The proposed role of ultrasound in the management of giant cell arteritis in routine clinical practice.

Objective: To develop and explore a protocol for using colour duplex sonography (CDS) in the routine care of GCA. Methods: We tested CDS of temporal arteries and axillary arteries (AXs) on consecutive patients with suspected or established GCA, between July 2014 and September 2016. Results: We assessed 293 patients [age 72 (10), female/male 196/97], of whom 118 had clinically confirmed GCA. Seventy-three percent of patients had already received high-dose glucocorticoids (GCs) for 17 (33) days. Among new referrals with <7 days of GC treatment (n = 55), the sensitivity of CDS was 63.3% (95% CI: 44%, 80%), specificity 100% (95% CI: 83%, 100%), positive predictive value 100% and negative predictive value 64.5% (95% CI: 53%, 74%). Sensitivity rose to 81.8% in patients with jaw claudication and high inflammatory markers. During the observation period, the rate of temporal artery biopsies decreased from 72 (42%) to 36 (25%) (P = 0.002). CDS was positive in 21% of 89 follow-up scans in asymptomatic individuals, compared with 37% in patients experiencing clinical flares. Over time, the number of halos reduced; only new or flaring patients showed a halo in four or more sites. The diameter of axillary halos reduced from referral [1.6 (0.4) mm] to follow-up [1.4 (0.2) mm, P = 0.01] or flares [1.4 (0.2) mm, P = 0.02]. Conclusion: CDS provides high positive predictive value for diagnosing GCA and allows for a significant reduction in temporal artery biopsies. We explored the role of CDS in detecting flares and demonstrated a relationship to the extent of the distribution of halos, but not to their size.

A Content Analysis of Mobile Phone Applications for the Diagnosis, Treatment, and Prevention of Urinary Tract Infections, and Their Compliance with European Association of Urology Guidelines on Urological Infections.

BACKGROUND: Mobile phone applications (apps) for urinary tract infections (UTIs) can help in the management of UTIs. OBJECTIVE: To review the apps available for UTIs and check its adherence to the European Association of Urology (EAU) guidelines. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: We reviewed all mobile phone apps from the iTunes App Store and Google Play for UTIs and evaluated various aspects of apps, as well as their current and potential usage in screening, prevention, or management. The inclusion criteria were English-language apps for adults with upper or lower tract UTIs. OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS AND STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: Each app was sorted into one of the following categories: "informative", "tracker", or "urinalysis"; each app was then checked for its adherence to EAU guidelines based on a 31-point checklist. One point was given for each piece of specific advice provided by the app, with a maximum score of 31. RESULTS AND LIMITATIONS: A total of 34 apps were initially identified from the app download platforms, and after exclusions, 11 were evaluated. The apps had a high average user rating of 4.04 (range: 0-5). The median number of downloads was 1000 (range: <100-100 000). The average adherence to the EAU checklist was low at 31.36% (3.3-70%). The app performance for prevention of recurrent UTIs, uncomplicated cystitis, and pyelonephritis was 14.9%, 33.1%, and 41.4%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Apps to support the management of UTIs could be improved by better adherence to European guidelines and recommendations based on up-to-date evidence, especially for the management of recurrent UTIs. PATIENT SUMMARY: In this study, we look at the role of mobile phone applications (apps) in screening, prevention, and management of urinary tract infections and their adherence to European Association of Urology guidelines. We found that apps need to improve with better compliance to European guidelines, especially for the management of recurrent urinary tract infections.

Evidence-based protocol-led management of renal angiomyolipoma: A review of literature.

