Sex disparity in the in-hospital outcomes of patients with kidney disease admitted for myocardial infarction: Insights from a large national database.

BACKGROUND: There is limited evidence as to the effect of sex on the outcomes of patients admitted for ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) who have a concomitant diagnosis of chronic kidney disease (CKD) and end-stage renal disease (ESRD). We aimed to determine if there are differences in the outcomes between males and females in these patient populations. METHODS: Data was obtained from the National Inpatient Sample (NIS) database and patients were selected using the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth and Tenth Revision (ICD-9 and 10) codes. Hospitalizations for patients with CKD who had STEMI from 2012-2020 were included. The primary outcome of interest was in-hospital mortality. Secondary outcomes evaluated included ischemic stroke, major bleeding complications, pressor requirement, permanent pacemaker implantation, percutaneous coronary intervention, coronary artery bypass grafting, surgery, pericardiocentesis, mechanical circulatory support, and mechanical ventilation. RESULTS: A total of 1,283,255 STEMI patients without CKD, 158,715 STEMI patients with CKD, and 22,690 STEMI patients with ESRD were identified and analyzed. Among patients with STEMI and CKD, females demonstrated higher in-hospital mortality compared to male counterparts (16.7% vs 12.7%, aOR=1.13, 95% CI: 1.05-1.21, p<0.01). While there was no sex difference in the in-hospital mortality among STEMI patients with ESRD, female patients in this group were less likely to receive coronary artery bypass grafting and mechanical circulatory support. CONCLUSION: Increased in-hospital mortality rates were shown for females admitted for STEMI with CKD. Among patients with ESRD who had STEMI, females were less likely to receive coronary artery bypass grafting and mechanical circulatory support. Further research needs to be conducted to better explain this said difference in outcomes.

Evaluating the safety profile of semaglutide: an updated meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Semaglutide is increasingly used in the management of type 2 diabetes mellitus and obesity. Ensuring the safety of this medication is crucial for its clinical use. This meta-analysis evaluates the safety profile of semaglutide across patient populations and treatment durations. METHODS: Randomized controlled trials assessing the safety of semaglutide vs. placebo, with specified treatment durations were identified. The primary outcome was occurrence of any cardiovascular adverse events. Secondary outcomes included sudden cardiac death, adverse events leading to death, adverse events, gastrointestinal side effects, occurrence of hypoglycemia, and new-onset neoplasm. RESULTS: A total of 23 studies met the inclusion criteria with a combined sample size of 57,911 participants. The meta-analysis revealed that the adverse event associated with semaglutide is gastrointestinal in nature (nausea and vomiting). No significant differences were observed between semaglutide and comparator groups. CONCLUSION: Semaglutide appears to have a favorable safety profile across diverse patient populations and treatment durations, supporting its continued use in the management of type 2 diabetes mellitus and obesity. It is generally well-tolerated, with a low incidence of adverse events. Clinicians should be aware of these findings and monitor patients accordingly. Further long-term studies are warranted to assess the safety of semaglutide in clinical practice.

Palliative and Supportive Care in the Philippines: Systems, Barriers, and Steps Forward.

Although integral to alleviating serious health-related suffering, global palliative care remains systemically and culturally inaccessible to many patients living in low- and middle-income countries. In the Philippines, a lower-middle income country in Southeast Asia of over 110 million people, up to 75% of patients with cancer suffer from inadequate pain relief. We reviewed factors that preclude access to basic palliative care services in the Philippines. PubMed and Google Scholar were searched thoroughly; search terms included but were not limited to "palliative care," "supportive care," "end-of-life care," and "Philippines." We found that a limited palliative care workforce, high out-of-pocket healthcare costs, and low opioid availability all hinder access to palliative care in the archipelago. Religious fatalism, strong family-orientedness, and physician reluctance to refer to palliative care providers represent contributory sociocultural factors. Efforts to improve palliative care accessibility in the country must address health systems barriers while encouraging clinicians to discuss end-of-life options in a timely manner that integrates patients' unique individual, familial, and spiritual values. Research is needed to elucidate how Filipinos-and other global populations-view end-of-life, and how palliative care strategies can be individualised accordingly.

End-Of-Life Care for Patients With End-Stage Heart Failure, Comparisons of International Guidelines.

Heart failure (HF) is a chronic, debilitating condition associated with significant morbidity, mortality, and socioeconomic burden. Patients with end-stage HF (ESHF) who are not a candidate for advanced therapies will continue to progress despite standard medical therapy. Thus, the focus of care shifts from prolonging life to controlling symptoms and improving quality of life through palliative care (PC). Because the condition and prognosis of HF patients evolve and can rapidly deteriorate, it is imperative to begin the discussion on end-of-life (EOL) issues early during HF management. These include the completion of an advance directive, do-not-resuscitate orders, and policies on device therapy and discontinuation as part of advance care planning (ACP). ESHF patients who do not have indications for advanced therapies or those who wish not to have a left ventricular assist device (LVAD) or heart transplant (HT) often experience high symptom burden despite adequate medical management. The proper identification and assessment of symptoms such as pain, dyspnea, nausea, depression, and anxiety are essential to the management of ESHF and may be underdiagnosed and undertreated. Psychological support and spiritual care are also crucial to improving the quality of life during EOL. Caregivers of ESHF patients must also be provided supportive care to prevent compassion fatigue and improve resilience in patient care. In this narrative review, we compare the international guidelines and provide an overview of end-of-life and palliative care for patients with ESHF.