening annually (qualified recommendation). Women should have the opportunity to begin annual screening between the ages of 40 and 44 years (qualified recommendation). Women should continue screening mammography as long as their overall health is good and they have a life expectancy of 10 years or longer (qualified recommendation). The ACS does not recommend clinical breast examination for breast cancer screening among average-risk women at any age (qualified recommendation). These updated ACS guidelines provide evidence-based recommendations for breast cancer screening for women at average risk of breast cancer. These recommendations should be considered by physicians and women in discussions about breast cancer screening.

  3. Guidance for updating clinical practice guidelines: a systematic review of methodological handbooks.

    PubMed

    Vernooij, Robin W M; Sanabria, Andrea Juliana; Solà, Ivan; Alonso-Coello, Pablo; Martínez García, Laura

    2014-01-02

    Updating clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) is a crucial process for maintaining the validity of recommendations. Methodological handbooks should provide guidance on both developing and updating CPGs. However, little is known about the updating guidance provided by these handbooks. We conducted a systematic review to identify and describe the updating guidance provided by CPG methodological handbooks and included handbooks that provide updating guidance for CPGs. We searched in the Guidelines International Network library, US National Guidelines Clearinghouse and MEDLINE (PubMed) from 1966 to September 2013. Two authors independently selected the handbooks and extracted the data. We used descriptive statistics to analyze the extracted data and conducted a narrative synthesis. We included 35 handbooks. Most handbooks (97.1%) focus mainly on developing CPGs, including variable degrees of information about updating. Guidance on identifying new evidence and the methodology of assessing the need for an update is described in 11 (31.4%) and eight handbooks (22.8%), respectively. The period of time between two updates is described in 25 handbooks (71.4%), two to three years being the most frequent (40.0%). The majority of handbooks do not provide guidance for the literature search, evidence selection, assessment, synthesis, and external review of the updating process. Guidance for updating CPGs is poorly described in methodological handbooks. This guidance should be more rigorous and explicit. This could lead to a more optimal updating process, and, ultimately to valid trustworthy guidelines.

  4. 75 FR 45628 - Delayed Update of the HHS Poverty Guidelines for the Remainder of 2010

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-08-03

    ... DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES Office of the Secretary Delayed Update of the HHS Poverty...: This notice provides a delayed update of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) poverty guidelines for the remainder of 2010, and until the 2011 poverty guidelines are published, which is expected...

  5. NCCN Guidelines® Insights Bladder Cancer, Version 2.2016 Featured Updates to the NCCN Guidelines

    PubMed Central

    Clark, Peter E.; Spiess, Philippe E.; Agarwal, Neeraj; Bangs, Rick; Boorjian, Stephen A.; Buyyounouski, Mark K.; Efstathiou, Jason A.; Flaig, Thomas W.; Friedlander, Terence; Greenberg, Richard E.; Guru, Khurshid A.; Hahn, Noah; Herr, Harry W.; Hoimes, Christopher; Inman, Brant A.; Kader, A. Karim; Kibel, Adam S.; Kuzel, Timothy M.; Lele, Subodh M.; Meeks, Joshua J.; Michalski, Jeff; Montgomery, Jeffrey S.; Pagliaro, Lance C.; Pal, Sumanta K.; Patterson, Anthony; Petrylak, Daniel; Plimack, Elizabeth R.; Pohar, Kamal S.; Porter, Michael P.; Sexton, Wade J.; Siefker-Radtke, Arlene O.; Sonpavde, Guru; Tward, Jonathan; Wile, Geoffrey; Dwyer, Mary A.; Smith, Courtney

    2017-01-01

    These NCCN Guidelines Insights discuss the major recent updates to the NCCN Guidelines for Bladder Cancer based on the review of the evidence in conjunction with the expert opinion of the panel. Recent updates include (1) refining the recommendation of intravesical bacillus Calmette-Guérin, (2) strengthening the recommendations for perioperative systemic chemotherapy, and (3) incorporating immunotherapy into second-line therapy for locally advanced or metastatic disease. These NCCN Guidelines Insights further discuss factors that affect integration of these recommendations into clinical practice. PMID:27697976

  6. Developing clinical practice guidelines: reviewing, reporting, and publishing guidelines; updating guidelines; and the emerging issues of enhancing guideline implementability and accounting for comorbid conditions in guideline development

    PubMed Central

    2012-01-01

    Clinical practice guidelines are one of the foundations of efforts to improve health care. In 1999, we authored a paper about methods to develop guidelines. Since it was published, the methods of guideline development have progressed both in terms of methods and necessary procedures and the context for guideline development has changed with the emergence of guideline clearing houses and large scale guideline production organisations (such as the UK National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence). It therefore seems timely to, in a series of three articles, update and extend our earlier paper. In this third paper we discuss the issues of: reviewing, reporting, and publishing guidelines; updating guidelines; and the two emerging issues of enhancing guideline implementability and how guideline developers should approach dealing with the issue of patients who will be the subject of guidelines having co-morbid conditions. PMID:22762242

  7. Comparison of international guideline programs to evaluate and update the Dutch program for clinical guideline development in physical therapy

    PubMed Central

    Van der Wees, Philip J; Hendriks, Erik JM; Custers, Jan WH; Burgers, Jako S; Dekker, Joost; de Bie, Rob A

    2007-01-01

    Background Clinical guidelines are considered important instruments to improve quality in health care. Since 1998 the Royal Dutch Society for Physical Therapy (KNGF) produced evidence-based clinical guidelines, based on a standardized program. New developments in the field of guideline research raised the need to evaluate and update the KNGF guideline program. Purpose of this study is to compare different guideline development programs and review the KNGF guideline program for physical therapy in the Netherlands, in order to update the program. Method Six international guideline development programs were selected, and the 23 criteria of the AGREE Instrument were used to evaluate the guideline programs. Information about the programs was retrieved from published handbooks of the organizations. Also, the Dutch program for guideline development in physical therapy was evaluated using the AGREE criteria. Further comparison the six guideline programs was carried out using the following elements of the guideline development processes: Structure and organization; Preparation and initiation; Development; Validation; Dissemination and implementation; Evaluation and update. Results Compliance with the AGREE criteria of the guideline programs was high. Four programs addressed 22 AGREE criteria, and two programs addressed 20 AGREE criteria. The previous Dutch program for guideline development in physical therapy lacked in compliance with the AGREE criteria, meeting only 13 criteria. Further comparison showed that all guideline programs perform systematic literature searches to identify the available evidence. Recommendations are formulated and graded, based on evidence and other relevant factors. It is not clear how decisions in the development process are made. In particular, the process of translating evidence into practice recommendations can be improved. Conclusion As a result of international developments and consensus, the described processes for developing clinical practice guidelines have much in common. The AGREE criteria are common basis for the development of guidelines, although it is not clear how final decisions are made. Detailed comparison of the different guideline programs was used for updating the Dutch program. As a result the updated KNGF program complied with 22 AGREE criteria. International discussion is continuing and will be used for further improvement of the program. PMID:18036215

  8. Comparison of international guideline programs to evaluate and update the Dutch program for clinical guideline development in physical therapy.

    PubMed

    Van der Wees, Philip J; Hendriks, Erik J M; Custers, Jan W H; Burgers, Jako S; Dekker, Joost; de Bie, Rob A

    2007-11-23

    Clinical guidelines are considered important instruments to improve quality in health care. Since 1998 the Royal Dutch Society for Physical Therapy (KNGF) produced evidence-based clinical guidelines, based on a standardized program. New developments in the field of guideline research raised the need to evaluate and update the KNGF guideline program. Purpose of this study is to compare different guideline development programs and review the KNGF guideline program for physical therapy in the Netherlands, in order to update the program. Six international guideline development programs were selected, and the 23 criteria of the AGREE Instrument were used to evaluate the guideline programs. Information about the programs was retrieved from published handbooks of the organizations. Also, the Dutch program for guideline development in physical therapy was evaluated using the AGREE criteria. Further comparison the six guideline programs was carried out using the following elements of the guideline development processes: Structure and organization; Preparation and initiation; Development; Validation; Dissemination and implementation; Evaluation and update. Compliance with the AGREE criteria of the guideline programs was high. Four programs addressed 22 AGREE criteria, and two programs addressed 20 AGREE criteria. The previous Dutch program for guideline development in physical therapy lacked in compliance with the AGREE criteria, meeting only 13 criteria. Further comparison showed that all guideline programs perform systematic literature searches to identify the available evidence. Recommendations are formulated and graded, based on evidence and other relevant factors. It is not clear how decisions in the development process are made. In particular, the process of translating evidence into practice recommendations can be improved. As a result of international developments and consensus, the described processes for developing clinical practice guidelines have much in common. The AGREE criteria are common basis for the development of guidelines, although it is not clear how final decisions are made. Detailed comparison of the different guideline programs was used for updating the Dutch program. As a result the updated KNGF program complied with 22 AGREE criteria. International discussion is continuing and will be used for further improvement of the program.

  9. NCCN Guidelines Insights: Breast Cancer, Version 1.2017.

    PubMed

    Gradishar, William J; Anderson, Benjamin O; Balassanian, Ron; Blair, Sarah L; Burstein, Harold J; Cyr, Amy; Elias, Anthony D; Farrar, William B; Forero, Andres; Giordano, Sharon Hermes; Goetz, Matthew P; Goldstein, Lori J; Isakoff, Steven J; Lyons, Janice; Marcom, P Kelly; Mayer, Ingrid A; McCormick, Beryl; Moran, Meena S; O'Regan, Ruth M; Patel, Sameer A; Pierce, Lori J; Reed, Elizabeth C; Salerno, Kilian E; Schwartzberg, Lee S; Sitapati, Amy; Smith, Karen Lisa; Smith, Mary Lou; Soliman, Hatem; Somlo, George; Telli, Melinda; Ward, John H; Shead, Dorothy A; Kumar, Rashmi

    2017-04-01

    These NCCN Guidelines Insights highlight the important updates/changes to the surgical axillary staging, radiation therapy, and systemic therapy recommendations for hormone receptor-positive disease in the 1.2017 version of the NCCN Guidelines for Breast Cancer. This report summarizes these updates and discusses the rationale behind them. Updates on new drug approvals, not available at press time, can be found in the most recent version of these guidelines at NCCN.org. Copyright © 2017 by the National Comprehensive Cancer Network.

  10. New Approaches in International Guidelines for Genetic Toxicology Assays: Latest Updates on OECD Guidelines

    EPA Science Inventory

    In March 2010, the 22nd meeting of the Working Group of National Coordinators of the OECD Test Guidelines Programme (WNT) approved a project for updating the Test Guidelines on genotoxicity, with Canada, the Netherlands, France and the USA identified as lead countries for this wo...

  11. 26 CFR 601.901 - Missing children shown on penalty mail.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... those which have been updated to reflect a missing child's current age through computer enhancement... shelf-life guideline. (d) Reports and contact official. IRS shall compile and submit to OJJDP reports on... Division, Technical Publications Branch, OP:FS:FP:P:3, Room 5613, Internal Revenue Service, 1111...

  12. 26 CFR 601.901 - Missing children shown on penalty mail.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... those which have been updated to reflect a missing child's current age through computer enhancement... shelf-life guideline. (d) Reports and contact official. IRS shall compile and submit to OJJDP reports on... Division, Technical Publications Branch, OP:FS:FP:P:3, Room 5613, Internal Revenue Service, 1111...

  13. 26 CFR 601.901 - Missing children shown on penalty mail.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... those which have been updated to reflect a missing child's current age through computer enhancement... shelf-life guideline. (d) Reports and contact official. IRS shall compile and submit to OJJDP reports on... Division, Technical Publications Branch, OP:FS:FP:P:3, Room 5613, Internal Revenue Service, 1111...

  14. 26 CFR 601.901 - Missing children shown on penalty mail.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... those which have been updated to reflect a missing child's current age through computer enhancement... shelf-life guideline. (d) Reports and contact official. IRS shall compile and submit to OJJDP reports on... Division, Technical Publications Branch, OP:FS:FP:P:3, Room 5613, Internal Revenue Service, 1111...

  15. 26 CFR 601.901 - Missing children shown on penalty mail.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... those which have been updated to reflect a missing child's current age through computer enhancement... shelf-life guideline. (d) Reports and contact official. IRS shall compile and submit to OJJDP reports on... Division, Technical Publications Branch, OP:FS:FP:P:3, Room 5613, Internal Revenue Service, 1111...

  16. Sexually Transmitted Diseases Treatment Guidelines, 2015

    PubMed Central

    Workowski, Kimberly A.; Bolan, Gail A.

    2016-01-01

    Summary These guidelines for the treatment of persons who have or are at risk for sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) were updated by CDC after consultation with a group of professionals knowledgeable in the field of STDs who met in Atlanta on April 30–May 2, 2013. The information in this report updates the Sexually Transmitted Diseases Treatment Guidelines, 2010 (MMWR Recomm Rep 2010;59 [No. RR–12]). These updated guidelines discuss 1) alternative treatment regimens for Neisseria gonorrhoeae; 2) the use of nucleic acid amplification tests for the diagnosis of trichomoniasis; 3) alternative treatment options for genital warts; 4) the role of Mycoplasma genitalium in urethritis/cervicitis and treatment-related implications; 5) updated HPV vaccine recommendations and counseling messages; 6) the management of persons who are transgender; 7) annual testing for hepatitis C in persons with HIV infection; 8) updated recommendations for diagnostic evaluation of urethritis; and 9) retesting to detect repeat infection. Physicians and other health-care providers can use these guidelines to assist in the prevention and treatment of STDs. PMID:26042815

  17. European guidelines for workplace drug testing in urine.

    PubMed

    Taskinen, Sanna; Beck, Olof; Bosch, Tessa; Brcak, Michaela; Carmichael, Duncan; Fucci, Nadia; George, Claire; Piper, Mark; Salomone, Alberto; Schielen, Wim; Steinmeyer, Stefan; Weinmann, Wolfgang

    2017-06-01

    These European Guidelines for Workplace Drug Testing in Urine have been prepared and updated by the European Workplace Drug Testing Society (EWDTS). The first version of these urine guidelines was published in 2002. Since then, the guidelines have been followed by many laboratories in different European countries and their role has been essential particularly in countries lacking legislation for workplace drug testing. In 2014, the EWDTS started a guidelines updating project and published a new version of the urine guidelines in 2015. Here we represent this updated version of the urine guidelines. The European Guidelines are designed to establish best practice procedures whilst allowing individual countries to operate within the requirements of national customs and legislation. The EWDTS recommends that all European laboratories that undertake legally defensible workplace drug testing should use these guidelines as a template for accreditation. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  18. Reactions on Twitter to updated alcohol guidelines in the UK: a content analysis

    PubMed Central

    Bignardi, Giacomo; Hollands, Gareth J; Marteau, Theresa M

    2017-01-01

    Objectives In January 2016, the 4 UK Chief Medical Officers released a public consultation regarding updated guidelines for low-risk alcohol consumption. This study aimed to assess responses to the updated guidelines using comments made on Twitter. Methods Tweets containing the hashtag #alcoholguidelines made during 1 week following the announcement of the updated guidelines were retrieved using the Twitter Archiver tool. The source, sentiment and themes of the tweets were categorised using manual content analysis. Results A total of 3061 tweets was retrieved. 6 sources were identified, the most prominent being members of the public. Of 821 tweets expressing sentiment specifically towards the guidelines, 80% expressed a negative sentiment. 11 themes were identified, 3 of which were broadly supportive of the guidelines, 7 broadly unsupportive and 1 neutral. Overall, more tweets were unsupportive (49%) than supportive (44%). While the most common theme overall was sharing information, the most common in tweets from members of the public encouraged alcohol consumption (15%) or expressed disagreement with the guidelines (14%), reflecting reactance, resistance and misunderstanding. Conclusions This descriptive analysis revealed a number of themes present in unsupportive comments towards the updated UK alcohol guidelines among a largely proalcohol community. An understanding of these may help to tailor effective communication of alcohol and health-related policies, and could inform a more dynamic approach to health communication via social media. PMID:28246145

  19. 76 FR 3637 - Annual Update of the HHS Poverty Guidelines

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-01-20

    ... DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES Office of the Secretary Annual Update of the HHS Poverty... update of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) poverty guidelines to account for last... program. For information about poverty figures for immigration forms, the Hill-Burton Uncompensated...

  20. 77 FR 4034 - Annual Update of the HHS Poverty Guidelines

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-01-26

    ... DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES Office of the Secretary Annual Update of the HHS Poverty... update of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) poverty guidelines to account for last... program. For information about poverty figures for immigration forms, the Hill-Burton Uncompensated...

  1. 78 FR 5182 - Annual Update of the HHS Poverty Guidelines

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-01-24

    ... DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES Office of the Secretary Annual Update of the HHS Poverty... update of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) poverty guidelines to account for last... program. For information about poverty figures for immigration forms, the Hill-Burton Uncompensated...

  2. 78 FR 17679 - Implementation of the Updated American Veterinary Medical Association Guidelines for the...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-03-22

    ... DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES National Institutes of Health Implementation of the Updated American Veterinary Medical Association Guidelines for the Euthanasia of Animals: 2013 Edition...) awardee institutions on implementation of the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) Guidelines...

  3. [Preoperative fasting guidelines: an update].

    PubMed

    López Muñoz, A C; Busto Aguirreurreta, N; Tomás Braulio, J

    2015-03-01

    Anesthesiology societies have issued various guidelines on preoperative fasting since 1990, not only to decrease the incidence of lung aspiration and anesthetic morbidity, but also to increase patient comfort prior to anesthesia. Some of these societies have been updating their guidelines, as such that, since 2010, we now have 2 evidence-based preoperative fasting guidelines available. In this article, an attempt is made to review these updated guidelines, as well as the current instructions for more controversial patients such as infants, the obese, and a particular type of ophthalmic surgery. Copyright © 2014 Sociedad Española de Anestesiología, Reanimación y Terapéutica del Dolor. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

  4. Guidelines for stem cell science and clinical translation.

    PubMed

    Pandya, Sunil K

    2016-01-01

    The International Society for Stem Cell Research has released its updated guidelines for stem cell research in order to provide "assurance that stem cell research is conducted with scientific and ethical integrity and that new therapies are evidence-based." The guidelines were updated by a Guidelines Update Task Force consisting of twenty-five scientists, ethicists and experts in health care policy from nine countries. The chairpersons of this task force are Jonathan Kimmelman, George Daley and Insoo Hyun. There is no representative from India; the only person of Indian origin on it, Mahendra Rao, represents The New York Stem Cell Foundation.

  5. American Society of Clinical Oncology Clinical Practice Guideline Update on the Use of Pharmacologic Interventions Including Tamoxifen, Raloxifene, and Aromatase Inhibition for Breast Cancer Risk Reduction

    PubMed Central

    Visvanathan, Kala; Chlebowski, Rowan T.; Hurley, Patricia; Col, Nananda F.; Ropka, Mary; Collyar, Deborah; Morrow, Monica; Runowicz, Carolyn; Pritchard, Kathleen I.; Hagerty, Karen; Arun, Banu; Garber, Judy; Vogel, Victor G.; Wade, James L.; Brown, Powel; Cuzick, Jack; Kramer, Barnett S.; Lippman, Scott M.

    2009-01-01

    Purpose To update the 2002 American Society of Clinical Oncology guideline on pharmacologic interventions for breast cancer (BC) risk reduction. Methods A literature search identified relevant randomized trials published since 2002. Primary outcome of interest was BC incidence (invasive and noninvasive). Secondary outcomes included BC mortality, adverse events, and net health benefits. An expert panel reviewed the literature and developed updated consensus guidelines. Results Seventeen articles met inclusion criteria. In premenopausal women, tamoxifen for 5 years reduces the risk of BC for at least 10 years, particularly estrogen receptor (ER) –positive invasive tumors. Women ≤ 50 years of age experience fewer serious side effects. Vascular and vasomotor events do not persist post-treatment across all ages. In postmenopausal women, raloxifene and tamoxifen reduce the risk of ER-positive invasive BC with equal efficacy. Raloxifene is associated with a lower risk of thromboembolic disease, benign uterine conditions, and cataracts than tamoxifen in postmenopausal women. No evidence exists establishing whether a reduction in BC risk from either agent translates into reduced BC mortality. Recommendations In women at increased risk for BC, tamoxifen (20 mg/d for 5 years) may be offered to reduce the risk of invasive ER-positive BC, with benefits for at least 10 years. In postmenopausal women, raloxifene (60 mg/d for 5 years) may also be considered. Use of aromatase inhibitors, fenretinide, or other selective estrogen receptor modulators to lower BC risk is not recommended outside of a clinical trial. Discussion of risks and benefits of preventive agents by health providers is critical to patient decision making. PMID:19470930

  6. Retrospective examination of lipid-lowering treatment patterns in a real-world high-risk cohort in the UK in 2014: comparison with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) 2014 lipid modification guidelines.

    PubMed

    Steen, Dylan L; Khan, Irfan; Ansell, David; Sanchez, Robert J; Ray, Kausik K

    2017-02-17

    In 2014, guidelines from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) provided updated recommendations on lipid-modifying therapy (LMT). We assessed clinical practice contemporaneous to release of these guidelines in a UK general practice setting for secondary and high-risk primary-prevention populations, and extrapolated the findings to UK nation level. Patients from The Health Improvement Network database with the following criteria were included: lipid profile in 2014 (index date); ≥20 years of age; ≥2 years representation in database prior to index; ≥1 statin indication either for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) or the non-ASCVD conditions high-risk diabetes mellitus and/or chronic kidney disease. Overall, 183 565 patients met the inclusion criteria (n=91 479 for ASCVD, 92 086 for non-ASCVD). In those with ASCVD, 79% received statin treatment and 31% received high-intensity statin. In the non-ASCVD group, 62% were on a statin and 57% received medium-intensity or high-intensity statin. In the ASCVD and non-ASCVD cohorts, 6% and 15%, respectively, were already treated according to dosing recommendations as per updated NICE guidelines. Extrapolation to the 2014 UK population indicated that, of the 3.3 million individuals with ASCVD, 2.4 million would require statin uptitration and 680 000 would require statin initiation (31% de novo initiation, 60% reinitiation, 9% addition to non-statin LMT) to achieve full concordance with updated guidelines. Of the 3.5 million high-risk non-ASCVD individuals, 1.6 million would require statin uptitration and 1.4 million would require statin initiation (59% de novo initiation, 36% reinitiation, 5% addition to non-statin LMT). A large proportion of UK individuals with ASCVD and high-risk non-ASCVD received statin treatment (79% and 62%, respectively) during the year of NICE 2014 guidelines release. Up to 94% of patients with ASCVD and 85% of high-risk non-ASCVD individuals, representing ∼3 million individuals in each group, would require statin uptitration or initiation to achieve full concordance with updated guidelines. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/.

  7. American Cancer Society, American Society for Colposcopy and Cervical Pathology, and American Society for Clinical Pathology Screening Guidelines for the Prevention and Early Detection of Cervical Cancer

    PubMed Central

    Saslow, Debbie; Solomon, Diane; Lawson, Herschel W.; Killackey, Maureen; Kulasingam, Shalini; Cain, Joanna; Garcia, Francisco A. R.; Moriarty, Ann; Waxman, Alan; Wilbur, David; Wentzensen, Nicolas; Downs, Levi; Spitzer, Mark; Moscicki, Anna-Barbara; Saraiya, Mona; Franco, Eduardo L.; Stoler, Mark H.; Schiffman, Mark; Castle, Philip E.; Myers, Evan R.

    2013-01-01

    An update to the American Cancer Society (ACS) guideline regarding screening for the early detection of cervical precancerous lesions and cancer is presented. The guidelines are based on a systematic evidence review, contributions from six working groups, and a recent symposium co-sponsored by the ACS, American Society for Colposcopy and Cervical Pathology (ASCCP), and American Society for Clinical Pathology (ASCP), which was attended by 25 organizations. The new screening recommendations address age-appropriate screening strategies, including the use of cytology and high-risk human papillomavirus (HPV) testing, follow-up (e.g., management of screen positives and screening interval for screen negatives) of women after screening, age at which to exit screening, future considerations regarding HPV testing alone as a primary screening approach, and screening strategies for women vaccinated against HPV16 and HPV18 infections. PMID:22418039

  8. American Cancer Society, American Society for Colposcopy and Cervical Pathology, and American Society for Clinical Pathology Screening Guidelines for the Prevention and Early Detection of Cervical Cancer

    PubMed Central

    Saslow, Debbie; Solomon, Diane; Lawson, Herschel W.; Killackey, Maureen; Kulasingam, Shalini; Cain, Joanna; Garcia, Francisco A. R.; Moriarty, Ann; Waxman, Alan; Wilbur, David; Wentzensen, Nicolas; Downs, Levi; Spitzer, Mark; Moscicki, Anna-Barbara; Franco, Eduardo L.; Stoler, Mark H.; Schiffman, Mark; Castle, Philip E.; Myers, Evan R.

    2013-01-01

    An update to the American Cancer Society (ACS) guideline regarding screening for the early detection of cervical precancerous lesions and cancer is presented. The guidelines are based on a systematic evidence review, contributions from six working groups, and a recent symposium cosponsored by the ACS, American Society for Colposcopy and Cervical Pathology (ASCCP), and American Society for Clinical Pathology (ASCP), which was attended by 25 organizations. The new screening recommendations address age-appropriate screening strategies, including the use of cytology and high-risk human papillomavirus (HPV) testing, follow-up (e.g., management of screen positives and screening interval for screen negatives) of women after screening, age at which to exit screening, future considerations regarding HPV testing alone as a primary screening approach, and screening strategies for women vaccinated against HPV16 and HPV18 infections. PMID:22422631

  9. The forgotten guidelines: cross-sectional analysis of participation in muscle strengthening and balance & co-ordination activities by adults and older adults in Scotland.

    PubMed

    Strain, Tessa; Fitzsimons, Claire; Kelly, Paul; Mutrie, Nanette

    2016-10-21

    In 2011, the UK physical activity guidelines were updated to include recommendations for muscle strengthening and balance & coordination (at least two sessions of relevant activities per week). However, monitoring and policy efforts remain focussed on aerobic activity. This study aimed to assess differences by gender and age in the a) prevalence of muscle strengthening and balance & co-ordination guidelines, and b) participation in guideline-specific activities. The sample for the muscle strengthening analyses was 10,488 adult (16-64 years) and 3857 older adult (≥65 years) 2012-2014 Scottish Health Survey respondents. The balance & co-ordination analyses used only the older adult responses. Differences by gender and (where possible) age in guideline prevalence and activity participation were assessed using logistic regression and t-tests. Thirty-one percent of men and 24 % of women met the muscle strengthening guideline, approximately half that of published figures for aerobic physical activity. Nineteen percent of older men and 12 % of older women met the balance & co-ordination guidelines. The oldest age groups were less likely to meet both guidelines compared to the youngest age groups. Differences by gender were only evident for muscle strengthening: more men met the guidelines than women in all age groups, with the largest difference amongst 16-24 year olds (55 % men compared with 40 % women). Participation in relevant activities differed by gender for both guidelines. 'Workout at gym' was the most popular activity to improve muscle strength for men (18 % participated), while swimming was for women (15 % participated). Golf was the most popular activity to improve balance & co-ordination for older men (11 % participated) and aerobics was for older women (6 % participated). Participation decreased in most muscle strengthening activities for both men and women. One exception was golf, where participation levels were as high amongst older men as in younger age groups, although overall levels were low (3 % of all men). Physical activity policy should aim to increase prevalence of these 'forgotten' guidelines, particularly amongst young women (for muscle strengthening) and older age groups (both guidelines). Gender and age participation differences should be considered when designing population-level interventions.

  10. The Evolution of Physical Activity Promotion.

    PubMed

    Richards, Elizabeth Ann

    2015-08-01

    A physically active lifestyle has numerous physical and mental health benefits for patients of all ages. Despite these significant benefits, a majority of Americans do not meet current physical activity guidelines. Health care providers, especially nurses, play a vital role in physical activity promotion. Over the past several decades, exercise and physical activity guidelines have evolved from a focus on structured, vigorous exercise to a focus on moderate-intensity "lifestyle" physical activity. The author updates nurses on physical activity guidelines and provides tips for promoting physical activity, with a focus on lifestyle activities such as walking to work. This article also addresses new research findings on the importance of decreasing sedentary and sitting time, even in physically active people.

  11. Reference Equations for Static Lung Volumes and TLCO from a Population Sample in Northern Greece.

    PubMed

    Michailopoulos, Pavlos; Kontakiotis, Theodoros; Spyratos, Dionisios; Argyropoulou-Pataka, Paraskevi; Sichletidis, Lazaros

    2015-02-14

    Background: The most commonly used reference equations for the measurement of static lung volumes/capacities and transfer factor of the lung for CO (TL CO ) are based on studies around 30-40 years old with significant limitations. Objectives: Our aim was to (1) develop reference equations for static lung volumes and TL CO using the current American Thoracic Society/European Respiratory Society guidelines, and (2) compare the equations derived with those most commonly used. Methods: Healthy Caucasian subjects (234 males and 233 females) aged 18-91 years were recruited. All of them were healthy never smokers with a normal chest X-ray. Static lung volumes and TL CO were measured with a single-breath technique according to the latest guidelines. Results: Curvilinear regression prediction equations derived from the present study were compared with those that are most commonly used. Our reference equations in accordance with the latest studies show lower values for all static lung volume parameters and TL CO as well as a different way of deviation of those parameters (i.e. declining with age total lung capacity, TL CO age decline in both sex and functional residual capacity age rise in males). Conclusions: We suggest that old reference values of static lung volumes and TL CO should be updated, and our perception of deviation of some spirometric parameters should be revised. Our new reference curvilinear equations derived according to the latest guidelines could contribute to the updating by respiratory societies of old existing reference values and result in a better estimation of the lung function of contemporary populations with similar Caucasian characteristics. © 2015 S. Karger AG, Basel.

  12. Reactions on Twitter to updated alcohol guidelines in the UK: a content analysis.

    PubMed

    Stautz, Kaidy; Bignardi, Giacomo; Hollands, Gareth J; Marteau, Theresa M

    2017-02-28

    In January 2016, the 4 UK Chief Medical Officers released a public consultation regarding updated guidelines for low-risk alcohol consumption. This study aimed to assess responses to the updated guidelines using comments made on Twitter. Tweets containing the hashtag #alcoholguidelines made during 1 week following the announcement of the updated guidelines were retrieved using the Twitter Archiver tool. The source, sentiment and themes of the tweets were categorised using manual content analysis. A total of 3061 tweets was retrieved. 6 sources were identified, the most prominent being members of the public. Of 821 tweets expressing sentiment specifically towards the guidelines, 80% expressed a negative sentiment. 11 themes were identified, 3 of which were broadly supportive of the guidelines, 7 broadly unsupportive and 1 neutral. Overall, more tweets were unsupportive (49%) than supportive (44%). While the most common theme overall was sharing information, the most common in tweets from members of the public encouraged alcohol consumption (15%) or expressed disagreement with the guidelines (14%), reflecting reactance, resistance and misunderstanding. This descriptive analysis revealed a number of themes present in unsupportive comments towards the updated UK alcohol guidelines among a largely proalcohol community. An understanding of these may help to tailor effective communication of alcohol and health-related policies, and could inform a more dynamic approach to health communication via social media. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/.

  13. Guidelines of Polish National Societies Diagnostics and Treatment of Thyroid Carcinoma. 2018 Update.

    PubMed

    Jarząb, Barbara; Dedecjus, Marek; Słowińska-Klencka, Dorota; Lewiński, Andrzej; Adamczewski, Zbigniew; Anielski, Ryszard; Bagłaj, Maciej; Bałdys-Waligórska, Agata; Barczyński, Marcin; Bednarczuk, Tomasz; Bossowski, Artur; Buziak-Bereza, Monika; Chmielik, Ewa; Cichocki, Andrzej; Czarniecka, Agnieszka; Czepczyński, Rafał; Dzięcioł, Janusz; Gawlik, Tomasz; Handkiewicz-Junak, Daria; Hasse-Lazar, Kornelia; Hubalewska-Dydejczyk, Alicja; Jażdżewski, Krystian; Jurecka-Lubieniecka, Beata; Kalemba, Michał; Kamiński, Grzegorz; Karbownik-Lewińska, Małgorzata; Klencki, Mariusz; Kos-Kudła, Beata; Kotecka-Blicharz, Agnieszka; Kowalska, Aldona; Krajewska, Jolanta; Kropińska, Aleksandra; Kukulska, Aleksandra; Kulik, Emilia; Kułakowski, Andrzej; Kuzdak, Krzysztof; Lange, Dariusz; Ledwon, Aleksandra; Lewandowska-Jabłońska, Elżbieta; Łącka, Katarzyna; Michalik, Barbara; Nasierowska-Guttmejer, Anna; Nauman, Janusz; Niedziela, Marek; Małecka-Tendera, Ewa; Oczko-Wojciechowska, Małgorzata; Olczyk, Tomasz; Paliczka-Cieślik, Ewa; Pomorski, Lech; Puch, Zbigniew; Roskosz, Józef; Ruchała, Marek; Rusinek, Dagmara; Sporny, Stanisław; Stanek-Widera, Agata; Stojcev, Zoran; Syguła, Aleksandra; Syrenicz, Anhelli; Szpak-Ulczok, Sylwia; Tomkalski, Tomasz; Wygoda, Zbigniew; Włoch, Jan; Zembala-Nożyńska, Ewa

    2018-01-01

    Significant advances have been made in thyroid can-cer research in recent years, therefore relevant clinical guidelines need to be updated. The current Polish guidelines "Diagnostics and Treatment of Thyroid Carcinoma" have been formulated at the "Thyroid Cancer and Other Malignancies of Endocrine Glands" conference held in Wisła in November 2015 [1].

  14. Systemic Therapy for Stage IV Non–Small-Cell Lung Cancer: American Society of Clinical Oncology Clinical Practice Guideline Update

    PubMed Central

    Masters, Gregory A.; Temin, Sarah; Azzoli, Christopher G.; Giaccone, Giuseppe; Baker, Sherman; Brahmer, Julie R.; Ellis, Peter M.; Gajra, Ajeet; Rackear, Nancy; Schiller, Joan H.; Smith, Thomas J.; Strawn, John R.; Trent, David; Johnson, David H.

    2015-01-01

    Purpose To provide evidence-based recommendations to update the American Society of Clinical Oncology guideline on systemic therapy for stage IV non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Methods An Update Committee of the American Society of Clinical Oncology NSCLC Expert Panel based recommendations on a systematic review of randomized controlled trials from January 2007 to February 2014. Results This guideline update reflects changes in evidence since the previous guideline. Recommendations There is no cure for patients with stage IV NSCLC. For patients with performance status (PS) 0 to 1 (and appropriate patient cases with PS 2) and without an EGFR-sensitizing mutation or ALK gene rearrangement, combination cytotoxic chemotherapy is recommended, guided by histology, with early concurrent palliative care. Recommendations for patients in the first-line setting include platinum-doublet therapy for those with PS 0 to 1 (bevacizumab may be added to carboplatin plus paclitaxel if no contraindications); combination or single-agent chemotherapy or palliative care alone for those with PS 2; afatinib, erlotinib, or gefitinib for those with sensitizing EGFR mutations; crizotinib for those with ALK or ROS1 gene rearrangement; and following first-line recommendations or using platinum plus etoposide for those with large-cell neuroendocrine carcinoma. Maintenance therapy includes pemetrexed continuation for patients with stable disease or response to first-line pemetrexed-containing regimens, alternative chemotherapy, or a chemotherapy break. In the second-line setting, recommendations include docetaxel, erlotinib, gefitinib, or pemetrexed for patients with nonsquamous cell carcinoma; docetaxel, erlotinib, or gefitinib for those with squamous cell carcinoma; and chemotherapy or ceritinib for those with ALK rearrangement who experience progression after crizotinib. In the third-line setting, for patients who have not received erlotinib or gefitinib, treatment with erlotinib is recommended. There are insufficient data to recommend routine third-line cytotoxic therapy. Decisions regarding systemic therapy should not be made based on age alone. Additional information can be found at http://www.asco.org/guidelines/nsclc and http://www.asco.org/guidelineswiki. PMID:26324367

  15. MedlinePlus FAQ: How Often MedlinePlus is Updated

    MedlinePlus

    ... System Pharmacists is updated monthly. Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database Consumer Version is updated quarterly. Medical Encyclopedia: Updated monthly. ... Guidelines Viewers & Players MedlinePlus Connect for ...

  16. Treatment of Low Bone Density or Osteoporosis to Prevent Fractures in Men and Women: A Clinical Practice Guideline Update From the American College of Physicians.

    PubMed

    Qaseem, Amir; Forciea, Mary Ann; McLean, Robert M; Denberg, Thomas D

    2017-06-06

    This guideline updates the 2008 American College of Physicians (ACP) recommendations on treatment of low bone density and osteoporosis to prevent fractures in men and women. This guideline is endorsed by the American Academy of Family Physicians. The ACP Clinical Guidelines Committee based these recommendations on a systematic review of randomized controlled trials; systematic reviews; large observational studies (for adverse events); and case reports (for rare events) that were published between 2 January 2005 and 3 June 2011. The review was updated to July 2016 by using a machine-learning method, and a limited update to October 2016 was done. Clinical outcomes evaluated were fractures and adverse events. This guideline focuses on the comparative benefits and risks of short- and long-term pharmacologic treatments for low bone density, including pharmaceutical prescriptions, calcium, vitamin D, and estrogen. Evidence was graded according to the GRADE (Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation) system. The target audience for this guideline includes all clinicians. The target patient population includes men and women with low bone density and osteoporosis. ACP recommends that clinicians offer pharmacologic treatment with alendronate, risedronate, zoledronic acid, or denosumab to reduce the risk for hip and vertebral fractures in women who have known osteoporosis. (Grade: strong recommendation; high-quality evidence). ACP recommends that clinicians treat osteoporotic women with pharmacologic therapy for 5 years. (Grade: weak recommendation; low-quality evidence). ACP recommends that clinicians offer pharmacologic treatment with bisphosphonates to reduce the risk for vertebral fracture in men who have clinically recognized osteoporosis. (Grade: weak recommendation; low-quality evidence). ACP recommends against bone density monitoring during the 5-year pharmacologic treatment period for osteoporosis in women. (Grade: weak recommendation; low-quality evidence). ACP recommends against using menopausal estrogen therapy or menopausal estrogen plus progestogen therapy or raloxifene for the treatment of osteoporosis in women. (Grade: strong recommendation; moderate-quality evidence). ACP recommends that clinicians should make the decision whether to treat osteopenic women 65 years of age or older who are at a high risk for fracture based on a discussion of patient preferences, fracture risk profile, and benefits, harms, and costs of medications. (Grade: weak recommendation; low-quality evidence).

  17. Clinical Pharmacogenetics Implementation Consortium (CPIC) Guideline for Pharmacogenetics-Guided Warfarin Dosing: 2017 Update.

    PubMed

    Johnson, J A; Caudle, K E; Gong, L; Whirl-Carrillo, M; Stein, C M; Scott, S A; Lee, M T; Gage, B F; Kimmel, S E; Perera, M A; Anderson, J L; Pirmohamed, M; Klein, T E; Limdi, N A; Cavallari, L H; Wadelius, M

    2017-09-01

    This document is an update to the 2011 Clinical Pharmacogenetics Implementation Consortium (CPIC) guideline for CYP2C9 and VKORC1 genotypes and warfarin dosing. Evidence from the published literature is presented for CYP2C9, VKORC1, CYP4F2, and rs12777823 genotype-guided warfarin dosing to achieve a target international normalized ratio of 2-3 when clinical genotype results are available. In addition, this updated guideline incorporates recommendations for adult and pediatric patients that are specific to continental ancestry. © 2017 American Society for Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics.

  18. Guideline summary review: An evidence-based clinical guideline for the diagnosis and treatment of degenerative lumbar spondylolisthesis.

    PubMed

    Matz, Paul G; Meagher, R J; Lamer, Tim; Tontz, William L; Annaswamy, Thiru M; Cassidy, R Carter; Cho, Charles H; Dougherty, Paul; Easa, John E; Enix, Dennis E; Gunnoe, Bryan A; Jallo, Jack; Julien, Terrence D; Maserati, Matthew B; Nucci, Robert C; O'Toole, John E; Rosolowski, Karie; Sembrano, Jonathan N; Villavicencio, Alan T; Witt, Jens-Peter

    2016-03-01

    The North American Spine Society's (NASS) Evidence-Based Clinical Guideline for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Degenerative Lumbar Spondylolisthesis features evidence-based recommendations for diagnosing and treating degenerative lumbar spondylolisthesis. The guideline updates the 2008 guideline on this topic and is intended to reflect contemporary treatment concepts for symptomatic degenerative lumbar spondylolisthesis as reflected in the highest quality clinical literature available on this subject as of May 2013. The NASS guideline on this topic is the only guideline on degenerative lumbar spondylolisthesis included in the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality's National Guideline Clearinghouse (NGC). The purpose of this guideline is to provide an evidence-based educational tool to assist spine specialists when making clinical decisions for patients with degenerative lumbar spondylolisthesis. This article provides a brief summary of the evidence-based guideline recommendations for diagnosing and treating patients with this condition. A systematic review of clinical studies relevant to degenerative spondylolisthesis was carried out. This NASS spondyolisthesis guideline is the product of the Degenerative Lumbar Spondylolisthesis Work Group of NASS' Evidence-Based Guideline Development Committee. The methods used to develop this guideline are detailed in the complete guideline and technical report available on the NASS website. In brief, a multidisciplinary work group of spine care specialists convened to identify clinical questions to address in the guideline. The literature search strategy was developed in consultation with medical librarians. Upon completion of the systematic literature search, evidence relevant to the clinical questions posed in the guideline was reviewed. Work group members used the NASS evidentiary table templates to summarize study conclusions, identify study strengths and weaknesses, and assign levels of evidence. Work group members participated in webcasts and in-person recommendation meetings to update and formulate evidence-based recommendations and incorporate expert opinion when necessary. The draft guidelines were submitted to an internal peer review process and ultimately approved by the NASS Board of Directors. Upon publication, the Degenerative Lumbar Spondylolisthesis guideline was accepted into the NGC and will be updated approximately every 5 years. Twenty-seven clinical questions were addressed in this guideline update, including 15 clinical questions from the original guideline and 12 new clinical questions. The respective recommendations were graded by strength of the supporting literature, which was stratified by levels of evidence. Twenty-one new or updated recommendations or consensus statements were issued and 13 recommendations or consensus statements were maintained from the original guideline. The clinical guideline was created using the techniques of evidence-based medicine and best available evidence to aid practitioners in the care of patients with degenerative lumbar spondylolisthesis. The entire guideline document, including the evidentiary tables, literature search parameters, literature attrition flow chart, suggestions for future research, and all of the references, is available electronically on the NASS website at https://www.spine.org/Pages/ResearchClinicalCare/QualityImprovement/ClinicalGuidelines.aspx and will remain updated on a timely schedule. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  19. Thyroidectomy Practice After Implementation of the 2015 American Thyroid Association Guidelines on Surgical Options for Patients With Well-Differentiated Thyroid Carcinoma.

    PubMed

    Hirshoren, Nir; Kaganov, Kira; Weinberger, Jeffrey M; Glaser, Benjamin; Uziely, Beatrice; Mizrahi, Ido; Eliashar, Ron; Mazeh, Haggi

    2018-03-29

    The recommended extent of surgery for well-differentiated thyroid carcinoma has been modified considerably in the updated 2015 American Thyroid Association guidelines published in January 2016. To date, the changes in clinical practice after publication of these new guidelines have not been demonstrated. The aim of this study was to evaluate clinical practice changes associated with implementation of the updated guidelines on the surgical procedure rates of total thyroidectomy, thyroid lobectomy, and completion thyroidectomy at a single tertiary medical center. This is a retrospective cohort study of 169 patients at the Hadassah-Hebrew University Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel. Patients with pathologically proved, well-differentiated thyroid carcinoma who underwent surgery between January 1, 2013, and December 31, 2014, were compared with patients who underwent surgery from January 1 to December 31, 2016. A total of 434 thyroidectomy procedures were performed during the study period, and 251 had pathologically proved, well-differentiated thyroid carcinoma. Patients with tumors larger than 4 cm, involved lymph nodes, or bilateral nodules were excluded. Primary outcomes were the rate of up-front total thyroidectomy vs lobectomy and the rates of completion thyroidectomy before and after the implementation of the new guidelines. Of the 169 patients in the final analysis, 118 (69.8%) were included from 2013 to 2014 and 51 (30.2%) in 2016. The mean (SD) age for the entire cohort was 44 (13.8) years, and 129 (76.3%) were women. Up-front total thyroidectomy was performed in 72 of 118 patients (61.0%) prior to the 2015 American Thyroid Association guidelines and 16 of 51 (31.4%) following their implementation (odds ratio, 0.29; 95% CI, 0.14-0.59). The rate of completion thyroidectomy also significantly decreased between these periods (73.9% vs 20.0%; odds ratio, 0.09; 95% CI, 0.04-0.19). The updated 2015 American Thyroid Association guidelines implementation was associated with a significant decrease in the rates of both up-front total thyroidectomy and completion thyroidectomy. According to these findings, only 1 of 5 patients who undergoes thyroid lobectomy will require a completion procedure.

  20. Health care-associated infections in Iran: A national update for the year 2015.

    PubMed

    Eshrati, Babak; Masoumi Asl, Hossein; Afhami, Shirin; Pezeshki, Zahra; Seifi, Arash

    2018-06-01

    A national surveillance system for health care-associated infections (HAIs) in Iran is relatively new, and an update on incidence and mortality rates can aid clinicians and stakeholders in development of new guidelines and imperative modifications to be made. Data were extracted from the national HAIs surveillance software for more than 7 million hospitalizations during 2015. Data regarding age, gender, deaths, ward of admission, and microbiologic findings were collected and analyzed. From 491 hospitals, 7,018,393 hospitalizations were reported during 2015; 82,950 patients had been diagnosed with at least 1 HAI, 6,355 of whom died (crude fatality rate, 7.7). Men comprised 51.4% of the patients. The incidence rate was calculated to be 1.18. Urinary tract infections and pneumonia were the most commonly reported infections (27.9% and 23.8%) and 33% of patients were older than age 65 years. Intensive care units had the highest incidence rates, followed by burn units with incidence rates close to 9. Highest percentages of deaths were reported among patients with an HAI in the intensive care unit (20.6%) and those with pneumonia (39.6%). Although the underreporting of HAIs hinders accurate calculation of incidence, the present study provides a general update. The results can help in modification of national guidelines and appropriate choice of antimicrobial agents in the management of HAIs. Copyright © 2018 Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  1. Clinical practice guideline for the diagnosis and management of group A streptococcal pharyngitis: 2012 update by the Infectious Diseases Society of America.

    PubMed

    Shulman, Stanford T; Bisno, Alan L; Clegg, Herbert W; Gerber, Michael A; Kaplan, Edward L; Lee, Grace; Martin, Judith M; Van Beneden, Chris

    2012-11-15

    The guideline is intended for use by healthcare providers who care for adult and pediatric patients with group A streptococcal pharyngitis. The guideline updates the 2002 Infectious Diseases Society of America guideline and discusses diagnosis and management, and recommendations are provided regarding antibiotic choices and dosing. Penicillin or amoxicillin remain the treatments of choice, and recommendations are made for the penicillin-allergic patient, which now include clindamycin.

  2. Update of guidelines for surgical endodontics - the position after ten years.

    PubMed

    Evans, G E; Bishop, K; Renton, T

    2012-05-25

    This is the first of a series of articles, which will summarise new or updated clinical guidelines produced by the Clinical Standards Committee of the Faculty of Dental Surgery, Royal College of Surgeons of England (FDSRCS). Important developments for the dental profession from a number of clinical guidelines will be presented, commencing with the Guidelines for surgical endodontics. The impact of recent evidence relating to the outcome of surgical endodontics and techniques such as cone beam computed tomography and microsurgical techniques are considered.

  3. Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Chronic Functional Constipation in Korea, 2015 Revised Edition

    PubMed Central

    Shin, Jeong Eun; Jung, Hye-Kyung; Lee, Tae Hee; Jo, Yunju; Lee, Hyuk; Song, Kyung Ho; Hong, Sung Noh; Lim, Hyun Chul; Lee, Soon Jin; Chung, Soon Sup; Lee, Joon Seong; Rhee, Poong-Lyul; Lee, Kwang Jae; Choi, Suck Chei; Shin, Ein Soon

    2016-01-01

    The Korean Society of Neurogastroenterology and Motility first published guidelines for chronic constipation in 2005 and was updated in 2011. Although the guidelines were updated using evidence-based process, they lacked multidisciplinary participation and did not include a diagnostic approach for chronic constipation. This article includes guidelines for diagnosis and treatment of chronic constipation to realistically fit the situation in Korea and to be applicable to clinical practice. The guideline development was based upon the adaptation method because research evidence was limited in Korea, and an organized multidisciplinary group carried out systematical literature review and series of evidence-based evaluations. Six guidelines were selected using the Appraisal of Guidelines for Research & Evaluation (AGREE) II process. A total 37 recommendations were adopted, including 4 concerning the definition and risk factors of chronic constipation, 8 regarding diagnoses, and 25 regarding treatments. The guidelines are intended to help primary physicians and general health professionals in clinical practice in Korea, to provide the principles of medical treatment to medical students, residents, and other healthcare professionals, and to help patients for choosing medical services based on the information. These guidelines will be updated and revised periodically to reflect new diagnostic and therapeutic methods. PMID:27226437

  4. Proposed reporting model update creates dialogue between FASB and not-for-profits.

    PubMed

    Mosrie, Norman C

    2016-04-01

    Seeing a need to refresh the current guidelines, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) proposed an update to the financial accounting and reporting model for not-for-profit entities. In a response to solicited feedback, the board is now revisiting its proposed update and has set forth a plan to finalize its new guidelines. The FASB continues to solicit and respond to feedback as the process progresses.

  5. The Canadian critical care nutrition guidelines in 2013: an update on current recommendations and implementation strategies.

    PubMed

    Dhaliwal, Rupinder; Cahill, Naomi; Lemieux, Margot; Heyland, Daren K

    2014-02-01

    Clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) are systematically developed statements to assist practitioners and patient decisions about appropriate healthcare for specific clinical circumstances, and are designed to minimize practice variation, improve costs, and improve clinical outcomes. The Canadian Critical Care Practice Guidelines (CCPGs) were first published in 2003 and most recently updated in 2013. A total of 68 new randomized controlled trials were identified since the last version in 2009, 50 of them published between 2009 and 2013. The remaining articles were trials published before 2009 but were not identified in previous iterations of the CCPGs. For clinical practice guidelines to be useful to practitioners, they need to be up-to-date and be reflective of the current body of evidence. Herein we describe the process by which the CCPGs were updated. This process resulted in 10 new sections or clinical topics. Of the old clinical topics, 3 recommendations were upgraded, 4 were downgraded, and 27 remained the same. To influence decision making at the bedside, these updated guidelines need to be accompanied by active guideline implementation strategies. Optimal implementation strategies should be guided by local contextual factors including barriers and facilitators to best practice recommendations. Moreover, evaluating and monitoring performance, such as participating in the International Nutrition Survey of practice, should be part of any intensive care unit's performance improvement strategy. The active implementation of the updated CCPGs may lead to better nutrition care and improved patient outcomes in the critical care setting.

  6. A Revised Australian Dietary Guideline Index and Its Association with Key Sociodemographic Factors, Health Behaviors and Body Mass Index in Peri-Retirement Aged Adults

    PubMed Central

    Thorpe, Maree G.; Milte, Catherine M.; Crawford, David; McNaughton, Sarah A.

    2016-01-01

    The Dietary Guideline Index, a measure of diet quality, was updated to reflect the 2013 Australian Dietary Guidelines. This paper describes the revision of the index (DGI-2013) and examines its use in older adults. The DGI-2013 consists of 13 components reflecting food-based daily intake recommendations of the Australian Dietary Guidelines. In this cross-sectional study, the DGI-2013 score was calculated using dietary data collected via an 111-item food frequency questionnaire and additional food-related behaviour questions. The DGI-2013 score was examined in Australian adults (aged 55–65 years; n = 1667 men; 1801 women) according to sociodemographics, health-related behaviours and BMI. Women scored higher than men on the total DGI-2013 and all components except for dairy. Those who were from a rural area (men only), working full-time (men only), with lower education, smoked, did not meet physical activity guidelines, and who had a higher BMI, scored lower on the DGI-2013, highlighting a group of older adults at risk of poor health. The DGI-2013 is a tool for assessing compliance with the Australian Dietary Guidelines. We demonstrated associations between diet quality and a range of participant characteristics, consistent with previous literature. This suggests that the DGI-2013 continues to demonstrate convergent validity, consistent with the original Dietary Guideline Index. PMID:26978399

  7. Achieving Guideline-Driven High-Intensity Statin Dose in Cardiac Rehabilitation Patients With Coronary Artery Disease.

    PubMed

    Lin, Jonathan; Banathy, Alexandra; Winters, Carla; Andersen, Lars; Hudson, Cindy; Testa, Heidi; Reardon, Joy; Alagona, Peter

    2018-05-12

    The 2013 American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Guideline on the Treatment of Blood Cholesterol to Reduce Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Risk in Adults recommends high-intensity statin therapy in patients aged ≤75 y with clinical coronary artery disease (CAD). The effectiveness of cardiac rehabilitation (CR) in lipid management and guideline adherence is unknown. The purpose of this study is to determine whether CR participation affects guideline-driven achievement for statin use. This multicenter retrospective study evaluated statin utilization in patients pre- and post-CR between January 1, 2014, and August 31, 2015. Records for patients with known CAD who completed 18 or more CR sessions were reviewed for statin-drug use and dose before and after CR and documented statin intolerance. Of the total 468 patients, 76% were male with mean age ± SD = 66.0 ± 10.8 y and range of 32 to 89 y. Patients aged ≤75 y (n = 375) showed a modest but statistically significant increase (P = .0006) in high-intensity statin use post-CR (56.3%-61.1%). Males demonstrated a significant increase in high-intensity statin use (P = .0005). Of the 146 patients aged ≤75 y not on high-intensity statins post-CR, only 21 had history of statin intolerance. Of the subjects aged >75 y (n = 93), 91% were already on high- or moderate-intensity statins with no significant change during CR. Patients aged ≤75 y following CR completion increased high-intensity statin use but only by 4.8% and 33% of subjects were inadequately treated. The updated 2013 treatment recommendations simplified statin use, yet substantial data continue to reveal that guideline achievement even post-CR remains limited.

  8. FRAMEWORK FOR DEVELOPING AMBIENT WATER ...

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    Currently, Ambient Water Quality Criteria (AWQC) for aquatic life protection are derived according to the Guidelines for Derivation of Ambient Water Quality Criteria for the Protection of Aquatic Life and Their Uses, published in 1985. To ensure that AWQC are derived from the best available science, Office of Water assessed the need to update the Guidelines and identified issues that should be addressed in the revisions. In December 2002, EPA's Science Advisory Board concurred with EPA's assessment of the need to update the Guidelines as well as with the issues EPA identified to address. Updating the Guidelines is a Priority Strategic Action included in OST's Strategy for Water Quality Standards and Criteria (Next Priority Strategic Action #1). To revise existing methodology for deriving ambient water quality criteria for the protection of aquatic life.

  9. Clinical Practice Guidelines for the Antibiotic Treatment of Community-Acquired Urinary Tract Infections

    PubMed Central

    Ha, U-Syn; Lee, Seung-Ju; Yeo, Jeong Kyun; Min, Seung Ki; Lee, Heeyoung

    2018-01-01

    Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are infectious diseases that commonly occur in communities. Although several international guidelines for the management of UTIs have been available, clinical characteristics, etiology and antimicrobial susceptibility patterns may differ from country to country. This work represents an update of the 2011 Korean guideline for UTIs. The current guideline was developed by the update and adaptation method. This clinical practice guideline provides recommendations for the diagnosis and management of UTIs, including asymptomatic bacteriuria, acute uncomplicated cystitis, acute uncomplicated pyelonephritis, complicated pyelonephritis related to urinary tract obstruction, and acute bacterial prostatitis. This guideline targets community-acquired UTIs occurring among adult patients. Healthcare-associated UTIs, catheter-associated UTIs, and infections in immunocompromised patients were not included in this guideline. PMID:29637759

  10. Belgian guidelines for economic evaluations: second edition.

    PubMed

    Thiry, Nancy; Neyt, Mattias; Van De Sande, Stefaan; Cleemput, Irina

    2014-12-01

    The aim of this study was to present the updated methodological guidelines for economic evaluations of healthcare interventions (drugs, medical devices, and other interventions) in Belgium. The update of the guidelines was performed by three Belgian health economists following feedback from users of the former guidelines and personal experience. The updated guidelines were discussed with a multidisciplinary team consisting of other health economists, assessors of reimbursement request files, representatives of Belgian databases and representatives of the drugs and medical devices industry. The final document was validated by three external validators that were not involved in the previous discussions. The guidelines give methodological guidance for the following components of an economic evaluation: literature review, perspective of the evaluation, definition of the target population, choice of the comparator, analytic technique and study design, calculation of costs, valuation of outcomes, definition of the time horizon, modeling, handling uncertainty and discounting. We present a reference case that can be considered as the minimal requirement for Belgian economic evaluations of health interventions. These guidelines will improve the methodological quality, transparency and uniformity of the economic evaluations performed in Belgium. The guidelines will also provide support to the researchers and assessors performing or evaluating economic evaluations.

  11. Adaptation, evaluation, and updating of guidelines: article 14 in Integrating and coordinating efforts in COPD guideline development. An official ATS/ERS workshop report.

    PubMed

    Burgers, Jako S; Anzueto, Antonio; Black, Peter N; Cruz, Alvaro A; Fervers, Béatrice; Graham, Ian D; Metersky, Mark; Woodhead, Mark; Yawn, Barbara P

    2012-12-01

    Professional societies, like many other organizations, have recognized the need to use more rigorous processes to ensure that health care recommendations are informed by the best available research evidence. This is the last of a series of 14 articles that methodologists and researchers from around the world have prepared to advise guideline developers in respiratory and other diseases on how to achieve this. We updated a review of the literature on guideline adaptation, evaluation, and updating, focusing on four key questions. In this review we addressed the following questions. (1) Which high-quality guidelines on chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are available? (2) How should guidelines be adapted to the user's context and culture? (3) How should the use of guidelines be evaluated in clinical practice? and (4) How should guidelines be efficiently kept up-to-date? We did not conduct systematic reviews ourselves. We relied on a literature review published in 2006 and on a manual produced by the ADAPTE Collaboration to inform our judgments, as well as our collective experience and workshop discussions. Guideline adaptation can be seen as an alternative to de novo development and as part of an implementation process, taking into consideration the user's own context. A systematic approach should be followed to ensure high quality of the resulting guidance. On the topic of COPD, many guidelines are available. Guidelines of the Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease and of the American Thoracic Society and European Respiratory Society are particularly well-suited for adaptation. The adaptation process includes (1) definition of specific questions that need to be answered by the guideline; (2) assessment of guideline quality; (3) assessment of the clinical content, validity, acceptability, applicability, and transferability of the recommendations; and (4) decisions about adoption or adaptation of the recommendations. The use of the guidelines in practice can be measured with performance indicators. Adverse effects of strict adherence to guideline recommendations should be prevented, in particular when the improvement of patient outcomes is unclear. COPD guidelines should be updated at least every 2 years. Collaboration between COPD guideline developers is recommended to prevent duplication of effort.

  12. Discordance between age- and size-based criteria of child passenger restraint appropriateness.

    PubMed

    Smiley, Mary L; Bingham, C Raymond; Jacobson, Peter D; Macy, Michelle L

    2018-04-03

    In this study, we sought to accomplish the following objectives: to (1) calculate the percentage of children considered appropriately restrained across 8 criteria of increasing restrictiveness; (2) examine agreement between age- and size-based appropriateness criteria; (3) assess for changes in the percentage of children considered appropriately restrained by the 8 criteria between 2011 (shortly after updates to U.S. guidelines) and 2015. Data from 2 cross-sectional surveys of 928 parents of children younger than 12 years old (n = 591 in 2011, n = 337 in 2015) were analyzed in 2017. Child age, weight, and height were measured at an emergency department visit and used to determine whether the parent-reported child passenger restraint was considered appropriate according to 8 criteria. Age-based criteria were derived from Michigan law and U.S. Weight, height, and size-based criteria were derived from typical restraints available in the United States in 2007 and 2011. The percentage appropriate restraint use was calculated for each criterion. The kappa statistic was used to measure agreement between criteria. Change in appropriateness from 2011 to 2015 was assessed with chi-square statistics. Percentage appropriate restraint use varied from a low of 19% for higher weight limits in 2011 to a high of 91% for Michigan law in 2015. Agreement between criteria was slight to moderate. The lowest kappa was for Michigan law and higher weight limits in 2011 (κ = 0.06) and highest for U.S. guidelines and lower weight limits in 2011 (κ = 0.60). Percentage appropriate restraint use was higher in 2015 than 2011 for the following criteria: U.S. guidelines (74 vs. 58%, P < .001), lower weight (57 vs. 47%, P = .005), higher weight (25 vs. 19%, P = .03), greater height (39 vs. 26%, P < .001), and greater size (42 vs. 30%, P = .001). The percentage of children considered to be using an appropriate restraint varied substantially across criteria. Aligning the definition of appropriate restraint use with current U.S. guidelines would increase consistency in reporting results from studies of child passenger safety in the United States. Potential explanations for the increased percentage of children considered appropriately restrained between 2011 and 2015 include adoption of the updated U.S. guidelines and the use of child passenger restraints with higher weight and height limits.

  13. [Psychosocial Therapies in Severe Mental Illness: Outlook on the Update of the DGPPN-S3-Guideline].

    PubMed

    Gühne, Uta; Becker, Thomas; Riedel-Heller, Steffi

    2016-08-01

    The Psychiatry Enquête turned 40 years old last year. The S3 guideline "Psychosocial therapies for severe mental illness" is considered to be the last milestone of the reform to date. This paper highlights new impulses resulting from the S3 guideline for psychiatric care and provides an outlook on the update, expected in 2017. Many of the interventions reported in the S3 guideline are now supported by a broader evidence base. © Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

  14. NCCN Guidelines Insights: Bladder Cancer, Version 2.2016.

    PubMed

    Clark, Peter E; Spiess, Philippe E; Agarwal, Neeraj; Bangs, Rick; Boorjian, Stephen A; Buyyounouski, Mark K; Efstathiou, Jason A; Flaig, Thomas W; Friedlander, Terence; Greenberg, Richard E; Guru, Khurshid A; Hahn, Noah; Herr, Harry W; Hoimes, Christopher; Inman, Brant A; Kader, A Karim; Kibel, Adam S; Kuzel, Timothy M; Lele, Subodh M; Meeks, Joshua J; Michalski, Jeff; Montgomery, Jeffrey S; Pagliaro, Lance C; Pal, Sumanta K; Patterson, Anthony; Petrylak, Daniel; Plimack, Elizabeth R; Pohar, Kamal S; Porter, Michael P; Sexton, Wade J; Siefker-Radtke, Arlene O; Sonpavde, Guru; Tward, Jonathan; Wile, Geoffrey; Dwyer, Mary A; Smith, Courtney

    2016-10-01

    These NCCN Guidelines Insights discuss the major recent updates to the NCCN Guidelines for Bladder Cancer based on the review of the evidence in conjunction with the expert opinion of the panel. Recent updates include (1) refining the recommendation of intravesical bacillus Calmette-Guérin, (2) strengthening the recommendations for perioperative systemic chemotherapy, and (3) incorporating immunotherapy into second-line therapy for locally advanced or metastatic disease. These NCCN Guidelines Insights further discuss factors that affect integration of these recommendations into clinical practice. Copyright © 2016 by the National Comprehensive Cancer Network.

  15. Paediatric European Network for Treatment of AIDS (PENTA) guidelines for treatment of paediatric HIV‐1 infection 2015: optimizing health in preparation for adult life

    PubMed Central

    Turkova, A; Lyall, H; Foster, C; Klein, N; Bastiaans, D; Burger, D; Bernadi, S; Butler, K; Chiappini, E; Clayden, P; Della Negra, M; Giacomet, V; Giaquinto, C; Gibb, D; Galli, L; Hainaut, M; Koros, M; Marques, L; Nastouli, E; Niehues, T; Noguera‐Julian, A; Rojo, P; Rudin, C; Scherpbier, HJ; Tudor‐Williams, G; Welch, SB

    2015-01-01

    The 2015 Paediatric European Network for Treatment of AIDS (PENTA) guidelines provide practical recommendations on the management of HIV‐1 infection in children in Europe and are an update to those published in 2009. Aims of treatment have progressed significantly over the last decade, moving far beyond limitation of short‐term morbidity and mortality to optimizing health status for adult life and minimizing the impact of chronic HIV infection on immune system development and health in general. Additionally, there is a greater need for increased awareness and minimization of long‐term drug toxicity. The main updates to the previous guidelines include: an increase in the number of indications for antiretroviral therapy (ART) at all ages (higher CD4 thresholds for consideration of ART initiation and additional clinical indications), revised guidance on first‐ and second‐line ART recommendations, including more recently available drug classes, expanded guidance on management of coinfections (including tuberculosis, hepatitis B and hepatitis C) and additional emphasis on the needs of adolescents as they approach transition to adult services. There is a new section on the current ART ‘pipeline’ of drug development, a comprehensive summary table of currently recommended ART with dosing recommendations. Differences between PENTA and current US and World Health Organization guidelines are highlighted and explained. PMID:25649230

  16. Human factors design guide update (report number DOT/FAA/CT-96/01) : a revision to chapter 5--automation guidelines.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2001-12-01

    This document contains an updated and expanded version of the Automation chapter of the Human Factors Design Guide. A research : team of human factors experts evaluated the existing guidelines for relevance, clarity, and usability. The research team ...

  17. The international WAO/EAACI guideline for the management of hereditary angioedema-The 2017 revision and update.

    PubMed

    Maurer, M; Magerl, M; Ansotegui, I; Aygören-Pürsün, E; Betschel, S; Bork, K; Bowen, T; Balle Boysen, H; Farkas, H; Grumach, A S; Hide, M; Katelaris, C; Lockey, R; Longhurst, H; Lumry, W R; Martinez-Saguer, I; Moldovan, D; Nast, A; Pawankar, R; Potter, P; Riedl, M; Ritchie, B; Rosenwasser, L; Sánchez-Borges, M; Zhi, Y; Zuraw, B; Craig, T

    2018-01-10

    Hereditary Angioedema (HAE) is a rare and disabling disease. Early diagnosis and appropriate therapy are essential. This update and revision of the global guideline for HAE provides up-to-date consensus recommendations for the management of HAE. In the development of this update and revision of the guideline, an international expert panel reviewed the existing evidence and developed 20 recommendations that were discussed, finalized and consented during the guideline consensus conference in June 2016 in Vienna. The final version of this update and revision of the guideline incorporates the contributions of a board of expert reviewers and the endorsing societies. The goal of this guideline update and revision is to provide clinicians and their patients with guidance that will assist them in making rational decisions in the management of HAE with deficient C1-inhibitor (type 1) and HAE with dysfunctional C1-inhibitor (type 2). The key clinical questions covered by these recommendations are: (1) How should HAE-1/2 be defined and classified?, (2) How should HAE-1/2 be diagnosed?, (3) Should HAE-1/2 patients receive prophylactic and/or on-demand treatment and what treatment options should be used?, (4) Should HAE-1/2 management be different for special HAE-1/2 patient groups such as pregnant/lactating women or children?, and (5) Should HAE-1/2 management incorporate self-administration of therapies and patient support measures? © 2018 EAACI and John Wiley and Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley and Sons Ltd.

  18. Institutional Ethics Committee Regulations and Current Updates in India.

    PubMed

    Mahuli, Amit V; Mahuli, Simpy A; Patil, Shankargouda; Bhandi, Shilpa

    2017-08-01

    The aim of the review is to provide current updates on regulations for ethics committees and researchers in India. Ethical dilemmas in research since time immemorial have been a major concern for researchers worldwide. The question "what makes clinical research ethical" is significant and difficult to answer as multiple factors are involved. The research involving human participants in clinical trials should follow the required rules, regulations, and guidelines in one's own country. It is a dynamic process, and updates have to be learned by researcher and committee members. The review highlights the ethical regulation from the Drug Controller General of India, Clinical Trial Registry of India, and Indian Council of Medical Research guidelines. In this article, the updates on Indian scenario of the Ethical Committee and guidelines are compiled. The review comes handy for clinical researchers and ethics committee members in academic institutions to check on the current updates and keep abreast with the knowledge on regulations of ethics in India.

  19. Clinical Practice Guideline: Hoarseness (Dysphonia) (Update) Executive Summary.

    PubMed

    Stachler, Robert J; Francis, David O; Schwartz, Seth R; Damask, Cecelia C; Digoy, German P; Krouse, Helene J; McCoy, Scott J; Ouellette, Daniel R; Patel, Rita R; Reavis, Charles Charlie W; Smith, Libby J; Smith, Marshall; Strode, Steven W; Woo, Peak; Nnacheta, Lorraine C

    2018-03-01

    Objective This guideline provides evidence-based recommendations on treating patients presenting with dysphonia, which is characterized by altered vocal quality, pitch, loudness, or vocal effort that impairs communication and/or quality of life. Dysphonia affects nearly one-third of the population at some point in its life. This guideline applies to all age groups evaluated in a setting where dysphonia would be identified or managed. It is intended for all clinicians who are likely to diagnose and treat patients with dysphonia. Purpose The primary purpose of this guideline is to improve the quality of care for patients with dysphonia, based on current best evidence. Expert consensus to fill evidence gaps, when used, is explicitly stated and supported with a detailed evidence profile for transparency. Specific objectives of the guideline are to reduce inappropriate variations in care, produce optimal health outcomes, and minimize harm. For this guideline update, the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery Foundation selected a panel representing the fields of advanced practice nursing, bronchoesophagology, consumer advocacy, family medicine, geriatric medicine, internal medicine, laryngology, neurology, otolaryngology-head and neck surgery, pediatrics, professional voice, pulmonology, and speech-language pathology. Action Statements The guideline update group made strong recommendations for the following key action statements (KASs): (1) Clinicians should assess the patient with dysphonia by history and physical examination to identify factors where expedited laryngeal evaluation is indicated. These include but are not limited to recent surgical procedures involving the head, neck, or chest; recent endotracheal intubation; presence of concomitant neck mass; respiratory distress or stridor; history of tobacco abuse; and whether the patient is a professional voice user. (2) Clinicians should advocate voice therapy for patients with dysphonia from a cause amenable to voice therapy. The guideline update group made recommendations for the following KASs: (1) Clinicians should identify dysphonia in a patient with altered voice quality, pitch, loudness, or vocal effort that impairs communication or reduces quality of life (QOL). (2) Clinicians should assess the patient with dysphonia by history and physical examination for underlying causes of dysphonia and factors that modify management. (3) Clinicians should perform laryngoscopy, or refer to a clinician who can perform laryngoscopy, when dysphonia fails to resolve or improve within 4 weeks or irrespective of duration if a serious underlying cause is suspected. (4) Clinicians should perform diagnostic laryngoscopy, or refer to a clinician who can perform diagnostic laryngoscopy, before prescribing voice therapy and document/communicate the results to the speech-language pathologist (SLP). (5) Clinicians should advocate for surgery as a therapeutic option for patients with dysphonia with conditions amenable to surgical intervention, such as suspected malignancy, symptomatic benign vocal fold lesions that do not respond to conservative management, or glottic insufficiency. (6) Clinicians should offer, or refer to a clinician who can offer, botulinum toxin injections for the treatment of dysphonia caused by spasmodic dysphonia and other types of laryngeal dystonia. (7) Clinicians should inform patients with dysphonia about control/preventive measures. (8) Clinicians should document resolution, improvement or worsened symptoms of dysphonia, or change in QOL of patients with dysphonia after treatment or observation. The guideline update group made a strong recommendation against 1 action: (1) Clinicians should not routinely prescribe antibiotics to treat dysphonia. The guideline update group made recommendations against other actions: (1) Clinicians should not obtain computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for patients with a primary voice complaint prior to visualization of the larynx. (2) Clinicians should not prescribe antireflux medications to treat isolated dysphonia, based on symptoms alone attributed to suspected gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) or laryngopharyngeal reflux (LPR), without visualization of the larynx. (3) Clinicians should not routinely prescribe corticosteroids in patients with dysphonia prior to visualization of the larynx. The policy level for the following recommendation about laryngoscopy at any time was an option: (1) Clinicians may perform diagnostic laryngoscopy at any time in a patient with dysphonia. Differences from Prior Guideline (1) Incorporating new evidence profiles to include the role of patient preferences, confidence in the evidence, differences of opinion, quality improvement opportunities, and any exclusion to which the action statement does not apply (2) Inclusion of 3 new guidelines, 16 new systematic reviews, and 4 new randomized controlled trials (3) Inclusion of a consumer advocate on the guideline update group (4) Changes to 9 KASs from the original guideline (5) New KAS 3 (escalation of care) and KAS 13 (outcomes) (6) Addition of an algorithm outlining KASs for patients with dysphonia.

  20. CLINICAL PRACTICE GUIDELINES FOR THE PERIOPERATIVE NUTRITIONAL, METABOLIC, AND NONSURGICAL SUPPORT OF THE BARIATRIC SURGERY PATIENT—2013 UPDATE: COSPONSORED BY AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF CLINICAL ENDOCRINOLOGISTS, THE OBESITY SOCIETY, AND AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR METABOLIC & BARIATRIC SURGERY★

    PubMed Central

    Mechanick, Jeffrey I.; Youdim, Adrienne; Jones, Daniel B.; Garvey, W. Timothy; Hurley, Daniel L.; McMahon, M. Molly; Heinberg, Leslie J.; Kushner, Robert; Adams, Ted D.; Shikora, Scott; Dixon, John B.; Brethauer, Stacy

    2014-01-01

    The development of these updated guidelines was commissioned by the AACE, TOS, and ASMBS Board of Directors and adheres to the AACE 2010 protocol for standardized production of clinical practice guidelines (CPG). Each recommendation was re-evaluated and updated based on the evidence and subjective factors per protocol. Examples of expanded topics in this update include: the roles of sleeve gastrectomy, bariatric surgery in patients with type-2 diabetes, bariatric surgery for patients with mild obesity, copper deficiency, informed consent, and behavioral issues. There are 74 recommendations (of which 56 are revised and 2 are new) in this 2013 update, compared with 164 original recommendations in 2008. There are 403 citations, of which 33 (8.2%) are EL 1, 131 (32.5%) are EL 2, 170 (42.2%) are EL 3, and 69 (17.1%) are EL 4. There is a relatively high proportion (40.4%) of strong (EL 1 and 2) studies, compared with only 16.5% in the 2008 AACE- TOS-ASMBS CPG. These updated guidelines reflect recent additions to the evidence base. Bariatric surgery remains a safe and effective intervention for select patients with obesity. A team approach to perioperative care is mandatory with special attention to nutritional and metabolic issues. PMID:23529351

  1. Clinical Practice Guidelines for the Perioperative Nutritional, Metabolic, and Nonsurgical Support of the Bariatric Surgery Patient—2013 Update: Cosponsored by American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists, The Obesity Society, and American Society for Metabolic & Bariatric Surgery*

    PubMed Central

    Mechanick, Jeffrey I.; Youdim, Adrienne; Jones, Daniel B.; Garvey, W. Timothy; Hurley, Daniel L.; McMahon, Molly; Heinberg, Leslie J.; Kushner, Robert; Adams, Ted D.; Shikora, Scott; Dixon, John B.; Brethauer, Stacy

    2014-01-01

    The development of these updated guidelines was commissioned by the AACE, TOS, and ASMBS Board of Directors and adheres to the AACE 2010 protocol for standardized production of clinical practice guidelines (CPG). Each recommendation was re-evaluated and updated based on the evidence and subjective factors per protocol. Examples of expanded topics in this update include: the roles of sleeve gastrectomy, bariatric surgery in patients with type-2 diabetes, bariatric surgery for patients with mild obesity, copper deficiency, informed consent, and behavioral issues. There are 74 recommendations (of which 56 are revised and 2 are new) in this 2013 update, compared with 164 original recommendations in 2008. There are 403 citations, of which 33 (8.2%) are EL 1, 131 (32.5%) are EL 2, 170 (42.2%) are EL 3, and 69 (17.1%) are EL 4. There is a relatively high proportion (40.4%) of strong (EL 1 and 2) studies, compared with only 16.5% in the 2008 AACE-TOS-ASMBS CPG. These updated guidelines reflect recent additions to the evidence base. Bariatric surgery remains a safe and effective intervention for select patients with obesity. A team approach to perioperative care is mandatory with special attention to nutritional and metabolic issues. PMID:23529939

  2. 2011 update to the Society of Thoracic Surgeons and the Society of Cardiovascular Anesthesiologists blood conservation clinical practice guidelines.

