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Journal of Personalized Medicine May 2024ChatGPT is an advanced language model developed by OpenAI, designed for natural language understanding and generation. It employs deep learning technology to comprehend...
ChatGPT is an advanced language model developed by OpenAI, designed for natural language understanding and generation. It employs deep learning technology to comprehend and generate human-like text, making it versatile for various applications. The aim of this study is to assess the alignment between the Rhinology Board's indications and ChatGPT's recommendations for treating patients with chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps (CRSwNP) using biologic therapy. An observational cohort study involving 72 patients was conducted to evaluate various parameters of type 2 inflammation and assess the concordance in therapy choices between ChatGPT and the Rhinology Board. The observed results highlight the potential of Chat-GPT in guiding optimal biological therapy selection, with a concordance percentage = 68% and a Kappa coefficient = 0.69 (CI95% [0.50; 0.75]). In particular, the concordance was, respectively, 79.6% for dupilumab, 20% for mepolizumab, and 0% for omalizumab. This research represents a significant advancement in managing CRSwNP, addressing a condition lacking robust biomarkers. It provides valuable insights into the potential of AI, specifically ChatGPT, to assist otolaryngologists in determining the optimal biological therapy for personalized patient care. Our results demonstrate the need to implement the use of this tool to effectively aid clinicians.
PubMed: 38929784
DOI: 10.3390/jpm14060563 -
European Journal of Hospital Pharmacy :... Jun 2024In the Danish healthcare system, restructuring is an ongoing process to accommodate the rising number of patients and to optimise resource allocation. To ease...
OBJECTIVES
In the Danish healthcare system, restructuring is an ongoing process to accommodate the rising number of patients and to optimise resource allocation. To ease departmental burdens at hospitals in the North Denmark Region, outpatients are empowered to collect their cost-free medicines from medication pick-up lockers. The lockers function similarly to a package box, thereby enhancing patient freedom. Due to lack of evidence within the published literature regarding cost-free medicines and medicine waste, the aim of our study was to identify the common medications delivered to medicine pick-up lockers and secondly, to evaluate potential medicine waste.
METHODS
Data from ApoVision provided insights into medications delivered to medicine pick-up lockers from March to October 2023 in the North Denmark Region. To estimate unused medicines we obtained data on the number of medications returned from medicine pick-up lockers.
RESULTS
From 2020 to 2023, the number of patients receiving cost-free medicines at medication pick-up lockers increased. In total, approximately 30 000 packages of medicine were delivered to medicine pick-up lockers from March to October 2023 in the North Denmark Region; 1.7% were returned. Methotrexate, adalimumab, and omalizumab were among the most common deliveries and were also the three most returned from the medicine pick-up lockers.
CONCLUSIONS
This study is an initial attempt to investigate potential medicine waste in cost-free medicines dispensed to outpatients via pick-up lockers. Antineoplastic and immunomodulating agents were the most common medicines delivered to medication pick-up lockers in the North Denmark Region from March to October 2023. In this period, approximately 2% of all delivered medicine packages were returned to the hospital pharmacy. Our analysis solely focuses on waste associated with medications left uncollected from medicine pick-up lockers. Addressing the impact of medicine waste in a hospital setting requires a comprehensive approach, thus future studies should also focus on other sites relevant for medication waste as, for example, the patient's household.
PubMed: 38925908
DOI: 10.1136/ejhpharm-2024-004224 -
Actas Dermo-sifiliograficas Jun 2024
PubMed: 38925450
DOI: 10.1016/j.ad.2023.04.049 -
The Journal of Allergy and Clinical... Jun 2024Omalizumab is a newly FDA approved anti-IgE therapy for allergen agnostic treatment of single or multiple food allergies in patients ages >1 year.
BACKGROUND
Omalizumab is a newly FDA approved anti-IgE therapy for allergen agnostic treatment of single or multiple food allergies in patients ages >1 year.
OBJECTIVE
Evaluate the cost-effectiveness of omalizumab as a food allergy treatment.
METHODS
Health and economic outcomes were evaluated in Markov cohorts of simulated food allergic infants randomized to receive omalizumab using a 15-year time horizon. Monte Carlo simulation was used (n=40,000 subjects) to evaluate cost-effectiveness from a societal perspective, incorporating both a family-level and individual-level analysis. Family-level analysis was included to incorporate broad perspective for health utility change, given treatment effects likely benefit all parties at home (e.g., caregivers, siblings, spouses), not just the patient, representing the sum of changes in all such persons. Supplemental analyses explored lower omalizumab cost and home initiation. Deterministic and probabilistic sensitivity analyses were performed.
