Category Archives: Batten Disease Treatment

Director John Baldoni is Senior Vice President,In silicoDrug Discovery, in GSK Pharma R&D. This department will usein silicomethods to identify patient needs, explore molecular interventions to address those needs and design and conduct clinical trials to test the medical hypothesis. Using these methodologies, the conventional empirical design make test cycle will be dramatically reduced. The intent is to discover medicines at higher velocity, with greater precision and at dramatically lower cost compared to current approaches. Prior to this, John was Senior Vice President, Platform Technology and Science (PTS), in GSK. The work of PTS span the entire drug discovery and development process, from preclinical activities leading to clinical candidate selection through commercial launch. This accountability covered the discovery and manufacture of small molecules, biopharmaceuticals, and cell and gene therapies. John joined GSK in 1989 and has worked in the pharmaceutical industry for 37 years. His experience spans new chemical entity design, development and commercialization, and biopharmaceutical development. In progressing to his current role, John has held various positions at GSK including Senior Vice President, Preclinical Development; Vice President, Product Development; Director, Product Development; and Assistant Director, Biopharmaceutical Formulation Development, among others. He has led several key cross-functional strategic initiatives, such … Continue reading →

A note about pre-requisite learning: A clear understanding of human acid-base physiology is necessary before you begin this learning activity An introduction to acid-base imbalances will facilitate your understanding of the contents within this tutorial. Upon completion of this learning activity, you will be able to orecognize clinical manifestations associated with acid-base imbalances. omatch pH values with acid-base imbalances. oselect the correct answer following the review of each case study. ocompare and contrast the step-wise assessment of determining the acid-base balance of the blood. oidentify the appropriate etiology of metabolic acidosis/alkalosis and respiratory acidosis/alkalosis. odifferentiate between compensatory and non-compensatory ABG changes. Sometimes reading and deciphering Arterial Blood Gases (ABGs) can be a challenge! I have provided an interactive online tutorial for your review. Arterial blood gas values reflect ventilation and acid-base balance. The results include the arterial blood pH (concentration of hydrogen ions in the blood) , partial pressure of carbon dioxide (PaCO2) dissolved in the arterial plasma, and the concentration of sodium bicarbonate (HCO3-) in the blood. Our bodies regulate an acid-base balance through a "buffer system." This buffer system neutralizes acids. There are three buffer systems that exist for the maintenance of our acid-base equilibrium: a buffer system … Continue reading →

Coronary Heart Disease (CHD) is a heart disease that is mainly caused by narrowing of the coronary arteries due to atherosclerosis or spasm or a combination of both. CHD is a disease that is very scary. It is recognized that the recent developments in the field of heart disease found many new facts about CHD. However, control of traditional risk factors, particularly dyslipidemia, obesity, smoking, and hypertension is still quite relevant in reducing morbidity and mortality of CHD and other cardiovascular diseases. Definition Coronary Heart Disease (CHD) is the circumstances in which there is an imbalance between the needs of the heart muscle with oxygen supply that is provided by the coronary arteries (Mila, 2010). Etiology Coronary heart disease can be caused by several things: Risk Factors 1. Smoke Smoking can stimulate the process of atherosclerosis due to a direct effect on the arterial wall, carbon monoxide causes arterial hypoxia, nicotine causes mobilization of catecholamines that cause platelet reaction, glycoprotein tobacco can cause hypersensitivity reactions arterial wall. 2. Hyperlipoproteinemia Diabetes Mellitus, obesity and hyperlipoproteinemia associated with fat deposition. 3. Hypercholesterolemia Cholesterol, fat and other substances can cause thickening of the artery walls, so that the lumen of the blood vessels … Continue reading →

In 2003 there was a cardiac arrest on a patient 4 hours post cardiac surgery. Over the following four hours his chest was re-opened three times and eventually the patient was re-grafted in his ICU bed on bypass. Many of the nursing and junior medical staff reported they felt disorganised and of little help to the situation and would have performed much better if they had a defined and well practised role. In response to this we created the Cardiac Surgery Advanced Life Support Course. We have devised a set of protocols that address the patient suffering a cardiac arrest and all common serious complications in ICU or on the ward. Our aim was to create a common language for all cardiothoracic practitioners. This protocol has grown and has been accepted as the European Association of Cardiothoracic Surgery's official protocol and has been accepted by the European Resuscitation Council.The Society of Thoracic Surgery also created an expert consensus statement which is published in the Annals of Thoracic surgery (Feb 2017) which sets these protocols as the standard of care in the USA. We hope this course will empower all practitioners to act with confidence to better treat our critically ill … Continue reading →

Ventricular and Atrial Hypertrophy Ventricular hypertrophy is an increase in the size and mass of the involved ventricle. This can be a normal response to cardiovascular conditioning as occurs in athletes and enables the heart to pump more effectively. This type of hypertrophy is physiological, not abnormal, and is reversible. In contrast, other forms of hypertrophy are caused by the ventricle adapting to increased stress, such as chronically increased volume load (preload) or increased pressure load (afterload). This hypertrophy is an adaptation to the stress; however, prolonged stress-induced hypertrophy can lead the ventricular failure. Hypertrophy can also result from disease of the heart (valve disease, cardiomyopathies), genetic abnormalities (e.g., hypertrophic cardiomyopathy), and as a consequence of coronary artery disease. In the case of chronic pressure overload as occurs with chronic hypertension or aortic valve stenosis, the ventricular chamber radius may not change; however, the wall thickness greatly increases as new sarcomeres are added in-parallel to existing sarcomeres. This is termed concentric hypertrophy. This type of ventricle is capable of generating greater forces and higher pressures, while the increased wall thickness maintains normal wall stress. This type of ventricle becomes "stiff" (i.e., compliance is reduced), which can impair filling and lead … Continue reading →