    PubMed

    Ferraris, Victor A; Brown, Jeremiah R; Despotis, George J; Hammon, John W; Reece, T Brett; Saha, Sibu P; Song, Howard K; Clough, Ellen R; Shore-Lesserson, Linda J; Goodnough, Lawrence T; Mazer, C David; Shander, Aryeh; Stafford-Smith, Mark; Waters, Jonathan; Baker, Robert A; Dickinson, Timothy A; FitzGerald, Daniel J; Likosky, Donald S; Shann, Kenneth G

    2011-03-01

    Practice guidelines reflect published literature. Because of the ever changing literature base, it is necessary to update and revise guideline recommendations from time to time. The Society of Thoracic Surgeons recommends review and possible update of previously published guidelines at least every three years. This summary is an update of the blood conservation guideline published in 2007. The search methods used in the current version differ compared to the previously published guideline. Literature searches were conducted using standardized MeSH terms from the National Library of Medicine PUBMED database list of search terms. The following terms comprised the standard baseline search terms for all topics and were connected with the logical 'OR' connector--Extracorporeal circulation (MeSH number E04.292), cardiovascular surgical procedures (MeSH number E04.100), and vascular diseases (MeSH number C14.907). Use of these broad search terms allowed specific topics to be added to the search with the logical 'AND' connector. In this 2011 guideline update, areas of major revision include: 1) management of dual anti-platelet therapy before operation, 2) use of drugs that augment red blood cell volume or limit blood loss, 3) use of blood derivatives including fresh frozen plasma, Factor XIII, leukoreduced red blood cells, platelet plasmapheresis, recombinant Factor VII, antithrombin III, and Factor IX concentrates, 4) changes in management of blood salvage, 5) use of minimally invasive procedures to limit perioperative bleeding and blood transfusion, 6) recommendations for blood conservation related to extracorporeal membrane oxygenation and cardiopulmonary perfusion, 7) use of topical hemostatic agents, and 8) new insights into the value of team interventions in blood management. Much has changed since the previously published 2007 STS blood management guidelines and this document contains new and revised recommendations. Copyright © 2011 The Society of Thoracic Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  3. Treatment Guidelines of Atrial Fibrillation (AFib or AF)

    MedlinePlus

    ... Artery Disease Venous Thromboembolism Aortic Aneurysm More Treatment Guidelines of Atrial Fibrillation (AFib or AF) Updated:Jun 28,2017 What are the treatment guidelines for atrial fibrillation? Medical guidelines are written by ...

  4. Clinical Practice Guideline: Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (Update).

    PubMed

    Bhattacharyya, Neil; Gubbels, Samuel P; Schwartz, Seth R; Edlow, Jonathan A; El-Kashlan, Hussam; Fife, Terry; Holmberg, Janene M; Mahoney, Kathryn; Hollingsworth, Deena B; Roberts, Richard; Seidman, Michael D; Steiner, Robert W Prasaad; Do, Betty Tsai; Voelker, Courtney C J; Waguespack, Richard W; Corrigan, Maureen D

    2017-03-01

    Objective This update of a 2008 guideline from the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery Foundation provides evidence-based recommendations to benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV), defined as a disorder of the inner ear characterized by repeated episodes of positional vertigo. Changes from the prior guideline include a consumer advocate added to the update group; new evidence from 2 clinical practice guidelines, 20 systematic reviews, and 27 randomized controlled trials; enhanced emphasis on patient education and shared decision making; a new algorithm to clarify action statement relationships; and new and expanded recommendations for the diagnosis and management of BPPV. Purpose The primary purposes of this guideline are to improve the quality of care and outcomes for BPPV by improving the accurate and efficient diagnosis of BPPV, reducing the inappropriate use of vestibular suppressant medications, decreasing the inappropriate use of ancillary testing such as radiographic imaging, and increasing the use of appropriate therapeutic repositioning maneuvers. The guideline is intended for all clinicians who are likely to diagnose and manage patients with BPPV, and it applies to any setting in which BPPV would be identified, monitored, or managed. The target patient for the guideline is aged ≥18 years with a suspected or potential diagnosis of BPPV. The primary outcome considered in this guideline is the resolution of the symptoms associated with BPPV. Secondary outcomes considered include an increased rate of accurate diagnoses of BPPV, a more efficient return to regular activities and work, decreased use of inappropriate medications and unnecessary diagnostic tests, reduction in recurrence of BPPV, and reduction in adverse events associated with undiagnosed or untreated BPPV. Other outcomes considered include minimizing costs in the diagnosis and treatment of BPPV, minimizing potentially unnecessary return physician visits, and maximizing the health-related quality of life of individuals afflicted with BPPV. Action Statements The update group made strong recommendations that clinicians should (1) diagnose posterior semicircular canal BPPV when vertigo associated with torsional, upbeating nystagmus is provoked by the Dix-Hallpike maneuver, performed by bringing the patient from an upright to supine position with the head turned 45° to one side and neck extended 20° with the affected ear down, and (2) treat, or refer to a clinician who can treat, patients with posterior canal BPPV with a canalith repositioning procedure. The update group made a strong recommendation against postprocedural postural restrictions after canalith repositioning procedure for posterior canal BPPV. The update group made recommendations that the clinician should (1) perform, or refer to a clinician who can perform, a supine roll test to assess for lateral semicircular canal BPPV if the patient has a history compatible with BPPV and the Dix-Hallpike test exhibits horizontal or no nystagmus; (2) differentiate, or refer to a clinician who can differentiate, BPPV from other causes of imbalance, dizziness, and vertigo; (3) assess patients with BPPV for factors that modify management, including impaired mobility or balance, central nervous system disorders, a lack of home support, and/or increased risk for falling; (4) reassess patients within 1 month after an initial period of observation or treatment to document resolution or persistence of symptoms; (5) evaluate, or refer to a clinician who can evaluate, patients with persistent symptoms for unresolved BPPV and/or underlying peripheral vestibular or central nervous system disorders; and (6) educate patients regarding the impact of BPPV on their safety, the potential for disease recurrence, and the importance of follow-up. The update group made recommendations against (1) radiographic imaging for a patient who meets diagnostic criteria for BPPV in the absence of additional signs and/or symptoms inconsistent with BPPV that warrant imaging, (2) vestibular testing for a patient who meets diagnostic criteria for BPPV in the absence of additional vestibular signs and/or symptoms inconsistent with BPPV that warrant testing, and (3) routinely treating BPPV with vestibular suppressant medications such as antihistamines and/or benzodiazepines. The guideline update group provided the options that clinicians may offer (1) observation with follow-up as initial management for patients with BPPV and (2) vestibular rehabilitation, either self-administered or with a clinician, in the treatment of BPPV.

  5. The development of clinical practice guidelines and guidance statements of the American College of Physicians: summary of methods.

    PubMed

    Qaseem, Amir; Snow, Vincenza; Owens, Douglas K; Shekelle, Paul

    2010-08-03

    The American College of Physicians (ACP) established its evidence-based clinical practice guidelines program in 1981. The ACP's Guidelines Committee and the staff of the Clinical Programs and Quality of Care Department develop the clinical recommendations. The ACP develops 2 different types of clinical recommendations: clinical practice guidelines and clinical guidance statements. The ACP clinical practice guidelines and guidance statements follow a multistep development process that includes a systematic review of the evidence, deliberation of the evidence by the committee, summary recommendations, and evidence and recommendation grading. All ACP clinical practice guidelines and clinical guidance statements, if not updated, are considered automatically withdrawn or invalid 5 years after publication or once an update has been issued.

  6. Update on Healthy Aging: Reading Material on Health Topics for the New Reader and Tutor. Literacy Education for the Elderly Project.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jacobs, Bella; Ventura-Merkel, Catherine

    Fifteen lessons contain low-vocabulary, high interest reading materials on health issues to enhance the learning of the new older reader. Each lesson is preceded by tutor guidelines with specific goals and objectives and review exercises. The materials are useful in either one-to-one or small-group tutoring. Reading selections in the lessons,…

  7. American College of Critical Care Medicine Clinical Practice Parameters for Hemodynamic Support of Pediatric and Neonatal Septic Shock.

    PubMed

    Davis, Alan L; Carcillo, Joseph A; Aneja, Rajesh K; Deymann, Andreas J; Lin, John C; Nguyen, Trung C; Okhuysen-Cawley, Regina S; Relvas, Monica S; Rozenfeld, Ranna A; Skippen, Peter W; Stojadinovic, Bonnie J; Williams, Eric A; Yeh, Tim S; Balamuth, Fran; Brierley, Joe; de Caen, Allan R; Cheifetz, Ira M; Choong, Karen; Conway, Edward; Cornell, Timothy; Doctor, Allan; Dugas, Marc-Andre; Feldman, Jonathan D; Fitzgerald, Julie C; Flori, Heidi R; Fortenberry, James D; Graciano, Ana Lia; Greenwald, Bruce M; Hall, Mark W; Han, Yong Yun; Hernan, Lynn J; Irazuzta, Jose E; Iselin, Elizabeth; van der Jagt, Elise W; Jeffries, Howard E; Kache, Saraswati; Katyal, Chhavi; Kissoon, Niranjan Tex; Kon, Alexander A; Kutko, Martha C; MacLaren, Graeme; Maul, Timothy; Mehta, Renuka; Odetola, Fola; Parbuoni, Kristine; Paul, Raina; Peters, Mark J; Ranjit, Suchitra; Reuter-Rice, Karin E; Schnitzler, Eduardo J; Scott, Halden F; Torres, Adalberto; Weingarten-Abrams, Jacki; Weiss, Scott L; Zimmerman, Jerry J; Zuckerberg, Aaron L

    2017-06-01

    The American College of Critical Care Medicine provided 2002 and 2007 guidelines for hemodynamic support of newborn and pediatric septic shock. Provide the 2014 update of the 2007 American College of Critical Care Medicine "Clinical Guidelines for Hemodynamic Support of Neonates and Children with Septic Shock." Society of Critical Care Medicine members were identified from general solicitation at Society of Critical Care Medicine Educational and Scientific Symposia (2006-2014). The PubMed/Medline/Embase literature (2006-14) was searched by the Society of Critical Care Medicine librarian using the keywords: sepsis, septicemia, septic shock, endotoxemia, persistent pulmonary hypertension, nitric oxide, extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, and American College of Critical Care Medicine guidelines in the newborn and pediatric age groups. The 2002 and 2007 guidelines were widely disseminated, translated into Spanish and Portuguese, and incorporated into Society of Critical Care Medicine and American Heart Association/Pediatric Advanced Life Support sanctioned recommendations. The review of new literature highlights two tertiary pediatric centers that implemented quality improvement initiatives to improve early septic shock recognition and first-hour compliance to these guidelines. Improved compliance reduced hospital mortality from 4% to 2%. Analysis of Global Sepsis Initiative data in resource rich developed and developing nations further showed improved hospital mortality with compliance to first-hour and stabilization guideline recommendations. The major new recommendation in the 2014 update is consideration of institution-specific use of 1) a "recognition bundle" containing a trigger tool for rapid identification of patients with septic shock, 2) a "resuscitation and stabilization bundle" to help adherence to best practice principles, and 3) a "performance bundle" to identify and overcome perceived barriers to the pursuit of best practice principles.

  8. The Australasian Society for Infectious Diseases and Refugee Health Network of Australia recommendations for health assessment for people from refugee-like backgrounds: an abridged outline.

    PubMed

    Chaves, Nadia J; Paxton, Georgia A; Biggs, Beverley-Ann; Thambiran, Aesen; Gardiner, Joanne; Williams, Jan; Smith, Mitchell M; Davis, Joshua S

    2017-04-17

    In 2009, the Australasian Society of Infectious Diseases published guidelines on the post-arrival health assessment of recently arrived refugees. Since then, the number of refugees and asylum seekers reaching Australia has increased substantially (17 555 refugees in 2015-16) and the countries of origin have changed. These groups are likely to have had poor access to health care pre-arrival and, consequently, are at risk of a range of chronic and infectious diseases. We established an advisory group that included infectious diseases physicians, general practitioners, public health specialists, paediatricians and refugee health nurses to update the 2009 guidelines.Main recommendations: All people from refugee-like backgrounds, including children, should be offered a tailored comprehensive health assessment and management plan, ideally within 1 month of arrival in Australia. This can be offered at any time if initial contact with a GP or clinic is delayed. Recommended screening depends on history, examination and previous investigations, and is tailored based on age, gender, countries of origin and transit and risk profile. The full version of the guidelines is available at http://www.asid.net.au/documents/item/1225.Changes in management as a result of this guideline: These guidelines apply to all people from refugee-like backgrounds, including asylum seekers. They provide more information about non-communicable diseases and consider Asia and the Middle East as regions of origin as well as Africa. Key changes include an emphasis on person-centred care; risk-based rather than universal screening for hepatitis C virus, malaria, schistosomiasis and sexually transmissible infections; updated immunisation guidelines; and new recommendations for other problems, such as nutritional deficiencies, women's health and mental health.

  9. The 2010 Canadian Cardiovascular Society guidelines for the diagnosis and management of heart failure update: Heart failure in ethnic minority populations, heart failure and pregnancy, disease management, and quality improvement/assurance programs

    PubMed Central

    Howlett, Jonathan G; McKelvie, Robert S; Costigan, Jeannine; Ducharme, Anique; Estrella-Holder, Estrellita; Ezekowitz, Justin A; Giannetti, Nadia; Haddad, Haissam; Heckman, George A; Herd, Anthony M; Isaac, Debra; Kouz, Simon; Leblanc, Kori; Liu, Peter; Mann, Elizabeth; Moe, Gordon W; O’Meara, Eileen; Rajda, Miroslav; Siu, Samuel; Stolee, Paul; Swiggum, Elizabeth; Zeiroth, Shelley

    2010-01-01

    Since 2006, the Canadian Cardiovascular Society heart failure (HF) guidelines have published annual focused updates for cardiovascular care providers. The 2010 Canadian Cardiovascular Society HF guidelines update focuses on an increasing issue in the western world – HF in ethnic minorities – and in an uncommon but important setting – the pregnant patient. Additionally, due to increasing attention recently given to the assessment of how care is delivered and measured, two critically important topics – disease management programs in HF and quality assurance – have been included. Both of these topics were written from a clinical perspective. It is hoped that the present update will become a useful tool for health care providers and planners in the ongoing evolution of care for HF patients in Canada. PMID:20386768

  10. Updating Human Factors Engineering Guidelines for Conducting Safety Reviews of Nuclear Power Plants

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    O, J.M.; Higgins, J.; Stephen Fleger - NRC

    The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) reviews the human factors engineering (HFE) programs of applicants for nuclear power plant construction permits, operating licenses, standard design certifications, and combined operating licenses. The purpose of these safety reviews is to help ensure that personnel performance and reliability are appropriately supported. Detailed design review procedures and guidance for the evaluations is provided in three key documents: the Standard Review Plan (NUREG-0800), the HFE Program Review Model (NUREG-0711), and the Human-System Interface Design Review Guidelines (NUREG-0700). These documents were last revised in 2007, 2004 and 2002, respectively. The NRC is committed to the periodicmore » update and improvement of the guidance to ensure that it remains a state-of-the-art design evaluation tool. To this end, the NRC is updating its guidance to stay current with recent research on human performance, advances in HFE methods and tools, and new technology being employed in plant and control room design. This paper describes the role of HFE guidelines in the safety review process and the content of the key HFE guidelines used. Then we will present the methodology used to develop HFE guidance and update these documents, and describe the current status of the update program.« less

  11. Guidelines for children's work in agriculture: implications for the future.

    PubMed

    Marlenga, Barbara; Lee, Barbara C; Pickett, William

    2012-01-01

    The North American Guidelines for Children's Agricultural Tasks (NAGCAT) were developed to assist parents in assigning developmentally appropriate and safe farm work to their children aged 7-16 years. Since their release in 1999, a growing body of evidence has accumulated regarding the content and application of these guidelines to populations of working children on farms. The purpose of this paper is to review the scientific and programmatic evidence about the content, efficacy, application, and uptake of NAGCAT and propose key recommendations for the future. The methods for this review included a synthesis of the peer-reviewed literature and programmatic evidence gathered from safety professionals. From the review, it is clear that the NAGCAT tractor guidelines and the manual material handling guidelines need to be updated based upon the latest empirical evidence. While NAGCAT do have the potential to prevent serious injuries to working children in the correct age range (7-16 years), the highest incidence of farm related injuries and fatalities occur to children aged 1-6 years and NAGCAT are unlikely to have any direct effect on this leading injury problem. It is also clear that NAGCAT, as a voluntary educational strategy, is not sufficient by itself to protect children working on farms. Uptake of NAGCAT has been sporadic, despite being geographically widespread and has depended, almost solely, on a few interested and committed professionals. Key recommendations for the future are provided based upon this review.

  12. Surgical Management of Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms Attributed to Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia: AUA Guideline.

    PubMed

    Foster, Harris E; Barry, Michael J; Dahm, Philipp; Gandhi, Manhar C; Kaplan, Steven A; Kohler, Tobias S; Lerner, Lori B; Lightner, Deborah J; Parsons, J Kellogg; Roehrborn, Claus G; Welliver, Charles; Wilt, Timothy J; McVary, Kevin T

    2018-06-11

    Male lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) secondary to benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is common in men and can have negative effects on quality of life (QOL). It is the hope that this Guideline becomes a reference on the effective evidence-based surgical management of LUTS/BPH. The evidence team searched Ovid MEDLINE, the Cochrane Library, and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) database to identify studies indexed between January 2007 and September 2017. When sufficient evidence existed, the body of evidence was assigned a strength rating of A (high), B (moderate), or C (low) for support of Strong, Moderate, or Conditional Recommendations. In the absence of sufficient evidence, additional information is provided as Clinical Principles and Expert Opinions (table 1 in supplementary unabridged guideline, http://jurology.com/). This Guideline provides updated, evidence-based recommendations regarding management of LUTS/BPH utilizing surgery and minimally invasive surgical therapies; additional statements are made regarding diagnostic and pre-operative tests. Clinical statements are made in comparison to what is generally accepted as the gold standard (i.e. transurethral resection of the prostate [TURP]- monopolar and/or bipolar). This guideline is designed to be used in conjunction with the associated treatment algorithm. The prevalence and the severity of LUTS increases as men age and is an important diagnosis in the healthcare of patients and the welfare of society. This document will undergo additional literature reviews and updating as the knowledge regarding current treatments and future surgical options continues to expand. Copyright © 2018 American Urological Association Education and Research, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  13. 2015 update of the evidence base: World Allergy Organization anaphylaxis guidelines.

    PubMed

    Simons, F Estelle R; Ebisawa, Motohiro; Sanchez-Borges, Mario; Thong, Bernard Y; Worm, Margitta; Tanno, Luciana Kase; Lockey, Richard F; El-Gamal, Yehia M; Brown, Simon Ga; Park, Hae-Sim; Sheikh, Aziz

    2015-01-01

    The World Allergy Organization (WAO) Guidelines for the assessment and management of anaphylaxis provide a unique global perspective on this increasingly common, potentially life-threatening disease. Recommendations made in the original WAO Anaphylaxis Guidelines remain clinically valid and relevant, and are a widely accessed and frequently cited resource. In this 2015 update of the evidence supporting recommendations in the Guidelines, new information based on anaphylaxis publications from January 2014 through mid- 2015 is summarized. Advances in epidemiology, diagnosis, and management in healthcare and community settings are highlighted. Additionally, new information about patient factors that increase the risk of severe and/or fatal anaphylaxis and patient co-factors that amplify anaphylactic episodes is presented and new information about anaphylaxis triggers and confirmation of triggers to facilitate specific trigger avoidance and immunomodulation is reviewed. The update includes tables summarizing important advances in anaphylaxis research.

  14. Management of severe perioperative bleeding: guidelines from the European Society of Anaesthesiology: First update 2016.

    PubMed

    Kozek-Langenecker, Sibylle A; Ahmed, Aamer B; Afshari, Arash; Albaladejo, Pierre; Aldecoa, Cesar; Barauskas, Guidrius; De Robertis, Edoardo; Faraoni, David; Filipescu, Daniela C; Fries, Dietmar; Haas, Thorsten; Jacob, Matthias; Lancé, Marcus D; Pitarch, Juan V L; Mallett, Susan; Meier, Jens; Molnar, Zsolt L; Rahe-Meyer, Niels; Samama, Charles M; Stensballe, Jakob; Van der Linden, Philippe J F; Wikkelsø, Anne J; Wouters, Patrick; Wyffels, Piet; Zacharowski, Kai

    2017-06-01

    : The management of perioperative bleeding involves multiple assessments and strategies to ensure appropriate patient care. Initially, it is important to identify those patients with an increased risk of perioperative bleeding. Next, strategies should be employed to correct preoperative anaemia and to stabilise macrocirculation and microcirculation to optimise the patient's tolerance to bleeding. Finally, targeted interventions should be used to reduce intraoperative and postoperative bleeding, and so prevent subsequent morbidity and mortality. The objective of these updated guidelines is to provide healthcare professionals with an overview of the most recent evidence to help ensure improved clinical management of patients. For this update, electronic databases were searched without language restrictions from 2011 or 2012 (depending on the search) until 2015. These searches produced 18 334 articles. All articles were assessed and the existing 2013 guidelines were revised to take account of new evidence. This update includes revisions to existing recommendations with respect to the wording, or changes in the grade of recommendation, and also the addition of new recommendations. The final draft guideline was posted on the European Society of Anaesthesiology website for four weeks for review. All comments were collated and the guidelines were amended as appropriate. This publication reflects the output of this work.

  15. Clinical Practice Guideline: Hoarseness (Dysphonia) (Update).

    PubMed

    Stachler, Robert J; Francis, David O; Schwartz, Seth R; Damask, Cecelia C; Digoy, German P; Krouse, Helene J; McCoy, Scott J; Ouellette, Daniel R; Patel, Rita R; Reavis, Charles Charlie W; Smith, Libby J; Smith, Marshall; Strode, Steven W; Woo, Peak; Nnacheta, Lorraine C

    2018-03-01

    Objective This guideline provides evidence-based recommendations on treating patients who present with dysphonia, which is characterized by altered vocal quality, pitch, loudness, or vocal effort that impairs communication and/or quality of life. Dysphonia affects nearly one-third of the population at some point in its life. This guideline applies to all age groups evaluated in a setting where dysphonia would be identified or managed. It is intended for all clinicians who are likely to diagnose and treat patients with dysphonia. Purpose The primary purpose of this guideline is to improve the quality of care for patients with dysphonia, based on current best evidence. Expert consensus to fill evidence gaps, when used, is explicitly stated and supported with a detailed evidence profile for transparency. Specific objectives of the guideline are to reduce inappropriate variations in care, produce optimal health outcomes, and minimize harm. For this guideline update, the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery Foundation selected a panel representing the fields of advanced practice nursing, bronchoesophagology, consumer advocacy, family medicine, geriatric medicine, internal medicine, laryngology, neurology, otolaryngology-head and neck surgery, pediatrics, professional voice, pulmonology, and speech-language pathology. Action Statements The guideline update group made strong recommendations for the following key action statements (KASs): (1) Clinicians should assess the patient with dysphonia by history and physical examination to identify factors where expedited laryngeal evaluation is indicated. These include, but are not limited to, recent surgical procedures involving the head, neck, or chest; recent endotracheal intubation; presence of concomitant neck mass; respiratory distress or stridor; history of tobacco abuse; and whether the patient is a professional voice user. (2) Clinicians should advocate voice therapy for patients with dysphonia from a cause amenable to voice therapy. The guideline update group made recommendations for the following KASs: (1) Clinicians should identify dysphonia in a patient with altered voice quality, pitch, loudness, or vocal effort that impairs communication or reduces quality of life (QOL). (2) Clinicians should assess the patient with dysphonia by history and physical examination for underlying causes of dysphonia and factors that modify management. (3) Clinicians should perform laryngoscopy, or refer to a clinician who can perform laryngoscopy, when dysphonia fails to resolve or improve within 4 weeks or irrespective of duration if a serious underlying cause is suspected. (4) Clinicians should perform diagnostic laryngoscopy, or refer to a clinician who can perform diagnostic laryngoscopy, before prescribing voice therapy and document/communicate the results to the speech-language pathologist (SLP). (5) Clinicians should advocate for surgery as a therapeutic option for patients with dysphonia with conditions amenable to surgical intervention, such as suspected malignancy, symptomatic benign vocal fold lesions that do not respond to conservative management, or glottic insufficiency. (6) Clinicians should offer, or refer to a clinician who can offer, botulinum toxin injections for the treatment of dysphonia caused by spasmodic dysphonia and other types of laryngeal dystonia. (7) Clinicians should inform patients with dysphonia about control/preventive measures. (8) Clinicians should document resolution, improvement or worsened symptoms of dysphonia, or change in QOL of patients with dysphonia after treatment or observation. The guideline update group made a strong recommendation against 1 action: (1) Clinicians should not routinely prescribe antibiotics to treat dysphonia. The guideline update group made recommendations against other actions: (1) Clinicians should not obtain computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for patients with a primary voice complaint prior to visualization of the larynx. (2) Clinicians should not prescribe antireflux medications to treat isolated dysphonia, based on symptoms alone attributed to suspected gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) or laryngopharyngeal reflux (LPR), without visualization of the larynx. (3) Clinicians should not routinely prescribe corticosteroids for patients with dysphonia prior to visualization of the larynx. The policy level for the following recommendation about laryngoscopy at any time was an option: (1) Clinicians may perform diagnostic laryngoscopy at any time in a patient with dysphonia. Disclaimer This clinical practice guideline is not intended as an exhaustive source of guidance for managing dysphonia (hoarseness). Rather, it is designed to assist clinicians by providing an evidence-based framework for decision-making strategies. The guideline is not intended to replace clinical judgment or establish a protocol for all individuals with this condition, and it may not provide the only appropriate approach to diagnosing and managing this problem. Differences from Prior Guideline (1) Incorporation of new evidence profiles to include the role of patient preferences, confidence in the evidence, differences of opinion, quality improvement opportunities, and any exclusion to which the action statement does not apply (2) Inclusion of 3 new guidelines, 16 new systematic reviews, and 4 new randomized controlled trials (3) Inclusion of a consumer advocate on the guideline update group (4) Changes to 9 KASs from the original guideline (5) New KAS 3 (escalation of care) and KAS 13 (outcomes) (6) Addition of an algorithm outlining KASs for patients with dysphonia.

  16. Breast Cancer Screening for Women at Average Risk: 2015 Guideline Update from the American Cancer Society

    PubMed Central

    Oeffinger, Kevin C.; Fontham, Elizabeth T. H.; Etzioni, Ruth; Herzig, Abbe; Michaelson, James S.; Shih, Ya-Chen Tina; Walter, Louise C.; Church, Timothy R.; Flowers, Christopher R.; LaMonte, Samuel J.; Wolf, Andrew M. D.; DeSantis, Carol; Lortet-Tieulent, Joannie; Andrews, Kimberly; Manassaram-Baptiste, Deana; Saslow, Debbie; Smith, Robert A.; Brawley, Otis W.; Wender, Richard

    2016-01-01

    Importance Breast cancer is a leading cause of premature mortality among U.S. women. Early detection has been shown to be associated with reduced breast cancer morbidity and mortality. This report updates the American Cancer Society (ACS) 2003 breast cancer screening guideline for women at average risk for breast cancer. Process The ACS commissioned a systematic evidence review of the breast cancer screening literature to inform the update, and a supplemental analysis of mammography registry data to address questions related to the screening interval. Formulation of recommendations was based on the quality of the evidence and judgment (incorporating values and preferences) about the balance of benefits and harms. Evidence Synthesis Mammography screening in women aged 40–69 years is associated with a reduction in breast cancer deaths across a range of study designs, and inferential evidence supports breast cancer screening in women who are age 70 years and older and are in good health. Estimates of the cumulative lifetime risk of false positive exams are greater if screening begins at younger ages due to the greater number of mammograms, as well as the higher recall rate in younger women. The quality of the evidence for overdiagnosis is not sufficient to estimate a lifetime risk with confidence. Analysis examining the screening interval demonstrates more favorable tumor characteristics when premenopausal women are screened annually vs. biennially. Evidence does not support routine clinical breast examination as a screening method for average risk women. Recommendations The ACS recommends that women with an average risk of breast cancer should undergo regular screening mammography starting at age 45 years (strong recommendation). Women who are ages 45 to 54 years should be screened annually (qualified recommendation). Women who are age 55 years and older should transition to biennial screening or have the opportunity to continue screening annually (qualified recommendation). Women should have the opportunity to begin annual screening between the ages of 40 and 44 years (qualified recommendation). Women should continue screening mammography as long as their overall health is good and they have a life expectancy of 10 years or more (qualified recommendation). The ACS does not recommend clinical breast examination for breast cancer screening among average-risk women at any age (qualified recommendation). PMID:26501536

  17. Updated recommendations: an assessment of NICE clinical guidelines

    PubMed Central

    2014-01-01

    Background Updating is important to ensure clinical guideline (CG) recommendations remain valid. However, little research has been undertaken in this field. We assessed CGs produced by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) to identify and describe updated recommendations and to investigate potential factors associated with updating. Also, we evaluated the reporting and presentation of recommendation changes. Methods We performed a descriptive analysis of original and updated CGs and recommendations, and an assessment of presentation formats and methods for recording information. We conducted a case-control study, defining cases as original recommendations that were updated (‘new-replaced’ recommendations), and controls as original recommendations that were considered to remain valid (‘not changed’ recommendations). We performed a comparison of main characteristics between cases and controls, and we planned a multiple regression analysis to identify potential predictive factors for updating. Results We included nine updated CGs (1,306 recommendations) and their corresponding original versions (1,106 recommendations). Updated CGs included 812 (62%) recommendations ‘not reviewed’, 368 (28.1%) ‘new’ recommendations, 104 (7.9%) ‘amended’ recommendations, and 25 (1.9%) recommendations reviewed but unchanged. The presentation formats used to indicate the changes in recommendations varied widely across CGs. Changes in ‘amended’, ‘deleted’, and ‘new-replaced’ recommendations (n = 296) were reported infrequently, mostly in appendices. These changes were recorded in 167 (56.4%) recommendations; and were explained in 81 (27.4%) recommendations. We retrieved a total of 7.1% (n = 78) case recommendations (‘new-replaced’) and 2.4% (n = 27) control recommendations (‘not changed’) in original CGs. The updates were mainly from ‘Fertility CG’, about ‘gynaecology, pregnancy and birth’ topic, and ‘treatment’ or ‘prevention’ purposes. We did not perform the multiple regression analysis as originally planned due to the small sample of recommendations retrieved. Conclusion Our study is the first to describe and assess updated CGs and recommendations from a national guideline program. Our results highlight the pressing need to standardise the reporting and presentation of updated recommendations and the research gap about the optimal way to present updates to guideline users. Furthermore, there is a need to investigate updating predictive factors. PMID:24919856

  18. The EFSUMB Guidelines and Recommendations for the Clinical Practice of Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound (CEUS) in Non-Hepatic Applications: Update 2017 (Short Version).

    PubMed

    Sidhu, Paul S; Cantisani, Vito; Dietrich, Christoph F; Gilja, Odd Helge; Saftoiu, Adrian; Bartels, Eva; Bertolotto, Michele; Calliada, Fabrizio; Clevert, Dirk-André; Cosgrove, David; Deganello, Annamaria; D'Onofrio, Mirko; Drudi, Francesco Maria; Freeman, Simon; Harvey, Christopher; Jenssen, Christian; Jung, Ernst-Michael; Klauser, Andrea Sabine; Lassau, Nathalie; Meloni, Maria Franca; Leen, Edward; Nicolau, Carlos; Nolsoe, Christian; Piscaglia, Fabio; Prada, Francesco; Prosch, Helmut; Radzina, Maija; Savelli, Luca; Weskott, Hans-Peter; Wijkstra, Hessel

    2018-04-01

    The updated version of the EFSUMB guidelines on the application of non-hepatic contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) deals with the use of microbubble ultrasound contrast outside the liver in the many established and emerging applications. © Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

  19. [Cardiology update in 2016].

    PubMed

    Gabus, Vincent; Tran, Van Nam; Regamey, Julien; Pascale, Patrizio; Monney, Pierre; Hullin, Roger; Vogt, Pierre

    2017-01-11

    In 2016 the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) published new guidelines. These documents update the knowledge in various fields such as atrial fibrillation, heart failure, cardiovascular prevention and dyslipidemia. Of course it is impossible to summarize these guidelines in detail. Nevertheless, we decided to highlight the major modifications, and to emphasize some key points that are especially useful for the primary care physician.

  20. Hereditary diffuse gastric cancer: updated clinical guidelines with an emphasis on germline CDH1 mutation carriers.

    PubMed

    van der Post, Rachel S; Vogelaar, Ingrid P; Carneiro, Fátima; Guilford, Parry; Huntsman, David; Hoogerbrugge, Nicoline; Caldas, Carlos; Schreiber, Karen E Chelcun; Hardwick, Richard H; Ausems, Margreet G E M; Bardram, Linda; Benusiglio, Patrick R; Bisseling, Tanya M; Blair, Vanessa; Bleiker, Eveline; Boussioutas, Alex; Cats, Annemieke; Coit, Daniel; DeGregorio, Lynn; Figueiredo, Joana; Ford, James M; Heijkoop, Esther; Hermens, Rosella; Humar, Bostjan; Kaurah, Pardeep; Keller, Gisella; Lai, Jennifer; Ligtenberg, Marjolijn J L; O'Donovan, Maria; Oliveira, Carla; Pinheiro, Hugo; Ragunath, Krish; Rasenberg, Esther; Richardson, Susan; Roviello, Franco; Schackert, Hans; Seruca, Raquel; Taylor, Amy; Ter Huurne, Anouk; Tischkowitz, Marc; Joe, Sheena Tjon A; van Dijck, Benjamin; van Grieken, Nicole C T; van Hillegersberg, Richard; van Sandick, Johanna W; Vehof, Rianne; van Krieken, J Han; Fitzgerald, Rebecca C

    2015-06-01

    Germline CDH1 mutations confer a high lifetime risk of developing diffuse gastric (DGC) and lobular breast cancer (LBC). A multidisciplinary workshop was organised to discuss genetic testing, surgery, surveillance strategies, pathology reporting and the patient's perspective on multiple aspects, including diet post gastrectomy. The updated guidelines include revised CDH1 testing criteria (taking into account first-degree and second-degree relatives): (1) families with two or more patients with gastric cancer at any age, one confirmed DGC; (2) individuals with DGC before the age of 40 and (3) families with diagnoses of both DGC and LBC (one diagnosis before the age of 50). Additionally, CDH1 testing could be considered in patients with bilateral or familial LBC before the age of 50, patients with DGC and cleft lip/palate, and those with precursor lesions for signet ring cell carcinoma. Given the high mortality associated with invasive disease, prophylactic total gastrectomy at a centre of expertise is advised for individuals with pathogenic CDH1 mutations. Breast cancer surveillance with annual breast MRI starting at age 30 for women with a CDH1 mutation is recommended. Standardised endoscopic surveillance in experienced centres is recommended for those opting not to have gastrectomy at the current time, those with CDH1 variants of uncertain significance and those that fulfil hereditary DGC criteria without germline CDH1 mutations. Expert histopathological confirmation of (early) signet ring cell carcinoma is recommended. The impact of gastrectomy and mastectomy should not be underestimated; these can have severe consequences on a psychological, physiological and metabolic level. Nutritional problems should be carefully monitored. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

  1. Hereditary diffuse gastric cancer: updated clinical guidelines with an emphasis on germline CDH1 mutation carriers

    PubMed Central

    van der Post, Rachel S; Vogelaar, Ingrid P; Carneiro, Fátima; Guilford, Parry; Huntsman, David; Hoogerbrugge, Nicoline; Caldas, Carlos; Schreiber, Karen E Chelcun; Hardwick, Richard H; Ausems, Margreet G E M; Bardram, Linda; Benusiglio, Patrick R; Bisseling, Tanya M; Blair, Vanessa; Bleiker, Eveline; Boussioutas, Alex; Cats, Annemieke; Coit, Daniel; DeGregorio, Lynn; Figueiredo, Joana; Ford, James M; Heijkoop, Esther; Hermens, Rosella; Humar, Bostjan; Kaurah, Pardeep; Keller, Gisella; Lai, Jennifer; Ligtenberg, Marjolijn J L; O'Donovan, Maria; Oliveira, Carla; Ragunath, Krish; Rasenberg, Esther; Richardson, Susan; Roviello, Franco; Schackert, Hans; Seruca, Raquel; Taylor, Amy; ter Huurne, Anouk; Tischkowitz, Marc; Joe, Sheena Tjon A; van Dijck, Benjamin; van Grieken, Nicole C T; van Hillegersberg, Richard; van Sandick, Johanna W; Vehof, Rianne; van Krieken, J Han; Fitzgerald, Rebecca C

    2015-01-01

    Germline CDH1 mutations confer a high lifetime risk of developing diffuse gastric (DGC) and lobular breast cancer (LBC). A multidisciplinary workshop was organised to discuss genetic testing, surgery, surveillance strategies, pathology reporting and the patient's perspective on multiple aspects, including diet post gastrectomy. The updated guidelines include revised CDH1 testing criteria (taking into account first-degree and second-degree relatives): (1) families with two or more patients with gastric cancer at any age, one confirmed DGC; (2) individuals with DGC before the age of 40 and (3) families with diagnoses of both DGC and LBC (one diagnosis before the age of 50). Additionally, CDH1 testing could be considered in patients with bilateral or familial LBC before the age of 50, patients with DGC and cleft lip/palate, and those with precursor lesions for signet ring cell carcinoma. Given the high mortality associated with invasive disease, prophylactic total gastrectomy at a centre of expertise is advised for individuals with pathogenic CDH1 mutations. Breast cancer surveillance with annual breast MRI starting at age 30 for women with a CDH1 mutation is recommended. Standardised endoscopic surveillance in experienced centres is recommended for those opting not to have gastrectomy at the current time, those with CDH1 variants of uncertain significance and those that fulfil hereditary DGC criteria without germline CDH1 mutations. Expert histopathological confirmation of (early) signet ring cell carcinoma is recommended. The impact of gastrectomy and mastectomy should not be underestimated; these can have severe consequences on a psychological, physiological and metabolic level. Nutritional problems should be carefully monitored. PMID:25979631

  2. MASCC/ISOO clinical practice guidelines for the management of mucositis secondary to cancer therapy.

    PubMed

    Lalla, Rajesh V; Bowen, Joanne; Barasch, Andrei; Elting, Linda; Epstein, Joel; Keefe, Dorothy M; McGuire, Deborah B; Migliorati, Cesar; Nicolatou-Galitis, Ourania; Peterson, Douglas E; Raber-Durlacher, Judith E; Sonis, Stephen T; Elad, Sharon

    2014-05-15

    Mucositis is a highly significant, and sometimes dose-limiting, toxicity of cancer therapy. The goal of this systematic review was to update the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer and International Society of Oral Oncology (MASCC/ISOO) Clinical Practice Guidelines for mucositis. A literature search was conducted to identify eligible published articles, based on predefined inclusion/exclusion criteria. Each article was independently reviewed by 2 reviewers. Studies were rated according to the presence of major and minor flaws as per previously published criteria. The body of evidence for each intervention, in each treatment setting, was assigned a level of evidence, based on previously published criteria. Guidelines were developed based on the level of evidence, with 3 possible guideline determinations: recommendation, suggestion, or no guideline possible. The literature search identified 8279 papers, 1032 of which were retrieved for detailed evaluation based on titles and abstracts. Of these, 570 qualified for final inclusion in the systematic reviews. Sixteen new guidelines were developed for or against the use of various interventions in specific treatment settings. In total, the MASCC/ISOO Mucositis Guidelines now include 32 guidelines: 22 for oral mucositis and 10 for gastrointestinal mucositis. This article describes these updated guidelines. The updated MASCC/ISOO Clinical Practice Guidelines for mucositis will help clinicians provide evidence-based management of mucositis secondary to cancer therapy. © 2014 The Authors. Cancer published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of American Cancer Society.

  3. Review of the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation Practice guidelines for management of heart failure in children.

    PubMed

    Colan, Steven D

    2015-08-01

    In 2004, practice guidelines for the management of heart failure in children by Rosenthal and colleagues were published in conjunction with the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation. These guidelines have not been updated or reviewed since that time. In general, there has been considerable controversy as to the utility and purpose of clinical practice guidelines, but there is general recognition that the relentless progress of medicine leads to the progressive irrelevance of clinical practice guidelines that do not undergo periodic review and updating. Paediatrics and paediatric cardiology, in particular, have had comparatively minimal participation in the clinical practice guidelines realm. As a result, most clinical practice guidelines either specifically exclude paediatrics from consideration, as has been the case for the guidelines related to cardiac failure in adults, or else involve clinical practice guidelines committees that include one or two paediatric cardiologists and produce guidelines that cannot reasonably be considered a consensus paediatric opinion. These circumstances raise a legitimate question as to whether the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation paediatric heart failure guidelines should be re-reviewed. The time, effort, and expense involved in producing clinical practice guidelines should be considered before recommending an update to the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation Paediatric Heart Failure guidelines. There are specific areas of rapid change in the evaluation and management of heart failure in children that are undoubtedly worthy of updating. These domains include areas such as use of serum and imaging biomarkers, wearable and implantable monitoring devices, and acute heart failure management and mechanical circulatory support. At the time the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation guidelines were published, echocardiographic tissue Doppler, 3 dimensional imaging, and strain and strain rate were either novel or non-existent and have now moved into the main stream. Cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) had very limited availability, and since that time imaging and assessment of myocardial iron content, delayed gadolinium enhancement, and extracellular volume have moved into the mainstream. The only devices discussed in the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation guidelines were extracorporeal membrane oxygenators, pacemakers, and defibrillators. Since that time, ventricular assist devices have become mainstream. Despite the relative lack of randomised controlled trials in paediatric heart failure, advances continue to occur. These advances warrant implementation of an update and review process, something that is best done under the auspices of the national and international cardiology societies. A joint activity that includes the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation, American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association, the Association for European Paediatric and Congenital Cardiology (AEPC), European Society of Cardiology, Canadian Cardiovascular Society, and others will have more credibility than independent efforts by any of these organisations.

  4. [Guideline for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Asthma - Guideline of the German Respiratory Society and the German Atemwegsliga in Cooperation with the Paediatric Respiratory Society and the Austrian Society of Pneumology].

    PubMed

    Buhl, R; Bals, R; Baur, X; Berdel, D; Criée, C-P; Gappa, M; Gillissen, A; Greulich, T; Haidl, P; Hamelmann, E; Kardos, P; Kenn, K; Klimek, L; Korn, S; Lommatzsch, M; Magnussen, H; Nicolai, T; Nowak, D; Pfaar, O; Rabe, K F; Riedler, J; Ritz, T; Schultz, K; Schuster, A; Spindler, T; Taube, C; Taube, K; Vogelmeier, C; von Leupold, A; Wantke, F; Weise, S; Wildhaber, J; Worth, H; Zacharasiewicz, A

    2017-12-01

    The present guideline is a new version and an update of the guideline for the diagnosis and treatment of asthma, which replaces the previous version for german speaking countries from the year 2006. The wealth of new data on the pathophysiology and the phenotypes of asthma, and the expanded spectrum of diagnostic and therapeutic options necessitated a new version and an update. This guideline presents the current, evidence-based recommendations for the diagnosis and treatment of asthma, for children and adolescents as well as for adults with asthma. © Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

  5. Updated CCPS Investigation Guidelines book.

    PubMed

    Philley, J; Pearson, K; Sepeda, A

    2003-11-14

    Incident investigation standards and performance criteria continue to improve. In recognition, the Center for Chemical Process Safety (CCPS) undertook a major project to upgrade and update the Incident Investigation Guidelines originally published in 1992. These significantly expanded guidelines provide a practical resource for effective investigation of process-related incidents, and reflect changes in good practices and expectations of regulators. This paper highlights the content of the new guidelines with special emphasis on what is new and improved. Entirely new chapters address the topics of legal considerations, the near-miss event, and continuous improvement of the investigation system. The objective of the guidelines is to allow chemical process organizations to develop and implement an incident investigation management system that is effective in identifying underlying causes.

  6. No. 348-Joint SOGC-CCMG Guideline: Update on Prenatal Screening for Fetal Aneuploidy, Fetal Anomalies, and Adverse Pregnancy Outcomes.

    PubMed

    Audibert, Francois; De Bie, Isabelle; Johnson, Jo-Ann; Okun, Nanette; Wilson, R Douglas; Armour, Christine; Chitayat, David; Kim, Raymond

    2017-09-01

    To review the available prenatal screening options in light of the recent technical advances and to provide an update of previous guidelines in the field of prenatal screening. Health care providers involved in prenatal screening, including general practitioners, obstetricians, midwives, maternal fetal medicine specialists, geneticists, and radiologists. All pregnant women receiving counselling and providing informed consent for prenatal screening. Published literature was retrieved through searches of Medline, PubMed, and the Cochrane Library in and prior to March 2016 using an appropriate controlled vocabulary (prenatal diagnosis, amniocentesis, chorionic villi sampling, non-invasive prenatal screening) and key words (prenatal screening, prenatal genetic counselling). Results were restricted to systematic reviews, randomized control trials/controlled clinical trials, and observational studies written in English and published from January 1985 to May 2016. Searches were updated on a regular basis and incorporated in the guideline. Grey (unpublished) literature was identified through searching the websites of health technology assessment and health technology-related agencies, clinical practice guideline collections, clinical trial registries, and national and international medical speciality societies. Evidence will be reviewed 5 years after publication to determine whether all or part of the guideline should be updated. However, if important new evidence is published prior to the 5-year cycle, the review process may be accelerated for a more rapid update of some recommendations. Copyright © 2017 The Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada/La Société des obstétriciens et gynécologues du Canada. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  7. An adverse event of suprapubic catheter SPC insertion. A call for updating the existing guidelines.

    PubMed

    Jalil, Rozh; Mukundan, Chandrika; Bhatti, Tahir S

    2012-11-15

    The suprapubic catheter (SPC) is a useful and widely used tool in urological practice. However, complications can arise from its insertion or ongoing care. We add to the literature a case of an adverse event of its insertion where it has gone through a vascular graft and recommending updating the SPC insertion guidelines.

  8. Development of interim oak assessment guidelines for the silvah decision-support system

    Treesearch

    Patrick H. Brose

    2007-01-01

    Updates to the SILVAH decision-support system make it more applicable to the mixed oak forests of Pennsylvania and other mid-Atlantic states. This update required establishing interim inventory guidelines for assessing the competitive ability of advance oak regeneration. This assessment was complicated by oak’s growth strategy, emphasizing root development in lieu of...

  9. An Update of the International Society of Sexual Medicine's Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Premature Ejaculation (PE)

    PubMed Central

    Althof, Stanley E; McMahon, Chris G; Waldinger, Marcel D; Serefoglu, Ege Can; Shindel, Alan W; Adaikan, P Ganesan; Becher, Edgardo; Dean, John; Giuliano, Francois; Hellstrom, Wayne JG; Giraldi, Annamaria; Glina, Sidney; Incrocci, Luca; Jannini, Emmanuele; McCabe, Marita; Parish, Sharon; Rowland, David; Segraves, R Taylor; Sharlip, Ira; Torres, Luiz Otavio

    2014-01-01

    Introduction In 2009, the International Society for Sexual Medicine (ISSM) convened a select panel of experts to develop an evidence-based set of guidelines for patients suffering from lifelong premature ejaculation (PE). That document reviewed definitions, etiology, impact on the patient and partner, assessment, and pharmacological, psychological, and combined treatments. It concluded by recognizing the continually evolving nature of clinical research and recommended a subsequent guideline review and revision every fourth year. Consistent with that recommendation, the ISSM organized a second multidisciplinary panel of experts in April 2013, which met for 2 days in Bangalore, India. This manuscript updates the previous guidelines and reports on the recommendations of the panel of experts. Aim The aim of this study was to develop clearly worded, practical, evidenced-based recommendations for the diagnosis and treatment of PE for family practice clinicians as well as sexual medicine experts. Method A comprehensive literature review was performed. Results This article contains the report of the second ISSM PE Guidelines Committee. It offers a new unified definition of PE and updates the previous treatment recommendations. Brief assessment procedures are delineated, and validated diagnostic and treatment questionnaires are reviewed. Finally, the best practices treatment recommendations are presented to guide clinicians, both familiar and unfamiliar with PE, in facilitating treatment of their patients. Conclusion Development of guidelines is an evolutionary process that continually reviews data and incorporates the best new research. We expect that ongoing research will lead to a more complete understanding of the pathophysiology as well as new efficacious and safe treatments for this sexual dysfunction. We again recommend that these guidelines be reevaluated and updated by the ISSM in 4 years. Althof SE, McMahon CG, Waldinger MD, Serefoglu EC, Shindel AW, Adaikan PG, Becher E, Dean J, Giuliano F, Hellstrom WJG, Giraldi A, Glina S, Incrocci L, Jannini E, McCabe M, Parish S, Rowland D, Segraves RT, Sharlip I, and Torres LO. An update of the International Society of Sexual Medicine's guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of premature ejaculation (PE). Sex Med 2014;2:60–90. PMID:25356302

  10. Knowledge translation: a case study on pneumonia research and clinical guidelines in a low- income country.

    PubMed

    Goyet, Sophie; Barennes, Hubert; Libourel, Therese; van Griensven, Johan; Frutos, Roger; Tarantola, Arnaud

    2014-06-26

    The process and effectiveness of knowledge translation (KT) interventions targeting policymakers are rarely reported. In Cambodia, a low-income country (LIC), an intervention aiming to provide evidence-based knowledge on pneumonia to health authorities was developed to help update pediatric and adult national clinical guidelines. Through a case study, we assessed the effectiveness of this KT intervention, with the goal of identifying the barriers to KT and suggest strategies to facilitate KT in similar settings. An extensive search for all relevant sources of data documenting the processes of updating adult and pediatric pneumonia guidelines was done. Documents included among others, reports, meeting minutes, and email correspondences. The study was conducted in successive phases: an appraisal of the content of both adult and pediatric pneumonia guidelines; an appraisal of the quality of guidelines by independent experts, using the AGREE-II instrument; a description and modeling of the KT process within the guidelines updating system, using the Unified Modeling Language (UML) tools 2.2; and the listing of the barriers and facilitators to KT we identified during the study. The first appraisal showed that the integration of the KT key messages in pediatric and adult guidelines varied with a better efficiency in the pediatric guidelines. The overall AGREE-II quality assessments scored 37% and 44% for adult and pediatric guidelines, respectively. Scores were lowest for the domains of 'rigor of development' and 'editorial independence.' The UML analysis highlighted that time frames and constraints of the involved stakeholders greatly differed and that there were several missed opportunities to translate on evidence into the adult pneumonia guideline. Seventeen facilitating factors and 18 potential barriers to KT were identified. Main barriers were related to the absence of a clear mandate from the Ministry of Health for the researchers and to a lack of synchronization between knowledge production and policy-making. Study findings suggest that stakeholders, both researchers and policy makers planning to update clinical guidelines in LIC may need methodological support to overcome the expected barriers.

  11. Knowledge translation: a case study on pneumonia research and clinical guidelines in a low- income country

    PubMed Central

    2014-01-01

    Background The process and effectiveness of knowledge translation (KT) interventions targeting policymakers are rarely reported. In Cambodia, a low-income country (LIC), an intervention aiming to provide evidence-based knowledge on pneumonia to health authorities was developed to help update pediatric and adult national clinical guidelines. Through a case study, we assessed the effectiveness of this KT intervention, with the goal of identifying the barriers to KT and suggest strategies to facilitate KT in similar settings. Methods An extensive search for all relevant sources of data documenting the processes of updating adult and pediatric pneumonia guidelines was done. Documents included among others, reports, meeting minutes, and email correspondences. The study was conducted in successive phases: an appraisal of the content of both adult and pediatric pneumonia guidelines; an appraisal of the quality of guidelines by independent experts, using the AGREE-II instrument; a description and modeling of the KT process within the guidelines updating system, using the Unified Modeling Language (UML) tools 2.2; and the listing of the barriers and facilitators to KT we identified during the study. Results The first appraisal showed that the integration of the KT key messages in pediatric and adult guidelines varied with a better efficiency in the pediatric guidelines. The overall AGREE-II quality assessments scored 37% and 44% for adult and pediatric guidelines, respectively. Scores were lowest for the domains of ‘rigor of development’ and ‘editorial independence.’ The UML analysis highlighted that time frames and constraints of the involved stakeholders greatly differed and that there were several missed opportunities to translate on evidence into the adult pneumonia guideline. Seventeen facilitating factors and 18 potential barriers to KT were identified. Main barriers were related to the absence of a clear mandate from the Ministry of Health for the researchers and to a lack of synchronization between knowledge production and policy-making. Conclusions Study findings suggest that stakeholders, both researchers and policy makers planning to update clinical guidelines in LIC may need methodological support to overcome the expected barriers. PMID:24969242

  12. Colorectal cancer screening for average-risk adults: 2018 guideline update from the American Cancer Society.

    PubMed

    Wolf, Andrew M D; Fontham, Elizabeth T H; Church, Timothy R; Flowers, Christopher R; Guerra, Carmen E; LaMonte, Samuel J; Etzioni, Ruth; McKenna, Matthew T; Oeffinger, Kevin C; Shih, Ya-Chen Tina; Walter, Louise C; Andrews, Kimberly S; Brawley, Otis W; Brooks, Durado; Fedewa, Stacey A; Manassaram-Baptiste, Deana; Siegel, Rebecca L; Wender, Richard C; Smith, Robert A

    2018-05-30

    In the United States, colorectal cancer (CRC) is the fourth most common cancer diagnosed among adults and the second leading cause of death from cancer. For this guideline update, the American Cancer Society (ACS) used an existing systematic evidence review of the CRC screening literature and microsimulation modeling analyses, including a new evaluation of the age to begin screening by race and sex and additional modeling that incorporates changes in US CRC incidence. Screening with any one of multiple options is associated with a significant reduction in CRC incidence through the detection and removal of adenomatous polyps and other precancerous lesions and with a reduction in mortality through incidence reduction and early detection of CRC. Results from modeling analyses identified efficient and model-recommendable strategies that started screening at age 45 years. The ACS Guideline Development Group applied the Grades of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) criteria in developing and rating the recommendations. The ACS recommends that adults aged 45 years and older with an average risk of CRC undergo regular screening with either a high-sensitivity stool-based test or a structural (visual) examination, depending on patient preference and test availability. As a part of the screening process, all positive results on noncolonoscopy screening tests should be followed up with timely colonoscopy. The recommendation to begin screening at age 45 years is a qualified recommendation. The recommendation for regular screening in adults aged 50 years and older is a strong recommendation. The ACS recommends (qualified recommendations) that: 1) average-risk adults in good health with a life expectancy of more than 10 years continue CRC screening through the age of 75 years; 2) clinicians individualize CRC screening decisions for individuals aged 76 through 85 years based on patient preferences, life expectancy, health status, and prior screening history; and 3) clinicians discourage individuals older than 85 years from continuing CRC screening. The options for CRC screening are: fecal immunochemical test annually; high-sensitivity, guaiac-based fecal occult blood test annually; multitarget stool DNA test every 3 years; colonoscopy every 10 years; computed tomography colonography every 5 years; and flexible sigmoidoscopy every 5 years. CA Cancer J Clin 2018;000:000-000. © 2018 American Cancer Society. © 2018 American Cancer Society.

  13. Knee joint replacement

    MedlinePlus

    ... Knee joint replacement - series References American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons (AAOS) website. Treatment of osteoarthritis of the knee: evidence-based guideline 2nd edition (summary) . www.aaos.org/research/guidelines/TreatmentofOsteoarthritisoftheKneeGuideline.pdf . Updated May 18, 2013. Accessed ...

  14. Auditing the management of vaccine-preventable disease outbreaks: the need for a tool.

    PubMed

    Torner, Nuria; Carnicer-Pont, Dolors; Castilla, Jesus; Cayla, Joan; Godoy, Pere; Dominguez, Angela

    2011-01-13

    Public health activities, especially infectious disease control, depend on effective teamwork. We present the results of a pilot audit questionnaire aimed at assessing the quality of public health services in the management of VPD outbreaks. Audit questionnaire with three main areas indicators (structure, process and results) was developed. Guidelines were set and each indicator was assessed by three auditors. Differences in indicator scores according to median size of outbreaks were determined by ANOVA (significance at p≤0.05). Of 154 outbreaks; eighteen indicators had a satisfactory mean score, indicator "updated guidelines" and "timely reporting" had a poor mean score (2.84±106 and 2.44±1.67, respectively). Statistically significant differences were found according to outbreak size, in the indicators "availability of guidelines/protocol updated less than 3 years ago" (p = 0.03) and "days needed for outbreak control" (p = 0.04). Improving availability of updated guidelines, enhancing timely reporting and adequate recording of control procedures taken is needed to allow for management assessment and improvement.

  15. Guidelines for fellowship training in Regional Anesthesiology and Acute Pain Medicine: Second Edition, 2010.

    PubMed

    2011-01-01

    The Regional Anesthesiology and Acute Pain Medicine Fellowship Directors Group develops and maintains guidelines for fellowship training in the subspecialty. These guidelines update the original guidelines that were published in 2005. The guidelines address 3 major topic areas: organization and resources, the educational program, and the evaluation process.

  16. Abnormal uterine bleeding in reproductive-aged women.

    PubMed

    Matthews, Michelle L

    2015-03-01

    Abnormal uterine bleeding is a common medical condition with several causes. The International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics published guidelines in 2011 to develop universally accepted nomenclature and a classification system. In addition, the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology recently updated recommendations on evaluation of abnormal uterine bleeding and indications for endometrial biopsies. This article reviews both medical and surgical treatments, including meta-analysis reviews of the most effective treatment options. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  17. S3 Guideline for the treatment of psoriasis vulgaris, update - Short version part 1 - Systemic treatment.

    PubMed

    Nast, Alexander; Amelunxen, Lasse; Augustin, Matthias; Boehncke, Wolf-Henning; Dressler, Corinna; Gaskins, Matthew; Härle, Peter; Hoffstadt, Bernd; Klaus, Joachim; Koza, Joachim; Mrowietz, Ulrich; Ockenfels, Hans-Michael; Philipp, Sandra; Reich, Kristian; Rosenbach, Thomas; Rzany, Berthold; Schlaeger, Martin; Schmid-Ott, Gerhard; Sebastian, Michael; von Kiedrowski, Ralph; Weberschock, Tobias

    2018-05-01

    The German guideline for the treatment of psoriasis vulgaris was updated using GRADE methodology. The guideline is based on a systematic literature review completed on December 1, 2016, and on a formal consensus and approval process. The first section of this short version of the guideline covers systemic treatment options considered relevant by the expert panel and approved in Germany at the time of the consensus conference (acitretin, adalimumab, apremilast, cyclosporine, etanercept, fumaric acid esters, infliximab, methotrexate, secukinumab and ustekinumab). Detailed information is provided on the management and monitoring of the included treatment options. © 2018 The Authors | Journal compilation © Blackwell Verlag GmbH, Berlin.

  18. WHO Treatment Guidelines for Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis, 2016 Update: Applicability in South Korea

    PubMed Central

    2017-01-01

    Despite progress made in tuberculosis control worldwide, the disease burden and treatment outcome of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) patients have remained virtually unchanged. In 2016, the World Health Organization released new guidelines for the management of MDR-TB. The guidelines are intended to improve detection rate and treatment outcome for MDR-TB through novel, rapid molecular testing and shorter treatment regimens. Key changes include the introduction of a new, shorter MDR-TB treatment regimen, a new classification of medicines and updated recommendations for the conventional MDR-TB regimen. This paper will review these key changes and discuss the potential issues with regard to the implementation of these guidelines in South Korea. PMID:28905529

  19. [Infective endocarditis : Update on prophylaxis, diagnosis, and treatment].

    PubMed

    Dietz, S; Lemm, H; Janusch, M; Buerke, M

    2016-05-01

    The diagnosis of infective endocarditis is often delayed in clinical practice. Timely diagnosis and rapid antibiotic treatment is important. Higher age of patients, new risk factors, and increasing use of intravascular prosthetic materials resulted in changes in microbial spectrum. Nowadays, nonspecific symptoms, critically ill patients, and immunocompromised patients require a high level of diagnostic expertise.The new guidelines from the European Society of Cardiology provide various diagnostic algorithms and recommendations for antibiotic treatment. The new guidelines also recommend the formation of an endocarditis team with various medical disciplines, including a cardiac surgeon, to improve treatment because in half of all endocarditis patients, antibiotic therapy alone does not result in successful management of the infection. If complications occur, early surgical treatment should be performed.In this overview, diagnostic strategies and therapeutic approaches for the treatment of infectious endocarditis according to the current guidelines and aspects of surgical treatment are provided.

  20. Prophylaxis and treatment of HIV-1 infection in pregnancy - Swedish Recommendations 2017.

    PubMed

    Navér, Lars; Albert, Jan; Carlander, Christina; Flamholc, Leo; Gisslén, Magnus; Karlström, Olof; Svedhem-Johansson, Veronica; Sönnerborg, Anders; Westling, Katarina; Yilmaz, Aylin; Pettersson, Karin

    2018-01-24

    Prophylaxis and treatment with antiretroviral drugs have resulted in a very low rate of mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) of HIV during recent years. Registration of new antiretroviral drugs, modification of clinical praxis, updated general treatment guidelines and increasing knowledge about MTCT have necessitated regular revisions of the recommendations for 'Prophylaxis and treatment of HIV-1 infection in pregnancy'. The Swedish Reference Group for Antiviral Therapy (RAV) has updated the recommendations from 2013 at an expert meeting 19 September 2017. In the new text, current treatment guidelines for non-pregnant are considered. The most important revisions are that: (1) Caesarean section and infant prophylaxis with three drugs are recommended when maternal HIV RNA >150 copies/mL (previously >50 copies/mL). The treatment target of undetectable HIV RNA remains unchanged <50 copies/mL; (2) Obstetric management and mode of delivery at premature rupture of the membranes and rupture of the membranes at full term follow the same procedures as in HIV negative women; (3) Vaginal delivery is recommended to a well-treated woman with HIV RNA <150 copies/mL regardless of gestational age, if no obstetric contraindications are present; (4) Treatment during pregnancy should begin as soon as possible and should continue after delivery; (5) Ongoing well-functioning HIV treatment at pregnancy start should usually be retained; (6) Recommended drugs and drug combinations have been updated.

  1. Antibiotic prophylaxis in dermatologic surgery: advisory statement 2008.

    PubMed

    Wright, Tina I; Baddour, Larry M; Berbari, Elie F; Roenigk, Randall K; Phillips, P Kim; Jacobs, M Amanda; Otley, Clark C

    2008-09-01

    Antibiotic prophylaxis is an important component of dermatologic surgery, and recommendations in this area should reflect the updated 2007 guidelines of the American Heart Association, the American Dental Association with the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons guidelines, and recent prospective studies on surgical site infection. To provide an update on the indications for antibiotic prophylaxis in dermatologic surgery for the prevention of infective endocarditis, hematogenous total joint infection, and surgical site infection. A literature review was performed, expert consensus was obtained, and updated recommendations were created, consistent with the most current authoritative guidelines from the American Heart Association and the American Dental Association with the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. For patients with high-risk cardiac conditions, and a defined group of patients with prosthetic joints at high risk for hematogenous total joint infection, prophylactic antibiotics are recommended when the surgical site is infected or when the procedure involves breach of the oral mucosa. For the prevention of surgical site infections, antibiotics may be indicated for procedures on the lower extremities or groin, for wedge excisions of the lip and ear, skin flaps on the nose, skin grafts, and for patients with extensive inflammatory skin disease. These recommendations are not based on multiple, large-scale, prospective trials. There is a strong shift away from administration of prophylactic antibiotics in many dermatologic surgery settings, based on updated authoritative guidelines. These recommendations provide guidance to comply with the most current guidelines, modified to address dermatology-specific considerations. Managing physicians may utilize these guidelines while individualizing their approach based on all clinical considerations.

  2. Practice guideline update summary: Efficacy and tolerability of the new antiepileptic drugs I: Treatment of new-onset epilepsy: Report of the Guideline Development, Dissemination, and Implementation Subcommittee of the American Academy of Neurology and the American Epilepsy Society.

    PubMed

    Kanner, Andres M; Ashman, Eric; Gloss, David; Harden, Cynthia; Bourgeois, Blaise; Bautista, Jocelyn F; Abou-Khalil, Bassel; Burakgazi-Dalkilic, Evren; Llanas Park, Esmeralda; Stern, John; Hirtz, Deborah; Nespeca, Mark; Gidal, Barry; Faught, Edward; French, Jacqueline

    2018-06-13

    To update the 2004 American Academy of Neurology (AAN) guideline for treating new-onset focal or generalized epilepsy with second- and third-generation antiepileptic drugs (AEDs). The 2004 AAN criteria were used to systematically review literature (January 2003-November 2015), classify pertinent studies according to the therapeutic rating scheme, and link recommendations to evidence strength. Several second-generation AEDs are effective for new-onset focal epilepsy. Data are lacking on efficacy in new-onset generalized tonic-clonic seizures, juvenile myoclonic epilepsy, or juvenile absence epilepsy, and on efficacy of third-generation AEDs in new-onset epilepsy. Lamotrigine (LTG) should (Level B) and levetiracetam (LEV) and zonisamide (ZNS) may (Level C) be considered in decreasing seizure frequency in adults with new-onset focal epilepsy. LTG should (Level B) and gabapentin (GBP) may (Level C) be considered in decreasing seizure frequency in patients ≥60 years of age with new-onset focal epilepsy. Unless there are compelling adverse effect-related concerns, ethosuximide or valproic acid should be considered before LTG to decrease seizure frequency in treating absence seizures in childhood absence epilepsy (level B). No high-quality studies suggest clobazam, eslicarbazepine, ezogabine, felbamate, GBP, lacosamide, LEV, LTG, oxcarbazepine, perampanel, pregabalin, rufinamide, tiagabine, topiramate, vigabatrin, or ZNS is effective in treating new-onset epilepsy because no high-quality studies exist in adults of various ages. A recent Food and Drug Administration (FDA) strategy allows extrapolation of efficacy across populations; therefore, for focal epilepsy, eslicarbazepine and lacosamide (oral only for pediatric use) as add-on or monotherapy in persons ≥4 years old and perampanel as monotherapy received FDA approval. © 2018 American Academy of Neurology.

  3. Practice guideline update summary: Corticosteroid treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy: Report of the Guideline Development Subcommittee of the American Academy of Neurology.

    PubMed

    Gloss, David; Moxley, Richard T; Ashwal, Stephen; Oskoui, Maryam

    2016-02-02

    To update the 2005 American Academy of Neurology (AAN) guideline on corticosteroid treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD). We systematically reviewed the literature from January 2004 to July 2014 using the AAN classification scheme for therapeutic articles and predicated recommendations on the strength of the evidence. Thirty-four studies met inclusion criteria. In children with DMD, prednisone should be offered for improving strength (Level B) and pulmonary function (Level B). Prednisone may be offered for improving timed motor function (Level C), reducing the need for scoliosis surgery (Level C), and delaying cardiomyopathy onset by 18 years of age (Level C). Deflazacort may be offered for improving strength and timed motor function and delaying age at loss of ambulation by 1.4-2.5 years (Level C). Deflazacort may be offered for improving pulmonary function, reducing the need for scoliosis surgery, delaying cardiomyopathy onset, and increasing survival at 5-15 years of follow-up (Level C for each). Deflazacort and prednisone may be equivalent in improving motor function (Level C). Prednisone may be associated with greater weight gain in the first years of treatment than deflazacort (Level C). Deflazacort may be associated with a greater risk of cataracts than prednisone (Level C). The preferred dosing regimen of prednisone is 0.75 mg/kg/d (Level B). Over 12 months, prednisone 10 mg/kg/weekend is equally effective (Level B), with no long-term data available. Prednisone 0.75 mg/kg/d is associated with significant risk of weight gain, hirsutism, and cushingoid appearance (Level B). © 2016 American Academy of Neurology.

  4. Publishing web-based guidelines using interactive decision models.

    PubMed

    Sanders, G D; Nease, R F; Owens, D K

    2001-05-01

    Commonly used methods for guideline development and dissemination do not enable developers to tailor guidelines systematically to specific patient populations and update guidelines easily. We developed a web-based system, ALCHEMIST, that uses decision models and automatically creates evidence-based guidelines that can be disseminated, tailored and updated over the web. Our objective was to demonstrate the use of this system with clinical scenarios that provide challenges for guideline development. We used the ALCHEMIST system to develop guidelines for three clinical scenarios: (1) Chlamydia screening for adolescent women, (2) antiarrhythmic therapy for the prevention of sudden cardiac death; and (3) genetic testing for the BRCA breast-cancer mutation. ALCHEMIST uses information extracted directly from the decision model, combined with the additional information from the author of the decision model, to generate global guidelines. ALCHEMIST generated electronic web-based guidelines for each of the three scenarios. Using ALCHEMIST, we demonstrate that tailoring a guideline for a population at high-risk for Chlamydia changes the recommended policy for control of Chlamydia from contact tracing of reported cases to a population-based screening programme. We used ALCHEMIST to incorporate new evidence about the effectiveness of implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICD) and demonstrate that the cost-effectiveness of use of ICDs improves from $74 400 per quality-adjusted life year (QALY) gained to $34 500 per QALY gained. Finally, we demonstrate how a clinician could use ALCHEMIST to incorporate a woman's utilities for relevant health states and thereby develop patient-specific recommendations for BRCA testing; the patient-specific recommendation improved quality-adjusted life expectancy by 37 days. The ALCHEMIST system enables guideline developers to publish both a guideline and an interactive decision model on the web. This web-based tool enables guideline developers to tailor guidelines systematically, to update guidelines easily, and to make the underlying evidence and analysis transparent for users.

  5. Revision of the OECD Genetox Test Guidelines

    EPA Science Inventory

    The OECD Test Guidelines (TG) on genetic toxicology were initially prepared and adopted between 1981 and 1986. In 1997 the most commonly used guidelines were updated, and the in vivo UDS test (TG 486) was added. More recently, in 2010 and 2011, two new guidelines were adopted: th...

  6. Update of the Mexican College of Rheumatology guidelines for the pharmacologic treatment of rheumatoid arthritis.

    PubMed

    Cardiel, Mario H; Díaz-Borjón, Alejandro; Vázquez del Mercado Espinosa, Mónica; Gámez-Nava, Jorge Iván; Barile Fabris, Leonor A; Pacheco Tena, César; Silveira Torre, Luis H; Pascual Ramos, Virginia; Goycochea Robles, María Victoria; Aguilar Arreola, Jorge Enrique; González Díaz, Verónica; Alvarez Nemegyei, José; González-López, Laura del Carmen; Salazar Páramo, Mario; Portela Hernández, Margarita; Castro Colín, Zully; Xibillé Friedman, Daniel Xavier; Alvarez Hernández, Everardo; Casasola Vargas, Julio; Cortés Hernández, Miguel; Flores-Alvarado, Diana E; Martínez Martínez, Laura A; Vega-Morales, David; Flores-Suárez, Luis Felipe; Medrano Ramírez, Gabriel; Barrera Cruz, Antonio; García González, Adolfo; López López, Susana Marisela; Rosete Reyes, Alejandra; Espinosa Morales, Rolando

    2014-01-01

    The pharmacologic management of rheumatoid arthritis has progressed substantially over the past years. It is therefore desirable that existing information be periodically updated. There are several published international guidelines for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis that hardly adapt to the Mexican health system because of its limited healthcare resources. Hence, it is imperative to unify the existing recommendations and to incorporate them to a set of clinical, updated recommendations; the Mexican College of Rheumatology developed these recommendations in order to offer an integral management approach of rheumatoid arthritis according to the resources of the Mexican health system. To review, update and improve the available evidence within clinical practice guidelines on the pharmacological management of rheumatoid arthritis and produce a set of recommendations adapted to the Mexican health system, according to evidence available through December 2012. The working group was composed of 30 trained and experienced rheumatologists with a high quality of clinical knowledge and judgment. Recommendations were based on the highest quality evidence from the previously established treatment guidelines, meta-analysis and controlled clinical trials for the adult population with rheumatoid arthritis. During the conformation of this document, each working group settled the existing evidence from the different topics according to their experience. Finally, all the evidence and decisions were unified into a single document, treatment algorithm and drug standardization tables. This update of the Mexican Guidelines for the Pharmacologic Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis provides the highest quality information available at the time the working group undertook this review and contextualizes its use for the complex Mexican health system. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier España, S.L. All rights reserved.

  7. [Pre-analytical stage for biomarker assessment in breast cancer: 2014 update of the GEFPICS' guidelines in France].

    PubMed

    MacGrogan, Gaëtan; Mathieu, Marie-Christine; Poulet, Bruno; Penault-Llorca, Frédérique; Vincent-Salomon, Anne; Roger, Pascal; Treilleux, Isabelle; Valent, Alexander; Antoine, Martine; Becette, Véronique; Bor, Catherine; Brabencova, Eva; Charafe-Jauffret, Emmanuelle; Chenard, Marie-Pierre; Dauplat, Marie-Mélanie; Delrée, Paul; Devouassoux, Mojgan; Fiche, Maryse; Fondrevelle, Marie-Eve; Fridman, Viviana; Garbar, Christian; Genin, Pascal; Ghnassia, Jean-Pierre; Haudebourg, Juliette; Laberge-Le Couteulx, Sophie; Loussouarn, Delphine; Maran-Gonzalez, Aurélie; Marcy, Myriam; Michenet, Patrick; Sagan, Christine; Trassard, Martine; Verriele, Véronique; Arnould, Laurent; Lacroix-Triki, Magali

    2014-10-01

    Biomarker assessment of breast cancer tumor samples is part of the routine workflow of pathology laboratories. International guidelines have recently been updated, with special regards to the pre-analytical steps that are critical for the quality of immunohistochemical and in situ hybridization procedures, whatever the biomarker analyzed. Fixation and specimen handling protocols must be standardized, validated and carefully tracked. Cooperation and training of the personnel involved in the specimen workflow (e.g. radiologists, surgeons, nurses, technicians and pathologists) are of paramount importance. The GEFPICS' update of the recommendations herein details and comments the different steps of the pre-analytical process. Application of these guidelines and participation to quality insurance programs are mandatory to ensure the correct evaluation of oncotheranostic biomarkers. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

  8. World Health Organization treatment guidelines for drug-resistant tuberculosis, 2016 update

    PubMed Central

    Schünemann, Holger J.; Harausz, Elizabeth; González-Angulo, Licé; Lienhardt, Christian; Jaramillo, Ernesto; Weyer, Karin

    2017-01-01

    Antimicrobial resistance is a major global concern. Tuberculosis (TB) strains resistant to rifampicin and other TB medicines challenge patient survival and public health. The World Health Organization (WHO) has published treatment guidelines for drug-resistant TB since 1997 and last updated them in 2016 based on reviews of aggregated and individual patient data from published and unpublished studies. An international expert panel formulated recommendations following the GRADE approach. The new WHO guidelines recommend a standardised 9–12 months shorter treatment regimen as first choice in patients with multidrug- or rifampicin-resistant TB (MDR/RR-TB) strains not resistant to fluoroquinolones or second-line injectable agents; resistance to these two classes of core second-line medicines is rapidly detectable with molecular diagnostics also approved by WHO in 2016. The composition of longer regimens for patients ineligible for the shorter regimen was modified. A first-ever meta-analysis of individual paediatric patient data allowed treatment recommendations for childhood MDR/RR-TB to be made. Delamanid is now also recommended in patients aged 6–17 years. Partial lung resection is a recommended option in MDR/RR-TB care. The 2016 revision highlighted the continued shortage of high-quality evidence and implementation research, and reiterated the need for clinical trials and best-practice studies to improve MDR/RR-TB patient treatment outcomes and strengthen policy. PMID:28331043

  9. Development of a soil conservation standard and guidelines for OHV recreation management in California

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Bedrossian, T.L.; Reynolds, S.D.

    2007-01-01

    In 2004, the California State Parks (CSP) agency contracted with the California Geological Survey (CGS) to update the 1991 Soil Conservation Guide-lines/Standards for Off-Highway Vehicle (OHV) Recreation Management. Per state legislation, the 1991 standards were updated to establish a generic and measurable standard at least sufficient to allow restoration of OHV areas and trails. Given the rapid increase in OHV use in California, the updated Soil Conservation Standard and Guidelines for OHV Recreation Management also allowed for sustainability of trail systems and recreation opportunities. A key part of the update was interaction with stakeholders, agencies, and other interest groups through public workshops and a Consulting Agency Review Committee composed of representatives from the U.S. Natural Resources Conservation Service, U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Geological Survey, California Department of Conservation, and CSP. CGS also assessed proposed revisions in three representative OHV areas to ensure that the updated Standard and Guidelines provided sufficient flexibility to allow their application to all sites state-wide, ecosystems with multiple geology and soils types, and a variety of vehicle uses. While geology was not the only basis for the guideline revisions, it was a major factor. CGS staff also had the breadth of knowledge and experience in engineering geology, hydrogeology, road and trail construction, erosion control, and OHV riding necessary to coordinate and develop the multidisciplinary and multi-stakeholder effort.

  10. 75 FR 3734 - 2009 HHS Poverty Guidelines Extended Until March 1, 2010

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-01-22

    ... DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES Office of the Secretary 2009 HHS Poverty Guidelines... 2009 Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) poverty guidelines will remain in effect until updated 2010 poverty guidelines are published, which shall not take place before March 1, 2010. DATES...

  11. School Desegregation Guidelines for Local and State Education Associations.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    National Education Association, Washington, DC.

    This pamphlet presents school desegregation guidelines for local and State education associations. The guidelines were adopted by the National Education Association (NEA) Board of Directors in February 1980, and are an updated version of guidelines adopted in 1974. Bilingual and multicultural concerns are addressed to some degree. Three…

  12. Introduction to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Healthcare Infection Control Practices Advisory Committee Guideline for the Prevention of Surgical Site Infections.

    PubMed

    Solomkin, Joseph S; Mazuski, John; Blanchard, Joan C; Itani, Kamal M F; Ricks, Philip; Dellinger, E Patchen; Allen, George; Kelz, Rachel; Reinke, Caroline E; Berríos-Torres, Sandra I

    Surgical site infection (SSI) is a common type of health-care-associated infection (HAI) and adds considerably to the individual, social, and economic costs of surgical treatment. This document serves to introduce the updated Guideline for the Prevention of SSI from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Healthcare Infection Control Practices Advisory Committee (HICPAC). The Core section of the guideline addresses issues relevant to multiple surgical specialties and procedures. The second procedure-specific section focuses on a high-volume, high-burden procedure: Prosthetic joint arthroplasty. While many elements of the 1999 guideline remain current, others warrant updating to incorporate new knowledge and changes in the patient population, operative techniques, emerging pathogens, and guideline development methodology.