Renal angiomyolipomas (R-AMLs) are rare benign tumors, which occur sporadically and in association with genetic conditions such as tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) and lymphangioleiomyomatosis (LAM). The key clinical concern is life-threatening hemorrhage. There is uncertainty about the optimal management strategy for patients with R-AMLs. We aim to review the evidence and provide a protocolled approach for the management of R-AMLs. A literature search of R-AML was conducted using MEDLINE and EMBASE for articles published between January 1990 and March 2020. Patient with TSC and sporadic cases were included. Treatment strategies, including active surveillance, surgery, selective arterial embolization (SAE), ablation, and systemic therapies, were reviewed. Outcomes from contemporary case series of active surveillance, surgery, and SAE were collated. There were no randomized controlled trials on this topic. The retrospective case series reviewed showed that many R-AMLs can be managed safely with active surveillance. Tumor size is the most important predictor of bleeding, and other factors such as rate of growth, women of child-bearing age, aneurysm size, and symptoms should be considered when deciding on prophylactic treatment. There is limited evidence for the traditional 4-cm cutoff for treatment, which may lead to overtreatment. The primary intervention options are SAE and surgery; whereas SAE is a less invasive option, nephron sparing surgery offers a lower risk of recurrence. Both appear to have similar morbidity, and the current evidence does not recommend one over the other in most cases. Thermal ablation has promising results but has only been trialed in small case series. Patients with TSC can be offered mammalian target of rapamycin inhibitors of which everolimus appears to cause the greatest shrinkage of tumors with an acceptable side-effect profile. R-AMLs should be assessed for their risk of bleeding. Low-risk tumors should be treated with active surveillance. High-risk tumors should be treated with SAE or surgery. Systemic treatments are the first-line of treatment for patients with TSC to preserve renal parenchyma.

Influence of methodological and patient factors on serum NMDAR IgG antibody detection in psychotic disorders: a meta-analysis of cross-sectional and case-control studies.

BACKGROUND: Antibodies targeting the N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) have been detected in patients with psychosis. However, studies measuring the IgG subclass in serum have provided variable estimates of prevalence, and it is unclear whether these antibodies are more common in patients than controls. Because these inconsistencies could be due to methodological approaches and patient characteristics, we aimed to investigate the effect of these factors on heterogeneity. METHODS: We searched Web of Science and Ovid (MEDLINE and PsycINFO) for cross-sectional and case-control studies published between Jan 1, 2000, and May 5, 2019, that reported NMDAR IgG antibody seropositivity in patients with psychosis. Pooled proportions and odds ratios (ORs) were derived using random-effects models. We estimated between-study variance (τ2) and the proportion of observed variance due to heterogeneity (I2). We then used univariable random-effects meta-regression analysis to investigate the effect of study factors on heterogeneity of proportions and ORs. Our protocol was registered on PROSPERO (CRD42018099874). FINDINGS: Of 1276 articles in the initial search, 28 studies were eligible for inclusion, including 14 cross-sectional studies and 14 case-control studies. In cross-sectional studies, NMDAR IgG antibodies were detected in 0·73% (95% CI 0·09-1·38; I2 56%; p=0·026) of patients with psychosis, and in case-control studies, patients with psychosis were not significantly more likely to be seropositive than healthy individuals (OR 1·57, 95% CI 0·78-3·16; I2 15%; p=0·20). Meta-regression analyses indicated that heterogeneity was significantly associated with assay type across both study designs, illness stage in cross-sectional studies, and study quality in case-control studies. Compared with studies using a fixed cell-based assay, cross-sectional and case-control studies using the live method yielded higher pooled prevalence estimates (0·36% [95% CI -0·23 to 0·95] vs 2·97% [0·70 to 5·25]) and higher ORs (0·65 [0·33 to 1·29] vs 4·43 [1·73 to 11·36]). In cross-sectional studies, the prevalence was higher in exclusively first-episode samples than in multi-episode or mixed samples (2·18% [0·25 to 4·12] vs 0·16% [-0·31 to 0·63]), and in case-control studies, higher ORs were reported in low-quality studies than in high-quality studies (3·80 [1·47 to 9·83] vs 0·72 [0·36 to 1·42]). INTERPRETATION: Higher estimates of NMDAR IgG antibody prevalence have been obtained with the live cell-based assay, and studies using this method find that seropositivity is more common in patients with psychosis than in controls. The effects of illness stage and study quality on heterogeneity were not consistent across study designs, and we provide clear recommendations for clinicians and researchers regarding interpreting these findings. FUNDING: None.