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Biomedical subjects

P Pierce

Publications and source records attributed to P Pierce.

15 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2001

Cefprozil versus high-dose amoxicillin/clavulanate in children with acute otitis media.

BACKGROUND: The recommendation of the Drug-Resistant Streptococcus pneumoniae Therapeutic Working Group that high-dose amoxicillin, with or without clavulanate, be used to treat acute otitis media (AOM) addressed concerns about the efficacy of existing therapies against drug-resistant S. pneumoniae. This recommendation relied on pharmacodynamic predictions of concentrations of amoxicillin in middle-ear fluid remaining higher than minimum inhibitory concentrations against intermediately resistant S. pneumoniae for >40% of the dosing interval. OBJECTIVE: This study compared the tolerability and efficacy of cefprozil and high-dose amoxicillin/clavulanate in patients with AOM. METHODS: Patients were randomized to receive 10 days of investigator-blinded oral treatment with either cefprozil suspension (30 mg/kg/d in 2 divided doses) or amoxicillin/clavulanate (45/6.4 mg/kg/d) plus amoxicillin (45 mg/kg/d) in 2 divided doses. The primary efficacy end point was the clinical cure rate 4 to 7 days after the end of treatment. Clinical response by age (6 months-<2 years vs > or =2-7 years), disease severity, and unilateral versus bilateral ear infection was also examined. The primary measures of tolerability were the frequency and severity of adverse events and their relation to study drug. Adverse events were either spontaneously reported or elicited during examination and questioning of the patient. Identified adverse events were coded and recorded using the COSTART (Coding Symbols for Thesaurus of Adverse Reaction Terms) system. RESULTS: Three hundred four children between the ages of 6 months and 7 years with > or =1 sign or symptom of AOM were enrolled in the study, and 303 (150 cefprozil, 153 amoxicillin/clavulanate) were treated. Twenty-three patients in each treatment group were not evaluable; thus, 257 children were included in the analysis of evaluable patients. Clinical cure rates were 87% (110/127) with cefprozil and 89% (116/130) with amoxicillin/clavulanate (95% CI for the difference in cure rate, -10.7% to 4.1%). No between-group differences in efficacy were noted by age, disease severity, or unilateral or bilateral involvement. The overall incidence of drug-related adverse events was significantly lower with cefprozil than with amoxicillin/clavulanate (19% vs 32%, respectively; P = 0.008), as was the incidence of diarrhea (9% vs 19%, respectively; P = 0.021). Adverse events prompted discontinuation of therapy in 4 (3%) cefprozil patients and 8 (5%) amoxicillin/clavulanate patients. CONCLUSIONS: Based on a search of MEDLINE, this study is the first direct comparison of cefprozil versus high-dose amoxicillin/clavulanate. Cefprozil was as effective as high-dose amoxicillin/clavulanate, with a lower incidence of adverse events.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed2000

Development of a method to analyze orthopaedic practice expenses.

The purpose of the current investigation was to present a standard method by which an orthopaedic practice can analyze its practice expenses. To accomplish this, a five-step process was developed to analyze practice expenses using a modified version of activity-based costing. In this method, general ledger expenses were assigned to 17 activities that encompass all the tasks and processes typically performed in an orthopaedic practice. These 17 activities were identified in a practice expense study conducted for the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. To calculate the cost of each activity, financial data were used from a group of 19 orthopaedic surgeons in Houston, Texas. The activities that consumed the largest portion of the employee work force (person hours) were service patients in office (25.0% of all person hours), maintain medical records (13.6% of all person hours), and resolve collection disputes and rebill charges (12.3% of all person hours). The activities that comprised the largest portion of the total expenses were maintain facility (21.4%), service patients in office (16.0%), and sustain business by managing and coordinating practice (13.8%). The five-step process of analyzing practice expenses was relatively easy to perform and it may be used reliably by most orthopaedic practices.

Accounting↗
PubMed1996

A novel approach to the determination and characterization of HIV dementia.

BACKGROUND: Neuropsychological studies of the pattern and extent of cognitive impairment in HIV-infected patients have mostly used deviations from control values and/or cut-off scores as criteria for classification of dementia. There is, however, no agreement as to how to define impairment, and classification is imprecise. METHOD: The current study used a dementia classification matrix, developed with a step-wise linear discriminant analysis of neuropsychological data from patients with primary neurodegenerative dementias, to classify symptomatic HIV patients as demented or non-demented, and further to differentiate cortical and subcortical dementia patterns. Thirty-two male and 2 female patients (mean age 39 +/- 2) with symptomatic HIV disease (mean absolute CD4 count 195 +/- 41) participated in the study. RESULTS: Thirty-five per cent of patients were classified as demented. Of these, 83% showed a subcortical pattern and 17% a cortical profile of deficits. Significant differences between patients classified as subcortically demented and those categorized as normal on neuropsychological measures associated with subcortical integrity further validated the classification. Measures of psychiatric status between subgroups were similar. CONCLUSION: Since certain treatments may delay or reverse cognitive deficits, the use of an objective classification method based on discriminant analysis may help to identify patients who may benefit from therapy.

AIDS Dementia Complex↗
PubMed1992

Effect of albumin on the inhibition of platelet aggregation by beta-lactam antibiotics.