  13. [Experiences with synopses of clinical guidelines using the example of synopses for Disease Management Programmes (DMP)].

    PubMed

    Siering, Ulrich; Rüther, Alric

    2014-01-01

    Guideline synopses, i.e. the systematic synthesis of clinical practice guidelines, are used as a basis for Disease Management Programmes (DMPs) in Germany. One of the responsibilities of the German Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG) is the preparation of guideline synopses for DMPs. The article describes the experiences with this methodology. For the preparation of guideline synopses, a systematic search for evidence-based guidelines is conducted, and their recommendations are extracted and synthesised. In parallel, the quality of the guidelines is assessed using the AGREE instrument. The need for updating or supplementing a DMP is justified by means of the Grade of Recommendation (GoR) or, alternatively, the Level of Evidence (LoE). Since 2006 IQWiG has synthesised recommendations from 256 evidence-based guidelines in 12 guideline synopses for DMPs. The results are then used by the Federal Joint Committee (G-BA) to update DMPs. Using the example of the 12 synopses, several analyses were conducted. It was determined that a search for guidelines in guideline databases is sufficient and that a search in bibliographic databases can be dispensed with. Furthermore, the analyses showed that a large proportion of recommendations in evidence-based guidelines are not clearly linked to a GoR or LoE. If GoR and LoE are provided, only about 42% of recommendations with a strong GoR also refer to a strong LoE. It was also shown that only 21 % of the analysed guideline providers supplied information on the handling of unpublished data. With consistent average to high values, the assessment of the methodological quality across all of the prepared synopses allows for the conclusion of a basically acceptable guideline quality, but with a need for improvement. A guideline synopsis is an established tool for identifying health care standards as a basis for developing and updating DMPs. Further methodological development, particularly in collaboration with guideline providers, appears to be reasonable. It should be examined whether guideline synopses are suitable not only for guideline and DMP development, but also for other health care issues. Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier GmbH.

  14. Between universalism and relativism: a conceptual exploration of problems in formulating and applying international biomedical ethical guidelines.

    PubMed

    Tangwa, G B

    2004-02-01

    In this paper, the author attempts to explore some of the problems connected with the formulation and application of international biomedical ethical guidelines, with particular reference to Africa. Recent attempts at revising and updating some international medical ethical guidelines have been bedevilled by intractable controversies and wrangling regarding both the content and formulation. From the vantage position of relative familiarity with both African and Western contexts, and the privilege of having been involved in the revision and updating of one of the international ethical guidelines, the author reflects broadly on these issues and attempts prescribing an approach from both the theoretical and practical angles liable to mitigate, if not completely eliminate, some of the problems and difficulties.

  15. U.S. EPA’S GUIDELINES FOR WATER REUSE

    EPA Science Inventory

    In August 2004, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Agency for International Development published “Guidelines for Water Reuse”, updating their 1992 guidelines document. Because communities around the world are reaching, or have reached, the limits o...

  16. World Allergy Organization Anaphylaxis Guidelines: 2013 update of the evidence base.

    PubMed

    Simons, F Estelle R; Ardusso, Ledit R F; Dimov, Vesselin; Ebisawa, Motohiro; El-Gamal, Yehia M; Lockey, Richard F; Sanchez-Borges, Mario; Senna, Gian Enrico; Sheikh, Aziz; Thong, Bernard Y; Worm, Margitta

    2013-01-01

    The World Allergy Organization (WAO) Guidelines for the assessment and management of anaphylaxis are a widely disseminated and used resource for information about anaphylaxis. They focus on patients at risk, triggers, clinical diagnosis, treatment in health care settings, self-treatment in the community, and prevention of recurrences. Their unique strengths include a global perspective informed by prior research on the global availability of essentials for anaphylaxis assessment and management and a global agenda for anaphylaxis research. Additionally, detailed colored illustrations are linked to key concepts in the text [Simons et al.: J Allergy Clin Immunol 2011;127:593.e1-e22]. The recommendations in the original WAO Anaphylaxis Guidelines for management of anaphylaxis in health care settings and community settings were based on evidence published in peer-reviewed, indexed medical journals to the end of 2010. These recommendations remain unchanged and clinically relevant. An update of the evidence base was published in 2012 [Simons et al.: Curr Opin Allergy Clin Immunol 2012;12:389-399]. In 2012 and early 2013, major advances were reported in the following areas: further characterization of patient phenotypes; development of in vitro tests (for some allergens) that help distinguish clinical risk of anaphylaxis from asymptomatic sensitization; epinephrine (adrenaline) research, including studies of a new epinephrine auto-injector for use in community settings, and randomized controlled trials of immunotherapy to prevent food-induced anaphylaxis. Despite these advances, the need for additional prospective studies, including randomized controlled trials of interventions in anaphylaxis is increasingly apparent. This 2013 Update highlights publications from 2012 and 2013 that further contribute to the evidence base for the recommendations made in the original WAO Anaphylaxis Guidelines. Ideally, it should be used in conjunction with these Guidelines and with the 2012 Guidelines Update. © 2013 S. Karger AG, Basel.

  17. Troponin test

    MedlinePlus

    ... Bates ER, Blankenship JC, et al. 2015 ACC/AHA/SCAI Focused update on primary percutaneous coronary intervention ... myocardial infarction: an update of the 2011 ACCF/AHA/SCAI guideline for percutaneous coronary intervention and the ...

  18. NCCN Guidelines Insights: Multiple Myeloma, Version 3.2018.

    PubMed

    Kumar, Shaji K; Callander, Natalie S; Alsina, Melissa; Atanackovic, Djordje; Biermann, J Sybil; Castillo, Jorge; Chandler, Jason C; Costello, Caitlin; Faiman, Matthew; Fung, Henry C; Godby, Kelly; Hofmeister, Craig; Holmberg, Leona; Holstein, Sarah; Huff, Carol Ann; Kang, Yubin; Kassim, Adetola; Liedtke, Michaela; Malek, Ehsan; Martin, Thomas; Neppalli, Vishala T; Omel, James; Raje, Noopur; Singhal, Seema; Somlo, George; Stockerl-Goldstein, Keith; Weber, Donna; Yahalom, Joachim; Kumar, Rashmi; Shead, Dorothy A

    2018-01-01

    The NCCN Guidelines for Multiple Myeloma provide recommendations for diagnosis, evaluation, treatment, including supportive-care, and follow-up for patients with myeloma. These NCCN Guidelines Insights highlight the important updates/changes specific to the myeloma therapy options in the 2018 version of the NCCN Guidelines. Copyright © 2018 by the National Comprehensive Cancer Network.

  19. How updating textual clinical practice guidelines impacts clinical decision support systems: a case study with bladder cancer management.

    PubMed

    Bouaud, Jacques; Séroussi, Brigitte; Brizon, Ambre; Culty, Thibault; Mentré, France; Ravery, Vincent

    2007-01-01

    Guideline-based clinical decision support systems (CDSSs) can be effective in increasing physician compliance with recommendations. However, the ever growing pace at which medical knowledge is produced requires that clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) be updated regularly. It is therefore mandatory that CDSSs be revised accordingly. The French Association for Urology publishes CPGs on bladder cancer management every 2 years. We studied the impact of the 2004 revision of these guidelines, with respect to the 2002 version with a CDSS, UroDoc. We proposed a typology of knowledge base modifications resulting from the update of CPGs making the difference between practice, clinical conditions and recommendations refinement as opposed to new practice and new recommendations. The number of formalized recommendations increased from 577 in 2002 to 1,081 in 2004. We evaluated the two versions of UroDoc on a randomized sample of patient records. A single new practice that modifies a decision taken in 49% of all recorded decisions leads to a fall from 67% to 46% of the compliance rate of decisions.

  20. U.S. EPA’S GUIDELINES FOR WATER REUSE

    EPA Science Inventory

    In August 2004, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Agency for International Development published “Guidelines for Water Reuse”, updating their 1992 guidelines document. Because communities around the world are reaching, or have reached, the limits of available...

  1. [Impact of conflicts of interest on guideline recommendations : Empirical study within the second update of the German interdisciplinary S3 guidelines on fibromyalgia syndrome].

    PubMed

    Häuser, W; Petzke, F; Kopp, I; Nothacker, M

    2017-06-01

    The impact of conflicts of interest (COI) in general and of academic COI in particular on guideline recommendations in pain medicine has not yet been studied. Whether the inclusion of patients and of representatives of all relevant healthcare professions into a guidelines group is protective against a systematic bias of decisions of a guidelines group is currently unknown. All members of the guidelines group declared their COI before the consensus conferences by a standard form according to the rules and standards of the Association of the German Medical and Scientific Societies. The acceptance or rejection and the strength of consensus of recommendations of the second update of the interdisciplinary guidelines on fibromyalgia syndrome was analyzed twice by first including and then excluding the votes of the guideline group members with COI related to a recommendation from the results of anonymous voting via an internet platform. A total of 42 persons from different healthcare professions and patients participated in the online voting on recommendations. Of the participants 29% had no COI according to the predefined criteria, 53% met the criteria of academic and 33% the criteria of financial COI. In the case of exclusion of participants with a COI related to a specific recommendation, 2 out of 23 recommendations (homeopathy, tramadol) were not accepted. In all votes, there were more participants without COI than with COI. Academic COI were more frequent than financial COI in the second update of the German interdisciplinary guidelines group on fibromyalgia syndrome. The impact of COI on guideline recommendations was low. The inclusion of patients and of all relevant healthcare professionals into a guidelines group is a protective factor against the influence of COI on guideline recommendations.

  2. EAU Guidelines on Non-Muscle-invasive Urothelial Carcinoma of the Bladder: Update 2016.

    PubMed

    Babjuk, Marko; Böhle, Andreas; Burger, Maximilian; Capoun, Otakar; Cohen, Daniel; Compérat, Eva M; Hernández, Virginia; Kaasinen, Eero; Palou, Joan; Rouprêt, Morgan; van Rhijn, Bas W G; Shariat, Shahrokh F; Soukup, Viktor; Sylvester, Richard J; Zigeuner, Richard

    2017-03-01

    The European Association of Urology (EAU) panel on Non-muscle-invasive Bladder Cancer (NMIBC) released an updated version of the guidelines on Non-muscle-invasive Bladder Cancer. To present the 2016 EAU guidelines on NMIBC. A broad and comprehensive scoping exercise covering all areas of the NMIBC guidelines published between April 1, 2014, and May 31, 2015, was performed. Databases covered by the search included Medline, Embase, and the Cochrane Libraries. Previous guidelines were updated, and levels of evidence and grades of recommendation were assigned. Tumours staged as TaT1 or carcinoma in situ (CIS) are grouped as NMIBC. Diagnosis depends on cystoscopy and histologic evaluation of the tissue obtained by transurethral resection of the bladder (TURB) in papillary tumours or by multiple bladder biopsies in CIS. In papillary lesions, a complete TURB is essential for the patient's prognosis. If the initial resection is incomplete, there is no muscle in the specimen, or a high-grade or T1 tumour is detected, a second TURB should be performed within 2-6 wk. The risks of both recurrence and progression may be estimated for individual patients using the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) scoring system and risk tables. The stratification of patients into low-, intermediate-, and high-risk groups is pivotal to recommending adjuvant treatment. For patients with a low-risk tumour and intermediate-risk patients at a lower risk of recurrence, one immediate instillation of chemotherapy is recommended. Patients with an intermediate-risk tumour should receive 1 yr of full-dose bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) intravesical immunotherapy or instillations of chemotherapy for a maximum of 1 yr. In patients with high-risk tumours, full-dose intravesical BCG for 1-3 yr is indicated. In patients at highest risk of tumour progression, immediate radical cystectomy (RC) should be considered. RC is recommended in BCG-refractory tumours. The long version of the guidelines is available at the EAU Web site (www.uroweb.org/guidelines). These abridged EAU guidelines present updated information on the diagnosis and treatment of NMIBC for incorporation into clinical practice. The European Association of Urology has released updated guidelines on Non-muscle-invasive Bladder Cancer (NMIBC). Stratification of patients into low-, intermediate-, and high-risk groups is essential for decisions about adjuvant intravesical instillations. Risk tables can be used to estimate risks of recurrence and progression. Radical cystectomy should be considered only in case of failure of instillations or in NMIBC with the highest risk of progression. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  3. Systematic review: the quality of the scientific evidence and conflicts of interest in international inflammatory bowel disease practice guidelines.

    PubMed

    Feuerstein, J D; Akbari, M; Gifford, A E; Cullen, G; Leffler, D A; Sheth, S G; Cheifetz, A S

    2013-05-01

    Guidelines published by the international gastroenterology societies establish standards of care and seek to improve patient outcomes. We examined inflammatory bowel disease guidelines (IBD) for quality of evidence, methods of grading evidence and conflicts of interest (COI). All 182 guidelines published by the American College of Gastroenterology, American Gastroenterological Association, British Society of Gastroenterology, Canadian Association of Gastroenterology, Crohn's and Colitis Foundation of America and European Crohn's and Colitis Organisation as of 27 September 2012 were reviewed. Nineteen IBD guidelines were found. Eighty-nine per cent (n = 17/19) of the guidelines graded the levels of evidence using seven different systems. Of the 1070 recommendations reviewed, 23% (n = 249) cited level A evidence; 28% (n = 302) level B; 36% (n = 383) level C and 13% (n = 136) level D. The mean age of the guidelines was 4.2 years. In addition, 61% (n = 11/19) of the guidelines failed to comment on COI. All eight articles commenting on COI had conflicts with 81% (n = 92/113) of authors reported an average 11.7 COI. Lastly, there were variations in the recommendations between societies. Nearly half the IBD guideline recommendations are based on expert opinion or no evidence. Majority of the guidelines fail to disclose any COI, and when commenting, all have numerous COI. Furthermore, the guidelines are not updated frequently and there is a lack of consensus between societal guidelines. This study highlights the critical need to centralize and redesign the guidelines development process. © 2013 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

  4. Systematic review on tuberculosis transmission on aircraft and update of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control risk assessment guidelines for tuberculosis transmitted on aircraft (RAGIDA-TB).

    PubMed

    Kotila, Saara M; Payne Hallström, Lara; Jansen, Niesje; Helbling, Peter; Abubakar, Ibrahim

    2016-01-01

    As a setting for potential tuberculosis (TB) transmission and contact tracing, aircraft pose specific challenges. Evidence-based guidelines are needed to support the related-risk assessment and contact-tracing efforts. In this study evidence of TB transmission on aircraft was identified to update the Risk Assessment Guidelines for TB Transmitted on Aircraft (RAGIDA-TB) of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC). Electronic searches were undertaken from Medline (Pubmed), Embase and Cochrane Library until 19 July 2013. Eligible records were identified by a two-stage screening process and data on flight and index case characteristics as well as contact tracing strategies extracted. The systematic literature review retrieved 21 records. Ten of these records were available only after the previous version of the RAGIDA guidelines (2009) and World Health Organization guidelines on TB and air travel (2008) were published. Seven of the 21 records presented some evidence of possible in-flight transmission, but only one record provided substantial evidence of TB transmission on an aircraft. The data indicate that overall risk of TB transmission on aircraft is very low. The updated ECDC guidelines for TB transmission on aircraft have global implications due to inevitable need for international collaboration in contract tracing and risk assessment.

  5. Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Standards and Guidelines. Final rule.

    PubMed

    2017-01-18

    We, the Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board (Access Board or Board), are revising and updating, in a single rulemaking, our standards for electronic and information technology developed, procured, maintained, or used by Federal agencies covered by section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as well as our guidelines for telecommunications equipment and customer premises equipment covered by Section 255 of the Communications Act of 1934. The revisions and updates to the section 508-based standards and section 255-based guidelines are intended to ensure that information and communication technology covered by the respective statutes is accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities.

  6. Central nervous system cancers, version 2.2014. Featured updates to the NCCN Guidelines.

    PubMed

    Nabors, Louis Burt; Portnow, Jana; Ammirati, Mario; Brem, Henry; Brown, Paul; Butowski, Nicholas; Chamberlain, Marc C; DeAngelis, Lisa M; Fenstermaker, Robert A; Friedman, Allan; Gilbert, Mark R; Hattangadi-Gluth, Jona; Hesser, Deneen; Holdhoff, Matthias; Junck, Larry; Lawson, Ronald; Loeffler, Jay S; Moots, Paul L; Mrugala, Maciej M; Newton, Herbert B; Raizer, Jeffrey J; Recht, Lawrence; Shonka, Nicole; Shrieve, Dennis C; Sills, Allen K; Swinnen, Lode J; Tran, David; Tran, Nam; Vrionis, Frank D; Wen, Patrick Yung; McMillian, Nicole R; Ho, Maria

    2014-11-01

    The NCCN Guidelines for Central Nervous System Cancers provide multidisciplinary recommendations for the clinical management of patients with cancers of the central nervous system. These NCCN Guidelines Insights highlight recent updates regarding the management of metastatic brain tumors using radiation therapy. Use of stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) is no longer limited to patients with 3 or fewer lesions, because data suggest that total disease burden, rather than number of lesions, is predictive of survival benefits associated with the technique. SRS is increasingly becoming an integral part of management of patients with controlled, low-volume brain metastases. Copyright © 2014 by the National Comprehensive Cancer Network.

  7. 2017 European guideline for the screening, prevention and initial management of hepatitis B and C infections in sexual health settings.

    PubMed

    Brook, Gary; Brockmeyer, Norbert; van de Laar, Thijs; Schellberg, Sven; Winter, Andrew J

    2018-01-01

    This guideline updates the 2010 European guideline for the management of hepatitis B and C virus infections. It is primarily intended to provide advice on testing, prevention and initial management of viral hepatitis B and C for clinicians working in sexual health clinical settings in European countries. The guideline is in a new question and answer format based on clinical situations, from which population/intervention/comparison/outcome questions were formulated. Updates cover areas such as epidemiology, point-of-care tests for hepatitis B, hepatitis C risk and 'chemsex', and HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis and hepatitis B. We have also included a short paragraph on hepatitis E noting there is no evidence for sexual transmission. The guideline has been prepared in accordance with the Europe protocol for production available at http://www.iusti.org/regions/europe/pdf/2017/ProtocolForProduction2017.pdf.

  8. Maintaining financial independence in advanced age.

    PubMed

    Barber, Ann

    2007-01-01

    In an attempt to personalize Nobel Prize-winning financial literature, this article seeks to show how individuals can take responsibility for their own finances. For instance, before Markowitz's work, pension funds shied away from risky investments. Then, Markowitz proved that the safest portfolios are those that are diversified over many asset classes, including risky investments. More recently, Kahneman's psychological experiments proved that during uncertainty, people tend to generalize from a small number of representatives to the larger group. He warns us to collect data before drawing conclusions. Using such insights, this article shows how persons in advanced age can develop Investment Policy Statements (IPS) that tailor their financial resources to serve their life goals. This is accomplished safely and successfully by following some guidelines, based on lessons from the financial literature. These guidelines are as follows: (a) update IPS annually, (b) diversify annually by rebalancing, (c) match new liabilities to specific assets, (d) be aware of common errors, such as loss aversion, and (e) measure success by whether one's goals have been met.

  9. Practical guidelines for familial combined hyperlipidemia diagnosis: an up-date

    PubMed Central

    Gaddi, Antonio; Cicero, AFG; Odoo, FO; Poli A, A; Paoletti, R

    2007-01-01

    Familial combined hyperlidemia (FCH) is a common metabolic disorder characterized by: (a) increase in cholesterolemia and/or triglyceridemia in at least two members of the same family, (b) intra-individual and intrafamilial variability of the lipid phenotype, and (c) increased risk of premature coronary heart disease (CHD). FCH is very frequent and is one of the most common genetic hyperlipidemias in the general population (prevalence estimated: 0.5%–2.0%), being the most frequent in patients affected by CHD (10%) and among acute myocardial infarction survivors aged less than 60 (11.3%). This percentage increases to 40% when all the myocardial infarction survivors are considered without age limits. However, because of the peculiar variability of laboratory parameters, and because of the frequent overlapping with the features of metabolic syndrome, this serious disease is often not recognized and treated. The aim of this review is to define the main characteristics of the disease in order to simplify its detection and early treatment by all physicians by mean of practical guidelines. PMID:18200807

  10. Practical guidelines for familial combined hyperlipidemia diagnosis: an up-date.

    PubMed

    Gaddi, Antonio; Cicero, A F G; Odoo, F O; Poli, A A; Paoletti, R

    2007-01-01

    Familial combined hyperlidemia (FCH) is a common metabolic disorder characterized by: (a) increase in cholesterolemia and/or triglyceridemia in at least two members of the same family, (b) intra-individual and intrafamilial variability of the lipid phenotype, and (c) increased risk of premature coronary heart disease (CHD). FCH is very frequent and is one of the most common genetic hyperlipidemias in the general population (prevalence estimated: 0.5%-2.0%), being the most frequent in patients affected by CHD (10%) and among acute myocardial infarction survivors aged less than 60 (11.3%). This percentage increases to 40% when all the myocardial infarction survivors are considered without age limits. However, because of the peculiar variability of laboratory parameters, and because of the frequent overlapping with the features of metabolic syndrome, this serious disease is often not recognized and treated. The aim of this review is to define the main characteristics of the disease in order to simplify its detection and early treatment by all physicians by mean of practical guidelines.

  11. Canadian Guidelines for the Pharmacological Treatment of Schizophrenia Spectrum and Other Psychotic Disorders in Children and Youth.

    PubMed

    Abidi, Sabina; Mian, Irfan; Garcia-Ortega, Iliana; Lecomte, Tania; Raedler, Thomas; Jackson, Kevin; Jackson, Kim; Pringsheim, Tamara; Addington, Donald

    2017-09-01

    Schizophrenia spectrum and other psychotic disorders often have their onset in adolescence. The sequelae of these illnesses can negatively alter the trajectory of emotional, cognitive, and social development in children and youth if left untreated. Early and appropriate interventions can improve outcomes. This article aims to identify best practices in the pharmacotherapy management of children and youth with schizophrenia spectrum disorders. A systematic search was conducted for published guidelines for schizophrenia and schizophrenia spectrum disorders in children and youth (under age 18 years). Recommendations were drawn from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines on psychosis and schizophrenia in children and youth (2013 and 2015 updates). Current guidelines were adopted using the ADAPTE process, which includes consensus ratings by a panel of experts. Recommendations identified covered a range of issues in the pharmacotherapy management of children and youth with schizophrenia spectrum disorders. Further work in this area is warranted as we continue to further understand their presentation in the developing brain. Canadian guidelines for the pharmacotherapy management of children and youth with schizophrenia spectrum disorders are essential to assist clinicians in treating this vulnerable population. Ongoing work in this area is recommended.

  12. Cholesterol treatment guidelines update.

    PubMed

    Safeer, Richard S; Ugalat, Prabha S

    2002-03-01

    Hypercholesterolemia is one of the major contributors to atherosclerosis and coronary heart disease in our society. The National Cholesterol Education Program of the National Institutes of Health has created a set of guidelines that standardize the clinical assessment and management of hypercholesterolemia for practicing physicians and other professionals in the medical community. In May 2001, the National Cholesterol Education Program released its third set of guidelines, reflecting changes in cholesterol management since their previous report in 1993. In addition to modifying current strategies of risk assessment, the new guidelines stress the importance of an aggressive therapeutic approach in the management of hypercholesterolemia. The major risk factors that modify low-density lipoprotein goals include age, smoking status, hypertension, high-density lipoprotein levels, and family history. The concept of "CHD equivalent" is introduced-conditions requiring the same vigilance used in patients with coronary heart disease. Patients with diabetes and those with a 10-year cardiac event risk of 20 percent or greater are considered CHD equivalents. Once low-density lipoprotein cholesterol is at an accepted level, physicians are advised to address the metabolic syndrome and hypertriglyceridemia.

  13. Practice guidelines for the diagnosis and management of skin and soft tissue infections: 2014 update by the infectious diseases society of America.

    PubMed

    Stevens, Dennis L; Bisno, Alan L; Chambers, Henry F; Dellinger, E Patchen; Goldstein, Ellie J C; Gorbach, Sherwood L; Hirschmann, Jan V; Kaplan, Sheldon L; Montoya, Jose G; Wade, James C

    2014-07-15

    A panel of national experts was convened by the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) to update the 2005 guidelines for the treatment of skin and soft tissue infections (SSTIs). The panel's recommendations were developed to be concordant with the recently published IDSA guidelines for the treatment of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infections. The focus of this guideline is the diagnosis and appropriate treatment of diverse SSTIs ranging from minor superficial infections to life-threatening infections such as necrotizing fasciitis. In addition, because of an increasing number of immunocompromised hosts worldwide, the guideline addresses the wide array of SSTIs that occur in this population. These guidelines emphasize the importance of clinical skills in promptly diagnosing SSTIs, identifying the pathogen, and administering effective treatments in a timely fashion. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Infectious Diseases Society of America. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  14. Practice guidelines for the diagnosis and management of skin and soft tissue infections: 2014 update by the Infectious Diseases Society of America.

    PubMed

    Stevens, Dennis L; Bisno, Alan L; Chambers, Henry F; Dellinger, E Patchen; Goldstein, Ellie J C; Gorbach, Sherwood L; Hirschmann, Jan V; Kaplan, Sheldon L; Montoya, Jose G; Wade, James C

    2014-07-15

    A panel of national experts was convened by the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) to update the 2005 guidelines for the treatment of skin and soft tissue infections (SSTIs). The panel's recommendations were developed to be concordant with the recently published IDSA guidelines for the treatment of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infections. The focus of this guideline is the diagnosis and appropriate treatment of diverse SSTIs ranging from minor superficial infections to life-threatening infections such as necrotizing fasciitis. In addition, because of an increasing number of immunocompromised hosts worldwide, the guideline addresses the wide array of SSTIs that occur in this population. These guidelines emphasize the importance of clinical skills in promptly diagnosing SSTIs, identifying the pathogen, and administering effective treatments in a timely fashion. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Infectious Diseases Society of America. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  15. Evaluating Pesticides for Carcinogenic Potential

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    EPA reviews pesticides for potential carcinogenicity. Learn about EPA's guidelines for evaluating a chemical's potential carcinogenicity and updates to EPA's guidelines to reflect increased understanding of ways chemicals may cause cancer.

  16. Between universalism and relativism: a conceptual exploration of problems in formulating and applying international biomedical ethical guidelines

    PubMed Central

    Tangwa, G

    2004-01-01

    In this paper, the author attempts to explore some of the problems connected with the formulation and application of international biomedical ethical guidelines, with particular reference to Africa. Recent attempts at revising and updating some international medical ethical guidelines have been bedevilled by intractable controversies and wrangling regarding both the content and formulation. From the vantage position of relative familiarity with both African and Western contexts, and the privilege of having been involved in the revision and updating of one of the international ethical guidelines, the author reflects broadly on these issues and attempts prescribing an approach from both the theoretical and practical angles liable to mitigate, if not completely eliminate, some of the problems and difficulties. PMID:14872078

  17. Wilderness Medical Society practice guidelines for the prevention and treatment of lightning injuries: 2014 update.

    PubMed

    Davis, Chris; Engeln, Anna; Johnson, Eric L; McIntosh, Scott E; Zafren, Ken; Islas, Arthur A; McStay, Christopher; Smith, William R; Cushing, Tracy

    2014-12-01

    To provide guidance to clinicians about best practices, the Wilderness Medical Society (WMS) convened an expert panel to develop evidence-based guidelines for the treatment and prevention of lightning injuries. These guidelines include a review of the epidemiology of lightning and recommendations for the prevention of lightning strikes, along with treatment recommendations organized by organ system. Recommendations are graded on the basis of the quality of supporting evidence according to criteria put forth by the American College of Chest Physicians. This is an updated version of the original WMS Practice Guidelines for Prevention and Treatment of Lightning Injuries published in Wilderness & Environmental Medicine 2012;23(3):260-269. Copyright © 2014 Wilderness Medical Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  18. Updating Dosimetry for Emergency Response Dose Projections.

    PubMed

    DeCair, Sara

    2016-02-01

    In 2013, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed an update to the 1992 Protective Action Guides (PAG) Manual. The PAG Manual provides guidance to state and local officials planning for radiological emergencies. EPA requested public comment on the proposed revisions, while making them available for interim use by officials faced with an emergency situation. Developed with interagency partners, EPA's proposal incorporates newer dosimetric methods, identifies tools and guidelines developed since the current document was issued, and extends the scope of the PAGs to all significant radiological incidents, including radiological dispersal devices or improvised nuclear devices. In order to best serve the emergency management community, scientific policy direction had to be set on how to use International Commission on Radiological Protection Publication 60 age groups in dose assessment when implementing emergency guidelines. Certain guidelines that lend themselves to different PAGs for different subpopulations are the PAGs for potassium iodide (KI), food, and water. These guidelines provide age-specific recommendations because of the radiosensitivity of the thyroid and young children with respect to ingestion and inhalation doses in particular. Taking protective actions like using KI, avoiding certain foods or using alternative sources of drinking water can be relatively simple to implement by the parents of young children. Clear public messages can convey which age groups should take which action, unlike how an evacuation or relocation order should apply to entire households or neighborhoods. New in the PAG Manual is planning guidance for the late phase of an incident, after the situation is stabilized and efforts turn toward recovery. Because the late phase can take years to complete, decision makers are faced with managing public exposures in areas not fully remediated. The proposal includes quick-reference operational guidelines to inform re-entry to the contaminated zone. Broad guidance on approaches to wide-area cleanup and cleanup goals is also provided. EPA adapted the cleanup process from the 2008 U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Planning Guidance for Protection and Recovery Following Radiological Dispersal Device (RDD) and Improvised Nuclear Device (IND) Incidents, and the final PAG Manual will supersede that DHS guidance. Waste management guidance is also provided. Recognizing that an incident could result in radioactive waste volumes that severely strain or exceed available resources and capacity, officials may consider alternatives for disposal of waste that is relatively lightly contaminated. Waste management, including treatment, staging, and interim and long-term storage, must be an integral part of recovery.

  19. Play for All Guidelines: Planning, Design and Management of Outdoor Play Settings for All Children. Second Edition.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Moore, Robin C., Ed.; Goltsman, Susan M., Ed.; Iacofano, Daniel S., Ed.

    These guidelines assist professional designers, park and recreation managers, and community groups when making decisions about the planning, design, and ongoing management of children's public play environments. The guidelines are updated to meet or exceed the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act Guidelines (July 26, 1991) and the…

  20. The European Stroke Organisation Guidelines: a standard operating procedure.

    PubMed

    Ntaios, George; Bornstein, Natan M; Caso, Valeria; Christensen, Hanne; De Keyser, Jacques; Diener, Hans-Christoph; Diez-Tejedor, Exuperio; Ferro, Jose M; Ford, Gary A; Grau, Armin; Keller, Emanuella; Leys, Didier; Russell, David; Toni, Danilo; Turc, Guillaume; Van der Worp, Bart; Wahlgren, Nils; Steiner, Thorsten

    2015-10-01

    In 2008, the recently founded European Stroke Organisation published its guidelines for the management of ischemic stroke and transient ischemic attack. This highly cited document was translated in several languages and was updated in 2009. Since then, the European Stroke Organisation has published guidelines for the management of intracranial aneurysms and subarachnoidal hemorrhage, for the establishment of stroke units and stroke centers, and recently for the management of intracerebral hemorrhage. In recent years, the methodology for the development of guidelines has evolved significantly. To keep pace with this progress and driven by the strong determination of the European Stroke Organisation to further promote stroke management, education, and research, the European Stroke Organisation decided to delineate a detailed standard operating procedure for its guidelines. There are two important cornerstones in this standard operating procedure: The first is the implementation of the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation methodology for the development of its Guideline Documents. The second one is the decision of the European Stroke Organisation to move from the classical model of a single Guideline Document about a major topic (e.g. management of ischemic stroke) to focused modules (i.e. subdivisions of a major topic). This will enable the European Stroke Organisation to react faster when new developments in a specific stroke field occur and update its recommendations on the related module rather swiftly; with the previous approach of a single large Guideline Document, its entire revision had to be completed before an updated publication, delaying the production of up-to-date guidelines. After discussion within the European Stroke Organisation Guidelines Committee and significant input from European Stroke Organisation members as well as methodologists and analysts, this document presents the official standard operating procedure for the development of the Guideline Documents of the European Stroke Organisation. © 2015 World Stroke Organization.

  1. Alcohol Marketing on Twitter and Instagram: Evidence of Directly Advertising to Youth/Adolescents.

    PubMed

    Barry, Adam E; Bates, Austin M; Olusanya, Olufunto; Vinal, Cystal E; Martin, Emily; Peoples, Janiene E; Jackson, Zachary A; Billinger, Shanaisa A; Yusuf, Aishatu; Cauley, Daunte A; Montano, Javier R

    2016-07-01

    Assess whether alcohol companies restrict youth/adolescent access, interaction, and exposure to their marketing on Twitter and Instagram. Employed five fictitious male and female Twitter (n = 10) and Instagram (n = 10) user profiles aged 13, 15, 17, 19 and/or 21. Using cellular smartphones, we determined whether profiles could (a) interact with advertising content-e.g. retweet, view video or picture content, comment, share URL; and/or (b) follow and directly receive advertising material updates from the official Instagram and Twitter pages of 22 alcohol brands for 30 days. All user profiles could fully access, view, and interact with alcohol industry content posted on Instagram and Twitter. Twitter's age-gate, which restricts access for those under 21, successfully prevented underage profiles from following and subsequently receiving promotional material/updates. The two 21+ profiles collectively received 1836 alcohol-related tweets within 30 days. All Instagram profiles, however, were able to follow all alcohol brand pages and received an average of 362 advertisements within 30 days. The quantity of promotional updates increased throughout the week, reaching their peak on Thursday and Friday. Representatives/controllers of alcohol brand Instagram pages would respond directly to our underage user's comments. The alcohol industry is in violation of their proposed self-regulation guidelines for digital marketing communications on Instagram. While Twitter's age-gate effectively blocked direct to phone updates, unhindered access to post was possible. Everyday our fictitious profiles, even those as young as 13, were bombarded with alcohol industry messages and promotional material directly to their smartphones. © The Author 2015. Medical Council on Alcohol and Oxford University Press. All rights reserved.

  2. Cardiovascular Update: Risk, Guidelines, and Recommendations.

    PubMed

    Pearson, Tamera

    2015-09-01

    This article provides an update of the current status of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in the United States, including a brief review of the underlying pathophysiology and epidemiology. This article presents a discussion of the latest American Heart Association guidelines that introduce the concept of promoting ideal cardiovascular health, defined by seven identified metrics. Specific CVD risk factors and utilization of the 10-year CVD event prediction calculator are discussed. In addition, current management recommendations of health-related conditions that increase risk for CVD, such as hypertension and hypercholesterolemia, are provided. Finally, a discussion of detailed evidence-based lifestyle recommendations to promote cardiovascular health and reduce CVD risks concludes the update. © 2015 The Author(s).

  3. STDs and Pregnancy

    MedlinePlus

    ... Status of EPT Legal/Policy Toolkit Gemifloxacin Procaine Penicillin G Shortage Additional Resources Archive Drug Notices Azithromycin ... Pyloric Stenosis Cefixime Spectinomycin – Alternative Treatments Alternatives to Penicillin G Updating the STD Treatment Guidelines 2010 Guidelines ...

  4. STDs and Infertility

    MedlinePlus

    ... Status of EPT Legal/Policy Toolkit Gemifloxacin Procaine Penicillin G Shortage Additional Resources Archive Drug Notices Azithromycin ... Pyloric Stenosis Cefixime Spectinomycin – Alternative Treatments Alternatives to Penicillin G Updating the STD Treatment Guidelines 2010 Guidelines ...

  5. World Health Organization treatment guidelines for drug-resistant tuberculosis, 2016 update.

    PubMed

    Falzon, Dennis; Schünemann, Holger J; Harausz, Elizabeth; González-Angulo, Licé; Lienhardt, Christian; Jaramillo, Ernesto; Weyer, Karin

    2017-03-01

    Antimicrobial resistance is a major global concern. Tuberculosis (TB) strains resistant to rifampicin and other TB medicines challenge patient survival and public health. The World Health Organization (WHO) has published treatment guidelines for drug-resistant TB since 1997 and last updated them in 2016 based on reviews of aggregated and individual patient data from published and unpublished studies. An international expert panel formulated recommendations following the GRADE approach. The new WHO guidelines recommend a standardised 9-12 months shorter treatment regimen as first choice in patients with multidrug- or rifampicin-resistant TB (MDR/RR-TB) strains not resistant to fluoroquinolones or second-line injectable agents; resistance to these two classes of core second-line medicines is rapidly detectable with molecular diagnostics also approved by WHO in 2016. The composition of longer regimens for patients ineligible for the shorter regimen was modified. A first-ever meta-analysis of individual paediatric patient data allowed treatment recommendations for childhood MDR/RR-TB to be made. Delamanid is now also recommended in patients aged 6-17 years. Partial lung resection is a recommended option in MDR/RR-TB care. The 2016 revision highlighted the continued shortage of high-quality evidence and implementation research, and reiterated the need for clinical trials and best-practice studies to improve MDR/RR-TB patient treatment outcomes and strengthen policy. The content of this work is copyright of the authors or their employers. Design and branding are copyright ©ERS 2017.

  6. Australasian Society for HIV, Viral Hepatitis and Sexual Health Medicine HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis: clinical guidelines. Update April 2018.

    PubMed

    Wright, Edwina; Grulich, Andrew; Roy, Katy; Boyd, Mark; Cornelisse, Vincent; Russell, Darren; O'Donnell, Darryl; Whittaker, Bill; Crooks, Levinia; Zablotska, Iryna

    2018-04-01

    Daily use of coformulated tenofovir and emtricitabine for HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) by populations at high risk of HIV infection is now recommended in guidelines from the United States, Europe and Australia and globally through the 2015 WHO guidelines. These 2017 Australasian Society for HIV, Viral Hepatitis and Sexual Health Medicine's (ASHM) PrEP Guidelines are an updated adaptation of the 2014 US Centers for Disease Control's PrEP guidelines and are designed to: •Support the prescription of PrEP using forms of coformulated tenofovir and emtricitabine that have been registered in Australia by the Therapeutic Goods Administration and other bioequivalent generic drugs that are available in Australia through self-importation, private prescription or Australian PrEP clinical trials•Assist clinicians in the evaluation of patients who are seeking PrEP•Assist clinicians in commencing and monitoring patients on PrEP including PrEP dosing schedules, management of side-effects and toxicity, use of PrEP in pregnancy and in chronic hepatitis B infection and how to cease PrEP Daily PrEP with co-formulated tenofovir and emtricitabine, used continuously or for shorter periods of time, is recommended in these guidelines as a key HIV-prevention option for men who have sex with men (MSM), transgender men and women, heterosexual men and women, and people who inject drugs (PWID) at substantial risk of HIV acquisition. These guidelines were updated in April 2018 and include changes to the recommendations regarding the choice of daily or on-demand PrEP.

  7. Summary of the 2008 BTS/SIGN British Guideline on the management of asthma.

    PubMed

    Levy, Mark L; Thomas, Mike; Small, Iain; Pearce, Linda; Pinnock, Hilary; Stephenson, Paul

    2009-01-01

    The 2008 BTS/SIGN British Guideline on the management of asthma provides comprehensive updated evidence-based guidance on asthma management for healthcare professionals. This primary care-focussed summary has been produced to aid dissemination and implementation of the key guideline messages into primary care. The section on diagnosis emphasises the new integrated symptom-based approach with clinicians using their deductive skills to determine the probability that the patient has asthma. The various tools used for monitoring asthma are discussed. There are sections on both non-pharmacological and pharmacological management of chronic asthma in adults and children. Treatment options for children are subdivided into the under-5s and children aged 5-12 years. Poor asthma control is manifested by exacerbations and acute asthma. Personalised asthma action plans for guided self management should be provided and used when levels of asthma control change. There are sections on difficult asthma and the treatment of exacerbations and acute severe asthma. Various outcome measures for auditing the quality of asthma care are discussed.

  8. Consumerism in prenatal diagnosis: a challenge for ethical guidelines

    PubMed Central

    Henn, W.

    2000-01-01

    The ethical guidelines for prenatal diagnosis proposed by the World Health Organisation (WHO), as well as by national regulations, only refer to paternity and gender of the fetus as unacceptable, disease-unrelated criteria for prenatal selection, as no other such parameters are at hand so far. This perspective is too narrow because research on complex genetic systems such as cognition and ageing is about to provide clinically applicable tests for genetic constituents of potentially desirable properties such as intelligence or longevity which could be misused as parameters for prenatal diagnosis. Moreover, there is an increasing number of prenatally testable genetic traits, such as heritable deafness, which are generally regarded as pathological but desired by some prospective parents and taken into account as parameters for pro-disability selection. To protect prenatal diagnosis from ethically unacceptable genetic consumerism, guidelines must be clarified as soon as possible and updated towards a worldwide restriction of prenatal genetic testing to immediately disease-determining traits. Key Words: Genetics • prenatal diagnosis • ethics • consumerism PMID:11129845

  9. 32 CFR 2004.11 - Agency Implementing Regulations, Internal Rules, or Guidelines [102(b)(3)].

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ..., or Guidelines [102(b)(3)]. 2004.11 Section 2004.11 National Defense Other Regulations Relating to... NATIONAL INDUSTRIAL SECURITY PROGRAM DIRECTIVE NO. 1 Implementation and Oversight § 2004.11 Agency Implementing Regulations, Internal Rules, or Guidelines [102(b)(3)]. (a) Reviews and Updates. All implementing...

  10. 32 CFR 2004.11 - Agency Implementing Regulations, Internal Rules, or Guidelines [102(b)(3)].

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ..., or Guidelines [102(b)(3)]. 2004.11 Section 2004.11 National Defense Other Regulations Relating to... NATIONAL INDUSTRIAL SECURITY PROGRAM DIRECTIVE NO. 1 Implementation and Oversight § 2004.11 Agency Implementing Regulations, Internal Rules, or Guidelines [102(b)(3)]. (a) Reviews and Updates. All implementing...

  11. 32 CFR 2004.11 - Agency Implementing Regulations, Internal Rules, or Guidelines [102(b)(3)].

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ..., or Guidelines [102(b)(3)]. 2004.11 Section 2004.11 National Defense Other Regulations Relating to... NATIONAL INDUSTRIAL SECURITY PROGRAM DIRECTIVE NO. 1 Implementation and Oversight § 2004.11 Agency Implementing Regulations, Internal Rules, or Guidelines [102(b)(3)]. (a) Reviews and Updates. All implementing...

  12. 32 CFR 2004.11 - Agency Implementing Regulations, Internal Rules, or Guidelines [102(b)(3)].

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ..., or Guidelines [102(b)(3)]. 2004.11 Section 2004.11 National Defense Other Regulations Relating to... NATIONAL INDUSTRIAL SECURITY PROGRAM DIRECTIVE NO. 1 Implementation and Oversight § 2004.11 Agency Implementing Regulations, Internal Rules, or Guidelines [102(b)(3)]. (a) Reviews and Updates. All implementing...

  13. 76 FR 5289 - Income Level for Individuals Eligible for Assistance

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-01-31

    ... amendments to the Federal Poverty Guidelines as issued by the Department of Health and Human Services. DATES... Poverty Guidelines. Since 1982, the Department of Health and Human Services has been responsible for updating and issuing the Federal Poverty Guidelines. On January 26, 2011, LSC issued a notice in the...

  14. Social Studies Curriculum Guidelines.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Manson, Gary; And Others

    These guidelines, which set standards for social studies programs K-12, can be used to update existing programs or may serve as a baseline for further innovation. The first section, "A Basic Rationale for Social Studies Education," identifies the theoretical assumptions basic to the guidelines as knowledge, thinking, valuing, social participation,…

  15. First Update of the Criteria for Certification of Chest Pain Units in Germany: Facelift or New Model?

    PubMed

    Breuckmann, Frank; Rassaf, Tienush

    2016-03-01

    In an effort to provide a systematic and specific standard-of-care for patients with acute chest pain, the German Cardiac Society introduced criteria for certification of specialized chest pain units (CPUs) in 2008, which have been replaced by a recent update published in 2015. We reviewed the development of CPU establishment in Germany during the past 7 years and compared and commented the current update of the certification criteria. As of October 2015, 228 CPUs in Germany have been successfully certified by the German Cardiac Society; 300 CPUs are needed for full coverage closing gaps in rural regions. Current changes of the criteria mainly affect guideline-adherent adaptions of diagnostic work-ups, therapeutic strategies, risk stratification, in-hospital timing and education, and quality measures, whereas the overall structure remained unchanged. Benchmarking by participation within the German CPU registry is encouraged. Even though the history is short, the concept of certified CPUs in Germany is accepted and successful underlined by its recent implementation in national and international guidelines. First registry data demonstrated a high standard of quality-of-care. The current update provides rational adaptions to new guidelines and developments without raising the level for successful certifications. A periodic release of fast-track updates with shorter time frames and an increase of minimum requirements should be considered.

  16. Cancer screening in the United States, 2017: A review of current American Cancer Society guidelines and current issues in cancer screening.

    PubMed

    Smith, Robert A; Andrews, Kimberly S; Brooks, Durado; Fedewa, Stacey A; Manassaram-Baptiste, Deana; Saslow, Debbie; Brawley, Otis W; Wender, Richard C

    2017-03-01

    Answer questions and earn CME/CNE Each year, the American Cancer Society publishes a summary of its guidelines for early cancer detection, data and trends in cancer screening rates, and select issues related to cancer screening. In this issue of the journal, the authors summarize current American Cancer Society cancer screening guidelines, describe an update of their guideline for using human papillomavirus vaccination for cancer prevention, describe updates in US Preventive Services Task Force recommendations for breast and colorectal cancer screening, discuss interim findings from the UK Collaborative Trial on Ovarian Cancer Screening, and provide the latest data on utilization of cancer screening from the National Health Interview Survey. CA Cancer J Clin 2017;67:100-121. © 2017 American Cancer Society. © 2017 American Cancer Society.

  17. Interventional Spine and Pain Procedures in Patients on Antiplatelet and Anticoagulant Medications (Second Edition): Guidelines From the American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, the European Society of Regional Anaesthesia and Pain Therapy, the American Academy of Pain Medicine, the International Neuromodulation Society, the North American Neuromodulation Society, and the World Institute of Pain.

    PubMed

    Narouze, Samer; Benzon, Honorio T; Provenzano, David; Buvanendran, Asokumar; De Andres, José; Deer, Timothy; Rauck, Richard; Huntoon, Marc A

    2018-04-01

    The American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine (ASRA) 2012 survey of meeting attendees showed that existing ASRA anticoagulation guidelines for regional anesthesia were insufficient for their needs. Those surveyed agreed that procedure-specific and patient-specific factors required separate guidelines for pain and spine procedures. In response, a guidelines committee was formed. After preliminary review of published complications reports and studies, the committee stratified interventional spine and pain procedures according to potential bleeding risk: low-, intermediate-, and high-risk procedures. The ASRA regional anesthesia anticoagulation guidelines were largely deemed appropriate for the low- and intermediate-risk categories, but the high-risk category required further investigation. The first guidelines specific to interventional spine and pain procedures were published in 2015. Recent reviews evaluating bleeding complications in patients undergoing specific interventional pain procedures, the development of new regional anesthesia and acute pain guidelines, and the development of new anticoagulants and antiplatelet medications necessitate complementary updated guidelines. The authors desired coordination with the authors of the recently updated regional and acute pain anticoagulation guidelines. The latest evidence was sought through extensive database search strategies and the recommendations were evidence based when available and pharmacology driven otherwise. We could not provide strength and grading of these recommendations because there are not enough well-designed large studies concerning interventional pain procedures to support such grading. Although the guidelines could not always be based on randomized studies or on large numbers of patients from pooled databases, it is hoped that they will provide sound recommendations and the evidentiary basis for such recommendations. This publication is intended as a living document to be updated periodically with consideration of new evidence.

  18. [Interpretation of the updates of NCCN 2017 version 1.0 guideline for colorectal cancer].

    PubMed

    Chen, Gong

    2017-01-25

    The NCCN has recently released its 2017 version 1.0 guideline for colorectal cancer. There are several updates from this new version guideline which are believed to change the current clinical practice. Update one, low-dose aspirin is recommended for patients with colorectal cancer after colectomy for secondary chemoprevention. Update two, biological agents are removed from the neoadjuvant treatment regimen for resectable metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC). This update is based on lack of evidence to support benefits of biological agents including bevacizumab and cetuximab in the neoadjuvant setting. Both technical criteria and prognostic information should be considered for decision-making. Currently biological agents may not be excluded from the neoadjuvant setting for patients with resectable but poor prognostic disease. Update three, panitumumab and cetuximab combination therapy is only recommended for left-sided tumors in the first line therapy. The location of the primary tumor can be both prognostic and predictive in response to EGFR inhibitors in metastatic colorectal cancer. Cetuximab and panitumumab confer little benefit to patients with metastatic colorectal cancer in the primary tumor originated on the right side. On the other hand, EGFR inhibitors provide significant benefit compared with bevacizumab-containing therapy or chemotherapy alone for patients with left primary tumor. Update four, PD-1 immune checkpoint inhibitors including pembrolizumab or nivolumab are recommended as treatment options in patients with metastatic deficient mismatch repair (dMMR) colorectal cancer in second- or third-line therapy. dMMR tumors contain thousands of mutations, which can encode mutant proteins with the potential to be recognized and targeted by the immune system. It has therefore been hypothesized that dMMR tumors may be sensitive to PD-1 inhibitors.

  19. National Institute on Aging–Alzheimer’s Association guidelines for the neuropathologic assessment of Alzheimer’s disease

    PubMed Central

    Hyman, Bradley T.; Phelps, Creighton H.; Beach, Thomas G.; Bigio, Eileen H.; Cairns, Nigel J.; Carrillo, Maria C.; Dickson, Dennis W.; Duyckaerts, Charles; Frosch, Matthew P.; Masliah, Eliezer; Mirra, Suzanne S.; Nelson, Peter T.; Schneider, Julie A.; Thal, Dietmar Rudolf; Thies, Bill; Trojanowski, John Q.; Vinters, Harry V.; Montine, Thomas J.

    2011-01-01

    The current consensus criteria for the neuropathologic diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease (AD), known as the National Institute on Aging/Reagan Institute of the Alzheimer Association Consensus Recommendations for the Postmortem Diagnosis of AD or NIA-Reagan Criteria [1], were published in 1997 (hereafter referred to as “1997 Criteria”). Knowledge of AD and the tools used for clinical investigation of cognitive impairment and dementia have advanced substantially since then and have prompted this update on the neuropathologic assessment of AD. PMID:22265587

  20. Methodology and reporting quality of reporting guidelines: systematic review.

    PubMed

    Wang, Xiaoqin; Chen, Yaolong; Yang, Nan; Deng, Wei; Wang, Qi; Li, Nan; Yao, Liang; Wei, Dang; Chen, Gen; Yang, Kehu

    2015-09-22

    With increasing attention put on the methodology of reporting guidelines, Moher et al. conducted a review of reporting guidelines up to December 2009. Information gaps appeared on many aspects. Therefore, in 2010, the Guidance for Developers of Health Research Reporting Guidelines was developed. With more than four years passed and a considerable investment was put into reporting guideline development, a large number of new, updated, and expanded reporting guidelines have become available since January 2010. We aimed to systematically review the reporting guidelines published since January 2010, and investigate the application of the Guidance. We systematically searched databases including the Cochrane Methodology Register, MEDLINE, and EMBASE, and retrieved EQUATOR and the website (if available) to find reporting guidelines as well as their accompanying documents. We screened the titles and abstracts resulting from searches and extracted data. We focused on the methodology and reporting of the included guidelines, and described information with a series of tables and narrative summaries. Data were summarized descriptively using frequencies, proportions, and medians as appropriate. Twenty-eight and 32 reporting guidelines were retrieved from databases and EQUATOR network, respectively. Reporting guidelines were designed for a broad spectrum of types of research. A considerable number of reporting guidelines were published and updated in recent years. Methods of initial items were given in 45 (75%) guidelines. Thirty-eight (63%) guidelines reported they have reached consensus, and 35 (58%) described their consensus methods. Only 9 (15%) guidelines followed the Guidance. Only few guidelines were developed complying with the Guidance. More attention should be paid to the quality of reporting guidelines.

  1. The Role of Evidence in the Decision-Making Process of Selecting Essential Medicines in Developing Countries: The Case of Tanzania

    PubMed Central

    Mori, Amani Thomas; Kaale, Eliangiringa Amos; Ngalesoni, Frida; Norheim, Ole Frithjof; Robberstad, Bjarne

    2014-01-01

    Background Insufficient access to essential medicines is a major health challenge in developing countries. Despite the importance of Standard Treatment Guidelines and National Essential Medicine Lists in facilitating access to medicines, little is known about how they are updated. This study aims to describe the process of updating the Standard Treatment Guidelines and National Essential Medicine List in Tanzania and further examines the criteria and the underlying evidence used in decision-making. Methods This is a qualitative study in which data were collected by in-depth interviews and document reviews. Interviews were conducted with 18 key informants who were involved in updating the Standard Treatment Guidelines and National Essential Medicine List. We used a thematic content approach to analyse the data. Findings The Standard Treatment Guidelines and National Essential Medicine List was updated by committees of experts who were recruited mostly from referral hospitals and the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare. Efficacy, safety, availability and affordability were the most frequently utilised criteria in decision-making, although these were largely based on experience rather than evidence. In addition, recommendations from international guidelines and medicine promotions also influenced decision-making. Cost-effectiveness, despite being an important criterion for formulary decisions, was not utilised. Conclusions Recent decisions about the selection of essential medicines in Tanzania were made by committees of experts who largely used experience and discretionary judgement, leaving evidence with only a limited role in decision-making process. There may be several reasons for the current limited use of evidence in decision-making, but one hypothesis that remains to be explored is whether training experts in evidence-based decision-making would lead to a better and more explicit use of evidence. PMID:24416293

  2. Diagnosis, treatment and prevention of ankle sprains: update of an evidence-based clinical guideline.

    PubMed

    Vuurberg, Gwendolyn; Hoorntje, Alexander; Wink, Lauren M; van der Doelen, Brent F W; van den Bekerom, Michel P; Dekker, Rienk; van Dijk, C Niek; Krips, Rover; Loogman, Masja C M; Ridderikhof, Milan L; Smithuis, Frank F; Stufkens, Sjoerd A S; Verhagen, Evert A L M; de Bie, Rob A; Kerkhoffs, Gino M M J

    2018-03-07

    This guideline aimed to advance current understandings regarding the diagnosis, prevention and therapeutic interventions for ankle sprains by updating the existing guideline and incorporate new research. A secondary objective was to provide an update related to the cost-effectiveness of diagnostic procedures, therapeutic interventions and prevention strategies. It was posited that subsequent interaction of clinicians with this guideline could help reduce health impairments and patient burden associated with this prevalent musculoskeletal injury. The previous guideline provided evidence that the severity of ligament damage can be assessed most reliably by delayed physical examination (4-5 days post trauma). After correct diagnosis, it can be stated that even though a short time of immobilisation may be helpful in relieving pain and swelling, the patient with an acute lateral ankle ligament rupture benefits most from use of tape or a brace in combination with an exercise programme. New in this update: Participation in certain sports is associated with a heightened risk of sustaining a lateral ankle sprain. Care should be taken with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) usage after an ankle sprain. They may be used to reduce pain and swelling, but usage is not without complications and NSAIDs may suppress the natural healing process. Concerning treatment, supervised exercise-based programmes preferred over passive modalities as it stimulates the recovery of functional joint stability. Surgery should be reserved for cases that do not respond to thorough and comprehensive exercise-based treatment. For the prevention of recurrent lateral ankle sprains, ankle braces should be considered as an efficacious option. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2018. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

  3. The role of evidence in the decision-making process of selecting essential medicines in developing countries: the case of Tanzania.

    PubMed

    Mori, Amani Thomas; Kaale, Eliangiringa Amos; Ngalesoni, Frida; Norheim, Ole Frithjof; Robberstad, Bjarne

    2014-01-01

    Insufficient access to essential medicines is a major health challenge in developing countries. Despite the importance of Standard Treatment Guidelines and National Essential Medicine Lists in facilitating access to medicines, little is known about how they are updated. This study aims to describe the process of updating the Standard Treatment Guidelines and National Essential Medicine List in Tanzania and further examines the criteria and the underlying evidence used in decision-making. This is a qualitative study in which data were collected by in-depth interviews and document reviews. Interviews were conducted with 18 key informants who were involved in updating the Standard Treatment Guidelines and National Essential Medicine List. We used a thematic content approach to analyse the data. The Standard Treatment Guidelines and National Essential Medicine List was updated by committees of experts who were recruited mostly from referral hospitals and the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare. Efficacy, safety, availability and affordability were the most frequently utilised criteria in decision-making, although these were largely based on experience rather than evidence. In addition, recommendations from international guidelines and medicine promotions also influenced decision-making. Cost-effectiveness, despite being an important criterion for formulary decisions, was not utilised. Recent decisions about the selection of essential medicines in Tanzania were made by committees of experts who largely used experience and discretionary judgement, leaving evidence with only a limited role in decision-making process. There may be several reasons for the current limited use of evidence in decision-making, but one hypothesis that remains to be explored is whether training experts in evidence-based decision-making would lead to a better and more explicit use of evidence.

  4. [GESIDA/National AIDS Plan: Consensus document on antiretroviral therapy in adults infected by the human immunodeficiency virus (Updated January 2015)].

    PubMed

    2015-10-01

    This consensus document is an update of combined antiretroviral therapy (cART) guidelines and recommendations for HIV-1 infected adult patients. To formulate these recommendations, a panel composed of members of the AIDS Study Group and the AIDS National Plan (GeSIDA/Plan Nacional sobre el Sida) reviewed the efficacy and safety advances in clinical trials, and cohort and pharmacokinetic studies published in medical journals (PubMed and Embase) or presented in medical scientific meetings. The strength of the recommendations, and the evidence that supports them, are based on modified criteria of the Infectious Diseases Society of America. In this update, cART is recommended for all patients infected by type 1 human immunodeficiency virus (HIV-1). The strength and level of the recommendation depends on the CD4+T-lymphocyte count, the presence of opportunistic diseases or comorbid conditions, age, and prevention of transmission of HIV. The objective of cART is to achieve an undetectable plasma viral load. Initial cART should always comprise a combination of 3 drugs, including 2 nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors, and a third drug from a different family. Three out of the ten recommended regimes are regarded as preferential (all of them with an integrase inhibitor as the third drug), and the other seven (based on a non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor, a ritonavir-boosted protease inhibitor, or an integrase inhibitor) as alternatives. This update presents the causes and criteria for switching cART in patients with undetectable plasma viral load, and in cases of virological failure where rescue cART should comprise 3 (or at least 2) drugs that are fully active against the virus. An update is also provided for the specific criteria for cART in special situations (acute infection, HIV-2 infection, and pregnancy) and with comorbid conditions (tuberculosis or other opportunistic infections, kidney disease, liver disease, and cancer). These new guidelines update previous recommendations related to cART (when to begin and what drugs should be used), how to monitor and what to do in case of viral failure or drug adverse reactions. cART specific criteria in comorbid patients and special situations are equally updated. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier España, S.L.U. y Sociedad Española de Enfermedades Infecciosas y Microbiología Clínica. All rights reserved.

  5. Guidelines for biological treatment of substance use and related disorders, part 1: Alcoholism, first revision.

    PubMed

    Soyka, Michael; Kranzler, Henry R; Hesselbrock, Victor; Kasper, Siegfried; Mutschler, Jochen; Möller, Hans-Jürgen

    2017-03-01

    These practice guidelines for the biological treatment of alcohol use disorders are an update of the first edition, published in 2008, which was developed by an international Task Force of the World Federation of Societies of Biological Psychiatry (WFSBP). For this 2016 revision, we performed a systematic review (MEDLINE/PUBMED database, Cochrane Library) of all available publications pertaining to the biological treatment of alcoholism and extracted data from national guidelines. The Task Force evaluated the identified literature with respect to the strength of evidence for the efficacy of each medication and subsequently categorised it into six levels of evidence (A-F) and five levels of recommendation (1-5). Thus, the current guidelines provide a clinically and scientifically relevant, evidence-based update of our earlier recommendations. These guidelines are intended for use by clinicians and practitioners who evaluate and treat people with alcohol use disorders and are primarily concerned with the biological treatment of adults with such disorders.

  6. OHD/HL - National Weather Hydrology Laboratory

    Science.gov Websites

    resources and services. Design and Programming Standards and Guidelines General Programming C C++ FORTRAN Java v 2.0 updated 3/28/2008 Java v 1.9 Korn and Bash Shell Software Design Phase Guidelines OHD Design Specification Template OHD Design Specification Example Software Peer Review Guidelines and Checklists Software

  7. An Analysis of State Guidelines for Intellectual Disability

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Polloway, Edward A.; Auguste, Maryleen; Smith, J. David; Peters, Delia

    2017-01-01

    This study provides an updated analysis of state guidelines with respect to terminology and definitions in the field of intellectual disability (ID). The study serves as a methodological replication of prior work that has been reported in the literature in earlier decades. The data were acquired by reviewing web-based state guidelines for ID…

  8. 41 CFR 102-79.90 - What criteria must Executive agencies consider when evaluating antenna siting requests?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... radiofrequency exposure, ET Docket No. 93-62, entitled “Guidelines for Evaluating the Environmental Effects of Radiofrequency Radiation,” issued August 1, 1996, and any other order on reconsideration relating to radiofrequency guidelines and their enforcement. These are updated guidelines for meeting health concerns that...

  9. Efforts to update firefighter safety zone guidelines

    Treesearch

    Bret Butler

    2009-01-01

    One of the most critical decisions made on wildland fires is the identification of suitable safety zones for firefighters during daily fire management operations. To be effective (timely, repeatable, and accurate), these decisions rely on good training and judgment, but also on clear, concise guidelines. This article is a summary of safety zone guidelines and the...

  10. Guidelines and Recommendations to Accommodate Older Drivers and Pedestrians

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2001-05-01

    This project updated, revised, and expanded the scope of the "Older Driver Highway Design Handbook" published by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) in 1998. Development of the updated Handbook (FHWA-RD-01-103) was complemented by a technology ...

  11. Guidelines and Recommendations to Accommodate Older Drivers and Pedestrians

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2001-10-01

    This project updated, revised, and expanded the scope of the "Older Driver Highway Design Handbook" published by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) in 1998. Development of the updated Handbook (FHWA-RD-01-103) was complemented by a technology ...

  12. Evaluating the chlamydia and gonorrhoea screening program in the Humanitarian Entrant Health Service, Western Australia.

    PubMed

    Hoad, Veronica C; Thambiran, Aesen

    2012-07-02

    To document the prevalence of Chlamydia trachomatis and Neisseria gonorrhoeae in the refugee population settling in Western Australia from 1 January 2006 to 31 December 2009 and make recommendations for future screening for chlamydia and gonorrhoea in the refugee population. A prevalence and quality assurance study of 2610 refugees aged 15 years and older who attended the Humanitarian Entrant Health Service in Western Australia and were screened for chlamydia and gonorrhoea. Demographic details and results of C. trachomatis and N. gonorrhoeae tests on first void urine. The prevalence of chlamydia was found to be 0.8% (n = 21) in the refugee population. No gonorrhoea infections were detected. The prevalence of chlamydia was low (0.19%-1.23%) when analysed by sex, ethnicity or age and was considerably lower than other subpopulations considered high risk in Australia. The low prevalence rates of chlamydia and gonorrhoea found in the refugee population suggest that current screening guidelines should be updated. We recommend screening all refugees who are sexually active up to age 39 years, taking into account an appropriate sexual history; otherwise, screening guidelines should be as for the general Australian population.

  13. Implementation of the SSHAC Guidelines for Level 3 and 4 PSHAs - Experience Gained from Actual Applications

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Hanks, Thomas C.; Abrahamson, Norm A.; Boore, David M.; Coppersmith, Kevin J.; Knepprath, Nichole E.

    2009-01-01

    In April 1997, after four years of deliberations, the Senior Seismic Hazard Analysis Committee released its report 'Recommendations for Probabilistic Seismic Hazard Analysis: Guidance on Uncertainty and Use of Experts' through the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission as NUREG/CR-6372, hereafter SSHAC (1997). Known informally ever since as the 'SSHAC Guidelines', SSHAC (1997) addresses why and how multiple expert opinions - and the intrinsic uncertainties that attend them - should be used in Probabilistic Seismic Hazard Analyses (PSHA) for critical facilities such as commercial nuclear power plants. Ten years later, in September 2007, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) entered into a 13-month agreement with the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) titled 'Practical Procedures for Implementation of the SSHAC Guidelines and for Updating PSHAs'. The NRC was interested in understanding and documenting lessons learned from recent PSHAs conducted at the higher SSHAC Levels (3 and 4) and in gaining input from the seismic community for updating PSHAs as new information became available. This study increased in importance in anticipation of new applications for nuclear power facilities at both existing and new sites. The intent of this project was not to replace the SSHAC Guidelines but to supplement them with the experience gained from putting the SSHAC Guidelines to work in practical applications. During the course of this project, we also learned that updating PSHAs for existing nuclear power facilities involves very different issues from the implementation of the SSHAC Guidelines for new facilities. As such, we report our findings and recommendations from this study in two separate documents, this being the first. The SSHAC Guidelines were written without regard to whether the PSHAs to which they would be applied were site-specific or regional in scope. Most of the experience gained to date from high-level SSHAC studies has been for site-specific cases, although three ongoing (as of this writing) studies are regional in scope. Updating existing PSHAs will depend more critically on the differences between site-specific and regional studies, and we will also address these differences in more detail in the companion report. Most of what we report here and in the second report on updating PSHAs emanates from three workshops held by the USGS at their Menlo Park facility: 'Lessons Learned from SSHAC Level 3 and 4 PSHAs' on January 30-31, 2008; 'Updates to Existing PSHAs' on May 6-7, 2008; and 'Draft Recommendations, SSHAC Implementation Guidance' on June 4-5, 2009. These workshops were attended by approximately 40 scientists and engineers familiar with hazard studies for nuclear facilities. This company included four of the authors of SSHAC (1997) and four other experts whose contributions to this document are mentioned in the Acknowledgments section; numerous scientists and engineers who in one role or another have participated in one or more high-level SSHAC PSHAs summarized later in this report; and representatives of the nuclear industry, the consulting world, the regulatory community, and academia with a keen interest and expertise in hazard analysis. This report is a community-based set of recommendations to NRC for improved practical procedures for implementation of the SSHAC Guidelines. In an early publication specifically addressing the SSHAC Guidelines, Hanks (1997) noted that the SSHAC Guidelines were likely to evolve for some time to come, and this remains true today. While the broad philosophical and theoretical dimensions of the SSHAC Guidelines will not change, much has been learned during the past decade from various applications of the SSHAC Guidelines to real PSHAs in terms of how they are implemented. We anticipate that, in their practical applications, the SSHAC Guidelines will continue to evolve as more experience is gained from future SSHAC applications. Indeed, to the extent that every PSHA has its

  14. Variation in general practitioners' information-seeking behaviour - a cross-sectional study on the influence of gender, age and practice form.

    PubMed

    Le, Jette V; Pedersen, Line B; Riisgaard, Helle; Lykkegaard, Jesper; Nexøe, Jørgen; Lemmergaard, Jeanette; Søndergaard, Jens

    2016-12-01

    To assess general practitioners' (GPs') information-seeking behaviour and perceived importance of sources of scientific medical information and to investigate associations with GP characteristics. A national cross-sectional survey was distributed electronically in December 2013. Danish general practice. A population of 3440 GPs (corresponding to approximately 96% of all Danish GPs). GPs' use and perceived importance of information sources. Multilevel mixed-effects logit models were used to investigate associations with GP characteristics after adjusting for relevant covariates. A total of 1580 GPs (46.4%) responded to the questionnaire. GPs' information-seeking behaviour is associated with gender, age and practice form. Single-handed GPs use their colleagues as an information source significantly less than GPs working in partnership practices and they do not use other sources more frequently. Compared with their younger colleagues, GPs aged above 44 years are less likely to seek information from colleagues, guidelines and websites, but more likely to seek information from medical journals. Male and female GPs seek information equally frequently. However, whereas male GPs are more likely than female GPs to find that pharmaceutical sales representative and non-refundable CME meetings are important, they are less likely to find that colleagues, refundable CME meetings, guidelines and websites are important. Results from this study indicate that GP characteristics should be taken into consideration when disseminating scientific medical information, to ensure that patients receive medically updated, high-quality care. KEY POINTS Research indicates that information-seeking behaviour is associated with GP characteristics. Further insights could provide opportunities for targeting information dissemination strategies. Single-handed GPs seek information from colleagues less frequently than GPs in partnerships and do not use other sources more frequently. GPs aged above 44 years do not seek information as frequently as their younger colleagues and prefer other information sources. Male and female GPs seek information equally frequently, but do not consider information sources equally important in keeping medically updated.

  15. Helicobacter pylori Infection: An Update for the Internist in the Age of Increasing Global Antibiotic Resistance.

    PubMed

    Siddique, Osama; Ovalle, Anais; Siddique, Ayesha S; Moss, Steven F

    2018-05-01

    Helicobacter pylori infects approximately half the world's population and is especially prevalent in the developing world. H. pylori is an important cause of global ill health due to its known etiological role in peptic ulcer disease, dyspepsia, gastric cancer, lymphoma, and more recently, recognized in iron deficiency anemia and idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura. Increased antibiotic usage worldwide has led to antibiotic resistance among many bacteria, including H. pylori, resulting in falling success rates of first-line anti-H. pylori therapies. Eradication failures are principally due to resistance to clarithromycin, levofloxacin, and metronidazole. Several new treatment options or modifications of established regimens are now recommended by updated practice guidelines for primary or secondary therapy. Because these updated recommendations were published in the gastroenterological literature, internists and primary care physicians, who commonly manage H. pylori, may be unaware of these advances. In this review, we outline the changing epidemiology of H. pylori, advise on diagnostic test selection for patients not undergoing endoscopy, and highlight current management options in this era of growing antibacterial resistance. Published by Elsevier Inc.

  16. Evidence-based guidelines for the pharmacological treatment of postmenopausal osteoporosis: a consensus document by the Belgian Bone Club

    PubMed Central

    Body, J.-J.; Bergmann, P.; Boonen, S.; Boutsen, Y.; Devogelaer, J.-P.; Goemaere, S.; Kaufman, J.-M.; Rozenberg, S.

    2010-01-01

    Several drugs are available for the management of postmenopausal osteoporosis. This may, in daily practice, confuse the clinician. This manuscript offers an evidence-based update of previous treatment guidelines, with a critical assessment of the currently available efficacy data on all new chemical entities which were granted a marketing authorization. Osteoporosis is widely recognized as a major public health concern. The availability of new therapeutic agents makes clinical decision-making in osteoporosis more complex. Nation-specific guidelines are needed to take into consideration the specificities of each and every health care environment. The present manuscript is the result of a National Consensus, based on a systematic review and a critical appraisal of the currently available literature. It offers an evidence-based update of previous treatment guidelines, with the aim of providing clinicians with an unbiased assessment of osteoporosis treatment effect. PMID:20480148

  17. Problems with the 2015 Dietary Guidelines for Americans: An Alternative.

    PubMed

    DiNicolantonio, James J; Harcombe, Zoë; O'Keefe, James H

    2016-01-01

    Abstract The updated 2015 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, published in January 2016, have stirred much controversy since the advisory report first appeared. Several important changes have been made, with some recommendations having greater scientific evidence for their support than others. The focus of this review is to discuss specific recommendations from the 2015 Dietary Guidelines for Americans that lack sound scientific evidence; these include: 1) Allowing approximately half of all grains to be refined; 2) The continued recommendations for fat-free or low-fat dairy and limitation of saturated fat intake to < 10% of calories; 3) Sodium intake < 2,300 mg/day; and 4) Consumption of up to 27 grams/day of "oils" (high in polyunsaturated fat or monounsaturated fat). Based on our review, the aforementioned recommendations found in the updated 2015 Dietary Guideline for Americans may increase the incidence of cardiometabolic disease, diabetes, obesity, dyslipidemia, cardiovascular disease, and possibly cancer.

  18. 2015 American Heart Association/American Stroke Association Focused Update of the 2013 Guidelines for the Early Management of Patients With Acute Ischemic Stroke Regarding Endovascular Treatment: A Guideline for Healthcare Professionals From the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association.

    PubMed

    Powers, William J; Derdeyn, Colin P; Biller, José; Coffey, Christopher S; Hoh, Brian L; Jauch, Edward C; Johnston, Karen C; Johnston, S Claiborne; Khalessi, Alexander A; Kidwell, Chelsea S; Meschia, James F; Ovbiagele, Bruce; Yavagal, Dileep R

    2015-10-01

    The aim of this guideline is to provide a focused update of the current recommendations for the endovascular treatment of acute ischemic stroke. When there is overlap, the recommendations made here supersede those of previous guidelines. This focused update analyzes results from 8 randomized, clinical trials of endovascular treatment and other relevant data published since 2013. It is not intended to be a complete literature review from the date of the previous guideline publication but rather to include pivotal new evidence that justifies changes in current recommendations. Members of the writing committee were appointed by the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association Stroke Council's Scientific Statement Oversight Committee and the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association Manuscript Oversight Committee. Strict adherence to the American Heart Association conflict of interest policy was maintained throughout the consensus process. Recommendations follow the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association methods of classifying the level of certainty of the treatment effect and the class of evidence. Prerelease review of the draft guideline was performed by 6 expert peer reviewers and by the members of the Stroke Council Scientific Statement Oversight Committee and Stroke Council Leadership Committee. Evidence-based guidelines are presented for the selection of patients with acute ischemic stroke for endovascular treatment, for the endovascular procedure, and for systems of care to facilitate endovascular treatment. Certain endovascular procedures have been demonstrated to provide clinical benefit in selected patients with acute ischemic stroke. Systems of care should be organized to facilitate the delivery of this care. © 2015 American Heart Association, Inc.

  19. Evidence-based management of systemic sclerosis: Navigating recommendations and guidelines.

    PubMed

    Pellar, Russell Edward; Pope, Janet Elizabeth

    2017-06-01

    Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is a rare heterogeneous connective tissue disease. Recommendations addressing the major issues in the management of SSc including screening and treatment of organ complications are needed. The updated European League Against Rheumatism/European Scleroderma Trial and Research (EULAR/EUSTAR) and the British Society of Rheumatology (BSR) and British Health Professionals in Rheumatology (BHPR) guidelines were compared and contrasted. The updated EULAR/EUSTAR guidelines focus specifically on the management of SSc features and include data on newer therapeutic modalities and mention a research agenda. These recommendations are pharmacologic, with few guidelines regarding investigations and non-pharmacologic management. Recommendations from BSR/BHPR are similar to the organ manifestations mentioned in the EULAR/EUSTAR recommendations, and expand on several domains of treatment, including general measures, non-pharmacologic treatment, cardiac involvement, calcinosis, and musculoskeletal features. The guidelines usually agree with one another. Limitations include the lack of guidance for combination or second-line therapy, algorithmic suggestions, the absence of evidence-based recommendations regarding the treatment of specific complications (i.e., gastric antral ectasia and erectile dysfunction). Consensus for when to treat interstitial lung disease in SSc is lacking. There are differences between Europe and North American experts due to access and indications for certain therapies. Care gaps in SSc have been demonstrated so the EULAR/EUSTAR and BSR/BHP guidelines can promote best practices. Certain complications warrant active investigation to further improve outcomes in SSc and future updates of these recommendations. Care gaps in SSc have been demonstrated so the EULAR/EUSTAR and BSR/BHP guidelines can promote best practices. Certain complications warrant active investigation to further improve outcomes in SSc. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  20. Canadian Guidelines for the Pharmacological Treatment of Schizophrenia Spectrum and Other Psychotic Disorders in Children and Youth

    PubMed Central

    Mian, Irfan; Garcia-Ortega, Iliana; Lecomte, Tania; Raedler, Thomas; Jackson, Kevin; Jackson, Kim; Pringsheim, Tamara; Addington, Donald

    2017-01-01

    Objective: Schizophrenia spectrum and other psychotic disorders often have their onset in adolescence. The sequelae of these illnesses can negatively alter the trajectory of emotional, cognitive, and social development in children and youth if left untreated. Early and appropriate interventions can improve outcomes. This article aims to identify best practices in the pharmacotherapy management of children and youth with schizophrenia spectrum disorders. Methods: A systematic search was conducted for published guidelines for schizophrenia and schizophrenia spectrum disorders in children and youth (under age 18 years). Recommendations were drawn from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines on psychosis and schizophrenia in children and youth (2013 and 2015 updates). Current guidelines were adopted using the ADAPTE process, which includes consensus ratings by a panel of experts. Results: Recommendations identified covered a range of issues in the pharmacotherapy management of children and youth with schizophrenia spectrum disorders. Further work in this area is warranted as we continue to further understand their presentation in the developing brain. Conclusions: Canadian guidelines for the pharmacotherapy management of children and youth with schizophrenia spectrum disorders are essential to assist clinicians in treating this vulnerable population. Ongoing work in this area is recommended. PMID:28764561

  1. Guidelines and recommendations to accommodate older driver and pedestrians

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2001-05-01

    This project updated, revised, and expanded the scope of the Older Driver Highway Design Handbook published by FHWA in 1998. Development of the updated Handbook (FHWA-RD-01-103) was complemented by a technology transfer initiative to make practitione...

