In an era such as the present one in which there is a high demand for health services with the associated pressure of controlling spending, health care organizations are concerned about the cost-effectiveness of quali...In an era such as the present one in which there is a high demand for health services with the associated pressure of controlling spending, health care organizations are concerned about the cost-effectiveness of quality improvement interventions. On the other hand, the impact of the disease and the treatment on the patient’s overall well-being and functioning has become a topic of growing interest not only in clinical research but also in practice. The clinical evaluation of the benefits of specific treatments for chronic, debilitating and incurable diseases should increasingly include formal assessment of patient activity and well-being. Thus, health-related quality of life as subjectively perceived by the patient, is becoming a major issue in the evaluation of any therapeutic intervention, mainly in patients with chronic or difficult diseases where the aim of the intervention is to keep patients either symptom-free and capable of living in the community for a long time or to reduce the discomfort caused by the disease. In this paper, we review the current knowledge on the quality of life assessment in chronic pancreatitis patients.展开更多
AIM: To evaluate the influence of familiality on the prevalence of gallstone disease (GD) in Italy.METHODS: Families of 79 subjects with gallstones (cases) and of 79 subjects without gallstones (controls)were investig...AIM: To evaluate the influence of familiality on the prevalence of gallstone disease (GD) in Italy.METHODS: Families of 79 subjects with gallstones (cases) and of 79 subjects without gallstones (controls)were investigated for the presence of gallstones by ultrasonography. Index cases and index controls were matched for age, sex, and operative unit. Sixty-three and sixty-two husbands and wives of index cases and index controls, respectively, were also studied.RESULTS: Overall,the prevalence of GD was significantly higher (X2=14.52, P＜0.001) in the 202 first-degree relatives of subjects with gallstones than that in the 201 first-degree relatives of subjects without gallstones (28.6% vs 12.4%, relative risk (RR) 1.80, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.29-2.63). In particular,prevalence of GD was significantly higher in mothers,fathers, and sisters of index cases than that in the respective family members of index controls. The highest RR was observed in mothers (RR=2.35, 95%CI 1.38-4.3).Prevalence of GD was not obviously different in brothers and also in husbands and wives of index cases and index controls. Family members of index cases did not differ from family members of control cases with respect to the most important risk factors for gallstones (age, diabetes,BMI, and number of pregnancies) with an exception of a higher prevalence of diabetes in fathers of index controls than in fathers of index cases.CONCLUSION: This study confirms that familiality plays a very important role in the pathogenesis of gallstones.展开更多
文摘In an era such as the present one in which there is a high demand for health services with the associated pressure of controlling spending, health care organizations are concerned about the cost-effectiveness of quality improvement interventions. On the other hand, the impact of the disease and the treatment on the patient’s overall well-being and functioning has become a topic of growing interest not only in clinical research but also in practice. The clinical evaluation of the benefits of specific treatments for chronic, debilitating and incurable diseases should increasingly include formal assessment of patient activity and well-being. Thus, health-related quality of life as subjectively perceived by the patient, is becoming a major issue in the evaluation of any therapeutic intervention, mainly in patients with chronic or difficult diseases where the aim of the intervention is to keep patients either symptom-free and capable of living in the community for a long time or to reduce the discomfort caused by the disease. In this paper, we review the current knowledge on the quality of life assessment in chronic pancreatitis patients.
文摘AIM: To evaluate the influence of familiality on the prevalence of gallstone disease (GD) in Italy.METHODS: Families of 79 subjects with gallstones (cases) and of 79 subjects without gallstones (controls)were investigated for the presence of gallstones by ultrasonography. Index cases and index controls were matched for age, sex, and operative unit. Sixty-three and sixty-two husbands and wives of index cases and index controls, respectively, were also studied.RESULTS: Overall,the prevalence of GD was significantly higher (X2=14.52, P＜0.001) in the 202 first-degree relatives of subjects with gallstones than that in the 201 first-degree relatives of subjects without gallstones (28.6% vs 12.4%, relative risk (RR) 1.80, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.29-2.63). In particular,prevalence of GD was significantly higher in mothers,fathers, and sisters of index cases than that in the respective family members of index controls. The highest RR was observed in mothers (RR=2.35, 95%CI 1.38-4.3).Prevalence of GD was not obviously different in brothers and also in husbands and wives of index cases and index controls. Family members of index cases did not differ from family members of control cases with respect to the most important risk factors for gallstones (age, diabetes,BMI, and number of pregnancies) with an exception of a higher prevalence of diabetes in fathers of index controls than in fathers of index cases.CONCLUSION: This study confirms that familiality plays a very important role in the pathogenesis of gallstones.
