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S Carette

Publications and source records attributed to S Carette.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1992

Osteoarthritis antirheumatic drug trials. III. Setting the delta for clinical trials--results of a consensus development (Delphi) exercise.

Defining the minimum clinically important difference or delta to be detected in a clinical trial depends on a number of factors including the research hypothesis, patient characteristics, the nature of the intervention and the trial design. In 2 studies, we have developed standardized procedures for conducting outcome measurement based on current Food and Drug Administration and European League Against Rheumatism guidelines for osteoarthritis clinical trials, and determined the standard deviation for these outcome measures. In the final component of this series of studies, we have used a Delphi technique to establish estimates for delta, and calculated the sample size requirements under 2 different conditions of Type I and Type II error probabilities.

Clinical Trials as Topic↗
PubMed1991

A controlled trial of corticosteroid injections into facet joints for chronic low back pain.

BACKGROUND: Chronic low back pain is a common problem with many treatments, few of which have been rigorously evaluated. This randomized, placebo-controlled trial was designed to evaluate the efficacy of injections of corticosteroid into facet joints to treat chronic low back pain. METHODS: Patients with chronic low back pain who reported immediate relief of their pain after injections of local anesthetic into the facet joints between the fourth and fifth lumbar vertebrae and the fifth lumbar and first sacral vertebrae were randomly assigned to receive under fluoroscopic guidance injections of either methylprednisolone acetate (20 mg; n = 49) or isotonic saline (n = 48) in the same facet joints. Ninety-five patients were followed for six months and their condition assessed with scales of pain severity, back mobility, and limitation of function. RESULTS: After one month, none of the outcome measures evaluating pain, functional status, and back flexion differed clinically or statistically between the two study groups. Forty-two percent of the patients who received methylprednisolone and 33 percent of those who received placebo reported marked or very marked improvement (95 percent confidence interval for the difference, -11 to 28 percentage points; P = 0.53). The results were similar after three months. At the six-month evaluation, the patients treated with methylprednisolone reported more improvement, less pain on the visual-analogue scale, and less physical disability. The differences were reduced, however, when concurrent interventions were taken into account. Moreover, only 11 patients (22 percent) in the methylprednisolone group and 5 (10 percent) in the placebo group had sustained improvement from the first month to the sixth month (95 percent confidence interval for the difference, -2 to 26; P = 0.19). CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that injecting methylprednisolone acetate into the facet joints is of little value in the treatment of patients with chronic low back pain.

Adrenal Cortex Hormones↗
PubMed1991

Adult Still's disease: manifestations, disease course, and outcome in 62 patients.

Clinical and laboratory manifestations, disease course, outcome, and HLA associations were studied in an inception cohort of 62 subjects with adult Still's disease (ASD) from 5 Canadian universities. Twenty-eight patients (45%) were female and the median age at disease onset was 24 years. In general, the clinical features observed in our patients were identical to those in other published series. However, significantly higher frequencies of sore throat (92%), weight loss (76%), lymphadenopathy (74%), pleuritis (53%), pneumonitis (27%), and abdominal pain (48%) were noted in our patients compared to those in a recent literature review. Liver involvement with hepatomegaly (44%) or abnormal liver function tests (LFTs) (76%) was common and was responsible for the 2 deaths attributed to Still's disease in our series. Severe liver failure always occurred in conjunction with aspirin or NSAID therapy. Therefore, whether or not aspirin or other NSAIDs are used, we recommend close monitoring of LFTs in patients with ASD, especially early in the disease course. Laboratory manifestations were similar to those already reported. Leukocytosis (greater than or equal to 15,000/mm3) was present in 50 patients (81%), a normochromic, normocytic anemia (hemoglobin less than or equal to 10 g/dl) in 42 (68%), and an elevated ESR in all. The mean follow-up of the 62 patients was 70 months (range, 2-163). Twenty-one patients (34%) had a self-limited disease course, 15 (24%) an intermittent course, and 22 (36%) a chronic disease course. Four patients (6%) died, and 2 of these deaths were attributed to Still's disease. For those patients who experienced a recurrence of ASD, the flares were usually of shorter duration and milder in severity than the initial episode. No initiating factor for disease exacerbation was identified in our patients. Although 22 of 62 patients (36%) had a chronic disease course, 52 (90%) were in ARA Functional Class I, and only 4 and 2 patients were in ARA Functional Class II and III, respectively. Patients with Still's disease had higher scores than the controls on the Pain (P less than 0.01) and Physical Disability (P less than 0.05) subscales of Arthritis Impact Measurement Scales health status questionnaire. Joint radiographs performed at the follow-up evaluation disclosed typical carpometacarpal and intercarpal involvement in 16 of 39 patients. In our series, HLA-B17, B18, B35, and DR2 were significantly associated with ASD. Three significant predictors of an unfavorable outcome, either a chronic disease course or a longer time to clinical remission, were identified.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Adolescent↗
PubMed1990

