The Different Cardiovascular Outcomes Between Long-Term Efficacy of Hydrophilic and Lipophilic Statin Therapy in Both Asian Diabetic Sexes.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the long-term efficacy of hydrophilic and lipophilic statin therapy for cardiovascular outcomes in Asian diabetic patients. METHOD: Newly diagnosed cases of type 2 diabetes during the period from January 2000 to December 2011 were divided into 2 cohorts on the basis of their statin use, namely hydrophilic statin and lipophilic statin. We used Cox proportional hazard regression models to analyze the risks of cardiovascular outcomes. RESULT: In this study, 12 896 patients used statin, including 4259 patients using hydrophilic statin and 8637 patients using lipophilic statin. With 12-year follow-up, higher incidence rate of coronary artery disease and stroke was noted in the lipophilic statin use instead of hydrophilic statin use. CONCLUSION: According to our long-term cohort study, hydrophilic statin use may be a better choice than lipophilic statin to reduce cardiovascular events in Asian diabetic patients.

Association between Dipeptidyl Peptidase-4 Inhibitors and Allergic Rhinitis in Asian Patients with Diabetes.

In this retrospective study, we attempted to evaluate the association between dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitors and allergic rhinitis in patients with diabetes. We analyzed the Longitudinal Health Insurance Database 2000 subdatabase. Our study population included patients with type 2 diabetes (ICD-9-CM 250) between 2009 and 2012, and the study groups were DPP-4 inhibitor users and nonusers. Propensity scores were estimated in a multivariable logistic regression model for the analysis of allergic rhinitis (ICD-9-CM 477.9). Each group consisted of 6204 patients. DPP-4 inhibitor users had a reduced risk of allergic rhinitis (aHR = 0.74, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.61-0.90) in all stratifications. Among women, DPP-4 inhibitor users had a lower risk of allergic rhinitis (aHR = 0.67, 95% CI = 0.50-0.90). Among patients aged older than 40 years, DPP-4 inhibitor users had a decreased risk of allergic rhinitis (those aged 40-59: aHR = 0.75, 95% CI = 0.56-0.99; those aged ≧60: aHR = 0.73, 95% CI = 0.54-0.97). Among patients with comorbidities, the risk of allergic rhinitis for DPP-4 inhibitor users was 0.73 (95% CI = 0.60-0.90). High-dose (cumulative defined daily dose ≧648mg) DPP-4 inhibitor users had a decreased risk of allergic rhinitis (aHR = 0.23, 95% CI = 0.15-0.35). Our study revealed that Asian patients with diabetes who used DPP-4 inhibitors had decreased risk of allergic rhinitis, especially for DPP-4 inhibitor treatment in patients who were women, were older than 40 years, had higher diabetes severity scores, were taking higher doses of DPP-4 inhibitors, and had diabetes with comorbidities.

Association of Tramadol and Hypoglycemia in Diabetic Asians.

To evaluate the association between tramadol and hypoglycemia in diabetic Asians. The data adopted in this study were derived from a subset of the National Health Insurance (NHI) Research Database, which comprises data on one million randomly sampled beneficiaries enrolled in the NHI program. Patients diagnosed with diabetes (according to the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification code 250) were identified from claims data between 1998 and 2011. Diabetic patients aged 20 years or older and prescribed tramadol constituted the tramadol group and other diabetic patients without tramadol use constituted the non-tramadol group. For each tramadol case, one non-tramadol control frequency matched according to age (every 5 years), sex and the year of tramadol use was identified. The tramadol group comprised 12,446 patients and non-tramadol group comprised 11,982 patients. During a mean follow-up of 2 years for the patients in the tramadol group and 2.79 years for those in the non-tramadol group, the overall incidences of hypoglycemia (per 1000 person-years) were 7.37 and 3.77, respectively. According to the multivariable analyses, after baseline characteristics were controlled, the tramadol group exhibited a significantly greater risk of hypoglycemia (hazard ratio (HR) = 1.34, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.05⁻1.71) compared with the non-tramadol group. Tramadol use increases hypoglycemia in diabetic Asians. Greater attention must be paid to diabetic Asians with tramadol use.

Minimally invasive endoscope-assisted trans-oral excision of huge parapharyngeal space tumors.

Parapharyngeal space tumors are rare head and neck neoplasms, and most are benign lesions. Complete excision of these tumors is difficult because of the complexity of the surrounding anatomic structures. The algorithm for excision of these tumors is typically based on the tumor's characteristics; excision is performed via approaches such as the trans-oral route, the trans-cervical route, and even a combination of the trans-parotid route and mandibulotomy. However, each of these approaches is associated with some complications. Endoscope-assisted minimally invasive surgery is being increasingly employed for surgeries in the head and neck regions. It has the advantage of leaving no facial scars, and ensures better patient comfort after the operation. Here, we report the use of endoscope-assisted trans-oral surgery for excision of parapharyngeal space tumors. The technique yields an excellent outcome and should be a feasible, safe, and economic method for these patients.