Effect of oral D-tagatose on liver volume and hepatic glycogen accumulation in healthy male volunteers.

Standard toxicity tests with high levels of D-tagatose showed a reversible enlargement of the liver in Sprague-Dawley rats without increase of liver enzymes. The present study tests the hypotheses that partial substitution of dietary sucrose by D-tagatose for 28 days increases the volume of human liver and the concentration of liver glycogen. Twelve healthy, male volunteers were studied in a double-blind crossover study with ingestion of D-tagatose (3x15 g daily) and placebo (sucrose, 3x15 g daily) for periods of 28 days each. Liver volume and glycogen concentration have been determined by magnetic resonance (MR) imaging and spectroscopy, which were accompanied by routine medical examinations. MR examinations before and after the treatments revealed no effects (P>0.05) of treatment, period, or subject for changes in liver volume or glycogen concentration. A steady increase of liver volumes, independent of the D-tagatose or placebo intake, has been observed over the study in parallel with a slight increase in body weight. The treatment with D-tagatose was not associated with clinically relevant changes of the examined clinico-chemical and hematological parameters, including liver enzymes and uric acid.

Colorectal cancer screening in Massachusetts: measuring compliance with current guidelines.

CONTEXT: Professional organizations have published guidelines for colorectal cancer screening. Defining which patients are currently, or should be, screened is an important clinical and public health issue. OBJECTIVE: To document the prevalence of colorectal cancer screening and profile the tests patients have had. DESIGN/POPULATION: A random-digit telephone survey of Massachusetts adults, 50 years of age and older. OUTCOME MEASURES: Percentage of persons ever and currently tested by fecal occult blood tests, flexible sigmoidoscopy, barium enema, colonoscopy, or some combination of these tests. RESULTS: Sixty-five percent of those contacted agreed to the telephone interview. Approximately 29% of the 1119 respondents had never had any currently accepted test, including 10% who reported having only a fecal occult blood test done in a provider's office and 19% who reported having no tests. At least 51% were currently tested by one or more tests for screening, diagnosis, or both. Another 10% were possibly current by colonoscopy or barium enema, both of which can be ordered for screening but are more commonly used to evaluate a problem, such as rectal bleeding, or for surveillance after identification of a polyp or other abnormality. An additional 11% had been tested at some point but were not current according to guidelines. CONCLUSIONS: Accurate assessment of rates of colorectal cancer screening is complex because of the multiple acceptable screening methods, the fact that patients may be tested for screening or diagnostic purposes, and the lack of adequate systems for tracking such testing. For accurate measurement, all methods must be assessed regardless of whether tests were ordered for screening, diagnosis, or surveillance.

Initiation of warfarin therapy: recommendations and clinical pearls.

Warfarin is a commonly used medication with a narrow therapeutic index. The initiation of warfarin requires consideration of a variety of factors, which include reviewing the indications and contraindications for this agent, performing a thorough clinical assessment along with a risk-benefit analysis for anticoagulation, consideration of warfarin pharmacology, developing strategies to monitor the intensity of anticoagulation and for the detection of adverse events, and education of the patient. The process of warfarin initiation has been studied by many researchers, but much of this literature has not been employed in clinical practice. This article presents a strategy for the clinician to use when initiating patients on warfarin.

Risk for valvular heart disease among users of fenfluramine and dexfenfluramine who underwent echocardiography before use of medication.

BACKGROUND: Because uncontrolled echocardiographic surveys suggested that up to 30% to 38% of users of fenfluramine and dexfenfluramine had valvular disease, these drugs were withdrawn from the market. OBJECTIVE: To determine the risk for new or worsening valvular abnormalities among users of fenfluramine or dexfenfluramine who underwent echocardiography before they began to take these medications. DESIGN: Cohort study. SETTING: Academic primary care practices. PATIENTS: 46 patients who used fenfluramine or dexfenfluramine for 14 days or more and had echocardiograms obtained before therapy. MEASUREMENTS: Follow-up echocardiography. The primary outcome was new or worsening valvulopathy, defined as progression of either aortic or mitral regurgitation by at least one degree of severity and disease that met U.S. Food and Drug Administration criteria (at least mild aortic regurgitation or moderate mitral regurgitation). RESULTS: Two patients (4.3% [95% CI, 0.6% to 14.8%]) receiving fenfluramine-phentermine developed valvular heart disease. One had baseline bicuspid aortic valve and mild aortic regurgitation that progressed to moderate regurgitation. The second patient developed new moderate aortic insufficiency. CONCLUSION: Users of diet medications are at risk for valvular heart disease. However, the incidence may be lower than that reported previously.

Innovations in patient care: changing clinical practice and improving quality.

BACKGROUND: In the traditional hospital organization, administrators supply the resources while physicians determine their use. Given this dichotomy, a partnership between clinicians and hospital management is essential for efforts to enhance the quality of care while controlling costs. To foster this partnership, in 1986 the University of Rochester's Strong Memorial Hospital developed its Innovations in Patient Care (IPC) program, which several other medical centers have duplicated. CURRENT STATUS AND LOGISTICS: Hospital operating revenues of approximately $175,000 per year are provided to both fund proposals and support core IPC staff. Clinical staff submit proposals to study innovations to promote higher quality care and/or the efficient and appropriate use of diagnostic and therapeutic services. Many of the 77 projects funded to date have led to important changes in clinical practice. CASE STUDIES: One study, whose principal investigator was assistant director of emergency medicine, showed that structured, condition-specific (for example, asthma, pharyngitis, lacerations, and isolated closed-head injury) quicksheets improved documentation of clinical findings, resource use, and clinical practice. A study organized by the leadership of surgical nursing revealed that a nursing case management model led to reductions in patient length of stay and increases in nurse satisfaction. Another study, designed by a fellow in neonatalogy, developed and tested guidelines for the use of head ultrasounds in screening very-low-birthweight infants for intraventricular hemorrhage. CONCLUSIONS: IPC programs, which integrate well with initiatives in total quality management, can be effectively used to change clinical practice and improve the quality and efficiency of patient care.

Routine use of the prothrombin and partial thromboplastin times.

The prothrombin time (PT) and activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT) tests are often routinely ordered for hospitalized patients. Ordering patterns and clinical indications for the PT and APTT tests on the medical service at a teaching hospital were studied. Eighty-one percent of all patients admitted to the medical service had a PT and APTT test ordered. When compared with a modified version of guidelines for the use of the PT and APTT tests recently developed by the Medical Necessity Project of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Associations of America and endorsed by the American College of Physicians, at least 70% of these tests were not clinically indicated. Many of the unindicated tests were ordered prior to invasive procedures or, apparently, out of habit. These inappropriate PT and APTT tests cost at least $60,948 per year for the medical service. Based on these findings, we suggest methods of reducing the inappropriate use of the PT and APTT tests.

Kaposi's sarcoma in an elderly man with Wegener's granulomatosis treated with cyclophosphamide and corticosteroids.

The association of Kaposi's sarcoma with malignant lymphoreticular diseases and immunosuppressive therapy is well documented. This report describes an elderly man who presented with fulminant Wegener's granulomatosis that responded to treatment with cyclophosphamide and corticosteroids. Rapidly progressing cutaneous Kaposi's sarcoma developed ten weeks after the start of immunosuppressive therapy yet regressed on discontinuation of the corticosteroid therapy, despite continuation of cyclophosphamide therapy. To our knowledge, this is the first reported case of Kaposi's sarcoma occurring in association with Wegener's granulomatosis. The literature on Kaposi's sarcoma in immunosuppressed patients is reviewed.