  2. Clinical update on fluid therapy and nutritional support in acute pancreatitis.

    PubMed

    DiMagno, Matthew J

    2015-01-01

    The aim of this focused review is to provide a valuable and updated source of information for clinical practice on fluid therapy (FT) and nutritional support in acute pancreatitis (AP). The review encompasses important new clinical information that has become available for understanding and offering these specific treatments since the 2013 publication of two guidelines, both the joint International Association of Pancreatology and American Pancreatic Association and the American College of Gastroenterology. The 2015 Revised Japanese Guideline is discussed selectively. To this end, the review is divided into 7 sections, including timing and cause of mortality; severity classification systems; predicting severity; response to treatment; nutritional support; fluid therapy and steps for further research. In mild AP, begin oral feeding when nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain are improving. In (predicted) severe AP, feeding decisions should commence by 72 h, offering oral feeding if GI symptoms improve or enteral feeding if patients are symptomatic and/or intolerant to orals. All patients should be offered goal-directed FT during the first 6-12 h of presentation. Cautious FT is advised in those age >55 years or with preexisting organ failure or predictors of developing fluid sequestration. Copyright © 2015 IAP and EPC. Published by Elsevier India Pvt Ltd. All rights reserved.

  3. Impact of the 2016 ASE/EACVI recommendations on the prevalence of diastolic dysfunction in the general population.

    PubMed

    Almeida, João G; Fontes-Carvalho, Ricardo; Sampaio, Francisco; Ribeiro, José; Bettencourt, Paulo; Flachskampf, Frank A; Leite-Moreira, Adelino; Azevedo, Ana

    2018-04-01

    Diastolic dysfunction (DD) is frequent in the general population; however, the assessment of diastolic function remains challenging. We aimed to evaluate the impact of the recent 2016 American Society of Echocardiography (ASE)/European Association of Cardiovascular Imaging (EACVI) recommendations in the prevalence and grades of DD compared with the 2009 guidelines and the Canberra Study Criteria (CSC). Within a population-based cohort, a total of 1000 individuals, aged ≥45 years, were evaluated retrospectively. Patients with previously known cardiac disease or ejection fraction <50% were excluded. Diastolic function was assessed by transthoracic echocardiography. DD prevalence and grades were determined according to the three classifications. The mean age was 62.0 ± 10.5 years and 37% were men. The prevalence of DD was 1.4% (n = 14) with the 2016 recommendations, 38.1% (n = 381) with the 2009 recommendations, and 30.4% (n = 304) using the CSC. The concordance between the updated recommendations and the other two was poor (from k = 0.13 to k = 0.18, P < 0.001). Regarding the categorization in DD grades, none of the 14 individuals with DD by the 2016 guidelines were assigned to Grade 1 DD, 64% were classified as Grade 2, 7% had Grade 3, and 29% had indeterminate grade. The application of the new 2016 ASE/EACVI recommendations resulted in a much lower prevalence of DD. The concordance between the classifications was poor. The updated algorithm seems to be able to diagnose only the most advanced cases.

  4. Practice guideline update summary: Corticosteroid treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy

    PubMed Central

    Gloss, David; Moxley, Richard T.; Ashwal, Stephen; Oskoui, Maryam

    2016-01-01

    Objective: To update the 2005 American Academy of Neurology (AAN) guideline on corticosteroid treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD). Methods: We systematically reviewed the literature from January 2004 to July 2014 using the AAN classification scheme for therapeutic articles and predicated recommendations on the strength of the evidence. Results: Thirty-four studies met inclusion criteria. Recommendations: In children with DMD, prednisone should be offered for improving strength (Level B) and pulmonary function (Level B). Prednisone may be offered for improving timed motor function (Level C), reducing the need for scoliosis surgery (Level C), and delaying cardiomyopathy onset by 18 years of age (Level C). Deflazacort may be offered for improving strength and timed motor function and delaying age at loss of ambulation by 1.4–2.5 years (Level C). Deflazacort may be offered for improving pulmonary function, reducing the need for scoliosis surgery, delaying cardiomyopathy onset, and increasing survival at 5–15 years of follow-up (Level C for each). Deflazacort and prednisone may be equivalent in improving motor function (Level C). Prednisone may be associated with greater weight gain in the first years of treatment than deflazacort (Level C). Deflazacort may be associated with a greater risk of cataracts than prednisone (Level C). The preferred dosing regimen of prednisone is 0.75 mg/kg/d (Level B). Over 12 months, prednisone 10 mg/kg/weekend is equally effective (Level B), with no long-term data available. Prednisone 0.75 mg/kg/d is associated with significant risk of weight gain, hirsutism, and cushingoid appearance (Level B). PMID:26833937

  5. The Mexican consensus on irritable bowel syndrome.

    PubMed

    Carmona-Sánchez, R; Icaza-Chávez, M E; Bielsa-Fernández, M V; Gómez-Escudero, O; Bosques-Padilla, F; Coss-Adame, E; Esquivel-Ayanegui, F; Flores-Rendón, Á R; González-Martínez, M A; Huerta-Iga, F; López-Colombo, A; Méndez-Gutiérrez, T H; Noble-Lugo, A; Nogueira-de Rojas, J R; Raña-Garibay, R H; Remes-Troche, J M; Roesch-Dietlen, F; Schmulson, M J; Soto-Pérez, J C; Tamayo, J L; Uscanga, L F; Valdovinos, M Á; Valerio-Ureña, J; Zavala-Solares, M R

    2016-01-01

    Since the publication in 2009 of the Guidelines on the Diagnosis and Treatment of Irritable Bowel Syndrome of the Asociación Mexicana de Gastroenterología (2009 Guidelines), there have been significant advances in our knowledge of the epidemiology, pathophysiology, diagnosis, and treatment of this disease. To present a consensus review of the most current knowledge of IBS, updating the 2009 Guidelines by incorporating new internationally published scientific evidence, with a special interest in Mexican studies. The PubMed literature from January 2009 to March 2015 was reviewed and complemented through a manual search. Articles in English and Spanish were included and preference was given to consensuses, guidelines, systematic reviews, and meta-analyses. Statements referring to the different aspects of the disease were formulated and voted upon by 24 gastroenterologists employing the Delphi method. Once a consensus on each statement was reached, the quality of evidence and strength of recommendation were determined through the GRADE system. Forty-eight statements were formulated, updating the information on IBS and adding the complementary data that did not appear in the 2009 Guidelines regarding the importance of exercise and diet, diagnostic strategies, and current therapy alternatives that were analyzed with more stringent scientific vigor or that emerged within the last 5 years. We present herein a consensus review of the most relevant advances in the study of IBS, updating and complementing the 2009 Guidelines. Several studies conducted in Mexico were included. Copyright © 2016 Asociación Mexicana de Gastroenterología. Publicado por Masson Doyma México S.A. All rights reserved.

  6. The EFSUMB website, a great source for ultrasound information and education.

    PubMed

    Dietrich, Christoph F; Rudd, Lynne; Saftiou, Adrian; Gilja, Odd Helge

    2017-01-31

    The aim of this updated EFSUMB-website guide is to introduce readers to EFSUMB's wide ranging activities. The most recent are the guidelines on interventional ultrasound and intestinal ultrasound and updated CEUS Non-Liver and Elastography Liver Guidelines which can be freely downloaded. Hosting eBooks on our website is another new departure, most importantly the EFSUMB Course Book on Ultrasound available in a second edition as an eReader and an online Student Edition of the ECB. EFSUMB has been active with updating Guidelines; those mentioned above have all been revised or written in thelast two years. Webinars have been introduced and participation is possible online but can be reviewed later along with recent recordings of Euroson Schools. The EFSUMB Newsletter in the EJU promotes our activities and topical articles intended to reach all our members with the online version hosted on our website. The Case of the Month continues to be one of EFSUMB's most visited sites and in the last few years has been translated into 14 different languages including Chinese. In conclusion, this article aims to provide an updated guide to the website educational sites of the European Federation of Societies for Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology (EFSUMB).

  7. COS Target Acquisition Guidelines, Recommendations, and Interpretation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Keyes, Charles (Tony) D.; Penton, Steven V.

    2010-06-01

    Based upon analysis of SMOV and Cycle 17 observations through April 2010, this ISR expands, updates, and supersedes recommendations and information provided about target acquisitions (TA) in the COS Instrument Handbook version 2. This ISR provides an overview of COS TA, presents general guidelines and recommendations for crafting COS TAs, establishes COS TA centering accuracy requirements to achieve COS photometric, velocity, and resolution objectives, and summarizes the performance of the COS on-board TA modes as compared to these centering requirements. Updated TA strategy recommendations are given where appropriate, a user-oriented table lists where to find important quantities for the analysis and interpretation of COS TAs, and a brief appendix with additional supporting information is included. An overview of COS TA strategies is provided in Section 2 and Table 1; important updates to ACQ/SEARCH requirements and SEARCH-SIZE recommendations as a function of target coordinate accuracy are given in Tables 2 and 3; COS TA performance by mode is described in Section 5; important header keywords that are useful for evaluating the quality of COS TAs are listed in Table 5 along with where to find them; Table 6 gives a summary of COS TA modes, options, and recommended values; Section 7 summarizes updated recommendations and guidelines for COS TA; and Appendix A provides additional useful COS TA information.

  8. Optimization of PSA screening policies: a comparison of the patient and societal perspectives.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Jingyu; Denton, Brian T; Balasubramanian, Hari; Shah, Nilay D; Inman, Brant A

    2012-01-01

    To estimate the benefit of PSA-based screening for prostate cancer from the patient and societal perspectives. A partially observable Markov decision process model was used to optimize PSA screening decisions. Age-specific prostate cancer incidence rates and the mortality rates from prostate cancer and competing causes were considered. The model trades off the potential benefit of early detection with the cost of screening and loss of patient quality of life due to screening and treatment. PSA testing and biopsy decisions are made based on the patient's probability of having prostate cancer. Probabilities are inferred based on the patient's complete PSA history using Bayesian updating. The results of all PSA tests and biopsies done in Olmsted County, Minnesota, from 1993 to 2005 (11,872 men and 50,589 PSA test results). Patients' perspective: to maximize expected quality-adjusted life years (QALYs); societal perspective: to maximize the expected monetary value based on societal willingness to pay for QALYs and the cost of PSA testing, prostate biopsies, and treatment. From the patient perspective, the optimal policy recommends stopping PSA testing and biopsy at age 76. From the societal perspective, the stopping age is 71. The expected incremental benefit of optimal screening over the traditional guideline of annual PSA screening with threshold 4.0 ng/mL for biopsy is estimated to be 0.165 QALYs per person from the patient perspective and 0.161 QALYs per person from the societal perspective. PSA screening based on traditional guidelines is found to be worse than no screening at all. PSA testing done with traditional guidelines underperforms and therefore underestimates the potential benefit of screening. Optimal screening guidelines differ significantly depending on the perspective of the decision maker.

  9. Update of the Dutch manual for costing studies in health care

    PubMed Central

    Kanters, Tim A.; Bouwmans, Clazien A. M.; van der Linden, Naomi; Tan, Siok Swan; Hakkaart-van Roijen, Leona

    2017-01-01

    Objectives Dutch health economic guidelines include a costing manual, which describes preferred research methodology for costing studies and reference prices to ensure high quality studies and comparability between study outcomes. This paper describes the most important revisions of the costing manual compared to the previous version. Methods An online survey was sent out to potential users of the costing manual to identify topics for improvement. The costing manual was aligned with contemporary health economic guidelines. All methodology sections and parameter values needed for costing studies, particularly reference prices, were updated. An expert panel of health economists was consulted several times during the review process. The revised manual was reviewed by two members of the expert panel and by reviewers of the Dutch Health Care Institute. Results The majority of survey respondents was satisfied with content and usability of the existing costing manual. Respondents recommended updating reference prices and adding some particular commonly needed reference prices. Costs categories were adjusted to the international standard: 1) costs within the health care sector; 2) patient and family costs; and 3) costs in other sectors. Reference prices were updated to reflect 2014 values. The methodology chapter was rewritten to match the requirements of the costing manual and preferences of the users. Reference prices for nursing days of specific wards, for diagnostic procedures and nurse practitioners were added. Conclusions The usability of the costing manual was increased and parameter values were updated. The costing manual became integrated in the new health economic guidelines. PMID:29121647

  10. Update of the Dutch manual for costing studies in health care.

    PubMed

    Kanters, Tim A; Bouwmans, Clazien A M; van der Linden, Naomi; Tan, Siok Swan; Hakkaart-van Roijen, Leona

    2017-01-01

    Dutch health economic guidelines include a costing manual, which describes preferred research methodology for costing studies and reference prices to ensure high quality studies and comparability between study outcomes. This paper describes the most important revisions of the costing manual compared to the previous version. An online survey was sent out to potential users of the costing manual to identify topics for improvement. The costing manual was aligned with contemporary health economic guidelines. All methodology sections and parameter values needed for costing studies, particularly reference prices, were updated. An expert panel of health economists was consulted several times during the review process. The revised manual was reviewed by two members of the expert panel and by reviewers of the Dutch Health Care Institute. The majority of survey respondents was satisfied with content and usability of the existing costing manual. Respondents recommended updating reference prices and adding some particular commonly needed reference prices. Costs categories were adjusted to the international standard: 1) costs within the health care sector; 2) patient and family costs; and 3) costs in other sectors. Reference prices were updated to reflect 2014 values. The methodology chapter was rewritten to match the requirements of the costing manual and preferences of the users. Reference prices for nursing days of specific wards, for diagnostic procedures and nurse practitioners were added. The usability of the costing manual was increased and parameter values were updated. The costing manual became integrated in the new health economic guidelines.

  11. Systematic analysis of the quality of the scientific evidence and conflicts of interest in osteoarthritis of the hip and knee practice guidelines.

    PubMed

    Feuerstein, Joseph D; Pelsis, Jonathan R; Lloyd, Samuel; Cheifetz, Adam S; Stone, Kevin R

    2016-02-01

    To determine the validity of the hip and knee osteoarthritis guidelines. A systematic search of PubMed using a combination of Mesh and text terms with limitations to guidelines was performed to identify hip and knee osteoarthritis guidelines. The study was performed from April 17, 2014 to October 1, 2014. Guidelines were reviewed for graded levels of evidence, methods used to grade the evidence, and disclosures of conflicts of interest. Additionally, guidelines were also assessed for key quality measures using the AGREE II system for assessing the quality of guidelines. A total of 13 guidelines relevant to the diagnosis and/or treatment of hip/knee osteoarthritis was identified. The 180 recommendations reviewed were supported by 231 pieces of evidence. In total, 35% (n = 80; range: 0-26) were supported by level A evidence, 15% (n = 35; range: 0-10) were by level B, and 50% (n = 116; range: 0-62) were by level C. Median age of the guidelines was 4 years (±4.8; range: 0-16) with no comments on planned updates. In total, 31% of the guidelines included patients in the development process. Only one guideline incorporated cost consideration, and only 15% of the guidelines addressed the surgical management of osteoarthritis. Additionally, 46% of guidelines did not comment on conflicts of interest (COI). When present, there was an average 29.8 COI. Notably, 82% of the COI were monetary support/consulting. In total, 50% of the hip/knee osteoarthritis guideline recommendations are based on lower quality evidence. Nearly half the guidelines fail to disclose relevant COI and when disclosed, multiple potential COI are present. Future hip/knee osteoarthritis guideline development committees should strive to improve the transparency and quality of evidence used to formulate practice guidelines. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  12. [Cardiopulmonary resuscitation: the essential of 2015 guidelines].

    PubMed

    Maudet, Ludovic; Carron, Pierre-Nicolas; Trueb, Lionel

    2016-02-10

    Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) guidelines have been updated in October 2015. The 2010 guidelines are reaffirmed: immediate call for help via the local dispatch center, high quality CPR (frequency between 100 and 120/min, compression depth between 5 and 6 cm) and early defibrillation improve patient's survival chances. This article reviews the essential elements of resuscitation and recommended advanced measures.

  13. Updating the Evidence for Physical Activity: Summative Reviews of the Epidemiological Evidence, Prevalence, and Interventions to Promote "Active Aging".

    PubMed

    Bauman, Adrian; Merom, Dafna; Bull, Fiona C; Buchner, David M; Fiatarone Singh, Maria A

    2016-04-01

    There is a global imperative to increase awareness of the emerging evidence on physical activity (PA) among older adults. "Healthy aging" has traditionally focused on preventing chronic disease, but greater efforts are required to reduce frailty and dependency and to maintain independent physical and cognitive function and mental health and well-being. This integrated review updates the epidemiological data on PA, summarizes the existing evidence-based PA guidelines, describes the global magnitude of inactivity, and finally describes the rationale for action. The first section updates the epidemiological evidence for reduced cardiometabolic risk, reduced risks of falls, the burgeoning new evidence on improved cognitive function and functional capacity, and reduced risk of depression, anxiety, and dementia. This is followed by a summary of population prevalence studies among older adults. Finally, we present a "review of reviews" of PA interventions delivered from community or population settings, followed by a consideration of interventions among the "oldest-old," where efforts are needed to increase resistance (strength) training and balance. This review identifies the global importance of considering "active aging" beyond the established benefits attributed to noncommunicable disease prevention alone. Innovative population-level efforts are required to address physical inactivity, prevent loss of muscle strength, and maintain balance in older adults. Specific investment in healthy aging requires global policy support from the World Health Organization and is implemented at the national and regional levels, in order to reduce the burden of disease and disability among older adults. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Gerontological Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  14. Verification/development of seismic design specifications for downstate zone.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2014-07-01

    The New York City Department of Transportation (NYCDOT) Seismic Design Guidelines Report was : updated in September 2008 by Weidlinger Associates to reflect current state-of-the-art knowledge. The : NYCDOT seismic design guidelines are for use in the...

  15. Guideline summary review: an evidence-based clinical guideline for the diagnosis and treatment of adult isthmic spondylolisthesis.

    PubMed

    Kreiner, D Scott; Baisden, Jamie; Mazanec, Daniel J; Patel, Rakesh D; Bess, Robert S; Burton, Douglas; Chutkan, Norman B; Cohen, Bernard A; Crawford, Charles H; Ghiselli, Gary; Hanna, Amgad S; Hwang, Steven W; Kilincer, Cumhur; Myers, Mark E; Park, Paul; Rosolowski, Karie A; Sharma, Anil K; Taleghani, Christopher K; Trammell, Terry R; Vo, Andrew N; Williams, Keith D

    2016-12-01

    The North American Spine Society's (NASS) Evidence-Based Clinical Guideline for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Adult Isthmic Spondylolisthesis features evidence-based recommendations for diagnosing and treating adult patients with isthmic spondylolisthesis. The guideline is intended to reflect contemporary treatment concepts for symptomatic isthmic spondylolisthesis as reflected in the highest quality clinical literature available on this subject as of June 2013. NASS' guideline on this topic is the only guideline on adult isthmic spondylolisthesis accepted in the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality's National Guideline Clearinghouse. The purpose of the guideline is to provide an evidence-based educational tool to assist spine specialists when making clinical decisions for adult patients with isthmic spondylolisthesis. This article provides a brief summary of the evidence-based guideline recommendations for diagnosing and treating patients with this condition. This is a guideline summary review. This guideline is the product of the Adult Isthmic Spondylolisthesis Work Group of NASS' Evidence-Based Clinical Guideline Development Committee. The methods used to develop this guideline are detailed in the complete guideline and technical report available on the NASS website. In brief, a multidisciplinary work group of spine care specialists convened to identify clinical questionsto address in the guideline. The literature search strategy was developed in consultation with medical librarians. Upon completion of the systematic literature search, evidence relevant to the clinical questions posed in the guideline was reviewed. Work group members utilized NASS evidentiary table templates to summarize study conclusions, identify study strengths and weaknesses, and assign levels of evidence. Work group members participated in webcasts and in-person recommendation meetings to update and formulate evidence-based recommendations and incorporate expert opinion when necessary. The draft guidelines were submitted to an internal peer review process and ultimately approved by the NASS Board of Directors. Upon publication, the Adult Isthmic Spondylolisthesis guideline was accepted into the National Guideline Clearinghouse and will be updated approximately every 5 years. Thirty-one clinical questions were addressed, and the answers are summarized in this article. The respective recommendations were graded according to the levels of evidence of the supporting literature. The evidence-based clinical guideline has been created using techniques of evidence-based medicine and best available evidence to aid practitioners in the diagnosis and treatment of adult patients with isthmic spondylolisthesis. The entire guideline document, including the evidentiary tables, literature search parameters, literature attrition flowchart, suggestions for future research, and all of the references, is available electronically on the NASS website at https://www.spine.org/ResearchClinicalCare/QualityImprovement/ClinicalGuidelines.aspx and will remain updated on a timely schedule. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  16. [Experience of the Mexican National Health System in the development of clinical practice guidelines].

    PubMed

    Sosa-García, Jesús Ojino; Nieves-Hernández, Pedro; Puentes-Rosas, Esteban; Pineda-Pérez, Dayana; Viniegra-Osorio, Arturo; Torres-Arreola, Laura del Pilar; Valenzuela-Flores, Adriana Abigail; Barragán-Padilla, Sergio Baltazar; Díaz-González, Ruth; Chávez-Valdez, Lizbeth; Ramírez-López, Juan Carlos

    2016-01-01

    Clinical practice guidelines are tools that have been able to streamline decisions made in health issues and to decrease the gap between clinical action and scientific evidence. The objective of the study is to share the experience in the development and to update the guidelines by the National Health System of Mexico. The methodology in the development of the guidelines consists of 5 phases: prioritisation, establishment of work groups, development by adoption of international guidelines of de novo, validation and integration in the Master catalogue of clinical practice guidelines for its dissemination. The Master catalogue of clinical practice guidelines contains 664 guidelines, distributed in 42% Internal Medicine, 22% Surgery, 24% Pediatrics and 12% Gynecology. From the total of guidelines coverage is granted at an 85% of the Universal catalogue of health services, an 84% of the Catastrophic expenses protection fund and a 61% of the XXI Century Medical Insurance of the National Commission of Social Protection in Health. The result is the sum of a great effort of coordination and cooperation between the institutions of the National Health System, political wills and a commitment of 3,477 health professionals that participate in guidelines' development and update. Master catalogue guidelines' integration, diffusion and implantation improve quality of attention and security of the users of the National Health System. Copyright © 2015 Academia Mexicana de Cirugía A.C. Published by Masson Doyma México S.A. All rights reserved.

  17. Update on US EPA's Revision to the 1985 Guidelines for ...

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    National Water Quality Criteria for the Protection of Aquatic Organisms and Their Uses (Stephan et al. 1985), to reflect the current state-of-the-science for aquatic effects assessments. Following a 2015 public meeting soliciting early input from the scientific community, EPA decided to undertake two overarching parallel tracks for this revision: 1) updating and refining methods for deriving state-of-the-science criteria through comprehensive analyses, and 2) developing criteria more rapidly for the broader protection of aquatic life from the potential adverse effects of the large number of chemicals released into the aquatic environment. The first track reflects that for a smaller group of chemicals, criteria development may be scientifically complex, and deriving robust criteria for these chemicals may require detailed investigation. The second track reflects the recognition that extensive testing of all chemicals is infeasible and there is a need to efficiently derive criteria using approaches that estimate safe environmental concentrations with limited empirical data. Based on these objectives, EPA will develop two criteria documents for this revision: 1) a Comprehensive Guidelines Document, intended to directly update and expand upon approaches presented in the 1985 Guidelines, and that will describe methods that provide criteria for chemicals requiring a more detailed level of evaluation, and 2) an Expedited Guidelines Document, which will focus on criteri

  18. GPs views and understanding of PSA testing, screening and early detection; survey.

    PubMed

    Sutton, J; Melia, J; Kirby, M; Graffy, J; Moss, S

    2016-05-01

    There is currently no national prostate cancer screening programme in the UK. However, patients 50 years and older are entitled to a prostate specific antigen (PSA) test, if informed on the advantages and disadvantages of testing and their risk of cancer. The Prostate Cancer Risk Management Programme (PCRMP) provides this guidance. The aim of this study was to access GPs' views and understanding of PSA testing, prostate cancer screening and early detection. A total of 708 questionnaires were returned by GPs across two English regions in 2013 and the GP questionnaire responses were quantitatively analysed. In the 699 completed questionnaires, the majority of GPs were well informed about PSA testing, screening and early detection. Only 32% used guidelines for referral, 14% knew all age-specific PSA referral levels, 71% that Black men have a higher prostate cancer risk than White men (22% correctly answered threefold increase) and 82% that family history is a risk factor. A further 78% thought electronic prompts during consultation would encourage PCRMP guideline usage and 75% had never been offered a PSA test and prostate cancer educational course, of which 73% would like to attend a course. Only 23% were aware of the latest PSA screening evidence and 94% would like an update. Participating GPs seem to be well informed but need more information and tools to help follow recommended guidance. In particular, increased awareness of PCRMP guidelines especially by automated methods, further educational courses and evidence updates would be beneficial. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  19. Systematic analysis underlying the quality of the scientific evidence and conflicts of interest in interventional medicine subspecialty guidelines.

    PubMed

    Feuerstein, Joseph D; Akbari, Mona; Gifford, Anne E; Hurley, Christine M; Leffler, Daniel A; Sheth, Sunil G; Cheifetz, Adam S

    2014-01-01

    To determine the validity of guidelines published by interventional medical societies. We reviewed the interventional medicine subspecialty society websites of the American Association for Bronchology and Interventional Pulmonology (AABIP), American Society of Diagnostic and Interventional Nephrology (ASDIN), American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE), and Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions (SCAI) as of November 15, 2012, for published interventional guidelines. The study was performed between November 15, 2012, and January 1, 2013. The AABIP did not publish guidelines, so American Thoracic Society and American College of Chest Physicians guidelines were reviewed. All the guidelines were reviewed for graded levels of evidence, methods used to grade the evidence, and disclosures of conflicts of interest (COIs). Of 153 interventional guidelines evaluated, 4 were duplicates. Forty-six percent of guidelines (69 of 149) graded the quality of evidence using 7 different methods. The ASGE graded 71% of guidelines (46 of 65) compared with 29% (23 of 78) by the SCAI and 0 by the ASDIN (n=4) and the pulmonary societies (n=2). Of the 3425 recommendations reviewed, 11% (n=364) were supported by level A, 42% (n=1432) by level B, and 48% (n=1629) by level C. The mean age of the guidelines was 5.2 years. Additionally, 62% of the guidelines (92 of 149) failed to comment on COIs; when disclosed, 91% of guidelines (52 of 57) reported COIs. In total, 1827 COIs were reported by 45% of the authors (317 of 697), averaging 5.8 COIs per author. Most of the interventional guidelines failed to grade the evidence. When present, most guidelines used lower-quality evidence. Furthermore, most guidelines failed to disclose COIs. When commented on, numerous COIs were present. Future guidelines should clearly state the quality of evidence, use a standard grading system, be transparent regarding potential biases, and provide frequent updates. Copyright © 2014 Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  20. Recommendations for Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor 2 Testing in Breast Cancer

    PubMed Central

    Wolff, Antonio C.; Hammond, M. Elizabeth H.; Hicks, David G.; Dowsett, Mitch; McShane, Lisa M.; Allison, Kimberly H.; Allred, Donald C.; Bartlett, John M.S.; Bilous, Michael; Fitzgibbons, Patrick; Hanna, Wedad; Jenkins, Robert B.; Mangu, Pamela B.; Paik, Soonmyung; Perez, Edith A.; Press, Michael F.; Spears, Patricia A.; Vance, Gail H.; Viale, Giuseppe; Hayes, Daniel F.

    2014-01-01

    Purpose To update the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO)/College of American Pathologists (CAP) guideline recommendations for human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) testing in breast cancer to improve the accuracy of HER2 testing and its utility as a predictive marker in invasive breast cancer. Methods ASCO/CAP convened an Update Committee that included coauthors of the 2007 guideline to conduct a systematic literature review and update recommendations for optimal HER2 testing. Results The Update Committee identified criteria and areas requiring clarification to improve the accuracy of HER2 testing by immunohistochemistry (IHC) or in situ hybridization (ISH). The guideline was reviewed and approved by both organizations. Recommendations The Update Committee recommends that HER2 status (HER2 negative or positive) be determined in all patients with invasive (early stage or recurrence) breast cancer on the basis of one or more HER2 test results (negative, equivocal, or positive). Testing criteria define HER2-positive status when (on observing within an area of tumor that amounts to >10% of contiguous and homogeneous tumor cells) there is evidence of protein overexpression (IHC) or gene amplification (HER2 copy number or HER2/CEP17 ratio by ISH based on counting at least 20 cells within the area). If results are equivocal (revised criteria), reflex testing should be performed using an alternative assay (IHC or ISH). Repeat testing should be considered if results seem discordant with other histopathologic findings. Laboratories should demonstrate high concordance with a validated HER2 test on a sufficiently large and representative set of specimens. Testing must be performed in a laboratory accredited by CAP or another accrediting entity. The Update Committee urges providers and health systems to cooperate to ensure the highest quality testing. PMID:24099077

  1. Sexually transmitted disease syndromic case management through public sector facilities: development and assessment study in Punjab Pakistan.

    PubMed

    Khan, Muhammad Amir; Javed, Wajiha; Ahmed, Maqsood; Walley, John; Munir, Muhammad Arif

    2014-01-01

    Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are a priority health problem. We proposed a prospective study in two districts of Punjab, using an intervention package, which included guidelines and protocols on syndrome-based management of STIs, adapted in light of technical guidelines from the National AIDS Control Program and the World Health Organization. The aim of this study was to assess the operational effectiveness of STI case management guidelines and to assess factors that determine the adherence to guidelines for management of STIs at public health facilities in Pakistan. A prospective study lasting 18 months (January 2008 to June 2009), which reviewed early implementation experiences of updated case management guidelines for delivery of syndrome-based STI/reproductive tract infection care, through public-sector health care facilities. The project was implemented in two districts of Punjab, Sargodha and Jhang. A Cox regression model with stratification was done. The prevalence of STI was 26 per 100,000 patients. In women, the reported symptoms were 80% vaginal discharge and 12% abdominal pain. Forty-four percent of men had a genital ulcer and 29% of men had genital discharge. Age of participants ranged from 13 to 60 years. The study comprised 28.6% men and 71.4% women. The majority of the population attending these clinics was from rural areas (70%). The variables independently associated with adherence to guidelines were availability of male paramedic, age of patient, and type of diagnosis made. There was an important interaction (effect modification) present between the area of health facility and patient sex. Screening, diagnosis, and treatment costs for many STIs are expensive and thus an easier, low-cost, syndrome-based public health strategy is the adoption of the proposed STI syndrome case management guidelines. Copyright © 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  2. Technology for Large-Scale Translation of Clinical Practice Guidelines: A Pilot Study of the Performance of a Hybrid Human and Computer-Assisted Approach.

    PubMed

    Van de Velde, Stijn; Macken, Lieve; Vanneste, Koen; Goossens, Martine; Vanschoenbeek, Jan; Aertgeerts, Bert; Vanopstal, Klaar; Vander Stichele, Robert; Buysschaert, Joost

    2015-10-09

    The construction of EBMPracticeNet, a national electronic point-of-care information platform in Belgium, began in 2011 to optimize quality of care by promoting evidence-based decision making. The project involved, among other tasks, the translation of 940 EBM Guidelines of Duodecim Medical Publications from English into Dutch and French. Considering the scale of the translation process, it was decided to make use of computer-aided translation performed by certificated translators with limited expertise in medical translation. Our consortium used a hybrid approach, involving a human translator supported by a translation memory (using SDL Trados Studio), terminology recognition (using SDL MultiTerm terminology databases) from medical terminology databases, and support from online machine translation. This resulted in a validated translation memory, which is now in use for the translation of new and updated guidelines. The objective of this experiment was to evaluate the performance of the hybrid human and computer-assisted approach in comparison with translation unsupported by translation memory and terminology recognition. A comparison was also made with the translation efficiency of an expert medical translator. We conducted a pilot study in which two sets of 30 new and 30 updated guidelines were randomized to one of three groups. Comparable guidelines were translated (1) by certificated junior translators without medical specialization using the hybrid method, (2) by an experienced medical translator without this support, and (3) by the same junior translators without the support of the validated translation memory. A medical proofreader who was blinded for the translation procedure, evaluated the translated guidelines for acceptability and adequacy. Translation speed was measured by recording translation and post-editing time. The human translation edit rate was calculated as a metric to evaluate the quality of the translation. A further evaluation was made of translation acceptability and adequacy. The average number of words per guideline was 1195 and the mean total translation time was 100.2 minutes/1000 words. No meaningful differences were found in the translation speed for new guidelines. The translation of updated guidelines was 59 minutes/1000 words faster (95% CI 2-115; P=.044) in the computer-aided group. Revisions due to terminology accounted for one third of the overall revisions by the medical proofreader. Use of the hybrid human and computer-aided translation by a non-expert translator makes the translation of updates of clinical practice guidelines faster and cheaper because of the benefits of translation memory. For the translation of new guidelines, there was no apparent benefit in comparison with the efficiency of translation unsupported by translation memory (whether by an expert or non-expert translator).

  3. Technology for Large-Scale Translation of Clinical Practice Guidelines: A Pilot Study of the Performance of a Hybrid Human and Computer-Assisted Approach

    PubMed Central

    2015-01-01

    Background The construction of EBMPracticeNet, a national electronic point-of-care information platform in Belgium, began in 2011 to optimize quality of care by promoting evidence-based decision making. The project involved, among other tasks, the translation of 940 EBM Guidelines of Duodecim Medical Publications from English into Dutch and French. Considering the scale of the translation process, it was decided to make use of computer-aided translation performed by certificated translators with limited expertise in medical translation. Our consortium used a hybrid approach, involving a human translator supported by a translation memory (using SDL Trados Studio), terminology recognition (using SDL MultiTerm terminology databases) from medical terminology databases, and support from online machine translation. This resulted in a validated translation memory, which is now in use for the translation of new and updated guidelines. Objective The objective of this experiment was to evaluate the performance of the hybrid human and computer-assisted approach in comparison with translation unsupported by translation memory and terminology recognition. A comparison was also made with the translation efficiency of an expert medical translator. Methods We conducted a pilot study in which two sets of 30 new and 30 updated guidelines were randomized to one of three groups. Comparable guidelines were translated (1) by certificated junior translators without medical specialization using the hybrid method, (2) by an experienced medical translator without this support, and (3) by the same junior translators without the support of the validated translation memory. A medical proofreader who was blinded for the translation procedure, evaluated the translated guidelines for acceptability and adequacy. Translation speed was measured by recording translation and post-editing time. The human translation edit rate was calculated as a metric to evaluate the quality of the translation. A further evaluation was made of translation acceptability and adequacy. Results The average number of words per guideline was 1195 and the mean total translation time was 100.2 minutes/1000 words. No meaningful differences were found in the translation speed for new guidelines. The translation of updated guidelines was 59 minutes/1000 words faster (95% CI 2-115; P=.044) in the computer-aided group. Revisions due to terminology accounted for one third of the overall revisions by the medical proofreader. Conclusions Use of the hybrid human and computer-aided translation by a non-expert translator makes the translation of updates of clinical practice guidelines faster and cheaper because of the benefits of translation memory. For the translation of new guidelines, there was no apparent benefit in comparison with the efficiency of translation unsupported by translation memory (whether by an expert or non-expert translator). PMID:26453372

  4. RSV prophylaxis guideline changes and outcomes in children with congenital heart disease.

    PubMed

    Walpert, Adam S; Thomas, Ian D; Lowe, Merlin C; Seckeler, Michael D

    2018-05-01

    The aim of this study was to compare inpatient outcomes and costs for children with respiratory syncytial virus and congenital heart disease before and after the change in management guidelines for respiratory syncytial virus prophylaxis. Hospital discharge data from the Vizient (formerly University HealthSystem Consortium) were queried from October 2012 to June 2014 (Era 1) and July 2014 to April 2016 (Era 2) for patients aged <24 months with an any International Classification of Disease (ICD)-9 or ICD-10 code for congenital heart disease (745-747.49, Q20.0-Q26.4) and a primary or secondary admitting diagnosis of respiratory syncytial virus infection (079.6, J20.5), acute bronchiolitis due to respiratory syncytial virus (466.11, J21.0) or respiratory syncytial virus pneumonia (480.1, J12.1). This study is a review of a national administrative discharge database. Respiratory syncytial virus admissions were identified in 1269 patients aged <24 months with congenital heart disease, with 644 patients in Era 1 and 625 in Era 2. Patients 0-12 months old represented 83% of admissions. Prior to 2014, children aged 0-24 months with congenital heart disease were eligible to receive respiratory syncytial virus prophylaxis. Updated guidelines, published in 2014, restricted the recommendation to administer palivizumab respiratory syncytial virus prophylaxis to children with congenital heart disease only if they are ≤12 months old. The outcome measures are hospital length of stay, ICU admission rate, mortality, and direct costs. There was no change in length of stay, ICU admission rate, in-hospital mortality, or direct costs for children 13-24 months old with congenital heart disease after the change in guidelines. There were no deaths in 13-24 month olds, regardless of era. Our findings provide additional support for the new guideline recommendations to provide respiratory syncytial virus prophylaxis only for children ≤12 months old with congenital heart disease. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  5. Model driver screening and evaluation program. Volume 3, Guidelines for motor vehicle administrators

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2003-05-01

    These Guidelines present an update of report number DOT HS 807 853 published in August 1992. They reflect current understanding of the relationship between functional capabilities and driving impairment gained through review of existing medical revie...

  6. [French Society for Biological Psychiatry and Neuropsychopharmacology task force. Formal consensus for the treatment of bipolar disorder: an update (2014)].

    PubMed

    Samalin, L; Guillaume, S; Courtet, P; Abbar, M; Lancrenon, S; Llorca, P-M

    2015-02-01

    As part of a process to improve the quality of care, the French Society for Biological Psychiatry and Neuropsychopharmacology developed in 2010 formal consensus guidelines for the treatment of bipolar disorder. The evolution of therapeutic options available in France for the treatment of bipolar disorder has justified the update of this guideline. The purpose of this work was to provide an updated and ergonomic document to promote its use by clinicians. This update focuses on two of the six thematic previously published (acute treatment and long-term treatment). Aspects of the treatment of bipolar patients sparking debate and questions of clinicians (use of antidepressant, place of the bitherapy, interest of long-acting antipsychotics…) were also covered. Finally, we proposed graded recommendations taking into account specifically the risk-benefit balance of each molecule. Copyright © 2014 L’Encéphale, Paris. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

  7. 77 FR 30266 - Annual Updates to the Income Contingent Repayment (ICR) Plan Formula for 2012; William D. Ford...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-05-22

    ... disbursed. In the examples, the Poverty Guideline amounts used are from the 2012 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Poverty Guidelines for the 48 contiguous States and the District of Columbia, as published in the Federal Register on January 26, 2012 (77 FR 4034). Different Poverty Guidelines...

  8. The Effects of Pediatric Advanced Life Support Guidelines on Pediatric Trauma Airway Management.

    PubMed

    Sperka, Jana; Hanson, Sheila J; Hoffmann, Raymond G; Dasgupta, Mahua; Meyer, Michael T

    2016-08-01

    Recent Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS) guidelines have deemphasized the use of advanced airways in short transport. It is unclear if guideline recommendations have altered practice. We sought to determine if a temporal change exists in the number of prehospital pediatric trauma intubations since the 2005 PALS guidelines update. This is an institutional review board-approved, retrospective, single-center study. Reviewed all pediatric trauma activations where patients younger than 19 years were intubated at the scene, en route or at the level 1 trauma center during 2006 to 2011. Specific complications collected were esophageal intubations, mainstem intubations and need for re-intubations. There were 1012 trauma activations, 1009 pediatric patients, 300 (29.7%) intubated during transport to Children's Hospital of Wisconsin Pediatric Trauma Center (PTC) or upon arrival. Mean age of 9.5 ± 5.9 years. Fifty-seven percent (n = 172) were intubated before PTC, 31.7% (n = 95) field intubations, 25.7% (n = 77) outside facility intubations. 44% (n = 132) at PTC. Age was not a significant variable. There was no difference in the proportion of injured children requiring intubation who were intubated before arrival to the PTC. Those intubated in the field versus a facility had significantly increased mortality (P = 0.0002), longer hospital days (P = 0.0004) including intensive care unit days (P = 0.0003) and ventilator days (P = 0.0003) even when adjusted for illness severity. There was no significant change in the proportion of pretrauma room intubations following the 2005 PALS guidelines even when adjusted for illness or injury severity. Children injured farther from the PTC and more severely injured children were more likely to be intubated before arrival at the PTC.

  9. Management of actinic keratosis.

    PubMed

    2013-07-01

    Actinic keratoses are common, often multiple, epidermal lesions found mainly on the sun-exposed skin of fair-skinned middle-aged and older people.(1) Over time, lesions may remain unchanged or may proliferate, regress, reappear or develop into squamous cell carcinoma (SCC).(2) Detectable (spot) lesions are often associated with alteration of the surrounding skin (field) where subclinical lesions might be present.(2) Interventions may target individual or multiple lesions or a whole field.(2) Here, we update our previous review(3) on the prevention and treatment of actinic keratoses, focusing on the licensed treatments most commonly used in the UK and recommended in UK guidelines.

  10. Pneumothorax: an update

    PubMed Central

    Currie, Graeme P; Alluri, Ratna; Christie, Gordon L; Legge, Joe S

    2007-01-01

    Pneumothorax is a relatively common clinical problem which can occur in individuals of any age. Irrespective of aetiology (primary, or secondary to antecedent lung disorders or injury), immediate management depends on the extent of cardiorespiratory impairment, degree of symptoms and size of pneumothorax. Guidelines have been produced which outline appropriate strategies in the care of patients with a pneumothorax, while the emergence of video‐assisted thoracoscopic surgery has created a more accessible and successful tool by which to prevent recurrence in selected individuals. This evidence based review highlights current practices involved in the management of patients with a pneumothorax. PMID:17621614

  11. 2017 publication guidelines for structural modelling of small-angle scattering data from biomolecules in solution: an update

    PubMed Central

    Duff, Anthony P.; Durand, Dominique; Gabel, Frank; Hendrickson, Wayne A.; Hura, Greg L.; Jacques, David A.; Kirby, Nigel M.; Kwan, Ann H.; Pérez, Javier; Pollack, Lois; Ryan, Timothy M.; Sali, Andrej; Schneidman-Duhovny, Dina; Vachette, Patrice; Westbrook, John

    2017-01-01

    In 2012, preliminary guidelines were published addressing sample quality, data acquisition and reduction, presentation of scattering data and validation, and modelling for biomolecular small-angle scattering (SAS) experiments. Bio­molecular SAS has since continued to grow and authors have increasingly adopted the preliminary guidelines. In parallel, integrative/hybrid determination of biomolecular structures is a rapidly growing field that is expanding the scope of structural biology. For SAS to contribute maximally to this field, it is essential to ensure open access to the information required for evaluation of the quality of SAS samples and data, as well as the validity of SAS-based structural models. To this end, the preliminary guidelines for data presentation in a publication are reviewed and updated, and the deposition of data and associated models in a public archive is recommended. These guidelines and recommendations have been prepared in consultation with the members of the International Union of Crystallography (IUCr) Small-Angle Scattering and Journals Commissions, the Worldwide Protein Data Bank (wwPDB) Small-Angle Scattering Validation Task Force and additional experts in the field. PMID:28876235

  12. Antithrombotic treatment in elderly patients with atrial fibrillation.

    PubMed

    Suárez Fernández, C; Camafort, M; Cepeda Rodrigo, J M; Díez-Manglano, J; Formiga, F; Pose Reino, A; Tiberio, G; Mostaza, J M

    2015-04-01

    Atrial fibrillation (AF) in the elderly is a complex condition due to the high number of frequently associated comorbidities, such as cardiovascular and kidney disease, cognitive disorders, falls and polypharmacy. Except when contraindicated, anticoagulation is necessary for preventing thromboembolic events in this population. Both vitamin K antagonists and direct oral anticoagulants (dabigatran, rivaroxaban and apixaban) are indicated in this context. Renal function should be closely monitored for this age group when these drugs are used. In recent years, various clinical practice guidelines have been published on patients with AF. The majority of these guidelines make specific recommendations on the clinical characteristics and treatment of elderly patients. In this update, we review the specific comments on the recommendations concerning antithrombotic treatment in elderly patients with nonvalvular AF. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier España, S.L.U. y Sociedad Española de Medicina Interna (SEMI). All rights reserved.

  13. A Cross-Discipline Modeling Capstone Experience

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Frazier, Marian L.; LoFaro, Thomas; Pillers Dobler, Carolyn

    2018-01-01

    The Mathematical Association of America (MAA) and the American Statistical Association (ASA) have both updated and revised their curriculum guidelines. The guidelines of both associations recommend that students engage in a "capstone" experience, be exposed to applications, and have opportunities to communicate mathematical and…

  14. Meeting new Canadian 24-Hour Movement Guidelines for the Early Years and associations with adiposity among toddlers living in Edmonton, Canada.

    PubMed

    Lee, Eun-Young; Hesketh, Kylie D; Hunter, Stephen; Kuzik, Nicholas; Rhodes, Ryan E; Rinaldi, Christina M; Spence, John C; Carson, Valerie

    2017-11-20

    Canada has recently released guidelines that include toddler-specific recommendations for physical activity, screen-based sedentary behaviour, and sleep. This study examined the proportions of toddlers meeting the new Canadian 24-Hour Movement Guidelines for the Early Years (0-4 years) and associations with body mass index (BMI) z-scores in a sample from Edmonton, Canada. Participants included 151 toddlers (aged 19.0 ± 1.9 months) for whom there was complete objectively measured physical activity data from the Parents' Role in Establishing healthy Physical activity and Sedentary behaviour habits (PREPS) project. Toddlers' physical activity was measured using ActiGraph wGT3X-BT monitors. Toddlers' screen time and sleep were measured using the PREPS questionnaire. Toddlers' height and weight were objectively measured by public health nurses and BMI z-scores were calculated using World Health Organization growth standards. Meeting the overall 24-Hour Movement Guidelines was defined as: ≥180 min/day of total physical activity, including ≥1 min/day of moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activity; no screen time per day (for those aged 12-23 months) or ≤1 h/day of screen time per day (ages 24-35 months); and 11-14 h of sleep per 24-h period. Frequency analyses and linear regression models were conducted. Only 11.9% of toddlers met the overall 24-Hour Movement Guidelines, but this finding was largely driven by screen time. The majority of toddlers met the individual physical activity (99.3%) and sleep (82.1%) recommendations, while only 15.2% of toddlers met the screen time recommendation. No associations were observed between meeting specific and general combinations of recommendations within the guidelines and BMI z-scores. Most toddlers in this sample were meeting physical activity and sleep recommendations but were engaging in more screen time than recommended. Consequently, only a small proportion of toddlers met the overall guidelines. Based on the findings of this study, identifying modifiable correlates of screen time to inform appropriate strategies to reduce screen time appears key for increasing the proportion of toddlers meeting the 24-Hour Movement Guidelines for the Early Years. Future research should examine the associations between meeting the new guidelines and other health indicators. Furthermore, future high-quality studies examining dose-response relationships between movement behaviours and health indicators are needed to inform guideline updates.

  15. Tuberculosis epidemiology, diagnosis and infection control recommendations for dental settings: an update on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines.

    PubMed

    Cleveland, Jennifer L; Robison, Valerie A; Panlilio, Adelisa L

    2009-09-01

    Although rates of tuberculosis (TB) in the United States have decreased in recent years, disparities in TB incidence still exist between U.S.-born and foreign-born people (people living in the United States but born outside it) and between white people and nonwhite people. In addition, the number of TB outbreaks among health care personnel and patients has decreased since the implementation of the 1994 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines to prevent transmission of Mycobacterium tuberculosis. In this article, the authors provide updates on the epidemiology of TB, advances in TB diagnostic methods and TB infection control guidelines for dental settings. In 2008, 83 percent of all reported TB cases in the United States occurred in nonwhite people and 17 percent occurred in white people. Foreign-born people had a TB rate about 10 times higher than that of U.S.-born people. New blood assays for M. tuberculosis have been developed to diagnose TB infection and disease. Changes from the 1994 CDC guidelines incorporated into CDC's "Guidelines for Preventing the Transmission of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in Health-Care Settings, 2005" include revised risk classifications, new TB diagnostic methods, decreased frequencies of tuberculin skin testing in various settings and changes in terminology. Although the principles of TB infection control have remained the same, the changing epidemiology of TB and the advent of new diagnostic methods for TB led to the development of the 2005 update to the 1994 guidelines. Dental health care personnel should be aware of the modifications that are pertinent to dental settings and incorporate them into their overall infection control programs.

  16. Urinary incontinence in frail elderly persons: Report from the 5th International Consultation on Incontinence.

    PubMed

    Wagg, Adrian; Gibson, William; Ostaszkiewicz, Joan; Johnson, Theodore; Markland, Alayne; Palmer, Mary H; Kuchel, George; Szonyi, George; Kirschner-Hermanns, Ruth

    2015-06-01

    Evidence based guidelines for the management of frail older persons with urinary incontinence are rare. Those produced by the International Consultation on Incontinence represent an authoritative set of recommendations spanning all aspects of management. To update the recommendations of the 4th ICI. A series of systematic reviews and evidence updates were performed by members of the working group in order to update the 2009 recommendations. The resulting guidelines were presented at the 2012 meeting of the European Associatioon of Urology. Along with the revision of the treatment algorithm and accompanying text. There have been significant advances in several areas including pharmacological treatment of overactive bladder. The committee continue to notes the relative paucity of data concerning frail older persons and draw attention to knowledge gaps in this area. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  17. Guidelines for Guidelines: Are They Up to the Task? A Comparative Assessment of Clinical Practice Guideline Development Handbooks

    PubMed Central

    Ansari, Shabnam; Rashidian, Arash

    2012-01-01

    Objectives We conducted a comparative review of clinical practice guideline development handbooks. We aimed to identify the main guideline development tasks, assign weights to the importance of each task using expert opinions and identify the handbooks that provided a comprehensive coverage of the tasks. Methods We systematically searched and included handbooks published (in English language) by national, international or professional bodies responsible for evidenced-based guideline development. We reviewed the handbooks to identify the main guideline development tasks and scored each handbook for each task from 0 (the handbook did not mention the task) to 2 (the task suitably addressed and explained), and calculated a weighted score for each handbook. The tasks included in over 75% of the handbooks were considered as ‘necessary’ tasks. Result Nineteen guideline development handbooks and twenty seven main tasks were identified. The guideline handbooks’ weighted scores ranged from 100 to 220. Four handbooks scored over 80% of the maximum possible score, developed by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence, Swiss Centre for International Health, Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network and World Health Organization. Necessary tasks were: selecting the guideline topic, determining the guideline scope, identifying relevant existing guidelines, involving the consumers, forming guideline development group,, developing clinical questions, systematic search for evidence, selecting relevant evidence, appraising identifies research evidence, making group decision, grading available evidence, creating recommendations, final stakeholder consultation, guideline implementation strategies, updating recommendations and correcting potential errors. Discussion Adequate details for evidence based development of guidelines were still lacking from many handbooks. The tasks relevant to ethical issues and piloting were missing in most handbooks. The findings help decision makers in identifying the necessary tasks for guideline development, provide an updated comparative list of guideline development handbooks, and provide a checklist to assess the comprehensiveness of guideline development processes. PMID:23189167

  18. Clinical Practice Guideline for the Treatment of Obstructive Sleep Apnea and Snoring with Oral Appliance Therapy: An Update for 2015

    PubMed Central

    Ramar, Kannan; Dort, Leslie C.; Katz, Sheri G.; Lettieri, Christopher J.; Harrod, Christopher G.; Thomas, Sherene M.; Chervin, Ronald D.

    2015-01-01

    Introduction: Since the previous parameter and review paper publication on oral appliances (OAs) in 2006, the relevant scientific literature has grown considerably, particularly in relation to clinical outcomes. The purpose of this new guideline is to replace the previous and update recommendations for the use of OAs in the treatment of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and snoring. Methods: The American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) and American Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine (AADSM) commissioned a seven-member task force. A systematic review of the literature was performed and a modified Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) process was used to assess the quality of evidence. The task force developed recommendations and assigned strengths based on the quality of the evidence counterbalanced by an assessment of the relative benefit of the treatment versus the potential harms. The AASM and AADSM Board of Directors approved the final guideline recommendations. Recommendations: We recommend that sleep physicians prescribe oral appliances, rather than no therapy, for adult patients who request treatment of primary snoring (without obstructive sleep apnea). (STANDARD) When oral appliance therapy is prescribed by a sleep physician for an adult patient with obstructive sleep apnea, we suggest that a qualified dentist use a custom, titratable appliance over non-custom oral devices. (GUIDELINE) We recommend that sleep physicians consider prescription of oral appliances, rather than no treatment, for adult patients with obstructive sleep apnea who are intolerant of CPAP therapy or prefer alternate therapy. (STANDARD) We suggest that qualified dentists provide oversight— rather than no follow-up—of oral appliance therapy in adult patients with obstructive sleep apnea, to survey for dental-related side effects or occlusal changes and reduce their incidence. (GUIDELINE) We suggest that sleep physicians conduct follow-up sleep testing to improve or confirm treatment efficacy, rather than conduct follow-up without sleep testing, for patients fitted with oral appliances. (GUIDELINE) We suggest that sleep physicians and qualified dentists instruct adult patients treated with oral appliances for obstructive sleep apnea to return for periodic office visits— as opposed to no follow-up—with a qualified dentist and a sleep physician. (GUIDELINE) Conclusions: The AASM and AADSM expect these guidelines to have a positive impact on professional behavior, patient outcomes, and, possibly, health care costs. This guideline reflects the state of knowledge at the time of publication and will require updates if new evidence warrants significant changes to the current recommendations. Citation: Ramar K, Dort LC, Katz SG, Lettieri CJ, Harrod CG, Thomas SM, Chervin RD. Clinical practice guideline for the treatment of obstructive sleep apnea and snoring with oral appliance therapy: an update for 2015. J Clin Sleep Med 2015;11(7):773–827. PMID:26094920

  19. European guidelines for workplace drug testing in oral fluid.

    PubMed

    Brcak, Michaela; Beck, Olof; Bosch, Tessa; Carmichael, Duncan; Fucci, Nadia; George, Claire; Piper, Mark; Salomone, Alberto; Schielen, Wim; Steinmeyer, Stefan; Taskinen, Sanna; Weinmann, Wolfgang

    2018-03-01

    These guidelines for Legally Defensible Workplace Drug Testing have been prepared and updated by the European Workplace Drug Testing Society (EWDTS). The European Guidelines are designed to establish best practice procedures whilst allowing individual countries to operate within the requirements of national customs and legislation. The EWDTS recommends that all European laboratories that undertake legally defensible workplace drug testing should use these guidelines as a template for accreditation. These guidelines are relevant to laboratory-based testing only. These guidelines follow current best practices and are constantly under review. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  20. Road weather information system environmental sensor station siting guide, version 2.0

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2008-11-01

    FHWA initiated an effort in 2007 to evaluate and update, as necessary the ESS Guidelines first published in 2004 (FHWA-HOP-05-026). This effort is summarized in a companion report Implementation and Evaluation of RWIS ESS Siting Guidelines. The...

  1. Introduction to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Healthcare Infection Control Practices Advisory Committee Guideline for Prevention of Surgical Site Infection: Prosthetic Joint Arthroplasty Section.

    PubMed

    Segreti, John; Parvizi, Javad; Berbari, Elie; Ricks, Philip; Berríos-Torres, Sandra I

    Peri-prosthetic joint infection (PJI) is a severe complication of total joint arthroplasty that appears to be increasing as more of these procedures are performed. Numerous risk factors for incisional (superficial and deep) and organ/space (e.g., PJI) surgical site infections (SSIs) have been identified. A better understanding and reversal of modifiable risk factors may lead to a reduction in the incidence of incisional SSI and PJI. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Healthcare Infection Control Practices Advisory Committee (HICPAC) recently updated the national Guideline for Prevention of Surgical Site Infection. The updated guideline applies evidence-based methodology, presents recommendations for potential strategies to reduce the risk of SSI, and includes an arthroplasty-specific section. This article serves to introduce the guideline development process and to complement the Prosthetic Joint Arthroplasty section with background information on PJI-specific economic burden, epidemiology, pathogenesis and microbiology, and risk factor information.

  2. Guideline Implementation: Hand Hygiene.

    PubMed

    Goldberg, Judith L

    2017-02-01

    Performing proper hand hygiene and surgical hand antisepsis is essential to reducing the rates of health care-associated infections, including surgical site infections. The updated AORN "Guideline for hand hygiene" provides guidance on hand hygiene and surgical hand antisepsis, the wearing of fingernail polish and artificial nails, proper skin care to prevent dermatitis, the wearing of jewelry, hand hygiene product selection, and quality assurance and performance improvement considerations. This article focuses on key points of the guideline to help perioperative personnel make informed decisions about hand hygiene and surgical hand antisepsis. The key points address the necessity of keeping fingernails and skin healthy, not wearing jewelry on the hands or wrists in the perioperative area, properly performing hand hygiene and surgical hand antisepsis, and involving patients and visitors in hand hygiene initiatives. Perioperative RNs should review the complete guideline for additional information and for guidance when writing and updating policies and procedures. Copyright © 2017 AORN, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  3. Development of World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations for appropriate clinical trial endpoints for next-generation Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccines.

    PubMed

    Prabhu, Malavika; Eckert, Linda O

    2016-12-01

    The World Health Organization (WHO) serves as a key organization to bring together experts along the continuum of vaccine development and regulatory approval, among its other functions. Using the revision of WHO's guidelines on prophylactic human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine as an example, we describe the process by which (1) a need to revise the guidelines was identified; (2) a group of stakeholders with complementary expertise and key questions were identified; (3) a scientific review was conducted; (4) consensus on revisions was achieved; (5) guidelines were updated, reviewed widely, and approved. This multi-year process resulted in the consensus that regulatory agencies could consider additional endpoints, such as persistent HPV infection or immune equivalence, depending on the design of the HPV vaccine trials. Updating the guidelines will now accelerate vaccine development, reduce costs of clinical trials, and lead to faster regulatory approval. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  4. 76 FR 20994 - Center for Substance Abuse Prevention; Notice of Meeting

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-04-14

    ... (SAMHSA) Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP) Drug Testing Advisory Board (DTAB) on May 3 and 4... include the Federal drug testing updates from the Department of Transportation, the Department of Defense... Guidelines for Federal Workplace Drug Testing Programs; and updates on oral fluid as a potential alternative...

  5. Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer: AUA Guideline Amendment 2015.

    PubMed

    Lowrance, William T; Roth, Bruce J; Kirkby, Erin; Murad, Mohammad Hassan; Cookson, Michael S

    2016-05-01

    The purpose of this amendment is to incorporate relevant newly-published literature to better provide a rational basis for the management of patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer. The original systematic review and meta-analysis of the published literature yielded 303 studies published from 1996 through 2013. This review informed the majority of the guideline statements. Clinical Principles and Expert Opinions were used for guideline statements lacking sufficient evidence. In April 2014, the CRPC guideline underwent amendment based on an additional literature search, which retrieved additional studies published between February 2013 and February 2014. Thirty-seven studies from this search provided data relevant to the specific treatment modalities for CRPC. In March 2015, the CRPC guideline underwent a second amendment, which incorporated 10 additional studies into the evidence base published through February 2015. Guideline statements based on six index patients developed to represent the most common scenarios encountered in clinical practice were amended appropriately. The additional literature provided the basis for an update of current supporting text as well as the incorporation of new guideline statements for multiple index patients. Given the rapidly evolving nature of this field, this guideline should be used in conjunction with recent systematic literature reviews and an understanding of the individual patient's treatment goals. Patients' preferences and personal goals should be considered when choosing management strategies. This guideline will be continually updated as new literature emerges in the field. Copyright © 2016 American Urological Association Education and Research, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  6. Recommendations for an update of the 2010 European regulatory guideline on clinical investigation of medicinal products used in the treatment of osteoarthritis and reflections about related clinically relevant outcomes: expert consensus statement.

    PubMed

    Reginster, J-Y; Reiter-Niesert, S; Bruyère, O; Berenbaum, F; Brandi, M-L; Branco, J; Devogelaer, J-P; Herrero-Beaumont, G; Kanis, J; Maggi, S; Maheu, E; Richette, P; Rizzoli, R; Cooper, C

    2015-12-01

    The European Society on Clinical and Economic aspects of Osteoporosis and Osteoarthritis (ESCEO) organised a working group to evaluate the need for updating the current European guideline on clinical investigation of drugs used in the treatment of osteoarthritis (OA). Areas of potential attention were identified and the need for modifications, update or clarification was examined. Proposals were then developed based on literature reviews and through a consensus process. It was agreed that the current guideline overall still reflects the current knowledge in OA, although two possible modifications were identified. The first relates to the number and timing of measurements required as primary endpoints during clinical trials of symptom-relieving drugs, either drugs with rapid onset of action or slow acting drugs. The suggested modifications are intended to take into consideration the time related clinical need and expected time response to these drugs - i.e., a more early effect for the first category in addition to the maintenance of effect, a more continuous benefit over the long-term for the latter - in the timing of assessments. Secondly, values above which a benefit over placebo should be considered clinically relevant were considered. Based on literature reviews, the most consensual values were determined for primary endpoints of both symptom-relieving drugs (i.e., pain intensity on a visual analogue scale (VAS)) and disease-modifying drugs (i.e., radiographic joint-space narrowing). This working document might be considered by the European regulatory authorities in a future update of the guideline for the registration of drugs in OA. Copyright © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

  7. Consolidated Health Economic Evaluation Reporting Standards (CHEERS) statement.

    PubMed

    Husereau, Don; Drummond, Michael; Petrou, Stavros; Carswell, Chris; Moher, David; Greenberg, Dan; Augustovski, Federico; Briggs, Andrew H; Mauskopf, Josephine; Loder, Elizabeth

    2013-06-01

    Economic evaluations of health interventions pose a particular challenge for reporting. There is also a need to consolidate and update existing guidelines and promote their use in a user friendly manner. The Consolidated Health Economic Evaluation Reporting Standards (CHEERS) statement is an attempt to consolidate and update previous health economic evaluation guidelines efforts into one current, useful reporting guidance. The primary audiences for the CHEERS statement are researchers reporting economic evaluations and the editors and peer reviewers assessing them for publication. The need for new reporting guidance was identified by a survey of medical editors. A list of possible items based on a systematic review was created. A two round, modified Delphi panel consisting of representatives from academia, clinical practice, industry, government, and the editorial community was conducted. Out of 44 candidate items, 24 items and accompanying recommendations were developed. The recommendations are contained in a user friendly, 24 item checklist. A copy of the statement, accompanying checklist, and this report can be found on the ISPOR Health Economic Evaluations Publication Guidelines Task Force website ( www.ispor.org/TaskForces/EconomicPubGuidelines.asp). We hope CHEERS will lead to better reporting, and ultimately, better health decisions. To facilitate dissemination and uptake, the CHEERS statement is being co-published across 10 health economics and medical journals. We encourage other journals and groups, to endorse CHEERS. The author team plans to review the checklist for an update in five years.

  8. Consolidated Health Economic Evaluation Reporting Standards (CHEERS) statement.

    PubMed

    Husereau, Don; Drummond, Michael; Petrou, Stavros; Carswell, Chris; Moher, David; Greenberg, Dan; Augustovski, Federico; Briggs, Andrew H; Mauskopf, Josephine; Loder, Elizabeth

    2013-04-01

    Economic evaluations of health interventions pose a particular challenge for reporting. There is also a need to consolidate and update existing guidelines and promote their use in a user friendly manner. The Consolidated Health Economic Evaluation Reporting Standards (CHEERS) statement is an attempt to consolidate and update previous health economic evaluation guidelines efforts into one current, useful reporting guidance. The primary audiences for the CHEERS statement are researchers reporting economic evaluations and the editors and peer reviewers assessing them for publication. The need for new reporting guidance was identified by a survey of medical editors. A list of possible items based on a systematic review was created. A two round, modified Delphi panel consisting of representatives from academia, clinical practice, industry, government, and the editorial community was conducted. Out of 44 candidate items, 24 items and accompanying recommendations were developed. The recommendations are contained in a user friendly, 24 item checklist. A copy of the statement, accompanying checklist, and this report can be found on the ISPOR Health Economic Evaluations Publication Guidelines Task Force website (www.ispor.org/TaskForces/EconomicPubGuidelines.asp). We hope CHEERS will lead to better reporting, and ultimately, better health decisions. To facilitate dissemination and uptake, the CHEERS statement is being co-published across 10 health economics and medical journals. We encourage other journals and groups, to endorse CHEERS. The author team plans to review the checklist for an update in five years.

  9. Consolidated Health Economic Evaluation Reporting Standards (CHEERS) statement.

    PubMed

    Husereau, Don; Drummond, Michael; Petrou, Stavros; Carswell, Chris; Moher, David; Greenberg, Dan; Augustovski, Federico; Briggs, Andrew H; Mauskopf, Josephine; Loder, Elizabeth

    2013-05-01

    Economic evaluations of health interventions pose a particular challenge for reporting. There is also a need to consolidate and update existing guidelines and promote their use in a user friendly manner. The Consolidated Health Economic Evaluation Reporting Standards (CHEERS) statement is an attempt to consolidate and update previous health economic evaluation guidelines efforts into one current, useful reporting guidance. The primary audiences for the CHEERS statement are researchers reporting economic evaluations and the editors and peer reviewers assessing them for publication.The need for new reporting guidance was identified by a survey of medical editors. A list of possible items based on a systematic review was created. A two round, modified Delphi panel consisting of representatives from academia, clinical practice, industry, government, and the editorial community was conducted. Out of 44 candidate items, 24 items and accompanying recommendations were developed. The recommendations are contained in a user friendly, 24 item checklist. A copy of the statement, accompanying checklist, and this report can be found on the ISPOR Health Economic Evaluations Publication Guidelines Task Force website ( www.ispor.org/TaskForces/EconomicPubGuidelines.asp ).We hope CHEERS will lead to better reporting, and ultimately, better health decisions. To facilitate dissemination and uptake, the CHEERS statement is being co-published across 10 health economics and medical journals. We encourage other journals and groups, to endorse CHEERS. The author team plans to review the checklist for an update in five years.

  10. Consolidated Health Economic Evaluation Reporting Standards (CHEERS) statement.

    PubMed

    Husereau, Don; Drummond, Michael; Petrou, Stavros; Carswell, Chris; Moher, David; Greenberg, Dan; Augustovski, Federico; Briggs, Andrew H; Mauskopf, Josephine; Loder, Elizabeth

    2013-03-25

    Economic evaluations of health interventions pose a particular challenge for reporting. There is also a need to consolidate and update existing guidelines and promote their use in a user friendly manner. The Consolidated Health Economic Evaluation Reporting Standards (CHEERS) statement is an attempt to consolidate and update previous health economic evaluation guidelines efforts into one current, useful reporting guidance. The primary audiences for the CHEERS statement are researchers reporting economic evaluations and the editors and peer reviewers assessing them for publication. The need for new reporting guidance was identified by a survey of medical editors. A list of possible items based on a systematic review was created. A two round, modified Delphi panel consisting of representatives from academia, clinical practice, industry, government, and the editorial community was conducted. Out of 44 candidate items, 24 items and accompanying recommendations were developed. The recommendations are contained in a user friendly, 24 item checklist. A copy of the statement, accompanying checklist, and this report can be found on the ISPOR Health Economic Evaluations Publication Guidelines Task Force website (www.ispor.org/TaskForces/EconomicPubGuidelines.asp). We hope CHEERS will lead to better reporting, and ultimately, better health decisions. To facilitate dissemination and uptake, the CHEERS statement is being co-published across 10 health economics and medical journals. We encourage other journals and groups, to endorse CHEERS. The author team plans to review the checklist for an update in five years.

  11. Best practice guidelines for molecular genetic diagnosis of cystic fibrosis and CFTR-related disorders--updated European recommendations.

    PubMed

    Dequeker, Els; Stuhrmann, Manfred; Morris, Michael A; Casals, Teresa; Castellani, Carlo; Claustres, Mireille; Cuppens, Harry; des Georges, Marie; Ferec, Claude; Macek, Milan; Pignatti, Pier-Franco; Scheffer, Hans; Schwartz, Marianne; Witt, Michal; Schwarz, Martin; Girodon, Emmanuelle

    2009-01-01

    The increasing number of laboratories offering molecular genetic analysis of the CFTR gene and the growing use of commercial kits strengthen the need for an update of previous best practice guidelines (published in 2000). The importance of organizing regional or national laboratory networks, to provide both primary and comprehensive CFTR mutation screening, is stressed. Current guidelines focus on strategies for dealing with increasingly complex situations of CFTR testing. Diagnostic flow charts now include testing in CFTR-related disorders and in fetal bowel anomalies. Emphasis is also placed on the need to consider ethnic or geographic origins of patients and individuals, on basic principles of risk calculation and on the importance of providing accurate laboratory reports. Finally, classification of CFTR mutations is reviewed, with regard to their relevance to pathogenicity and to genetic counselling.

  12. [GeSIDA/National AIDS Plan: Consensus document on antiretroviral therapy in adults infected by the human immunodeficiency virus (Updated January 2014)].

    PubMed

    2014-01-01

    This consensus document is an update of combined antiretroviral therapy (cART) guidelines for HIV-1 infected adult patients. To formulate these recommendations a panel composed of members of the Grupo de Estudio de Sida and the Plan Nacional sobre el Sida reviewed the efficacy and safety advances in clinical trials, cohort and pharmacokinetic studies published in medical journals (PubMed and Embase) or presented in medical scientific meetings. Recommendations strength and the evidence in which they are supported are based on modified criteria of the Infectious Diseases Society of America. In this update, antiretroviral therapy (ART) is recommended for all patients infected by type 1 human immunodeficiency virus (HIV-1). The strength and grade of the recommendation varies with the clinical circumstances: CDC stage B or C disease (A-I), asymptomatic patients (depending on the CD4+ T-lymphocyte count: <350cells/μL, A-I; 350-500 cells/μL, A-II, and >500 cells/μL, B-III), comorbid conditions (HIV nephropathy, chronic hepatitis caused by HBV or HCV, age >55years, high cardiovascular risk, neurocognitive disorders, and cancer, A-II), and prevention of transmission of HIV (mother-to-child or heterosexual, A-I; men who have sex with men, A-III). The objective of ART is to achieve an undetectable plasma viral load. Initial ART should always comprise a combination of 3 drugs, including 2 nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors and a third drug from a different family (non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor, protease inhibitor, or integrase inhibitor). Some of the possible initial regimens have been considered alternatives. This update presents the causes and criteria for switching ART in patients with undetectable plasma viral load and in cases of virological failure where rescue ART should comprise 2 or 3 drugs that are fully active against the virus. An update is also provided for the specific criteria for ART in special situations (acute infection, HIV-2 infection, and pregnancy) and with comorbid conditions (tuberculosis or other opportunistic infections, kidney disease, liver disease, and cancer). These new guidelines updates previous recommendations related to cART (when to begin and what drugs should be used), how to monitor and what to do in case of viral failure or drug adverse reactions. cART specific criteria in comorbid patients and special situations are equally updated. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier España, S.L.U. y Sociedad Española de Enfermedades Infecciosas y Microbiología Clínica. All rights reserved.

  13. WRN Mutation Update: Mutation Spectrum, Patient Registries, and Translational Prospects.

    PubMed

    Yokote, Koutaro; Chanprasert, Sirisak; Lee, Lin; Eirich, Katharina; Takemoto, Minoru; Watanabe, Aki; Koizumi, Naoko; Lessel, Davor; Mori, Takayasu; Hisama, Fuki M; Ladd, Paula D; Angle, Brad; Baris, Hagit; Cefle, Kivanc; Palanduz, Sukru; Ozturk, Sukru; Chateau, Antoinette; Deguchi, Kentaro; Easwar, T K M; Federico, Antonio; Fox, Amy; Grebe, Theresa A; Hay, Beverly; Nampoothiri, Sheela; Seiter, Karen; Streeten, Elizabeth; Piña-Aguilar, Raul E; Poke, Gemma; Poot, Martin; Posmyk, Renata; Martin, George M; Kubisch, Christian; Schindler, Detlev; Oshima, Junko

    2017-01-01

    Werner syndrome (WS) is a rare autosomal recessive disorder characterized by a constellation of adult onset phenotypes consistent with an acceleration of intrinsic biological aging. It is caused by pathogenic variants in the WRN gene, which encodes a multifunctional nuclear protein with exonuclease and helicase activities. WRN protein is thought to be involved in optimization of various aspects of DNA metabolism, including DNA repair, recombination, replication, and transcription. In this update, we summarize a total of 83 different WRN mutations, including eight previously unpublished mutations identified by the International Registry of Werner Syndrome (Seattle, WA) and the Japanese Werner Consortium (Chiba, Japan), as well as 75 mutations already reported in the literature. The Seattle International Registry recruits patients from all over the world to investigate genetic causes of a wide variety of progeroid syndromes in order to contribute to the knowledge of basic mechanisms of human aging. Given the unusually high prevalence of WS patients and heterozygous carriers in Japan, the major goal of the Japanese Consortium is to develop effective therapies and to establish management guidelines for WS patients in Japan and elsewhere. This review will also discuss potential translational approaches to this disorder, including those currently under investigation. © 2016 WILEY PERIODICALS, INC.

  14. WRN Mutation Update: Mutation Spectrum, Patient Registries, and Translational Prospects

    PubMed Central

    Yokote, Koutaro; Chanprasert, Sirisak; Lee, Lin; Eirich, Katharina; Takemoto, Minoru; Watanabe, Aki; Koizumi, Naoko; Lessel, Davor; Mori, Takayasu; Hisama, Fuki M.; Ladd, Paula D.; Angle, Brad; Baris, Hagit; Cefle, Kivanc; Palanduz, Sukru; Ozturk, Sukru; Chateau, Antoinette; Deguchi, Kentaro; Easwar, T.K.M; Federico, Antonio; Fox, Amy; Grebe, Theresa A.; Hay, Beverly; Nampoothiri, Sheela; Seiter, Karen; Streeten, Elizabeth; Piña-Aguilar, Raul E.; Poke, Gemma; Poot, Martin; Posmyk, Renata; Martin, George M.; Kubisch, Christian; Schindler, Detlev; Oshima, Junko

    2017-01-01

    Werner syndrome (WS) is a rare autosomal recessive disorder characterized by a constellation of adult onset phenotypes consistent with an acceleration of intrinsic biological aging. It is caused by pathogenic variants in the WRN gene, which encodes a multifunctional nuclear protein with exonuclease and helicase activities. WRN protein is thought to be involved in optimization of various aspects of DNA metabolism, including DNA repair, recombination, replication, and transcription. In this update, we summarize a total of 83 different WRN mutations, including eight previously unpublished mutations identified by the International Registry of Werner Syndrome (Seattle, WA) and the Japanese Werner Consortium (Chiba, Japan), as well as 75 mutations already reported in the literature. The Seattle International Registry recruits patients from all over the world to investigate genetic causes of a wide variety of progeroid syndromes in order to contribute to the knowledge of basic mechanisms of human aging. Given the unusually high prevalence of WS patients and heterozygous carriers in Japan, the major goal of the Japanese Consortium is to develop effective therapies and to establish management guidelines for WS patients in Japan and elsewhere. This review will also discuss potential translational approaches to this disorder, including those currently under investigation. PMID:27667302

  15. Singapore Paediatric Resuscitation Guidelines 2016.

    PubMed

    Ong, Gene Yong Kwang; Chan, Irene Lai Yeen; Ng, Agnes Suah Bwee; Chew, Su Yah; Mok, Yee Hui; Chan, Yoke Hwee; Ong, Jacqueline Soo May; Ganapathy, Sashikumar; Ng, Kee Chong

    2017-07-01

    We present the revised 2016 Singapore paediatric resuscitation guidelines. The International Liaison Committee on Resuscitation's Pediatric Taskforce Consensus Statements on Science and Treatment Recommendations, as well as the updated resuscitation guidelines from the American Heart Association and European Resuscitation Council released in October 2015, were debated and discussed by the workgroup. The final recommendations for the Singapore Paediatric Resuscitation Guidelines 2016 were derived after carefully reviewing the current available evidence in the literature and balancing it with local clinical practice. Copyright: © Singapore Medical Association.

  16. NCCN Guidelines Insights: Colon Cancer, Version 2.2018.

    PubMed

    Benson, Al B; Venook, Alan P; Al-Hawary, Mahmoud M; Cederquist, Lynette; Chen, Yi-Jen; Ciombor, Kristen K; Cohen, Stacey; Cooper, Harry S; Deming, Dustin; Engstrom, Paul F; Garrido-Laguna, Ignacio; Grem, Jean L; Grothey, Axel; Hochster, Howard S; Hoffe, Sarah; Hunt, Steven; Kamel, Ahmed; Kirilcuk, Natalie; Krishnamurthi, Smitha; Messersmith, Wells A; Meyerhardt, Jeffrey; Miller, Eric D; Mulcahy, Mary F; Murphy, James D; Nurkin, Steven; Saltz, Leonard; Sharma, Sunil; Shibata, David; Skibber, John M; Sofocleous, Constantinos T; Stoffel, Elena M; Stotsky-Himelfarb, Eden; Willett, Christopher G; Wuthrick, Evan; Gregory, Kristina M; Freedman-Cass, Deborah A

    2018-04-01

    The NCCN Guidelines for Colon Cancer provide recommendations regarding diagnosis, pathologic staging, surgical management, perioperative treatment, surveillance, management of recurrent and metastatic disease, and survivorship. These NCCN Guidelines Insights summarize the NCCN Colon Cancer Panel discussions for the 2018 update of the guidelines regarding risk stratification and adjuvant treatment for patients with stage III colon cancer, and treatment of BRAF V600E mutation-positive metastatic colorectal cancer with regimens containing vemurafenib. Copyright © 2018 by the National Comprehensive Cancer Network.

