Carbamazepine (CBZ), oxcarbazepine (OXC), and eslicarbazepine acetate (ESL) belong to the dibenzazepine family of antiepileptic drugs and are all thought to primarily act as sodium channel blockers (SCBs). However, ESL is structurally distinct from CBZ and OXC, resulting in differences in metabolism, pharmacokinetics, and pharmacodynamics. Despite a lack of direct comparative data, evidence for potential differences in effectiveness and tolerability within the dibenzazepine family has emerged from studies in which patients being treated with one dibenzazepine agent have received adjunctive treatment with another (having achieved insufficient seizure control with the first) or have transitioned from one dibenzazepine agent to another because of lack of effectiveness or poor tolerability. Most of these studies have been conducted in the real-world clinical practice setting. ESL has been shown to be effective as adjunctive therapy in patients who have previously achieved inadequate seizure control with CBZ, indicating that the use of different dibenzazepine agents in combination can provide additive effectiveness benefits, which may reflect underlying differences in their mechanisms of action. Similarly, ESL monotherapy can be effective in patients who have switched from another dibenzazepine, such as CBZ or OXC, because of inadequate efficacy. There is also considerable evidence to demonstrate that patients transitioning from OXC or CBZ to ESL as a result of adverse events experience improvements in tolerability, which may also be associated with improvements in quality of life, alertness, and/or lipid profiles. Current evidence therefore demonstrates that ESL differs from other dibenzazepine agents in terms of effectiveness and tolerability.Funding: Eisai Ltd.

The accuracy of land surface temperature (LST) observations is critical to many applications. Any observation of LST is subject to incomplete knowledge, so an accurate assessment of the uncertainty budget is critical. We present a comprehensive and consistent approach to determining an uncertainty budget for LST products. We apply this approach to the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) instrument on-board the Aqua satellite. In order to generate the uncertainty model, a new implementation of the generalised split-window algorithm is applied, in which retrieval coefficients are categorised by viewing angle and water vapour. Validation of the LST against in situ data shows a mean absolute bias of 0.37 K for daytime and 0.73 K for nighttime. The average standard deviation per site is 1.53 K for daytime and 1.21 K for nighttime. Uncertainties from the implemented model are estimates in their own right and are also validated. We do this by comparing the standard deviation of the differences between the satellite and in situ LSTs, and the total uncertainties of the validation matchups. We show that the uncertainty model provides a good fit. Our approach offers a framework for quantifying uncertainties for LST that is equally applicable across different sensors and different retrieval approaches.

Time series of global and regional mean surface air temperature (SAT) anomalies are a common metric used to estimate recent climate change. Various techniques can be used to create these time series from meteorological station data. The degree of difference arising from using five different techniques, based on existing temperature anomaly dataset techniques, to estimate Arctic SAT anomalies over land and sea ice was investigated using reanalysis data as a test bed. Techniques that interpolated anomalies were found to result in smaller errors than noninterpolating techniques relative to the reanalysis reference. Kriging techniques provided the smallest errors in estimates of Arctic anomalies, and simple kriging was often the best kriging method in this study, especially over sea ice. A linear interpolation technique had, on average, root-mean-square errors (RMSEs) up to 0.55 K larger than the two kriging techniques tested. Noninterpolating techniques provided the least representative anomaly estimates. Nonetheless, they serve as useful checks for confirming whether estimates from interpolating techniques are reasonable. The interaction of meteorological station coverage with estimation techniques between 1850 and 2011 was simulated using an ensemble dataset comprising repeated individual years (1979–2011). All techniques were found to have larger RMSEs for earlier station coverages. This supports calls for increased data sharing and data rescue, especially in sparsely observed regions such as the Arctic.

Capsule The main goals and activities of the EUSTACE project are discussed along with some key results, including a global, multi-decadal daily air temperature record from satellite and in situ measurements.