Low-dose cyclosporin versus placebo in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

144 patients with severe rheumatoid arthritis from six centres were randomised to receive oral cyclosporin or placebo for 6 months. The initial daily dose of cyclosporin was 2.5 mg/kg, which was increased cautiously with monitoring of serum cyclosporin levels and creatinine; the mean stabilisation dose was 3.8 mg/kg. There were significant improvements in the cyclosporin-treated patients compared with the controls in the major outcomes of reduction of active joints (23% improvement), pain (24%), and functional status (16%); global improvement was 27%. In the cyclosporin group serum creatinine increased by a mean of 15.6 mumols/l and mean arterial blood pressure by 6.27 mmHg; these increases were controlled in all but 2 patients by dose adjustment without withdrawal from the study.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMed1990

Arthritis impact measurement scales: reliability of a French version and validity in adult Still's disease.

The Arthritis Impact Measurement Scales (AIMS) questionnaire was administered to 57 patients with adult Still's disease (ASD) and 104 controls. Six of the 9 scales were consistent for both groups (Cronbach's alpha greater than or equal to 0.70). Two scales, Mobility and Dexterity, were consistent for ASD only (alpha greater than or equal to 0.70). The reliability of a French version of the AIMS was similar to the standard AIMS. Of the 13 associations evaluating criterion related validity of the AIMS in ASD, 11 were statistically significant. We conclude that the French and standard AIMS are comparable and that this questionnaire is reliable and valid for assessing outcome in ASD.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1989

A double-blind placebo-controlled study of auranofin in patients with psoriatic arthritis.

Two hundred thirty-eight patients with psoriatic arthritis were entered into a 6-month, multicenter, double-blind trial comparing auranofin and placebo. Polyarthritis (greater than 5 tender joints) was present in 90% of the patients, and 94% were seronegative. Auranofin treatment was statistically superior to placebo treatment, according to physician's global assessment and functional scores. A trend in favor of auranofin treatment was seen for each of the other disease parameters studied. Psoriasis worsened in 6 auranofin-treated patients and in 3 placebo-treated patients. The incidence and nature of other side effects were similar to those observed in similar trials of patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Our observations suggest that the use of auranofin in the treatment of psoriatic arthritis is safe, although its therapeutic advantage over treatment with nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs alone is modest.

Administration, Oral↗
PubMed1989

Postmenopausal hormones and the incidence of rheumatoid arthritis.

This case-control study assessed whether postmenopausal use of hormones reduces the incidence of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Cases had classical or definite RA. Controls were patients with primary osteoarthritis or soft tissue rheumatism. Information on exposure was obtained by telephone interview. Compared to women who had never used postmenopausal hormones before onset of rheumatologic symptoms, adjusted relative risk (95% confidence limits) for past and current users were 0.95 (0.56-1.60) and 0.89 (0.49-1.63), respectively. Among current users, the association was not related to the duration of use. Our results provide little support for the hypothesis that use of postmenopausal hormones has a protective effect on the development of RA.

Arthritis, Rheumatoid↗
PubMed1988

Cardiopulmonary manifestations of systemic lupus erythematous.

