American Society of Nephrology’s Post

Back to pharmacoepidemiology!

"If you follow your bliss, you put yourself on a kind of track that has been there all the while, waiting for you; and the life you ought to be living is the one you are living." Joseph Campbell, The Power of Myth In 1992, we reviewed the cardiology literature to lay the groundwork for a randomized clinical trial that would compare coronary artery bypass graft surgery against percutaneous coronary angioplasty, for the treatment of medically refractory, acute coronary syndromes. The initial result was the publication of the text, Medically Refractory Rest Angina. The subsequent result was planning and funding VA Cooperative Studies clinical trial # 385, the Angina With Extremely Serious Operative Mortality Evaluation or the AWESOME Trial. #clinicaltrials #clinicalresearch #epidemiology #cardiology #cardiacsurgery #coronaryarterydisease #coronaryangioplasty

On February 29, we will observe World Rare Disease Day, a day dedicated to raising awareness about rare diseases and the individuals and families affected by them. Rare diseases—despite their individual rarity—collectively impact millions of people worldwide, often leading to significant challenges in diagnosis, treatment and support. Clinical research is crucial for developing effective treatments for these diseases and we help make a difference through our support of complex and novel clinical trials. To achieve true equity, it's necessary to acknowledge the unique circumstances of each participant and allocate resources accordingly. In partnership with drug developers, and our Rare Diseases, Advanced Therapies and Pediatrics Team (RAPT)—must consider how we conduct clinical trials and the requirements placed on rare disease participants. #rarediseaseday #showyourrare #fortrea

Did you know that kidney tumors can develop in utero? In our latest case report, we describe a prenatal Wilm's tumor that preceded the development of postnatal lateralized lower extremity overgrowth. Why are case reports important? They can highlight unusual cases and rare disease features, as seen here, but they can also shed light on adverse effects and generate new hypotheses for future research. For more in-depth reading check the link! 👇 #PediatricOncology #PediatricNephrology #WilmsTumor #CaseReport #MedicalInformation #Epidemiology https://lnkd.in/d-f8VHnf

Our co-founder, Brett Drummond, recently had the pleasure of co-hosting a joint European Academy of Neurology and ECTRIMS podcast episode on the newly published joint Vaccination Consensus Statement for people living with multiple sclerosis. It is available below. #multiplesclerosis #vaccination #podcast #neurology #europe

Meet the speakers that make the #ICESforum2024 not only possible, but an event not to miss! Our first #ForumFeature today focuses on Robert Platt, Professor, McGill University. He will be part of the "Leveraging Common Data Models for multi-jurisdictional research” presentation.  Register to save your seat for this free, virtual, national dialogue on May 2: https://lnkd.in/gjaq2sBC    Robert Platt is Professor in the Departments of Epidemiology, Biostatistics, and Occupational Health, and of Pediatrics, at McGill University. He holds the Albert Boehringer I endowed chair in Pharmacoepidemiology. Dr. Platt is Principal Investigator of the Canadian Network for Observational Drug Effect Studies (CNODES). His research focuses on improving methods for the study of medications using administrative data, with an emphasis on methods for causal inference and a substantive focus on medications in pregnancy.    Presentation 2: Leveraging Common Data Models for multi-jurisdictional research: This session will provide an overview of the types and characteristics of Common Data Models (CDM), examples of Canadian studies undertaken with CDMs, and highlight new statistical methods for analysis of observational data that were developed using a CDM. 

📃Scientific paper: Intracranial complications of sinogenic and otogenic infections in children: an ESPN survey on their occurrence in the pre-COVID and post-COVID era Abstract: Background COVID-19 pandemic is thought to have changed the epidemiology of some pediatric neurosurgical disease: among them are the intracranial complications of sinusitis and otitis (ICSO). According to some studies on a limited number of cases, both streptococci-related sinusitis and ICSO would have increased immediately after the pandemic, although the reason is not clear yet (seasonal changes versus pandemic-related effects). The goal of the present survey of the European Society for Pediatric Neurosurgery (ESPN) was to collect a large number of cases from different European countries encompassing the pre-COVID (2017–2019), COVID (2020–2021), and post-COVID period (2022–June 2023) looking for possible epidemiological and/or clinical changes. Material and methods An English language questionnaire was sent to ESPN members about year of the event, patient’s age and gender, presence of immune-deficit or other favoring risk factors, COVID infection, signs and symptoms at onset, site of primary infection, type of intracranial complication, identified germ, type and number of surgical operations, type and duration of medical treatment, clinical and radiological outcome, duration of the follow-up. Results Two hundred fifty-four cases were collected by 30 centers coming from 14 different European countries. There was a statistically significant difference between the post-COVID period (129 children, 86 cases/year, 50.7% of the whole series) and the COVID (40 children, 20 c... Continued on ES/IODE ➡️ https://etcse.fr/fLp5s ------- If you find this interesting, feel free to follow, comment and share. We need your help to enhance our visibility, so that our platform continues to serve you.

