Use of beta-blocker helps achieve target heart rate level among patients in septic shock
2013-10-09
(Press-News.org) Andrea Morelli, M.D., of the University of Rome, Italy, and colleagues conducted a study to investigate the effect of the short-acting beta-blocker esmolol on the heart rate of patients with severe septic shock and high risk of death.
Septic shock is associated with adverse effects on cardiac function. Beta-blocker therapy controls heart rate and may improve cardiovascular performance, but concerns remain that this therapy may lead to cardiovascular decompensation (inability of the heart to maintain adequate circulation), according to background information in the article.
The randomized phase 2 study was conducted in a university hospital intensive care unit (ICU) between November 2010 and July 2012. It recruited patients in septic shock with a heart rate of 95/min or higher requiring high-dose norepinephrine to maintain an average arterial pressure of 65 mm Hg or higher. The researchers randomly assigned 77 patients to receive a continuous infusion of esmolol to maintain heart rate between 80 beats per minute (BPM) and 94 BPM for the duration of their ICU stay and 77 patients to standard treatment. The primary outcome was a reduction in heart rate below the predefined threshold of 95 BPM and maintain a heart rate between 80 and 94 BPM over a 96-hour period.
The researchers found that the target range for heart rate was achieved in all patients in the esmolol group, which was significantly lower throughout the intervention period than what was achieved in the control group. In addition, the esmolol group had a 28-day mortality rate of 49.4 percent vs. 80.5 percent in the control group. Overall survival was higher in the esmolol group.
There was no clinically relevant differences between groups in other investigated cardiopulmonary variables nor in rescue therapy requirements.
"Further investigation of the effects of esmolol on clinical outcomes is warranted," the authors write.
###
(doi:10.l001/jama.2013.278477; Available pre-embargo to the media at http://media.jamanetwork.com)
END
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
2013-10-09
Researchers working at the University of Saskatchewan have discovered new potential in prairie fruits, in particular, buffaloberry, chokecherry and sea buckthorn, according to a new study published today in the Canadian Journal of Plant Science. Findings showed that these fruits were nutrient-rich and that the potential food value is high. This is good news for fruit growers in Saskatchewan as these results add further credence to support the development of these fruits for commercial food markets.
"There is increasing interest in the commercial development of these ...
2013-10-09
The German Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG) analysed additional data on drugs from the group of gliptins. The drug manufacturers had subsequently submitted these data to the Federal Joint Committee (G-BA) in the commenting procedure. The Institute came to a different conclusion on the fixed combination of sitagliptin/metformin: As for the single agent sitagliptin before, there are now hints of an added benefit for this fixed combination. However, IQWiG still does not see any advantages of vildagliptin and the fixed combination of vildagliptin ...
2013-10-09
New York University chemists have discovered crystal growth complexities, which at first glance appeared to confound 50 years of theory and deepened the mystery of how organic crystals form. But, appearances can be deceiving.
Their findings, which appear in the latest edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, have a range of implications -- from the production of pharmaceuticals and new electronic materials to unraveling the pathways for kidney stone formation.
The researchers focused on L-cystine crystals, the chief component of a particularly nefarious ...
2013-10-09
This news release is available in German.
Jorg Massen (University of Vienna) and Sonja Koski (University of Zurich) together measured chimpanzee personality in two zoos with behavioural experiments and years of observations of chimpanzee behaviour. They also carefully logged which chimpanzee sat in body contact with whom most. "This is a clear sign of friendship among chimpanzees", explains Jorg Massen. Subsequently, the researchers tested, if those chimpanzees who sit together frequently have similar or different personality types.
"We found that, especially ...
2013-10-09
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Kindergarten-age children have poorer health if their home life is marked by disorder, noise and a lack of routine and they have a mother who has a chaotic work life, new research suggests.
The results show the importance of order and routine in helping preschoolers stay healthy and develop to the best of their potential, said Claire Kamp Dush, lead author of the study and assistant professor of human sciences at The Ohio State University.
"Children need to have order in their lives," Kamp Dush said. "When their life is chaotic and not predictable, ...
2013-10-09
In 2012 researchers from the German Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG) presented a study in the BMJ analysing information sources used in 16 health technology assessment (HTA) reports of drugs ("benefit assessments"). This study clearly demonstrated that publicly available sources, such as scientific journals and entries posted in trial registries ("registry reports"), contained far less information on methods and outcomes of clinical trials than non-public CSRs prepared by pharmaceutical companies.
In a second article published today in PLOS ...
2013-10-09
An international team of scientists—including researchers at GENYO, the Centre for Genomics and Oncological Research (Pfizer-University of Granada- Andalusian Regional Government)—has described a molecular mechanism that facilitates the defence of the human genome against "bombarding" by mobile DNA sequences. Abnormalities in the mechanism could be responsible for some symptoms of DiGeorge syndrome, a rare disease. The research could in the future help develop new therapies against the disease, which is caused by the microdeletion of a small part of chromosome 22.
The ...
2013-10-09
Researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden and their Danish colleagues have monitored HPV-vaccinated girls via patient data registries in order to examine the incidence of a wide range of diseases and thus determine if there are any serious adverse effects of the vaccine. Their results show no significant increase of the examined diseases in the vaccinated girls relative to their unvaccinated peers.
The study included almost a million Swedish and Danish girls born between 1988 and 2000, and compared roughly 300,000 girls who had been HPV vaccinated with 700,000 who ...
2013-10-09
PHILADELPHIA—Patients who received care at multiple HIV clinics—as opposed to only one— were less likely to take their medication and had higher HIV viral loads, a new study published in the journal AIDS and Behavior of almost 13,000 HIV patients in Philadelphia from Penn Medicine found. The findings reinforce the notion that continuous care with one provider/clinic is optimal for outcomes and even reducing transmissions, and can help cut down on duplicative HIV services that contribute to higher health care costs.
"It's about retention in care, but also continuity, ...
2013-10-09
HOUSTON – (Oct. 9, 2013) – With high-tech optical tools and sophisticated mathematics, Rice University researchers have found a way to pinpoint the location of specific sequences along single strands of DNA, a technique that could someday help diagnose genetic diseases.
Proof-of-concept experiments in the Rice lab of chemist Christy Landes identified DNA sequences as short as 50 nucleotides at room temperature, a feat she said is impossible with standard microscopes that cannot see targets that small, or electron microscopes that require targets to be in a vacuum or cryogenically ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
[Press-News.org] Use of beta-blocker helps achieve target heart rate level among patients in septic shock