The cardiac and pulmonary manifestations of SLE are numerous. While the pleura and pericardium are most commonly affected, the myocardium and lung parenchyma can be the targets of life-threatening complications. Secondary processes (in particular, infection) must always be ruled out before attributing a cardiopulmonary manifestation to lupus.

Diaphragm↗
PubMed1988

Fibrositis and primary hypothyroidism.

The prevalence of fibrositis was determined in 100 patients with subclinical or biochemical primary hypothyroidism. Nineteen patients reported symptoms of joint and/or muscle pain with stiffness. Five of these patients presented 7 or more tender points on examination, thus allowing a diagnosis of fibrositis to be made in only 5% of the total group. Symptomatic improvement after thyroid hormone replacement occurred in 10 of the 19 patients, including 3 of those with fibrositis. There were no significant changes in tender points. Our data indicate that fibrositis is uncommon in patients with primary hypothyroidism despite the frequent occurrence of symptoms suggestive of this syndrome.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1988

An experiment in reducing interobserver variability of the examination for joint tenderness.

This experiment was designed to test the feasibility of reducing interobserver variability of the joint examination by agreement on a standard examination. Six rheumatologists independently examined 6 patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in predetermined order, before and after a standardization of examination techniques. Results of an analysis of variance showed a reduction of the percent of variability due to observers from 13.8%, before standardization, to 3.2% after standardization, and an improvement in the percent variability related to patient differences from 70.7%, before standardization, to 86.3% after standardization. Such a reduction in observer variability has a potential for allowing a reduction in sample sizes required for RA clinical trials.

Analysis of Variance↗
PubMed1986

Evaluation of amitriptyline in primary fibrositis. A double-blind, placebo-controlled study.

Seventy patients with primary fibrositis satisfying Smythe's criteria were studied in a 9-week double-blind trial comparing 50 mg amitriptyline with placebo. Fifty-nine patients completed the trial: 27 were treated with amitriptyline, and 32 took a placebo. The patients who received amitriptyline improved significantly in their morning stiffness and pain analog scores at 5 and 9 weeks, compared with baseline scores, whereas no changes were noted in these parameters in the placebo group. Fibrocytic point tenderness did not improve significantly in either of the treatment groups. When compared with the placebo group, the amitriptyline group improved significantly with respect to sleep pattern and patient and physician global assessments. Our data indicate that amitriptyline has some therapeutic benefit in patients with primary fibrositis.

Adult↗
PubMed1985

Serum alpha interferon and lymphocyte inclusions in systemic lupus erythematosus.

The relationship between serum acid-labile alpha interferon and tubuloreticular inclusions within the cytoplasm of circulating lymphocytes was studied in 46 patients with systemic lupus erythematosus. Elevated levels of interferon (greater than or equal to 8 IU/ml) were found in 17 patients and lymphocyte inclusions in 35. The mean serum interferon concentration in patients with lymphocyte inclusions was significantly higher than in patients without inclusions (17.2 versus 2.4 IU/ml, p less than 0.01). Inclusions were found in 16 of 17 patients with elevated interferon and also in 19 of 29 patients without interferon (p = 0.026). In lupus, serum interferon appears to be a sufficient though not an essential marker for the presence of lymphocyte inclusions.

Humans↗
PubMed1985

Radionuclide esophageal transit in progressive systemic sclerosis.

Twenty-three patients with progressive systemic sclerosis (PSS) were studied by radionuclide esophageal transit (RT) and esophageal manometry. Twenty-two patients had abnormal manometry ranging from lower esophageal sphincter incompetence to aperistaltism. Of these 22 patients, twenty (91%) had abnormal RT with prolongation of transit time. A characteristic RT pattern showing stagnation of the radionuclide in the distal and middle segments of the esophagus was demonstrated in 82% of the patients with advanced sclerodermatous involvement of the esophagus. Fifteen of the 19 controls (79%) studied had a normal RT. Four showed prolongation of transit time without stagnation. We conclude that RT is a safe, noninvasive, highly sensitive method which might be used as an alternative to esophageal manometry. However, it may lack specificity.

Adolescent↗