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Top Medical News
Analyses of data from two large, independent US cohorts show that a home blood pressure (BP) threshold of 130/80 mm Hg corresponds to the same value in clinic BP for stage 1 hypertension diagnosis (based on the 2017 ACC/AHA* guidelines), thus lending support to the use of home BP cutoff of 130/80 mm Hg for diagnosis of hypertension.
There appears to be no clear link between pornography use, even at problematic levels, and erectile dysfunction, a recent US study has shown.
Individuals with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis may reap better long-term improvements in the severity of their condition when treated with guselkumab over secukinumab, according to findings of the phase III ECLIPSE* trial presented at the recent Inflammatory Skin Disease Summit (ISDS 2018) held in Vienna, Austria.
In patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), anxiety is associated with reduced cognition function, a recent study has shown.
Physical activity confers a protective benefit against erosive oesophagitis, suggests a recent study.
Transdermal treatment appears to be the safest type of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) when assessing for the risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE), suggests a recent study. However, its use is much less frequent compared to oral preparations.
Young people who engage in “dual-harm” behaviour appear to have difficulties in self-control and are immersed in violence from a young age, a study has found. A treatment- rather than punishment-oriented approach is recommended to meet these individuals’ needs.
Special Reports
At the recent 34th Annual Congress of the Malaysian Society of Nephrology, Dr Kyriaki Stamatelou reviewed the role of alfacalcidol (One-Alpha®; LEO Pharma) – a vitamin D analogue – in the prevention and management of secondary hyperparathyroidism (SHPT) in chronic kidney disease (CKD).
International travellers have a potential for exposure to diseases outside their home countries and may carry nonendemic diseases between countries.1
Coronary artery disease (CAD) is a leading cause of mortality and morbidity globally and its burden is expected to increase due to the rising prevalence of risk factors such as hypertension, diabetes, and dyslipidaemia. In conjunction with the 23rd ASEAN Federation of Cardiology Congress held in Bangkok, Thailand, Menarini organized a lunch symposium and product theatre to discuss the significance of optimal medical therapy (OMT) in the management of stable CAD, with a focus on the role of ranolazine (Ranexa®).
At the 3rd National Pain Free Conference held at Putrajaya, Dr Ho Kok Yuen spoke on the role of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) in the management of osteoarthritis (OA) and important considerations when using NSAIDs, especially among patients with risk factors for NSAID toxicity.
At the 40th Malaysian Paediatric Association Annual Congress held on 6 September 2018 at the Ipoh Convention Centre, Dr Yong Junina Fadzil discussed the applications of a hexavalent vaccine in optimizing paediatric vaccination schedules. Meanwhile, Dato’ Dr Musa Mohd Nordin shared his insights into the paediatric influenza ‘landscape’ in the region and highlighted the importance of regularly vaccinating paediatric patients.
Despite risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD) being similar around the world, the burden of CVD is not uniform across nations. Furthermore, CVD-related death in low- to middle-income countries (LMICs) has increased by two-thirds in the last 30 years, and now account for a whopping 80% of global deaths due to CVD.
Poor adherence to statin therapy is leaving many patients with dyslipidaemia at high risk of potentially life-threatening cardiovascular events. Statins are the current standard of care for reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease in these patients and for improving life expectancy, with possible economic benefits for healthcare systems too. However, many patients with dyslipidaemia are not achieving or maintaining treatment targets because they fail to stick to their prescribed statin therapy. An article co-authored by lipidologist Peter Lansberg, and published in Vascular Health and Risk Management, considers this issue and reviews approaches to overcome non-adherence.
Conference Reports
Younger women with breast cancer who had a mastectomy demonstrated a worse quality of life (QoL) compared with those who underwent breast-conserving surgery (BCS), according to a study presented at SABCS 2018.
Women with metabolic syndrome who are diagnosed with early breast cancer may have poorer survival outcomes, according to a study from Italy presented as a poster at SABCS 2018.
Patients with symptomatic multiple myeloma (MM) following induction and conditioning therapy and autologous stem cell transplant (ASCT) may derive survival benefit from maintenance therapy with ixazomib, according to the phase III TOURMALINE-MM3* trial.
Switching from animal to plant-based proteins in one’s daily diet is linked to many benefits, one of which is the management of type 2 diabetes mellitus, says a researcher.
Type 2 diabetes is closely linked to obesity, which in turn, increases the risk for cardiovascular diseases (which includes mainly heart disease and stroke), muscle and bone diseases; and cancers. Obesity-related cancers include breast, endometrial, ovarian, colorectal, pancreatic, renal, liver and gallbladder cancer. [Lancet 2008;371(9612):569–578]
The addition of daratumumab to lenalidomide and dexamethasone improved progression-free survival (PFS) in patients newly diagnosed with multiple myeloma (MM) who were ineligible for a stem cell transplant, according to interim results of the phase III multinational MAIA* trial.
Use of a scalp cooling device is effective in reducing alopecia or hair loss in patients with breast cancer who are undergoing neoadjuvant/adjuvant chemotherapy including anthracyclines* and taxanes**, according to studies presented at SABCS 2018.
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