Frequency of arrhythmias detected in 9440 feline electrocardiograms by breed, age, and sex.

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to describe the frequency of arrhythmias detected in unsedated feline patients from general practice settings. ANIMALS: A total 10,638 feline electrocardiograms (ECGs) were retrospectively collected of which 9440 met the inclusion criteria. METHODS: Recordings were evaluated by a board-certified cardiologist. If an arrhythmia was present in the ECG tracing, the cardiologist categorized the arrhythmia using pre-established keywords. RESULTS: At least one arrhythmia was observed in 249 cases (2.64%, 95% confidence interval (CI): 2.34-2.98, 249/9440), with the most common arrhythmia encountered being ventricular premature complexes (1.63%, 95% CI: 1.39%-1.91%, 154/9440). Ragdoll cats had the highest odds of arrhythmia (odds ratio (OR): 3.17, 95% CI: 1.43-6.17, P=0.036). Both geriatric (Age: 13+ years, OR: 1.70, 95% CI: 1.24-2.34, P=0.013) and senior (Age: 10-13 years, OR: 1.68, 95% CI: 1.19-2.37, P=0.003) cats had higher odds of having an arrhythmia than adult cats. The odds of male cats having an arrhythmia were slightly higher than female (OR: 1.36, 95% CI: 1.06-1.76, P=0.018). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: Of the 9440 ECGs included in this study, at least one arrhythmia was detected in 249 distinct cases. Arrhythmias were more common in older cats, male cats and the Ragdoll cat breed. While it is important to note that the presence of an arrhythmia alone does not always indicate the presence of heart disease, further research on the association between breed cardiac health is needed.

Efficacy, safety and tolerability of topical terbinafine nail solution in patients with mild-to-moderate toenail onychomycosis: results from three randomized studies using double-blind vehicle-controlled and open-label active-controlled designs.

BACKGROUND: Terbinafine nail solution (TNS) was developed for the treatment of onychomycosis. OBJECTIVE: To assess the efficacy of TNS vs. vehicle and amorolfine 5% nail lacquer. METHODS: Subjects with mild-to-moderate toe onychomycosis (25% to ≤75% nail-involvement, matrix uninvolved) were randomized to receive either TNS or vehicle in two double-blind studies, and to TNS or amorolfine in an active-controlled, open-label study. Primary endpoint was complete cure (no residual clinical involvement and negative mycology) at week 52. Secondary endpoints were mycological cure (negative mycology defined as negative KOH microscopy and negative culture) and clinical effectiveness (≤10% residual-involvement and negative mycology) at week 52. RESULTS: Complete cure was not different between TNS vs. vehicle and amorolfine. Mycological cure was higher with TNS vs. vehicle, as was clinical effectiveness with TNS vs. vehicle, and TNS and amorolfine were not different for secondary efficacy endpoints. Patients achieving mycological cure had a better clinical outcome, and efficacy was improved in subjects with milder disease. Post hoc analysis suggests that nail thickness is an important prognostic factor. Moreover, mycological cure may require 6 months of treatment regimen while complete cure and clinical effectiveness may be achievable only after 10 months. A simulation study suggests that longer treatment duration would have resulted in higher complete cure with TNS vs. vehicle. Study treatments were well-tolerated. CONCLUSION: Primary efficacy objectives were not met in the studies reported herein. Possible reasons for failure to achieve significant outcomes include insufficient length of treatment; stringency of primary endpoint and severity of nail involvement of study population.

Diagnostic validation of vertebral heart score machine learning algorithm for canine lateral chest radiographs.

OBJECTIVES: The vertebral heart score is a measurement used to index heart size relative to thoracic vertebra. Vertebral heart score can be a useful tool for identifying and staging heart disease and providing prognostic information. The purpose of this study is to validate the use of a vertebral heart score algorithm compared to manual vertebral heart scoring by three board-certified veterinary cardiologists. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A convolutional neural network centred around semantic segmentation of relevant anatomical features was developed to predict heart size and vertebral bodies. These predictions were used to calculate the vertebral heart score. An external validation study consisting of 1200 canine lateral radiographs was randomly selected to match the underlying distribution of vertebral heart scores. Three American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine board-certified cardiologists were enrolled to manually score 400 images each using the traditional Buchanan method. Post-scoring, the cardiologists evaluated the algorithm for misaligned anatomic landmarks and overall image quality. RESULTS: The 95th percentile absolute difference between the cardiologist vertebral heart score and the algorithm vertebral heart score was 1.05 vertebrae (95% confidence interval: 0.97 to 1.20 vertebrae) with a mean bias of -0.09 vertebrae (95% confidence interval: -0.12 to -0.05 vertebrae). In addition, the model was observed to be well calibrated across the predictive range. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: We have found the performance of the vertebral heart score algorithm comparable to three board-certified cardiologists. While validation of this vertebral heart score algorithm has shown strong performance compared to veterinarians, further external validation in other clinical settings is warranted before use in those settings.