  17. Updated Clinical Guidelines for Diagnosing Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders

    PubMed Central

    Kalberg, Wendy O.; Elliott, Amy J.; Blankenship, Jason; Buckley, David; Marais, Anna-Susan; Manning, Melanie A.; Robinson, Luther K.; Adam, Margaret P.; Abdul-Rahman, Omar; Jewett, Tamison; Coles, Claire D.; Chambers, Christina; Jones, Kenneth L.; Adnams, Colleen M.; Shah, Prachi E.; Riley, Edward P.; Charness, Michael E.; Warren, Kenneth R.; May, Philip A.

    2016-01-01

    The adverse effects of prenatal alcohol exposure constitute a continuum of disabilities (fetal alcohol spectrum disorders [FASD]). In 1996, the Institute of Medicine established diagnostic categories delineating the spectrum but not specifying clinical criteria by which diagnoses could be assigned. In 2005, the authors published practical guidelines operationalizing the Institute of Medicine categories, allowing for standardization of FASD diagnoses in clinical settings. The purpose of the current report is to present updated diagnostic guidelines based on a thorough review of the literature and the authors’ combined expertise based on the evaluation of >10 000 children for potential FASD in clinical settings and in epidemiologic studies in conjunction with National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism–funded studies, the Collaborative Initiative on Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders, and the Collaboration on FASD Prevalence. The guidelines were formulated through conference calls and meetings held at National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism offices in Rockville, MD. Specific areas addressed include the following: precise definition of documented prenatal alcohol exposure; neurobehavioral criteria for diagnosis of fetal alcohol syndrome, partial fetal alcohol syndrome, and alcohol-related neurodevelopmental disorder; revised diagnostic criteria for alcohol-related birth defects; an updated comprehensive research dysmorphology scoring system; and a new lip/philtrum guide for the white population, incorporating a 45-degree view. The guidelines reflect consensus among a large and experienced cadre of FASD investigators in the fields of dysmorphology, epidemiology, neurology, psychology, developmental/behavioral pediatrics, and educational diagnostics. Their improved clarity and specificity will guide clinicians in accurate diagnosis of infants and children prenatally exposed to alcohol. PMID:27464676

  18. Guidelines on eosinophilic esophagitis: evidence-based statements and recommendations for diagnosis and management in children and adults.

    PubMed

    Lucendo, Alfredo J; Molina-Infante, Javier; Arias, Ángel; von Arnim, Ulrike; Bredenoord, Albert J; Bussmann, Christian; Amil Dias, Jorge; Bove, Mogens; González-Cervera, Jesús; Larsson, Helen; Miehlke, Stephan; Papadopoulou, Alexandra; Rodríguez-Sánchez, Joaquín; Ravelli, Alberto; Ronkainen, Jukka; Santander, Cecilio; Schoepfer, Alain M; Storr, Martin A; Terreehorst, Ingrid; Straumann, Alex; Attwood, Stephen E

    2017-04-01

    Eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) is one of the most prevalent esophageal diseases and the leading cause of dysphagia and food impaction in children and young adults. This underlines the importance of optimizing diagnosys and treatment of the condition, especially after the increasing amount of knowledge on EoE recently published. Therefore, the UEG, EAACI ESPGHAN, and EUREOS deemed it necessary to update the current guidelines regarding conceptual and epidemiological aspects, diagnosis, and treatment of EoE. General methodology according to the Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation (AGREE) II and the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) system was used in order to comply with current standards of evidence assessment in formulation of recommendations. An extensive literature search was conducted up to August 2015 and periodically updated. The working group consisted of gastroenterologists, allergists, pediatricians, otolaryngologists, pathologists, and epidemiologists. Systematic evidence-based reviews were performed based upon relevant clinical questions with respect to patient-important outcomes. The guidelines include updated concept of EoE, evaluated information on disease epidemiology, risk factors, associated conditions, and natural history of EoE in children and adults. Diagnostic conditions and criteria, the yield of diagnostic and disease monitoring procedures, and evidence-based statements and recommendation on the utility of the several treatment options for patients EoE are provided. Recommendations on how to choose and implement treatment and long-term management are provided based on expert opinion and best clinical practice. Evidence-based recommendations for EoE diagnosis, treatment modalities, and patients' follow up are proposed in the guideline.

  19. 2004 GUIDELINES FOR WATER REUSE

    EPA Science Inventory

    The Guidelines for Water Reuse is an update of a similar document developed jointly by EPA and Camp, Dresser & McKee, Inc. in 1992. As with the earlier version, a committee of national and international experts in the field of water reclamation was established to draft new text a...

  20. 2009 Canadian Cardiovascular Society/Canadian guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of dyslipidemia and prevention of cardiovascular disease in the adult – 2009 recommendations

    PubMed Central

    Genest, Jacques; McPherson, Ruth; Frohlich, Jiri; Anderson, Todd; Campbell, Norm; Carpentier, André; Couture, Patrick; Dufour, Robert; Fodor, George; Francis, Gordon A; Grover, Steven; Gupta, Milan; Hegele, Robert A; Lau, David C; Leiter, Lawrence; Lewis, Gary F; Lonn, Eva; Mancini, GB John; Ng, Dominic; Pearson, Glen J; Sniderman, Allan; Stone, James A; Ur, Ehud

    2009-01-01

    The present article represents the 2009 update of the Canadian Cardiovascular Society guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of dyslipidemia and prevention of cardiovascular disease in the adult. PMID:19812802

  1. The Body Fat-Cognition Relationship in Healthy Older Individuals: Does Gynoid vs Android Distribution Matter?

    PubMed

    Forte, R; Pesce, C; De Vito, G; Boreham, C A G

    2017-01-01

    To examine the relationship between regional and whole body fat accumulation and core cognitive executive functions. Cross-sectional study. 78 healthy men and women aged between 65 and 75 years recruited through consumer's database. DXA measured percentage total body fat, android, gynoid distribution and android/gynoid ratio; inhibition and working memory updating through Random Number Generation test and cognitive flexibility by Trail Making test. First-order partial correlations between regional body fat and cognitive executive function were computed partialling out the effects of whole body fat. Moderation analysis was performed to verify the effect of gender on the body fat-cognition relationship. Results showed a differentiated pattern of fat-cognition relationship depending on fat localization and type of cognitive function. Statistically significant relationships were observed between working memory updating and: android fat (r = -0.232; p = 0.042), gynoid fat (r = 0.333; p = 0.003) and android/gynoid ratio (r = -0.272; p = 0.017). Separating genders, the only significant relationship was observed in females between working memory updating and gynoid fat (r = 0.280; p = 0.045). In spite of gender differences in both working memory updating and gynoid body fat levels, moderation analysis did not show an effect of gender on the relationship between gynoid fat and working memory updating. Results suggest a protective effect of gynoid body fat and a deleterious effect of android body fat. Although excessive body fat increases the risk of developing CDV, metabolic and cognitive problems, maintaining a certain proportion of gynoid fat may help prevent cognitive decline, particularly in older women. Guidelines for optimal body composition maintenance for the elderly should not target indiscriminate weight loss, but weight maintenance through body fat/lean mass control based on non-pharmacological tools such as physical exercise, known to have protective effects against CVD risk factors and age-related cognitive deterioration.

  2. Castration-resistant prostate cancer: AUA guideline amendment.

    PubMed

    Cookson, Michael S; Lowrance, William T; Murad, Mohammad H; Kibel, Adam S

    2015-02-01

    The purpose of this amendment is to incorporate relevant newly-published literature to better provide a rational basis for the management of patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer. The original systematic review and meta-analysis of the published literature yielded 303 articles published from 1996 through 2013. This review formed a majority of the guideline statements. Clinical Principles and Expert Opinions were used for guideline statements lacking sufficient evidence-based data. In April 2014, the CRPC guideline underwent amendment based on a second comprehensive literature search, which retrieved additional studies published between February 2013 and February 2014. Thirty-seven studies from this search provided data relevant to the specific treatment modalities for CRPC. Guideline statements based on six index patients developed to represent the most common scenarios encountered in clinical practice were amended appropriately. The additional literature provided the basis for an update of current supporting text as well as the incorporation of new guideline statements. Specifically, the addition of Radium-223 was placed in the guidelines related to the treatment of CRPC. Given the rapidly evolving nature of this field, this guideline should be used in conjunction with recent systematic literature reviews and an understanding of the individual patient's treatment goals. Patients' preferences and personal goals should be considered when choosing management strategies. The newly incorporated evidence-based statements supplement the original guideline published in 2013, which provided guidance for the treatment of men with CRPC. This guideline will be continually updated as new literature emerges in the field. Copyright © 2015 American Urological Association Education and Research, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  3. Intravenous immunoglobulin in paediatric neurology: safety, adherence to guidelines, and long-term outcome.

    PubMed

    Nosadini, Margherita; Mohammad, Shekeeb S; Suppiej, Agnese; Sartori, Stefano; Dale, Russell C

    2016-11-01

    Intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) is an expensive therapy used in immunodeficiency and autoimmune disorders. Increasing demands and consequent shortages result in a need for usage to conform to guidelines. We retrospectively evaluated IVIG use for neuroimmunological indications and adherence to existing guidelines in a major Australian paediatric hospital between 2000 and 2014. One-hundred and ninety-six children (96 male, 100 female; mean age at disease onset 6y 5mo [range 3mo-15y 10mo], mean age at first IVIG dose 7y 2mo [range 3mo-16y 5mo]) received IVIG for neuroimmunological indications during the study period (28.1% had Guillain-Barré syndrome), representing 15.5% of all hospital indications. In total, 1669 IVIG courses were administered (total 57 221g, median 78g/patient, range 12-5748g). The highest median numbers of courses were in chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathies, opsoclonus-myoclonus ataxia syndrome, suspected immune-mediated epilepsies, and Rasmussen's encephalitis. Adverse reactions occurred in 25.5% of patients, but these were mostly minor. Outcome at follow-up was best in anti-N-methyl-d-aspartate receptor (anti-NMDAR) encephalitis, Guillain-Barré syndrome, and myasthenia gravis, and worst in Rasmussen's encephalitis and epilepsies. The total cost of IVIG was US$2 595 907 (median $3538/patient, range $544-260 766). Of patients receiving IVIG, 45.4% to 57.1% were given the therapy for 'weak' indications or indications 'not listed' in international guidelines. Some entities commonly treated with IVIG in current practice, such as anti-NMDAR encephalitis and transverse myelitis, are not listed in most guidelines. Our study demonstrates that IVIG is generally well tolerated but expensive, and discloses discrepancies between guidelines and clinical practice in paediatric neurology, suggesting both the need for greater adherence to current recommendations, and for recommendations to be updated to accommodate emerging indications. © 2016 Mac Keith Press.

  4. Update of the Healthy Eating Index: HEI-2010

    PubMed Central

    Guenther, Patricia M.; Kirkpatrick, Sharon I.; Reedy, Jill; Hiza, Hazel A.B.; Kuczynski, Kevin J.; Kahle, Lisa L.; Krebs-Smith, Susan M.

    2013-01-01

    The Healthy Eating Index (HEI) is a measure of diet quality in terms of conformance with federal dietary guidance. Publication of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2010 prompted an interagency working group to update the HEI. The HEI-2010 retains several features of the 2005 version: (1) it has 12 components, many unchanged, including 9 adequacy and 3 moderation components; (2) it uses a density approach to set standards, e.g., per 1000 calories or as a percent of calories; and (3) it employs least-restrictive standards, i.e., those that are easiest to achieve among recommendations that vary by energy level, sex, and/or age. Changes to the index include: (1) Greens and Beans replaces Dark Green and Orange Vegetables and Legumes; (2) Seafood and Plant Proteins has been added to capture specific choices from the protein group; (3) Fatty Acids, a ratio of poly- and mono-unsaturated to saturated fatty acids, replaces Oils and Saturated Fat to acknowledge the recommendation to replace saturated fat with mono-and polyunsaturated fatty acids; and (4) a moderation component, Refined Grains, replaces the adequacy component, Total Grains, to assess over-consumption. The HEI-2010 captures the key recommendations of the 2010 Dietary Guidelines and, like earlier versions, will be used to assess the diet quality of the U.S. population and subpopulations, in evaluating interventions, in dietary patterns research, and to evaluate various aspects of the food environment. PMID:23415502

  5. At what age should screening mammography be recommended for Asian women?

    PubMed

    Tsuchida, Junko; Nagahashi, Masayuki; Rashid, Omar M; Takabe, Kazuaki; Wakai, Toshifumi

    2015-07-01

    Although regular screening mammography has been suggested to be associated with improvements in the relative survival of breast cancer in recent years, the appropriate age to start screening mammography remains controversial. In November 2009, the United States Preventive Service Task Force published updated guidelines for breast cancer, which no longer support routine screening mammography for women aged 40-49 years, but instead, defer the choice of screening in that age group to the patient and physician. The age to begin screening differs between guidelines, including those from the Task Force, the American Cancer Society and the World Health Organization. It remains unclear how this discrepancy impacts patient survival, especially among certain subpopulations. Although the biological characteristics of breast cancer and peak age of incidence differ among different ethnic populations, there have been few reports that evaluate the starting age for screening mammography based on ethnicity. Here, we discuss the benefits and harm of screening mammography in the fifth decade, and re-evaluate the starting age for screening mammography taking ethnicity into account, focusing on the Asian population. Breast cancer incidence peaked in the fifth decade in Asian women, which has been thought to be due to a combination of biological and environmental factors. Previous reports suggest that Asian women in their 40s may receive more benefit and less harm from screening mammography than the age-matched non-Asian US population. Therefore, starting screening mammography at age 40 may be beneficial for women of Asian ethnicity in well-resourced countries, such as Japanese women who reside in Japan. © 2015 The Authors. Cancer Medicine published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  6. Update on Neonatal Herpes Simplex Epidemiology in the Netherlands: A Health Problem of Increasing Concern?

    PubMed

    van Oeffelen, Louise; Biekram, Manisha; Poeran, Jashvant; Hukkelhoven, Chantal; Galjaard, Sander; van der Meijden, Wim; Op de Coul, Eline

    2018-01-18

    This paper provides an update on the incidence of neonatal herpes, guideline adherence by health care professionals (HCP), and trends in genital herpes simplex virus (HSV) infection during pregnancy in the Netherlands. Questionnaires were sent to all hospitals inquiring about numbers and characteristics of neonatal and maternal HSV infections, and guideline adherence between 2012 and 2015. Longitudinal trends were investigated from 1999 onwards using survey data and Perinatal Registry of the Netherlands data (Perined). Trends were smoothed with Poisson regression splines. Risk indicators for neonatal and maternal HSV infections were examined with Poisson regression analyses. Neonatal herpes incidence was 4.8/100,000 live births based on survey data (2012-2015) and 3.4/100,000 based on Perined (2012-2014). Mortality rate was 23% (7/30). Neonatal herpes incidence increased slightly over time as did the prevalence of genital HSV infection among pregnant women. Non-Western ethnicity (RR 1.9, 95%CI 1.5-2.5) and age <20 years (RR 2.3, 95%CI 1.2-4.7) were associated with genital herpes during pregnancy. In Perined, none of the neonatal herpes cases had a mother diagnosed with an active genital herpes infection during pregnancy. Preventive measures to reduce vertical herpes transmission (such as caesarean section) were less commonly reported by HCP in 2012-2015 compared to 2006-2011. Neonatal herpes incidence in the Netherlands slowly increased over the last 15 years. An increased genital HSV prevalence during pregnancy or, to lower extent, the decreased guideline adherence by HCP may be responsible. A rise in asymptomatic maternal HSV shedding is also plausible, emphasizing the challenges in preventing neonatal herpes.

  7. Summary of evidence-based guideline update: evaluation and management of concussion in sports: report of the Guideline Development Subcommittee of the American Academy of Neurology.

    PubMed

    Giza, Christopher C; Kutcher, Jeffrey S; Ashwal, Stephen; Barth, Jeffrey; Getchius, Thomas S D; Gioia, Gerard A; Gronseth, Gary S; Guskiewicz, Kevin; Mandel, Steven; Manley, Geoffrey; McKeag, Douglas B; Thurman, David J; Zafonte, Ross

    2013-06-11

    To update the 1997 American Academy of Neurology (AAN) practice parameter regarding sports concussion, focusing on 4 questions: 1) What factors increase/decrease concussion risk? 2) What diagnostic tools identify those with concussion and those at increased risk for severe/prolonged early impairments, neurologic catastrophe, or chronic neurobehavioral impairment? 3) What clinical factors identify those at increased risk for severe/prolonged early postconcussion impairments, neurologic catastrophe, recurrent concussions, or chronic neurobehavioral impairment? 4) What interventions enhance recovery, reduce recurrent concussion risk, or diminish long-term sequelae? The complete guideline on which this summary is based is available as an online data supplement to this article. We systematically reviewed the literature from 1955 to June 2012 for pertinent evidence. We assessed evidence for quality and synthesized into conclusions using a modified Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation process. We used a modified Delphi process to develop recommendations. Specific risk factors can increase or decrease concussion risk. Diagnostic tools to help identify individuals with concussion include graded symptom checklists, the Standardized Assessment of Concussion, neuropsychological assessments, and the Balance Error Scoring System. Ongoing clinical symptoms, concussion history, and younger age identify those at risk for postconcussion impairments. Risk factors for recurrent concussion include history of multiple concussions, particularly within 10 days after initial concussion. Risk factors for chronic neurobehavioral impairment include concussion exposure and APOE ε4 genotype. Data are insufficient to show that any intervention enhances recovery or diminishes long-term sequelae postconcussion. Practice recommendations are presented for preparticipation counseling, management of suspected concussion, and management of diagnosed concussion.

  8. Consensus Guidelines for Therapeutic Drug Monitoring in Neuropsychopharmacology: Update 2017.

    PubMed

    Hiemke, C; Bergemann, N; Clement, H W; Conca, A; Deckert, J; Domschke, K; Eckermann, G; Egberts, K; Gerlach, M; Greiner, C; Gründer, G; Haen, E; Havemann-Reinecke, U; Hefner, G; Helmer, R; Janssen, G; Jaquenoud, E; Laux, G; Messer, T; Mössner, R; Müller, M J; Paulzen, M; Pfuhlmann, B; Riederer, P; Saria, A; Schoppek, B; Schoretsanitis, G; Schwarz, M; Gracia, M Silva; Stegmann, B; Steimer, W; Stingl, J C; Uhr, M; Ulrich, S; Unterecker, S; Waschgler, R; Zernig, G; Zurek, G; Baumann, P

    2018-01-01

    Therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) is the quantification and interpretation of drug concentrations in blood to optimize pharmacotherapy. It considers the interindividual variability of pharmacokinetics and thus enables personalized pharmacotherapy. In psychiatry and neurology, patient populations that may particularly benefit from TDM are children and adolescents, pregnant women, elderly patients, individuals with intellectual disabilities, patients with substance abuse disorders, forensic psychiatric patients or patients with known or suspected pharmacokinetic abnormalities. Non-response at therapeutic doses, uncertain drug adherence, suboptimal tolerability, or pharmacokinetic drug-drug interactions are typical indications for TDM. However, the potential benefits of TDM to optimize pharmacotherapy can only be obtained if the method is adequately integrated in the clinical treatment process. To supply treating physicians and laboratories with valid information on TDM, the TDM task force of the Arbeitsgemeinschaft für Neuropsychopharmakologie und Pharmakopsychiatrie (AGNP) issued their first guidelines for TDM in psychiatry in 2004. After an update in 2011, it was time for the next update. Following the new guidelines holds the potential to improve neuropsychopharmacotherapy, accelerate the recovery of many patients, and reduce health care costs. © Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

  9. Management of bleeding following major trauma: an updated European guideline

    PubMed Central

    2010-01-01

    Introduction Evidence-based recommendations are needed to guide the acute management of the bleeding trauma patient, which when implemented may improve patient outcomes. Methods The multidisciplinary Task Force for Advanced Bleeding Care in Trauma was formed in 2005 with the aim of developing a guideline for the management of bleeding following severe injury. This document presents an updated version of the guideline published by the group in 2007. Recommendations were formulated using a nominal group process, the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) hierarchy of evidence and based on a systematic review of published literature. Results Key changes encompassed in this version of the guideline include new recommendations on coagulation support and monitoring and the appropriate use of local haemostatic measures, tourniquets, calcium and desmopressin in the bleeding trauma patient. The remaining recommendations have been reevaluated and graded based on literature published since the last edition of the guideline. Consideration was also given to changes in clinical practice that have taken place during this time period as a result of both new evidence and changes in the general availability of relevant agents and technologies. Conclusions This guideline provides an evidence-based multidisciplinary approach to the management of critically injured bleeding trauma patients. PMID:20370902

  10. Developing clinical practice guidelines: target audiences, identifying topics for guidelines, guideline group composition and functioning and conflicts of interest

    PubMed Central

    2012-01-01

    Clinical practice guidelines are one of the foundations of efforts to improve health care. In 1999, we authored a paper about methods to develop guidelines. Since it was published, the methods of guideline development have progressed both in terms of methods and necessary procedures and the context for guideline development has changed with the emergence of guideline clearing houses and large scale guideline production organisations (such as the UK National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence). It therefore seems timely to, in a series of three articles, update and extend our earlier paper. In this first paper we discuss: the target audience(s) for guidelines and their use of guidelines; identifying topics for guidelines; guideline group composition (including consumer involvement) and the processes by which guideline groups function and the important procedural issue of managing conflicts of interest in guideline development. PMID:22762776

  11. Developing clinical practice guidelines: target audiences, identifying topics for guidelines, guideline group composition and functioning and conflicts of interest.

    PubMed

    Eccles, Martin P; Grimshaw, Jeremy M; Shekelle, Paul; Schünemann, Holger J; Woolf, Steven

    2012-07-04

    Clinical practice guidelines are one of the foundations of efforts to improve health care. In 1999, we authored a paper about methods to develop guidelines. Since it was published, the methods of guideline development have progressed both in terms of methods and necessary procedures and the context for guideline development has changed with the emergence of guideline clearing houses and large scale guideline production organisations (such as the UK National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence). It therefore seems timely to, in a series of three articles, update and extend our earlier paper. In this first paper we discuss: the target audience(s) for guidelines and their use of guidelines; identifying topics for guidelines; guideline group composition (including consumer involvement) and the processes by which guideline groups function and the important procedural issue of managing conflicts of interest in guideline development.

  12. [Myokard-Perfusions-SPECT. Myocardial perfusion SPECT - Update S1 guideline].

    PubMed

    Lindner, Oliver; Bengel, Frank; Burchert, Wolfgang; Dörr, Rolf; Hacker, Marcus; Schäfer, Wolfgang; Schäfers, Michael A; Schmidt, Matthias; Schwaiger, Markus; Vom Dahl, Jürgen; Zimmermann, Rainer

    2017-08-14

    The S1 guideline for myocardial perfusion SPECT has been published by the Association of the Scientific Medical Societies in Germany (AWMF) and is valid until 2/2022. This paper is a short summary with comments on all chapters and subchapters wich were modified and amended.

  13. Guideline.gov: A Database of Clinical Specialty Guidelines.

    PubMed

    El-Khayat, Yamila M; Forbes, Carrie S; Coghill, Jeffrey G

    2017-01-01

    The National Guidelines Clearinghouse (NGC), also known as Guideline.gov, is a database of resources to assist health care providers with a central depository of guidelines for clinical specialty areas in medicine. The database is provided free of charge and is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. The guidelines for treatment are updated regularly, with new guidelines replacing older guidelines every five years. There are hundreds of current guidelines with more added each week. The purpose and goal of NGC is to provide physicians, nurses, and other health care providers, insurance companies, and others in the field of health care with a unified database of the most current, detailed, relevant, and objective clinical practice guidelines.

  14. Guidelines for locoregional therapy in primary breast cancer in developing countries: The results of an expert panel at the 8th Annual Women's Cancer Initiative – Tata Memorial Hospital (WCI-TMH) Conference

    PubMed Central

    Munshi, Anusheel; Gupta, Sudeep; Anderson, Benjamin; Yarnold, John; Parmar, Vani; Jalali, Rakesh; Sharma, Suresh Chander; Desai, Sangeeta; Thakur, Meenakshi; Baijal, Gunjan; Sarin, Rajiv; Mittra, Indraneel; Ghosh, Jaya; Badwe, Rajendra

    2012-01-01

    Background: Limited guidelines exist for breast cancer management in developing countries. In this context, the Women's Cancer Initiative - Tata Memorial Hospital (WCI-TMH) organised its 8th Annual Conference to update guidelines in breast cancer. Materials and Methods: Appropriately formulated guideline questions on each topic and subtopic in the surgical, radiation and systemic management of primary breast cancer were developed by the scientific committee and shared with the guest faculty of the Conference. Majority of the questions had multiple choice answers. The opinion of the audience, comprising academic and community oncologists, was electronically cumulated, followed by focussed presentations by eminent national and international experts on each topic. The guidelines were finally developed through an expert panel that voted on each guideline question after all talks had been delivered and audience opinion elicited. Separate panels were constituted for locoregional and systemic therapy in primary breast cancer. Results: Based on the voting results of the expert panel, guidelines for locoregional therapy of breast cancer have been formulated. Voting patterns for each question are reported. Conclusions: The updated guidelines on locoregional management of primary breast cancer in the context of developing countries are presented in this article. These recommendations have been designed to allow centers in the developing world to improve the quality of care for breast cancer patients. PMID:22988354

  15. DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Savy, J.

    New design and evaluation guidelines for department of energy facilities subjected to natural phenomena hazard, are being finalized. Although still in draft form at this time, the document describing those guidelines should be considered to be an update of previously available guidelines. The recommendations in the guidelines document mentioned above, and simply referred to as the guidelines'' thereafter, are based on the best information at the time of its development. In particular, the seismic hazard model for the Princeton site was based on a study performed in 1981 for Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), which relied heavily on the resultsmore » of the NRC's Systematic Evaluation Program and was based on a methodology and data sets developed in 1977 and 1978. Considerable advances have been made in the last ten years in the domain of seismic hazard modeling. Thus, it is recommended to update the estimate of the seismic hazard at the DOE sites whenever possible. The major differences between previous estimates and the ones proposed in this study for the PPPL are in the modeling of the strong ground motion at the site, and the treatment of the total uncertainty in the estimates to include knowledge uncertainty, random uncertainty, and expert opinion diversity as well. 28 refs.« less

  16. Update of Standard Practices for New Method Validation in Forensic Toxicology.

    PubMed

    Wille, Sarah M R; Coucke, Wim; De Baere, Thierry; Peters, Frank T

    2017-01-01

    International agreement concerning validation guidelines is important to obtain quality forensic bioanalytical research and routine applications as it all starts with the reporting of reliable analytical data. Standards for fundamental validation parameters are provided in guidelines as those from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the European Medicines Agency (EMA), the German speaking Gesellschaft fur Toxikologie und Forensische Chemie (GTFCH) and the Scientific Working Group of Forensic Toxicology (SWGTOX). These validation parameters include selectivity, matrix effects, method limits, calibration, accuracy and stability, as well as other parameters such as carryover, dilution integrity and incurred sample reanalysis. It is, however, not easy for laboratories to implement these guidelines into practice as these international guidelines remain nonbinding protocols, that depend on the applied analytical technique, and that need to be updated according the analyst's method requirements and the application type. In this manuscript, a review of the current guidelines and literature concerning bioanalytical validation parameters in a forensic context is given and discussed. In addition, suggestions for the experimental set-up, the pros and cons of statistical approaches and adequate acceptance criteria for the validation of bioanalytical applications are given. Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.org.

  17. NASA Electronic Parts and Packaging Field Programmable Gate Array Single Event Effects Test Guideline Update

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Berg, Melanie D.; LaBel, Kenneth A.

    2018-01-01

    The following are updated or new subjects added to the FPGA SEE Test Guidelines manual: academic versus mission specific device evaluation, single event latch-up (SEL) test and analysis, SEE response visibility enhancement during radiation testing, mitigation evaluation (embedded and user-implemented), unreliable design and its affects to SEE Data, testing flushable architectures versus non-flushable architectures, intellectual property core (IP Core) test and evaluation (addresses embedded and user-inserted), heavy-ion energy and linear energy transfer (LET) selection, proton versus heavy-ion testing, fault injection, mean fluence to failure analysis, and mission specific system-level single event upset (SEU) response prediction. Most sections within the guidelines manual provide information regarding best practices for test structure and test system development. The scope of this manual addresses academic versus mission specific device evaluation and visibility enhancement in IP Core testing.

  18. NASA Electronic Parts and Packaging (NEPP) Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) Single Event Effects (SEE) Test Guideline Update

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Berg, Melanie D.; LaBel, Kenneth A.

    2018-01-01

    The following are updated or new subjects added to the FPGA SEE Test Guidelines manual: academic versus mission specific device evaluation, single event latch-up (SEL) test and analysis, SEE response visibility enhancement during radiation testing, mitigation evaluation (embedded and user-implemented), unreliable design and its affects to SEE Data, testing flushable architectures versus non-flushable architectures, intellectual property core (IP Core) test and evaluation (addresses embedded and user-inserted), heavy-ion energy and linear energy transfer (LET) selection, proton versus heavy-ion testing, fault injection, mean fluence to failure analysis, and mission specific system-level single event upset (SEU) response prediction. Most sections within the guidelines manual provide information regarding best practices for test structure and test system development. The scope of this manual addresses academic versus mission specific device evaluation and visibility enhancement in IP Core testing.

  19. Automating a human factors evaluation of graphical user interfaces for NASA applications: An update on CHIMES

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Jiang, Jian-Ping; Murphy, Elizabeth D.; Bailin, Sidney C.; Truszkowski, Walter F.

    1993-01-01

    Capturing human factors knowledge about the design of graphical user interfaces (GUI's) and applying this knowledge on-line are the primary objectives of the Computer-Human Interaction Models (CHIMES) project. The current CHIMES prototype is designed to check a GUI's compliance with industry-standard guidelines, general human factors guidelines, and human factors recommendations on color usage. Following the evaluation, CHIMES presents human factors feedback and advice to the GUI designer. The paper describes the approach to modeling human factors guidelines, the system architecture, a new method developed to convert quantitative RGB primaries into qualitative color representations, and the potential for integrating CHIMES with user interface management systems (UIMS). Both the conceptual approach and its implementation are discussed. This paper updates the presentation on CHIMES at the first International Symposium on Ground Data Systems for Spacecraft Control.

  20. Guidelines for the medical treatment of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.

    PubMed

    Xaubet, Antoni; Molina-Molina, María; Acosta, Orlando; Bollo, Elena; Castillo, Diego; Fernández-Fabrellas, Estrella; Rodríguez-Portal, José Antonio; Valenzuela, Claudia; Ancochea, Julio

    2017-05-01

    Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis is defined as chronic fibrosing interstitial pneumonia limited to the lung, with poor prognosis. The incidence has been rising in recent years probably due to improved diagnostic methods and increased life expectancy. In 2013, the SEPAR guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis were published. Since then, clinical trials and meta-analyses have shown strong scientific evidence for the use of pirfenidone and nintedanib in the treatment of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. In 2015, the international consensus of 2011 was updated and new therapeutic recommendations were established, prompting us to update our recommendation for the medical treatment of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis accordingly. Diagnostic aspects and non-pharmacological treatment will not be discussed as no relevant developments have emerged since the 2013 guidelines. Copyright © 2017 SEPAR. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

  1. Singapore Urological Association Clinical Guidelines for Male Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms/Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia

    PubMed Central

    2017-01-01

    The first clinical guidelines for male lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS)/benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) were published in 2005. An update is urgently needed in view of BPH being recognised as one of ten chronic illnesses by the Ministry of Health, Singapore. This review summarises the definition of BPH and the epidemiology of male LUTS/BPH in Singapore. BPH can be phenotyped with noninvasive transabdominal ultrasonography, according to intravesical prostatic protrusion and prostate volume, and classified according to severity (staging) for individualised treatment. At the initial evaluation, the majority of patients (59%) can be managed with fluid adjustment, exercise and diet; 32% with medications, using alpha blockers and/or 5-alpha reductase inhibitors for prostates weighing more than 30 g; and 9% with surgical intervention for more advanced disease. The 2015 guidelines comprise updated evidence that will help family medicine practitioners and specialists manage this common ailment more cost-effectively. PMID:28848988

  2. Clinical Considerations for the Use Lower Extremity Arthroplasty in the Elderly.

    PubMed

    Otero-López, Antonio; Beaton-Comulada, David

    2017-11-01

    There is an increase in the aging population that has led to a surge of reported cases of osteoarthritis and a greater demand for lower extremity arthroplasty. This article aims to review the current treatment options and expectations when considering lower extremity arthroplasty in the elderly patient with an emphasis on the following subjects: (1) updated clinical guidelines for the management of osteoarthritis in the lower extremity, (2) comorbidities and risk factors in the surgical patient, (3) preoperative evaluation and optimization of the surgical patient, (4) surgical approach and implant selection, and (5) rehabilitation and life after lower extremity arthroplasty. Published by Elsevier Inc.

  3. Forgotten children? An update on young children in institutions across Europe.

    PubMed

    Hamilton-Giachritsis, Catherine; Browne, Kevin

    2012-12-01

    The worst of institutional care was brought to public attention in Romania during the 1990s when pictures of severely deprived and malnourished children were shown around the world. However, many European countries have high rates of young children in institutions, where the physical care of the child predominates, with social/emotional needs a secondary concern. Yet institutional care is a very poor substitute for positive family care, increasing the risk of development delay, attachment difficulties, neural growth dysfunction and mental health disorders. This article provides an update on a series of projects that have highlighted this issue in Europe, arguing that babies and small children aged less than 3years old, with or without disability, should not be placed in residential care without a parent or primary caregiver. This principle has been discussed by the UN General Assembly (2009) and specific guidelines have been produced for all 193 member states. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  4. [Recommendations for initial antiretroviral treatment in HIV-infected children. Update 2003].

    PubMed

    2004-03-01

    Highly active antiretroviral therapy in HIV-infected children has been associated with a dramatic decrease in progression to AIDS and HIV-related deaths, and infected children currently have an excellent quality of life. Antiretroviral drugs cannot eradicate the virus, although they can achieve a situation of latent infection. However, chronic use of these drugs has multiple adverse effects, the most important of which are metabolic complications. The large number of drugs required and patient characteristics such as age, tolerance to drugs, adherence, and social problems make unifying the criteria for initial therapy in HIV-infected children difficult. A balance should be sought between not delaying the start of treatment, to avoid immunologic deterioration, and minimizing the long-term adverse effects of the therapy. The present treatment recommendations are adapted from international guidelines and are based on a literature review and on our own experience. Our group previously published recommendations on the treatment of HIV-infected children and the aim of the present article is to provide an update.

  5. An industry update: the latest developments in therapeutic delivery.

    PubMed

    Steinbach, Oliver C

    2017-03-01

    The present industry update covers the period 1-31 January 2017, with information sourced from company press releases, regulatory and patent agencies as well as the scientific literature. With a new year come new resolutions, annual operation plans but also reports and outlooks for the years(s) to come. A number of the latter have been published in January forecasting various spaces in drug delivery (Market and Research). Also a number of financing deals were closed being fresh into the year such as Ossianix and Ocular Therapeutix and contract manufacturers will show their offerings at the 2017 MD&M West Medtech event (Lubrizol, Trelleborg). The US FDA released some new (draft) guidelines for combination products to regulate standards and disputes in this increasingly important field. Recent advances in artificial pancreas technology demonstrates that while the age of nanotechnology and gene therapy (Bluebird Bio) has arrived, implantable, closed-loop delivery systems (Medtronic) are just to pass successfully the clinic and come in reach of patients.

  6. CAC Score Improves Coronary and CV Risk Assessment Above Statin Indication by ESC and AHA/ACC Primary Prevention Guidelines.

    PubMed

    Mahabadi, Amir A; Möhlenkamp, Stefan; Lehmann, Nils; Kälsch, Hagen; Dykun, Iryna; Pundt, Noreen; Moebus, Susanne; Jöckel, Karl-Heinz; Erbel, Raimund

    2017-02-01

    The aim of this study was to assess the difference in indication for statin therapy by European Society of Cardiology (ESC) versus American Heart Association/American College of Cardiology (AHA/ACC) guidelines and to quantify the potential additional role of coronary artery calcification (CAC) score over updated guidelines in a primary prevention cohort. Recently, ESC and AHA/ACC updated the guidelines regarding statin therapy in primary prevention. In 3,745 subjects (59 ± 8 years of age, 47% men) from the population based longitudinal Heinz Nixdorf Recall cohort study without cardiovascular disease or lipid-lowering therapy at baseline CAC score was assessed between 2000 and 2003. Subjects remained unaware of their initial CAC score. Statin indication was determined according to 2012 ESC and 2013 AHA/ACC guidelines based on subjects individual baseline characteristics. The frequency of statin recommendation was lower according to ESC compared to AHA/ACC guidelines (34% vs. 56%; p < 0.0001), whereas low CAC score (<100) was common in subjects with statin indication by both guidelines (59% for ESC, 62% for AHA/ACC). During 10.4 ± 2.0 years of follow-up, 131 myocardial infarctions occurred. For ESC recommendations, CAC score differentiated risk for subjects without (1.0 [95% confidence interval (CI): 0.4 to 1.5] vs. 6.5 [95% CI: 4.1 to 8.9] coronary events per 1,000 person-years for CAC 0 vs. ≥100) and with statin indication (2.6 [95% CI: 0.6 to 4.7] vs. 9.9 [95% CI: 7.3 to 12.5] per 1,000 person-years for CAC 0 vs. ≥100). Likewise, CAC score stratified proportions experiencing events subjects with statin indication according to AHA/ACC (2.7 [95% CI: 1.1 to 4.2] vs. 9.1 [95% CI: 7.0 to 11.0] per 1,000 person-years for CAC 0 vs. ≥100), whereas event rate in subjects without statin indication was low (1.1 [95% CI: 0.65 to 1.68] per 1,000 person-years). Current ESC and AHA/ACC guidelines lead to markedly different recommendation regarding statin therapy in a German primary prevention cohort. Quantification of CAC score in addition to the guidelines improves stratification between subjects at high versus low risk for coronary events, indicating that CAC scoring may help to match intensified risk factor modification to atherosclerotic plaque burden as well as actual risk while avoiding therapy in subjects with low coronary atherosclerosis that have low 10-year event rate. Copyright © 2017 American College of Cardiology Foundation. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  7. Clinical Practice Guideline for the Management of Candidiasis: 2016 Update by the Infectious Diseases Society of America

    PubMed Central

    Pappas, Peter G.; Kauffman, Carol A.; Andes, David R.; Clancy, Cornelius J.; Marr, Kieren A.; Ostrosky-Zeichner, Luis; Reboli, Annette C.; Schuster, Mindy G.; Vazquez, Jose A.; Walsh, Thomas J.; Zaoutis, Theoklis E.; Sobel, Jack D.

    2016-01-01

    It is important to realize that guidelines cannot always account for individual variation among patients. They are not intended to supplant physician judgment with respect to particular patients or special clinical situations. IDSA considers adherence to these guidelines to be voluntary, with the ultimate determination regarding their application to be made by the physician in the light of each patient's individual circumstances. PMID:26679628

  8. Practice Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Management of Aspergillosis: 2016 Update by the Infectious Diseases Society of America

    PubMed Central

    Patterson, Thomas F.; Thompson, George R.; Denning, David W.; Fishman, Jay A.; Hadley, Susan; Herbrecht, Raoul; Kontoyiannis, Dimitrios P.; Marr, Kieren A.; Morrison, Vicki A.; Nguyen, M. Hong; Segal, Brahm H.; Steinbach, William J.; Stevens, David A.; Walsh, Thomas J.; Wingard, John R.; Young, Jo-Anne H.; Bennett, John E.

    2016-01-01

    Abstract It is important to realize that guidelines cannot always account for individual variation among patients. They are not intended to supplant physician judgment with respect to particular patients or special clinical situations. IDSA considers adherence to these guidelines to be voluntary, with the ultimate determination regarding their application to be made by the physician in the light of each patient's individual circumstances. PMID:27365388

  9. Cancer screening in the United States, 2018: A review of current American Cancer Society guidelines and current issues in cancer screening.

    PubMed

    Smith, Robert A; Andrews, Kimberly S; Brooks, Durado; Fedewa, Stacey A; Manassaram-Baptiste, Deana; Saslow, Debbie; Brawley, Otis W; Wender, Richard C

    2018-05-30

    Each year, the American Cancer Society publishes a summary of its guidelines for early cancer detection, data and trends in cancer screening rates from the National Health Interview Survey, and select issues related to cancer screening. In this 2018 update, we also summarize the new American Cancer Society colorectal cancer screening guideline and include a clarification in the language of the 2013 lung cancer screening guideline. CA Cancer J Clin 2018. © 2018 American Cancer Society. © 2018 American Cancer Society.

  10. Glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitors in patients with unstable angina/non-ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction: appropriate interpretation of the guidelines.

    PubMed

    Antman, Elliott M

    2003-10-01

    In 2002, the American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association published an update to their guidelines for the management of patients with unstable angina and non-ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction. These revised guidelines make specific recommendations regarding the use of glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitors. This article briefly reviews the evidence supporting the use of glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitors in unstable angina and non-ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction, before moving on to discuss interpretation of these new guidelines.

  11. Periodontics and the new CDC guidelines.

    PubMed

    Basquill, Linda C; Basquill, Patrick J

    2004-07-01

    On December 19, 2003, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released the Guidelines for Infection Control in Dental Health-Care Settings--2003. The publication was the first comprehensive dental infection control update since 1993. Although the guidelines are not directed toward a particular dental specialty, some recommendations may have a significant impact on the practice of periodontics because of the nature of the procedures that are considered routine to the specialty. This article deals with some of the issues addressed in the guidelines, highlighting topics of special interest to periodontists.

  12. British Dietetic Association systematic review and evidence-based practice guidelines for the dietary management of irritable bowel syndrome in adults (2016 update).

    PubMed

    McKenzie, Y A; Bowyer, R K; Leach, H; Gulia, P; Horobin, J; O'Sullivan, N A; Pettitt, C; Reeves, L B; Seamark, L; Williams, M; Thompson, J; Lomer, M C E

    2016-10-01

    The first British Dietetic Association (BDA) guidelines for the dietary management of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) in adults were published in 2012. Subsequently, there has been a wealth of new research. The aim of this work was to systematically review the evidence for the role of diet in the management of IBS and to update the guidelines. Twelve questions relating to diet and IBS were defined based on review of the previous guideline questions, current evidence and clinical practice. Chosen topics were on healthy eating and lifestyle (alcohol, caffeine, spicy food, elimination diets, fat and fluid intakes and dietary habits), milk and dairy, dietary fibre, fermentable carbohydrates, gluten, probiotics and elimination diets/food hypersensitivity. Data sources were CINAHL, Cochrane Register of Controlled Trials, Embase, Medline, Scopus and Web of Science up to October 2015. Studies were assessed independently in duplicate using risk of bias tools specific to each included study based on inclusion and exclusion criteria for each question. National Health and Medical Research Council grading evidence levels were used to develop evidence statements and recommendations, in accordance with Practice-based Evidence in Nutrition Global protocol used by the BDA. Eighty-six studies were critically appraised to generate 46 evidence statements, 15 clinical recommendations and four research recommendations. The IBS dietary algorithm was simplified to first-line (healthy eating, provided by any healthcare professional) and second-line [low FODMAP (fermentable oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides and polyols) to be provided by dietitian] dietary advice. These guidelines provide updated comprehensive evidence-based details to achieve the successful dietary management of IBS in adults. © 2016 The British Dietetic Association Ltd.

  13. Guidelines on eosinophilic esophagitis: evidence-based statements and recommendations for diagnosis and management in children and adults

    PubMed Central

    Molina-Infante, Javier; Arias, Ángel; von Arnim, Ulrike; Bredenoord, Albert J; Bussmann, Christian; Amil Dias, Jorge; Bove, Mogens; González-Cervera, Jesús; Larsson, Helen; Miehlke, Stephan; Papadopoulou, Alexandra; Rodríguez-Sánchez, Joaquín; Ravelli, Alberto; Ronkainen, Jukka; Santander, Cecilio; Schoepfer, Alain M; Storr, Martin A; Terreehorst, Ingrid; Straumann, Alex; Attwood, Stephen E

    2017-01-01

    Introduction Eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) is one of the most prevalent esophageal diseases and the leading cause of dysphagia and food impaction in children and young adults. This underlines the importance of optimizing diagnosys and treatment of the condition, especially after the increasing amount of knowledge on EoE recently published. Therefore, the UEG, EAACI ESPGHAN, and EUREOS deemed it necessary to update the current guidelines regarding conceptual and epidemiological aspects, diagnosis, and treatment of EoE. Methods General methodology according to the Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation (AGREE) II and the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) system was used in order to comply with current standards of evidence assessment in formulation of recommendations. An extensive literature search was conducted up to August 2015 and periodically updated. The working group consisted of gastroenterologists, allergists, pediatricians, otolaryngologists, pathologists, and epidemiologists. Systematic evidence-based reviews were performed based upon relevant clinical questions with respect to patient-important outcomes. Results The guidelines include updated concept of EoE, evaluated information on disease epidemiology, risk factors, associated conditions, and natural history of EoE in children and adults. Diagnostic conditions and criteria, the yield of diagnostic and disease monitoring procedures, and evidence-based statements and recommendation on the utility of the several treatment options for patients EoE are provided. Recommendations on how to choose and implement treatment and long-term management are provided based on expert opinion and best clinical practice. Conclusion Evidence-based recommendations for EoE diagnosis, treatment modalities, and patients’ follow up are proposed in the guideline. PMID:28507746

  14. Consolidated Health Economic Evaluation Reporting Standards (CHEERS) statement

    PubMed Central

    2013-01-01

    Economic evaluations of health interventions pose a particular challenge for reporting. There is also a need to consolidate and update existing guidelines and promote their use in a user friendly manner. The Consolidated Health Economic Evaluation Reporting Standards (CHEERS) statement is an attempt to consolidate and update previous health economic evaluation guidelines efforts into one current, useful reporting guidance. The primary audiences for the CHEERS statement are researchers reporting economic evaluations and the editors and peer reviewers assessing them for publication. The need for new reporting guidance was identified by a survey of medical editors. A list of possible items based on a systematic review was created. A two round, modified Delphi panel consisting of representatives from academia, clinical practice, industry, government, and the editorial community was conducted. Out of 44 candidate items, 24 items and accompanying recommendations were developed. The recommendations are contained in a user friendly, 24 item checklist. A copy of the statement, accompanying checklist, and this report can be found on the ISPOR Health Economic Evaluations Publication Guidelines Task Force website (http://www.ispor.org/TaskForces/EconomicPubGuidelines.asp). We hope CHEERS will lead to better reporting, and ultimately, better health decisions. To facilitate dissemination and uptake, the CHEERS statement is being co-published across 10 health economics and medical journals. We encourage other journals and groups, to endorse CHEERS. The author team plans to review the checklist for an update in five years. PMID:23531108

  15. Consolidated Health Economic Evaluation Reporting Standards (CHEERS) statement

    PubMed Central

    2013-01-01

    Economic evaluations of health interventions pose a particular challenge for reporting. There is also a need to consolidate and update existing guidelines and promote their use in a user friendly manner. The Consolidated Health Economic Evaluation Reporting Standards (CHEERS) statement is an attempt to consolidate and update previous health economic evaluation guidelines efforts into one current, useful reporting guidance. The primary audiences for the CHEERS statement are researchers reporting economic evaluations and the editors and peer reviewers assessing them for publication. The need for new reporting guidance was identified by a survey of medical editors. A list of possible items based on a systematic review was created. A two round, modified Delphi panel consisting of representatives from academia, clinical practice, industry, government, and the editorial community was conducted. Out of 44 candidate items, 24 items and accompanying recommendations were developed. The recommendations are contained in a user friendly, 24 item checklist. A copy of the statement, accompanying checklist, and this report can be found on the ISPOR Health Economic Evaluations Publication Guidelines Task Force website (http://www.ispor.org/TaskForces/EconomicPubGuidelines.asp). We hope CHEERS will lead to better reporting, and ultimately, better health decisions. To facilitate dissemination and uptake, the CHEERS statement is being co-published across 10 health economics and medical journals. We encourage other journals and groups, to endorse CHEERS. The author team plans to review the checklist for an update in five years. PMID:23531194

  16. Consolidated Health Economic Evaluation Reporting Standards (CHEERS) statement.

    PubMed

    Husereau, D; Drummond, M; Petrou, S; Carswell, C; Moher, D; Greenberg, D; Augustovski, F; Briggs, A H; Mauskopf, J; Loder, E

    2013-05-01

    Economic evaluations of health interventions pose a particular challenge for reporting. There is also a need to consolidate and update existing guidelines and promote their use in a user friendly manner. The Consolidated Health Economic Evaluation Reporting Standards (CHEERS) statement is an attempt to consolidate and update previous health economic evaluation guidelines efforts into one current, useful reporting guidance.The primary audiences for the CHEERS statement are researchers reporting economic evaluations and the editors and peer reviewers assessing them for publication. The need for new reporting guidance was identified by a survey of medical editors. A list of possible items based on a systematic review was created. A two round, modified Delphi panel consisting of representatives from academia, clinical practice, industry, government, and the editorial community was conducted. Out of 44 candidate items, 24 items and accompanying recommendations were developed. The recommendations are contained in a user friendly, 24 item checklist. A copy of the statement, accompanying checklist, and this report can be found on the ISPOR Health Economic Evaluations Publication Guidelines Task Force website (www.ispor.org/TaskForces/EconomicPubGuidelines.asp). We hope CHEERS will lead to better reporting, and ultimately, better health decisions. To facilitate dissemination and uptake, the CHEERS statement is being co-published across 10 health economics and medical journals. We encourage other journals and groups, to endorse CHEERS. The author team plans to review the checklist for an update in 5 years. © 2013 The Authors BJOG An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology © 2013 RCOG.

  17. Consolidated Health Economic Evaluation Reporting Standards (CHEERS) statement.

    PubMed

    Husereau, Don; Drummond, Michael; Petrou, Stavros; Carswell, Chris; Moher, David; Greenberg, Dan; Augustovski, Federico; Briggs, Andrew H; Mauskopf, Josephine; Loder, Elizabeth

    2013-03-25

    Economic evaluations of health interventions pose a particular challenge for reporting. There is also a need to consolidate and update existing guidelines and promote their use in a user friendly manner. The Consolidated Health Economic Evaluation Reporting Standards (CHEERS) statement is an attempt to consolidate and update previous health economic evaluation guidelines efforts into one current, useful reporting guidance. The primary audiences for the CHEERS statement are researchers reporting economic evaluations and the editors and peer reviewers assessing them for publication.The need for new reporting guidance was identified by a survey of medical editors. A list of possible items based on a systematic review was created. A two round, modified Delphi panel consisting of representatives from academia, clinical practice, industry, government, and the editorial community was conducted. Out of 44 candidate items, 24 items and accompanying recommendations were developed. The recommendations are contained in a user friendly, 24 item checklist. A copy of the statement, accompanying checklist, and this report can be found on the ISPOR Health Economic Evaluations Publication Guidelines Task Force website (http://www.ispor.org/TaskForces/EconomicPubGuidelines.asp).We hope CHEERS will lead to better reporting, and ultimately, better health decisions. To facilitate dissemination and uptake, the CHEERS statement is being co-published across 10 health economics and medical journals. We encourage other journals and groups, to endorse CHEERS. The author team plans to review the checklist for an update in five years.

  18. Consolidated Health Economic Evaluation Reporting Standards (CHEERS) statement.

    PubMed

    Husereau, Don; Drummond, Michael; Petrou, Stavros; Carswell, Chris; Moher, David; Greenberg, Dan; Augustovski, Federico; Briggs, Andrew H; Mauskopf, Josephine; Loder, Elizabeth

    2013-01-01

    Economic evaluations of health interventions pose a particular challenge for reporting. There is also a need to consolidate and update existing guidelines and promote their use in a user friendly manner. The Consolidated Health Economic Evaluation Reporting Standards (CHEERS) statement is an attempt to consolidate and update previous health economic evaluation guidelines efforts into one current, useful reporting guidance. The primary audiences for the CHEERS statement are researchers reporting economic evaluations and the editors and peer reviewers assessing them for publication. The need for new reporting guidance was identified by a survey of medical editors. A list of possible items based on a systematic review was created. A two round, modified Delphi panel consisting of representatives from academia, clinical practice, industry, government, and the editorial community was conducted. Out of 44 candidate items, 24 items and accompanying recommendations were developed. The recommendations are contained in a user friendly, 24 item checklist. A copy of the statement, accompanying checklist, and this report can be found on the ISPOR Health Economic Evaluations Publication Guidelines Task Force website: (www.ispor.org/TaskForces/EconomicPubGuidelines.asp). We hope CHEERS will lead to better reporting, and ultimately, better health decisions. To facilitate dissemination and uptake, the CHEERS statement is being co-published across 10 health economics and medical journals. We encourage other journals and groups, to endorse CHEERS. The author team plans to review the checklist for an update in five years. Copyright © 2013. Published by Elsevier Inc.

  19. Consolidated Health Economic Evaluation Reporting Standards (CHEERS) statement.

    PubMed

    Husereau, Don; Drummond, Michael; Petrou, Stavros; Carswell, Chris; Moher, David; Greenberg, Dan; Augustovski, Federico; Briggs, Andrew H; Mauskopf, Josephine; Loder, Elizabeth

    2013-04-01

    Economic evaluations of health interventions pose a particular challenge for reporting. There is also a need to consolidate and update existing guidelines and promote their use in a user friendly manner. The Consolidated Health Economic Evaluation Reporting Standards (CHEERS) statement is an attempt to consolidate and update previous health economic evaluation guidelines efforts into one current, useful reporting guidance. The primary audiences for the CHEERS statement are researchers reporting economic evaluations and the editors and peer reviewers assessing them for publication. The need for new reporting guidance was identified by a survey of medical editors. A list of possible items based on a systematic review was created. A two round, modified Delphi panel consisting of representatives from academia, clinical practice, industry, government, and the editorial community was conducted. Out of 44 candidate items, 24 items and accompanying recommendations were developed. The recommendations are contained in a user friendly, 24 item checklist. A copy of the statement, accompanying checklist, and this report can be found on the ISPOR Health Economic Evaluations Publication Guidelines Task Force website: (www.ispor.org/TaskForces/EconomicPubGuidelines.asp). We hope CHEERS will lead to better reporting, and ultimately, better health decisions. To facilitate dissemination and uptake, the CHEERS statement is being co-published across 10 health economics and medical journals. We encourage other journals and groups, to endorse CHEERS. The author team plans to review the checklist for an update in five years. Copyright © 2013. Published by EM Inc USA.

  20. Consolidated Health Economic Evaluation Reporting Standards (CHEERS) statement.

    PubMed

    Husereau, Don; Drummond, Michael; Petrou, Stavros; Carswell, Chris; Moher, David; Greenberg, Dan; Augustovski, Federico; Briggs, Andrew H; Mauskopf, Josephine; Loder, Elizabeth

    2013-01-01

    Economic evaluations of health interventions pose a particular challenge for reporting. There is also a need to consolidate and update existing guidelines and promote their use in a user-friendly manner. The Consolidated Health Economic Evaluation Reporting Standards (CHEERS) statement is an attempt to consolidate and update previous health economic evaluation guidelines efforts into one current, useful reporting guidance. The primary audiences for the CHEERS statement are researchers reporting economic evaluations and the editors and peer reviewers assessing them for publication. The need for new reporting guidance was identified by a survey of medical editors. A list of possible items based on a systematic review was created. A two round, modified Delphi panel consisting of representatives from academia, clinical practice, industry, government, and the editorial community was conducted. Out of 44 candidate items, 24 items and accompanying recommendations were developed. The recommendations are contained in a user-friendly, 24-item checklist. A copy of the statement, accompanying checklist, and this report can be found on the ISPOR Health Economic Evaluations Publication Guidelines Task Force website (www.ispor.org/TaskForces/EconomicPubGuidelines.asp). The hope is that CHEERS will lead to better reporting and, ultimately, better health decisions. To facilitate dissemination and uptake, the CHEERS statement is being co-published across 10 health economics and medical journals. Other journals and groups are encouraged to endorse CHEERS. The author team plans to review the checklist for an update in 5 years.

  1. Systemic Therapy for Stage IV Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer: American Society of Clinical Oncology Clinical Practice Guideline Update.

    PubMed

    Hanna, Nasser; Johnson, David; Temin, Sarah; Baker, Sherman; Brahmer, Julie; Ellis, Peter M; Giaccone, Giuseppe; Hesketh, Paul J; Jaiyesimi, Ishmael; Leighl, Natasha B; Riely, Gregory J; Schiller, Joan H; Schneider, Bryan J; Smith, Thomas J; Tashbar, Joan; Biermann, William A; Masters, Gregory

    2017-10-20

    Purpose Provide evidence-based recommendations updating the 2015 ASCO guideline on systemic therapy for patients with stage IV non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Methods The ASCO NSCLC Expert Panel made recommendations based on a systematic review of randomized controlled trials from February 2014 to December 2016 plus the Cancer Care Ontario Program in Evidence-Based Care's update of a previous ASCO search. Results This guideline update reflects changes in evidence since the previous guideline update. Fourteen randomized controlled trials provide the evidence base; earlier phase trials also informed recommendation development. Recommendations New or revised recommendations include the following. Regarding first-line treatment for patients with non-squamous cell carcinoma or squamous cell carcinoma (without positive markers, eg, EGFR/ALK /ROS1), if the patient has high programmed death ligand 1 (PD-L1) expression, pembrolizumab should be used alone; if the patient has low PD-L1 expression, clinicians should offer standard chemotherapy. All other clinical scenarios follow 2015 recommendations. Regarding second-line treatment in patients who received first-line chemotherapy, without prior immune checkpoint therapy, if NSCLC tumor is positive for PD-L1 expression, clinicians should use single-agent nivolumab, pembrolizumab, or atezolizumab; if tumor has negative or unknown PD-L1 expression, clinicians should use nivolumab or atezolizumab. All immune checkpoint therapy is recommended alone plus in the absence of contraindications. For patients who received a prior first-line immune checkpoint inhibitor, clinicians should offer standard chemotherapy. For patients who cannot receive immune checkpoint inhibitor after chemotherapy, docetaxel is recommended; in patients with nonsquamous NSCLC, pemetrexed is recommended. In patients with a sensitizing EGFR mutation, disease progression after first-line epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor therapy, and T790M mutation, osimertinib is recommended; if NSCLC lacks the T790M mutation, then chemotherapy is recommended. Patients with ROS1 gene rearrangement without prior crizotinib may be offered crizotinib, or if they previously received crizotinib, they may be offered chemotherapy.

  2. Texas School Libraries: Standards, Resources, Services, and Students' Performance.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Smith, Ester G.

    This study of Texas school libraries had three objectives: examine school library resources, services, and use, on the basis of the School Library Programs: Standards and Guidelines for Texas and determine the need for updating these standards and guidelines so that they better serve communities across the state; determine the impact that school…

  3. The 2008-2009 Pennsylvania System of School Assessment Handbook for Assessment Coordinators: Writing, Reading and Mathematics, Science

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pennsylvania Department of Education, 2010

    2010-01-01

    This handbook describes the responsibilities of district and school assessment coordinators in the administration of the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA). This updated guidebook contains the following sections: (1) General Assessment Guidelines for All Assessments; (2) Writing Specific Guidelines; (3) Reading and Mathematics…

  4. Guidelines to Data Processing Management.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Data Processing Management Association, Park Ridge, IL.

    This is a revised and updated version of an earlier published set of guidelines. As in the instance of the first edition, this volume contains contributions by some of the most capable consultants in the information processing field. Their comments are based on sound, proved judgment tested in day-to-day operations at installations throughout the…

  5. Evidence-based guideline update: Treatment of essential tremor

    PubMed Central

    Zesiewicz, T.A.; Elble, R.J.; Louis, E.D.; Gronseth, G.S.; Ondo, W.G.; Dewey, R.B.; Okun, M.S.; Sullivan, K.L.; Weiner, W.J.

    2011-01-01

    Background: This evidence-based guideline is an update of the 2005 American Academy of Neurology practice parameter on the treatment of essential tremor (ET). Methods: A literature review using MEDLINE, EMBASE, Science Citation Index, and CINAHL was performed to identify clinical trials in patients with ET published between 2004 and April 2010. Results and Recommendations: Conclusions and recommendations for the use of propranolol, primidone (Level A, established as effective); alprazolam, atenolol, gabapentin (monotherapy), sotalol, topiramate (Level B, probably effective); nadolol, nimodipine, clonazepam, botulinum toxin A, deep brain stimulation, thalamotomy (Level C, possibly effective); and gamma knife thalamotomy (Level U, insufficient evidence) are unchanged from the previous guideline. Changes to conclusions and recommendations from the previous guideline include the following: 1) levetiracetam and 3,4-diaminopyridine probably do not reduce limb tremor in ET and should not be considered (Level B); 2) flunarizine possibly has no effect in treating limb tremor in ET and may not be considered (Level C); and 3) there is insufficient evidence to support or refute the use of pregabalin, zonisamide, or clozapine as treatment for ET (Level U). PMID:22013182

  6. Evidence-based guideline update: treatment of essential tremor: report of the Quality Standards subcommittee of the American Academy of Neurology.

    PubMed

    Zesiewicz, T A; Elble, R J; Louis, E D; Gronseth, G S; Ondo, W G; Dewey, R B; Okun, M S; Sullivan, K L; Weiner, W J

    2011-11-08

    This evidence-based guideline is an update of the 2005 American Academy of Neurology practice parameter on the treatment of essential tremor (ET). A literature review using MEDLINE, EMBASE, Science Citation Index, and CINAHL was performed to identify clinical trials in patients with ET published between 2004 and April 2010. Conclusions and recommendations for the use of propranolol, primidone (Level A, established as effective); alprazolam, atenolol, gabapentin (monotherapy), sotalol, topiramate (Level B, probably effective); nadolol, nimodipine, clonazepam, botulinum toxin A, deep brain stimulation, thalamotomy (Level C, possibly effective); and gamma knife thalamotomy (Level U, insufficient evidence) are unchanged from the previous guideline. Changes to conclusions and recommendations from the previous guideline include the following: 1) levetiracetam and 3,4-diaminopyridine probably do not reduce limb tremor in ET and should not be considered (Level B); 2) flunarizine possibly has no effect in treating limb tremor in ET and may not be considered (Level C); and 3) there is insufficient evidence to support or refute the use of pregabalin, zonisamide, or clozapine as treatment for ET (Level U).

  7. Texas Children's Medication Algorithm Project: Update from Texas Consensus Conference Panel on Medication Treatment of Childhood Major Depressive Disorder

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hughes, Carroll W.; Emslie, Graham J.; Crismon, M. Lynn; Posner, Kelly; Birmaher, Boris; Ryan, Neal; Jensen, Peter; Curry, John; Vitiello, Benedetto; Lopez, Molly; Shon, Steve P.; Pliszka, Steven R.; Trivedi, Madhukar H.

    2007-01-01

    Objective: To revise and update consensus guidelines for medication treatment algorithms for childhood major depressive disorder based on new scientific evidence and expert clinical consensus when evidence is lacking. Method: A consensus conference was held January 13-14, 2005, that included academic clinicians and researchers, practicing…

  8. Limitations of Current AHA Guidelines and Proposal of New Guidelines for the Preparticipation Examination of Athletes.

    PubMed

    Dunn, Tim P; Pickham, David; Aggarwal, Sonya; Saini, Divya; Kumar, Nikhil; Wheeler, Matthew T; Perez, Marco; Ashley, Euan; Froelicher, Victor F

    2015-11-01

    To examine the prevalence of athletes who screen positive with the preparticipation examination guidelines from the American Heart Association, the AHA 12-elements, in combination with 3 screening electrocardiogram (ECG) criteria. Observational cross-sectional study. Stanford University Sports Medicine Clinic. Total of 1596 participants, including 297 (167 male; mean age, 16.2 years) high school athletes, 1016 (541 male; mean age, 18.8 years) collegiate athletes, and 283 (mean age, 26.3 years) male professional athletes. Athletes were screened using the 8 personal and family history questions from the AHA 12-elements. Electrocardiograms were obtained for all participants and interpreted using Seattle criteria, Stanford criteria, and European Society of Cardiology (ESC) recommendations. Approximately one-quarter of all athletes (23.8%) had at least 1 positive response to the AHA personal and family history elements. High school and college athletes had similar rates of having at least 1 positive response (25.9% vs 27.4%), whereas professional athletes had a significantly lower rate of having at least 1 positive response (8.8%, P < 0.05). Females reported more episodes of unexplained syncope (11.4% vs 7.5%, P = 0.017) and excessive exertional dyspnea with exercise (11.1% vs 6.1%, P = 0.001) than males. High school athletes had more positive responses to the family history elements when compared with college athletes (P < 0.05). The percentage of athletes who had an abnormal ECG varied between Seattle criteria (6.0%), Stanford criteria (8.8%), and ESC recommendations (26.8%). Many athletes screen positive under current screening recommendations, and ECG results vary widely by interpretation criteria. In a patient population without any adverse cardiovascular events, the currently recommended AHA 12-elements have an unacceptably high rate of false positives. Newer screening guidelines are needed, with fewer false positives and evidence-based updates.

  9. American Lyme Disease Foundation

    MedlinePlus

    ... symptoms, recommended diagnosis and treatment guidelines, approved and experimental testing methods, prevention ... rights reserved. Web design By Antelope Web Website last updated on November ...

  10. Space Vehicle Terrestrial Environment Design Requirements Guidelines

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Johnson, Dale L.; Keller, Vernon W.; Vaughan, William W.

    2006-01-01

    The terrestrial environment is an important driver of space vehicle structural, control, and thermal system design. NASA is currently in the process of producing an update to an earlier Terrestrial Environment Guidelines for Aerospace Vehicle Design and Development Handbook. This paper addresses the contents of this updated handbook, with special emphasis on new material being included in the areas of atmospheric thermodynamic models, wind dynamics, atmospheric composition, atmospheric electricity, cloud phenomena, atmospheric extremes, and sea state. In addition, the respective engineering design elements are discussed relative to terrestrial environment inputs that require consideration. Specific lessons learned that have contributed to the advancements made in the application and awareness of terrestrial environment inputs for aerospace engineering applications are presented.

  11. Management of bleeding and coagulopathy following major trauma: an updated European guideline

    PubMed Central

    2013-01-01

    Introduction Evidence-based recommendations are needed to guide the acute management of the bleeding trauma patient. When these recommendations are implemented patient outcomes may be improved. Methods The multidisciplinary Task Force for Advanced Bleeding Care in Trauma was formed in 2005 with the aim of developing a guideline for the management of bleeding following severe injury. This document represents an updated version of the guideline published by the group in 2007 and updated in 2010. Recommendations were formulated using a nominal group process, the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) hierarchy of evidence and based on a systematic review of published literature. Results Key changes encompassed in this version of the guideline include new recommendations on the appropriate use of vasopressors and inotropic agents, and reflect an awareness of the growing number of patients in the population at large treated with antiplatelet agents and/or oral anticoagulants. The current guideline also includes recommendations and a discussion of thromboprophylactic strategies for all patients following traumatic injury. The most significant addition is a new section that discusses the need for every institution to develop, implement and adhere to an evidence-based clinical protocol to manage traumatically injured patients. The remaining recommendations have been re-evaluated and graded based on literature published since the last edition of the guideline. Consideration was also given to changes in clinical practice that have taken place during this time period as a result of both new evidence and changes in the general availability of relevant agents and technologies. Conclusions A comprehensive, multidisciplinary approach to trauma care and mechanisms with which to ensure that established protocols are consistently implemented will ensure a uniform and high standard of care across Europe and beyond. Please see related letter by Morel et alhttp://ccforum.com/content/17/4/442 PMID:23601765

  12. Does natriuretic peptide monitoring improve outcomes in heart failure patients? A systematic review and meta-analysis.

    PubMed

    Khan, Muhammad Shahzeb; Siddiqi, Tariq Jamal; Usman, Muhammad Shariq; Sreenivasan, Jayakumar; Fugar, Setri; Riaz, Haris; Murad, M H; Mookadam, Farouk; Figueredo, Vincent M

    2018-07-15

    Current guidelines do not support the use of serial natriuretic peptide (NP) monitoring for heart failure with preserved (HFpEF) or reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) treatment, despite some studies showing benefit. We conducted an updated meta-analysis to address whether medical therapy in HFpEF or HFrEF should be titrated according to NP levels. MEDLINE, Scopus and Cochrane CENTRAL databases were searched for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) comparing NP versus guideline directed titration in HF patients through December 2017. The key outcomes of interest were mortality, HF hospitalizations and all-cause hospitalizations. Risk ratios and 95% confidence intervals were pooled using random effects model. Sub-group analyses were performed for type of NP used, average age and acute or chronic HF. Eighteen trials including 5116 patients were included. Meta-analysis showed no significant difference between the NP-guided arm versus guideline directed titration in all-cause mortality (RR = 0.91 [0.81, 1.03]; p = 0.13), HF hospitalizations (RR = 0.81 [0.65, 1.01]; p = 0.06), and all cause hospitalizations (RR = 0.93 [0.86, 1.01]; p = 0.09). The results were consistent upon subgroup analysis by biomarker type (NT-proBNP or BNP) and type of heart failure (acute or chronic and HFrEF or HFpEF). Sub-group analysis suggested that NP-guided treatment was associated with decreased all-cause hospitalizations in patients younger than 72 years of age. The available evidence suggests that NP-guided therapy provides no additional benefit over guideline directed therapy in terms of all-cause mortality and HF-related hospitalizations in acute or chronic HF patients, regardless of their ejection fraction. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  13. 2016 Canadian Cardiovascular Society Guidelines for the Management of Dyslipidemia for the Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease in the Adult.

    PubMed

    Anderson, Todd J; Grégoire, Jean; Pearson, Glen J; Barry, Arden R; Couture, Patrick; Dawes, Martin; Francis, Gordon A; Genest, Jacques; Grover, Steven; Gupta, Milan; Hegele, Robert A; Lau, David C; Leiter, Lawrence A; Lonn, Eva; Mancini, G B John; McPherson, Ruth; Ngui, Daniel; Poirier, Paul; Sievenpiper, John L; Stone, James A; Thanassoulis, George; Ward, Richard

    2016-11-01

    Since the publication of the 2012 guidelines new literature has emerged to inform decision-making. The 2016 guidelines primary panel selected a number of clinically relevant questions and has produced updated recommendations, on the basis of important new findings. In subjects with clinical atherosclerosis, abdominal aortic aneurysm, most subjects with diabetes or chronic kidney disease, and those with low-density lipoprotein cholesterol ≥ 5 mmol/L, statin therapy is recommended. For all others, there is an emphasis on risk assessment linked to lipid determination to optimize decision-making. We have recommended nonfasting lipid determination as a suitable alternative to fasting levels. Risk assessment and lipid determination should be considered in individuals older than 40 years of age or in those at increased risk regardless of age. Pharmacotherapy is generally not indicated for those at low Framingham Risk Score (FRS; <10%). A wider range of patients are now eligible for statin therapy in the FRS intermediate risk category (10%-19%) and in those with a high FRS (> 20%). Despite the controversy, we continue to advocate for low-density lipoprotein cholesterol targets for subjects who start therapy. Detailed recommendations are also presented for health behaviour modification that is indicated in all subjects. Finally, recommendation for the use of nonstatin medications is provided. Shared decision-making is vital because there are many areas in which clinical trials do not fully inform practice. The guidelines are meant to be a platform for meaningful conversation between patient and care provider so that individual decisions can be made for risk screening, assessment, and treatment. Copyright © 2016 Canadian Cardiovascular Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  14. [Needs assessment to improve the applicability and methodological quality of a German S3 guideline].

    PubMed

    Burckhardt, Marion; Hoffmann, Cristina; Nink-Grebe, Brigitte; Sänger, Sylvia

    2018-04-01

    Clinical practice guidelines can change the practice in healthcare only if their recommendations are implemented in a comprehensive way. The German S3 guideline "Local Therapy of Chronic Wounds in Patients with Peripheral Vascular Disease, Chronic Venous Insufficiency, and Diabetes" will be updated in 2017. The emphasis here is on the guideline's validity, user-friendliness and implementation into practice. Therefore, the aim was to identify the improvements required in regard to the guideline's methods and content presentation. The methodological approach used was the critical appraisal of the guideline according to established quality criteria and an additional stakeholder survey. Both were conducted between August and November 2016. The guideline and its related documents were reviewed independently by two researchers according to the criteria of the "Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation" (AGREE-II). Published reviews and peer reviews by external experts and organisations were also taken into account. For the stakeholder survey, a questionnaire with open questions was distributed by e-mail and via the Internet to health professionals and organisations involved in the care of patients with leg ulcers in Germany. The questions were aimed at amendments and new topics based on the stakeholders' experience in inpatient and outpatient care. In addition, the survey focused on gathering suggestions to improve the applicability of the guideline. Suggested new topics and amendments were summarised thematically. The stakeholders' suggestions to improve the applicability, the results of the critical appraisal and the relevant aspects of the external reviews were then summarised according to the AGREE-II domains and presented in a cause and effect diagram. 17 questionnaires (out of 864 sent out by e-mail) were returned. Due to high practice relevance, the stakeholders suggested an expansion of the inclusion criteria to patients with infected wounds and pressure ulcers. They also proposed that plastic surgical procedures, several specific wound products and complementary measures should be included. The guideline is of high methodical quality with respect to the systematic synthesis and the formal expert recommendations. From both the stakeholders' and reviewers' perspectives, the guideline should be more in line with what guideline users regarded as key issues. The recommendations should be more action-oriented. Implementation concepts should be provided to teach, implement and evaluate the guideline in healthcare facilities. The updating process should also follow current standards for guideline development, for systematic reviews and for managing conflict of interests. The guideline is of high methodological quality but currently difficult to implement in clinical practice. The structured evaluation clearly reflects not only the potential for improvement but also provides a transparent theoretical framework for experts and scientific medical societies involved in the guideline updating process. Although some valuable insights were gained from the stakeholders' perspective, the representativeness is limited by the low response rate. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier GmbH.

  15. Asian-Pacific clinical practice guidelines on the management of hepatitis B: a 2015 update.

    PubMed

    Sarin, S K; Kumar, M; Lau, G K; Abbas, Z; Chan, H L Y; Chen, C J; Chen, D S; Chen, H L; Chen, P J; Chien, R N; Dokmeci, A K; Gane, Ed; Hou, J L; Jafri, W; Jia, J; Kim, J H; Lai, C L; Lee, H C; Lim, S G; Liu, C J; Locarnini, S; Al Mahtab, M; Mohamed, R; Omata, M; Park, J; Piratvisuth, T; Sharma, B C; Sollano, J; Wang, F S; Wei, L; Yuen, M F; Zheng, S S; Kao, J H

    2016-01-01

    Worldwide, some 240 million people have chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV), with the highest rates of infection in Africa and Asia. Our understanding of the natural history of HBV infection and the potential for therapy of the resultant disease is continuously improving. New data have become available since the previous APASL guidelines for management of HBV infection were published in 2012. The objective of this manuscript is to update the recommendations for the optimal management of chronic HBV infection. The 2015 guidelines were developed by a panel of Asian experts chosen by the APASL. The clinical practice guidelines are based on evidence from existing publications or, if evidence was unavailable, on the experts' personal experience and opinion after deliberations. Manuscripts and abstracts of important meetings published through January 2015 have been evaluated. This guideline covers the full spectrum of care of patients infected with hepatitis B, including new terminology, natural history, screening, vaccination, counseling, diagnosis, assessment of the stage of liver disease, the indications, timing, choice and duration of single or combination of antiviral drugs, screening for HCC, management in special situations like childhood, pregnancy, coinfections, renal impairment and pre- and post-liver transplant, and policy guidelines. However, areas of uncertainty still exist, and clinicians, patients, and public health authorities must therefore continue to make choices on the basis of the evolving evidence. The final clinical practice guidelines and recommendations are presented here, along with the relevant background information.

  16. Executive Summary: Practice Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Management of Aspergillosis: 2016 Update by the Infectious Diseases Society of America

    PubMed Central

    Patterson, Thomas F.; Thompson, George R.; Denning, David W.; Fishman, Jay A.; Hadley, Susan; Herbrecht, Raoul; Kontoyiannis, Dimitrios P.; Marr, Kieren A.; Morrison, Vicki A.; Nguyen, M. Hong; Segal, Brahm H.; Steinbach, William J.; Stevens, David A.; Walsh, Thomas J.; Wingard, John R.; Young, Jo-Anne H.; Bennett, John E.

    2016-01-01

    It is important to realize that guidelines cannot always account for individual variation among patients. They are not intended to supplant physician judgment with respect to particular patients or special clinical situations. IDSA considers adherence to these guidelines to be voluntary, with the ultimate determination regarding their application to be made by the physician in the light of each patient's individual circumstances. PMID:27481947

  17. Plain Language Summary: Earwax (Cerumen Impaction)

    PubMed

    Krouse, Helene J; Magit, Anthony E; O'Connor, Sarah; Schwarz, Seth R; Walsh, Sandra A

    2017-01-01

    This plain language summary serves as an overview in explaining earwax (cerumen). The summary applies to patients older than 6 months with a clinical diagnosis of earwax impaction and is based on the 2017 update of the Clinical Practice Guideline: Earwax (Cerumen Impaction). The evidence-based guideline includes research that supports diagnosis and treatment of earwax impaction. The guideline was developed to improve care by health care providers for managing earwax impaction by creating clear recommendations to use in medical practice.

  18. Miscarriage - Multiple Languages

    MedlinePlus

    ... Management of Miscarriage Aftercare Instructions - English ... updates Subscribe to RSS Follow us Disclaimers Copyright Privacy Accessibility Quality Guidelines Viewers & Players MedlinePlus Connect for EHRs For ...

  19. [Guidelines for the management of diabetes mellitus type 2].