Platelet aggregation and bleeding time abnormalities are reported in patients receiving beta-lactam antibiotics (beta LAs), although clinical bleeding most frequently occurs in chronically ill, malnourished patients. Although most beta LAs bind to serum albumin, the relative influence of bound versus unbound beta LAs on platelet function is unknown. We examined the effect of beta LAs on the aggregation of gel-filtered platelets from normal subjects and on platelet-rich plasma (PRP) from hypoalbuminemic patients. Therapeutic concentrations of five beta LAs were added to normal platelets at different albumin concentrations (1.5 to 4.5 g/dL). Inhibition of aggregation by the beta LAs was inversely proportional to the albumin concentration, and most antibiotic-treated samples showed more than 50% inhibition at albumin levels below 2.0 g/dL. When PRPs from hypoalbuminemic patients were incubated with cephalothin, aggregation was completely inhibited, in contrast to samples from patients with normal albumin levels, and this decreased platelet aggregation was partially restored (25% to 75%) by increasing the albumin concentration above 4.0 g/dL. Specific binding of [35S]-benzylpenicillin to normal platelets decreased proportionately as the albumin concentration increased in the range of 1.0 to 5.0 g/dL. The inhibitory effects of beta LAs on platelets in vitro appear to be influenced by albumin concentration. Plasma albumin concentration may influence bleeding in patients receiving beta LAs.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗
PubMed1992

Epidemiology of thrombocytopenia in HIV infection.

Thrombocytopenia is a known complication of human immunodeficiency virus Type-1 (HIV-1) infection, and more data need to be collected on its frequency, severity, and clinical sequelae. We determined the frequency of thrombocytopenia and its relationship to other HIV infection characteristics from a review of records of 1004 HIV-infected patients attending two outpatient clinics in Washington, D.C. The self-reported sources of HIV-1 exposure were male homosexual activity (68%), bisexual activity (10%), heterosexual activity (6%), and intravenous drug use (15%). Fifty-nine percent of the individuals were white, 37% were black and 94% were male. Fifteen percent had AIDS. Thrombocytopenia occurred more frequently in subjects with AIDS (21.2%) than in HIV-infected individuals who did not fit clinical criteria for AIDS (9.2%) (p less than 0.001). Patients with few CD4-positive cells and an advanced stage of disease were more likely to have low platelet counts: 30% with an absolute CD4 cell count lower than 200/mm3 vs 8% with CD4 counts between 200 and 500 (p less than 0.00001), and 18.5% with Stage IV disease compared to 7.6% in Stage II (p less than 0.001) had platelet counts less than 150,000/mm3. Thrombocytopenia was more frequent in white males and older subjects. Although subjects infected by heterosexual exposure had a lower frequency of thrombocytopenia, intravenous drug users and homosexual men exhibited similar frequencies of thrombocytopenia. Of all subjects with platelet counts less than 50,000/mm3, 40% reported bleeding and 1 died of an intracranial hemorrhage. Thrombocytopenia occurs frequently in HIV-infected people, primarily in those with AIDS, low CD4 cell numbers, and advanced stages of diseases.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗
PubMed1992

Giant cystosarcoma phyllodes of the prostate associated with adenocarcinoma.

Cystosarcoma phyllodes of the prostate is a rare neoplasm, occurring in adult men. It closely resembles the not uncommon tumor of the female breast and usually behaves in a similar manner. This case of benign cystosarcoma phyllodes of the prostate occurred in a 53-year-old man who presented with increasing abdominal girth and underwent exploratory laparotomy and removal of the 11.2-kg tumor. It was remarkable for its very large size and the presence of foci of well-differentiated adenocarcinoma, prostatic acinar type. The glandular epithelium of both the phyllodes tumor and the carcinoma were immunoreactive for cytokeratin, epithelial membrane antigen, prostate-specific antigen, and prostate-specific acid phosphatase. The presence of typical prostatic type adenocarcinoma and this immunoreactivity pattern strongly supports a prostatic origin for this rare neoplasm.

Adenocarcinoma↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Effect of intravascular surveillance and education program on rates of nosocomial bloodstream infections.

BACKGROUND: Because of high proportions of central line-related bloodstream infections (BSIs), an intravascular surveillance and education program (IVSP) was instituted in the study institution in 1987. METHODS: A 6 1/2-year historical prospective study was conducted to evaluate the effects of the IVSP on incidence of nosocomial BSIs. With use of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention criteria, concurrent data on nosocomial BSIs were collected by two infection control professionals before, during, and for 3 years after the IVSP. RESULTS: Hospital-wide BSIs during the 3-year IVSP and for 3 years after were 0.9% and 0.9% (p = 0.58) or 1.4 and 1.2/1000 patient-days (p = 0.24). Central line-related BSIs represented 29%, 24%, and 29% of the total BSIs 6 months before, 3 years during, and 6 months after the intervention, respectively (p = 0.62). CONCLUSIONS: The IVSP resulted neither in a reduction in the total intravascular catheter-related BSIs nor in a change in the proportion of potentially preventable central line-related BSIs. To be successful, an intervention must include the authority to mandate practice changes; education and feedback without such authority were inadequate.

Catheterization, Central Venous↗