Diagnostic accuracy of computer aided electrocardiogram analysis in dogs.

OBJECTIVES: Evaluation of a computerised electrocardiogram algorithm compared to the interpretation of a team of board-certified veterinary cardiologists. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a cross-sectional retrospective cohort study. A total of 399 electronic canine electrocardiogram recordings screened from 1391 electrocardiograms were enrolled in the study. A panel of seven cardiologists, masked to patient information, evaluated electrocardiograms for the following: P-wave amplitude and duration; PR-interval; R-wave amplitude; QRS duration; heart rate; mean electrical axis; and final overall diagnosis for the detection of arrhythmia and any abnormal electrocardiogram anomaly. RESULTS: The sensitivity of the electrocardiogram algorithm for detecting arrhythmias was 99.7% (95% confidence intervals, CI: 98.5 to 99.9) and the specificity was 99.5% (95% CI: 98.0 to 99.9) compared to the consensus result created by panel of cardiologists. The sensitivity of the algorithm for the detection of any electrocardiogram anomaly, including abnormal measurements, was 71.3% (95% CI: 65.5 to 76.7) and the specificity was 35.1% (95% CI: 27.0 to 43.8) compared to the panel of cardiologists. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: The electrocardiogram algorithm was shown to have high sensitivity for the detection of arrhythmias, but not all electrocardiogram anomalies. The results support the use of this algorithm as a tool to aid in the triage of the electrocardiogram workflow.

Primary cutaneous pleomorphic small T-cell lymphoma. A review of 11 cases. The French Study Group on Cutaneous Lymphomas.

BACKGROUND AND DESIGN: Cutaneous pleomorphic small T-cell lymphoma is a rare, recently recognized lymphoma, different from mycosis fungoides and Sézary syndrome. Only a few cases have been reported and no treatment modalities have been defined. We reviewed the clinical, histologic, immunohistochemical, molecular biologic, and follow-up data of 11 primary cutaneous pleomorphic small T-cell lymphomas. RESULTS: The lesions presented as red purplish nodules, tumors, or plaques. The infiltrate consisted of small pleomorphic lymphoid cells without epidermotropism in nine patients and with a propensity to infiltrate the dermis and subcutaneous fat. Most cases were CD4+/CD8-. A T-cell clone was detected in the skin lesions of nine patients tested. The mean follow-up was 70.1 months and the median follow-up was 20 months. Ten patients are alive with three having persistent lesions. Interferon alfa-2a induced partial or complete remissions in five patients. Interferon alfa-2a combined with a regimen containing doxorubicin chlorhydrate induced a complete remission in a patient suffering a relapse after cyclophosphamide and interferon alone. CONCLUSIONS: Cutaneous pleomorphic small T-cell lymphoma is a well-defined type of low-grade cutaneous lymphoma with favorable prognosis. Interferon and/or chemotherapy are the treatment of choice in patients with large tumor burden.

The safety of calcitriol 3 microg/g ointment. Evaluation of cutaneous contact sensitization, cumulative irritancy, photoallergic contact sensitization and phototoxicity.

Vitamin D analogues are widely used for the treatment of psoriasis. A new topical formulation of calcitriol (3 microg/g ointment) has been shown to be effective in the treatment of stable plaque-type psoriasis. This paper reports the results of four separate studies designed to evaluate specific local-safety parameters: cumulative irritancy, cutaneous contact sensitization, potential photoallergic contact sensitization and phototoxicity. Calcitriol 3 microg/g ointment was classified as non-irritant when compared to calcipotriol, tacalcitol and white petrolatum. Petrolatum and tacalcitol were slightly irritant and calcipotriol moderately irritant. No sensitization was observed with calcitriol 3 microg/g ointment. With regard to phototoxic potential, sites treated with calcitriol 3 microg/g ointment or vehicle ointment were less irritated than those treated with white petrolatum or those that were untreated. Using standard photoallergenicity testing methodology, there were no skin reactions of a photoallergic nature to the study material. These studies showed that calcitriol 3 microg/g ointment is a well-tolerated treatment for stable plaque-type psoriasis.