    PubMed

    Mediavilla Bravo, José Javier

    2014-09-01

    In the last few years, the publication of new studies in diabetes, together with the development of new classes of blood glucose-lowering medications, have led to updates of the most prestigious clinical practice guidelines for the treatment of diabetes. Thus, a consensus statement from the American Diabetes Association and the European Association for the Study of Diabetes on the management of hyperglycemia in type 2 diabetes was published in April 2012. An update of one of the evidence-based guidelines issued by the Canadian Diabetes Association appeared in 2013 and this year, 2014, saw the publication of the consensus document of the redGDPS, whose guidelines are those most closely followed by primary care physicians in Spain. The three guidelines highlight the need for an individualized approach to type 2 diabetes mellitus, outlining both target glycemic goals and distinct treatment regimens based on patient characteristics, disease stage and the presence of comorbidities or complications. In the treatment of the disease, the three guidelines also stress the importance of considering patients' opinions and of recommending lifestyle modifications to achieve good disease control. Metformin is identified as the first-line drug, with the addition of other glucose-lowering agents if necessary. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier España, S.L.U. y Sociedad Española de Medicina Rural y Generalista (SEMERGEN). All rights reserved.

  20. National guidelines for high-cost drugs in Brazil: achievements and constraints of an innovative national evidence-based public health policy.

    PubMed

    Picon, Paulo D; Beltrame, Alberto; Banta, David

    2013-04-01

    The translation of best evidence into practice has become an important purpose of policy making in health care. In Brazil, a country of continental dimensions with widespread regional and social inequalities, the dissemination and use of the best-evidence in policy making is a critical issue for the healthcare system. The main purpose of this study is to describe an evidence-based public health policy with special emphasis on guidelines creation for high-cost medicines. We also describe how that strategy was diffused to the judiciary system and to other parts of the healthcare system. We present an 11-year follow-up of a national project for creating and updating guidelines for high-cost medicines in Brazil. A total of 109 national guidelines were published (new or updated versions) for 66 selected diseases, the first such effort in Brazilian history. The project influenced the Brazilian legislature, which has recently established a Federal Law requiring national guidelines for any new technology listed for payment by the Brazilian public healthcare system. We were able to involve many different stakeholders in a partnership between academia and policy makers, which made possible the widespread dissemination of the clinical practice guidelines. Problems and constraints were also encountered. This evolving public health strategy might be useful for other developing countries.

  1. The Nuremberg Code–A critique

    PubMed Central

    Ghooi, Ravindra B.

    2011-01-01

    The Nuremberg Code drafted at the end of the Doctor’s trial in Nuremberg 1947 has been hailed as a landmark document in medical and research ethics. Close examination of this code reveals that it was based on the Guidelines for Human Experimentation of 1931. The resemblance between these documents is uncanny. It is unfortunate that the authors of the Nuremberg Code passed it off as their original work. There is evidence that the defendants at the trial did request that their actions be judged on the basis of the 1931 Guidelines, in force in Germany. The prosecutors, however, ignored the request and tried the defendants for crimes against humanity, and the judges included the Nuremberg Code as a part of the judgment. Six of ten principles in Nuremberg Code are derived from the 1931 Guidelines, and two of four newly inserted principles are open to misinterpretation. There is little doubt that the Code was prepared after studying the Guidelines, but no reference was made to the Guidelines, for reasons that are not known. Using the Guidelines as a base document without giving due credit is plagiarism; as per our understanding of ethics today, this would be considered unethical. The Nuremberg Code has fallen by the wayside; since unlike the Declaration of Helsinki, it is not regularly reviewed and updated. The regular updating of some ethics codes is evidence of the evolving nature of human ethics. PMID:21731859

  2. The Nuremberg Code-A critique.

    PubMed

    Ghooi, Ravindra B

    2011-04-01

    The Nuremberg Code drafted at the end of the Doctor's trial in Nuremberg 1947 has been hailed as a landmark document in medical and research ethics. Close examination of this code reveals that it was based on the Guidelines for Human Experimentation of 1931. The resemblance between these documents is uncanny. It is unfortunate that the authors of the Nuremberg Code passed it off as their original work. There is evidence that the defendants at the trial did request that their actions be judged on the basis of the 1931 Guidelines, in force in Germany. The prosecutors, however, ignored the request and tried the defendants for crimes against humanity, and the judges included the Nuremberg Code as a part of the judgment. Six of ten principles in Nuremberg Code are derived from the 1931 Guidelines, and two of four newly inserted principles are open to misinterpretation. There is little doubt that the Code was prepared after studying the Guidelines, but no reference was made to the Guidelines, for reasons that are not known. Using the Guidelines as a base document without giving due credit is plagiarism; as per our understanding of ethics today, this would be considered unethical. The Nuremberg Code has fallen by the wayside; since unlike the Declaration of Helsinki, it is not regularly reviewed and updated. The regular updating of some ethics codes is evidence of the evolving nature of human ethics.

  3. AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF CLINICAL ENDOCRINOLOGISTS AND AMERICAN COLLEGE OF ENDOCRINOLOGY PROTOCOL FOR STANDARDIZED PRODUCTION OF CLINICAL PRACTICE GUIDELINES, ALGORITHMS, AND CHECKLISTS - 2017 UPDATE.

    PubMed

    Mechanick, Jeffrey I; Pessah-Pollack, Rachel; Camacho, Pauline; Correa, Ricardo; Figaro, M Kathleen; Garber, Jeffrey R; Jasim, Sina; Pantalone, Kevin M; Trence, Dace; Upala, Sikarin

    2017-08-01

    Clinical practice guideline (CPG), clinical practice algorithm (CPA), and clinical checklist (CC, collectively CPGAC) development is a high priority of the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE) and American College of Endocrinology (ACE). This 2017 update in CPG development consists of (1) a paradigm change wherein first, environmental scans identify important clinical issues and needs, second, CPA construction focuses on these clinical issues and needs, and third, CPG provide CPA node/edge-specific scientific substantiation and appended CC; (2) inclusion of new technical semantic and numerical descriptors for evidence types, subjective factors, and qualifiers; and (3) incorporation of patient-centered care components such as economics and transcultural adaptations, as well as implementation, validation, and evaluation strategies. This third point highlights the dominating factors of personal finances, governmental influences, and third-party payer dictates on CPGAC implementation, which ultimately impact CPGAC development. The AACE/ACE guidelines for the CPGAC program is a successful and ongoing iterative exercise to optimize endocrine care in a changing and challenging healthcare environment. AACE = American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists ACC = American College of Cardiology ACE = American College of Endocrinology ASeRT = ACE Scientific Referencing Team BEL = best evidence level CC = clinical checklist CPA = clinical practice algorithm CPG = clinical practice guideline CPGAC = clinical practice guideline, algorithm, and checklist EBM = evidence-based medicine EHR = electronic health record EL = evidence level G4GAC = Guidelines for Guidelines, Algorithms, and Checklists GAC = guidelines, algorithms, and checklists HCP = healthcare professional(s) POEMS = patient-oriented evidence that matters PRCT = prospective randomized controlled trial.

  4. Characterizing the relationship between age and venous thromboembolism in adult trauma patients: findings from the National Trauma Data Bank and the National Inpatient Sample.

    PubMed

    Nastasi, Anthony J; Canner, Joseph K; Lau, Brandyn D; Streiff, Michael B; Aboagye, Jonathan K; Kraus, Peggy S; Hobson, Deborah B; Van Arendonk, Kyle J; Haut, Elliott R

    2017-08-01

    Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is a tremendous burden in health care. However, current guidelines lack recommendations regarding the prevention of VTE in older adult trauma patients. Furthermore, the appropriate method of modeling of age in VTE models is currently unclear. Patients included in the National Trauma Data Bank (NTDB) between the years 2008 and 2014 and patients included in the National Inpatient Sample (NIS) between 2009 and 2013 were analyzed. Multiple logistic regression of VTE on age was performed. Of 3,598,881 patients in the NTDB, 34,202 (1.0%) were diagnosed with VTE compared to 5405 (1.1%) of the 505,231 patients in NIS. In both the fully adjusted NTDB and NIS model, age was positively associated with odds of VTE diagnosis under 65 years (NTDB, adjusted odds ratio [aOR]: 1.018, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.017-1.019, P < 0.001; NIS, aOR: 1.025, 95% CI 1.022-1.027, P < 0.001). In patients aged ≥65 years, age was negatively associated with odds of VTE diagnosis in the NTDB (aOR: 0.995, 95% CI: 0.992-0.999, P = 0.006) but not in the NIS (aOR: 0.998, 95% CI 0.994-1.002, P = 0.26). Incidence of VTE among adult trauma patients steadily increases with age until 65 years, after which the odds of VTE appear to level off or even slightly decrease. These findings should be applied for improved modeling of VTE in trauma patients. The mechanism behind these findings should be explored before using them to update guidelines for standardized VTE prevention in older adults. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  5. Leg amputation - discharge

    MedlinePlus

    Department of Veterans Affairs, Department of Defense. VA/DOD clinical practice guideline for management for rehabilitation of lower limb amputation. Updated January 2008. www.healthquality.va.gov/ ...

  6. Foot amputation - discharge

    MedlinePlus

    Department of Veterans Affairs, Department of Defense. VA/DOD Clinical Practice Guideline for Management for Rehabilitation of Lower Limb Amputation. Updated January 2008. www.healthquality.va.gov/ ...

  7. The National Health Educator Competencies Update Project: Celebrating a Milestone and Recommending next Steps to the Profession

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Airhihenbuwa, Collins O.; Cottrell, Randall R.; Adeyanju, Matthew; Auld, M. Elaine; Lysoby, Linda; Smith, Becky J.

    2005-01-01

    For more than 60 years, the health education profession has worked to develop, implement, and refine guidelines for preparing and training health educators. Among the seminal works documenting this dedication to, and quest for, quality assurance in professional preparation and practice are guidelines for professional education of health educators…

  8. Proceedings: guidelines for managing immature Appalachian hardwood stands

    Treesearch

    H Clay Smith; Maxine C. Eye

    1986-01-01

    How to do it, that is what this workshop is all about. This proceedings will provide field foresters and landowners with an update of current available information for managing immature Appalachian hardwood stands. We all have dozens of questions and concerns and though several of these will be answered, some will not. Basically, guidelines are "guides" and...

  9. Online Identity: Guidelines for Discerning Covert Racism in Blogs

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kurubacak, Gulsun

    2008-01-01

    Blogs are web sites, which have the specific themes and are updated with the latest news, views, and trends including philosophical reflections, opinions, and social and/or political issues. Due to representing the personality of the author or the web site, the main purpose of this article is to discuss the guidelines of discerning covert racism…

  10. Guidelines for developing and updating Bayesian belief networks applied to ecological modeling and conservation.

    Treesearch

    B.G. Marcot; J.D. Steventon; G.D. Sutherland; R.K. McCann

    2006-01-01

    We provide practical guidelines for developing, testing, and revising Bayesian belief networks (BBNs). Primary steps in this process include creating influence diagrams of the hypothesized "causal web" of key factors affecting a species or ecological outcome of interest; developing a first, alpha-level BBN model from the influence diagram; revising the model...

  11. The Community Health Worker. Working Guide. Guidelines for Training. Guidelines for Adaptation.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    World Health Organization, Geneva (Switzerland).

    This book is a revised and enlarged edition of "The Primary Health Worker," a standard teaching text and reference manual developed for community health workers and their trainers and supervisors. The new edition has been updated with practical knowledge gained during the extensive field use of the previous work. The book also incorporates new…

  12. Montana Standards and Guidelines for Career and Vocational/Technical Education. Summer 2002 Update.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Montana State Office of Public Instruction, Helena.

    This document presents Montana's standards and guidelines for career and vocational/technical education (CVTE). The guide begins with a directory of Montana's key CVTE personnel and specialists. Part 1 presents the federal and state definitions of CVTE and provides an overview of Montana's system for delivering CVTE and its philosophy regarding…

  13. Palliative radiation therapy for bone metastases: Update of an ASTRO Evidence-Based Guideline.

    PubMed

    Lutz, Stephen; Balboni, Tracy; Jones, Joshua; Lo, Simon; Petit, Joshua; Rich, Shayna E; Wong, Rebecca; Hahn, Carol

    The purpose is to provide an update the Bone Metastases Guideline published in 2011 based on evidence complemented by expert opinion. The update will discuss new high-quality literature for the 8 key questions from the original guideline and implications for practice. A systematic PubMed search from the last date included in the original Guideline yielded 414 relevant articles. Ultimately, 20 randomized controlled trials, 32 prospective nonrandomized studies, and 4 meta-analyses/pooled analyses were selected and abstracted into evidence tables. The authors synthesized the evidence and reached consensus on the included recommendations. Available literature continues to support pain relief equivalency between single and multiple fraction regimens for bone metastases. High-quality data confirm single fraction radiation therapy may be delivered to spine lesions with acceptable late toxicity. One prospective, randomized trial confirms both peripheral and spine-based painful metastases can be successfully and safely palliated with retreatment for recurrence pain with adherence to published dosing constraints. Advanced radiation therapy techniques such as stereotactic body radiation therapy lack high-quality data, leading the panel to favor its use on a clinical trial or when results will be collected in a registry. The panel's conclusion remains that surgery, radionuclides, bisphosphonates, and kyphoplasty/vertebroplasty do not obviate the need for external beam radiation therapy. Updated data analysis confirms that radiation therapy provides excellent palliation for painful bone metastases and that retreatment is safe and effective. Although adherence to evidence-based medicine is critical, thorough expert radiation oncology physician judgment and discretion regarding number of fractions and advanced techniques are also essential to optimize outcomes when considering the patient's overall health, life expectancy, comorbidities, tumor biology, anatomy, previous treatment including prior radiation at or near current site of treatment, tumor and normal tissue response history to local and systemic therapies, and other factors related to the patient, tumor characteristics, or treatment. Copyright © 2016 American Society for Radiation Oncology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  14. 77 FR 56590 - Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) Accessibility Guidelines for Transportation Vehicles

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-09-13

    ... an information meeting in Seattle, WA on October 2, 2012 on pending rulemaking to revise and update... aisle. DATES: The information meeting will be held from 2:15 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. on October 2, 2012... and any updates to the meeting will be posted on the Access Board's Web site at http://www.access...

  15. AIDS: Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome; Information and Procedural Guidelines for Providing Services to Persons with AIDS/HIV. Revised.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Montana State Dept. of Health and Environmental Sciences, Helena. Health Education Bureau.

    This volume consists of updated information to be inserted into a Montana AIDS Project manual on providing services to persons with acquired immune deficiency syndrome/human immunodeficiency virus (AIDS/HIV), originally published in December 1985. The updates are mainly statistics and terminology, along with the addition of several new sections.…

  16. Guidelines for the selection of chemical protective clothing. 1991 Update: Performance, availability, and sources of chemical protective clothing

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Johnson, J.S.; Schwope, A.D.; Goydan, R.

    1991-12-31

    The selection, acquisition, and use of chemical protective clothing (CPC) at Department of Energy (DOE) facilities require up-to-date data and information on the performance, availability, and sources of such clothing. There are hundreds of types and more than one hundred principal manufacturers of CPC. Information on CPC is published in manufacturers` brochures and the technical literature. These information sources, however, have no standard format or terminology for describing products or the results of product testing. Furthermore, the literature and information is continually changing and growing. Consequently, DOE`s industrial hygienists and safety specialists are frequently confounded in their efforts to providemore » effective CPC to workers, by they in the field, the laboratory, or the plant. In recognition of the many advances and changes that have occurred and of the need to provide current information to its health and safety staff, the DOE has updated and modified the key appendices of the Guidelines/Chemical Protective Clothing. The updates appendices compose the majority of this update document, wherein they are called Sections. Each Section begins with a description of its format, content, abbreviations, units, and links with other Sections, as appropriate.« less

  17. [Complementary and alternative procedures for fibromyalgia syndrome : Updated guidelines 2017 and overview of systematic review articles].

    PubMed

    Langhorst, J; Heldmann, P; Henningsen, P; Kopke, K; Krumbein, L; Lucius, H; Winkelmann, A; Wolf, B; Häuser, W

    2017-06-01

    The regular update of the guidelines on fibromyalgia syndrome, AWMF number 145/004, was scheduled for April 2017. The guidelines were developed by 13 scientific societies and 2 patient self-help organizations coordinated by the German Pain Society. Working groups (n =8) with a total of 42 members were formed balanced with respect to gender, medical expertise, position in the medical or scientific hierarchy and potential conflicts of interest. A search of the literature for systematic reviews of randomized controlled trials of complementary and alternative therapies from December 2010 to May 2016 was performed in the Cochrane library, MEDLINE, PsycINFO and Scopus databases. Levels of evidence were assigned according to the classification system of the Oxford Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine version 2009. The strength of recommendations was formed by multiple step formalized procedures to reach a consensus. Efficacy, risks, patient preferences and applicability of available therapies were weighed up against each other. The guidelines were reviewed and approved by the board of directors of the societies engaged in the development of the guidelines. Meditative movement therapies (e.g. qi gong, tai chi and yoga) are strongly recommended. Acupuncture and weight reduction in cases of obesity can be considered.

  18. [Physiotherapy, occupational therapy and physical therapy in fibromyalgia syndrome : Updated guidelines 2017 and overview of systematic review articles].

    PubMed

    Winkelmann, A; Bork, H; Brückle, W; Dexl, C; Heldmann, P; Henningsen, P; Krumbein, L; Pullwitt, V; Schiltenwolf, M; Häuser, W

    2017-06-01

    The regular update of the guidelines on fibromyalgia syndrome, AWMF number 145/004, was scheduled for April 2017. The guidelines were developed by 13 scientific societies and 2 patient self-help organizations coordinated by the German Pain Society. Working groups (n =8) with a total of 42 members were formed balanced with respect to gender, medical expertise, position in the medical or scientific hierarchy and potential conflicts of interest. A literature search for systematic reviews of randomized, controlled trials on physiotherapy, occupational therapy and physical therapy from December 2010 to May 2016 was performed in the Cochrane library, MEDLINE, PsycINFO and Scopus databases. Levels of evidence were assigned according to the classification system of the Oxford Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine version 2009. The strength of recommendations was achieved by multiple step formalized procedures to reach a consensus. Efficacy, risks, patient preferences and applicability of available therapies were weighed up against each other. The guidelines were reviewed and approved by the board of directors of the societies engaged in the development of the guidelines. Low to moderate intensity endurance and strength training are strongly recommended. Chiropractic, laser therapy, magnetic field therapy, massage and transcranial magnetic stimulation are not recommended.

  19. Radiotherapy for non-malignant disorders: state of the art and update of the evidence-based practice guidelines

    PubMed Central

    Micke, O; Muecke, R

    2015-01-01

    Every year in Germany about 50,000 patients are referred and treated by radiotherapy (RT) for “non-malignant disorders”. This highly successful treatment is applied only for specific indications such as preservation or recovery of the quality of life by means of pain reduction or resolution and/or an improvement of formerly impaired physical body function owing to specific disease-related symptoms. Since 1995, German radiation oncologists have treated non-malignant disorders according to national consensus guidelines; these guidelines were updated and further developed over 3 years by implementation of a systematic consensus process to achieve national upgraded and accepted S2e clinical practice guidelines. Throughout this process, international standards of evaluation were implemented. This review summarizes most of the generally accepted indications for the application of RT for non-malignant diseases and presents the special treatment concepts. The following disease groups are addressed: painful degenerative skeletal disorders, hyperproliferative disorders and symptomatic functional disorders. These state of the art guidelines may serve as a platform for daily clinical work; they provide a new starting point for quality assessment, future clinical research, including the design of prospective clinical trials, and outcome research in the underrepresented and less appreciated field of RT for non-malignant disorders. PMID:25955230

  20. Anticoagulation Bridge Therapy in Patients with Atrial Fibrillation: Recent Updates Providing a Rebalance of Risk and Benefit.

    PubMed

    Garwood, Candice L; Korkis, Bianca; Grande, Domenico; Hanni, Claudia; Morin, Amy; Moser, Lynette R

    2017-06-01

    In 2011 we reviewed clinical updates and controversies surrounding anticoagulation bridge therapy in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF). Since then, options for oral anticoagulation have expanded with the addition of four direct oral anticoagulant (DOAC) agents available in the United States. Nonetheless, vitamin K antagonist (VKA) therapy continues to be the treatment of choice for patients who are poor candidates for a DOAC and for whom bridge therapy remains a therapeutic dilemma. This literature review identifies evidence and guideline and consensus statements from the last 5 years to provide updated recommendations and insight into bridge therapy for patients using a VKA for AF. Since our last review, at least four major international guidelines have been updated plus a new consensus document addressing bridge therapy was released. Prospective trials and one randomized controlled trial have provided guidance for perioperative bridge therapy. The clinical trial data showed that bridging with heparin is associated with a significant bleeding risk compared with not bridging; furthermore, data suggested that actual perioperative thromboembolic risk may be lower than previously estimated. Notably, patients at high risk for stroke have not been adequately represented. These findings highlight the importance of assessing thrombosis and bleeding risk before making bridging decisions. Thrombosis and bleeding risk tools have emerged to facilitate this assessment and have been incorporated into guideline recommendations. Results from ongoing trials are expected to provide more guidance on safe and effective perioperative management approaches for patients at high risk for stroke. © 2017 Pharmacotherapy Publications, Inc.

  1. Updates in vaccination: Recommendations for adult inflammatory bowel disease patients

    PubMed Central

    Chaudrey, Khadija; Salvaggio, Michelle; Ahmed, Aftab; Mahmood, Sultan; Ali, Tauseef

    2015-01-01

    Treatment regimens for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) incorporate the use of a variety of immunosuppressive agents that increase the risk of infections. Prevention of many of these infections can be achieved by the timely and judicious use of vaccinations. IBD patients tend to be under-immunized. Some of the contributing factors are lack of awareness regarding the significance of vaccinating IBD patients, misperception about safety of vaccinations in immunocompromised patients, ambiguity about the perceived role of the gastroenterologist in contrast to the primary care physician and unavailability of vaccination guidelines focused on IBD population. In general, immunocompetent IBD patients can be vaccinated using standard vaccination recommendations. However there are special considerations for IBD patients receiving immunosuppressive therapy, IBD travelers and pregnant women with IBD. This review discusses current vaccination recommendations with updates for adult IBD patients. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 2013 vaccination guidelines with 2014 updates and the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recommendations have been highlighted as a primary source of recommendations. PMID:25805924

  2. Guidelines and Suggestions for Balloon Gondola Design

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Franco, Hugo

    2017-01-01

    This paper discusses the current gondola design requirements for the Columbia Scientific Balloon Facility (CSBF). The CSBF is responsible for launching and supporting balloon borne scientific instruments and has some current updated guidelines that will be discussed in this presentation. As the sophistication of Payload systems have increased in size and complexity new guidelines have been implemented in order to make these instruments stay within the acceptable launch risks. Additionally, there is a requirement to submit a proper stress analysis report that states the flight design requirements have been met. Suggestions are discussed in this presentation that establish the proper guidelines to submit these.

  3. Clinical Practice Guideline for the Management of Chronic Kidney Disease in Patients Infected With HIV: 2014 Update by the HIV Medicine Association of the Infectious Diseases Society of America

    PubMed Central

    Lucas, Gregory M.; Ross, Michael J.; Stock, Peter G.; Shlipak, Michael G.; Wyatt, Christina M.; Gupta, Samir K.; Atta, Mohamed G.; Wools-Kaloustian, Kara K.; Pham, Paul A.; Bruggeman, Leslie A.; Lennox, Jeffrey L.; Ray, Patricio E.; Kalayjian, Robert C.

    2014-01-01

    It is important to realize that guidelines cannot always account for individual variation among patients. They are not intended to supplant physician judgment with respect to particular patients or special clinical situations. IDSA considers adherence to these guidelines to be voluntary, with the ultimate determination regarding their application to be made by the physician in the light of each patient's individual circumstances. PMID:25234519

  4. Towards a new surface and internal charging design guideline for the 21st century

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Garrett, Henry B.; Whittlesey, Albert C.

    2005-01-01

    This paper will describe the status of those on-going efforts to combine and update the two guidelines with emphasis on the proposed contents and on the differences and similarities between surface and internal charging mitigation techniques. It is planned to have a draft revision ready for review by the spacecraft charging community by the fall of 2005, with 2006 dedicated to implementing reviewers' comments and additions leading to a new, officially approved NASA guideline by the fall of 2006.

  5. Guidelines to the Practice of Anesthesia - Revised Edition 2018.

    PubMed

    Dobson, Gregory; Chong, Matthew; Chow, Lorraine; Flexman, Alana; Kurrek, Matthew; Laflamme, Claude; Lagacé, Annie; Stacey, Shean; Thiessen, Barton

    2018-01-01

    The Guidelines to the Practice of Anesthesia Revised Edition 2018 (the Guidelines) were prepared by the Canadian Anesthesiologists' Society (CAS), which reserves the right to determine their publication and distribution. The Guidelines are subject to revision and updated versions are published annually. The Guidelines to the Practice of Anesthesia Revised Edition 2018 supersedes all previously published versions of this document. Although the CAS encourages Canadian anesthesiologists to adhere to its practice guidelines to ensure high-quality patient care, the CAS cannot guarantee any specific patient outcome. Anesthesiologists should exercise their own professional judgement in determining the proper course of action for any patient's circumstances. The CAS assumes no responsibility or liability for any error or omission arising from the use of any information contained in its Guidelines to the Practice of Anesthesia.

  6. Brazilian Guidelines for Hereditary Angioedema Management - 2017 Update Part 1: Definition, Classification and Diagnosis.

    PubMed

    Giavina-Bianchi, Pedro; Arruda, Luisa Karla; Aun, Marcelo V; Campos, Regis A; Chong-Neto, Herberto J; Constantino-Silva, Rosemeire N; Fernandes, Fátima R; Ferraro, Maria F; Ferriani, Mariana P L; França, Alfeu T; Fusaro, Gustavo; Garcia, Juliana F B; Komninakis, Shirley; Maia, Luana S M; Mansour, Eli; Moreno, Adriana S; Motta, Antonio A; Pesquero, João B; Portilho, Nathalia; Rosário, Nelson A; Serpa, Faradiba S; Solé, Dirceu; Takejima, Priscila; Toledo, Eliana; Valle, Solange O.R; Veronez, Camila L; Grumach, Anete S

    2018-01-01

    Hereditary angioedema is an autosomal dominant disease characterized by recurrent angioedema attacks with the involvement of multiple organs. The disease is unknown to many health professionals and is therefore underdiagnosed. Patients who are not adequately diagnosed and treated have an estimated mortality rate ranging from 25% to 40% due to asphyxiation by laryngeal angioedema. Intestinal angioedema is another important and incapacitating presentation that may be the main or only manifestation during an attack. In this article, a group of experts from the "Associação Brasileira de Alergia e Imunologia (ASBAI)" and the "Grupo de Estudos Brasileiro em Angioedema Hereditário (GEBRAEH)" has updated the Brazilian guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of hereditary angioedema.

  7. LST phase A design update study

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    1973-01-01

    An update is presented of the Phase A study of the Large Space Telescope (LST), based on changes in guidelines and new data developed subsequent to the Phase A study. The study defines an LST concept based on the broad mission guidelines provided by the Office of Space Science (OSS), the scientific requirements developed by OSS with the scientific community, and an understanding of long range NASA planning current at the time the study was performed. A low cost design approach was followed. This resulted in the use of standard spacecraft hardware, the provision for maintenance at the black box level, growth potential in systems designs, and sharing of shuttle maintenance flights with other payloads (See N73-18449 through N73-18453)

  8. The antibiotic management of gonorrhoea in Ontario, Canada following multiple changes in guidelines: an interrupted time-series analysis.

    PubMed

    Dickson, Catherine; Taljaard, Monica; Friedman, Dara Spatz; Metz, Gila; Wong, Tom; Grimshaw, Jeremy M

    2017-12-01

    This study assessed adherence with first-line gonorrhoea treatment recommendations in Ontario, Canada, following recent guideline changes due to antibiotic resistance. We used interrupted times-series analyses to analyse treatment data for cases of uncomplicated gonorrhoea reported in Ontario, Canada, between January 2006 and May 2014. We assessed adherence with first-line treatment according to the guidelines in place at the time and the use of specific antibiotics over time. We used the introduction of new recommendations in the Canadian Guidelines for Sexually Transmitted Infections in 2008 and 2011 and the release of the province of Ontario's Guidelines for the Treatment and Management of Gonococcal Infections in Ontario in 2013 as interruptions in the time-series analysis. Overall, 34 287 gonorrhoea cases were reported between 1 January 2006 and 31 May 2014. Treatment data were available for 32 312 (94.2%). Our analysis included 32 272 (94.1%) cases without either a conjunctival or disseminated infection. Following the release of the 2011 recommendations, adherence with first-line recommendations immediately decreased to below 30%. Adherence slowly increased but did not reach baseline levels before the 2013 guidelines were released. Following release of the 2013 guidelines, adherence again decreased; adherence is slowly recovering but by May 2014, was only approximately 60%. Due to concerns about antibiotic resistance, gonorrhoea treatment guidelines need to be updated regularly and rapidly adopted in practice. Our study showed poor adherence following dissemination of updated guidelines. Over a year after the latest Ontario guidelines were released, 40% of patients did not receive first-line treatment, putting them at risk of treatment failure and potentially promoting further drug resistance. Greater attention should be devoted to dissemination and implementation of new guidelines. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2017. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

  9. The Erasmus programme for postgraduate education in orthodontics in Europe: an update of the guidelines.

    PubMed

    Huggare, J; Derringer, K A; Eliades, T; Filleul, M P; Kiliaridis, S; Kuijpers-Jagtman, A; Martina, R; Pirttiniemi, P; Ruf, S; Schwestka-Polly, R

    2014-06-01

    In 1989, the ERASMUS Bureau of the European Cultural Foundation of the Commission of the European Communities funded the development of a new 3-year curriculum for postgraduate education in orthodontics. The new curriculum was created by directors for orthodontic education representing 15 European countries. The curriculum entitled 'Three years Postgraduate Programme in Orthodontics: the Final Report of the Erasmus Project' was published 1992. In 2012, the 'Network of Erasmus Based European Orthodontic Programmes' developed and approved an updated version of the guidelines. The core programme consists of eight sections: general biological and medical subjects; basic orthodontic subjects; general orthodontic subjects; orthodontic techniques; interdisciplinary subjects; management of health and safety; practice management, administration, and ethics; extramural educational activities. The programme goals and objectives are described and the competencies to be reached are outlined. These guidelines may serve as a baseline for programme development and quality assessment for postgraduate programme directors, national associations, and governmental bodies and could assist future residents when selecting a postgraduate programme.

  10. 2013 European guideline on the management of lymphogranuloma venereum.

    PubMed

    de Vries, H J C; Zingoni, A; Kreuter, A; Moi, H; White, J A

    2015-01-01

    WHAT IS NEW IN THIS UPDATED GUIDELINE?: This is the update version of the 2010 European guideline on the management of lymphogranuloma venereum (LGV). New issues are: Based on clonal relatedness of prevalent LGV strains there is evidence that the LGV epidemic among men who have sex with men (MSM) in the Western world prevailed already in the United States in the 1980s and was introduced into Europe by the end of the last century. A new LGV variant causing severe proctitis was unveiled and designated L2c. The L2b LGV variant causing the vast majority of infections among MSM is now also found among a few heterosexual women. Apart from HIV and STI screening, Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) testing should be offered to all LGV patients. To exclude reinfections, STI screening during a follow-up visit 3 months after an LGV diagnosis should be offered. © 2014 European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology.

  11. Major publications in the critical care pharmacotherapy literature: January-December 2016.

    PubMed

    Horner, Deanna; Altshuler, Diana; Droege, Chris; Feih, Joel; Ferguson, Kevin; Fiorenza, Mallory; Greathouse, Kasey; Hamilton, Leslie; Pfaff, Caitlin; Roller, Lauren; Stollings, Joanna; Wong, Adrian

    2018-02-01

    To summarize select critical care pharmacotherapy guidelines and studies published in 2016. The Critical Care Pharmacotherapy Literature Update (CCPLU) Group screened 31 journals monthly for relevant pharmacotherapy articles and selected 107 articles for review over the course of 2016. Of those included in the monthly CCPLU, three guidelines and seven primary literature studies are reviewed here. The guideline updates included are as follows: hospital-acquired pneumonia and ventilator-associated pneumonia management, sustained neuromuscular blocking agent use, and reversal of antithrombotics in intracranial hemorrhage (ICH). The primary literature summaries evaluate the following: dexmedetomidine for delirium prevention in post-cardiac surgery, dexmedetomidine for delirium management in mechanically ventilated patients, high-dose epoetin alfa after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, ideal blood pressure targets in ICH, hydrocortisone in severe sepsis, procalcitonin-guided antibiotic de-escalation, and empiric micafungin therapy. The review provides a synopsis of select pharmacotherapy publications in 2016 applicable to clinical practice. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  12. A systematic literature review on the ethics of palliative sedation: an update (2016).

    PubMed

    Henry, Blair

    2016-09-01

    Palliative sedation has been the subject of intensive debate since its first appearance in 1990. In a 2010 review of palliative sedation, the following areas were identified as lacking in consensus: inconsistent terminology, its use in nonphysical suffering, the ongoing experience of distress, and concern that the practice of palliative sedation may hasten death. This review looks at the literature over the past 6 years and provides an update on these outstanding concerns. Good clinical guidelines and policies are still required to address issues of emotional distress and waylay concerns that palliative sedation hastens death. The empirical evidence suggests some movement toward consensus on the practice of palliative sedation. However, a continued need exists for evidence-informed practice guidelines, education, and research to support the ethical practice of palliative sedation at the end of life. Until that time, clinicians are advised to adopt a framework or guideline that has been expert driven to ensure consistent and ethical use of palliative sedation at the end of life.

  13. Singapore Urological Association Clinical Guidelines for Male Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms/Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia.

    PubMed

    2017-08-01

    The first clinical guidelines for male lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS)/benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) were published in 2005. An update is urgently needed in view of BPH being recognised as one of ten chronic illnesses by the Ministry of Health, Singapore. This review summarises the definition of BPH and the epidemiology of male LUTS/BPH in Singapore. BPH can be phenotyped with noninvasive transabdominal ultrasonography, according to intravesical prostatic protrusion and prostate volume, and classified according to severity (staging) for individualised treatment. At the initial evaluation, the majority of patients (59%) can be managed with fluid adjustment, exercise and diet; 32% with medications, using alpha blockers and/or 5-alpha reductase inhibitors for prostates weighing more than 30 g; and 9% with surgical intervention for more advanced disease. The 2015 guidelines comprise updated evidence that will help family medicine practitioners and specialists manage this common ailment more cost-effectively. Copyright: © Singapore Medical Association.

  14. Systematic review of traditional Chinese medicine for geriatrics.

    PubMed

    Takayama, Shin; Iwasaki, Koh

    2017-05-01

    The Japan Geriatrics Society revised its criteria for the medical treatment and safety of the elderly in 2015. The Japan Geriatrics Society guidelines contain a chapter for traditional Chinese medicine (TCM; traditional medicines in East Asian countries, such as China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Vietnam and Singapore), because it is widely used for elderly patients and is sometimes covered by national medical insurance in Japan. The updated guidelines should be improved based on a comprehensive, systematic review and evidence grading. TCM is rapidly expanding in the literature, and is under intensive investigation in clinical trials. The objective of the present trial was to review TCM systematically and reflect the results to update the TCM chapter of the Japan Geriatrics Society guidelines. Here, we introduce the results of the systemic review of TCM for geriatrics. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2017; 17: 679-688. © 2016 The Authors. Geriatrics & Gerontology International published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of Japan Geriatrics Society.

  15. The European Federation of Organisations for Medical Physics Policy Statement No. 6.1: Recommended Guidelines on National Registration Schemes for Medical Physicists.

    PubMed

    Christofides, Stelios; Isidoro, Jorge; Pesznyak, Csilla; Bumbure, Lada; Cremers, Florian; Schmidt, Werner F O

    2016-01-01

    This EFOMP Policy Statement is an update of Policy Statement No. 6 first published in 1994. The present version takes into account the European Union Parliament and Council Directive 2013/55/EU that amends Directive 2005/36/EU on the recognition of professional qualifications and the European Union Council Directive 2013/59/EURATOM laying down the basic safety standards for protection against the dangers arising from exposure to ionising radiation. The European Commission Radiation Protection Report No. 174, Guidelines on Medical Physics Expert and the EFOMP Policy Statement No. 12.1, Recommendations on Medical Physics Education and Training in Europe 2014, are also taken into consideration. The EFOMP National Member Organisations are encouraged to update their Medical Physics registration schemes where these exist or to develop registration schemes taking into account the present version of this EFOMP Policy Statement (Policy Statement No. 6.1"Recommended Guidelines on National Registration Schemes for Medical Physicists"). Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  16. Brazilian guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of postmenopausal osteoporosis.

    PubMed

    Radominski, Sebastião Cézar; Bernardo, Wanderley; Paula, Ana Patrícia de; Albergaria, Ben-Hur; Moreira, Caio; Fernandes, Cesar Eduardo; Castro, Charlles H M; Zerbini, Cristiano Augusto de Freitas; Domiciano, Diogo S; Mendonça, Laura M C; Pompei, Luciano de Melo; Bezerra, Mailze Campos; Loures, Marco Antônio R; Wender, Maria Celeste Osório; Lazaretti-Castro, Marise; Pereira, Rosa M R; Maeda, Sergio Setsuo; Szejnfeld, Vera Lúcia; Borba, Victoria Z C

    2017-01-01

    Osteoporosis is the leading cause of fractures in the population older than 50 years. This silent disease affects primarily postmenopausal women and the elderly, and the morbidity and mortality rates are high. The main goal of treating osteoporosis is the prevention of fractures. The identification of populations at risk through early diagnosis and treatment is essential. The last Brazilian guideline for the treatment of postmenopausal osteoporosis was elaborated in 2002. Since then, new strategies for diagnosis and risk stratification have been developed, and drugs with novel action mechanisms have been added to the therapeutic arsenal. The Osteoporosis and Osteometabolic Diseases Committee of the Brazilian Society of Rheumatology, in conjunction with the Brazilian Medical Association and other Societies, has developed this update of the guidelines for the treatment of postmenopausal osteoporosis according to the best scientific evidence available. This update is intended for professionals in many medical and health specialties involved in the treatment of osteoporosis, for physicians in general and for health-related organizations. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Editora Ltda.

  17. Pharmacologic Treatment of Hypertension in Adults Aged 60 Years or Older to Higher Versus Lower Blood Pressure Targets: A Clinical Practice Guideline From the American College of Physicians and the American Academy of Family Physicians.

    PubMed

    Qaseem, Amir; Wilt, Timothy J; Rich, Robert; Humphrey, Linda L; Frost, Jennifer; Forciea, Mary Ann

    2017-03-21

    The American College of Physicians (ACP) and the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) jointly developed this guideline to present the evidence and provide clinical recommendations based on the benefits and harms of higher versus lower blood pressure targets for the treatment of hypertension in adults aged 60 years or older. This guideline is based on a systematic review of published randomized, controlled trials for primary outcomes and observational studies for harms only (identified through EMBASE, the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, MEDLINE, and ClinicalTrials.gov), from database inception through January 2015. The MEDLINE search was updated through September 2016. Evaluated outcomes included all-cause mortality, morbidity and mortality related to stroke, major cardiac events (fatal and nonfatal myocardial infarction and sudden cardiac death), and harms. This guideline grades the evidence and recommendations using the GRADE (Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation) method. The target audience for this guideline includes all clinicians, and the target patient population includes all adults aged 60 years or older with hypertension. ACP and AAFP recommend that clinicians initiate treatment in adults aged 60 years or older with systolic blood pressure persistently at or above 150 mm Hg to achieve a target systolic blood pressure of less than 150 mm Hg to reduce the risk for mortality, stroke, and cardiac events. (Grade: strong recommendation, high-quality evidence). ACP and AAFP recommend that clinicians select the treatment goals for adults aged 60 years or older based on a periodic discussion of the benefits and harms of specific blood pressure targets with the patient. ACP and AAFP recommend that clinicians consider initiating or intensifying pharmacologic treatment in adults aged 60 years or older with a history of stroke or transient ischemic attack to achieve a target systolic blood pressure of less than 140 mm Hg to reduce the risk for recurrent stroke. (Grade: weak recommendation, moderate-quality evidence). ACP and AAFP recommend that clinicians select the treatment goals for adults aged 60 years or older based on a periodic discussion of the benefits and harms of specific blood pressure targets with the patient. ACP and AAFP recommend that clinicians consider initiating or intensifying pharmacologic treatment in some adults aged 60 years or older at high cardiovascular risk, based on individualized assessment, to achieve a target systolic blood pressure of less than 140 mm Hg to reduce the risk for stroke or cardiac events. (Grade: weak recommendation, low-quality evidence). ACP and AAFP recommend that clinicians select the treatment goals for adults aged 60 years or older based on a periodic discussion of the benefits and harms of specific blood pressure targets with the patient.

  18. Hereditary diffuse gastric cancer: updated consensus guidelines for clinical management and directions for future research.

    PubMed

    Fitzgerald, Rebecca C; Hardwick, Richard; Huntsman, David; Carneiro, Fatima; Guilford, Parry; Blair, Vanessa; Chung, Daniel C; Norton, Jeff; Ragunath, Krishnadath; Van Krieken, J Han; Dwerryhouse, Sarah; Caldas, Carlos

    2010-07-01

    25-30% of families fulfilling the criteria for hereditary diffuse gastric cancer have germline mutations of the CDH1 (E-cadherin) gene. In light of new data and advancement of technologies, a multidisciplinary workshop was convened to discuss genetic testing, surgery, endoscopy and pathology reporting. The updated recommendations include broadening of CDH1 testing criteria such that: histological confirmation of diffuse gastric criteria is only required for one family member; inclusion of individuals with diffuse gastric cancer before the age of 40 years without a family history; and inclusion of individuals and families with diagnoses of both diffuse gastric cancer (including one before the age of 50 years) and lobular breast cancer. Testing is considered appropriate from the age of consent following counselling and discussion with a multidisciplinary team. In addition to direct sequencing, large genomic rearrangements should be sought. Annual mammography and breast MRI from the age of 35 years is recommended for women due to the increased risk for lobular breast cancer. In mutation positive individuals prophylactic total gastrectomy at a centre of excellence should be strongly considered. Protocolised endoscopic surveillance in centres with endoscopists and pathologists experienced with these patients is recommended for: those opting not to have gastrectomy, those with mutations of undetermined significance, and in those families for whom no germline mutation is yet identified. The systematic histological study of prophylactic gastrectomies almost universally shows pre-invasive lesions including in situ signet ring carcinoma with pagetoid spread of signet ring cells. Expert histopathological confirmation of these early lesions is recommended.

  19. Endometrial cells on Pap tests: ideal reporting is more complex than just finding the right age.

    PubMed

    Fischer, Gabor; Haddad, Maha; Cormier, Karen

    2017-07-01

    The age for reporting normal endometrial cells (EMCs) on Pap tests was changed to ≥ 45 years in the latest Bethesda update (2014). This recommendation is solely based on age with no consensus on optimal reporting guidelines. Pap tests with EMCs for women ≥40 years were retrieved from our Laboratory Information System (LIS). Patient age, last menstrual period (LMP) and available follow-up histology were recorded. Follow-up diagnoses were categorized as: no significant pathology, benign, hyperplasia ± atypia, or malignant. The Fisher's exact test was used to assess the association between categorical variables, p < .05 (two-sided test) was considered significant. Of the 352 cases with EMCs, 155 had surgical follow-up. They showed no malignancy in the 89 women between 40-49 years, compared with five malignancies in the 66 women 50+ years (p = .016). The number of cases with significant pathology (hyperplasia and malignant) was 4 (40-49 years) vs. 11 (50+ years) (p = 0.029). The LMP was inconsistently provided (57%) and women identified as postmenopausal on requisition comprised all the malignancies and half the hyperplasias. Combined effort by pathologists and clinicians necessitates determining the best standardized clinicopathologic guidelines to report EMCs and appropriate follow-up. Increasing the required age to ≥50 years would provide more optimal patient management; however, there are other considerations beyond age. Reporting EMCs in postmenopausal women is a reasonable alternative requiring consistent and accurate recording of LMP. Improving provided information for pathologists, determining reporting requirements for EMCs and standardizing clinical follow-up should be a multidisciplinary effort. Diagn. Cytopathol. 2017;45:587-591. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  20. UK national guidelines on the management of syphilis 2015.

    PubMed

    Kingston, M; French, P; Higgins, S; McQuillan, O; Sukthankar, A; Stott, C; McBrien, B; Tipple, C; Turner, A; Sullivan, A K; Radcliffe, Keith; Cousins, Darren; FitzGerald, Mark; Fisher, Martin; Grover, Deepa; Higgins, Stephen; Kingston, Margaret; Rayment, Michael; Sullivan, Ann

    2016-05-01

    These guidelines are an update for 2015 of the 2008 UK guidelines for the management of syphilis. The writing group have piloted the new BASHH guideline methodology, notably using the GRADE system for assessing evidence and making recommendations. We have made significant changes to the recommendations for screening infants born to mothers with positive syphilis serology and to facilitate accurate and timely communication between the teams caring for mother and baby we have developed a birth plan. Procaine penicillin is now an alternative, not preferred treatment, for all stages of syphilis except neurosyphilis, but the length of treatment for this is shortened. Other changes are summarised at the start of the guideline. © The Author(s) 2016.

  1. Current Evidence of Best Practice in Whole-School Bullying Intervention and Its Potential to Inform Cyberbullying Interventions

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pearce, Natasha; Cross, Donna; Monks, Helen; Waters, Stacey; Falconer, Sarah

    2011-01-01

    In 2004, a set of validated guidelines for school bullying prevention and management was released by the Child Health Promotion Research Centre in Australia to guide schools' action to prevent and manage bullying behaviours. At this time little was known about cyber and other forms of covert bullying behaviours. These guidelines were updated in…

  2. 78 FR 33395 - Annual Updates to the Income Contingent Repayment (ICR) Plan Formula for 2013-William D. Ford...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-06-04

    ... the postsecondary institution first disbursed the Direct Loan to the borrower. The Poverty Guideline amounts used in the examples are from the 2013 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Poverty... January 24, 2013 (78 FR 5182). Different Poverty Guidelines apply to residents of Alaska and Hawaii. All...

  3. SBRT for the Primary Treatment of Localized Prostate Cancer: The Effect of Gleason Score, Dose and Heterogeneity of Intermediate Risk on Outcome Utilizing 2.2014 NCCN Risk Stratification Guidelines.

    PubMed

    Bernetich, Matthew; Oliai, Caspian; Lanciano, Rachelle; Hanlon, Alexandra; Lamond, John; Arrigo, Stephen; Yang, Jun; Good, Michael; Feng, Jing; Brown, Royce; Garber, Bruce; Mooreville, Michael; Brady, Luther W

    2014-01-01

    To report an update of our previous experience using stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) for the primary treatment of prostate cancer, risk stratified by the updated National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) version 2.2014, reporting efficacy and toxicity in a community hospital setting. From 2007 to 2012, 142 localized prostate cancer patients were treated with SBRT using CyberKnife. NCCN guidelines Version 2.2014 risk groups analyzed included very low (20%), low (23%), intermediate (35%), and high (22%) risk. To further explore group heterogeneity and to comply with new guidelines, we separated our prior intermediate risk group into favorable intermediate and unfavorable intermediate groups depending on how many intermediate risk factors were present (one vs. > one). The unfavorable intermediate group was further analyzed in combination with the high risk group as per NCCN guidelines Version 2.2014. Various dose levels were used over the years of treatment, and have been categorized into low dose (35 Gy, n = 5 or 36.25 Gy, n = 107) and high dose (37.5 Gy, n = 30). All treatments were delivered in five fractions. Toxicity was assessed using radiation therapy oncology group criteria. Five-year actuarial freedom from biochemical failure (FFBF) was 100, 91.7, 95.2, 90.0, and 86.7% for very low, low, intermediate and high risk patients, respectively. A significant difference in 5 year FFBF was noted for patients with Gleason score (GS) ≥8 vs. 7 vs. 5/6 (p = 0.03) and low vs. high dose (p = 0.05). T-stage, pretreatment PSA, age, risk stratification group, and use of ADT did not affect 5-year FFBF. Multivariate analysis revealed GS and dose to be the most predictive factors for 5-year FFBF. Our experience with SBRT for the primary treatment of localized prostate cancer demonstrates favorable efficacy and toxicity comparable to the results reported for IMRT in literature. GS remains the single most important pretreatment predictor of outcome.

  4. Update of clinical practice guidelines for brain death determination in an academic heath center.

    PubMed

    Jackson, Jennifer; Willmarth-Stec, Melissa; Shutter, Lori

    2015-02-01

    Brain death (BD) is determined after a patient has sustained some form of a catastrophic neurologic injury that results in an irreversible loss of cerebral and brain steam function. Variability is caused by the small number of patients who progress to BD annually causing a lack of opportunity for physicians and healthcare staff to stay competent in performing the examination. The current University of Cincinnati Medical Center policy on BD had not been updated since publication of the 2010 American Academy of Neurology guidelines on this subject. The diagnosis of BD in the medical community is an acceptable medical diagnosis, but the examination is difficult to perform, and explaining this diagnosis to a family can be challenging related to the emotions involved with discussing end of life. The goal of updating the current policy was to decrease variability in testing through consistency of practice among clinicians performing the examination. An integrative review of the evidence-based literature was conducted to identify articles discussing both BD confirmation and secondary confirmatory testing. Using this integrative review, results from hospital-based chart reviews, and targeted provider surveys, a policy update was completed. The bedside medical clinicians were provided this policy with evidence-based guidelines regarding performance of the clinical examination and confirmatory testing needed to diagnose BD and then communicate this diagnosis to the family. The current hospital policy lacked two important components of any BD policy: (a) the apnea test techniques and (b) guidance regarding secondary confirmatory testing. Both components were added during revision of the policy. Implementation of the new policy occurred through computer-based training that incorporated both didactic education of the updates and a video demonstration of a BD examination. A better defined policy for determining BD is essential. In addition, the implementation and quality assurance elements of the policy are necessary for efficiency and clinical decision making. By updating the policy within the University of Cincinnati Medical Center, the clinicians have been equipped with the latest evidence to perform the clinical examination for diagnosis of BD and then appropriately communicate this diagnosis to the family.

  5. The World Health Organization-United Nations Population Fund Strategic Partnership Programme's implementation of family planning guidelines and tools in Asia-Pacific countries.

    PubMed

    Mody, Sheila K; Ba-Thike, Katherine; Gaffield, Mary E

    2013-04-01

    The aim of this study was to assess the impact of the Strategic Partnership Programme, a collaboration between the World Health Organization and the United Nations Population Fund to improve evidence-based guidance for country programs through the introduction of selected practice guidelines to improve sexual and reproductive health. Information for this report is from questionnaires sent to Ministries of Health in 2004 (baseline assessment) and in 2007 (assessment of outcome), annual country reports and personal communication with focal points from Ministries of Health and World Health Organization regional and country offices. Following the Strategic Partnership Programme, family planning guidance was used extensively to: formulate and update reproductive health policy; update standards and guidelines; improve training curricula; conduct training activities; develop advocacy and communication materials; and promote change in service. The Strategic Partnership Programme was successful in promoting the introduction of evidence-based guidelines for reproductive health in several Asian countries. The countries that adapted the family planning guidance observed an increase in demand for contraceptives commodities. © 2012 The Authors. Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Research © 2012 Japan Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

  6. Development of superior asphalt recycling agents. Phase 1, Technical feasibility. Final technical progress report

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Bullin, J.A.; Davison, R.R.; Glover, C.J.

    1997-07-01

    After an introduction and a literature survey in Chap. 1, Chap. 2 describes the tasks, together with objectives and important results obtained for each task throughout the entire project. Chaps. 3 thru 7 detail work in developing a qualitative and quantitative knowledge of asphalt oxidation, composition dependence of asphalt properties, and guidelines for producing superior asphalt binders through composition control. They also detail the development of a kinetic model for asphalt oxidative aging and present an understanding of the composition dependence of asphalt oxidation as well as other performance-related properties. Chaps. 8 and 9 compare the aging performance of recycledmore » blends produced using commercial recycling agents and industrial supercritical fractions as rejuvenating agents. Oxidative aging of the recycled blends were evaluated along with the performance of the recycled blends in terms of the strategic highway research program performance grading procedure. Chap. 10 summarizes the work completed in the areas of processing schemes development, projection updates, and scale-up and commercialization plans.« less

  7. Racial/Ethnic Differences Affecting Adherence to Cancer Screening Guidelines Among Women.

    PubMed

    Hirth, Jacqueline M; Laz, Tabassum Haque; Rahman, Mahbubur; Berenson, Abbey B

    2016-04-01

    Race/ethnicity has been shown to modify the effects between obesity and cancer screening among women. The purpose of this article is to update the literature with recent data to examine how the association between different characteristics, including body mass index (BMI), and cancer screening compliance varies by race/ethnicity in a national sample of women. Three cycles of the Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS) were combined for this cross-sectional study. Weighted descriptive statistics were evaluated using chi-square tests. Multivariable logistic regression evaluated associations between women with underweight or normal (<25), overweight (25-29.9), and obese (>30) BMIs and cancer screening concordant with guidelines (Papanicolaou [Pap] testing ≤3 years, ages 21+ years; mammography ≤2 years, ages 40+ years) in analyses stratified by race/ethnicity. We also assessed variance between racial/ethnic groups in how age, income, and insurance status were associated with cancer screening compliance. This study included 4992 women who were evaluated for Pap testing and 3773 for mammography. In analyses stratified by race/ethnicity, whites with a higher household income were more likely to report having a Pap test (adjusted prevalence ratio [aPR] 2.16, 95% confidence interval [95% CI] 1.38-3.40) and a mammogram (aPR 1.63, 95% CI 1.04-2.55) compared to lower income white women. Black women with BMIs between 25 and 30 were less likely to receive a Pap test (aPR 0.38, 95% CI 0.19-0.76) than black women with BMIs <25, while no association was observed among the other groups. Insurance was associated with increased likelihood of Pap testing among white and black women. Insurance coverage was positively associated with mammography only among white and Hispanic women. We found variations in adherence to cancer screening guidelines by age, insurance coverage, and income between racial/ethnic groups. Little evidence was observed for variations in screening by BMI.

  8. Society of Anesthesia and Sleep Medicine Guidelines on Preoperative Screening and Assessment of Adult Patients With Obstructive Sleep Apnea.

    PubMed

    Chung, Frances; Memtsoudis, Stavros G; Ramachandran, Satya Krishna; Nagappa, Mahesh; Opperer, Mathias; Cozowicz, Crispiana; Patrawala, Sara; Lam, David; Kumar, Anjana; Joshi, Girish P; Fleetham, John; Ayas, Najib; Collop, Nancy; Doufas, Anthony G; Eikermann, Matthias; Englesakis, Marina; Gali, Bhargavi; Gay, Peter; Hernandez, Adrian V; Kaw, Roop; Kezirian, Eric J; Malhotra, Atul; Mokhlesi, Babak; Parthasarathy, Sairam; Stierer, Tracey; Wappler, Frank; Hillman, David R; Auckley, Dennis

    2016-08-01

    The purpose of the Society of Anesthesia and Sleep Medicine guideline on preoperative screening and assessment of adult patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is to present recommendations based on the available clinical evidence on the topic where possible. As very few well-performed randomized studies in this field of perioperative care are available, most of the recommendations were developed by experts in the field through consensus processes involving utilization of evidence grading to indicate the level of evidence upon which recommendations were based. This guideline may not be appropriate for all clinical situations and all patients. The decision whether to follow these recommendations must be made by a responsible physician on an individual basis. Protocols should be developed by individual institutions taking into account the patients' conditions, extent of interventions and available resources. This practice guideline is not intended to define standards of care or represent absolute requirements for patient care. The adherence to these guidelines cannot in any way guarantee successful outcomes and is rather meant to help individuals and institutions formulate plans to better deal with the challenges posed by perioperative patients with OSA. These recommendations reflect the current state of knowledge and its interpretation by a group of experts in the field at the time of publication. While these guidelines will be periodically updated, new information that becomes available between updates should be taken into account. Deviations in practice from guidelines may be justifiable and such deviations should not be interpreted as a basis for claims of negligence.

  9. Society of Anesthesia and Sleep Medicine Guidelines on Preoperative Screening and Assessment of Adult Patients With Obstructive Sleep Apnea

    PubMed Central

    Memtsoudis, Stavros G.; Ramachandran, Satya Krishna; Nagappa, Mahesh; Opperer, Mathias; Cozowicz, Crispiana; Patrawala, Sara; Lam, David; Kumar, Anjana; Joshi, Girish P.; Fleetham, John; Ayas, Najib; Collop, Nancy; Doufas, Anthony G.; Eikermann, Matthias; Englesakis, Marina; Gali, Bhargavi; Gay, Peter; Hernandez, Adrian V.; Kaw, Roop; Kezirian, Eric J.; Malhotra, Atul; Mokhlesi, Babak; Parthasarathy, Sairam; Stierer, Tracey; Wappler, Frank; Hillman, David R.; Auckley, Dennis

    2016-01-01

    The purpose of the Society of Anesthesia and Sleep Medicine guideline on preoperative screening and assessment of adult patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is to present recommendations based on the available clinical evidence on the topic where possible. As very few well-performed randomized studies in this field of perioperative care are available, most of the recommendations were developed by experts in the field through consensus processes involving utilization of evidence grading to indicate the level of evidence upon which recommendations were based. This guideline may not be appropriate for all clinical situations and all patients. The decision whether to follow these recommendations must be made by a responsible physician on an individual basis. Protocols should be developed by individual institutions taking into account the patients’ conditions, extent of interventions and available resources. This practice guideline is not intended to define standards of care or represent absolute requirements for patient care. The adherence to these guidelines cannot in any way guarantee successful outcomes and is rather meant to help individuals and institutions formulate plans to better deal with the challenges posed by perioperative patients with OSA. These recommendations reflect the current state of knowledge and its interpretation by a group of experts in the field at the time of publication. While these guidelines will be periodically updated, new information that becomes available between updates should be taken into account. Deviations in practice from guidelines may be justifiable and such deviations should not be interpreted as a basis for claims of negligence. PMID:27442772

  10. Impact of the New ACC/AHA Guidelines on the Treatment of High Blood Cholesterol in a Managed Care Setting.

    PubMed

    Tran, Josephine N; Caglar, Toros; Stockl, Karen M; Lew, Heidi C; Solow, Brian K; Chan, Paul S

    2014-11-01

    In November 2013, the American College of Cardiology (ACC) and the American Heart Association (AHA) together issued new guidelines for the treatment of patients with high cholesterol, providing a new paradigm for the management of cholesterol in the primary and secondary prevention of coronary artery disease. To examine the impact of the 2013 ACC/AHA cholesterol treatment guidelines on pharmacy utilization of cholesterol-lowering drugs in a real-world managed care setting. Pharmacy claims from OptumRx, a national pharmacy benefit management provider, for the period between January 1, 2013, and December 31, 2013 (baseline period), were used to identify candidates for cholesterol-lowering therapy and to estimate the number of potential patients who will be starting or intensifying statin therapy based on the updated cholesterol treatment guidelines. Potential candidates for cholesterol-lowering treatments included patients with diabetes or hypertension aged 40 to 75 years who were not already receiving a cholesterol-lowering medication, as well as patients receiving cholesterol-lowering therapies during the baseline period. The baseline cholesterol-lowering medication market share was used to project changes in pharmacy utilization over the next 3 years. Based on the 2013 ACC/AHA cholesterol treatment guidelines, there will be a 25% increase in the proportion of the overall population that is treated with statins over the next 3 years, increasing from 3,909,407 (27.7%) patients to 4,892,668 (34.7%) patients. The largest proportion of the increase in statin utilization is projected to be for primary prevention in patients aged 40 to 75 years who were not receiving any cholesterol-lowering treatment at baseline. These projected changes will increase the overall number of statin prescriptions by 25% and will decrease the number of nonstatin cholesterol-lowering medication prescriptions by 68% during the next 3 years. The new 2013 ACC/AHA cholesterol treatment guidelines are projected to have a significant impact on the utilization of cholesterol-lowering drugs by increasing the overall proportion of the population receiving statin therapy and by decreasing the utilization of nonstatin cholesterol-lowering medications.

  11. Oral Pharmacologic Treatment of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: A Clinical Practice Guideline Update From the American College of Physicians.

    PubMed

    Qaseem, Amir; Barry, Michael J; Humphrey, Linda L; Forciea, Mary Ann

    2017-02-21

    The American College of Physicians (ACP) developed this guideline to present the evidence and provide clinical recommendations on oral pharmacologic treatment of type 2 diabetes in adults. This guideline serves as an update to the 2012 ACP guideline on the same topic. This guideline is endorsed by the American Academy of Family Physicians. This guideline is based on a systematic review of randomized, controlled trials and observational studies published through December 2015 on the comparative effectiveness of oral medications for type 2 diabetes. Evaluated interventions included metformin, thiazolidinediones, sulfonylureas, dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitors, and sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 (SGLT-2) inhibitors. Study quality was assessed, data were extracted, and results were summarized qualitatively on the basis of the totality of evidence identified by using several databases. Evaluated outcomes included intermediate outcomes of hemoglobin A1c, weight, systolic blood pressure, and heart rate; all-cause mortality; cardiovascular and cerebrovascular morbidity and mortality; retinopathy, nephropathy, and neuropathy; and harms. This guideline grades the recommendations by using the GRADE (Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation) system. The target audience for this guideline includes all clinicians, and the target patient population includes adults with type 2 diabetes. ACP recommends that clinicians prescribe metformin to patients with type 2 diabetes when pharmacologic therapy is needed to improve glycemic control. (Grade: strong recommendation; moderate-quality evidence). ACP recommends that clinicians consider adding either a sulfonylurea, a thiazolidinedione, an SGLT-2 inhibitor, or a DPP-4 inhibitor to metformin to improve glycemic control when a second oral therapy is considered. (Grade: weak recommendation; moderate-quality evidence.) ACP recommends that clinicians and patients select among medications after discussing benefits, adverse effects, and costs.

  12. Radiological assessment of paediatric cervical spine injury in blunt trauma: the potential impact of new NICE guidelines on the use of CT.

    PubMed

    Davies, J; Cross, S; Evanson, J

    2016-09-01

    To determine the potential effect of changes to the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines to the use of computed tomography (CT) in the assessment of suspected paediatric cervical spine (c-spine) injury. A 5 year retrospective study was conducted of c-spine imaging in paediatric (<10 years) patients presenting following blunt trauma at a Level 1 trauma centre in London. All patients under the age of 10 years who underwent any imaging of the c-spine following blunt trauma were included. Clinical data relating to the presenting signs and symptoms were obtained from the retrospective review of electronic records and paper notes. This was then applied to the previous NICE guideline (CG56) and to the new NICE guideline (CG176). Patients with incomplete data were excluded. Two hundred and seventy-eight patients <10 years underwent imaging of the c-spine following blunt trauma. Two hundred and seventy (97.12%) examinations had complete data and were included in further analysis. One hundred and forty-nine (55.19%) met the criteria for a CT of the c-spine under NICE CG56, whereas 252 (93.33%) met the updated NICE CG176 criteria for c-spine CT. Five (1.85%) patients had a c-spine injury and met the criteria under both CG56 and CG176 NICE guidelines. Recent changes to NICE Head Injury Guidelines relating to radiological assessment of paediatric c-spine following blunt trauma are likely to result in an increased usage of CT as the initial radiological investigation over plain radiographs, without an apparent increase in specificity in the present series. Copyright © 2016 The Royal College of Radiologists. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  13. 2015 guidelines of the Taiwan Society of Cardiology and the Taiwan Hypertension Society for the management of hypertension.

    PubMed

    Chiang, Chern-En; Wang, Tzung-Dau; Ueng, Kwo-Chang; Lin, Tsung-Hsien; Yeh, Hung-I; Chen, Chung-Yin; Wu, Yih-Jer; Tsai, Wei-Chuan; Chao, Ting-Hsing; Chen, Chen-Huan; Chu, Pao-Hsien; Chao, Chia-Lun; Liu, Ping-Yen; Sung, Shih-Hsien; Cheng, Hao-Min; Wang, Kang-Ling; Li, Yi-Heng; Chiang, Fu-Tien; Chen, Jyh-Hong; Chen, Wen-Jone; Yeh, San-Jou; Lin, Shing-Jong

    2015-01-01

    It has been almost 5 years since the publication of the 2010 hypertension guidelines of the Taiwan Society of Cardiology (TSOC). There is new evidence regarding the management of hypertension, including randomized controlled trials, non-randomized trials, post-hoc analyses, subgroup analyses, retrospective studies, cohort studies, and registries. More recently, the European Society of Hypertension (ESH) and the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) published joint hypertension guidelines in 2013. The panel members who were appointed to the Eighth Joint National Committee (JNC) also published the 2014 JNC report. Blood pressure (BP) targets have been changed; in particular, such targets have been loosened in high risk patients. The Executive Board members of TSOC and the Taiwan Hypertension Society (THS) aimed to review updated information about the management of hypertension to publish an updated hypertension guideline in Taiwan. We recognized that hypertension is the most important risk factor for global disease burden. Management of hypertension is especially important in Asia where the prevalence rate grows faster than other parts of the world. In most countries in East Asia, stroke surpassed coronary heart disease (CHD) in causing premature death. A diagnostic algorithm was proposed, emphasizing the importance of home BP monitoring and ambulatory BP monitoring for better detection of night time hypertension, early morning hypertension, white-coat hypertension, and masked hypertension. We disagreed with the ESH/ESH joint hypertension guidelines suggestion to loosen BP targets to <140/90 mmHg for all patients. We strongly disagree with the suggestion by the 2014 JNC report to raise the BP target to <150/90 mmHg for patients between 60-80 years of age. For patients with diabetes, CHD, chronic kidney disease who have proteinuria, and those who are receiving antithrombotic therapy for stroke prevention, we propose BP targets of <130/80 mmHg in our guidelines. BP targets are <140/90 mmHg for all other patient groups, except for patients ≥80 years of age in whom a BP target of <150/90 mmHg would be optimal. For the management of hypertension, we proposed a treatment algorithm, starting with life style modification (LSM) including S-ABCDE (Sodium restriction, Alcohol limitation, Body weight reduction, Cigarette smoke cessation, Diet adaptation, and Exercise adoption). We emphasized a low-salt strategy instead of a no-salt strategy, and that excessively aggressive sodium restriction to <2.0 gram/day may be harmful. When drug therapy is considered, a strategy called "PROCEED" was suggested (Previous experience, Risk factors, Organ damage, Contraindications or unfavorable conditions, Expert's or doctor's judgment, Expenses or cost, and Delivery and compliance issue). To predict drug effects in lowering BP, we proposed the "Rule of 10" and "Rule of 5". With a standard dose of any one of the 5 major classes of anti-hypertensive agents, one can anticipate approximately a 10-mmHg decrease in systolic BP (SBP) (Rule of 10) and a 5-mmHg decrease in diastolic BP (DBP) (Rule of 5). When doses of the same drug are doubled, there is only a 2-mmHg incremental decrease in SBP and a 1-mmHg incremental decrease in DBP. Preferably, when 2 drugs with different mechanisms are to be taken together, the decrease in BP is the sum of the decrease of the individual agents (approximately 20 mmHg in SBP and 10 mmHg in DBP). Early combination therapy, especially single-pill combination (SPC), is recommended. When patient's initial treatment cannot get BP to targeted goals, we have proposed an adjustment algorithm, "AT GOALs" (Adherence, Timing of administration, Greater doses, Other classes of drugs, Alternative combination or SPC, and LSM + Laboratory tests). Treatment of hypertension in special conditions, including treatment of resistant hypertension, hypertension in women, and perioperative management of hypertension, were also mentioned. The TSOC/THS hypertension guidelines provide the most updated information available in the management of hypertension. The guidelines are not mandatory, and members of the task force fully realize that treatment of hypertension should be individualized to address each patient's circumstances. Ultimately, the decision of the physician decision remains of the utmost importance in hypertension management. Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier Taiwan.

  14. European guidelines for workplace drug and alcohol testing in hair.

    PubMed

    Salomone, A; Tsanaclis, L; Agius, R; Kintz, P; Baumgartner, M R

    2016-10-01

    Guidelines for Legally Defensible Workplace Drug Testing have been prepared and updated by the European Workplace Drug Testing Society (EWDTS). They are based on the 2010 version published by Pascal Kintz and Ronald Agius (Guidelines for European workplace drug and alcohol testing in hair. Drug Test. Anal. 2010, 2, 367) and in concordance with the Society of Hair Testing guidelines (Society of Hair Testing guidelines for drug testing in hair. Forensic Sci. Int. 2012, 218, 20-24). The European Guidelines are designed to establish best practice procedures whilst allowing individual countries to operate within the requirements of national customs and legislation. The EWDTS recommends that all European laboratories that undertake legally defensible workplace drug testing use these guidelines as a template for accreditation. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  15. Medical Malpractice Implications of Clinical Practice Guidelines.

    PubMed

    Ruhl, Douglas S; Siegal, Gil

    2017-08-01

    Clinical practice guidelines aim to improve medical care by clarifying and making useful recommendations to providers. Although providers should account for patients' unique characteristics when determining a treatment plan, it is generally perceived as good practice to follow guidelines when applicable. This is of interest in malpractice litigation, where it is essential to establish a standard of care to evaluate the performances of providers. Although the opinions of expert witnesses are used to determine standards of care, guidelines are expected to play a leading role. Guidelines alone should not establish a legal standard but may help inform this discussion in the courtroom. Therefore, it is incumbent that excellent, practical, and timely guidelines are continually created and updated in a transparent way. These guidelines must be very clear and underscore the various strengths of recommendation based on the quality of available evidence.

  16. [Polish guidelines for the prevention and treatment of venous thromboembolism: 2009 update].

    PubMed

    Zawilska, Krystyna; Jaeschke, Roman; Tomkowski, Witold; Mayzner-Zawadzka, Ewa; Nizankowski, Rafał; Olejek, Anita; Pasierski, Tomasz; Torbicki, Adam; Undas, Anetta; Jawień, Arkadiusz; Gajewski, Piotr; Sznajd, Jan; Brozek, Jan

    2009-01-01

    The overall objective of the Polish guidelines for the prevention and treatment of venous thromboembolism is to increase patient benefit and safety by appropriate prevention and treatment of deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism as well as proper management of the complications associated with antithrombotic and thrombolytic therapy. These guidelines apply to adult trauma, cancer, surgical, and medical patients as well as those at increased risk of venous thromboembolism. Specific recommendations have been formulated for pregnant women, patients requiring surgery while receiving long-term oral anticoagulant treatment, and patients undergoing regional anesthesia and/or analgesia. We systematically identified all current clinical practice guidelines concerning the prevention and/or treatment of venous thromboembolism and assessed their methodological quality using the AGREE instrument. We chose to update existing Polish guidelines by adapting the most recent high quality guidelines that we identified to Polish cultural and organizational setting rather than develop all recommendations de novo. We based our recommendations primarily on the 8th edition of the American College of Chest Physicians (ACCP) Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guidelines on Antithrombotic and Thrombolytic Therapy and on the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Guidelines on the Diagnosis and Management of Acute Pulmonary Embolism. To make recommendations regarding specific management issues that had not been addressed in ACCP guidelines, or whenever panel members felt they needed additional information to reach the decision we also consulted guidelines developed by other professional societies and organizations as well as additional sources of evidence. For each recommendation we explicitly assessed its relevance and applicability in the context of health care system in Poland. We adapted recommendations when necessary, explicitly stating the rationale for modification and judgements about the values and preferences we assumed. We developed original recommendations on the use of new oral anticoagulants that have recently become available, following the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) approach.

  17. Impact of globalization under the ICH guidelines on the conduct of reproductive toxicity studies--report on current status in Japan, Europe and the U.S. by questionnaire survey.

    PubMed

    Mineshima, Hiroshi; Endo, Yoshihiko; Ogasawara, Hiroyuki; Nishigaki, Keiji; Numa, Toshiaki; Hirano, Fumiya; Matsuzawa, Toshiaki

    2004-08-01

    We surveyed interpretation of the ICH guidelines concerning reproductive toxicology. Valid responses were obtained from Japan (JPN), Europe (EUR) and the U.S. The results obtained were compared to those at the time of a previous survey targeted at JPN facilities in 1995-1996 as well as compared among all three regions. Compared to the previous survey in Japan, the number of facilities performing toxicokinetics (TK) in rats has slightly increased. This result was considered to represent changes of attitude toward TK in reproductive toxicity studies. Differences in interpretation of the guidelines between JPN, EUR and the US were widely seen. Clear differences were noted in sperm examinations, postnatal tests, fetal examinations, some examinations for F1 animals after culling and TK. Researchers in the West seemed to be interpreting the ICH guidelines more flexibly from the scientific point of view. JPN researchers appeared to interpret the guidelines, including notes, as rigid requirements. Most of the parts which produced different interpretations were the notes in the guidelines. The force of mention in the notes should be defined in the future. In addition, there were doubts about some parts, including notes, which had been found to have become unsuitable for the implementation of studies because of scientific progress or from long experience in using the guidelines. Therefore, updates of the guidelines may be needed in the future as well as the remedy of interpretation by JPN researchers. In JPN, the number of reproductive toxicity studies has decreased. The scanty experience in JPN therefore raises apprehension of appropriate selection and stagnating development of methodology, and might hinder the maintenance of the guidelines. In the future, the cooperation of CROs as well as global collaboration will be essential not only to scientific developments of reproductive toxicology but also updates of the guidelines.

  18. Medicare program; Medicare depreciation, useful life guidelines--HCFA. Final rule.

    PubMed

    1983-08-18

    These final rules amend Medicare regulations to clarify which useful life guidelines may be used by providers of health care services to determine the useful life of a depreciable asset for Medicare reimbursement purposes. Current regulations state that providers must utilize the Departmental useful life guidelines or, if none have been published by the Department, either the American Hospital Association (AHA) useful life guidelines of 1973 of IRS guidelines. We are eliminating the reference to IRS guidelines because these are now outdated for Medicare purposes since they have been rendered obsolete either by the IRS or by statutory change. We are also deleting the specific reference to the 1973 AHA guidelines since these guidelines are updated by the AHA periodically. In addition, we are clarifying that certain tax legislation on accelerated depreciation, passed by Congress, does not apply to the Medicare program.

  19. Hemoglobin A1c Targets for Glycemic Control With Pharmacologic Therapy for Nonpregnant Adults With Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: A Guidance Statement Update From the American College of Physicians.

    PubMed

    Qaseem, Amir; Wilt, Timothy J; Kansagara, Devan; Horwitch, Carrie; Barry, Michael J; Forciea, Mary Ann

    2018-04-17

    The American College of Physicians developed this guidance statement to guide clinicians in selecting targets for pharmacologic treatment of type 2 diabetes. The National Guideline Clearinghouse and the Guidelines International Network library were searched (May 2017) for national guidelines, published in English, that addressed hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) targets for treating type 2 diabetes in nonpregnant outpatient adults. The authors identified guidelines from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and the Institute for Clinical Systems Improvement. In addition, 4 commonly used guidelines were reviewed, from the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists and American College of Endocrinology, the American Diabetes Association, the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network, and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and Department of Defense. The AGREE II (Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation II) instrument was used to evaluate the guidelines. Clinicians should personalize goals for glycemic control in patients with type 2 diabetes on the basis of a discussion of benefits and harms of pharmacotherapy, patients' preferences, patients' general health and life expectancy, treatment burden, and costs of care. Clinicians should aim to achieve an HbA1c level between 7% and 8% in most patients with type 2 diabetes. Clinicians should consider deintensifying pharmacologic therapy in patients with type 2 diabetes who achieve HbA1c levels less than 6.5%. Clinicians should treat patients with type 2 diabetes to minimize symptoms related to hyperglycemia and avoid targeting an HbA1c level in patients with a life expectancy less than 10 years due to advanced age (80 years or older), residence in a nursing home, or chronic conditions (such as dementia, cancer, end-stage kidney disease, or severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or congestive heart failure) because the harms outweigh the benefits in this population.

