Comparison of Five TSH-Receptor Antibody Assays in Graves' disease: results from an observational pilot study.

BACKGROUND: Early diagnosis and relapse prediction in Graves' disease influences treatment. We assessed the abilities of four TSH-receptor antibody tests [TRAb] and one cyclic adenosine monophosphate bioassay to predict relapse of Graves' disease. METHODS: Observational study investigating patients presenting with Graves' disease at a Swiss hospital endocrine referral center or an endocrine outpatient clinic. Main outcomes were diagnosis and relapse of Graves' disease after stop of anti-thyroid drugs. We used Cox regression to study associations of TRAb levels with relapse risk and calculated c-statistics [AUC] to assess discrimination. Blood draws took place as close as possible to treatment initiation. RESULTS: AUCs ranged from 0.90 (TSAb Biossay by RSR) to 0.97 (IMMULITE TSI by Siemens). Highest sensitivity (94.0%) was observed for IMMULITE TSI and RSR TRAb Fast, while the greatest specificity (97.9%) was found with the EliA anti-TSH-R (by Thermo Fisher). In Cox regression analysis comparing the highest versus the lower quartiles, the highest hazard ratio [HR] for relapse was found for BRAHMS TRAK (by Thermo Fisher) (2.98, 95% CI 1.13-7.84), IMMULITE TSI (2.40, 95% CI 0.91-6.35), EliA anti-TSH-R (2.05, 95% CI 0.82-5.10), RSR Fast TRAb (1.80, 95% CI 0.73-4.43), followed by RSR STIMULATION (1.18, 95% CI 0.46-2.99). Discrimination analyses showed respective AUCs of 0.68, 0.65, 0.64, 0.64, and 0.59. CONCLUSION: The assays tested had good diagnostic power and relapse risk prediction with few differences among the new assays. Due to the small sample size and retrospective design with possible selection bias, our data need prospective validation.

[Imaging for Non-Specific Low Back Pain According to 'Smarter Medicine' - a Survey from Three General Practices]. / Bildgebung der Lendenwirbelsäule bei unspezifischen Rückenschmerzen im Sinne von «Smarter Medicine¼ ­ ein Erfahrungsbericht aus drei Hausarztpraxen.

Imaging for Non-Specific Low Back Pain According to 'Smarter Medicine' - a Survey from Three General Practices Abstract. We examined how the recommendation of "smarter medicine"/Switzerland for diagnostic imaging of nonspecific lumbar back pain is implemented in three general practices. METHOD: Retrospective analysis of 228 conventional X-ray images of the lumbar spine from three general practices. RESULTS: Overall, about 75 % of the X-rays performed within six weeks after onset of pain were consistent with "smarter medicine" recommendations. Unsatisfactory pain improvement despite analgesics and/or physiotherapy was the most common reason for non-indicated (36.6 %), red flags [trauma (33.3 %), malignancy (19.5 %), osteoporosis (14.9 %)] for indicated (64.4 %) examinations. Per ten years of age, the probability of a non-indicated radiograph decreased by 20 % (p = 0.003). CONCLUSION: Three out of four conventional X-ray images of the lumbar spine were performed according to the recommendations of "smarter medicine" in the three practices. The further promotion of 'smarter medicine' is crucial to avoid unnecessary diagnostic or therapeutic interventions and to save costs.

[CME: Eosinophilic Esophagitis]. / CME: Eosinophile Ösophagitis CME-Fragen.

Eosinophilic esophagitis is a chronic disease with increasing prevalence and incidence. The symptoms may be nonspecific and vary depending on the patient's age. Most common, affected persons (mostly young men) suffer from dysphagia and food bolus impactions. In the endoscopic examination, tissue changes may be nonspecific, histologically an infiltration with eosinophilic granulocytes predominates. Treatment options may be diets, medicaments and dilations. This article should provide a short overview of this continuously progressing disease and illustrate the diagnostic assessment as well as the different treatment options.

External validation of the GREAT score to predict relapse risk in Graves' disease: results from a multicenter, retrospective study with 741 patients.

CONTEXT: First-line treatment in Graves' disease is often done with antithyroid agents (ATD), but relapse rates remain high making definite treatment necessary. Predictors for relapse risk help guiding initial treatment decisions. OBJECTIVE: We aimed to externally validate the prognostic accuracy of the recently proposed Graves' Recurrent Events After Therapy (GREAT) score to predict relapse risk in Graves' disease. DESIGN, SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: We retrospectively analyzed data (2004-2014) of patients with a first episode of Graves' hyperthyroidism from four Swiss endocrine outpatient clinics. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Relapse of hyperthyroidism analyzed by multivariate Cox regression. RESULTS: Of the 741 included patients, 371 experienced a relapse (50.1%) after a mean follow-up of 25.6 months after ATD start. In univariate regression analysis, higher serum free T4, higher thyrotropin-binding inhibitor immunoglobulin (TBII), younger age and larger goiter were associated with higher relapse risk. We found a strong increase in relapse risk with more points in the GREAT score from 33.8% in patients with GREAT class I (0-1 points), 59.4% in class II (2-3 points) with a hazard ratio of 1.79 (95% CI: 1.42-2.27, P < 0.001) and 73.6% in class III (4-6 points) with a hazard ratio of 2.24 (95% CI: 1.64-3.06, P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Based on this retrospective analysis within a large patient population from a multicenter study, the GREAT score shows good external validity and can be used for assessing the risk for relapse in Graves' disease, which influence the initial treatment decisions.