Gdańsk Medical University

About: Gdańsk Medical University is a education organization based out in Gdańsk, Poland. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Cancer. The organization has 4893 authors who have published 11216 publications receiving 260523 citations.

Sugar alcohols—their role in the modern world of sweeteners: a review

Abstract: Epidemic obesity and diabetes encouraged the changes in population lifestyle and consumers’ food products awareness. Food industry has responded people’s demand by producing a number of energy-reduced products with sugar alcohols as sweeteners. These compounds are usually produced by a catalytic hydrogenation of carbohydrates, but they can be also found in nature in fruits, vegetables or mushrooms as well as in human organism. Due to their properties, sugar alcohols are widely used in food, beverage, confectionery and pharmaceutical industries throughout the world. They have found use as bulk sweeteners that promote dental health and exert prebiotic effect. They are added to foods as alternative sweeteners what might be helpful in the control of calories intake. Consumption of low-calorie foods by the worldwide population has dramatically increased, as well as health concerns associated with the consequent high intake of sweeteners. This review deals with the role of commonly used sugar alcohols such as erythritol, isomalt, lactitol, maltitol, mannitol, sorbitol and xylitol as sugar substitutes in food industry.

Efficacy of Esketamine Nasal Spray Plus Oral Antidepressant Treatment for Relapse Prevention in Patients With Treatment-Resistant Depression: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

Abstract: Importance Controlled studies have shown short-term efficacy of esketamine for treatment-resistant depression (TRD), but long-term effects remain to be established. Objective To assess the efficacy of esketamine nasal spray plus an oral antidepressant compared with an oral antidepressant plus placebo nasal spray in delaying relapse of depressive symptoms in patients with TRD in stable remission after an induction and optimization course of esketamine nasal spray plus an oral antidepressant. Design, Setting, and Participants In this phase 3, multicenter, double-blind, randomized withdrawal study conducted from October 6, 2015, to February 15, 2018, at outpatient referral centers, 705 adults with prospectively confirmed TRD were enrolled; 455 entered the optimization phase and were treated with esketamine nasal spray (56 or 84 mg) plus an oral antidepressant. After 16 weeks of esketamine treatment, 297 who achieved stable remission or stable response entered the randomized withdrawal phase. Interventions Patients who achieved stable remission and those who achieved stable response (without remission) were randomized 1:1 to continue esketamine nasal spray or discontinue esketamine treatment and switch to placebo nasal spray, with oral antidepressant treatment continued in each group. Main Outcomes and Measures Time to relapse was examined in patients who achieved stable remission, as assessed using a weighted combination log-rank test. Results Among the 297 adults (mean age [SD], 46.3 [11.13] years; 197 [66.3%] female) who entered the randomized maintenance phase, 176 achieved stable remission; 24 (26.7%) in the esketamine and antidepressant group and 39 (45.3%) in the antidepressant and placebo group experienced relapse (log-rankP = .003, number needed to treat [NNT], 6). Among the 121 who achieved stable response, 16 (25.8%) in the esketamine and antidepressant group and 34 (57.6%) in the antidepressant and placebo group experienced relapse (log-rankP Conclusions and Relevance For patients with TRD who experienced remission or response after esketamine treatment, continuation of esketamine nasal spray in addition to oral antidepressant treatment resulted in clinically meaningful superiority in delaying relapse compared with antidepressant plus placebo. Trial Registration ClinicalTrials.gov identifier:NCT02493868