  20. Statin Utilization and Recommendations Among HIV- and HCV-infected Veterans: A Cohort Study

    PubMed Central

    Clement, Meredith E.; Park, Lawrence P.; Navar, Ann Marie; Okeke, Nwora Lance; Pencina, Michael J.; Douglas, Pamela S.; Naggie, Susanna

    2016-01-01

    Background. Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections are associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). The potential impact of recently updated cholesterol guidelines on treatment of HIV- and HCV-infected veterans is unknown. Methods. We performed a retrospective cohort study to assess statin use and recommendations among 13 579 HIV-infected, 169 767 HCV-infected, and 6628 HIV/HCV-coinfected male veterans aged 40–75 years. Prior 2004 Adult Treatment Panel (ATP-III) guidelines were compared with current 2013 American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association (ACC/AHA) cholesterol guidelines and 2014 US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)/US Department of Defense (DoD) joint clinical practice guidelines using laboratory, medication, and comorbidity data from the VA Clinical Case Registry from 2008 through 2010. Results. Using risk criteria delineated by the ATP-III guidelines, 50.6% of HIV-infected, 45.9% of HCV-infected, and 33.8% of HIV/HCV-coinfected veterans had an indication for statin therapy. However, among those eligible, 22.7%, 30.5%, and 31.5%, respectively, were not receiving ATP-III recommended statin therapy. When current cholesterol guidelines were applied by VA/DoD and ACC/AHA criteria, increases in recommendations for statins were found in all groups (57.3% and 66.1% of HIV-infected, 64.4% and 73.7% of HCV-infected, 49.1% and 58.5% of HIV/HCV-coinfected veterans recommended). Conclusions. Statins were underutilized among veterans infected with HIV, HCV, and HIV/HCV according to previous ATP-III guidelines. Current VA/DoD and ACC/AHA guidelines substantially expand statin recommendations and widen the gap of statin underutilization in all groups. These gaps in care present an opportunity to improve CVD prevention efforts in these at-risk populations. PMID:27143663

  1. Statin Utilization and Recommendations Among HIV- and HCV-infected Veterans: A Cohort Study.

    PubMed

    Clement, Meredith E; Park, Lawrence P; Navar, Ann Marie; Okeke, Nwora Lance; Pencina, Michael J; Douglas, Pamela S; Naggie, Susanna

    2016-08-01

    Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections are associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). The potential impact of recently updated cholesterol guidelines on treatment of HIV- and HCV-infected veterans is unknown. We performed a retrospective cohort study to assess statin use and recommendations among 13 579 HIV-infected, 169 767 HCV-infected, and 6628 HIV/HCV-coinfected male veterans aged 40-75 years. Prior 2004 Adult Treatment Panel (ATP-III) guidelines were compared with current 2013 American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association (ACC/AHA) cholesterol guidelines and 2014 US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)/US Department of Defense (DoD) joint clinical practice guidelines using laboratory, medication, and comorbidity data from the VA Clinical Case Registry from 2008 through 2010. Using risk criteria delineated by the ATP-III guidelines, 50.6% of HIV-infected, 45.9% of HCV-infected, and 33.8% of HIV/HCV-coinfected veterans had an indication for statin therapy. However, among those eligible, 22.7%, 30.5%, and 31.5%, respectively, were not receiving ATP-III recommended statin therapy. When current cholesterol guidelines were applied by VA/DoD and ACC/AHA criteria, increases in recommendations for statins were found in all groups (57.3% and 66.1% of HIV-infected, 64.4% and 73.7% of HCV-infected, 49.1% and 58.5% of HIV/HCV-coinfected veterans recommended). Statins were underutilized among veterans infected with HIV, HCV, and HIV/HCV according to previous ATP-III guidelines. Current VA/DoD and ACC/AHA guidelines substantially expand statin recommendations and widen the gap of statin underutilization in all groups. These gaps in care present an opportunity to improve CVD prevention efforts in these at-risk populations. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press for the Infectious Diseases Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, e-mail journals.permissions@oup.com.

  2. Update on community-acquired bacterial meningitis: guidance and challenges.

    PubMed

    van Ettekoven, C N; van de Beek, D; Brouwer, M C

    2017-09-01

    The existing heterogeneity in diagnostic work-up and treatment strategies in bacterial meningitis was the incentive to develop a European evidence-based guideline, which was published in 2016 by the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ESCMID) Study Group on Infections of the Brain (ESGIB). To summarize salient features of the guideline, identify recent developments and challenges currently faced. The ESCMID guideline, ongoing trial registries. Epidemiology, clinical symptoms, diagnostic work-up and therapy strategies of acute bacterial meningitis. The incidence of bacterial meningitis has decreased following pneumococcal and meningococcal conjugate vaccine introduction. In the diagnosis of bacterial meningitis the clinical characteristics and laboratory parameters are of limited diagnostic accuracy and therefore cerebrospinal fluid analysis remains the principal contributor to the final diagnosis. The ESCMID guideline advises to start empiric treatment within one hour of arrival in all suspected meningitis cases, and choice of antibiotics needs to be differentiated according to the patient's age, risk factors, and local resistance rates of pneumococci. Dexamethasone is the only proven adjunctive treatment and should be started together with the antibiotics. The follow-up of surviving patients should include evaluation for hearing loss and pneumococcal vaccination to prevent recurrences. Future perspectives include further development and implementation of vaccines, and new treatments aimed at further reducing the inflammatory response. Studies on implementation of the new guideline should determine adherence and evaluate whether improved prognosis can be achieved by following protocolled management strategies. Copyright © 2017 European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  3. [The German Program for Disease Management Guidelines: CHD Guideline 2006. Short review].

    PubMed

    Ollenschläger, Günter; Lelgemann, Monika; Kopp, Ina

    2006-12-15

    In Germany, the first national consensus on evidence-based recommendations for disease management in patients with chronic coronary heart disease was reached in summer 2006. After a development period of 4 years, the National Disease Management Guideline Chronic Coronary Heart Disease was finalized by nominal group process under the authorship of the scientific associations for cardiac rehabilitation (DGPR), cardiac surgery (DGTHG), cardiology (DGK), general internal medicine (DGIM), family medicine (DEGAM), and the Drug Commission of the German Medical Association (AKDAE). The recommendations' main sources are the ACC/AHA guidelines 2002 updates as well as existing German guidelines and reviews of recent scientific evidence. The article gives an overview on authors, sources, and key recommendations of the German National Disease Management Guideline Chronic Coronary Heart Disease 2006 (www.khk.versorgungsleitlinie.de).

  4. Saudi lung cancer management guidelines 2017

    PubMed Central

    Jazieh, Abdul Rahman; Al Kattan, Khaled; Bamousa, Ahmed; Al Olayan, Ashwaq; Abdelwarith, Ahmed; Ansari, Jawaher; Al Twairqi, Abdullah; Al Fayea, Turki; Al Saleh, Khalid; Al Husaini, Hamed; Abdelhafiez, Nafisa; Mahrous, Mervat; Faris, Medhat; Al Omair, Ameen; Hebshi, Adnan; Al Shehri, Salem; Al Dayel, Foad; Bamefleh, Hanaa; Khalbuss, Walid; Al Ghanem, Sarah; Loutfi, Shukri; Khankan, Azzam; Al Rujaib, Meshael; Al Ghamdi, Majed; Ibrahim, Nagwa; Swied, Abdulmonem; Al Kayait, Mohammad; Datario, Marie

    2017-01-01

    BACKGROUND: Lung cancer management is getting more complex due to the rapid advances in all aspects of diagnostic and therapeutic options. Developing guidelines is critical to help practitioners provide standard of care. METHODS: The Saudi Lung Cancer Guidelines Committee (SLCGC) multidisciplinary members from different specialties and from various regions and healthcare sectors of the country reviewed and updated all lung cancer guidelines with appropriate labeling of level of evidence. Supporting documents to help healthcare professionals were developed. RESULTS: Detailed lung cancer management guidelines were finalized with appropriate resources for systemic therapy and short reviews highlighting important issues. Stage based disease management recommendation were included. A summary explanation for complex topics were included in addition to tables of approved systemic therapy. CONCLUSION: A multidisciplinary lung cancer guidelines was developed and will be disseminated across the country. PMID:29118855

  5. Saudi lung cancer management guidelines 2017.

    PubMed

    Jazieh, Abdul Rahman; Al Kattan, Khaled; Bamousa, Ahmed; Al Olayan, Ashwaq; Abdelwarith, Ahmed; Ansari, Jawaher; Al Twairqi, Abdullah; Al Fayea, Turki; Al Saleh, Khalid; Al Husaini, Hamed; Abdelhafiez, Nafisa; Mahrous, Mervat; Faris, Medhat; Al Omair, Ameen; Hebshi, Adnan; Al Shehri, Salem; Al Dayel, Foad; Bamefleh, Hanaa; Khalbuss, Walid; Al Ghanem, Sarah; Loutfi, Shukri; Khankan, Azzam; Al Rujaib, Meshael; Al Ghamdi, Majed; Ibrahim, Nagwa; Swied, Abdulmonem; Al Kayait, Mohammad; Datario, Marie

    2017-01-01

    Lung cancer management is getting more complex due to the rapid advances in all aspects of diagnostic and therapeutic options. Developing guidelines is critical to help practitioners provide standard of care. The Saudi Lung Cancer Guidelines Committee (SLCGC) multidisciplinary members from different specialties and from various regions and healthcare sectors of the country reviewed and updated all lung cancer guidelines with appropriate labeling of level of evidence. Supporting documents to help healthcare professionals were developed. Detailed lung cancer management guidelines were finalized with appropriate resources for systemic therapy and short reviews highlighting important issues. Stage based disease management recommendation were included. A summary explanation for complex topics were included in addition to tables of approved systemic therapy. A multidisciplinary lung cancer guidelines was developed and will be disseminated across the country.

  6. 2018 Canadian Cardiovascular Society/Canadian Association of Interventional Cardiology Focused Update of the Guidelines for the Use of Antiplatelet Therapy.

    PubMed

    Mehta, Shamir R; Bainey, Kevin R; Cantor, Warren J; Lordkipanidzé, Marie; Marquis-Gravel, Guillaume; Robinson, Simon D; Sibbald, Matthew; So, Derek Y; Wong, Graham C; Abunassar, Joseph G; Ackman, Margaret L; Bell, Alan D; Cartier, Raymond; Douketis, James D; Lawler, Patrick R; McMurtry, Michael S; Udell, Jacob A; van Diepen, Sean; Verma, Subodh; Mancini, G B John; Cairns, John A; Tanguay, Jean-François

    2018-03-01

    Antiplatelet therapy (APT) has become an important tool in the treatment and prevention of atherosclerotic events, particularly those associated with coronary artery disease. A large evidence base has evolved regarding the relationship between APT prescription in various clinical contexts and risk/benefit relationships. The Guidelines Committee of the Canadian Cardiovascular Society and Canadian Association of Interventional Cardiology publishes regular updates of its recommendations, taking into consideration the most recent clinical evidence. The present update to the 2011 and 2013 Canadian Cardiovascular Society APT guidelines incorporates new evidence on how to optimize APT use, particularly in situations in which few to no data were previously available. The recommendations update focuses on the following primary topics: (1) the duration of dual APT (DAPT) in patients who undergo percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for acute coronary syndrome and non-acute coronary syndrome indications; (2) management of DAPT in patients who undergo noncardiac surgery; (3) management of DAPT in patients who undergo elective and semiurgent coronary artery bypass graft surgery; (4) when and how to switch between different oral antiplatelet therapies; and (5) management of antiplatelet and anticoagulant therapy in patients who undergo PCI. For PCI patients, we specifically analyze the particular considerations in patients with atrial fibrillation, mechanical or bioprosthetic valves (including transcatheter aortic valve replacement), venous thromboembolic disease, and established left ventricular thrombus or possible left ventricular thrombus with reduced ejection fraction after ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction. In addition to specific recommendations, we provide values and preferences and practical tips to aid the practicing clinician in the day to day use of these important agents. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Inc.

  7. 2016 Guidelines of the Taiwan Heart Rhythm Society and the Taiwan Society of Cardiology for the management of atrial fibrillation.

    PubMed

    Chiang, Chern-En; Wu, Tsu-Juey; Ueng, Kwo-Chang; Chao, Tze-Fan; Chang, Kuan-Cheng; Wang, Chun-Chieh; Lin, Yenn-Jiang; Yin, Wei-Hsian; Kuo, Jen-Yuan; Lin, Wei-Shiang; Tsai, Chia-Ti; Liu, Yen-Bin; Lee, Kun-Tai; Lin, Li-Jen; Lin, Lian-Yu; Wang, Kang-Ling; Chen, Yi-Jen; Chen, Mien-Cheng; Cheng, Chen-Chuan; Wen, Ming-Shien; Chen, Wen-Jone; Chen, Jyh-Hong; Lai, Wen-Ter; Chiou, Chuen-Wang; Lin, Jiunn-Lee; Yeh, San-Jou; Chen, Shih-Ann

    2016-11-01

    Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common sustained arrhythmia. Both the incidence and prevalence of AF are increasing, and the burden of AF is becoming huge. Many innovative advances have emerged in the past decade for the diagnosis and management of AF, including a new scoring system for the prediction of stroke and bleeding events, the introduction of non-vitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulants and their special benefits in Asians, new rhythm- and rate-control concepts, optimal endpoints of rate control, upstream therapy, life-style modification to prevent AF recurrence, and new ablation techniques. The Taiwan Heart Rhythm Society and the Taiwan Society of Cardiology aimed to update the information and have appointed a jointed writing committee for new AF guidelines. The writing committee members comprehensively reviewed and summarized the literature, and completed the 2016 Guidelines of the Taiwan Heart Rhythm Society and the Taiwan Society of Cardiology for the Management of Atrial Fibrillation. This guideline presents the details of the updated recommendations, along with their background and rationale, focusing on data unique for Asians. The guidelines are not mandatory, and members of the writing committee fully realize that treatment of AF should be individualized. The physician's decision remains most important in AF management. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  8. Spanish Clinical Guidelines on Vascular Access for Haemodialysis.

    PubMed

    Ibeas, José; Roca-Tey, Ramon; Vallespín, Joaquín; Moreno, Teresa; Moñux, Guillermo; Martí-Monrós, Anna; Del Pozo, José Luis; Gruss, Enrique; Ramírez de Arellano, Manel; Fontseré, Néstor; Arenas, María Dolores; Merino, José Luis; García-Revillo, José; Caro, Pilar; López-Espada, Cristina; Giménez-Gaibar, Antonio; Fernández-Lucas, Milagros; Valdés, Pablo; Fernández-Quesada, Fidel; de la Fuente, Natalia; Hernán, David; Arribas, Patricia; Sánchez de la Nieta, María Dolores; Martínez, María Teresa; Barba, Ángel

    2017-11-01

    Vascular access for haemodialysis is key in renal patients both due to its associated morbidity and mortality and due to its impact on quality of life. The process, from the creation and maintenance of vascular access to the treatment of its complications, represents a challenge when it comes to decision-making, due to the complexity of the existing disease and the diversity of the specialities involved. With a view to finding a common approach, the Spanish Multidisciplinary Group on Vascular Access (GEMAV), which includes experts from the five scientific societies involved (nephrology [S.E.N.], vascular surgery [SEACV], vascular and interventional radiology [SERAM-SERVEI], infectious diseases [SEIMC] and nephrology nursing [SEDEN]), along with the methodological support of the Cochrane Center, has updated the Guidelines on Vascular Access for Haemodialysis, published in 2005. These guidelines maintain a similar structure, in that they review the evidence without compromising the educational aspects. However, on one hand, they provide an update to methodology development following the guidelines of the GRADE system in order to translate this systematic review of evidence into recommendations that facilitate decision-making in routine clinical practice, and, on the other hand, the guidelines establish quality indicators which make it possible to monitor the quality of healthcare. Copyright © 2017 Sociedad Española de Nefrología. Published by Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

  9. New National Blood Pressure Guidelines Are More Rigorous, but OHS Is Here to Help | Poster

    Cancer.gov

    A task force led by physicians from the American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association has released new blood pressure guidelines in order to help doctors and clinicians better treat hypertensive and prehypertensive individuals who may be at risk of heart disease. The update, which comes nearly 15 years after its predecessor, has significantly broadened the

  10. Guidelines for the Prevention of Infections Associated With Combat-Related Injuries: 2011 Update

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2011-08-01

    of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to Washington Headquarters Services , Directorate for Information Operations and...Infectious Disease Service (MCHE-MDI),3851 Roger Brooke Drive,Fort Sam Houston,TX,78234 8. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION REPORT NUMBER 9. SPONSORING/MONITORING...Guidelines TABLE 1. GRADE* Systematic Weighting of the Quality of Evidence and Grading of Recommendations Strength of Recommendation and Quality of

  11. Research-Based Recommendations for the Use of Accommodations in Large-Scale Assessments: 2012 Update. Practical Guidelines for the Education of English Language Learners. Book 4

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kieffer, Michael J.; Rivera, Mabel; Francis, David J.

    2012-01-01

    This report presents results from a new quantitative synthesis of research on the effectiveness and validity of test accommodations for English language learners (ELLs) taking large-scale assessments. In 2006, the Center on Instruction published a review of the literature on test accommodations for ELLs titled "Practical Guidelines for the…

  12. CPR: MedlinePlus Health Topic

    MedlinePlus

    ... to health information from non-government Web sites. See our disclaimer about external links and our quality guidelines . About MedlinePlus Site Map FAQs Customer Support Get email updates Subscribe to ...

  13. Trichomoniasis: MedlinePlus Health Topic

    MedlinePlus

    ... to health information from non-government Web sites. See our disclaimer about external links and our quality guidelines . About MedlinePlus Site Map FAQs Customer Support Get email updates Subscribe to ...

  14. Colonoscopy: MedlinePlus Health Topic

    MedlinePlus

    ... to health information from non-government Web sites. See our disclaimer about external links and our quality guidelines . About MedlinePlus Site Map FAQs Customer Support Get email updates Subscribe to ...

  15. Contrast induced nephropathy: updated ESUR Contrast Media Safety Committee guidelines.

    PubMed

    Stacul, Fulvio; van der Molen, Aart J; Reimer, Peter; Webb, Judith A W; Thomsen, Henrik S; Morcos, Sameh K; Almén, Torsten; Aspelin, Peter; Bellin, Marie-France; Clement, Olivier; Heinz-Peer, Gertraud

    2011-12-01

    The Contrast Media Safety Committee (CMSC) of the European Society of Urogenital Radiology (ESUR) has updated its 1999 guidelines on contrast medium-induced nephropathy (CIN). Topics reviewed include the definition of CIN, the choice of contrast medium, the prophylactic measures used to reduce the incidence of CIN, and the management of patients receiving metformin. Key Points • Definition, risk factors and prevention of contrast medium induced nephropathy are reviewed. • CIN risk is lower with intravenous than intra-arterial iodinated contrast medium. • eGFR of 45 ml/min/1.73 m (2) is CIN risk threshold for intravenous contrast medium. • Hydration with either saline or sodium bicarbonate reduces CIN incidence. • Patients with eGFR ≥ 60 ml/min/1.73 m (2) receiving contrast medium can continue metformin normally.

  16. 77 FR 16270 - Updated Aging Management Criteria for Reactor Vessel Internal Components of Pressurized Water...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-03-20

    ... NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION [NRC-2012-0070] Updated Aging Management Criteria for Reactor Vessel Internal Components of Pressurized Water Reactors AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission. ACTION: Draft..., ``Updated Aging Management Criteria for PWR Reactor Vessel Internal Components.'' This draft LR-ISG revises...

  17. 77 FR 23513 - Updated Aging Management Criteria for Reactor Vessel Internal Components of Pressurized Water...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-04-19

    ... NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION [NRC-2012-0070] Updated Aging Management Criteria for Reactor Vessel Internal Components of Pressurized Water Reactors AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission. ACTION: Draft...-ISG), LR-ISG-2011-04, ``Updated Aging Management Criteria for PWR Reactor Vessel Internal Components...

  18. The 2015 Dietary Guidelines for Americans is associated with a more nutrient-dense diet and a lower risk of obesity.

    PubMed

    Jessri, Mahsa; Lou, Wendy Y; L'Abbé, Mary R

    2016-11-01

    Dietary pattern analysis represents a departure from the traditional focus on single foods and nutrients and provides a comprehensive understanding of the role of the diet in chronic disease prevention and etiology. Dietary patterns of Canadians have not been evaluated comprehensively with the use of an updated a priori dietary quality index. We aimed to update the Dietary Guidelines for Americans Adherence Index (DGAI) on the basis of the 2015 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA), to evaluate the construct validity and reliability of the revised index, and to examine whether closer adherence to this index is associated with a lower risk of obesity with or without an accompanying chronic disease. Data from 11,748 participants (≥18 y of age) in the cross-sectional Canadian Community Health Survey cycle 2.2 were used in weighted multivariate analyses. Multinomial logistic regression was used to test the association between diet quality and obesity risk. With the use of principal component analyses, the multidimensionality of the 2015 DGAI was confirmed, and its reliability was shown with a high Cronbach's α = 0.75. Moving from the first to the fourth (healthiest) quartile of the 2015 DGAI score, there was a trend toward decreased energy (2492 ± 26 compared with 2403 ± 22 kcal, respectively; ±SE) and nutrients of concern (e.g., sodium), whereas intakes of beneficial nutrients increased (P-trend < 0.05). In the age- and sex-adjusted model, a lack of adherence to the 2015 DGA recommendations increased the OR of being unhealthy obese from 1.42 (95% CI: 1.02, 1.99) in quartile 3 to 2.08 (95% CI: 1.49, 2.90) in quartile 2 to 2.31 (95% CI: 1.65, 3.23) in the first quartile of the 2015 DGAI score, compared with the fourth quartile (healthiest) (P-trend < 0.0001). The odds of being obese without a chronic disease (healthy obese) and having a chronic disease without being obese also increased in the lowest DGAI quartile compared with the highest DGAI quartile, albeit not as much as in the unhealthy obese group. The 2015 DGAI provides a valid and reliable measure of diet quality among Canadians. © 2016 American Society for Nutrition.

  19. A collaborative approach to adopting/adapting guidelines - The Australian 24-Hour Movement Guidelines for the early years (Birth to 5 years): an integration of physical activity, sedentary behavior, and sleep.

    PubMed

    Okely, Anthony D; Ghersi, Davina; Hesketh, Kylie D; Santos, Rute; Loughran, Sarah P; Cliff, Dylan P; Shilton, Trevor; Grant, David; Jones, Rachel A; Stanley, Rebecca M; Sherring, Julie; Hinkley, Trina; Trost, Stewart G; McHugh, Clare; Eckermann, Simon; Thorpe, Karen; Waters, Karen; Olds, Timothy S; Mackey, Tracy; Livingstone, Rhonda; Christian, Hayley; Carr, Harriette; Verrender, Adam; Pereira, João R; Zhang, Zhiguang; Downing, Katherine L; Tremblay, Mark S

    2017-11-20

    In 2017, the Australian Government funded the update of the National Physical Activity Recommendations for Children 0-5 years, with the intention that they be an integration of movement behaviours across the 24-h period. The benefit for Australia was that it could leverage research in Canada in the development of their 24-h guidelines for the early years. Concurrently, the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) working group published a model to produce guidelines based on adoption, adaption and/or de novo development using the GRADE evidence-to-decision framework. Referred to as the GRADE-ADOLOPMENT approach, it allows guideline developers to follow a structured and transparent process in a more efficient manner, potentially avoiding the need to unnecessarily repeat costly tasks such as conducting systematic reviews. The purpose of this paper is to outline the process and outcomes for adapting the Canadian 24-Hour Movement Guidelines for the Early Years to develop the Australian 24-Hour Movement Guidelines for the Early Years guided by the GRADE-ADOLOPMENT framework. The development process was guided by the GRADE-ADOLOPMENT approach. A Leadership Group and Consensus Panel were formed and existing credible guidelines identified. The draft Canadian 24-h integrated movement guidelines for the early years best met the criteria established by the Panel. These were evaluated based on the evidence in the GRADE tables, summaries of findings tables and draft recommendations from the Canadian Draft Guidelines. Updates to each of the Canadian systematic reviews were conducted and the Consensus Panel reviewed the evidence for each behaviour separately and made a decision to adopt or adapt the Canadian recommendations for each behaviour or create de novo recommendations. An online survey was then conducted (n = 302) along with five focus groups (n = 30) and five key informant interviews (n = 5) to obtain feedback from stakeholders on the draft guidelines. Based on the evidence from the Canadian systematic reviews and the updated systematic reviews in Australia, the Consensus Panel agreed to adopt the Canadian recommendations and, apart from some minor changes to the wording of good practice statements, keep the wording of the guidelines, preamble and title of the Canadian Guidelines. The Australian Guidelines provide evidence-informed recommendations for a healthy day (24-h), integrating physical activity, sedentary behaviour (including limits to screen time), and sleep for infants (<1 year), toddlers (1-2 years) and preschoolers (3-5 years). To our knowledge, this is only the second time the GRADE-ADOLOPMENT approach has been used. Following this approach, the judgments of the Australian Consensus Panel did not differ sufficiently to change the directions and strength of the recommendations and as such, the Canadian recommendations were adopted with very minor alterations. This allowed the Guidelines to be developed much faster and at lower cost. As such, we would recommend the GRADE-ADOLOPMENT approach, especially if a credible set of guidelines, with all supporting materials and developed using a transparent process, is available. Other countries may consider using this approach when developing and/or revising national movement guidelines.

  20. An updated Asia Pacific Consensus Recommendations on colorectal cancer screening.

    PubMed

    Sung, J J Y; Ng, S C; Chan, F K L; Chiu, H M; Kim, H S; Matsuda, T; Ng, S S M; Lau, J Y W; Zheng, S; Adler, S; Reddy, N; Yeoh, K G; Tsoi, K K F; Ching, J Y L; Kuipers, E J; Rabeneck, L; Young, G P; Steele, R J; Lieberman, D; Goh, K L

    2015-01-01

    Since the publication of the first Asia Pacific Consensus on Colorectal Cancer (CRC) in 2008, there are substantial advancements in the science and experience of implementing CRC screening. The Asia Pacific Working Group aimed to provide an updated set of consensus recommendations. Members from 14 Asian regions gathered to seek consensus using other national and international guidelines, and recent relevant literature published from 2008 to 2013. A modified Delphi process was adopted to develop the statements. Age range for CRC screening is defined as 50-75 years. Advancing age, male, family history of CRC, smoking and obesity are confirmed risk factors for CRC and advanced neoplasia. A risk-stratified scoring system is recommended for selecting high-risk patients for colonoscopy. Quantitative faecal immunochemical test (FIT) instead of guaiac-based faecal occult blood test (gFOBT) is preferred for average-risk subjects. Ancillary methods in colonoscopy, with the exception of chromoendoscopy, have not proven to be superior to high-definition white light endoscopy in identifying adenoma. Quality of colonoscopy should be upheld and quality assurance programme should be in place to audit every aspects of CRC screening. Serrated adenoma is recognised as a risk for interval cancer. There is no consensus on the recruitment of trained endoscopy nurses for CRC screening. Based on recent data on CRC screening, an updated list of recommendations on CRC screening is prepared. These consensus statements will further enhance the implementation of CRC screening in the Asia Pacific region. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

  1. Physical Activity and Risk of Coronary Heart Disease and Stroke in Older Adults: The Cardiovascular Health Study.

    PubMed

    Soares-Miranda, Luisa; Siscovick, David S; Psaty, Bruce M; Longstreth, W T; Mozaffarian, Dariush

    2016-01-12

    Although guidelines suggest that older adults engage in regular physical activity (PA) to reduce cardiovascular disease (CVD), surprisingly few studies have evaluated this relationship, especially in those >75 years. In addition, with advancing age the ability to perform some types of PA might decrease, making light-moderate exercise such as walking especially important to meet recommendations. Prospective cohort analysis among 4207 US men and women of a mean age of 73 years (standard deviation=6) who were free of CVD at baseline in the Cardiovascular Health Study were followed from 1989 to 1999. PA was assessed and cumulatively updated over time to minimize misclassification and assess the long-term effects of habitual activity. Walking (pace, blocks, combined walking score) was updated annually from baseline through 1999. Leisure-time activity and exercise intensity were updated at baseline, 1992, and 1996. Incident CVD (fatal or nonfatal myocardial infarction, coronary death, or stroke) was adjudicated using medical records. During 41,995 person-years of follow-up, 1182 CVD events occurred. After multivariable adjustment, greater PA was inversely associated with coronary heart disease, stroke (especially ischemic stroke), and total CVD, even in those ≥75 years. Walking pace, distance, and overall walking score, leisure-time activity, and exercise intensity were each associated with lower risk. For example, in comparison with a walking pace <2 mph, those that habitually walked at a pace >3 mph had a lower risk of coronary heart disease (0.50; confidence interval, 0.38-0.67), stroke (0.47; confidence interval, 033-0.66), and CVD (0.50; confidence interval, 0.40-0.62). These data provide empirical evidence supporting PA recommendations, in particular, walking, to reduce the incidence of CVD among older adults. © 2015 American Heart Association, Inc.

  2. Diabetic Diet: MedlinePlus Health Topic

    MedlinePlus

    ... to health information from non-government Web sites. See our disclaimer about external links and our quality guidelines . About MedlinePlus Site Map FAQs Customer Support Get email updates Subscribe to ...

  3. Heart Surgery: MedlinePlus Health Topic

    MedlinePlus

    ... to health information from non-government Web sites. See our disclaimer about external links and our quality guidelines . About MedlinePlus Site Map FAQs Customer Support Get email updates Subscribe to ...

  4. Liver Transplantation: MedlinePlus Health Topic

    MedlinePlus

    ... to health information from non-government Web sites. See our disclaimer about external links and our quality guidelines . About MedlinePlus Site Map FAQs Customer Support Get email updates Subscribe to ...

  5. Pulmonary Rehabilitation: MedlinePlus Health Topic

    MedlinePlus

    ... to health information from non-government Web sites. See our disclaimer about external links and our quality guidelines . About MedlinePlus Site Map FAQs Customer Support Get email updates Subscribe to ...

  6. Hearing Aids: MedlinePlus Health Topic

    MedlinePlus

    ... to health information from non-government Web sites. See our disclaimer about external links and our quality guidelines . About MedlinePlus Site Map FAQs Customer Support Get email updates Subscribe to ...

  7. Re-evaluation of the WHO (2010) formaldehyde indoor air quality guideline for cancer risk assessment.

    PubMed

    Nielsen, Gunnar Damgård; Larsen, Søren Thor; Wolkoff, Peder

    2017-01-01

    In 2010, the World Health Organization (WHO) established an indoor air quality guideline for short- and long-term exposures to formaldehyde (FA) of 0.1 mg/m 3 (0.08 ppm) for all 30-min periods at lifelong exposure. This guideline was supported by studies from 2010 to 2013. Since 2013, new key studies have been published and key cancer cohorts have been updated, which we have evaluated and compared with the WHO guideline. FA is genotoxic, causing DNA adduct formation, and has a clastogenic effect; exposure-response relationships were nonlinear. Relevant genetic polymorphisms were not identified. Normal indoor air FA concentrations do not pass beyond the respiratory epithelium, and therefore FA's direct effects are limited to portal-of-entry effects. However, systemic effects have been observed in rats and mice, which may be due to secondary effects as airway inflammation and (sensory) irritation of eyes and the upper airways, which inter alia decreases respiratory ventilation. Both secondary effects are prevented at the guideline level. Nasopharyngeal cancer and leukaemia were observed inconsistently among studies; new updates of the US National Cancer Institute (NCI) cohort confirmed that the relative risk was not increased with mean FA exposures below 1 ppm and peak exposures below 4 ppm. Hodgkin's lymphoma, not observed in the other studies reviewed and not considered FA dependent, was increased in the NCI cohort at a mean concentration ≥0.6 mg/m 3 and at peak exposures ≥2.5 mg/m 3 ; both levels are above the WHO guideline. Overall, the credibility of the WHO guideline has not been challenged by new studies.

  8. Physicians’ duty to recontact and update genetic advice

    PubMed Central

    Stevens, Yvonne A; Senner, Grant D; Marchant, Gary E

    2017-01-01

    This perspective addresses whether physicians have a duty to recontact former or current patients to update clinical advice based on newly discovered genomic information. Genetic information is unique compared with other medical data in that the underlying data do not appreciably change during the patients’ lifetime, but the clinical significance of that information will continue to evolve. Based on relevant case law and guidelines, there is no general, established legal duty for physicians to affirmatively recontact former or current patients to update clinical advice based on newly discovered genetic information. However, integration of genomics into clinical practice is advancing quickly, and there may be limited, specific situations where a physician may have a duty to provide updated genetic information. PMID:29158769

  9. Brazilian guidelines for community-acquired pneumonia in immunocompetent adults - 2009.

    PubMed

    Corrêa, Ricardo de Amorim; Lundgren, Fernando Luiz Cavalcanti; Pereira-Silva, Jorge Luiz; Frare e Silva, Rodney Luiz; Cardoso, Alexandre Pinto; Lemos, Antônio Carlos Moreira; Rossi, Flávia; Michel, Gustavo; Ribeiro, Liany; Cavalcanti, Manuela Araújo de Nóbrega; de Figueiredo, Mara Rúbia Fernandes; Holanda, Marcelo Alcântara; Valery, Maria Inês Bueno de André; Aidê, Miguel Abidon; Chatkin, Moema Nudilemon; Messeder, Octávio; Teixeira, Paulo José Zimermann; Martins, Ricardo Luiz de Melo; da Rocha, Rosali Teixeira

    2009-06-01

    Community-acquired pneumonia continues to be the acute infectious disease that has the greatest medical and social impact regarding morbidity and treatment costs. Children and the elderly are more susceptible to severe complications, thereby justifying the fact that the prevention measures adopted have focused on these age brackets. Despite the advances in the knowledge of etiology and physiopathology, as well as the improvement in preliminary clinical and therapeutic methods, various questions merit further investigation. This is due to the clinical, social, demographical and structural diversity, which cannot be fully predicted. Consequently, guidelines are published in order to compile the most recent knowledge in a systematic way and to promote the rational use of that knowledge in medical practice. Therefore, guidelines are not a rigid set of rules that must be followed, but first and foremost a tool to be used in a critical way, bearing in mind the variability of biological and human responses within their individual and social contexts. This document represents the conclusion of a detailed discussion among the members of the Scientific Board and Respiratory Infection Committee of the Brazilian Thoracic Association. The objective of the work group was to present relevant topics in order to update the previous guidelines. We attempted to avoid the repetition of consensual concepts. The principal objective of creating this document was to present a compilation of the recent advances published in the literature and, consequently, to contribute to improving the quality of the medical care provided to immunocompetent adult patients with community-acquired pneumonia.

  10. Cardiological Society of India Practice Guidelines for Angiography in Patients with Renal Dysfunction

    PubMed Central

    Bhandari, S.; Seth, A.; Sethi, K.K.; Tyagi, S.; Gupta, R.; Tiwari, S.C.; Mehrotra, S.; Seth, Ashok; Guha, Santanu; Deb, P.K.; Dasbiswas, Arup; Mohanan, P.P.; Venugopal, K.; Sinha, Nakul; Pinto, Brian; Banerjee, Amal; Sengottuvelu, G.; Mehran, Roxana; Collough, Peter Mc

    2012-01-01

    Preamble The potential risk of contrast-induced acute kidney injury (CI-AKI) has made utilization of coronary angiography in the work-up for the diagnosis of coronary artery disease in CKD quite low.1 This is in contrast to increasing prevalence and severity of CAD as the serum creatinine rises.2 In fact most CKD patients will succumb to CAD and not to ESRD.3 Thus the judicious use of CAG/PCI in this setting is of prime importance but underused. The CSI began to develop guidelines for Indian context as most guidelines are those developed by ACC/AHA or ESC. The aim was to assist the physicians in selecting the best management strategy for an individual patient under his care based on an expert committee who would review the current data and write the guidelines with relevance to the Indian context. The guidelines were developed initially in June 2010 as an initiative of Delhi CSI. Three interventional cardiologist (SB, AS, KKS), one nephrologist (SCT) and two clinical cardiologists (ST, RG) along with Dr. Roxana Mehran (New York) and Dr. Peter McCullough (Missouri), U.S.A.; were involved in a three-way teleconference to discuss/debate the data. This was presented by SB, and over the next two hours each data subset was debated/agreed/deleted and this resulted in the “Guidelines for CAG in Renal Dysfunction Patients”. These were then written and re- circulated to all for final comments. Further, these guidelines were updated and additional Task Force Members nominated by Central CSI were involved in the formation of the final CSI Guidelines. Both (Roxana Mehran and Peter McCullough) reviewed these updated Guidelines in October 2012 and after incorporating the views of all the Task Force members—the final format is as it is presented in this final document. PMID:23186627

  11. Summary of evidence-based guideline update: Evaluation and management of concussion in sports

    PubMed Central

    Giza, Christopher C.; Kutcher, Jeffrey S.; Ashwal, Stephen; Barth, Jeffrey; Getchius, Thomas S.D.; Gioia, Gerard A.; Gronseth, Gary S.; Guskiewicz, Kevin; Mandel, Steven; Manley, Geoffrey; McKeag, Douglas B.; Thurman, David J.; Zafonte, Ross

    2013-01-01

    Objective: To update the 1997 American Academy of Neurology (AAN) practice parameter regarding sports concussion, focusing on 4 questions: 1) What factors increase/decrease concussion risk? 2) What diagnostic tools identify those with concussion and those at increased risk for severe/prolonged early impairments, neurologic catastrophe, or chronic neurobehavioral impairment? 3) What clinical factors identify those at increased risk for severe/prolonged early postconcussion impairments, neurologic catastrophe, recurrent concussions, or chronic neurobehavioral impairment? 4) What interventions enhance recovery, reduce recurrent concussion risk, or diminish long-term sequelae? The complete guideline on which this summary is based is available as an online data supplement to this article. Methods: We systematically reviewed the literature from 1955 to June 2012 for pertinent evidence. We assessed evidence for quality and synthesized into conclusions using a modified Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation process. We used a modified Delphi process to develop recommendations. Results: Specific risk factors can increase or decrease concussion risk. Diagnostic tools to help identify individuals with concussion include graded symptom checklists, the Standardized Assessment of Concussion, neuropsychological assessments, and the Balance Error Scoring System. Ongoing clinical symptoms, concussion history, and younger age identify those at risk for postconcussion impairments. Risk factors for recurrent concussion include history of multiple concussions, particularly within 10 days after initial concussion. Risk factors for chronic neurobehavioral impairment include concussion exposure and APOE ε4 genotype. Data are insufficient to show that any intervention enhances recovery or diminishes long-term sequelae postconcussion. Practice recommendations are presented for preparticipation counseling, management of suspected concussion, and management of diagnosed concussion. PMID:23508730

  12. Pregnancy and Healthy Weight

    MedlinePlus

    ... Division (HMD) of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine released updated guidelines for weight gain ... Division (HMD) of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine: Weight Gain During Pregnancy: Reexamining the ...

  13. Butterbur

    MedlinePlus

    ... Audio) NCCIH Clinical Digest A monthly newsletter with evidence-based information on complementary and integrative practices and a ... 495. Holland S, Silberstein SD, Freitag F, et al. Evidence-based guideline update: NSAIDs and other complementary treatments for ...

  14. The impact of the rising colorectal cancer incidence in young adults on the optimal age to start screening: Microsimulation analysis I to inform the American Cancer Society colorectal cancer screening guideline.

    PubMed

    Peterse, Elisabeth F P; Meester, Reinier G S; Siegel, Rebecca L; Chen, Jennifer C; Dwyer, Andrea; Ahnen, Dennis J; Smith, Robert A; Zauber, Ann G; Lansdorp-Vogelaar, Iris

    2018-05-30

    In 2016, the Microsimulation Screening Analysis-Colon (MISCAN-Colon) model was used to inform the US Preventive Services Task Force colorectal cancer (CRC) screening guidelines. In this study, 1 of 2 microsimulation analyses to inform the update of the American Cancer Society CRC screening guideline, the authors re-evaluated the optimal screening strategies in light of the increase in CRC diagnosed in young adults. The authors adjusted the MISCAN-Colon model to reflect the higher CRC incidence in young adults, who were assumed to carry forward escalated disease risk as they age. Life-years gained (LYG; benefit), the number of colonoscopies (COL; burden) and the ratios of incremental burden to benefit (efficiency ratio [ER] = ΔCOL/ΔLYG) were projected for different screening strategies. Strategies differed with respect to test modality, ages to start (40 years, 45 years, and 50 years) and ages to stop (75 years, 80 years, and 85 years) screening, and screening intervals (depending on screening modality). The authors then determined the model-recommended strategies in a similar way as was done for the US Preventive Services Task Force, using ER thresholds in accordance with the previously accepted ER of 39. Because of the higher CRC incidence, model-predicted LYG from screening increased compared with the previous analyses. Consequently, the balance of burden to benefit of screening improved and now 10-yearly colonoscopy screening starting at age 45 years resulted in an ER of 32. Other recommended strategies included fecal immunochemical testing annually, flexible sigmoidoscopy screening every 5 years, and computed tomographic colonography every 5 years. This decision-analysis suggests that in light of the increase in CRC incidence among young adults, screening may be offered earlier than has previously been recommended. Cancer 2018. © 2018 The Authors. Cancer published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of American Cancer Society. © 2018 The Authors. Cancer published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of American Cancer Society.

  15. Nutritional status, nutrient intake and use of enzyme supplements in paediatric patients with Cystic Fibrosis; a European multicentre study with reference to current guidelines.

    PubMed

    Calvo-Lerma, Joaquim; Hulst, Jessie M; Asseiceira, Inês; Claes, Ine; Garriga, Maria; Colombo, Carla; Fornés, Victoria; Woodcock, Sandra; Martins, Tiago; Boon, Mieke; Ruperto, Mar; Walet, Sylvia; Speziali, Chiara; Witters, Peter; Masip, Etna; Barreto, Celeste; de Boeck, Kris; Ribes-Koninckx, Carmen

    2017-07-01

    The New European guidelines have established the most updated recommendations on nutrition and pancreatic enzyme replacement therapy (PERT) in CF. In the context of MyCyFAPP project - a European study in children with CF aimed at developing specific tools for improvement of self-management - the objective of the current study was to assess nutritional status, daily energy and macronutrient intake, and PERT dosing with reference to these new guidelines. Cross sectional study in paediatric patients with CF from 6 European centres. SD-scores for weight-for-age (WFA), height-for-age (HFA) and body mass index-for-age (BMI) were obtained. Through a specific 4-day food and enzyme-dose record, energy and macronutrients intake and PERT-use (LU/g lipids) were automatically calculated by the MyCyFAPP system. Comparisons were made using linear regression models. The lowest quartiles for BMI and HFA were between 0 and -1SD in all the centres with no significant differences, and 33.5% of the patients had a SD-score <0 for all three parameters. The minimum energy intake recommendation was not reached by 40% of the children and mean nutrients intake values were 14%, 51% and 34% of the total energy for protein, carbohydrates and lipids respectively. When assessed per centre, reported PERT doses were in the recommended range in only 13.8% to 46.6% of the patients; from 5.6% up to 82.7% of children were above the recommended doses and 3.3% to 75% were below. Among the 6 centres, a large variability and inconsistency with new guidelines on nutrition and PERT-use was found. Our findings document the lack of a general criterion to adjust PERT and suggest the potential benefit of educational and self-managerial tools to ensure adherence to therapies, both for clinical staff and families. They will be taken into account when developing these new tools during the next stages of MyCyFAPP Project. Copyright © 2017 European Cystic Fibrosis Society. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  16. The impact of age at diagnosis on socioeconomic inequalities in adult cancer survival in England.

    PubMed

    Nur, Ula; Lyratzopoulos, Georgios; Rachet, Bernard; Coleman, Michel P

    2015-08-01

    Understanding the age at which persistent socioeconomic inequalities in cancer survival become apparent may help motivate and support targeting of cancer site-specific interventions, and tailoring guidelines to patients at higher risk. We analysed data on more than 40,000 patients diagnosed in England with one of three common cancers in men and women, breast, colon and lung, 2001-2005 with follow-up to the end of 2011. We estimated net survival for each of the five deprivation categories (affluent, 2, 3, 4, deprived), cancer site, sex and age group (15-44, 45-54, 55-64, and 65-74 and 75-99 years). The magnitude and pattern of the age specific socioeconomic inequalities in survival was different for breast, colon and lung. For breast cancer the deprivation gap in 1-year survival widened with increasing age at diagnosis, whereas the opposite was true for lung cancer, with colon cancer having an intermediate pattern. The 'deprivation gap' in 1-year breast cancer survival widened steadily from -0.8% for women diagnosed at 15-44 years to -4.8% for women diagnosed at 75-99 years, and was the widest for women diagnosed at 65-74 years for 5- and 10-year survival. For colon cancer in men, the gap was widest in patients diagnosed aged 55-64 for 1-, 5- and 10-year survival. For lung cancer, the 'deprivation gap' in survival in patients diagnoses aged 15-44 years was more than 10% for 1-year survival in men and for 1- and 5-year survival in women. Our findings suggest that reduction of socioeconomic inequalities in survival will require updating of current guidelines to ensure the availability of optimal treatment and appropriate management of lung cancer patients in all age groups and older patients in deprived groups with breast or colon cancer. Copyright © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

  17. The HUPO Brain Proteome project wish list--summary of the 9(th) HUPO BPP Workshop 9-10 January 2008, Barbados.

    PubMed

    Hamacher, Michael; Eisenacher, Martin; Tribl, Florian; Stephan, Christian; Marcus, Katrin; Hardt, Tanja; Wiltfang, Jens; Martens, Lennart; Desiderio, Dominic; Gutstein, Howard; Park, Young Mok; Meyer, Helmut E

    2008-06-01

    The Human Brain Proteome Project (HUPO BPP) aims at advancing knowledge and the understanding of neurodiseases and aging with the purpose of identifying prognostic and diagnostic biomarkers, as well as to push new diagnostic approaches and medications. The participating groups meet in semi-annual workshops to discuss the progress, as well as the needs, within the field of proteomics. The 9(th) HUPO BPP workshop took place in Barbados from 9-10 January, 2008. Discussing the future HUPO BPP Roadmap, the attendees drafted the so called HUPO BPP wish list containing timelines, suggestions and missions. This wish list will be updated regularly and will serve as a guideline for the next phase.

  18. Evidence-based guidelines for use of probiotics in preterm neonates.

    PubMed

    Deshpande, Girish C; Rao, Shripada C; Keil, Anthony D; Patole, Sanjay K

    2011-08-02

    Current evidence indicates that probiotic supplementation significantly reduces all-cause mortality and definite necrotising enterocolitis without significant adverse effects in preterm neonates. As the debate about the pros and cons of routine probiotic supplementation continues, many institutions are satisfied with the current evidence and wish to use probiotics routinely. Because of the lack of detail on many practical aspects of probiotic supplementation, clinician-friendly guidelines are urgently needed to optimise use of probiotics in preterm neonates. To develop evidence-based guidelines for probiotic supplementation in preterm neonates. To develop core guidelines on use of probiotics, including strain selection, dose and duration of supplementation, we primarily used the data from our recent updated systematic review of randomised controlled trials. For equally important issues including strain identification, monitoring for adverse effects, product format, storage and transport, and regulatory hurdles, a comprehensive literature search, covering the period 1966-2010 without restriction on the study design, was conducted, using the databases PubMed and EMBASE, and the proceedings of scientific conferences; these data were used in our updated systematic review. In this review, we present guidelines, including level of evidence, for the practical aspects (for example, strain selection, dose, duration, clinical and laboratory surveillance) of probiotic supplementation, and for dealing with non-clinical but important issues (for example, regulatory requirements, product format). Evidence was inadequate in some areas, and these should be a target for further research. We hope that these evidence-based guidelines will help to optimise the use of probiotics in preterm neonates. Continued research is essential to provide answers to the current gaps in knowledge about probiotics.

  19. WHO consultation on clinical evaluation of vaccines, 17-18 July 2014, WHO Headquarters, Geneva, Switzerland.

    PubMed

    Knezevic, Ivana; Moorthy, Vasee; Sheets, Rebecca

    2015-04-21

    A World Health Organization (WHO) consultation on guidelines for National Regulatory Authorities (NRAs) and vaccine manufacturers on clinical evaluation of vaccines was held from 17 to 18 July 2014, to review key scientific challenges that regulators have been facing since the establishment of the WHO Guidelines on Clinical Evaluation of Vaccines. The guidelines, adopted by the WHO Expert Committee on Biological Standardization (ECBS) in 2001, have served as the basis for setting or updating national requirements for the evaluation and licensing of a broad range of vaccines as well as for WHO vaccine prequalification. Regulators from Australia, Brazil, China, Canada, Germany, India, Republic of Korea, South Africa, United States of America and the United Kingdom were represented. The International Federation for Pharmaceutical Manufacturers' Association (IFPMA) and the Developing Country Vaccine Manufacturers' Network (DCVMN) provided industry representation. The consultation concluded that the guidelines should be revised to address issues that were raised in the context of vaccines that were the subject of clinical development in the past decade. Although the current guidelines have served well over time, it was recognized that an update would further increase their utility and would help regulators, manufacturers, vaccine developers and academia to respond to the challenging questions regarding the safety, immunogenicity, efficacy and effectiveness of vaccines intended for global use. A summary of the main outcomes of the consultation and proposals for the next steps regarding the guidelines and beyond are provided in this report. Copyright © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

  20. Saudi Oncology Society and Saudi Urology Association combined clinical management guidelines for prostate cancer 2017.

    PubMed

    Aljubran, Ali; Abusamra, Ashraf; Alkhateeb, Sultan; Alotaibi, Mohammed; Rabah, Danny; Bazarbashi, Shouki; Alkushi, Hussain; Al-Mansour, Mubarak; Alharbi, Hulayel; Eltijani, Amin; Alghamdi, Abdullah; Alsharm, Abdullah; Ahmad, Imran; Murshid, Esam

    2018-01-01

    This is an update to the previously published Saudi guidelines for the evaluation and medical and surgical management of patients diagnosed with prostate cancer. Prostate cancer is categorized according to the stage of the disease using the tumor node metastasis staging system 7 th edition. The guidelines are presented with supporting evidence levels based on a comprehensive literature review, several internationally recognized guidelines, and the collective expertise of the guidelines committee members (authors) who were selected by the Saudi Oncology Society and Saudi Urological Association. Local factors, such as availability, logistic feasibility, and familiarity of various treatment modalities, have been taken into consideration. These guidelines should serve as a roadmap for the urologists, oncologists, general physicians, support groups, and health-care policymakers in the management of patients diagnosed with adenocarcinoma of the prostate.

  1. NEPP Update of Independent Single Event Upset Field Programmable Gate Array Testing

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Berg, Melanie; Label, Kenneth; Campola, Michael; Pellish, Jonathan

    2017-01-01

    This presentation provides a NASA Electronic Parts and Packaging (NEPP) Program update of independent Single Event Upset (SEU) Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) testing including FPGA test guidelines, Microsemi RTG4 heavy-ion results, Xilinx Kintex-UltraScale heavy-ion results, Xilinx UltraScale+ single event effect (SEE) test plans, development of a new methodology for characterizing SEU system response, and NEPP involvement with FPGA security and trust.

  2. Development of Medical Technology for Contingency Response to Marrow Toxic Agents

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2016-10-07

    Guidelines • Collaborated with REMM.nlm.gov on an update of acute radiation syndrome treatment guidelines • Conducted hospital readiness site assessments... Radiation Training, sending a physician to the REAC/TS training, conducting an Acute Radiation Syndrome Medical Grand rounds session, and having a...Information System ARD Antigen Recognition Domain ARRA The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 ARS Acute Radiation Syndrome (also known

  3. Haematopoietic SCT in severe autoimmune diseases: updated guidelines of the European Group for Blood and Marrow Transplantation

    PubMed Central

    Snowden, J A; Saccardi, R; Allez, M; Ardizzone, S; Arnold, R; Cervera, R; Denton, C; Hawkey, C; Labopin, M; Mancardi, G; Martin, R; Moore, J J; Passweg, J; Peters, C; Rabusin, M; Rovira, M; van Laar, J M; Farge, D

    2012-01-01

    In 1997, the first consensus guidelines for haematopoietic SCT (HSCT) in autoimmune diseases (ADs) were published, while an international coordinated clinical programme was launched. These guidelines provided broad principles for the field over the following decade and were accompanied by comprehensive data collection in the European Group for Blood and Marrow Transplantation (EBMT) AD Registry. Subsequently, retrospective analyses and prospective phase I/II studies generated evidence to support the feasibility, safety and efficacy of HSCT in several types of severe, treatment-resistant ADs, which became the basis for larger-scale phase II and III studies. In parallel, there has also been an era of immense progress in biological therapy in ADs. The aim of this document is to provide revised and updated guidelines for both the current application and future development of HSCT in ADs in relation to the benefits, risks and health economic considerations of other modern treatments. Patient safety considerations are central to guidance on patient selection and HSCT procedural aspects within appropriately experienced and Joint Accreditation Committee of International Society for Cellular Therapy and EBMT accredited centres. A need for prospective interventional and non-interventional studies, where feasible, along with systematic data reporting, in accordance with EBMT policies and procedures, is emphasized. PMID:22002489

  4. Prevention of gastrointestinal side-effects in paediatric oncology: what are the guidelines?

    PubMed

    Cheng, Karis K F

    2017-06-01

    Gastrointestinal side-effects, particularly with regard to alimentary tract mucositis and chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV), continue to be frequent and debilitating symptomatic conditions among children and adolescents receiving cytotoxic cancer therapy. Further avenues of progress for mucositis and CINV prevention in paediatric oncology setting are warranted. The current article reviews the major guidelines and literature published in 2016 pertaining to the prevention of mucositis and CINV. Considerable professional organizational efforts have been made to develop consensus-based or evidence-based guidelines that periodically update to define basic standards of mucositis and CINV prevention. There are a few published works in 2016 that may contribute to the emerging evidence on prevention of mucositis and CINV in the paediatric setting for future guideline updates. The concomitant use of 5-HT3 receptor antagonist and dexamethasone are effective to prevent acute and delayed CINV in children who are to receive highly or moderately emetogenic chemotherapy. Optimal control of acute and delayed CINV can prevent anticipatory CINV. Oral care protocols would be beneficial to prevent mucositis in children across all cancer treatment modalities. Cryotherapy or low-level light therapy may be applied to cooperative children undergoing chemotherapy or haematological stem cell transplant conditioning regimens with a high rate of mucositis.

  5. Treatment of HIV infection: Swedish recommendations 2009.

    PubMed

    Josephson, Filip; Albert, Jan; Flamholc, Leo; Gisslén, Magnus; Karlström, Olof; Moberg, Lars; Navér, Lars; Svedhem, Veronica; Svennerholm, Bo; Sönnerborg, Anders

    2009-01-01

    On 4 previous occasions, in 2002, 2003, 2005 and 2007, the Swedish Medical Products Agency (Läkemedelsverket) and the Swedish Reference Group for Antiviral Therapy (RAV) have jointly published recommendations for the treatment of HIV infection. In November 2008, an expert group under the guidance of RAV once more revised the guidelines, of which this is a translation into English. The most important updates in the present guidelines include the following: (a) treatment initiation is now recommended at a CD4 cell count of approximately 350/microl; (b) new recommendations for first-line therapy: abacavir/lamivudine or tenofovir/emtricitabine in combination with efavirenz or a boosted protease inhibitor (PI/r); (c) an increased focus on reducing the use of antiretroviral drugs that may cause lipoatrophy; (d) an emphasis on quality assurance of HIV care through the use of InfCare HIV; (e) considerably altered recommendations for the initiation of antiretroviral therapy in children. All infants (<1 y) should start antiretroviral therapy, regardless of immune status. Also, absolute CD4+ cell counts, rather than percentage, may be used to guide treatment initiation in children above the age of 5 y.

  6. Canadian Cardiovascular Society guidelines on the use of cardiac resynchronization therapy: implementation.

    PubMed

    Parkash, Ratika; Philippon, François; Shanks, Miriam; Thibault, Bernard; Cox, Jafna; Low, Aaron; Essebag, Vidal; Bashir, Jamil; Moe, Gordon; Birnie, David H; Larose, Eric; Yee, Raymond; Swiggum, Elizabeth; Kaul, Padma; Redfearn, Damian; Tang, Anthony S; Exner, Derek V

    2013-11-01

    Recent studies have provided the impetus to update the recommendations for cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT). This article provides guidance on the implementation of CRT and is intended to serve as a framework for the implementation of CRT within the Canadian health care system and beyond. These guidelines were developed through a critical evaluation of the existing literature, and expert consensus. The panel unanimously adopted each recommendation. The 9 recommendations relate to patient selection in the presence of comorbidities, delivery and optimization of CRT, and resources required to deliver this therapy. The strength of evidence was weighed, taking full consideration of any risk of bias, and any imprecision, inconsistency, and indirectness of the available data. The strength of each recommendation and the quality of evidence were adjudicated. Trade-offs between desirable and undesirable consequences of alternative management strategies were considered, as were values, preferences, and resource availability. These guidelines were externally reviewed by experts, modified based on those reviews, and will be updated as new knowledge is acquired. Copyright © 2013 Canadian Cardiovascular Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  7. [A new update of the SIMLII Guidelines on carcinogens].

    PubMed

    Pira, Enrico; Giachino, Gian Mario; Discalzi, Gianluigi

    2011-01-01

    The second update of the Italian Society of Occupational Medicine and Industrial Hygiene (SIMLII) guidelines on Cancerogens and Mutagens, first published in 2003 and reviewed in 2007, is presented. The general setting of the guidelines remaines unmodified. In this new release some important developments on regulatory system, risk assessment, and health surveillance are discussed. The relevant evolution of the regulatory rules is illustrated in detail, with particular reference to the recent implementation in European Union and in Italy of the Regulation (EC) 1272/2008 on Classification, Labelling and Packaging of substances and mixtures. The recent tendencies of the European Scientific Committee on Occupational Exposure Limits in risk assessment, are presented. Some remarks on the use of new biomarkers in health surveillance, with reference to lung and bladder cancer, are discussed. The more recent results on the effectiveness of the use of LDTC scan on screening in asymptomatic persons at high risk for lung cancer, are presented. The use of this imaging technique in health surveillance of special group of workers (i.e., subjects with relevant past asbestos exposure and smokers) could be adopted.

  8. Role of ivabradine and heart rate lowering in chronic heart failure: guideline update.

    PubMed

    Chow, Sheryl L; Page, Robert Lee; Depre, Christophe

    2018-06-14

    This review summarizes the current management of heart failure (HF) in patients with reduced ejection fraction and the potential role of heart rate lowering agents in select populations, as recommended in the updated guidelines. Areas covered: PubMed was searched for studies that evaluated the role of heart rate lowering or ivabradine in HF management. Expert commentary: Targeting heart rate may offer benefit when added to renin-angiotensin aldosterone antagonists, and beta-blockers. Ivabradine is a heart rate lowering agent that acts on the funny current (I f ) in the sinoatrial node, thereby reducing heart rate without directly affecting cardiac contraction and relaxation. Clinical data from a phase 3 trial demonstrated that ivabradine reduced the composite endpoint of cardiovascular death or hospital admission for worsening systolic HF, while maintaining an acceptable safety profile in patients receiving standard of care therapy. These data, in addition to more recently published guidelines, suggest ivabradine as a promising new treatment option for lowering heart rate after optimizing standard therapy in select patients with chronic HF.

  9. Asia-Pacific clinical practice guidelines on the management of hepatocellular carcinoma: a 2017 update.

    PubMed

    Omata, Masao; Cheng, Ann-Lii; Kokudo, Norihiro; Kudo, Masatoshi; Lee, Jeong Min; Jia, Jidong; Tateishi, Ryosuke; Han, Kwang-Hyub; Chawla, Yoghesh K; Shiina, Shuichiro; Jafri, Wasim; Payawal, Diana Alcantara; Ohki, Takamasa; Ogasawara, Sadahisa; Chen, Pei-Jer; Lesmana, Cosmas Rinaldi A; Lesmana, Laurentius A; Gani, Rino A; Obi, Shuntaro; Dokmeci, A Kadir; Sarin, Shiv Kumar

    2017-07-01

    There is great geographical variation in the distribution of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), with the majority of all cases worldwide found in the Asia-Pacific region, where HCC is one of the leading public health problems. Since the "Toward Revision of the Asian Pacific Association for the Study of the Liver (APASL) HCC Guidelines" meeting held at the 25th annual conference of the APASL in Tokyo, the newest guidelines for the treatment of HCC published by the APASL has been discussed. This latest guidelines recommend evidence-based management of HCC and are considered suitable for universal use in the Asia-Pacific region, which has a diversity of medical environments.

  10. US science academy expands misconduct definition

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gwynne, Peter

    2017-06-01

    The US National Academy of Sciences (NAS) has updated its misconduct guidelines, reclassifying the misleading use of statistics, failure to retain data and incorrect authorship of papers as “detrimental” rather than merely “questionable”.

  11. Rape prevention

    MedlinePlus

    Date rape - prevention; Sexual assault - prevention ... Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website. Sexual assault and abuse and STDs. In: 2015 sexually transmitted diseases treatment guidelines 2015. www.cdc.gov/std/tg2015/sexual-assault.htm . Updated June 4, ...

  12. For Developers

    MedlinePlus

    ... health IT providers to link patient portals and electronic health record (EHR) systems to content from MedlinePlus.gov. MedlinePlus ... updates Subscribe to RSS Follow us Disclaimers Copyright Privacy Accessibility Quality Guidelines Viewers & Players MedlinePlus Connect for ...

  13. [Consensus Statement by GeSIDA/National AIDS Plan Secretariat on antiretroviral treatment in adults infected by the human immunodeficiency virus (Updated January 2013)].

    PubMed

    2013-11-01

    This consensus document is an update of combined antiretroviral therapy (cART) guidelines for HIV-1 infected adult patients. To formulate these recommendations a panel composed of members of the GeSIDA/National AIDS Plan Secretariat (Grupo de Estudio de Sida and the Secretaría del Plan Nacional sobre el Sida) reviewed the efficacy and safety advances in clinical trials, cohort and pharmacokinetic studies published in medical journals (PubMed and Embase) or presented in medical scientific meetings. The strength of the recommendations and the evidence which support them are based on a modification of the criteria of Infectious Diseases Society of America. cART is recommended in patients with symptoms of HIV infection, in pregnant women, in serodiscordant couples with high risk of transmission, in hepatitisB co-infection requiring treatment, and in HIV nephropathy. cART is recommended in asymptomatic patients if CD4 is <500cells/μl. If CD4 are >500cells/μl cART should be considered in the case of chronic hepatitisC, cirrhosis, high cardiovascular risk, plasma viral load >100.000 copies/ml, proportion of CD4 cells <14%, neurocognitive deficits, and in people aged >55years. The objective of cART is to achieve an undetectable viral load. The first cART should include 2 reverse transcriptase inhibitors (RTI) nucleoside analogs and a third drug (a non-analog RTI, a ritonavir boosted protease inhibitor, or an integrase inhibitor). The panel has consensually selected some drug combinations, for the first cART and specific criteria for cART in acute HIV infection, in tuberculosis and other HIV related opportunistic infections, for the women and in pregnancy, in hepatitisB or C co-infection, in HIV-2 infection, and in post-exposure prophylaxis. These new guidelines update previous recommendations related to first cART (when to begin and what drugs should be used), how to monitor, and what to do in case of viral failure or adverse drug reactions. cART specific criteria in comorbid patients and special situations are similarly updated. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier España, S.L. All rights reserved.

  14. Major publications in the critical care pharmacotherapy literature: February 2012 through February 2013.

    PubMed

    Turck, Charles J; Frazee, Erin; Kram, Bridgette; Daley, Mitchell J; Day, Sarah A; Horner, Deanna; Lesch, Christine; Mercer, Jessica M; Plewa, Angela M; Herout, Peter

    2014-01-01

    Recent impactful additions to the professional literature on the role of pharmacotherapy in treating the critically ill are summarized. An unusually large number of updated practice guidelines and other publications with broad critical care pharmacotherapy ramifications appeared in the primary biomedical literature during the designated review period (February 2012-February 2013). Hundreds of relevant articles were evaluated by the Critical Care Pharmacotherapy Literature Update group (CCPLU), a national group of pharmacists who routinely monitor 25 peer-reviewed journals for emerging evidence that pertains to rational medication use in the intensive care unit (ICU) setting. From among those articles, 64 were summarized for dissemination to CCPLU members; the 8 publications deemed to have the greatest utility for critical care practitioners, as determined by CCPLU through a voting process, were selected for inclusion in this review, with preference given to evidence meeting high standards of methodological quality. The summaries presented here include (1) important new recommendations on management of pain, agitation, and delirium in critically ill patients, (2) a comprehensive update of a practice guideline issued in 2008 by the Surviving Sepsis Campaign, (3) novel strategies for the prevention and/or treatment of hyperglycemia in critical care, and (4) reports on clinical trials of promising alternative methods of sedation for use in weaning patients from mechanical ventilation. This review provides synopses of practice guidelines and other recent additions to the professional literature pertaining to rational medication use in the ICU practice setting.

  15. Advances in the Diagnosis and Management of Cystic Fibrosis in the Genomic Era.

    PubMed

    Wiencek, Joesph R; Lo, Stanley F

    2018-06-01

    Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a complex autosomal recessive disease that continues to present unique diagnostic challenges. Because CF was first described in 1938, there has been a substantial growth of genetic and phenotypic information about the disorder. During the past few years, as more evidence has become available, a consortium of international experts determined that the 2008 guidelines from the CF Foundation needed to be reviewed and updated. The goal of this review is to highlight the latest advances in CF multidisciplinary care, together with the recent updates to the 2017 CF Foundation diagnostic guidelines. Data from newborn screening programs, patient registries, clinical databases, and functional research have led to a better understanding of the CF transmembrane conductance regulator ( CFTR ) gene. Recent consensus guidelines have provided recommendations for clinicians and laboratorians to better assist with interpretation of disease status and related CF mutations. The highly recommended Clinical and Functional Translation of CFTR project should be the first resource in the evaluation of disease severity for CF mutations. Screen-positive newborns and patients with high clinical suspicion for CF are always recommended to undergo confirmatory sweat chloride testing with interpretations based on updated reference intervals. Every patient diagnosed with CF should receive genotyping, as novel molecular therapies are becoming standard of practice. The future of CF management must consider healthcare system disparities as CF transitions from a historically childhood disease to a predominantly adult epidemic. © 2018 American Association for Clinical Chemistry.

  16. Update on perioperative care of the cardiac patient for noncardiac surgery.

    PubMed

    Ghadimi, Kamrouz; Thompson, Annemarie

    2015-06-01

    The current review will address key topics and recommendations of the recent 2014 update of the American College of Cardiology and American Heart Association clinical practice guideline for the perioperative cardiovascular evaluation and management of patients undergoing noncardiac surgery. The completely rewritten guideline provides a stepwise approach for the identification and management of patients at highest risk for major adverse cardiac events and discusses new or updated recommendations. For example, β-blockers should be continued perioperatively but treatment should not be initiated within 24 h of noncardiac surgery. Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors should be continued, but if held, may be restarted as soon as feasible. Routine aspirin therapy is not recommended without previous coronary stent implantation or risk assessment for myocardial ischemia. Elective noncardiac surgery should not be performed within 30 days of bare metal stent or 12 months of drug-eluting stent implantation because of in-stent thrombosis as well as bleeding risk from dual antiplatelet therapy during surgery. Noncardiac surgery may be considered, however, in patients on antiplatelet agents 180 days after drug-eluting stent placement if risk of surgical delay exceeds risk of stent thrombosis from cessation of antiplatelet therapy. In conclusion, this review will discuss the important topics from the 2014 American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association guideline in order to provide the perioperative physician with the most recent evidence necessary to minimize major adverse cardiac events in patients undergoing noncardiac surgery.

  17. COMP report: CPQR technical quality control guidelines for low-dose-rate permanent seed brachytherapy.

    PubMed

    Beaulieu, Luc; Radford, Dee-Ann; Eduardo Villarreal-Barajas, J

    2018-03-14

    The Canadian Organization of Medical Physicists (COMP), in close partnership with the Canadian Partnership for Quality Radiotherapy (CPQR) has developed a series of Technical Quality Control (TQC) guidelines for radiation treatment equipment. These guidelines outline the performance objectives that equipment should meet in order to ensure an acceptable level of radiation treatment quality. The TQC guidelines have been rigorously reviewed and field tested in a variety of Canadian radiation treatment facilities. The development process enables rapid review and update to keep the guidelines current with changes in technology. This article contains detailed performance objectives and safety criteria for low-dose-rate (LDR) permanent seed brachytherapy. © 2018 The Authors. Journal of Applied Clinical Medical Physics published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of American Association of Physicists in Medicine.

  18. [General treatment principles, coordination of care and patient education in fibromyalgia syndrome : Updated guidelines 2017 and overview of systematic review articles].

    PubMed

    Petzke, F; Brückle, W; Eidmann, U; Heldmann, P; Köllner, V; Kühn, T; Kühn-Becker, H; Strunk-Richter, M; Schiltenwolf, M; Settan, M; von Wachter, M; Weigl, M; Häuser, W

    2017-06-01

    The regular update of the guidelines on fibromyalgia syndrome, AWMF number 145/004, was scheduled for April 2017. The guidelines were developed by 13 scientific societies and 2 patient self-help organizations coordinated by the German Pain Society. Working groups (n =8) with a total of 42 members were formed balanced with respect to gender, medical expertise, position in the medical or scientific hierarchy and potential conflicts of interest. A search of the literature for systematic reviews on randomized, controlled trials on patient education and shared decision-making from December 2010 to May 2016 was performed in the Cochrane library, MEDLINE, PsycINFO and Scopus databases. Levels of evidence were assigned according to the classification system of the Oxford Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine version 2009. The strength of recommendations was achieved by multiple step formalized procedures to reach a consensus. Efficacy, risks, patient preferences, clinical and practical applicability of available therapies were weighed up against each other. The guidelines were reviewed and approved by the board of directors of the societies engaged in the development of the guidelines. The diagnosis of fibromyalgia syndrome should be explicitly communicated to the affected individual. Shared decision-making with the patient on the therapeutic options based on individual preferences of the patient, comorbidities and the success of previous treatment is recommended. A step-wise treatment approach depending on the severity of fibromyalgia syndrome and the response to therapeutic measures is recommended.

  19. Clinical Practice Guideline for the Management of Candidiasis: 2016 Update by the Infectious Diseases Society of America.

    PubMed

    Pappas, Peter G; Kauffman, Carol A; Andes, David R; Clancy, Cornelius J; Marr, Kieren A; Ostrosky-Zeichner, Luis; Reboli, Annette C; Schuster, Mindy G; Vazquez, Jose A; Walsh, Thomas J; Zaoutis, Theoklis E; Sobel, Jack D

    2016-02-15

    It is important to realize that guidelines cannot always account for individual variation among patients. They are not intended to supplant physician judgment with respect to particular patients or special clinical situations. IDSA considers adherence to these guidelines to be voluntary, with the ultimate determination regarding their application to be made by the physician in the light of each patient's individual circumstances. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press for the Infectious Diseases Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, e-mail journals.permissions@oup.com.

  20. Developing guidelines for return to play: consensus and evidence-based approaches.

    PubMed

    Echemendia, Ruben J; Giza, Christopher C; Kutcher, Jeffrey S

    2015-01-01

    Sports-related concussions are commonplace at all levels of play and across all age groups. The dynamic, evolving nature of this injury coupled with a lack of objective biomarkers creates a challenging management issue for the sports medicine team. Athletes who return to play following a concussion are known to be at higher risk for an additional brain injury, which necessitates a careful, informed return to play (RTP) process. The goal of this paper is to outline historical attempts at developing RTP guidelines and trace their evolution over time, culminating in a discussion of the process and outcomes of the most recent consensus statements/guidelines published by the international Concussion In Sport Group (CISG), the American Academy of Neurology (AAN), the National Athletic Trainers' Association, and the 2013 Team Physician Consensus Statement Update. An evaluation of the pros and cons of these guidelines is presented along with suggestions for future directions. In addition, the Institute of Medicine recently conducted a comprehensive report outlining the current state of evidence regarding youth concussions, which provides specific recommendations for future research. The different methodologies utilized in the development of consensus statements have distinct advantages and disadvantages, and both approaches add value to the everyday management of sports concussions. Importantly, the overall approach for management of sports concussion is remarkably similar using either consensus-based or formal evidence-based methods, which adds confidence to the current guidelines and allows practitioners to focus on accepted standards of clinical care. Moving forward, careful study designs need to be utilized to avoid bias in selection of research subjects, collection of data, and interpretation of results. Although useful, clinicians must venture beyond consensus statements to examine reviews of the literature that are published in much greater frequency than consensus statements.

  1. Breast cancer follow-up and management after primary treatment: American Society of Clinical Oncology clinical practice guideline update.

    PubMed

    Khatcheressian, James L; Hurley, Patricia; Bantug, Elissa; Esserman, Laura J; Grunfeld, Eva; Halberg, Francine; Hantel, Alexander; Henry, N Lynn; Muss, Hyman B; Smith, Thomas J; Vogel, Victor G; Wolff, Antonio C; Somerfield, Mark R; Davidson, Nancy E

    2013-03-01

    To provide recommendations on the follow-up and management of patients with breast cancer who have completed primary therapy with curative intent. To update the 2006 guideline of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), a systematic review of the literature published from March 2006 through March 2012 was completed using MEDLINE and the Cochrane Collaboration Library. An Update Committee reviewed the evidence to determine whether the recommendations were in need of updating. There were 14 new publications that met inclusion criteria: nine systematic reviews (three included meta-analyses) and five randomized controlled trials. After its review and analysis of the evidence, the Update Committee concluded that no revisions to the existing ASCO recommendations were warranted. Regular history, physical examination, and mammography are recommended for breast cancer follow-up. Physical examinations should be performed every 3 to 6 months for the first 3 years, every 6 to 12 months for years 4 and 5, and annually thereafter. For women who have undergone breast-conserving surgery, a post-treatment mammogram should be obtained 1 year after the initial mammogram and at least 6 months after completion of radiation therapy. Thereafter, unless otherwise indicated, a yearly mammographic evaluation should be performed. The use of complete blood counts, chemistry panels, bone scans, chest radiographs, liver ultrasounds, pelvic ultrasounds, computed tomography scans, [(18)F]fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography scans, magnetic resonance imaging, and/or tumor markers (carcinoembryonic antigen, CA 15-3, and CA 27.29) is not recommended for routine follow-up in an otherwise asymptomatic patient with no specific findings on clinical examination.

  2. The Texas Medication Algorithm Project antipsychotic algorithm for schizophrenia: 2003 update.

    PubMed

    Miller, Alexander L; Hall, Catherine S; Buchanan, Robert W; Buckley, Peter F; Chiles, John A; Conley, Robert R; Crismon, M Lynn; Ereshefsky, Larry; Essock, Susan M; Finnerty, Molly; Marder, Stephen R; Miller, Del D; McEvoy, Joseph P; Rush, A John; Saeed, Sy A; Schooler, Nina R; Shon, Steven P; Stroup, Scott; Tarin-Godoy, Bernardo

    2004-04-01

    The Texas Medication Algorithm Project (TMAP) has been a public-academic collaboration in which guidelines for medication treatment of schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and major depressive disorder were used in selected public outpatient clinics in Texas. Subsequently, these algorithms were implemented throughout Texas and are being used in other states. Guidelines require updating when significant new evidence emerges; the antipsychotic algorithm for schizophrenia was last updated in 1999. This article reports the recommendations developed in 2002 and 2003 by a group of experts, clinicians, and administrators. A conference in January 2002 began the update process. Before the conference, experts in the pharmacologic treatment of schizophrenia, clinicians, and administrators reviewed literature topics and prepared presentations. Topics included ziprasidone's inclusion in the algorithm, the number of antipsychotics tried before clozapine, and the role of first generation antipsychotics. Data were rated according to Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality criteria. After discussing the presentations, conference attendees arrived at consensus recommendations. Consideration of aripiprazole's inclusion was subsequently handled by electronic communications. The antipsychotic algorithm for schizophrenia was updated to include ziprasidone and aripiprazole among the first-line agents. Relative to the prior algorithm, the number of stages before clozapine was reduced. First generation antipsychotics were included but not as first-line choices. For patients refusing or not responding to clozapine and clozapine augmentation, preference was given to trying monotherapy with another antipsychotic before resorting to antipsychotic combinations. Consensus on algorithm revisions was achieved, but only further well-controlled research will answer many key questions about sequence and type of medication treatments of schizophrenia.

  3. Cervical cancer screening and updated Pap guidelines.

    PubMed

    Warren, Johanna B; Gullett, Heidi; King, Valerie J

    2009-03-01

    Cervical cancer and its dysplasia precursors account for significant morbidity and mortality in women worldwide. Human papillomavirus infection is common, preventable, and now widely accepted as the causative agent with oncogenic potential in the development of cervical cancer. Screening via Papanicolaou testing is critical, and interpretation of test results with knowledge of patient risk factors is imperative. Many evidence-based guidelines for screening, interpretation, and management have been developed and are widely available for use.

  4. New National Blood Pressure Guidelines Are More Rigorous, but OHS Is Here to Help | Poster

    Cancer.gov

    A task force led by physicians from the American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association has released new blood pressure guidelines in order to help doctors and clinicians better treat hypertensive and prehypertensive individuals who may be at risk of heart disease. The update, which comes nearly 15 years after its predecessor, has significantly broadened the definition of hypertension and reclassified other blood pressure categories.

  5. Management of undescended testis may be improved with educational updates and new transferring model.

    PubMed

    Yi, Wei; Sheng-de, Wu; Lian-Ju, Shen; Tao, Lin; Da-Wei, He; Guang-Hui, Wei

    2018-05-24

    To investigate whether management of undescended testis (UDT) may be improved with educational updates and new transferring model among referring providers (RPs). The age of orchidopexies performed in Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University were reviewed. We then proposed educational updates and new transferring model among RPs. The age of orchidopexies performed after our intervention were collected. Data were represented graphically and statistical analysis Chi-square for trend were used. A total of 1543 orchidopexies were performed. The median age of orchidopexy did not matched the target age of 6-12 months in any subsequent year. Survey of the RPs showed that 48.85% of their recommended age was below 12 months. However, only 25.50% of them would directly make a surgical referral to pediatric surgery specifically at this point. After we proposed educational updates, tracking the age of orchidopexy revealed a statistically significant trend downward. The management of undescended testis may be improved with educational updates and new transferring model among primary healthcare practitioners.

  6. The 2017 Focused Update of the Guidelines of the Taiwan Society of Cardiology (TSOC) and the Taiwan Hypertension Society (THS) for the Management of Hypertension.

