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- Ghatnekar, Ola, et al.
(författare)
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Direct hospital resource utilization and costs of treating patients with multiple myeloma in Southwest Sweden: a 5-year retrospective analysis.
- 2008
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Ingår i: Clinical Therapeutics. - : Elsevier BV. - 0149-2918. ; 30:9, s. 1704-1713
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Approximately 570 patients are diagnosed with multiple myeloma (MM) in Sweden each year. Few studies have estimated the cost of treatment for these patients. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to retrospectively investigate the direct hospital resource utilization and costs associated with the treatment of patients with MM in southwest Sweden. METHODS: Patients aged > or =18 years who initiated first-line chemotherapy in the year 2001 at hospitals in southwestern Sweden were included in this retrospective chart review. Direct hospital-based resources and their corresponding costs (year-2006 euros) for each patient were calculated until the patient's death, or until December 31, 2005. Costs for outpatient and terminal stage care related to MM were not included. RESULTS: Ninety-four patients were included; 20 were still alive at study completion. Mean age at diagnosis was 76 years and patients were followed for a mean of 32.7 months; 55% were males and 74% had at least 1 comorbidity. First-, second-, and third-line treatment lasted a mean of 24.3, 5.8, and 2.6 months, and included 2.8, 2.6, and 3.1 chemotherapy drugs per patient, respectively. Of the 80 patients who received first-line chemotherapy, 72 were prescribed melphalan and 55 patients received a combination of melphalan and prednisone, as recommended by Swedish treatment guidelines. The mean total cost per patient was euro88,199, or euro2770 per patient-month. Therapy-induced and comorbidity-related events constituted 42% of total costs, as much as autologous stem-cell transplantation and inpatient care together. Chemotherapy, bisphosphonate, and blood cell-enhancement drugs each amounted to only 2% of total costs, but chemotherapy drugs increased from euro29/month in first-line therapy to euro453/month in third-line therapy. CONCLUSIONS: The cost of treating Swedish patients with MM varied greatly between individuals but, overall, chemotherapy drugs constituted only a minor part of the total monthly cost (2%), whereas costs for inpatient stays and therapy-induced adverse events or comorbidity-related events accounted for 35% and42%, respectively. There was no significant differencein monthly cost between treatment lines.
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| 4. |
- Pettersson, Jonas, et al.
(författare)
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Muscular exercise can cause highly pathological liver function tests in healthy men.
- 2008
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Ingår i: British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology. - : Wiley. - 1365-2125 .- 0306-5251. ; 65:2, s. 253-259
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- What is already known about this subject • The occurrence of idiosyncratic drug hepatotoxicity is a major problem in all phases of clinical drug development and the leading cause of postmarketing warnings and withdrawals. • Physical exercise can result in transient elevations of liver function tests. • There is no consensus in the literature on which forms of exercise may cause changes in liver function tests and to what extent. What this study adds • Weightlifting results in profound increases in liver function tests in healthy men used to moderate physical activity, not including weightlifting. • Liver function tests are significantly increased for at least 7 days after weightlifting. • It is important to impose relevant restrictions on heavy muscular exercise prior to and during clinical studies. Aim To investigate the effect of intensive muscular exercise (weightlifting) on clinical chemistry parameters reflecting liver function in healthy men. Methods Fifteen healthy men, used to moderate physical activity not including weightlifting, performed an 1 h long weightlifting programme. Blood was sampled for clinical chemistry parameters [aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), lactate dehydrogenase (LD), gamma-glutamyl transferase (γGT), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), bilirubin, creatine kinase (CK) and myoglobin] at repeated intervals during 7 days postexercise and at a follow-up examination 10–12 days postexercise. Results Five out of eight studied clinical chemistry parameters (AST, ALT, LD, CK and myoglobin) increased significantly after exercise (P < 0.01) and remained increased for at least 7 days postexercise. Bilirubin, γGT and ALP remained within the normal range. Conclusion The liver function parameters, AST and ALT, were significantly increased for at least 7 days after the exercise. In addition, LD and, in particular, CK and myoglobin showed highly elevated levels. These findings highlight the importance of imposing restrictions on weightlifting prior to and during clinical studies. Intensive muscular exercise, e.g. weightlifting, should also be considered as a cause of asymptomatic elevations of liver function tests in daily clinical practice.
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| 5. |
- Alami, Jones, et al.
(författare)
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Ion-assisted Physical Vapor Deposition for enhanced film properties on non-flat surfaces
- 2005
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Ingår i: Journal of Vacuum Science & Technology. A. Vacuum, Surfaces, and Films. - : American Vacuum Society. - 0734-2101 .- 1520-8559. ; 23:2, s. 278-280
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We have synthesized Ta thin films on Si substrates placed along a wall of a 2-cm-deep and 1-cm-wide trench, using both a mostly neutral Ta flux by conventional dc magnetron sputtering (dcMS) and a mostly ionized Ta flux by high-power pulsed magnetron sputtering (HPPMS). Structure of the grown films was evaluated by scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and atomic force microscopy. The Ta thin film grown by HPPMS has a smooth surface and a dense crystalline structure with grains oriented perpendicular to the substrate surface, whereas the film grown by dcMS exhibits a rough surface, pores between the grains, and an inclined columnar structure. The improved homogeneity achieved by HPPMS is a direct consequence of the high ion fraction of sputtered species.
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| 6. |
- Alami, Jones, et al.
(författare)
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Phase tailoring of Ta thin films by highly ionized pulsed magnetron sputtering
- 2007
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Ingår i: Thin Solid Films. - : Elsevier. - 0040-6090 .- 1879-2731. ; 515:7-8, s. 3434-3438
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Ta thin films were grown on Si substrates at different inclination angles with respect to the sputter source using high power impulse magnetron sputtering (HIPIMS), an ionized physical vapor deposition technique. The ionization allowed for better control of the energy and directionality of the sputtered species, and consequently for improved properties of the deposited films. Depositions were made on Si substrates with the native oxide intact. The structure of the as deposited films was investigated using X-ray diffraction, while a four-point probe setup was used to measure the resistivity. A substrate bias process-window for growth of bcc-Ta was observed. However, the process-window position changed with changing inclination angles of the substrate. The formation of this low-resistivity bcc-phase could be understood in light of the high ion flux from the HIPIMS discharge.
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