BackgroundIn this study, the effects of an enteral diet enriched with eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), γ-linolenic acid (GLA), and antioxidants were compared with a standard enteral diet in critically ill patients with sepsis-induced acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS).MethodsThis study was a single-center, prospective, randomized, single-blind, controlled trial in our Advanced Critical Care Center. Patients were randomized to receive a continuous EPA, GLA, and antioxidant-enriched diet (study group), or an isocaloric standard diet (control group).ResultsTwenty-three of 46 patients were in the study group, and the other 23 were in the control group. Duration of mechanical ventilation, incidence of new nosocomial infections, changes over time in Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) scores, and 60-day mortality were not significantly different between the two groups. The ratio of partial pressure of oxygen to fraction of inspired oxygen on day 7 was significantly higher in the study group (233.0 [185.5–282.8] vs. 274.0 [225.5–310.8], p = 0.021). Duration of ICU stay was significantly shorter in the study group than in the control group (24.0 [20.0–30.0] vs. 15.0 [11.0–24.0], p = 0.008).ConclusionsAn enteral diet enriched with EPA, GLA, and antioxidants did not improve duration of mechanical ventilation, SOFA score, incidence of new nosocomial infections, or mortality but did favorably influence duration of ICU stay in critically ill patients with sepsis-induced ARDS.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s40560-015-0087-2) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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Background: Stroke has been found to have a seasonally varying incidence; blood pressure, one of its risk factors, is influenced by humidity and temperature. The relationship between the incidence of stroke and meteorological parameters remains controversial. Objective: We investigated whether meteorological conditions are significant risk factors for stroke, focusing on the fluctuation of weather elements that triggers the onset of stroke. Methods: We collected ambulance transportation data recorded by emergency personnel from Gifu Prefecture. We included cases where the cause of the transportation was stroke and excluded cases of trauma. We combined these data with meteorological data as well as data on average temperature, average air pressure, and humidity provided publicly by the Japan Meteorological Agency. Our target period was from January 2012 to December 2016. Results: In the 5-year target period, there were 5,501 occurrences of ambulance transportation due to stroke. A seasonal tendency was confirmed, since ambulance transportation for stroke occurred more frequently at low temperatures (p < 0.001). Temperature (odds ratio: 0.91; p < 0.001) and humidity change (odds ratio: 1.50; p = 0.016) were identified as risk factors for ambulance transportation due to stroke. An increase in temperature incurs a lower risk than a decrease (odds ratio: 0.58; p = 0.09), although there is no statistically significant difference. Conclusions: Meteorological effects on the frequency of ambulance transportation due to stroke were studied. A lower temperature and radical humidity change were identified as risk factors for ambulance transportation due to stroke, and a decrease in temperature was also associated. We speculate on the possibilities of using meteorological data to optimize the assignment of limited medical resources in medical economics.

The approval of orphan anticancer drugs in Japan has increased to meet high social demand. Drug lag, namely the approval lag of new drugs, is recognized as a social issue in Japan. We investigated the approval lag and its components, submission lag and review-time lag, between Japan and the United States (US) to reveal whether an approval lag still exists, and to identify potential factors that may contribute to reducing the approval lag. Anticancer drugs approved in Japan between April 2004 and November 2017 were investigated using publicly available information. Results showed that the median approval lag of orphan anticancer drugs in 2016-2017 was 727.0 days (interquartile range, IQR, 310.0-1054.3). The approval lag was significantly correlated with the submission lag (correlation coefficient = 1.00, P < 0.001) but not with the review-time lag (correlation coefficient = -0.16, P = 0.22). The submission lag was significantly longer for orphan anticancer drugs than non-orphan drugs (median, 712.5 days [IQR, 186.0-1448.3] vs. 387.0 days [92.8-1096.0], P = 0.023). External collaboration in drug development was associated with a longer submission lag (coefficient = 762.1, P = 0.017), while breakthrough therapy designation in the US was associated with a shorter submission lag (coefficient = -832.8, P = 0.035). In conclusion, we revealed that an approval lag for orphan anticancer drugs still existed in 2016-2017. A submission lag for orphan anticancer drugs was the main component affecting the approval lag, and was longer than that for non-orphan drugs. External collaboration in drug development may be a potential factor in reducing the submission lag for orphan anticancer drugs.