📃Scientific paper: Intracranial complications of sinogenic and otogenic infections in children: an ESPN survey on their occurrence in the pre-COVID and post-COVID era Abstract: Background COVID-19 pandemic is thought to have changed the epidemiology of some pediatric neurosurgical disease: among them are the intracranial complications of sinusitis and otitis (ICSO). According to some studies on a limited number of cases, both streptococci-related sinusitis and ICSO would have increased immediately after the pandemic, although the reason is not clear yet (seasonal changes versus pandemic-related effects). The goal of the present survey of the European Society for Pediatric Neurosurgery (ESPN) was to collect a large number of cases from different European countries encompassing the pre-COVID (2017–2019), COVID (2020–2021), and post-COVID period (2022–June 2023) looking for possible epidemiological and/or clinical changes. Material and methods An English language questionnaire was sent to ESPN members about year of the event, patient’s age and gender, presence of immune-deficit or other favoring risk factors, COVID infection, signs and symptoms at onset, site of primary infection, type of intracranial complication, identified germ, type and number of surgical operations, type and duration of medical treatment, clinical and radiological outcome, duration of the follow-up. Results Two hundred fifty-four cases were collected by 30 centers coming from 14 different European countries. There was a statistically significant difference between the post-COVID period (129 children, 86 cases/year, 50.7% of the whole series) and the COVID (40 children, 20 c... Continued on ES/IODE ➡️ https://etcse.fr/fLp5s ------- If you find this interesting, feel free to follow, comment and share. We need your help to enhance our visibility, so that our platform continues to serve you.

I’m thrilled to share our genome-wide association study of Human Milk Oligosaccharides (HMOs), published today in Nature Communications. Conducted within the CHILD Cohort and replicated in the multi-country INSPIRE Cohort, this study investigates how maternal genetics influence HMO composition, and explores implications for infant respiratory health. The idea took shape after Lars Bode's team analyzed HMOs in breastmilk from ~1000 CHILD moms. We uncovered many associations with maternal and environmental factors, with the biggest driver being "secretor status" - determined by a single nucleotide polymorphism in the FUT2 gene. We wondered – could there be more genetic factors at play? 🤔 That’s when Qingling Duan stepped in to lead our genomics efforts, linking over 500,000 maternal genetic variants to HMO profiles. As expected, FUT2 emerged as a key player (in fact, this was among the strongest GWAS hits the Duan lab had ever seen!) But FUT2 wasn’t the only gene that lit up. We identified new genetic factors influencing HMO profiles, like ST6GAL1, which had never before been linked to HMOs. Next, we explored how maternal HMOs relate to infant health, focusing on respiratory outcomes because #breastfeeding is known to protect against #asthma – though the mechanisms remain unclear. We started by confirming that children’s own genetics play a significant role in their risk of developing wheezing (an early sign of asthma). But here’s the novel part: the levels of different HMOs in breastmilk seemed to *modify* the genetic risk for asthma. For example, children with high genetic risk were more likely to wheeze, especially when their mothers had low levels of 2'FL in their milk. But when 2'FL levels were high, genetic risk hardly mattered! Interestingly, this wasn't true for all HMOs. LNFP2 showed the opposite effect – lower levels seemed to buffer against genetic risk. It's a delicate system, and more research is needed to fully understand the relationship between HMOs, genetics, and other health outcomes like obesity, diabetes, or infections (which are also less common in breastfed children). For now, our study highlights two key takeaways: 1️⃣ The mother-milk-infant triad is a complex, evolved system that nourishes and protects human babies. 2️⃣ We’ve shed new light on how HMOs are synthesized during lactation and the genetic factors driving this process. Why does this matter? HMOs are key components of human milk. They support the baby’s microbiome, prevent infections, and much more. Understanding how HMOs are made could lead to new ways to synthesize them for therapeutic applications, benefiting not just infants but potentially adults as well. Huge thanks to Lars, Qingling, lead author Amirtha Ambalavanan, PhD, our many collaborators, and and our funders: Canadian Institutes of Health Research | Instituts de recherche en santé du Canada & Research Manitoba. 🙏🏻 https://lnkd.in/e3C4heZR

📃Scientific paper: Intracranial complications of sinogenic and otogenic infections in children: an ESPN survey on their occurrence in the pre-COVID and post-COVID era Abstract: Background COVID-19 pandemic is thought to have changed the epidemiology of some pediatric neurosurgical disease: among them are the intracranial complications of sinusitis and otitis (ICSO). According to some studies on a limited number of cases, both streptococci-related sinusitis and ICSO would have increased immediately after the pandemic, although the reason is not clear yet (seasonal changes versus pandemic-related effects). The goal of the present survey of the European Society for Pediatric Neurosurgery (ESPN) was to collect a large number of cases from different European countries encompassing the pre-COVID (2017–2019), COVID (2020–2021), and post-COVID period (2022–June 2023) looking for possible epidemiological and/or clinical changes. Material and methods An English language questionnaire was sent to ESPN members about year of the event, patient’s age and gender, presence of immune-deficit or other favoring risk factors, COVID infection, signs and symptoms at onset, site of primary infection, type of intracranial complication, identified germ, type and number of surgical operations, type and duration of medical treatment, clinical and radiological outcome, duration of the follow-up. Results Two hundred fifty-four cases were collected by 30 centers coming from 14 different European countries. There was a statistically significant difference between the post-COVID period (129 children, 86 cases/year, 50.7% of the whole series) and the COVID (40 children, 20 c... Continued on ES/IODE ➡️ https://etcse.fr/fLp5s ------- If you find this interesting, feel free to follow, comment and share. We need your help to enhance our visibility, so that our platform continues to serve you.