Background and Study Aims: Routine coagulation screening prior to gastrointestinal endoscopy is performed in many centres in the UK, despite the lack of any evidence to support the practice. The aim of this study was ...
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Background and Study Aims: Routine coagulation screening prior to gastrointestinal endoscopy is performed in many centres in the UK, despite the lack of any evidence to support the practice. The aim of this study was to assess the benefits of routine pre-endoscopy coagulation screening in children and to assess how widespread this practice is in the UK. Patients and Methods: We performed a retrospective analysis of the case notes of 250 consecutive patients who had undergone routine coagulation screening prior to endoscopy and biopsy, in accordance with our unit’s protocol, looking for evidence of abnormal results or episodes of bleeding. We also performed a telephone survey of the protocols for coagulation screening at other paediatric units in the UK which are known to perform gastro-intestinal endoscopy on a routine basis. Results: According to our hospital’s laboratory reference ranges, 16.8%of the children who underwent endoscopy and biopsy had abnormal clotting. This was neither clinically significant nor associated with an increased bleeding risk in any patient. Of the 23 UK paediatric gastroenterology centres surveyed, including our own, five (21.7%) perform routine coagulation screening before endoscopy. Conclusions: This study suggests that, although it is a relatively common practice, routine coagulation screening is not indicated in children who are undergoing gastrointestinal endoscopy and biopsy, and that it does not predict those at risk of significant bleeding. We would therefore suggest that if pre-endoscopy screening is to be performed, it should be reserved for those who are potentially at high risk of bleeding.
Objectives: To explore the relative and absolute risks associated with various definitions for myocardial infarction, bleeding and revascularisation within the context of percutaneous coronary intervention(PCI). Metho...
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Objectives: To explore the relative and absolute risks associated with various definitions for myocardial infarction, bleeding and revascularisation within the context of percutaneous coronary intervention(PCI). Methods: The REPLACE-2(randomised evaluation of PCI linking Angiomax to reduced clinical events) database of patients undergoing PCI was used. Various definitions of myocardial infarction, bleeding and revascularisation were modelled by logistic regression assessing their relationship with 12-month mortality. Estimates from these models were used to calculate the “attributable fraction”for late mortality associated with each definition. Results: The most liberal definition of myocardial infarction was associated with an attributable risk of 13.7%(95%CI 3.4%to 23.0%). The most stringent definition was associated with an attributable risk of 4.6%(95%CI 0.6%to 8.6%). Restrictive definitions of bleeding such as TIMI(thrombolysis in myocardial infarction) major bleeding are associated with a high odds ratio of risk(6.1, 95%CI 2.1 to 17.7, p=0.001) but low attributable fraction(3.5%, 95%CI 0.9%to 6.8%). Conclusions: Stringent end point definitions may under-represent the clinical significance of adverse outcomes after PCI. Considering both the proportional and absolute risk associated with definitions may be a more useful method for evaluating clinical trial end points. This analysis supports the current definitions of ischaemic events but suggests that more liberal definitions of bleeding events may also be relevant to late mortality.
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