Overview Coronary artery disease develops when the major blood vessels that supply your heart with blood, oxygen and nutrients (coronary arteries) become damaged or diseased. Cholesterol-containing deposits (plaque) in your arteries and inflammation are usually to blame for coronary artery disease. When plaque builds up, it narrows your coronary arteries, decreasing blood flow to your heart. Eventually, the decreased blood flow may cause chest pain (angina), shortness of breath, or other coronary artery disease signs and symptoms. A complete blockage can cause a heart attack. Because coronary artery disease often develops over decades, you might not notice a problem until you have a significant blockage or a heart attack. But there's plenty you can do to prevent and treat coronary artery disease. A healthy lifestyle can make a big impact. If your coronary arteries narrow, they can't supply enough oxygen-rich blood to your heart especially when it's beating hard, such as during exercise. At first, the decreased blood flow may not cause any coronary artery disease symptoms. As plaque continues to build up in your coronary arteries, however, you may develop coronary artery disease signs and symptoms, including: Chest pain (angina). You may feel pressure or tightness in your chest, … Continue reading →

Allan Will, Chairman of the Board, President & CEO Allan is an operating executive with extensive experience founding, funding, operating, and selling medical device companies. Prior to EBR, he led negotiation of Ardians acquisition by Medtronic for over $800M. Will was also founding Managing Director, Split Rock Partners and a Partner at St. Paul Venture Capital. Previously, he was Founder, Chairman & CEO of The Foundry, co-founding 11 companies there including Ardian, Evalve (acquired by Abbott Laboratories for $450M) & Concentric Medical (acquired by Stryker for $135M). Previously, Will was CEO of AneuRx, acquired by Medtronic, growing to >$150MM the year of launch. In 1996 Will co-founded Adjacent Surgical, sold to GSII. Previously, he was President & CEO of Devices for Vascular Intervention, growing the business to 550 employees, $100MM revenue run rate, and acquisition by Eli Lilly. Will is an inventor on more than 30 issued patents, and has his M.S. in Management from MIT and his B.S. in Zoology from University of Maryland. Will has also served on MITs Entrepreneurship Center Shareholders Board, on the University of Maryland Presidents Committee on Innovation and Entrepreneurship and is a University of Maryland Distinguished Alumnus. Will was the recipient of the … Continue reading →

Your Heart Your heart is like your bodys main engine room. It is a powerful and important muscle that pumps blood throughout your body. This blood delivers oxygen and food to muscles and vital organs as it travels through an amazing network of blood vessels. This constant fuel supply is what helps you carry on all the things you do in your everyday life. Your heart sits in the centre of your chest, between your lungs and is protected by your rib cage. It is about the size of your clenched fist. Your heart is made of four chambers, or rooms. The top two rooms are called atria. The bottom two rooms are called ventricles. Each room has a valve that works like an automatic gate. The valve opens and closes, making sure blood only travels in one direction - similar to a one-way traffic system. Your heart is powered to pump blood using its own electrical conduction system. You might have seen your hearts electrical activity on a graph if you have undergone a heart test called an electrocardiogram (ECG). Your hearts electrical system is made up of three main parts: A heartbeat is one cycle in which your … Continue reading →

"Vascular" redirects here. For information about plants, see Vascular plant. The blood vessels are the part of the circulatory system, and microcirculation, that transports blood throughout the human body.[1] There are three major types of blood vessels: the arteries, which carry the blood away from the heart; the capillaries, which enable the actual exchange of water and chemicals between the blood and the tissues; and the veins, which carry blood from the capillaries back toward the heart. The word vascular, meaning relating to the blood vessels, is derived from the Latin vas, meaning vessel. A few structures (such as cartilage and the lens of the eye) do not contain blood vessels and are labeled. The arteries and veins have three layers. The middle layer is thicker in the arteries than it is in the veins: Capillaries consist of little more than a layer of endothelium and occasional connective tissue. When blood vessels connect to form a region of diffuse vascular supply it is called an anastomosis. Anastomoses provide critical alternative routes for blood to flow in case of blockages. There is a layer of muscle surrounding the arteries and the veins which help contract and expand the vessels. This creates … Continue reading →

TRUE DISCOVERY AWAITS It takes a certain mind to go in search of true discovery. In nuclear medicine, they are the clinical researchers looking to set new standards of care, the practitioners working to deliver better outcomes for the patients they see every day and the cardiologists seeking a better understanding of the heart. While they all have the same goal, their needs are different and cant all be met with one system or technology. Nuclear medicine is an excellent choice for physicians at the forefront of medicine. It has a wide range of available radioisotopes with various energy emission levels and longer half-lives. It also has the flexibility to explore multiple pathways in a single session. These are some of the reasons why we made a commitment to realizing the full potential of and growing this modality. This commitment involves making nuclear medicine technology more accessible and enabling it to provide results that are more valuable to referring physicians. It means driving down daily operational costs and innovating in four key areas: image quality, dose reduction, exam speeds and quantitative applications. All with the end result of enabling better clinical and economic outcomes. It also includes our vision for … Continue reading →