Early investigational agents for the treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia'.

INTRODUCTION: Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), as a clinical entity that affects many people, has always been in the forefront of interest among researchers, pharmaceutical companies, and physicians. Patients with BPH exhibit a diverse range of symptoms, while current treatment options can occasionally cause adverse events. All the aforementioned have led to an increased demand for more effective treatment options. AREAS COVERED: This review summarizes the outcomes of new medications used in a pre-clinical and clinical setting for the management of male lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS)/BPH and provides information about ongoing trials and future directions in the management of this condition. More specifically, sheds light upon drug categories, such as reductase­adrenoceptor antagonists, drugs interfering with the nitric oxide (NO)/cyclic guanosine monophosphate (GMP) signaling pathway, onabotulinumtoxinA, vitamin D3 (calcitriol) analogues, selective cannabinoid (CB) receptor agonists, talaporfin sodium, inhibitor of transforming growth factor beta 1 (TGF-ß1), drugs targeting the hormonal control of the prostate, phytotherapy, and many more. EXPERT OPINION: Clinical trials are being conducted on a number of new medications that may emerge as effective therapeutic alternatives in the coming years.

Does response to percutaneous tibial nerve stimulation predict similar outcome to sacral nerve stimulation?

AIMS: Percutaneous tibial nerve stimulation (PTNS) is a simple neuromodulation technique to treat an overactive bladder. It is unclear whether the response to PTNS would suggest a similar response to sacral nerve stimulation (SNS), and whether PTNS could be utilized as an alternative test phase for an SNS implant. This study assessed whether PTNS response was a reliable indicator for subsequent SNS trials. METHODS: We performed a retrospective review of the hospital databases to collect all patients who had PTNS and who subsequently had an SNS trial in two tertiary hospitals from 2014 to 2020. Response to both interventions was assessed. A 50% reduction in overactive symptoms (frequency-volume charts) was considered a positive response. McNemar's tests using exact binomial probability calculations were used. The statistical significance level was set to 0.05. RESULTS: Twenty-three patients who had PTNS subsequently went on to a trial of SNS. All patients except one had previously poor response to PTNS treatment. Eight of them also failed the SNS trial. However, 15 patients (including the PTNS responder) had a successful SNS trial and proceeded with the second-stage battery implantation. The difference in response rates between the PTNS and SNS trial was statistically significant (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Poor response to PTNS does not seem to predict the likelihood of patients responding to SNS. A negative PTNS trial should not preclude a trial of a sacral nerve implant. The predictive factors for good and poor responses will be the subject of a larger study.

Heart and Lung Transplantation in the Era of COVID-19: Early Recommendations and Outcomes.

The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 pandemic has dramatically changed medical practices worldwide. These changes have been aimed both to reallocate resources toward fighting the novel coronavirus and to prevent its transmission during nonurgent medical and surgical interventions. Heart and lung transplantation could not be an exception, as most transplant centers have either restricted their activity to only urgent, lifesaving procedures or stopped these surgical procedures for various periods of time depending on the local virus epidemiology. The effect of this infection on the immunosuppressed heart and lung transplant recipient is still questionable; however, there are limited reports suggesting that there is no increased risk of transmission or more severe disease course compared with that shown in the general population. Transplant organizations have disseminated early recommendations as a guidance in a yet evolving situation. Finally, data suggest that lung transplant could potentially serve as an ultimate, lifesaving procedure for COVID-19-related end-stage respiratory failure in carefully selected patients.