Eumovate (clobetasone butyrate) 0.05% cream with its moisturizing emollient base has better healing properties than hydrocortisone 1% cream: a study in nickel-induced contact dermatitis.

BACKGROUND: The emollient base of a topical corticosteroid, through its moisturizing properties, can be a useful treatment adjunct. OBJECTIVE: To compare the healing properties of Eumovate trade mark (clobetasone butyrate) 0.05% cream with its emollient base, hydrocortisone 1% cream and with no treatment. METHODS: A single-centre, double-blind, intra-individual, comparative study that involved 18 volunteers with nickel-induced contact dermatitis. Following a positive patch test to nickel, sub-therapeutic amounts (10 micro l = 3 mg cm(-2)) of each of the treatments were applied twice daily for seven days to each of the four test sites. RESULTS: In terms of the primary endpoint, a physician's global assessment after 7 days of treatment, clobetasone butyrate (CB) 0.05% cream showed a significantly better response than hydrocortisone (HC) 1% cream (78% vs 39%, difference -0.4, 95% CI -0.7 to -0.1; p = 0.046) or no treatment (78% vs 28%, difference -0.5, 95% CI -0.9 to -0.1; p = 0.016). CB 0.05% cream also showed a better response than its emollient base (78% vs 56%), though statistical significance was not achieved. In terms of moisturizing effects, there was no difference in transepidermal water loss (TEWL) between CB 0.05% cream and its emollient base. CB 0.05% cream treated sites did, however, have significantly lower values (i.e. were more moisturized) than untreated sites (difference -8.5, 95% CI -12.0 to -4.86; p < 0.001) or HC 1% treated sites (difference -7.1, 95% CI -11.0 to -3.4; p < 0.001). In terms of skin blanching activity, as expected the steroid-based creams achieved lower colorimetric values than the emollient base cream. CONCLUSIONS: These results from experimentally induced skin inflammation indicate that CB 0.05% (as Eumovate 0.05% cream) has both more effective anti-inflammatory activity and better moisturizing properties than hydrocortisone 1% cream and that these effects are in part due to its efficient emollient base.

[Determination of acceptability of 2 cutaneous estradiol gels, in a dose of 1.5 mg daily]. / Appréciation de l'acceptabilité de deux gels d'estradiol cutané, à la dose d'1,5 mg par jour.

OBJECTIVE: The aim was to compare acceptability of a percutaneous 0. 1% estradiol gel (Gel A, Estreva(R) Gel, Laboratoire Théramex, Monaco) to that of an 0.06% estradiol gel (Gel B, Oestrodose(R), Laboratoires Besins-Iscovesco) in its new formulation and packaging. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This randomized, crossed, simple-blind study was carried out in 48 volunteer healthy postmenopausal women. The volunteers applied on one forearm 1.5 mg/day of cutaneous estradiol in the form of either gel, according to randomized allocation, for four days without free period between the two therapeutic periods. The application and drying times of the two gels were measured during the first application; gel subjective women assessment was collected at the beginning and at the end of the study. RESULTS: Mean application and drying times with Gel A are significantly reduced, compared to Gel B (p=0.0259 and p=0.0001, respectively) with drying time 61% shorter; these data are confirmed by subjective women evaluation. The two gels are not significantly different regarding several criteria as consistency, ease of application and sensation of lasting stickiness. However, a significant difference is found in favour of Gel A on the following items: practicality of application (p=0.007), ease of penetration (p<0.001), quantity of gel to apply (p<0.001) after the first application. After four days of administration, a same significant difference is observed concerning practicality of the gel (p=0.0078), duration of use (p<0. 001), packaging, women opinion on the gel (p=0.022) and the product, gel and packaging (p<0.001). At the end of the study, gel A utilization is considered by women more practical (p=0.001) with an easier application (p<0.001) and less restricting while applying (p=0.001), compared to Gel B; 72.9% of women prefer the Gel A and 12. 5% of women prefer the Gel B. CONCLUSION: A better acceptability of the 0.1% estradiol gel and of its packaging compared to that of the 0.06% estradiol gel in this new formulation and packaging is observed in this study.