Allison Hagen, CGA, MBA

Announcing two major conferences on Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder

www.fasdedmonton2013.ca

In September 2013, the IHE in support of the Government of Alberta will be holding two major conferences on the topic of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD): the First International Conference on Prevention of FASD (September 23-25, 2013) and a Consensus Development Conference on Legal Issues of FASD (September 18-20, 2013).

Stingray catheter and guidewire for recanalization of coronary chronic total occlusions: A rapid evidence assessment

The review summarizes the current evidence on the safety, efficacy, effectiveness, and potential cost-effectiveness on the use of the BridgePoint Medical System (consisting of the CrossBoss^TM catheter, Stingray^TM catheter, and Stingray^TM guidewire) for the recanalization of refractory coronary chronic total occlusions (CTOs). The report also describes the relevant outcomes for studies of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for coronary CTOs.

Islet transplantation for the treatment of type 1 diabetes

This report is an update of the 2010 report on islet transplantation for Type 1 diabetes. Section One of this analysis was intended to describe the profile of T1DM (definition, progression, epidemiology, and population dynamics of affected adults in Alberta, in Canada, and worldwide) and patterns of care for this condition in adults (focusing on recommendations from evidence-based guidelines), as well as to identify potential inequities in health status or care across adult population groups. Social, ethical, and legal issues associated with the provision of IT as a treatment for adults with T1DM were also considered. Section Two of the analysis was to determine, for the treatment of patients with T1DM in Alberta, the potential role of islet transplantation compared to whole pancreas transplantation or intensive insulin therapy. The objective of the economic analysis in Section Three was to estimate the costs and cost effectiveness of islet transplantation (IT) compared to intensive insulin therapy (IIT) alone.

WHO Health Evidence Network Synthesis Report

For which strategies of suicide prevention is there evidence of effectiveness?

This report aims to synthesize research findings from existing systematic reviews to address two questions:
• What types of preventive interventions have been evaluated in the published literature?
• Which strategies have good-quality evidence to support them?

Limited evidence - as well as variability by population characteristics, social, cultural and socioeconomic situation - suggests that a combination of preventive approaches, addressing different risk factors at different levels, is required. In addition, an evaluation framework should accompany the implementation of any new intervention.