ORIGINAL ARTICLE Beta-Blocker Interruption or Continuation after Myocardial Infarction Johanne Silvain, Guillaume Cayla, Emile Ferrari, et al N Engl J Med Published August 30, 2024 DOI: 10.1056/NEJMoa2404204 Abstract BACKGROUND The appropriate duration of treatment with beta-blocker drugs after a myocardial infarction is unknown. Data are needed on the safety and efficacy of the interruption of long-term beta-blocker...

Recommendations for Management of Central Airway Obstruction In ICU Tue, 30 Jul 2024 Central airway obstruction (CAO) is a life-threatening condition characterised by significant airway blockage, leading to severe breathing difficulties and poor prognosis, particularly with proximal obstructions. It is defined by a 50% or greater occlusion of major airways like the trachea or main bronchi. The most common cause of malignant CAO is lung cancer, though o...

ORIGINAL ARTICLE Plozasiran for Managing Persistent Chylomicronemia and Pancreatitis Risk Gerald F. Watts, Robert S. Rosenson, Robert A. Hegele, et al N Engl J Med Published September 2, 2024 DOI: 10.1056/NEJMoa2409368 Abstract BACKGROUND Persistent chylomicronemia is a genetic recessive disorder that is classically caused by familial chylomicronemia syndrome (FCS), but it also has multifactorial causes. The disorder is associated with the risk of rec...

ORIGINAL ARTICLE Twice-Yearly Depemokimab in Severe Asthma with an Eosinophilic Phenotype David J. Jackson, Michael E. Wechsler, Daniel J. Jackson, et al N Engl J Med Published September 9, 2024 DOI: 10.1056/NEJMoa2406673 Abstract BACKGROUND Depemokimab is an ultra-long-acting biologic therapy with enhanced binding affinity for interleukin-5 that may enable effective 6-month dosing intervals. METHODS In these phase 3A, randomized, placebo-contro...

Call to Action: Artificial Intelligence in Acute Medicine In ICU Tue, 30 Jul 2024 On November 30, 2022, OpenAI released ChatGPT, the first chatbot and virtual assistant powered by large language models (LLMs). Within five days, ChatGPT attracted over 1 million users and reached 200 million monthly active users worldwide within fifteen months. This rapid surge in interest transformed artificial intelligence (AI) from a niche concept into a mainstream ph...

ORIGINAL ARTICLE Ponsegromab for the Treatment of Cancer Cachexia John D. Groarke, Jeffrey Crawford, Susie M. Collins, et al N Engl J Med DOI: 10.1056/NEJMoa2409515 Abstract BACKGROUND Cachexia is a common complication of cancer and is associated with an increased risk of death. The level of growth differentiation factor 15 (GDF-15), a circulating cytokine, is elevated in cancer cachexia. In a small, open-label, phase 1b study involving patients with can...

EDITORIAL Making Long-Term Oxygen Therapy Less Burdensome Darren B. Taichman, Jeffrey M. Drazen N Engl J Med 2024;391:1050-1051 Long-term oxygen therapy, the first intervention that was shown to improve survival in patients with both severe hypoxemia and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), had an effect size so large that data from fewer than 300 patients were all that was needed to establish its efficacy. In the Nocturnal Oxygen Therapy Trial (NOTT)...

ORIGINAL ARTICLE Phase 2 Trial of Anti-TL1A Monoclonal Antibody Tulisokibart for Ulcerative Colitis Bruce E. Sands, Brian G. Feagan, Laurent Peyrin-Biroulet, et al N Engl J Med 2024;391:1119-1129 DOI: 10.1056/NEJMoa2314076 Abstract BACKGROUND Tulisokibart is a tumor necrosis factor–like cytokine 1A (TL1A) monoclonal antibody in development for the treatment of moderately to severely active ulcerative colitis. A genetic-based diagnostic test was design...

ICU Syndromes and Subphenotypes - Sepsis, ARDS and AKI In Sepsis Wed, 17 Jul 2024 Critical care has traditionally focused on clinical practice and research around syndromes such as sepsis, acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), acute kidney injury (AKI), and traumatic brain injury (TBI). However, these syndromes, while familiar to clinicians, are inherently diverse and encompass various pathophysiological processes that vary among individual patie...

ORIGINAL ARTICLE Gene Therapy with Fidanacogene Elaparvovec in Adults with Hemophilia B Adam Cuker, Kaan Kavakli, Laurent Frenzel, et al N Engl J Med 2024;391:1108-1118 DOI: 10.1056/NEJMoa2302982 Abstract BACKGROUND Fidanacogene elaparvovec, an adeno-associated virus (AAV) gene-therapy vector for hemophilia B containing a high-activity human factor IX variant (FIX-R338L/FIX-Padua), was associated with sustained factor IX activity in a phase 1–2a study...