News Archive

A metric typically used to determine doses of warfarin in patients with atrial fibrillation, international normalized ratio (INR), was once thought to be a potential indicator of future risk levels for bleeding or thrombotic events. However, research published recently in JAMA Cardiology by the DCRI’s Sean Pokorney, MD, MBA, suggests that historical INR values may not be the most accurate predictor of future events.

In a recent Viewpoint piece published in JAMA Cardiology, the DCRI’s Ann Marie Navar said that the proliferation of medical misinformation around statins is causing often misguided fears about statins, leading patients to refuse or stop treatment.

The new faculty represent the pediatrics, nephrology, and musculoskeletal therapeutic areas.

The study’s design, which researchers hope to use for other conditions, enabled testing of multiple diagnostic assays simultaneously and resulted in cost savings.

Molecular diagnostic assays have transformed the field of infectious diseases, allowing for swift and sensitive detection of organisms previously challenging to diagnose, but it can be difficult to study how these new tests perform. Members of the Antibacterial Resistance Leadership Group (ARLG), which is facilitated by the DCRI, recently conducted a study of several assays used to detect extragenital gonorrhea and Chlamydia trachomatis. They say their latest research will help to quell the transmission of these infections and could change the landscape for how diagnostic tests are studied.

The DCRI’s Gerald Bloomfield, MD, contributed to a statement from the American Heart Association recently published in Circulation that provides a thorough review of current knowledge on HIV-associated cardiovascular disease, as well as a gap analysis that details where more data are needed.

The event drew nearly 900 registrants and discussed tobacco-cessation therapies that have been successful in youth populations, as well as gaps in knowledge surrounding e-cigarettes.

Investigators were unsure how they would use genetic information to choose treatment choices, then often failed to follow through on their pre-stipulated plan to use this information.

For the first time, pediatric patients with Lambert-Eaton myasthenic syndrome (LEMS) have a treatment that has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). A team that included researchers from the DCRI was involved in developing the supporting evidence that led to the FDA’s approval of Ruzurgi (amifampridine) tablets. In a relatively rare occurrence, the drug was approved for a patient population in which it was not tested in a clinical trial.

Researchers examined clinical factors at the time of a patient’s enrollment in the IPF-PRO registry that might predict lung transplant or death.