    PubMed

    Chiang, Chern-En; Wang, Tzung-Dau; Lin, Tsung-Hsien; Yeh, Hung-I; Liu, Ping-Yen; Cheng, Hao-Min; Chao, Ting-Hsing; Chen, Chen-Huan; Shyu, Kou-Gi; Ueng, Kwo-Chang; Chen, Chung-Yin; Chu, Pao-Hsien; Sung, Shih-Hsien; Wang, Kang-Ling; Li, Yi-Heng; Wang, Kuo-Yang; Chiang, Fu-Tien; Lai, Wen-Ter; Chen, Jyh-Hong; Chen, Wen-Jone; Yeh, San-Jou; Chen, Ming-Fong; Lin, Shing-Jong; Lin, Jiunn-Lee

    2017-05-01

    Hypertension (HT) is the most important risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. Over the past 25 years, the number of individuals with hypertension and the estimated associated deaths has increased substantially. There have been great debates in the past few years on the blood pressure (BP) targets. The 2013 European Society of Hypertension and European Society of Cardiology HT guidelines suggested a unified systolic BP target of 140 mmHg for both high-risk and low-risk patients. The 2014 Joint National Committee report further raised the systolic BP targets to 150 mmHg for those aged ≥ 60 years, including patients with stroke or coronary heart disease, and raised the systolic BP target to 140 mmHg for diabetes. Instead, the 2015 Hypertension Guidelines of the Taiwan Society of Cardiology and the Taiwan Hypertension Society suggested more aggressive BP targets of < 130/80 mmHg for patients with diabetes, coronary heart disease, chronic kidney disease with proteinuria, and atrial fibrillation patients on antithrombotic therapy. Based on the main findings from the Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial (SPRINT) and several recent meta-analyses, the HT committee members of the Taiwan Society of Cardiology and the Taiwan Hypertension Society convened and finalized the revised BP targets for management of HT. We suggested a new systolic BP target to < 120 mmHg for patients with coronary heart disease, chronic kidney disease with an eGFR of 20-60 ml/min/1.73 m 2 , and elderly patients aged ≥ 75 years, using unattended automated office BP measurement. When traditional office BP measurement is applied, we suggested BP target of < 140/90 mmHg for elderly patients with an age ≥ 75 years. Other BP targets with traditional office BP measurement remain unchanged. With these more aggressive BP targets, it is foreseeable that the cardiovascular events will decrease substantially in Taiwan.

  7. Guidelines for the Management of Patients With Unruptured Intracranial Aneurysms: A Guideline for Healthcare Professionals From the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association.

    PubMed

    Thompson, B Gregory; Brown, Robert D; Amin-Hanjani, Sepideh; Broderick, Joseph P; Cockroft, Kevin M; Connolly, E Sander; Duckwiler, Gary R; Harris, Catherine C; Howard, Virginia J; Johnston, S Claiborne Clay; Meyers, Philip M; Molyneux, Andrew; Ogilvy, Christopher S; Ringer, Andrew J; Torner, James

    2015-08-01

    The aim of this updated statement is to provide comprehensive and evidence-based recommendations for management of patients with unruptured intracranial aneurysms. Writing group members used systematic literature reviews from January 1977 up to June 2014. They also reviewed contemporary published evidence-based guidelines, personal files, and published expert opinion to summarize existing evidence, indicate gaps in current knowledge, and when appropriate, formulated recommendations using standard American Heart Association criteria. The guideline underwent extensive peer review, including review by the Stroke Council Leadership and Stroke Scientific Statement Oversight Committees, before consideration and approval by the American Heart Association Science Advisory and Coordinating Committee. Evidence-based guidelines are presented for the care of patients presenting with unruptured intracranial aneurysms. The guidelines address presentation, natural history, epidemiology, risk factors, screening, diagnosis, imaging and outcomes from surgical and endovascular treatment. © 2015 American Heart Association, Inc.

  8. Saudi Oncology Society and Saudi Urology Association combined clinical management guidelines for urothelial cell carcinoma of the urinary bladder 2017.

    PubMed

    Alharbi, Hulayel; Alkhateeb, Sultan; Murshid, Esam; Alotaibi, Mohammed; Abusamra, Ashraf; Rabah, Danny; Almansour, Mubarak; Alghamdi, Abdullah; Aljubran, Ali; Eltigani, Amin; Alkushi, Hussein; Ahmed, Imran; Alsharm, Abdullah; Bazarbashi, Shouki

    2018-01-01

    This is an update to the previously published Saudi guidelines for the evaluation and medical/surgical management of patients diagnosed with urothelial cell carcinoma of the urinary bladder. It is categorized according to the stage of the disease using the tumor node metastasis staging system, 7 th edition. The guidelines are presented with their accompanying supporting evidence level, which is based on comprehensive literature review, several internationally recognized guidelines, and the collective expertise of the guidelines committee members (authors) who were selected by the Saudi Oncology Society and Saudi Urological Association. Considerations to the local availability of drugs, technology, and expertise have been regarded. These guidelines should serve as a roadmap for the urologists, oncologists, general physicians, support groups, and health-care policymakers in the management of patients diagnosed with urothelial cell carcinoma of the urinary bladder.

  9. Load ratings for standard bridges : final report, October 2008.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2008-10-01

    A load rating states the load in tons which a vehicle can impose on a bridge. Changes in guidelines, standards, and customary uses of bridges require analyses of bridges to be updated and reevaluated.

  10. Linking to MedlinePlus

    MedlinePlus

    ... want to link patients or healthcare providers from electronic health record (EHR) systems to relevant MedlinePlus information, use MedlinePlus ... updates Subscribe to RSS Follow us Disclaimers Copyright Privacy Accessibility Quality Guidelines Viewers & Players MedlinePlus Connect for ...

  11. Medicaid Prior Authorization Policies for Medication Treatment of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder in Young Children, United States, 2015.

    PubMed

    Hulkower, Rachel L; Kelley, Meghan; Cloud, Lindsay K; Visser, Susanna N

    In 2011, the American Academy of Pediatrics updated its guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) to recommend that clinicians refer parents of preschoolers (aged 4-5) for training in behavior therapy and subsequently treat with medication if behavior therapy fails to sufficiently improve functioning. Data available from just before the release of the guidelines suggest that fewer than half of preschoolers with ADHD received behavior therapy and about half received medication. About half of those who received medication also received behavior therapy. Prior authorization policies for ADHD medication may guide physicians toward recommended behavior therapy. Characterizing existing prior authorization policies is an important step toward evaluating the impact of these policies on treatment patterns. We inventoried existing prior authorization policies and characterized policy components to inform future evaluation efforts. A 50-state legal assessment characterized ADHD prior authorization policies in state Medicaid programs. We designed a database to capture data on policy characteristics and authorization criteria, including data on age restrictions and fail-first behavior therapy requirements. In 2015, 27 states had Medicaid policies that prevented approval of pediatric ADHD medication payment without additional provider involvement. Seven states required that prescribers indicate whether nonmedication treatments were considered before Medicaid payment for ADHD medication could be approved. Medicaid policies on ADHD medication treatment are diverse; some policies are tied to the diagnosis and treatment guidelines of the American Academy of Pediatrics. Evaluations are needed to determine if certain policy interventions guide families toward the use of behavior therapy as the first-line ADHD treatment for young children.

  12. Developing a synthetic national population to investigate the impact of different cardiovascular disease risk management strategies: A derivation and validation study

    PubMed Central

    Jackson, Rod

    2017-01-01

    Background Many national cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factor management guidelines now recommend that drug treatment decisions should be informed primarily by patients’ multi-variable predicted risk of CVD, rather than on the basis of single risk factor thresholds. To investigate the potential impact of treatment guidelines based on CVD risk thresholds at a national level requires individual level data representing the multi-variable CVD risk factor profiles for a country’s total adult population. As these data are seldom, if ever, available, we aimed to create a synthetic population, representing the joint CVD risk factor distributions of the adult New Zealand population. Methods and results A synthetic population of 2,451,278 individuals, representing the actual age, gender, ethnicity and social deprivation composition of people aged 30–84 years who completed the 2013 New Zealand census was generated using Monte Carlo sampling. Each ‘synthetic’ person was then probabilistically assigned values of the remaining cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors required for predicting their CVD risk, based on data from the national census national hospitalisation and drug dispensing databases and a large regional cohort study, using Monte Carlo sampling and multiple imputation. Where possible, the synthetic population CVD risk distributions for each non-demographic risk factor were validated against independent New Zealand data sources. Conclusions We were able to develop a synthetic national population with realistic multi-variable CVD risk characteristics. The construction of this population is the first step in the development of a micro-simulation model intended to investigate the likely impact of a range of national CVD risk management strategies that will inform CVD risk management guideline updates in New Zealand and elsewhere. PMID:28384217

  13. Developing a synthetic national population to investigate the impact of different cardiovascular disease risk management strategies: A derivation and validation study.

    PubMed

    Knight, Josh; Wells, Susan; Marshall, Roger; Exeter, Daniel; Jackson, Rod

    2017-01-01

    Many national cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factor management guidelines now recommend that drug treatment decisions should be informed primarily by patients' multi-variable predicted risk of CVD, rather than on the basis of single risk factor thresholds. To investigate the potential impact of treatment guidelines based on CVD risk thresholds at a national level requires individual level data representing the multi-variable CVD risk factor profiles for a country's total adult population. As these data are seldom, if ever, available, we aimed to create a synthetic population, representing the joint CVD risk factor distributions of the adult New Zealand population. A synthetic population of 2,451,278 individuals, representing the actual age, gender, ethnicity and social deprivation composition of people aged 30-84 years who completed the 2013 New Zealand census was generated using Monte Carlo sampling. Each 'synthetic' person was then probabilistically assigned values of the remaining cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors required for predicting their CVD risk, based on data from the national census national hospitalisation and drug dispensing databases and a large regional cohort study, using Monte Carlo sampling and multiple imputation. Where possible, the synthetic population CVD risk distributions for each non-demographic risk factor were validated against independent New Zealand data sources. We were able to develop a synthetic national population with realistic multi-variable CVD risk characteristics. The construction of this population is the first step in the development of a micro-simulation model intended to investigate the likely impact of a range of national CVD risk management strategies that will inform CVD risk management guideline updates in New Zealand and elsewhere.

  14. Failure of Syndrome-Based Diarrhea Management Guidelines to Detect Shigella Infections in Kenyan Children

    PubMed Central

    Pavlinac, P. B.; Denno, D. M.; John-Stewart, G. C.; Onchiri, F. M.; Naulikha, J. M.; Odundo, E. A.; Hulseberg, C. E.; Singa, B. O.; Manhart, L. E.; Walson, J. L.

    2016-01-01

    Background Shigella is a leading cause of childhood diarrhea mortality in sub-Saharan Africa. Current World Health Organization guidelines recommend antibiotics for children in non cholera-endemic areas only in the presence of dysentery, a proxy for suspected Shigella infection. Methods To assess the sensitivity and specificity of the syndromic diagnosis of Shigella-associated diarrhea, we enrolled children aged 6 months to 5 years presenting to 1 of 3 Western Kenya hospitals between November 2011 and July 2014 with acute diarrhea. Stool samples were tested using standard methods for bacterial culture and multiplex polymerase chain reaction for pathogenic Escherichia coli. Stepwise multivariable logit models identified factors to increase the sensitivity of syndromic diagnosis. Results Among 1360 enrolled children, median age was 21 months (interquartile range, 11–37), 3.4% were infected with human immunodeficiency virus, and 16.5% were stunted (height-for-age z-score less than −2). Shigella was identified in 63 children (4.6%), with the most common species being Shigella sonnei (53.8%) and Shigella flexneri (40.4%). Dysentery correctly classified 7 of 63 Shigella cases (sensitivity, 11.1%). Seventy-eight of 1297 children without Shigella had dysentery (specificity, 94.0%). The combination of fecal mucous, age over 23 months, and absence of excessive vomiting identified more children with Shigella-infection (sensitivity, 39.7%) but also indicated antibiotics in more children without microbiologically confirmed Shigella (specificity, 82.7%). Conclusions Reliance on dysentery as a proxy for Shigella results in the majority of Shigella-infected children not being identified for antibiotics. Field-ready rapid diagnostics or updated evidence-based algorithms are urgently needed to identify children with diarrhea most likely to benefit from antibiotic therapy. PMID:26407270

  15. Evidence-based guidelines for use of probiotics in preterm neonates

    PubMed Central

    2011-01-01

    Background Current evidence indicates that probiotic supplementation significantly reduces all-cause mortality and definite necrotising enterocolitis without significant adverse effects in preterm neonates. As the debate about the pros and cons of routine probiotic supplementation continues, many institutions are satisfied with the current evidence and wish to use probiotics routinely. Because of the lack of detail on many practical aspects of probiotic supplementation, clinician-friendly guidelines are urgently needed to optimise use of probiotics in preterm neonates. Aim To develop evidence-based guidelines for probiotic supplementation in preterm neonates. Methods To develop core guidelines on use of probiotics, including strain selection, dose and duration of supplementation, we primarily used the data from our recent updated systematic review of randomised controlled trials. For equally important issues including strain identification, monitoring for adverse effects, product format, storage and transport, and regulatory hurdles, a comprehensive literature search, covering the period 1966-2010 without restriction on the study design, was conducted, using the databases PubMed and EMBASE, and the proceedings of scientific conferences; these data were used in our updated systematic review. Results In this review, we present guidelines, including level of evidence, for the practical aspects (for example, strain selection, dose, duration, clinical and laboratory surveillance) of probiotic supplementation, and for dealing with non-clinical but important issues (for example, regulatory requirements, product format). Evidence was inadequate in some areas, and these should be a target for further research. Conclusion We hope that these evidence-based guidelines will help to optimise the use of probiotics in preterm neonates. Continued research is essential to provide answers to the current gaps in knowledge about probiotics. PMID:21806843

  16. The `WikiGuidelines' smartphone application: Bridging the gaps in availability of evidence-based smartphone mental health applications.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Melvyn W B; Ho, Roger C M; Mcintyre, Roger S

    2016-07-27

    Over the past decade, there have been massive advances in technology. These advances in technology have significantly transformed various aspects of healthcare. The advent of E-health and its influence on healthcare practice also implies that there is a paradigm shift in the way healthcare professionals work. Conventionally, healthcare professionals would have to refer to books and journals for updates in treatment algorithms, but with the advent of technology, they could access this information via the web or via various smartphone applications on the go. In the field of Psychiatry, one of the commonest mental health disorder to date, with significant morbidity and mortality is that of Major depressive disorder. Routinely, clinicians and healthcare professionals are advised to refer to standard guidelines in guiding them with regards to their treatment options. Given the high prevalence of conditions like Major Depressive Disorder, it is thus of importance that whatever guidelines that clinicians and healthcare professionals refer to are constantly kept up to date, so that patients could benefit from latest evidence based therapy and treatment. A review of the current literature highlights that whilst there are a multitude of smartphone applications designed for mental health care, previous systematic review has highlighted a paucity of evidence based applications. More importantly, current literature with regards to provision of treatment information to healthcare professionals and patients are limited to web-based interventions. It is the aim of this technical note to highlight a methodology to which the authors have conceptualized in the implementation of an evidence based mental health guideline applications, known as the `Wiki Guidelines' smartphone application. The authors hope to illustrate the algorithms behind the development of the application, and how it could be easily updated by the guidelines working group.

  17. EASE Guidelines for Authors and Translators of Scientific Articles to be Published in English

    PubMed Central

    2014-01-01

    This concise and readable set of editorial guidelines was first published by the European Association of Science Editors (EASE) in 2010 and is updated annually. It is freely available in more than 20 languages at http://ease.org.uk/publications/author-guidelines. The document is aimed to help scientists worldwide in successful presentation of their research results and in correct translation of manuscripts into English. Moreover, it draws attention to ethical issues, like authorship criteria, plagiarism, conflict of interests, etc. Eight appendices provide examples or more detailed information on selected topics (Abstracts, Ambiguity, Cohesion, Ethics, Plurals, Simplicity, Spelling, and Text-tables). Widespread use of EASE Guidelines should increase the efficiency of international scientific communication. PMID:25132718

  18. NCCN Guidelines Insights: Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia/Small Lymphocytic Leukemia, Version 1.2017.

    PubMed

    Wierda, William G; Zelenetz, Andrew D; Gordon, Leo I; Abramson, Jeremy S; Advani, Ranjana H; Andreadis, C Babis; Bartlett, Nancy; Byrd, John C; Caimi, Paolo; Fayad, Luis E; Fisher, Richard I; Glenn, Martha J; Habermann, Thomas M; Harris, Nancy Lee; Hernandez-Ilizaliturri, Francisco; Hoppe, Richard T; Horwitz, Steven M; Kaminski, Mark S; Kelsey, Christopher R; Kim, Youn H; Krivacic, Susan; LaCasce, Ann S; Martin, Michael G; Nademanee, Auayporn; Porcu, Pierluigi; Press, Oliver; Rabinovitch, Rachel; Reddy, Nishitha; Reid, Erin; Roberts, Kenneth; Saad, Ayman A; Snyder, Erin D; Sokol, Lubomir; Swinnen, Lode J; Vose, Julie M; Yahalom, Joachim; Dwyer, Mary A; Sundar, Hema

    2017-03-01

    Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and small lymphocytic lymphoma (SLL) are different manifestations of the same disease and managed in much the same way. The advent of novel CD20 monoclonal antibodies led to the development of effective chemoimmunotherapy regimens. More recently, small molecule inhibitors targeting kinases involved in a number of critical signaling pathways and a small molecule inhibitor of the BCL-2 family of proteins have demonstrated activity for the treatment of patients with CLL/SLL. These NCCN Guidelines Insights highlight important updates to the NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology (NCCN Guidelines) for CLL/SLL for the treatment of patients with newly diagnosed or relapsed/refractory CLL/SLL. Copyright © 2017 by the National Comprehensive Cancer Network.

  19. EASE Guidelines for Authors and Translators of Scientific Articles to be Published in English.

    PubMed

    2014-06-01

    This concise and readable set of editorial guidelines was first published by the European Association of Science Editors (EASE) in 2010 and is updated annually. It is freely available in more than 20 languages at http://ease.org.uk/publications/author-guidelines. The document is aimed to help scientists worldwide in successful presentation of their research results and in correct translation of manuscripts into English. Moreover, it draws attention to ethical issues, like authorship criteria, plagiarism, conflict of interests, etc. Eight appendices provide examples or more detailed information on selected topics (Abstracts, Ambiguity, Cohesion, Ethics, Plurals, Simplicity, Spelling, and Text-tables). Widespread use of EASE Guidelines should increase the efficiency of international scientific communication.

  20. ACC/AHA Special Report: Clinical Practice Guideline Implementation Strategies: A Summary of Systematic Reviews by the NHLBI Implementation Science Work Group: A Report of the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Task Force on Clinical Practice Guidelines.

    PubMed

    Chan, Wiley V; Pearson, Thomas A; Bennett, Glen C; Cushman, William C; Gaziano, Thomas A; Gorman, Paul N; Handler, Joel; Krumholz, Harlan M; Kushner, Robert F; MacKenzie, Thomas D; Sacco, Ralph L; Smith, Sidney C; Stevens, Victor J; Wells, Barbara L

    2017-02-28

    In 2008, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute convened an Implementation Science Work Group to assess evidence-based strategies for effectively implementing clinical practice guidelines. This was part of a larger effort to update existing clinical practice guidelines on cholesterol, blood pressure, and overweight/obesity. Review evidence from the published implementation science literature and identify effective or promising strategies to enhance the adoption and implementation of clinical practice guidelines. This systematic review was conducted on 4 critical questions, each focusing on the adoption and effectiveness of 4 intervention strategies: (1) reminders, (2) educational outreach visits, (3) audit and feedback, and (4) provider incentives. A scoping review of the Rx for Change database of systematic reviews was used to identify promising guideline implementation interventions aimed at providers. Inclusion and exclusion criteria were developed a priori for each question, and the published literature was initially searched up to 2012, and then updated with a supplemental search to 2015. Two independent reviewers screened the returned citations to identify relevant reviews and rated the quality of each included review. Audit and feedback and educational outreach visits were generally effective in improving both process of care (15 of 21 reviews and 12 of 13 reviews, respectively) and clinical outcomes (7 of 12 reviews and 3 of 5 reviews, respectively). Provider incentives showed mixed effectiveness for improving both process of care (3 of 4 reviews) and clinical outcomes (3 reviews equally distributed between generally effective, mixed, and generally ineffective). Reminders showed mixed effectiveness for improving process of care outcomes (27 reviews with 11 mixed and 3 generally ineffective results) and were generally ineffective for clinical outcomes (18 reviews with 6 mixed and 9 generally ineffective results). Educational outreach visits (2 of 2 reviews), reminders (3 of 4 reviews), and provider incentives (1 of 1 review) were generally effective for cost reduction. Educational outreach visits (1 of 1 review) and provider incentives (1 of 1 review) were also generally effective for cost-effectiveness outcomes. Barriers to clinician adoption or adherence to guidelines included time constraints (8 reviews/overviews); limited staffing resources (2 overviews); timing (5 reviews/overviews); clinician skepticism (5 reviews/overviews); clinician knowledge of guidelines (4 reviews/overviews); and higher age of the clinician (1 overview). Facilitating factors included guideline characteristics such as format, resources, and end-user involvement (6 reviews/overviews); involving stakeholders (5 reviews/overviews); leadership support (5 reviews/overviews); scope of implementation (5 reviews/overviews); organizational culture such as multidisciplinary teams and low-baseline adherence (9 reviews/overviews); and electronic guidelines systems (3 reviews). The strategies of audit and feedback and educational outreach visits were generally effective in improving both process of care and clinical outcomes. Reminders and provider incentives showed mixed effectiveness, or were generally ineffective. No general conclusion could be reached about cost effectiveness, because of limitations in the evidence. Important gaps exist in the evidence on effectiveness of implementation interventions, especially regarding clinical outcomes, cost effectiveness and contextual issues affecting successful implementation. Copyright © 2017 American College of Cardiology Foundation and American Heart Association, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  1. ACC/AHA Special Report: Clinical Practice Guideline Implementation Strategies: A Summary of Systematic Reviews by the NHLBI Implementation Science Work Group: A Report of the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Task Force on Clinical Practice Guidelines.

    PubMed

    Chan, Wiley V; Pearson, Thomas A; Bennett, Glen C; Cushman, William C; Gaziano, Thomas A; Gorman, Paul N; Handler, Joel; Krumholz, Harlan M; Kushner, Robert F; MacKenzie, Thomas D; Sacco, Ralph L; Smith, Sidney C; Stevens, Victor J; Wells, Barbara L; Castillo, Graciela; Heil, Susan K R; Stephens, Jennifer; Vann, Julie C Jacobson

    2017-02-28

    In 2008, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute convened an Implementation Science Work Group to assess evidence-based strategies for effectively implementing clinical practice guidelines. This was part of a larger effort to update existing clinical practice guidelines on cholesterol, blood pressure, and overweight/obesity. Review evidence from the published implementation science literature and identify effective or promising strategies to enhance the adoption and implementation of clinical practice guidelines. This systematic review was conducted on 4 critical questions, each focusing on the adoption and effectiveness of 4 intervention strategies: (1) reminders, (2) educational outreach visits, (3) audit and feedback, and (4) provider incentives. A scoping review of the Rx for Change database of systematic reviews was used to identify promising guideline implementation interventions aimed at providers. Inclusion and exclusion criteria were developed a priori for each question, and the published literature was initially searched up to 2012, and then updated with a supplemental search to 2015. Two independent reviewers screened the returned citations to identify relevant reviews and rated the quality of each included review. Audit and feedback and educational outreach visits were generally effective in improving both process of care (15 of 21 reviews and 12 of 13 reviews, respectively) and clinical outcomes (7 of 12 reviews and 3 of 5 reviews, respectively). Provider incentives showed mixed effectiveness for improving both process of care (3 of 4 reviews) and clinical outcomes (3 reviews equally distributed between generally effective, mixed, and generally ineffective). Reminders showed mixed effectiveness for improving process of care outcomes (27 reviews with 11 mixed and 3 generally ineffective results) and were generally ineffective for clinical outcomes (18 reviews with 6 mixed and 9 generally ineffective results). Educational outreach visits (2 of 2 reviews), reminders (3 of 4 reviews), and provider incentives (1 of 1 review) were generally effective for cost reduction. Educational outreach visits (1 of 1 review) and provider incentives (1 of 1 review) were also generally effective for cost-effectiveness outcomes. Barriers to clinician adoption or adherence to guidelines included time constraints (8 reviews/overviews); limited staffing resources (2 overviews); timing (5 reviews/overviews); clinician skepticism (5 reviews/overviews); clinician knowledge of guidelines (4 reviews/overviews); and higher age of the clinician (1 overview). Facilitating factors included guideline characteristics such as format, resources, and end-user involvement (6 reviews/overviews); involving stakeholders (5 reviews/overviews); leadership support (5 reviews/overviews); scope of implementation (5 reviews/overviews); organizational culture such as multidisciplinary teams and low-baseline adherence (9 reviews/overviews); and electronic guidelines systems (3 reviews). The strategies of audit and feedback and educational outreach visits were generally effective in improving both process of care and clinical outcomes. Reminders and provider incentives showed mixed effectiveness, or were generally ineffective. No general conclusion could be reached about cost effectiveness, because of limitations in the evidence. Important gaps exist in the evidence on effectiveness of implementation interventions, especially regarding clinical outcomes, cost effectiveness and contextual issues affecting successful implementation. © 2017 by the American College of Cardiology Foundation and the American Heart Association, Inc.

  2. Evaluating the effects of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans on consumer behavior and health: methodological challenges.

    PubMed

    Guthrie, Joanne F; Smallwood, David M

    2003-12-01

    The Dietary Guidelines for Americans is the official nutrition policy statement for the United States. Government involvement in providing information on private behavior, such as food choice, is justified by the high cost of poor diets, as measured in medical expenses and lost productivity. The Guidelines are intended to provide an up-to-date, consistent information base for federal nutrition education and information efforts and food assistance program regulations. Through these policy mechanisms, the Guidelines are assumed to improve dietary behavior, and, ultimately, health. By law, the Dietary Guidelines for Americans must be updated every five years; however, there is no mandate for evaluation. Evaluation could provide useful information to assess the extent to which the Guidelines positively influence health and provide insights into reasons for their successes and limitations. However, evaluation would also present considerable challenges. This paper discusses the critical data and methodological needs for improving evaluation of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

  3. Recommended Screening and Preventive Practices for Long-term Survivors after Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation

    PubMed Central

    Majhail, Navneet S; Rizzo, J Douglas; Lee, Stephanie J; Aljurf, Mahmoud; Atsuta, Yoshiko; Bonfim, Carmem; Burns, Linda J; Chaudhri, Naeem; Davies, Stella; Okamoto, Shinichiro; Seber, Adriana; Socie, Gerard; Szer, Jeff; Lint, Maria Teresa Van; Wingard, John R; Tichelli, Andre

    2011-01-01

    Advances in hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) technology and supportive care techniques have led to improvements in long-term survival after HCT. Emerging indications for transplantation, introduction of newer graft sources (e.g. umbilical cord blood) and transplantation of older patients using less intense conditioning regimens have also contributed to an increase in the number of HCT survivors. These survivors are at risk for developing late complications secondary to pre-, peri- and post-transplant exposures and risk-factors. Guidelines for screening and preventive practices for HCT survivors were published in 2006. An international group of transplant experts was convened in 2011 to review contemporary literature and update the recommendations while considering the changing practice of transplantation and international applicability of these guidelines. This review provides the updated recommendations for screening and preventive practices for pediatric and adult survivors of autologous and allogeneic HCT. PMID:22446607

  4. Recommended Screening and Preventive Practices for Long-term Survivors after Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation

    PubMed Central

    Majhail, Navneet S; Rizzo, J Douglas; Lee, Stephanie J; Aljurf, Mahmoud; Atsuta, Yoshiko; Bonfim, Carmem; Burns, Linda J; Chaudhri, Naeem; Davies, Stella; Okamoto, Shinichiro; Seber, Adriana; Socie, Gerard; Szer, Jeff; Lint, Maria Teresa Van; Wingard, John R; Tichelli, Andre

    2012-01-01

    Advances in hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) technology and supportive care techniques have led to improvements in long-term survival after HCT. Emerging indications for transplantation, introduction of newer graft sources (e.g. umbilical cord blood) and transplantation of older patients using less intense conditioning regimens have also contributed to an increase in the number of HCT survivors. These survivors are at risk for developing late complications secondary to pre-, peri- and post-transplant exposures and risk-factors. Guidelines for screening and preventive practices for HCT survivors were published in 2006. An international group of transplant experts was convened in 2011 to review contemporary literature and update the recommendations while considering the changing practice of transplantation and international applicability of these guidelines. This review provides the updated recommendations for screening and preventive practices for pediatric and adult survivors of autologous and allogeneic HCT. PMID:22395764

  5. Recommended Screening and Preventive Practices for Long-term Survivors after Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation

    PubMed Central

    Majhail, Navneet S; Rizzo, J Douglas; Lee, Stephanie J; Aljurf, Mahmoud; Atsuta, Yoshiko; Bonfim, Carmem; Burns, Linda J; Chaudhri, Naeem; Davies, Stella; Okamoto, Shinichiro; Seber, Adriana; Socie, Gerard; Szer, Jeff; Lint, Maria Teresa Van; Wingard, John R; Tichelli, Andre

    2011-01-01

    Advances in hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) technology and supportive care techniques have led to improvements in long-term survival after HCT. Emerging indications for transplantation, introduction of newer graft sources (e.g. umbilical cord blood) and transplantation of older patients using less intense conditioning regimens have also contributed to an increase in the number of HCT survivors. These survivors are at risk for developing late complications secondary to pre-, peri- and post-transplant exposures and risk-factors. Guidelines for screening and preventive practices for HCT survivors were published in 2006. An international group of transplant experts was convened in 2011 to review contemporary literature and update the recommendations while considering the changing practice of transplantation and international applicability of these guidelines. This review provides the updated recommendations for screening and preventive practices for pediatric and adult survivors of autologous and allogeneic HCT. PMID:22178693

  6. Guideline from Japanese Society of Echocardiography: 2018 focused update incorporated into Guidance for the Management and Maintenance of Echocardiography Equipment.

    PubMed

    Daimon, Masao; Akaishi, Makoto; Asanuma, Toshihiko; Hashimoto, Shuji; Izumi, Chisato; Iwanaga, Shiro; Kawai, Hiroya; Toide, Hiroyuki; Hayashida, Akihiro; Yamada, Hirotsugu; Murata, Mitsushige; Hirano, Yutaka; Suzuki, Kengo; Nakatani, Satoshi

    2018-03-01

    Echocardiography plays a pivotal role as an imaging modality in the modern cardiology practice. Information derived from echocardiography is definitely helpful for a patient care. The Japanese Society of Echocardiography has promoted echocardiography for a routine clinical and research use. One of the missions of the Society is to provide information that is useful for high-quality examinations. To ensure it, we believe equipment in good conditions and a comfortable environment are important for both a patient and an examiner. Thus, the Committee for Guideline Writing, the Japanese Society of Echocardiography published brief guidance for the routine use of echocardiography equipment in 2015. Recently, the importance of international standardization has been emphasized in the medical laboratories. Accordingly, the committee has revised and updated our guidance for the routine use of echocardiography equipment.

  7. HIV Treatment and Prevention: An Overview of Recommendations From the 2016 IAS–USA Antiretroviral Guidelines Panel

    PubMed Central

    Volberding, Paul A.

    2017-01-01

    Updated recommendations from the IAS–USA Antiretroviral Guidelines Panel on antiretroviral therapy for the treatment and prevention of HIV infection in adults were published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in 2016. The updated, evidence-based recommendations address when to initiate antiretroviral therapy, recommended initial antiretroviral regimens, including integrase strand transfer inhibitor (InSTI)-based regimens, recommended regimens for persons in whom an InSTI is not an option, and special treatment considerations. The interface between antiretroviral therapy and opportunistic infections, when and how to switch antiretroviral therapy, laboratory monitoring, engagement in care, adherence to antiretroviral therapy, and use of antiretroviral therapy as HIV prevention are also discussed, as well as future directions in HIV treatment. This article summarizes an IAS–USA continuing education webinar presented by Paul A. Volberding, MD, in August 2016. PMID:28402930

  8. Sacubitril/Valsartan: From Clinical Trials to Real-world Experience.

    PubMed

    Joly, Joanna M; Desai, Akshay S

    2018-04-23

    Compared to enalapril, use of angiotensin-receptor blocker and neprilysin inhibitor sacubitril/valsartan to treat patients with heart failure and reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) is associated with substantial reductions in both cardiovascular mortality and heart failure progression. The purpose of this review is to discuss the real-world experience of sacubitril/valsartan. In the years following the publication of the landmark PARADIGM-HF trial in 2014 and its subsequent FDA approval, a growing evidence base supports the safety and efficacy of sacubitril/valsartan in a broad spectrum of patients with HFrEF. Updated clinical practice guidelines have embraced the use of sacubitril/valsartan in preference to ACE inhibitors or ARBs in selected patients. In this review, we highlight the clinical trials that led to these key updates to clinical guidelines, offer practical strategies for patient selection and utilization in clinical practice, and identify important areas of uncertainty that require future research.

  9. Update in pulmonary arterial hypertension.

    PubMed

    Mejía Chew, C R; Alcolea Batres, S; Ríos Blanco, J J

    2016-11-01

    Pulmonary arterial hypertension is a rare and progressive disease that mainly affects the pulmonary arterioles (precapillary), regardless of the triggering aetiology. The prevalence of pulmonary hypertension and pulmonary arterial hypertension in Spain is estimated at 19.2 and 16 cases per million inhabitants, respectively. The diagnosis of pulmonary arterial hypertension is based on haemodynamic criteria (mean pulmonary artery pressure ≥25mmHg, pulmonary capillary wedge pressure ≤15mmHg and pulmonary vascular resistance >3 Wood units) and therefore requires the implementation of right cardiac catheterisation. Sequential therapy with a single drug has been used in clinical practice. However, recent European guidelines recommend combined initial therapy in some situations. This review conducts a critical update of our knowledge of this disease according to the latest guidelines and recommendations. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier España, S.L.U. and Sociedad Española de Medicina Interna (SEMI). All rights reserved.

  10. 2017 update of the WSES guidelines for emergency repair of complicated abdominal wall hernias.

    PubMed

    Birindelli, Arianna; Sartelli, Massimo; Di Saverio, Salomone; Coccolini, Federico; Ansaloni, Luca; van Ramshorst, Gabrielle H; Campanelli, Giampiero; Khokha, Vladimir; Moore, Ernest E; Peitzman, Andrew; Velmahos, George; Moore, Frederick Alan; Leppaniemi, Ari; Burlew, Clay Cothren; Biffl, Walter L; Koike, Kaoru; Kluger, Yoram; Fraga, Gustavo P; Ordonez, Carlos A; Novello, Matteo; Agresta, Ferdinando; Sakakushev, Boris; Gerych, Igor; Wani, Imtiaz; Kelly, Michael D; Gomes, Carlos Augusto; Faro, Mario Paulo; Tarasconi, Antonio; Demetrashvili, Zaza; Lee, Jae Gil; Vettoretto, Nereo; Guercioni, Gianluca; Persiani, Roberto; Tranà, Cristian; Cui, Yunfeng; Kok, Kenneth Y Y; Ghnnam, Wagih M; Abbas, Ashraf El-Sayed; Sato, Norio; Marwah, Sanjay; Rangarajan, Muthukumaran; Ben-Ishay, Offir; Adesunkanmi, Abdul Rashid K; Lohse, Helmut Alfredo Segovia; Kenig, Jakub; Mandalà, Stefano; Coimbra, Raul; Bhangu, Aneel; Suggett, Nigel; Biondi, Antonio; Portolani, Nazario; Baiocchi, Gianluca; Kirkpatrick, Andrew W; Scibé, Rodolfo; Sugrue, Michael; Chiara, Osvaldo; Catena, Fausto

    2017-01-01

    Emergency repair of complicated abdominal wall hernias may be associated with worsen outcome and a significant rate of postoperative complications. There is no consensus on management of complicated abdominal hernias. The main matter of debate is about the use of mesh in case of intestinal resection and the type of mesh to be used. Wound infection is the most common complication encountered and represents an immense burden especially in the presence of a mesh. The recurrence rate is an important topic that influences the final outcome. A World Society of Emergency Surgery (WSES) Consensus Conference was held in Bergamo in July 2013 with the aim to define recommendations for emergency repair of abdominal wall hernias in adults. This document represents the executive summary of the consensus conference approved by a WSES expert panel. In 2016, the guidelines have been revised and updated according to the most recent available literature.

  11. Small and medium power reactors 1987

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    1987-12-01

    This TECDOC follows the publication of TECDOC-347: Small and Medium Power Reactors (SMPR) Project Initiation Study, Phase 1, published in 1985 and TECDOC-376: Small and Medium Power Reactors 1985 published in 1986. It is mainly intended for decision makers in Developing Member States interested in embarking on a nuclear power program. It consists of two parts: (1) guidelines for the introduction of small and medium power reactors in developing countries. These Guidelines were established during the Advisory Group Meeting held in Vienna from 11 to 15 May 1987. Their purpose is to review key aspects relating to the introduction of small and medium power reactors in developing countries; (2) up-dated information on SMPR Concepts Contributed by Supplier Industries. According to the recommendations of the Second Technical Committee Meeting on SMPRs held in Vienna in March 1985, this part contains the up-dated information formerly published in Annex 1 of the above mentioned TECDOC-347.

  12. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Expert Panel Meetings on Prevention and Treatment of Anthrax in Adults

    PubMed Central

    Hendricks, Katherine A.; Wright, Mary E.; Shadomy, Sean V.; Bradley, John S.; Morrow, Meredith G.; Pavia, Andy T.; Rubinstein, Ethan; Holty, Jon-Erik C.; Messonnier, Nancy E.; Smith, Theresa L.; Pesik, Nicki; Treadwell, Tracee A.

    2014-01-01

    The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention convened panels of anthrax experts to review and update guidelines for anthrax postexposure prophylaxis and treatment. The panels included civilian and military anthrax experts and clinicians with experience treating anthrax patients. Specialties represented included internal medicine, pediatrics, obstetrics, infectious disease, emergency medicine, critical care, pulmonology, hematology, and nephrology. Panelists discussed recent patients with systemic anthrax; reviews of published, unpublished, and proprietary data regarding antimicrobial drugs and anthrax antitoxins; and critical care measures of potential benefit to patients with anthrax. This article updates antimicrobial postexposure prophylaxis and antimicrobial and antitoxin treatment options and describes potentially beneficial critical care measures for persons with anthrax, including clinical procedures for infected nonpregnant adults. Changes from previous guidelines include an expanded discussion of critical care and clinical procedures and additional antimicrobial choices, including preferred antimicrobial drug treatment for possible anthrax meningitis. PMID:24447897

  13. Centers for disease control and prevention expert panel meetings on prevention and treatment of anthrax in adults.

    PubMed

    Hendricks, Katherine A; Wright, Mary E; Shadomy, Sean V; Bradley, John S; Morrow, Meredith G; Pavia, Andy T; Rubinstein, Ethan; Holty, Jon-Erik C; Messonnier, Nancy E; Smith, Theresa L; Pesik, Nicki; Treadwell, Tracee A; Bower, William A

    2014-02-01

    The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention convened panels of anthrax experts to review and update guidelines for anthrax postexposure prophylaxis and treatment. The panels included civilian and military anthrax experts and clinicians with experience treating anthrax patients. Specialties represented included internal medicine, pediatrics, obstetrics, infectious disease, emergency medicine, critical care, pulmonology, hematology, and nephrology. Panelists discussed recent patients with systemic anthrax; reviews of published, unpublished, and proprietary data regarding antimicrobial drugs and anthrax antitoxins; and critical care measures of potential benefit to patients with anthrax. This article updates antimicrobial postexposure prophylaxis and antimicrobial and antitoxin treatment options and describes potentially beneficial critical care measures for persons with anthrax, including clinical procedures for infected nonpregnant adults. Changes from previous guidelines include an expanded discussion of critical care and clinical procedures and additional antimicrobial choices, including preferred antimicrobial drug treatment for possible anthrax meningitis.

  14. [Motivations and barriers of chilean children; threats or opportunities for the implementation of 2013 food based dietary guidelines].

    PubMed

    Olivares, Sonia; Zacarías, Isabel; González, Carmen Gloria

    2014-08-01

    Implementation of the updated Food Based Dietary Guidelines (FBDG) for the Chilean population requires the design of innovative strategies and effective. To determine motivations and barriers for children and mothers of preschool-age children to follow new FBDG messages, aiming to identify challenges and opportunities for designing effective communication and implementation strategies. A qualitative study based on 12 focus groups of 9 to 13 age children and 6 focus groups of mothers of preschool-age children, living in the north, central and south regions of the country, to analyze their reaction to each one of the 2013 FBDG messages. Answers of children and mothers did not show differences by gender (in the case of the children) or region of the country. Results show the most frequent and representative comments regarding each message. Challenges to reducing the consumption of foods high in energy, fat, sugar and salt include advertisements and plentiful supply and low prices for these types of foods, both in the school environment and on the street. Opportunities identified included the advertisement of fruits, vegetables and dairy products to promote their consumption, as well as the coming implementation of Law 20.606, which is expected to be an effective way to support this initiative. The results of this study show that the design of strategies based on values, desires and needs of different groups will contribute to optimizing the implementation of the 2013 Chilean FBDG. Copyright AULA MEDICA EDICIONES 2014. Published by AULA MEDICA. All rights reserved.

  15. Guidelines for determining flood flow frequency—Bulletin 17C

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    England, John F.; Cohn, Timothy A.; Faber, Beth A.; Stedinger, Jery R.; Thomas, Wilbert O.; Veilleux, Andrea G.; Kiang, Julie E.; Mason, Robert R.

    2018-03-29

    Accurate estimates of flood frequency and magnitude are a key component of any effective nationwide flood risk management and flood damage abatement program. In addition to accuracy, methods for estimating flood risk must be uniformly and consistently applied because management of the Nation’s water and related land resources is a collaborative effort involving multiple actors including most levels of government and the private sector.Flood frequency guidelines have been published in the United States since 1967, and have undergone periodic revisions. In 1967, the U.S. Water Resources Council presented a coherent approach to flood frequency with Bulletin 15, “A Uniform Technique for Determining Flood Flow Frequencies.” The method it recommended involved fitting the log-Pearson Type III distribution to annual peak flow data by the method of moments.The first extension and update of Bulletin 15 was published in 1976 as Bulletin 17, “Guidelines for Determining Flood Flow Frequency” (Guidelines). It extended the Bulletin 15 procedures by introducing methods for dealing with outliers, historical flood information, and regional skew. Bulletin 17A was published the following year to clarify the computation of weighted skew. The next revision of the Bulletin, the Bulletin 17B, provided a host of improvements and new techniques designed to address situations that often arise in practice, including better methods for estimating and using regional skew, weighting station and regional skew, detection of outliers, and use of the conditional probability adjustment.The current version of these Guidelines are presented in this document, denoted Bulletin 17C. It incorporates changes motivated by four of the items listed as “Future Work” in Bulletin 17B and 30 years of post-17B research on flood processes and statistical methods. The updates include: adoption of a generalized representation of flood data that allows for interval and censored data types; a new method, called the Expected Moments Algorithm, which extends the method of moments so that it can accommodate interval data; a generalized approach to identification of low outliers in flood data; and an improved method for computing confidence intervals.Federal agencies are requested to use these Guidelines in all planning activities involving water and related land resources. State, local, and private organizations are encouraged to use these Guidelines to assure uniformity in the flood frequency estimates that all agencies concerned with flood risk should use for Federal planning decisions.This revision is adopted with the knowledge and understanding that review of these procedures will be ongoing. Updated methods will be adopted when warranted by experience and by examination and testing of new techniques.

  16. PREDICTING WALKING ABILITY FOLLOWING LOWER LIMB AMPUTATION: AN UPDATED SYSTEMATIC LITERATURE REVIEW

    PubMed Central

    Kahle, Jason T.; Highsmith, M. Jason; Schaepper, Hans; Johannesson, Anton; Orendurff, Michael S.; Kaufman, Kenton

    2016-01-01

    There is not a clear clinical recommendation for the determination of prosthetic candidacy. Guidelines do not delineate which member(s) of the multidisciplinary team are responsible for prosthetic candidacy decisions and which factors will best predict a positive outcome. Also not clearly addressed is a patient-centered decision-making role. In a previous systematic review (SR), Sansam et al. reported on the prediction of walking ability following lower limb amputation using literature up to 2007. The search strategy was designed from the previous Sansam SR as an update of previously valuable predictive factors of prosthetic candidacy. An electronic literature search was executed from August 8, 2007, to December 31, 2015, using MEDLINE (Pubmed), Embase, The Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL) (Ovid), and Cochrane. A total of 319 studies were identified through the electronic search. Of these, 298 were eliminated, leaving a total of 21 for full evaluation. Conclusions from this updated study are drawn from a total recruited sample (n) of 15,207 subjects. A total of 12,410 subjects completed the respective studies (18% attrition). This updated study increases the size of the original Sansam et al. report by including 137% more subjects for a total of 21,490 between the two articles Etiology, physical fitness, pre-amputation living status, amputation level, age, physical fitness, and comorbidities are included as moderate to strongly supported predictive factors of prosthetic candidacy. These factors are supported in an earlier literature review and should be strongly considered in a complete history and physical examination by a multidisciplinary team. Predictive factors should be part of the patient’s healthcare record. PMID:28066522

  17. Is my baby yellow?

    PubMed

    Cohain, Judy Slome

    2006-01-01

    In July 2004, The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) summarized the latest medical research regarding newborn jaundice and updated the current clinical guidelines. The AAP recommends that clinicians 1) promote breastfeeding and not routinely supplement newborns with water; 2) assess the risk of severe hyperbilirubinemia before discharge; 3) provide follow-up visits after discharge to assess jaundice; and 4) when indicated, treat newborns with phototherapy or exchange transfusion to prevent the development of severe hyperbilirubinemia and kernicterus. This article summarizes the new guidelines.

  18. Guidelines on Diabetic Eye Care: The International Council of Ophthalmology Recommendations for Screening, Follow-up, Referral, and Treatment Based on Resource Settings.

    PubMed

    Wong, Tien Y; Sun, Jennifer; Kawasaki, Ryo; Ruamviboonsuk, Paisan; Gupta, Neeru; Lansingh, Van Charles; Maia, Mauricio; Mathenge, Wanjiku; Moreker, Sunil; Muqit, Mahi M K; Resnikoff, Serge; Verdaguer, Juan; Zhao, Peiquan; Ferris, Frederick; Aiello, Lloyd P; Taylor, Hugh R

    2018-05-24

    Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a global epidemic and affects populations in both developing and developed countries, with differing health care and resource levels. Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a major complication of DM and a leading cause of vision loss in working middle-aged adults. Vision loss from DR can be prevented with broad-level public health strategies, but these need to be tailored to a country's and population's resource setting. Designing DR screening programs, with appropriate and timely referral to facilities with trained eye care professionals, and using cost-effective treatment for vision-threatening levels of DR can prevent vision loss. The International Council of Ophthalmology Guidelines for Diabetic Eye Care 2017 summarize and offer a comprehensive guide for DR screening, referral and follow-up schedules for DR, and appropriate management of vision-threatening DR, including diabetic macular edema (DME) and proliferative DR, for countries with high- and low- or intermediate-resource settings. The guidelines include updated evidence on screening and referral criteria, the minimum requirements for a screening vision and retinal examination, follow-up care, and management of DR and DME, including laser photocoagulation and appropriate use of intravitreal anti-vascular endothelial growth factor inhibitors and, in specific situations, intravitreal corticosteroids. Recommendations for management of DR in patients during pregnancy and with concomitant cataract also are included. The guidelines offer suggestions for monitoring outcomes and indicators of success at a population level. Copyright © 2018 American Academy of Ophthalmology. All rights reserved.

  19. Centralized pan-Middle East Survey on the undertreatment of hypercholesterolemia: results from the CEPHEUS study in Arabian Gulf countries.

    PubMed

    Arafah, Mohamed; Al-Hinai, Ali T; Al Mahmeed, Wael; Al-Rasadi, Khalid; Al Tamimi, Omer; Al Herz, Shorook; Al Anazi, Faisal; Al Nemer, Khalid; Metwally, Othman; Alkhadra, Akram; Fakhry, Mohammed; Elghetany, Hossam; Medani, Abdel Razak; Yusufali, Afzal Hussein; Al Jassim, Obaid; Al Hallaq, Omar; Baslaib, Fahad Omar Ahmed S; Alawadhi, Mahmoud; Amin, Haitham; Al-Hashmi, Khamis; Shehab, Abdullah

    2014-11-01

    The Centralized pan-Middle East Survey on the undertreatment of hypercholesterolemia (CEPHEUS) survey evaluated the attainment of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) goals among patients on lipid-lowering drugs (LLDs) according to the updated National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP)-Adult Treatment Panel (ATP-III) guideline. The survey was conducted in 6 Arabian Gulf countries. Patients aged ≥18 years on LLDs for at least ≥3 months (stable medication for ≥6 weeks) were recruited. Fasting blood samples were collected at a single visit. In this survey, 5276 (58.2% male) patients were included in the final analysis. The LDL-C goal was attained in 91.1% of low-risk, 52.7% of high-risk, and 32.0% in very-high-risk categories. Goal attainment was directly related to female gender, age<40 years, history of diabetes, and family history of cardiovascular disease. The results of this survey highlight the suboptimal management of hypercholesterolemia across Arabian Gulf countries. © The Author(s) 2013.

  20. Poly Cystic Ovarian Syndrome: An Updated Overview

    PubMed Central

    El Hayek, Samer; Bitar, Lynn; Hamdar, Layal H.; Mirza, Fadi G.; Daoud, Georges

    2016-01-01

    Poly Cystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) is one of the most common metabolic and reproductive disorders among women of reproductive age. Women suffering from PCOS present with a constellation of symptoms associated with menstrual dysfunction and androgen excess, which significantly impacts their quality of life. They may be at increased risk of multiple morbidities, including obesity, insulin resistance, type II diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular disease (CVD), infertility, cancer, and psychological disorders. This review summarizes what the literature has so far provided from guidelines to diagnosis of PCOS. It will also present a general overview about the morbidities associated with this disease, specifically with its more severe classic form. Finally, the review will stress on the various aspects of treatment and screening recommendations currently used in the management of this condition. PMID:27092084

  1. Recommendations for the diagnosis and management of Niemann-Pick disease type C: an update.

    PubMed

    Patterson, Marc C; Hendriksz, Christian J; Walterfang, Mark; Sedel, Frederic; Vanier, Marie T; Wijburg, Frits

    2012-07-01

    Niemann-Pick disease type C (NP-C) is a rare inherited neurovisceral disease caused by mutations in either the NPC1 (in 95% of cases) or the NPC2 gene (in around 5% of cases), which lead to impaired intracellular lipid trafficking and accumulation of cholesterol and glycosphingolipids in the brain and other tissues. Characteristic neurological manifestations of NP-C include saccadic eye movement (SEM) abnormalities or vertical supranuclear gaze palsy (VSGP), cerebellar signs (ataxia, dystonia/dysmetria, dysarthria and dysphagia) and gelastic cataplexy. Epileptic seizures are also common in affected patients. Typically, neurological disease onset occurs during childhood, although an increasing number of cases are being detected and diagnosed during adulthood based on late-onset neurological signs and psychiatric manifestations. Categorization of patients according to age at onset of neurological manifestations (i.e. early-infantile, late-infantile, juvenile and adolescent/adult-onset) can be useful for the evaluation of disease course and treatment responses. The first international guidelines for the clinical management of NP-C in children and adults were published in 2009. Since that time a significant amount of data regarding the epidemiology, detection/diagnosis, and treatment of NP-C has been published. Here, we report points of consensus among experts in the diagnosis and treatment of NP-C based on a follow-up meeting in Paris, France in September 2011. This article serves as an update to the original guidelines providing, among other things, further information on detection/diagnostic methods, potential new methods of monitoring disease progression, and therapy. Treatment goals and the application of disease-specific therapy with miglustat are also re-evaluated. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  2. Compliance with Adult Congenital Heart Disease Guidelines: Are We Following the Recommendations?

    PubMed

    Gerardin, Jennifer F; Menk, Jeremiah S; Pyles, Lee A; Martin, Cindy M; Lohr, Jamie L

    2016-05-01

    As the adult congenital heart disease population increases, poor transition from pediatric to adult care can lead to suboptimal quality of care and an increase in individual and institutional costs. In 2008, the American College of Cardiology and American Heart Association updated the adult congenital heart disease practice guidelines and in 2011, the American Heart Association recommended transition guidelines to standardize and encourage appropriate timing of transition to adult cardiac services. The objective of this study was to evaluate if patient age or complexity of congenital heart disease influences pediatric cardiologists' decision to transfer care to adult providers and to evaluate the compliance of different types of cardiology providers with current adult congenital heart disease treatment guidelines. A single-center retrospective review of 991 adult congenital heart disease patients identified by ICD-9 code from 2010 to 2012. Academic and community outpatient cardiology clinics. Nine hundred ninety-one patients who are 18 years and older with congenital heart disease. None. The compliance with health maintenance and transfer of care recommendations in the outpatient setting. For patients seen by pediatric cardiologists, only 20% had transfer of care discussions documented, most often in younger simple patients. Significant differences in compliance with preventative health guidelines were found between cardiology provider types. Even though a significant number of adults with congenital heart disease are lost to appropriate follow-up in their third and fourth decades of life, pediatric cardiologists discussed transfer of care with moderate and complex congenital heart disease patients less frequently. Appropriate transfer of adults with congenital heart disease to an adult congenital cardiologist provides an opportunity to reinforce the importance of regular follow-up in adulthood and may improve outcomes as adult congenital cardiologists followed the adult congenital heart disease guidelines more consistently than pediatric or adult cardiologists. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  3. Updated US Department of Agriculture Food Patterns meet goals of the 2010 dietary guidelines.

    PubMed

    Britten, Patricia; Cleveland, Linda E; Koegel, Kristin L; Kuczynski, Kevin J; Nickols-Richardson, Sharon M

    2012-10-01

    The US Department of Agriculture Food Patterns were updated for the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans to meet new nutrition goals and incorporate results of food pattern modeling requested by the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee. The purpose of this article is to describe the process used and changes in the updated patterns. Changes include renaming the Meat and Beans and Milk Groups to the Protein Foods and Dairy Groups, respectively, to be more encompassing of foods in each. Vegetable subgroups now provide more achievable intake recommendations. Calcium-fortified soymilk is now included in the Dairy Group because of its similarity to foods in that group. Increased amounts of seafoods are recommended in the Protein Foods Group, balanced by decreased amounts of meat and poultry. A limit on calories from solid fats and added sugars is included, replacing the previous discretionary calorie allowance and emphasizing the need to choose nutrient-dense forms of foods. Lacto-ovo vegetarian and vegan patterns that meet nutrition goals were created by making substitutions in the Protein Foods Group, and for vegan patterns, in the Dairy Group. Patterns identify food choices that meet nutritional needs within energy allowances and encourage choosing a variety of foods. They rely on foods in nutrient-dense forms, including a limited amount of calories from solid fats and added sugars. The Food Patterns provide a useful template for educating consumers about healthful food choices while highlighting a large gap between choices many Americans make and healthy eating patterns. Copyright © 2012 Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  4. [Overweight and obesity: review and update].

    PubMed

    Sarmiento Quintero, Fernando; Ariza, Adolfo J; Barboza García, Fabiola; Canal de Molano, Nelly; Castro Benavides, Mayra; Cruchet Muñoz, Sylvia; Delgado Carbajal, Laura; Dewaele Olivera, María Rita; Fernández, Adriana; Heller, Solange; Ladino Meléndez, Liliana; Martínez, Sonia Miriam; Mayor Oxilia, Rosa; Mejía Castro, Milton; Montero Brens, Carlos; Sanabria, Marta Cristina; Tarazona Cote, María Consuelo; Vera Chamorro, José Fernando

    2016-06-01

    Obesity is an epidemic with important health repercussions in addition to high treatment-related costs. Between 2006 and 2007 the WHO developed new assessment tools, which aren't being globally used. In fact, there is no unified problem management across the hemisphere. To update obesity epidemiology, to promote application of WHO’s standards, to review new findings on physiopathology (i.e., fatty tissue as endocrine organ, intestinal microbiota), to update epidemiological information, and to provide management guidelines that can be integrated in clinical care. LAPSGHAN called up its members to collaborate in preparing this review article under the direction of an editor/coordinator, who selected the contents and literature with the best evidencetogether with the members. Each member prepared a separate document for each content. The chosen contents were later collated, unified, and edited. Results. This documents highlights the following: 1) Although extreme obesity is increasing in the US, overweight and obesity prevalence has stabilized, while in other countries it is alarmingly increasing; 2) New information regarding role of fatty tissue as endocrine organ and self-regulator of obesity; 3) The promising role of microbiota; and 4) Guidelines for children handling during consultation and follow-up. There is no widespread implementation of standards and guidelines from the World Health Organization (WHO). There is no agreement as to whether z-scores or percentiles should be used, especially regarding children under 2 due to their changing body complexion. The most accepted tool to assess overweight, obesity and severe obesity is the Body Mass Index (BMI). This document provides recommendations on how to approach clinical care with affected children.

  5. Implementing guidelines on reporting research using animals (ARRIVE etc.): new requirements for publication in BJP

    PubMed Central

    McGrath, John C; Lilley, Elliot

    2015-01-01

    The ARRIVE guidelines have been implemented in BJP for 4 years with the aim of increasing transparency in reporting experiments involving animals. BJP has assessed our success in implementing them and concluded that we could do better. This editorial discusses the issues and explains how we are changing our requirements for authors to report their findings in experiments involving animals. This is one of a series of editorials discussing updates to the BJP Instructions to Authors Video To view the video on the ARRIVE guidelines, visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DYXoUAnhoPM PMID:25964986

  6. Updates in small animal cardiopulmonary resuscitation.

    PubMed

    Fletcher, Daniel J; Boller, Manuel

    2013-07-01

    For dogs and cats that experience cardiopulmonary arrest, rates of survival to discharge are 6% to 7%, as compared with survival rates of 20% for people. The introduction of standardized cardiopulmonary resuscitation guidelines and training in human medicine has led to substantial improvements in outcome. The Reassessment Campaign on Veterinary Resuscitation initiative recently completed an exhaustive literature review and generated a set of evidence-based, consensus cardiopulmonary resuscitation guidelines in 5 domains: preparedness and prevention, basic life support, advanced life support, monitoring, and postcardiac arrest care. This article reviews some of the most important of these new guidelines. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  7. Post-contrast acute kidney injury. Part 2: risk stratification, role of hydration and other prophylactic measures, patients taking metformin and chronic dialysis patients : Recommendations for updated ESUR Contrast Medium Safety Committee guidelines.

    PubMed

    van der Molen, Aart J; Reimer, Peter; Dekkers, Ilona A; Bongartz, Georg; Bellin, Marie-France; Bertolotto, Michele; Clement, Olivier; Heinz-Peer, Gertraud; Stacul, Fulvio; Webb, Judith A W; Thomsen, Henrik S

    2018-07-01

    The Contrast Media Safety Committee (CMSC) of the European Society of Urogenital Radiology (ESUR) has updated its 2011 guidelines on the prevention of post-contrast acute kidney injury (PC-AKI). The results of the literature review and the recommendations based on it, which were used to prepare the new guidelines, are presented in two papers. AREAS COVERED IN PART 2: Topics reviewed include stratification of PC-AKI risk, the need to withdraw nephrotoxic medication, PC-AKI prophylaxis with hydration or drugs, the use of metformin in diabetic patients receiving contrast medium and the need to alter dialysis schedules in patients receiving contrast medium. • In CKD, hydration reduces the PC-AKI risk • Intravenous normal saline and intravenous sodium bicarbonate provide equally effective prophylaxis • No drugs have been consistently shown to reduce the risk of PC-AKI • Stop metformin from the time of contrast medium administration if eGFR < 30 ml/min/1.73 m 2 • Dialysis schedules need not change when intravascular contrast medium is given.

  8. Rubber dam application in endodontic practice: an update on critical educational and ethical dilemmas.

    PubMed

    Ahmed, H M A; Cohen, S; Lévy, G; Steier, L; Bukiet, F

    2014-12-01

    Proper isolation is an essential prerequisite for successful endodontic treatment. This article aims to provide an update on the prevalence of rubber dam (RD) use, and the role of education along with attitudes of general dental practitioners (GDPs) and patients towards the application of RD in endodontics. Critical ethical issues are also highlighted. Using certain keywords, an electronic search was conducted spanning the period from January 1983 to April 2013 to identify the available related investigations, and the pooled data were then analysed. The results show that although RD is the Standard of Care in endodontic practice, there is a clear discrepancy in what GDPs are taught in dental school and what they practice after graduation. There is little scientific evidence to support the application of RD; however, patient safety and clinical practice guidelines indicate that it is unnecessary and unethical to consider a cohort study to prove what is already universally agreed upon. A few clinical situations may require special management which should be highlighted in the current guidelines. This would pave the way for clear and straightforward universal guidelines. © 2014 Australian Dental Association.

  9. Interdisciplinary European Guidelines on Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery

    PubMed Central

    Fried, Martin; Yumuk, Volkan; Oppert, Jean-Michel; Scopinaro, Nicola; Torres, Antonio J.; Weiner, Rudolf; Yashkov, Yuri; Frühbeck, Gema

    2013-01-01

    In 2012, an outstanding expert panel derived from IFSO-EC (International Federation for the Surgery of Obesity - European Chapter) and EASO (European Association for the Study of Obesity), composed by key representatives of both Societies including past and present presidents together with EASO's OMTF (Obesity Management Task Force) chair, agreed to devote the joint Medico-Surgical Workshop of both institutions to the topic of metabolic surgery as a pre-satellite of the 2013 European Congress on Obesity (ECO) to be held in Liverpool given the extraordinarily advancement made specifically in this field during the past years. It was further agreed to revise and update the 2008 Interdisciplinary European Guidelines on Surgery of Severe Obesity produced in cooperation of both Societies by focusing in particular on the evidence gathered in relation to the effects on diabetes during this lustrum and the subsequent changes that have taken place in patient eligibility criteria. The expert panel composition allowed the coverage of key disciplines in the comprehensive management of obesity and obesity-associated diseases, aimed specifically at updating the clinical guidelines to reflect current knowledge, expertise and evidence-based data on metabolic and bariatric surgery. PMID:24135948

  10. Complex mixtures in industrial workspaces: lessons for indoor air quality evaluations.

    PubMed

    Lippy, B E; Turner, R W

    1991-11-01

    Acceptable occupational exposure levels for hundreds of airborne concentrations of dusts, vapors, fumes, and gases have been set by consensus organizations and regulatory bodies for decades. These levels have established tremendous precedent and are tempting reference values in the relatively new field of indoor air quality evaluations where validated criteria are greatly needed. The American Conference of Government Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH) has been the most visible and productive group setting these guidelines for industrial exposure. The ACGIH Chemical Substances Committee has published an annual list of threshold limit values (TLVs) for more than 40 years. Currently the list covers more than 400 substances. In 1989, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) published updated permissible exposure limits (PELs) for approximately 600 substances. Most PELs before this update were adopted from the 1968 ACGIH list of TLVs and consensus standards of the American Standards Association. This OSHA update has resulted in reductions of 212 PELs and the addition of 164 new levels. The magnitude of the problem of protecting workers can be seen by the small fraction that the OSHA PELs represent of the more than 60,000 entries in the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health's Registry of Toxic Effects of Chemical Substances. None of these levels, whether guidelines or regulatory requirements, are established based on any possible synergistic effect with other chemicals. The only guidance given by the ACGIH for synergistic effects is that such cases must be determined individually. Clearly, there are major drawbacks in using occupational standards and guidelines for evaluating the health effects of chemical agents that can be found in office settings, often in concentrations orders of magnitude less than what is routinely measured in the workplace. These guidelines are even less valuable when the concern is the complex mixing of chemicals in nonoccupational environments.

  11. Who's Who? Memory updating and character reference in children's narratives.

    PubMed

    Whitely, Cristy; Colozzo, Paola

    2013-10-01

    The capacity to update and monitor the contents of working memory is an executive function presumed to play a critical role in language processing. The current study used an individual differences approach to consider the relationship between memory updating and accurate reference to story characters in the narratives of typically developing children. English-speaking children from kindergarten to grade 2 ( N = 63; M age = 7.0 years) completed updating tasks, short-term memory tasks, and narrative productions. The authors used multiple regression to test whether updating accounted for independent variability in referential adequacy. The capacity to update working memory was related to adequate character reference beyond the effects of age and of short-term memory capacity, with the strongest relationship emerging for maintaining reference over multiple utterances. This individual differences study is the first to show a link between updating and performance in a discourse production task for young school-age children. The findings contribute to the growing body of research investigating the role of working memory in shaping language production. This study invites extension to children of different ages and language abilities as well as to other language production tasks.

  12. Guidelines for Physical Activity during Pregnancy: Comparisons From Around the World

    PubMed Central

    Evenson, Kelly R.; Barakat, Ruben; Brown, Wendy J.; Dargent-Molina, Patricia; Haruna, Megumi; Mikkelsen, Ellen M.; Mottola, Michelle F.; Owe, Katrine M.; Rousham, Emily K.; Yeo, SeonAe

    2013-01-01

    Introduction Women attain numerous benefits from physical activity during pregnancy. However, due to physical changes that occur during pregnancy, special precautions are also needed. This review summarizes current guidelines for physical activity among pregnant women worldwide. Methods We searched PubMed (MedLINE) for country-specific governmental and clinical guidelines on physical activity during pregnancy through the year 2012. We cross-referenced with articles referring to guidelines, with only the most recent included. An abstraction form was used to extract key details and summarize. Results In total, 11 guidelines were identified from nine countries (Australia, Canada, Denmark, France, Japan, Norway, Spain, United Kingdom, United States). Most guidelines supported moderate intensity physical activity during pregnancy (10/11) and indicated specific frequency (9/11) and duration/time (9/11) recommendations. Most guidelines provided advice on initiating an exercise program during pregnancy (10/11). Six guidelines included absolute and relative contraindications to exercise. All guidelines generally ruled-out sports with risks of falls, trauma, or collisions. Six guidelines included indications for stopping exercise during pregnancy. Conclusion This review contrasted pregnancy-related physical activity guidelines from around the world, and can help to inform new guidelines as they are created or updated, and facilitate the development of a worldwide guideline. PMID:25346651

  13. Cancer--Living with Cancer: MedlinePlus Health Topic

    MedlinePlus

    ... MedlinePlus GO GO About MedlinePlus Site Map FAQs Customer Support Health Topics Drugs & Supplements Videos & Tools Español ... our quality guidelines . About MedlinePlus Site Map FAQs Customer Support Get email updates Subscribe to RSS Follow ...

  14. Load ratings for secondary bridges.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    1991-05-01

    A load rating states the load in tons which a vehicle can impose on a bridge. : Changes in guidelines, standards, and customary uses of bridges require : analyses of bridges to be updated and re-evaluated. : In this report, twenty-two secondary bridg...

  15. An Update on Football Deaths and Catastrophic Injuries.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mueller, Frederick O.; Blyth, Carl S.

    1986-01-01

    The latest figures (1985) indicate a continued decline in football deaths and catastrophic injuries, which is credited to a ban on spearing and to a helmet standard. Guidelines for prevention of fatalities and injuries are listed. (Author/MT)

  16. Analysis of molecular subtypes for the increased HER2 equivocal cases caused by application of the updated 2013 ASCO/CAP HER2 testing guidelines in breast cancer.

    PubMed

    Guo, Lei; Yuan, Pei; Zhang, Jing; Ling, Yun; Li, Wenbin; Zhao, Bohui; Ying, Jianming; Xuan, Lixue

    2017-11-01

    Accurate testing of the status of human epidermal growth factor receptor type 2 (HER2) is a prerequisite for HER2-directed therapy. The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and the College of American Pathologists (CAP) published joint guideline recommendations for HER2 testing in breast cancer in 2007 and it was updated in 2013. We compared the HER2 gene amplification status based on these two guidelines and analyzed the molecular characteristics of the equivocal cases. A total of 1894 patient samples were analyzed for both immunohistochemistry (IHC) and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). HER2 FISH amplification was examined and re-assessed using 2013 guidelines. According to the 2013 ASCO/CAP recommendations, 763 (40.3%) cases were classified as HER2 positive compared with 729 (38.5%) cases defined by 2007 guidelines. There was a significant increase of 6.1% in the proportion of HER2 FISH equivocal cases that were interpreted using ASCO/CAP 2013 (7.3%) compared with 2007 (1.2%) guidelines (P < 0.001). Of 138 FISH equivocal cases defined by 2013 guidelines, 125 cases were IHC2+ and 13 cases were IHC1+. These 125 cases included 4 double equivocal cases which were defined as equivocal by both 2007 and 2013 guidelines and 121 cases whose status was changed from negative defined by 2007 guidelines to equivocal defined by 2013 guidelines. Compared with luminal A type and luminal B type respectively, these 121 equivocal cases demonstrated no significant difference with luminal B type in T stage and N stage (P = 0.192, P = 0.421). When we divided the luminal B type into two parts that included HER2 negative cases and HER2 positive cases, the equivocal cases also showed no significant difference with these two subtypes in T stage and N stage. Our study suggested that implementation of the revised ASCO/CAP 2013 guidelines resulted in an increase of 1.7% in overall HER2 positivity rate and of 6.1% in equivocal cases. Pathological analysis revealed that these equivocal cases exhibit similar biological behavior with luminal B type tumors. Clinical utility data on targeted therapy in equivocal patients should be further investigated.

  17. Physiotherapy in hip and knee osteoarthritis: development of a practice guideline concerning initial assessment, treatment and evaluation.

    PubMed

    Peter, W F; Jansen, M J; Hurkmans, E J; Bloo, H; Dekker, J; Dilling, R G; Hilberdink, W; Kersten-Smit, C; de Rooij, M; Veenhof, C; Vermeulen, H M; de Vos, R J; Schoones, J W; Vliet Vlieland, T P

    2011-01-01

    An update of a Dutch physiotherapy practice guideline in Hip and Knee Osteoarthritis (HKOA) was made, based on current evidence and best practice. A guideline steering committee, comprising 10 expert physiotherapists, selected topics concerning the guideline chapters: initial assessment, treatment and evaluation. With respect to treatment a systematic literature search was performed using various databases, and the evidence was graded (1-4). For the initial assessment and evaluation mainly review papers and textbooks were used. Based on evidence and expert opinion, recommendations were formulated. A first draft of the guideline was reviewed by 17 experts from different professional backgrounds. A second draft was field-tested by 45 physiotherapists. In total 11 topics were selected. For the initial assessment, three recommendations were formulated, pertaining to history taking, red flags, and formulating treatment goals. Concerning treatment, 7 recommendations were formulated; (supervised) exercise therapy, education and self management interventions, a combination of exercise and manual therapy, postoperative exercise therapy and taping of the patella were recommended. Balneotherapy and hydrotherapy in HKOA, and thermotherapy, TENS, and Continuous Passive Motion in knee OA were neither recommended nor discouraged. Massage therapy, ultrasound, electrotherapy, electromagnetic field, Low Level Laser Therapy, preoperative physiotherapy and education could not be recommended. For the evaluation of treatment goals the following measurement instruments were recommended: Lequesne index, Western Ontario and McMaster Universities osteoarthritis index, Hip disability and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score and Knee injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score, 6-minute walktest, Timed Up and Go test, Patient Specific Complaint list, Visual Analoge Scale for pain, Intermittent and Constant OsteoArthritis Pain Questionnaire, goniometry, Medical Research Council for strength, handheld dynamometer. This update of a Dutch physiotherapy practice guideline on HKOA included 11 recommendations on the initial assessment, treatment and evaluation. The implementation of the guideline in clinical practice needs further evaluation.

  18. Bologna guidelines for diagnosis and management of adhesive small bowel obstruction (ASBO): 2017 update of the evidence-based guidelines from the world society of emergency surgery ASBO working group.

    PubMed

    Ten Broek, Richard P G; Krielen, Pepijn; Di Saverio, Salomone; Coccolini, Federico; Biffl, Walter L; Ansaloni, Luca; Velmahos, George C; Sartelli, Massimo; Fraga, Gustavo P; Kelly, Michael D; Moore, Frederick A; Peitzman, Andrew B; Leppaniemi, Ari; Moore, Ernest E; Jeekel, Johannes; Kluger, Yoram; Sugrue, Michael; Balogh, Zsolt J; Bendinelli, Cino; Civil, Ian; Coimbra, Raul; De Moya, Mark; Ferrada, Paula; Inaba, Kenji; Ivatury, Rao; Latifi, Rifat; Kashuk, Jeffry L; Kirkpatrick, Andrew W; Maier, Ron; Rizoli, Sandro; Sakakushev, Boris; Scalea, Thomas; Søreide, Kjetil; Weber, Dieter; Wani, Imtiaz; Abu-Zidan, Fikri M; De'Angelis, Nicola; Piscioneri, Frank; Galante, Joseph M; Catena, Fausto; van Goor, Harry

    2018-01-01

    Adhesive small bowel obstruction (ASBO) is a common surgical emergency, causing high morbidity and even some mortality. The adhesions causing such bowel obstructions are typically the footprints of previous abdominal surgical procedures. The present paper presents a revised version of the Bologna guidelines to evidence-based diagnosis and treatment of ASBO. The working group has added paragraphs on prevention of ASBO and special patient groups. The guideline was written under the auspices of the World Society of Emergency Surgery by the ASBO working group. A systematic literature search was performed prior to the update of the guidelines to identify relevant new papers on epidemiology, diagnosis, and treatment of ASBO. Literature was critically appraised according to an evidence-based guideline development method. Final recommendations were approved by the workgroup, taking into account the level of evidence of the conclusion. Adhesion formation might be reduced by minimally invasive surgical techniques and the use of adhesion barriers. Non-operative treatment is effective in most patients with ASBO. Contraindications for non-operative treatment include peritonitis, strangulation, and ischemia. When the adhesive etiology of obstruction is unsure, or when contraindications for non-operative management might be present, CT is the diagnostic technique of choice. The principles of non-operative treatment are nil per os, naso-gastric, or long-tube decompression, and intravenous supplementation with fluids and electrolytes. When operative treatment is required, a laparoscopic approach may be beneficial for selected cases of simple ASBO.Younger patients have a higher lifetime risk for recurrent ASBO and might therefore benefit from application of adhesion barriers as both primary and secondary prevention. This guideline presents recommendations that can be used by surgeons who treat patients with ASBO. Scientific evidence for some aspects of ASBO management is scarce, in particular aspects relating to special patient groups. Results of a randomized trial of laparoscopic versus open surgery for ASBO are awaited.

  19. Updated evidence-based clinical practice guidelines for the diagnosis and management of melanoma: definitive excision margins for primary cutaneous melanoma.

    PubMed

    Sladden, Michael J; Nieweg, Omgo E; Howle, Julie; Coventry, Brendon J; Thompson, John F

    2018-02-19

    Definitive management of primary cutaneous melanoma consists of surgical excision of the melanoma with the aim of curing the patient. The melanoma is widely excised together with a safety margin of surrounding skin and subcutaneous tissue, after the diagnosis and Breslow thickness have been established by histological assessment of the initial excision biopsy specimen. Sentinel lymph node biopsy should be discussed for melanomas ≥ 1 mm thickness (≥ 0.8 mm if other high risk features) in which case lymphoscintigraphy must be performed before wider excision of the primary melanoma site. The 2008 evidence-based clinical practice guidelines for the management of melanoma (http://www.cancer.org.au/content/pdf/HealthProfessionals/ClinicalGuidelines/ClinicalPracticeGuidelines-ManagementofMelanoma.pdf) are currently being revised and updated in a staged process by a multidisciplinary working party established by Cancer Council Australia. The guidelines for definitive excision margins for primary melanomas have been revised as part of this process. Main recommendations: The recommendations for definitive wide local excision of primary cutaneous melanoma are: melanoma in situ: 5-10 mm margins invasive melanoma (pT1) ≤ 1.0 mm thick: 1 cm margins invasive melanoma (pT2) 1.01-2.00 mm thick: 1-2 cm margins invasive melanoma (pT3) 2.01-4.00 mm thick: 1-2 cm margins invasive melanoma (pT4) > 4.0 mm thick: 2 cm margins Changes in management as a result of the guideline: Based on currently available evidence, excision margins for invasive melanoma have been left unchanged compared with the 2008 guidelines. However, melanoma in situ should be excised with 5-10 mm margins, with the aim of achieving complete histological clearance. Minimum clearances from all margins should be assessed and stated. Consideration should be given to further excision if necessary; positive or close histological margins are unacceptable.

  20. Non-invasive electrical and magnetic stimulation of the brain, spinal cord, roots and peripheral nerves: Basic principles and procedures for routine clinical and research application. An updated report from an I.F.C.N. Committee.

    PubMed

    Rossini, P M; Burke, D; Chen, R; Cohen, L G; Daskalakis, Z; Di Iorio, R; Di Lazzaro, V; Ferreri, F; Fitzgerald, P B; George, M S; Hallett, M; Lefaucheur, J P; Langguth, B; Matsumoto, H; Miniussi, C; Nitsche, M A; Pascual-Leone, A; Paulus, W; Rossi, S; Rothwell, J C; Siebner, H R; Ugawa, Y; Walsh, V; Ziemann, U

    2015-06-01

    These guidelines provide an up-date of previous IFCN report on "Non-invasive electrical and magnetic stimulation of the brain, spinal cord and roots: basic principles and procedures for routine clinical application" (Rossini et al., 1994). A new Committee, composed of international experts, some of whom were in the panel of the 1994 "Report", was selected to produce a current state-of-the-art review of non-invasive stimulation both for clinical application and research in neuroscience. Since 1994, the international scientific community has seen a rapid increase in non-invasive brain stimulation in studying cognition, brain-behavior relationship and pathophysiology of various neurologic and psychiatric disorders. New paradigms of stimulation and new techniques have been developed. Furthermore, a large number of studies and clinical trials have demonstrated potential therapeutic applications of non-invasive brain stimulation, especially for TMS. Recent guidelines can be found in the literature covering specific aspects of non-invasive brain stimulation, such as safety (Rossi et al., 2009), methodology (Groppa et al., 2012) and therapeutic applications (Lefaucheur et al., 2014). This up-dated review covers theoretical, physiological and practical aspects of non-invasive stimulation of brain, spinal cord, nerve roots and peripheral nerves in the light of more updated knowledge, and include some recent extensions and developments. Copyright © 2015 International Federation of Clinical Neurophysiology. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Top