Publications
scientifiques

OBJECTIVE: To determine the incidence of hysterectomy and uterus-preserving procedures (UPPs) among women with uterine fibroids (UFs) and the incidence of further procedures after a UPP. STUDY DESIGN: This was an observational study using a primary care database, The Health Improvement Network (THIN). Women in THIN with UFs aged 15-54 years between January 2000 and December 2009 were eligible for study. The UPPs examined were myomectomy, endometrial ablation (EA) and uterine artery embolization (UAE). Using Read codes, women were followed up until one of the following was met: there was a record of hysterectomy or UPPs, they died or the study ended (end of 2010). RESULTS: The cumulative incidence of hysterectomy or UPPs was 23.6% at 1 year, and 40.9% after the follow-up period (median 3.6 years). At the end of the follow-up period, the cumulative incidences of hysterectomy, myomectomy, EA and UAE were 33.0%, 3.9%, 6.4% and 1.9%, respectively. For women initially treated with a UPP, the cumulative incidence of second procedures was 11.5% at 1 year. At the end of the follow-up period (median 2.7 years), the cumulative incidence of further procedures was 26.1%, and the cumulative incidences of women undergoing hysterectomy, myomectomy, EA and UAE were 19.0%, 4.3%, 3.4% and 1.4%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Women considering UPPs for the management of UFs should be made aware that the incidence of further treatments is high, with hysterectomy being the most frequent procedure undergone.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the association of incident gout with the risk of incident septic arthritis in a general population context. METHODS: We investigated the association of incident gout with the risk of incident septic arthritis using the Health Improvement Network, a computerized medical record database from general practices in the UK. We conducted a cohort analysis of the risk of an incident septic arthritis diagnosis among adults with incident gout compared with up to five non-gout individuals matched by age, sex, date of study entry and enrolment year. We performed Cox proportional hazard regression models to adjust for lifestyle variables, physician visits, comorbidities and medication use. RESULTS: We identified 72 073 incident gout patients and 358 342 matched non-gout patients. The incidence rates of a septic arthritis diagnosis were 0.24 cases and 0.09 cases per 1000 person-years in the gout and comparison cohorts, respectively. Matched univariate and multivariate hazard ratios of a septic arthritis diagnosis were 2.82 (95% CI 2.15, 3.71) and 2.60 (95% CI 1.93, 3.51), respectively. The association persisted among subgroups stratified by sex, age group (<75 and ≥75) and socio-economic deprivation level. CONCLUSION: This general population-based study suggests that gout is associated with an increased likelihood of septic arthritis.

OBJECTIVE: Pernicious anemia (PA) is an autoimmune disease that causes achlorhydria or profound hypochlorhydria. We conducted a population-based study to determine whether individuals with PA are at an increased risk for community-acquired pneumonia (CAP). METHODS: We performed a retrospective cohort study using The Health Improvement Network (THIN) from the UK (1993-2009). The eligible study cohort included individuals 18 years of age or older, with at least 1 year of THIN follow-up. The exposed group consisted of individuals with a diagnosis code for PA. The unexposed group consisted of individuals without a diagnosis of PA and was frequency matched with the exposed group with respect to age, sex, and practice site. Cox regression analysis was used to determine the hazard ratio with the 95% confidence interval for CAP associated with PA, accounting for a comprehensive list of potential confounders. RESULTS: The study included 13,605 individuals with PA and 50,586 non-PA individuals. The crude incidence rate of CAP was 9.4/1000 person-years for those with PA, versus 6.4/1000 person-years for those without PA. The multivariable adjusted hazard ratio for CAP associated with PA was 1.18 (95% confidence interval 1.08-1.29). CONCLUSION: In this large population-based cohort study, individuals with PA and presumed chronic achlorhydria were at an increased risk for CAP.

BACKGROUND: Bacterial dysbiosis was previously described in human malignancies. In a recent animal model, tumour susceptibility was transmitted using faecal transplantation. Our aim was to evaluate possible association between antibiotic exposure and cancer risk. METHODS: We conducted nested case-control studies for 15 common malignancies using a large population-based electronic medical record database. Cases were defined as those with any medical code for the specific malignancy. Individuals with familial cancer syndromes were excluded. For every case, four eligible controls matched on age, sex, practice site and duration of follow-up before index-date were selected using incidence-density sampling. Exposure of interest was antibiotic therapy >1 year before index-date. Adjusted odds-ratios (AORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated for each antibiotic type using conditional logistic regression. RESULTS: 125,441 cases and 490,510 matched controls were analysed. For gastro-intestinal malignancies, the use of penicillin was associated with an elevated risk of oesophageal, gastric and pancreatic cancers. The association increased with the number of antibiotic courses and reached 1.4 for gastric cancers associated with >5 courses of penicillin (95% CI 1.2-1.8). Lung cancer risk increased with the use of penicillin, cephalosporins, or macrolides (AOR for >5 courses of penicillin: 1.4 95% CI 1.3-1.6). The risk of prostate cancer increased modestly with the use of penicillin, quinolones, sulphonamides and tetracyclines. The risk of breast cancer was modestly associated with exposure to sulphonamides. There was no association between the use of anti-virals and anti-fungals and cancer risk. CONCLUSION: Recurrent exposure to certain antibiotics may be associated with cancer risk in specific organ sites.

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