In a recent study, it was found that two types of remineralising toothpastes show promising results in reducing dental sensitivity and periodontal indices and may be suitable for children with asthma and allergic rhinitis to use at home. This study’s findings were published in the European Journal of Paediatric Dentistry. 

For this study, a total of 40 patients between the ages of 6-14 years, who had enamel demineralisations, were included. Several indices were collected such as, Schiff air index (SAI), bleeding on probing (BoP), plaque index (PI), susceptibility index (SI), Basic Erosive Wear Examination (BEWE) for soft and hard tissues pathologies, salivary pH, and decayed missing filled teeth (DMFT). Following mechanical debridement with piezoelectric instrumentation and glycine powder, patients were evenly divided into two groups: group 1 used a zinc hydroxyapatite toothpaste, whereas group 2 used a calcium sodium phosphosilicate toothpaste. Both groups were instructed to use the toothpaste twice a day. The study was conducted over the following time frames: baseline (T0), after one month (T1), after three months (T2), and after six months (T3).

Significant intragroup differences from the beginning to the end of the study were observed for the variables PI, BOP, and SAI (p < 0.05). Upon analysing SI, group 1 exhibited significant intragroup variances when comparing each time frame with T3 (p < 0.05). 

It can be concluded that the two remineralising toothpastes significantly reduce dental sensitivity and periodontal indices, suggesting that they may be suitable for children with asthma and allergic rhinitis to use at home.

Recent research indicates that dialysis-dependent patients with anemia exhibited a substantial increase in serum hemoglobin and total iron binding capacity (TIBC), along with a decrease in serum ferritin, following the administration of daprodustat, in a manner that depended on the dosage. This study’s findings were published in The Pan African Medical Journal.

A systemic search of the databases PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Cochrane was conducted. Seven distinct trials were ultimately selected for systematic review, with six of them involving a total of 759 patients included in the network meta-analysis (NMA).

The administration of daprodustat 25-30 mg resulted in the largest change in serum hemoglobin (MD=1.86, 95% confidence interval = [1.20; 2.52]), ferritin (MD= -180.84, 95% confidence interval = [-264.47; -97.20]), and total iron binding capacity (TIBC) (MD=11.03, 95% confidence interval = [3.15; 18.92]) from initial values.

It can be concluded that the administration of daprodustat resulted in a marked elevation in serum hemoglobin and total iron binding capacity (TIBC), and a reduction in serum ferritin among dialysis-dependent individuals with anemia, in a manner that depended on the dosage.

The combination of omalizumab and allergen immunotherapy (AIT) can effectively enhance the overall efficacy and safety of AIT by increasing the target maintenance dose (TMD) and the sustained unresponsiveness (SU), while also lowering the risk of severe systemic adverse effects. The findings of the study have been published in the International Forum of Allergy & Rhinology.

The Cochrane Library, MEDLINE/PubMed, Scopus, and Embase databases were thoroughly examined to identify randomized controlled trials that investigated the effects of omalizumab combined with allergen immunotherapy in comparison to allergen immunotherapy by itself. To estimate the outcomes, a random-effects model was established with a 95% confidence interval.

Eleven eligible randomized controlled trials, involving a total of nine hundred and one patients, were included in the meta-analysis. The results of the pooled analysis indicated that the combination of omalizumab and AIT significantly improved the count of patients achieving the TMD and SU to allergens, with odds ratios (OR) of 2.43 (95% confidence interval: 1.33-4.44; p value = 0.004; I² = 35%) for TMD and odds ratio of 6.77 (95% confidence interval: 2.10-21.80; p value = 0.001; I² = 36%) for SU. In addition, patients receiving the combination therapy reported a significantly lower incidence of severe systemic adverse events compared to those treated with AIT alone, with an odds ratio of 0.32 (95% confidence interval: 0.18-0.59; p value = 0.0003; I² = 0%). Additionally, improvements in daily rescue medication scores (mean difference [MD] = -0.14), symptom severity score (MD = -0.26), and the incidence of epinephrine use in AIT (odds ratio = 0.20) were considerably more apparent than those in allergen immunotherapy by itself.

The above study showed that the use of omalizumab alongside allergen immunotherapy can substantially boost the efficacy and safety of AIT. This combination allows for an increase in the TMD and SU, while also decreasing the chances of experiencing severe systemic adverse effects.

A recent study suggests that tremelimumab plus durvalumab and chemotherapy improved patient reported outcomes in metastatic non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The findings of this study were published in the journal, Lung Cancer.

This phase 3 POSEIDON study included 972 patients randomized 1:1:1 to receive tremelimumab plus durvalumab and chemotherapy, durvalumab plus chemotherapy, or chemotherapy alone. The European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer 30-item core quality of life questionnaire version 3 (QLQ-C30) and its 13-item lung cancer module (QLQ-LC13) were used to evaluate the PROs (prespecified secondary endpoints). The time to deterioration (TTD) of symptoms, functioning, and global health status/quality of life (QoL) from randomization were analyzed through the log-rank test, while the improvement rates were analyzed using logistic regression.

At the end of the study, it was shown that patients who received tremelimumab plus durvalumab and chemotherapy had longer median TTD for all PRO items compared to chemotherapy alone. Hazard ratios for TTD favored tremelimumab plus durvalumab and chemotherapy for all items except diarrhea and durvalumab plus chemotherapy favored for all items except nausea/vomiting and diarrhea. It was also observed that improvement rates in all PRO items were numerically higher for both immunotherapy plus chemotherapy arms compared to the chemotherapy arm alone.

Based on the above findings, it can be concluded that tremelimumab plus durvalumab and chemotherapy delayed worsening in symptoms, functioning, and overall health status/quality of life when compared to chemotherapy alone. Additionally, this treatment approach demonstrated significant improvements in survival. Consequently, these findings provide strong evidence for considering tremelimumab plus durvalumab and chemotherapy as a viable first-line treatment option for individuals with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer.