Displaying publications 21 - 40 of 210 in total

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  1. Wolfe D, Carrieri MP, Shepard D
    Lancet, 2010 Jul 31;376(9738):355-66.
    PMID: 20650513 DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(10)60832-X
    We review evidence for effectiveness, cost-effectiveness, and coverage of antiretroviral therapy (ART) for injecting drug users (IDUs) infected with HIV, with particular attention to low-income and middle-income countries. In these countries, nearly half (47%) of all IDUs infected with HIV are in five nations--China, Vietnam, Russia, Ukraine, and Malaysia. In all five countries, IDU access to ART is disproportionately low, and systemic and structural obstacles restrict treatment access. IDUs are 67% of cumulative HIV cases in these countries, but only 25% of those receiving ART. Integration of ART with opioid substitution and tuberculosis treatment, increased peer engagement in treatment delivery, and reform of harmful policies--including police use of drug-user registries, detention of drug users in centres offering no evidence-based treatment, and imprisonment for possession of drugs for personal use--are needed to improve ART coverage of IDUs.
  2. Smith RD, Correa C, Oh C
    Lancet, 2009 Feb 21;373(9664):684-91.
    PMID: 19167054 DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(08)61779-1
    The World Trade Organization's Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) set global minimum standards for the protection of intellectual property, substantially increasing and expanding intellectual-property rights, and generated clear gains for the pharmaceutical industry and the developed world. The question of whether TRIPS generates gains for developing countries, in the form of increased exports, is addressed in this paper through consideration of the importance of pharmaceuticals in health-care trade, outlining the essential requirements, implications, and issues related to TRIPS, and TRIPS-plus, in which increased restrictions are imposed as part of bilateral free-trade agreements. TRIPS has not generated substantial gains for developing countries, but has further increased pharmaceutical trade in developed countries. The unequal trade between developed and developing countries (ie, exporting and importing high-value patented drugs, respectively) raises the issue of access to medicines, which is exacerbated by TRIPS-plus provisions, although many countries have not even enacted provision for TRIPS flexibilities. Therefore this paper focuses on options that are available to the health community for negotiation to their advantage under TRIPS, and within the presence of TRIPS-plus.
  3. Ekman B, Pathmanathan I, Liljestrand J
    Lancet, 2008 Sep 13;372(9642):990-1000.
    PMID: 18790321 DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(08)61408-7
    For women and children, especially those who are poor and disadvantaged, to benefit from primary health care, they need to access and use cost-effective interventions for maternal, newborn, and child health. The challenge facing weak health systems is how to deliver such packages. Experiences from countries such as Iran, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, and China, and from projects in countries like Tanzania and India, show that outcomes in maternal, newborn, and child health can be improved through integrated packages of cost-effective health-care interventions that are implemented incrementally in accordance with the capacity of health systems. Such packages should include community-based interventions that act in combination with social protection and intersectoral action in education, infrastructure, and poverty reduction. Interventions need to be planned and implemented at the district level, which requires strengthening of district planning and management skills. Furthermore, districts need to be supported by national strategies and policies, and, in the case of the least developed countries, also by international donors and other partners. If packages for maternal, newborn and child health care can be integrated within a gradually strengthened primary health-care system, continuity of care will be improved, including access to basic referral care before and during pregnancy, birth, the postpartum period, and throughout childhood.
  4. Noordin NM, Merican MI, Rahman HA, Lee SS, Ramly R
    Lancet, 2008 Sep 27;372(9644):1149-50.
    PMID: 18926274 DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(08)61479-8
  5. Schottenfeld RS, Chawarski MC, Mazlan M
    Lancet, 2008 Jun 28;371(9631):2192-200.
    PMID: 18586174 DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(08)60954-X
    Expansion of access to effective treatments for heroin dependence is a worldwide health priority that will also reduce HIV transmission. We compared the efficacy of naltrexone, buprenorphine, and no additional treatment, in patients receiving detoxification and subsequent drug counselling, for maintenance of heroin abstinence, prevention of relapse, and reduction of HIV risk behaviours.
  6. Cross-Disorder Group of the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium
    Lancet, 2013 Apr 20;381(9875):1371-9.
    PMID: 23453885 DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(12)62129-1
    BACKGROUND: Findings from family and twin studies suggest that genetic contributions to psychiatric disorders do not in all cases map to present diagnostic categories. We aimed to identify specific variants underlying genetic effects shared between the five disorders in the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium: autism spectrum disorder, attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder, bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder, and schizophrenia.

    METHODS: We analysed genome-wide single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) data for the five disorders in 33,332 cases and 27,888 controls of European ancestory. To characterise allelic effects on each disorder, we applied a multinomial logistic regression procedure with model selection to identify the best-fitting model of relations between genotype and phenotype. We examined cross-disorder effects of genome-wide significant loci previously identified for bipolar disorder and schizophrenia, and used polygenic risk-score analysis to examine such effects from a broader set of common variants. We undertook pathway analyses to establish the biological associations underlying genetic overlap for the five disorders. We used enrichment analysis of expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL) data to assess whether SNPs with cross-disorder association were enriched for regulatory SNPs in post-mortem brain-tissue samples.

    FINDINGS: SNPs at four loci surpassed the cutoff for genome-wide significance (p<5×10(-8)) in the primary analysis: regions on chromosomes 3p21 and 10q24, and SNPs within two L-type voltage-gated calcium channel subunits, CACNA1C and CACNB2. Model selection analysis supported effects of these loci for several disorders. Loci previously associated with bipolar disorder or schizophrenia had variable diagnostic specificity. Polygenic risk scores showed cross-disorder associations, notably between adult-onset disorders. Pathway analysis supported a role for calcium channel signalling genes for all five disorders. Finally, SNPs with evidence of cross-disorder association were enriched for brain eQTL markers.

    INTERPRETATION: Our findings show that specific SNPs are associated with a range of psychiatric disorders of childhood onset or adult onset. In particular, variation in calcium-channel activity genes seems to have pleiotropic effects on psychopathology. These results provide evidence relevant to the goal of moving beyond descriptive syndromes in psychiatry, and towards a nosology informed by disease cause.

    FUNDING: National Institute of Mental Health.

  7. Hamid M, Bustamante-Manaog T, Truong VD, Akkhavong K, Fu H, Ma Y, et al.
    Lancet, 2005 Nov 19;366(9499):1758-60.
    PMID: 16298204 DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(05)67709-4
  8. Kumar V, Kanth S
    Lancet, 2004 Dec;364 Suppl 1:s18-9.
    PMID: 15967137
  9. Khatib R, McKee M, Shannon H, Chow C, Rangarajan S, Teo K, et al.
    Lancet, 2016 Jan 2;387(10013):61-9.
    PMID: 26498706 DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(15)00469-9
    BACKGROUND: WHO has targeted that medicines to prevent recurrent cardiovascular disease be available in 80% of communities and used by 50% of eligible individuals by 2025. We have previously reported that use of these medicines is very low, but now aim to assess how such low use relates to their lack of availability or poor affordability.
    METHODS: We analysed information about availability and costs of cardiovascular disease medicines (aspirin, β blockers, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, and statins) in pharmacies gathered from 596 communities in 18 countries participating in the Prospective Urban Rural Epidemiology (PURE) study. Medicines were considered available if present at the pharmacy when surveyed, and affordable if their combined cost was less than 20% of household capacity-to-pay. We compared results from high-income, upper middle-income, lower middle-income, and low-income countries. Data from India were presented separately given its large, generic pharmaceutical industry.
    FINDINGS: Communities were recruited between Jan 1, 2003, and Dec 31, 2013. All four cardiovascular disease medicines were available in 61 (95%) of 64 urban and 27 (90%) of 30 rural communities in high-income countries, 53 (80%) of 66 urban and 43 (73%) of 59 rural communities in upper middle-income countries, 69 (62%) of 111 urban and 42 (37%) of 114 rural communities in lower middle-income countries, eight (25%) of 32 urban and one (3%) of 30 rural communities in low-income countries (excluding India), and 34 (89%) of 38 urban and 42 (81%) of 52 rural communities in India. The four cardiovascular disease medicines were potentially unaffordable for 0·14% of households in high-income countries (14 of 9934 households), 25% of upper middle-income countries (6299 of 24,776), 33% of lower middle-income countries (13,253 of 40,023), 60% of low-income countries (excluding India; 1976 of 3312), and 59% households in India (9939 of 16,874). In low-income and middle-income countries, patients with previous cardiovascular disease were less likely to use all four medicines if fewer than four were available (odds ratio [OR] 0·16, 95% CI 0·04-0·57). In communities in which all four medicines were available, patients were less likely to use medicines if the household potentially could not afford them (0·16, 0·04-0·55).
    INTERPRETATION: Secondary prevention medicines are unavailable and unaffordable for a large proportion of communities and households in upper middle-income, lower middle-income, and low-income countries, which have very low use of these medicines. Improvements to the availability and affordability of key medicines is likely to enhance their use and help towards achieving WHO's targets of 50% use of key medicines by 2025.
    FUNDING: Population Health Research Institute, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario, AstraZeneca (Canada), Sanofi-Aventis (France and Canada), Boehringer Ingelheim (Germany and Canada), Servier, GlaxoSmithKline, Novartis, King Pharma, and national or local organisations in participating countries.
  10. Mente A, O'Donnell M, Rangarajan S, Dagenais G, Lear S, McQueen M, et al.
    Lancet, 2016 Jul 30;388(10043):465-75.
    PMID: 27216139 DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(16)30467-6
    BACKGROUND: Several studies reported a U-shaped association between urinary sodium excretion and cardiovascular disease events and mortality. Whether these associations vary between those individuals with and without hypertension is uncertain. We aimed to explore whether the association between sodium intake and cardiovascular disease events and all-cause mortality is modified by hypertension status.

    METHODS: In this pooled analysis, we studied 133,118 individuals (63,559 with hypertension and 69,559 without hypertension), median age of 55 years (IQR 45-63), from 49 countries in four large prospective studies and estimated 24-h urinary sodium excretion (as group-level measure of intake). We related this to the composite outcome of death and major cardiovascular disease events over a median of 4.2 years (IQR 3.0-5.0) and blood pressure.

    FINDINGS: Increased sodium intake was associated with greater increases in systolic blood pressure in individuals with hypertension (2.08 mm Hg change per g sodium increase) compared with individuals without hypertension (1.22 mm Hg change per g; pinteraction<0.0001). In those individuals with hypertension (6835 events), sodium excretion of 7 g/day or more (7060 [11%] of population with hypertension: hazard ratio [HR] 1.23 [95% CI 1.11-1.37]; p<0.0001) and less than 3 g/day (7006 [11%] of population with hypertension: 1.34 [1.23-1.47]; p<0.0001) were both associated with increased risk compared with sodium excretion of 4-5 g/day (reference 25% of the population with hypertension). In those individuals without hypertension (3021 events), compared with 4-5 g/day (18,508 [27%] of the population without hypertension), higher sodium excretion was not associated with risk of the primary composite outcome (≥ 7 g/day in 6271 [9%] of the population without hypertension; HR 0.90 [95% CI 0.76-1.08]; p=0.2547), whereas an excretion of less than 3 g/day was associated with a significantly increased risk (7547 [11%] of the population without hypertension; HR 1.26 [95% CI 1.10-1.45]; p=0.0009).

    INTERPRETATION: Compared with moderate sodium intake, high sodium intake is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular events and death in hypertensive populations (no association in normotensive population), while the association of low sodium intake with increased risk of cardiovascular events and death is observed in those with or without hypertension. These data suggest that lowering sodium intake is best targeted at populations with hypertension who consume high sodium diets.

    FUNDING: Full funding sources listed at end of paper (see Acknowledgments).

  11. Kuruppu N, Capon A
    Lancet, 2016 Jan 30;387(10017):430.
    PMID: 26869566 DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(16)00170-7
  12. McAdam D
    Lancet, 2016 Jan 30;387(10017):429-30.
    PMID: 26869565 DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(16)00169-0
  13. Leong DP, Teo KK, Rangarajan S, Lopez-Jaramillo P, Avezum A, Orlandini A, et al.
    Lancet, 2015 Jul 18;386(9990):266-73.
    PMID: 25982160 DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(14)62000-6
    Reduced muscular strength, as measured by grip strength, has been associated with an increased risk of all-cause and cardiovascular mortality. Grip strength is appealing as a simple, quick, and inexpensive means of stratifying an individual's risk of cardiovascular death. However, the prognostic value of grip strength with respect to the number and range of populations and confounders is unknown. The aim of this study was to assess the independent prognostic importance of grip strength measurement in socioculturally and economically diverse countries.
  14. Pang T, Thiam DGY, Tantawichien T, Ismail Z, Yoksan S
    Lancet, 2015 May 02;385(9979):1725-1726.
    PMID: 25943934 DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(15)60888-1
  15. Krishnan P, Mungherera M, Jones SB
    Lancet, 2003 May 17;361(9370):1669-70.
    PMID: 12767730 DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(03)13381-8
  16. Goh AY, Lum LC, Abdel-Latif ME
    Lancet, 2001 Feb 10;357(9254):445-6.
    PMID: 11273070
    The 24 h availability of intensive care consultants (intensivists) has been shown to improve outcomes in adult intensive care units (ICU) in the UK. We tested whether such availability would improve standardised mortality ratios when compared to out-of-hours cover by general paediatricians in the paediatric ICU setting of a medium-income developing country. The standardised mortality ratio (SMR) improved significantly from 1.57 (95%CI 1.25-1.95) with non-specialist care to 0.88 (95%CI 0.63-1.19) with intensivist care (rate ratio 0.56, 95% CI 0.47-0.67). Mortality odds ratio decreased by 0.234, 0.246 and 0.266 in the low, moderate and high-risk patients. 24 h availability of intensivists was associated with improved outcomes and use of resources in paediatric intensive care in a developing country.
  17. Lum LC, Wong KT, Lam SK, Chua KB, Goh AY
    Lancet, 2000 Jan 08;355(9198):146-7.
    PMID: 10675193
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