Publicaties
Antibacterial Envelope to Prevent Cardiac Implantable Device Infection Vrije Universiteit Brussel
BACKGROUND: Infections after placement of cardiac implantable electronic devices (CIEDs) are associated with substantial morbidity and mortality. There is limited evidence on prophylactic strategies, other than the use of preoperative antibiotics, to prevent such infections.
METHODS: We conducted a randomized, controlled clinical trial to assess the safety and efficacy of an absorbable, antibiotic-eluting envelope in reducing the ...
Repeated STI and HIV testing among HIV-negative men who have sex with men attending a large STI clinic in Amsterdam: a longitudinal study Instituut voor Tropische Geneeskunde
OBJECTIVE: In the Netherlands, men who have sex with men (MSM) are advised via informal guidelines to test for STI at least annually. We estimated the proportion of HIV-negative MSM testing repeatedly at 12-month or smaller intervals at a large STI clinic in the Netherlands. In addition, we explored whether repeated testing is related to risk behaviour.
DESIGN AND METHODS: Longitudinal data of HIV-negative MSM visiting the Amsterdam ...
Four-year retention and risk factors for attrition among members of community ART groups in Tete, Mozambique Instituut voor Tropische Geneeskunde
OBJECTIVE: Community ART groups (CAG), peer support groups involved in community ART distribution and mutual psychosocial support, were piloted to respond to staggering antiretroviral treatment (ART) attrition in Mozambique. To understand the impact of CAG on long-term retention, we estimated mortality and lost-to-follow-up (LTFU) rates and assessed predictors for attrition.
METHODS: Retrospective cohort study. Kaplan-Meier techniques ...
Rapid and objective CT scan prognostic scoring identifies metastatic patients with long-term clinical benefit on anti-PD-1/-L1 therapy Vrije Universiteit Brussel
BACKGROUND: Drugs targeting programmed death receptor-1 (PD-1) and its ligand PD-L1 have shown activity in multiple malignancies. Considering their novel mechanism of action, whether traditional prognostic scores also apply to patients treated with these drugs is unknown. We investigated whether a baseline 3-point (pt) computed tomography (CT) scan (PS3-CT) score and a 7-pt prognostic (PS7) score allowed identifying long-term survivors on ...
Accuracy of Hereditary Diffuse Gastric Cancer Testing Criteria and Outcomes in Patients With a Germline Mutation in CDH1 Vrije Universiteit Brussel
BACKGROUND & AIMS: Germline mutations in the cadherin 1, type 1, E-cadherin gene (CDH1) cause a predisposition to gastric cancer. We evaluated the ability of the internationally accepted hereditary diffuse gastric cancer (HDGC) criteria to identify individuals with pathogenic mutations in CDH1, and assessed their outcomes. The criteria were as follows: families with 2 or more cases of gastric cancer, with at least 1 patient diagnosed with ...
Cancer risk and genotype-phenotype correlations in PTEN hamartoma tumor syndrome Vrije Universiteit Brussel
Patients with germline PTEN mutations are at high risk of developing benign and malignant tumours. We aimed to evaluate the cumulative risk of several types of cancer and of dysplastic cerebellar gangliocytoma (Lhermitte-Duclos disease, LDD). In addition, genotype-phenotype correlations in PTEN hamartoma tumour syndrome (PHTS) were assessed. Data on patients with PTEN mutations were collected from clinical genetic centres in Western Europe, ...
Is colorectal surveillance indicated in patients with PTEN mutations? Vrije Universiteit Brussel
AIM: Patients with germline phosphatase and tensin homologue (PTEN) mutations develop hamartomatous lesions in several organs and are at increased risk of various malignancies. We assessed the lifetime risk of benign and malignant gastrointestinal lesions in patients with a proven PTEN mutation.
METHOD: Data on gender, mutation, dates of birth, last contact, and diagnosis, location and type of gastrointestinal lesions were collected ...
Disease-modifying antirheumatic drug-free sustained remission in rheumatoid arthritis Vrije Universiteit Brussel
OBJECTIVE: Disease-modifying antirheumatic drug (DMARD)-free sustained remission, the sustained absence of synovitis after cessation of DMARD therapy, is a relevant long-term outcome of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) if (1) its occurrence is promoted by treatment and (2) this status reflects resolution of symptoms and disability. This study investigated both items.
METHODS: 1007 patients with RA diagnosed between 1993 and 2011, included in ...
Cure of cancer for seven cancer sites in the Flemish Region Vrije Universiteit Brussel Universiteit Gent
Cumulative relative survival curves for many cancers reach a plateau several years after diagnosis, indicating that the cancer survivor group has reached "statistical" cure. Parametric mixture cure model analysis on grouped relative survival curves provide an interesting way to determine the proportion of statistically cured cases and the mean survival time of the fatal cases in particular for population-based cancer registries. Based on the ...