RESULTS
In the family-level cohort analysis, omalizumab exceeded cost-effectiveness thresholds ($185,183/QALY). Comparing the omalizumab strategy (OMA) to the non-omalizumab strategy (NOMA), the cost of OMA exceeded NOMA ($315,020 vs $136,609) with greater incremental effectiveness (12.668 QALY vs 11.699 QALY). In the individual-level analysis, the cost-effectiveness of OMA was $573,698/QALY. In base-case assessments, OMA was cost-effective (WTP, $100,000/QALY) at a health state utility improvement of 0.265. OMA's value-based cost ranged from $14,166-$23,791 when considered at the individual and family-unit levels. Requiring OMA administration in-clinic was not cost-effective (ICER, $260,239).
CONCLUSIONS
In the base-case and at current pricing, omalizumab is not cost-effective, but could be at a lower retail price or if use creates large health utility shifts in the family and patient.
PubMed: 38925250
DOI: 10.1016/j.jaip.2024.06.023 -
International Forum of Allergy &... Jun 2024CRSwNP-specific mean total annual spending ranged from $5,837 (EDS-FLU) to $28,058 (dupilumab). Most CRSwNP patients receiving biologics had comorbid asthma and did not...
CRSwNP-specific mean total annual spending ranged from $5,837 (EDS-FLU) to $28,058 (dupilumab). Most CRSwNP patients receiving biologics had comorbid asthma and did not undergo sinus surgery. While biologics were covered by most Medicare Part D plans, only 37% of plans covered EDS-FLU.
PubMed: 38923795
DOI: 10.1002/alr.23362 -
Allergy Jun 2024
PubMed: 38922945
DOI: 10.1111/all.16194 -
Pathophysiology : the Official Journal... May 2024Bronchial asthma (BA) continues to be a difficult disease to diagnose. Various factors have been described in the development of BA, but to date, there is no clear... (Review)
Review
Bronchial asthma (BA) continues to be a difficult disease to diagnose. Various factors have been described in the development of BA, but to date, there is no clear evidence for the etiology of this chronic disease. The emergence of COVID-19 has contributed to the pandemic course of asthma and immunologic features. However, there are no unambiguous data on asthma on the background and after COVID-19. There is correlation between various trigger factors that provoke the development of bronchial asthma. It is now obvious that the SARS-CoV-2 virus is one of the provoking factors. COVID-19 has affected the course of asthma. Currently, there is no clear understanding of whether asthma progresses during or after COVID-19 infection. According to the results of some studies, a significant difference was identified between the development of asthma in people after COVID-19. Mild asthma and moderate asthma do not increase the severity of COVID-19 infection. Nevertheless, oral steroid treatment and hospitalization for severe BA were associated with higher COVID-19 severity. The influence of SARS-CoV-2 infection is one of the protective factors. It causes the development of severe bronchial asthma. The accumulated experience with omalizumab in patients with severe asthma during COVID-19, who received omalizumab during the pandemic, has strongly suggested that continued treatment with omalizumab is safe and may help prevent the severe course of COVID-19. Targeted therapy for asthma with the use of omalizumab may also help to reduce severe asthma associated with COVID-19. However, further studies are needed to prove the effect of omalizumab. Data analysis should persist, based on the results of the course of asthma after COVID-19 with varying degrees of severity.
PubMed: 38921725
DOI: 10.3390/pathophysiology31020020 -
Current Opinion in Allergy and Clinical... Jun 2024Chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU) patients sometimes do not respond to second-generation antihistamine, and 10-50% patients do not even respond to four-fold the usual...
PURPOSE OF REVIEW
Chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU) patients sometimes do not respond to second-generation antihistamine, and 10-50% patients do not even respond to four-fold the usual dose of nonsedating H1 antihistamine, which further leads to repeated courses of oral corticosteroids to abate the symptoms. There are third-line agents approved by EAACI guidelines, which include omalizumab and cyclosporine. Certain patients are even resistant to the third-line agents. In this review, various other treatment options will be discussed in patients of refractory CSU.
RECENT FINDINGS
Recently, we demonstrated azathioprine as a possible third-line option, which was found noninferior to cyclosporine in antihistamine refractory CSU. There have been trials, studies, case series and reports, which suggest other putative options for refractory CSU management.
