Factors Associated with All-Cause 30-Day Mortality in Indonesian Inpatient COVID-19 Patients at Cipto Mangunkusumo National General Hospital.

Introduction: Indonesia, as a developing country, has limited data on the factors associated with 30-day mortality in COVID-19 patients in Indonesia. As a matter of fact, study analyzing factors associated with 30-day mortality of COVID-19 infection in Indonesia has never been conducted. This study aims to fill this gap in the literature by conducting a large-scale analysis of factors associated with 30-day mortality in COVID-19 patients in Indonesia. Method: This study employed a single-center retrospective cohort observational design, and was conducted at Cipto Mangunkusumo National General Hospital between the years 2022 and 2023. Sampling was conducted using the consecutive sampling method. The study included patients aged 18 years and above who had been confirmed to have COVID-19 infection. Survival analysis was conducted using Kaplan-Meier and multivariate Cox regression analysis. Result: Our study included a total of 644 patients, with 120 patients (18.6%) expiring within 30 days. In the multivariate analysis using the backward Wald method, severe COVID-19 (HR: 7.024; 95% CI: 3.971-12.744; p value: <0.0001), moderate COVID-19 infection (HR: 1.660; 95% CI: 1.048-2.629; p value: 0.031), liver cirrhosis (HR: 3.422; 95% CI: 1.208-9.691; p value: 0.021), female sex (HR: 1.738; 95% CI: 1.187-2.545; p value: 0.004), old age (HR: 2.139; 95% CI: 1.279-3.577; p value: 0.004), high leukocyte (HR: 11.502; 95% CI: 1.523-86.874; p value: 0.018), high NLR (HR: 1.720; 95% CI: 1.049-2.819; p value: 0.032), high CRP (HR: 1.906; 95% CI: 1.092-3.329; p value: 0.023), high procalcitonin (HR: 3.281; 95% CI: 1.780-6.049; p value: 0.001), and high creatinine (HR: 1.863; 95% CI: 1.240-2.800; p value: 0.003) were associated with 30-day mortality from COVID-19 infection. Subgroup analysis excluding cancer patients showed that age, D-Dimer, CRP, and PCT were associated with 30-day mortality in COVID-19 patients, while steroid therapy is protective. Conclusions: This study finds that COVID-19 severity, liver cirrhosis, sex, age, leukocyte, NLR, CRP, creatinine, and procalcitonin were associated with COVID-19 mortality within 30 days. These findings underscore the multifactorial nature of COVID-19 infection mortality. It is important, therefore, that patients which exhibit these factors should be treated more aggressively to prevent mortality.

Effectiveness of Bendamustine-Rituximab Compared to R-CHOP/R-CVP as a First-Line Treatment of Indolent Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma or Mantle-Cell Lymphoma.

BACKGROUND: R-CHOP/R-CVP is the only recommended first-line treatment for Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma (NHL). Limited treatment alternatives often lead to relapse and refractory NHL, which increases disease progressivity and worsens prognosis. Bendamustine-rituximab is being studied for its potential as a superior first-line therapy for indolent NHL and mantle-cell NHL (MCL); however, it is not in the national guidelines. Evidence-based research is needed to demonstrate the effectivity of bendamustine-rituximab compared to R-CHOP/R-CVP for a complete response of indolent NHL and MCL. METHODS: A literature search was conducted using PubMed, Scopus, EBSCOHost, and Cochrane. Studies consistent with clinical question and eligibility criteria were included and critically appraised using the Oxford Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine (CEBM) tool. RESULTS: Two randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were included in this study, both concluding that bendamustine-rituximab is superior to R-CHOP/R-CVP with a complete response, with RR values of 0.90 (95% CI 0.80 - 1.01) and 0.86 (95% CI 0.76 - 0.98). CONCLUSION: Bendamustine-rituximab is more effective than R-CHOP/R-CVP as a first-line treatment of indolent NHL or MCL.

Comparison of the Efficacy and Safety of Rivaroxaban and Enoxaparin as Thromboprophylaxis Agents for Orthopedic Surgery-Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is a serious complication that can occur during and after postoperative treatment, including in treatment after orthopedic surgery. The current guidelines for VTE prophylaxis in postoperative patients recommend the use of LMWHs, one of which is enoxaparin. Another recommendation for use in pharmacological VTE prophylaxis is rivaroxaban, which has better efficacy than enoxaparin but a higher bleeding risk. The aim of this systematic review is to provide an update on the profile of rivaroxaban for VTE prophylaxis after orthopedic surgery. PubMed, SCOPUS, EMBASE, and EBSCOhost were searched up until May 2022. The outcome sought was efficacy and safety, described by the incidence of VTE and incidence of bleeding, respectively. Five randomized controlled trials (RCT) were finally included. Rivaroxaban was confirmed to have better efficacy by significantly reducing the risk of VTE and all-cause mortality (RR = 0.38; 95% CI = 0.27-0.54) compared to enoxaparin. However, regarding the safety variable, no significant difference was found between the incidence of major bleeding in rivaroxaban and enoxaparin (RR = 0.97; 95% CI = 0.56-1.68). The results of the analysis show that rivaroxaban has better efficacy than enoxaparin but the same safety profile, so when used, the bleeding of patients should still be monitored.

Role of Anti-B-Cell Maturation Antigen (BCMA) in the Management of Multiple Myeloma.

Over the past few decades, treatment options have become more advanced for multiple myeloma (MM), one of the most prevalent hematological cancers; however, multiple myeloma remains an incurable disease due to its poor response to therapy and high rates of resistance, which cause relapsed/refractory or multiple myeloma. Researchers have described anti-BCMA (B-cell maturation antigen) as a promising treatment regimen that targets the BCMA biomarker in the affected plasma cells. BCMA is a protein that is specifically expressed in plasma-cell neoplasms by using several mechanisms, such as CAR T cells (Chimeric Antigen Receptor T cells), antibody-drug conjugates, and bispecific T-cell engagers, thus allowing for a rapid response in the treatment of resistant or relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma patients. Anti-BCMA treatment is novel and specific in its mechanisms of action, with noninferior complete responses, higher overall survival rates, and fewer reported adverse events compared to other currently available treatment of MM. In this review, we compared anti-BCMA mechanisms with those of previously available therapies, such as those using immunomodulators and proteasome inhibitors, and discussed the advantages of using anti-BCMA as a potential first-line treatment for multiple myeloma patients.