ABSTRACT
Drug induced cardiac tamponade is rare. Therapy for imatinib resistant Chronic Myeloid Leukaemia (CML) is an emerging challenge in clinical haematology. For such cases treatment with second line tyrosine kinase inhibitors like dasatinib has resulted in improved outcomes. Dasatinib is a second line BCR-ABL tyrosine kinase inhibitor used in the treatment of Imatinib resistant or Imatinib intolerant CML. Dasatinib has been reported to cause severe pericardial effusions in 1% of all patients in clinical studies. We report here a case of Dasatinib induced cardiac tamponade in whom all other causes of pericardial effusion were excluded and whose clinical symptoms as well as effusion showed no recurrence one month after the drug was stopped.
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES: Statins by their anti-inflammatory and endothelial stabilizing effect can be beneficial in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and pulmonary hypertension (PH). The present study was done to evaluate the effect of rosuvastatin on pulmonary functions and quality of life (QOL) in patients with concomitant COPD and PH. MATERIALS AND METHODS: It was a prospective, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, study conducted in patients with COPD and PH. A total of sixty patients were assigned to receive either rosuvastatin 10 mg or placebo once a day in addition to their conventional treatment for 12 weeks. Routine blood investigations, pulmonary functions, echocardiogram, exercise capacity, and QOL using a questionnaire were assessed at the baseline and after 12 weeks. RESULTS: In patients of rosuvastatin group, there was a statistically significant increase in peak expiratory flow rate (PEFR) (P = 0.04) but no significant change in other pulmonary functions: Forced vital capacity (FVC), forced expiratory volume at 1 s (FVC, FEV1, FEV1/FVC), and echocardiogram parameters. There was a significant increase in 6-min walk test (6-min walk distance) (P = 0.03) at the end of 12 weeks. On comparing with placebo, rosuvastatin showed a significant reduction (P = 0.045) in COPD exacerbations while adverse effects did not differ. CONCLUSION: Statins have a favorable effect on patients with COPD and PH regarding the improvement in PEFR, COPD exacerbations, and exercise capacity. Such effects can be beneficial in these patients and more so in patients with concomitant coronary artery disease or hyperlipidemia where long-term benefits of statins have been established.
Subject(s)
Anti-Inflammatory Agents/therapeutic use , Hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase Inhibitors/therapeutic use , Hypertension, Pulmonary/drug therapy , Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive/drug therapy , Rosuvastatin Calcium/therapeutic use , Aged , Double-Blind Method , Echocardiography/drug effects , Female , Forced Expiratory Volume/drug effects , Humans , Hypertension, Pulmonary/physiopathology , Male , Middle Aged , Peak Expiratory Flow Rate/drug effects , Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive/physiopathology , Quality of Life , Treatment Outcome , Vital Capacity/drug effects , WalkingABSTRACT
BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVES: Child-Pugh score (CPS) is a widely used prognostic marker in cases of cirrhosis and pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). However, the role of this score in the quantification of severity of PAH is not well studied. In mild cases, echocardiography is more sensitive. This study was done to assess the association between echocardiography and severity of cirrhosis using CPS. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was done from April to June 2014 in 42 patients with cirrhosis using a pre-tested semi-structured interview schedule. RESULTS: There was no significant association between echocardiographic changes and CPS in patients with liver cirrhosis. INTERPRETATION & CONCLUSIONS: Advising an echocardiographic evaluation may prove beneficial in patients of Child-Pugh Grades B and C. However, more extensive studies are required to confirm the same.