SUMMARY
Studies on the management of refractory CSU are accumulating thereby expanding the armamentarium of dermatologists and allergologist against difficult-to-treat urticaria patients.
PubMed: 38920335
DOI: 10.1097/ACI.0000000000001006 -
Allergy, Asthma & Immunology Research May 2024Severe asthma is associated with high morbidity and healthcare utilization; however, treatment options for these patients are limited. This study aimed to determine the...
PURPOSE
Severe asthma is associated with high morbidity and healthcare utilization; however, treatment options for these patients are limited. This study aimed to determine the therapeutic effects of biologics in clinical practice.
METHODS
This multicenter, retrospective cohort study included 136 patients who received biologics for at least 4 months between September 2017 and July 2022 at 25 medical centers affiliated with the Korean Severe Asthma Registry (KoSAR). The study evaluated the treatment effects, including acute exacerbation rates, maintenance of oral corticosteroid dosages, lung function, quality of life, blood eosinophil count, and fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) levels, by comparing measurements before and after 4 months of biologic treatment. Responses for each medication was evaluated based on the Global Evaluation of Treatment Effectiveness score, and any adverse reactions were summarized.
RESULTS
With the administration of biologics over the course of 4 months, there was a reduction in asthma acute exacerbations, a significant improvement in lung function, and a significant decrease in daily maintenance dose of oral steroid. Blood eosinophil counts decreased in the mepolizumab and reslizumab groups, while FeNO levels decreased only in the dupilumab group. The Asthma Control Test, Quality of Life Questionnaire for Adult Korean Asthmatics, and the EuroQol-visual analogue scale scores showed a significant improvement. Most patients (80.15%) responded to the biologic treatment. Meanwhile, non-responders often had chronic rhinosinusitis as a comorbidity, exhibited lower lung function, and required higher doses of oral steroids. No severe adverse events were reported.
CONCLUSIONS
Biologics are highly effective in Korean patients with Type 2 severe asthma, significantly reducing acute exacerbation rates and doses of oral corticosteroids, while also improving lung function. Therefore, it seems beneficial to administer biologics without any restrictions to patients exhibiting Type 2 severe asthma.
PubMed: 38910283
DOI: 10.4168/aair.2024.16.3.253 -
Atopic Dermatitis and IgE-Mediated Food Allergy: Common Biologic Targets for Therapy and Prevention.Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology... Jun 2024To highlight common mechanistic targets for the treatment of atopic dermatitis (AD) and IgE-mediated food allergy (IgE-FA) with potential to be effective for both... (Review)
Review
OBJECTIVE
To highlight common mechanistic targets for the treatment of atopic dermatitis (AD) and IgE-mediated food allergy (IgE-FA) with potential to be effective for both diseases and prevent atopic progression.
DATA SOURCES
PubMed searches or NCT-registered clinical trials related to AD, IgE-FA, and other atopic conditions, especially focused on the pediatric population.
STUDY SELECTIONS
Human seminal studies and/or articles published in the past decade were emphasized with reference to pre-clinical models when relevant. NCT-registered clinical trials were filtered by inclusion of pediatric subjects <18-years of age with special focus on children <12-years as a critical period when AD and IgE-FA diseases may often be concurrent.
RESULTS
AD and IgE-FA share several pathophysiologic features, including epithelial barrier dysfunction, innate and adaptive immune abnormalities, and microbial dysbiosis, which may be critical for the clinical progression between these diseases. Revolutionary advances in targeted biologic therapies have demonstrated the benefit of inhibiting type 2 immune responses, using dupilumab (anti-IL-4Rα) or omalizumab (anti-IgE), to potentially reduce symptom burden for both diseases in pediatric populations. While the potential for biologics to promote disease remission (AD) or sustained unresponsiveness (IgE-FA) remains unclear, the refinement of biomarkers to predict infants at risk for atopic disorders provides promise for prevention through timely intervention.
CONCLUSION
AD and IgE-FA exhibit common features that may be leveraged to develop biologic therapeutic strategies to treat both conditions and even prevent atopic progression. Future studies should be designed with consistent age-stratification in the pediatric population and standardized regimens of adjuvant oral immunotherapy or dose-escalation (IgE-FA) to improve cross-study interpretation.
PubMed: 38908432
DOI: 10.1016/j.anai.2024.06.020