Antiplatelet therapy with aspirin and a thienopyridine is a key component in the management of acute coronary syndromes. This trial compared a novel, potent thienopyridine (prasugrel) with the standard thienopyridine (clopidogrel) in patients with acute coronary syndromes scheduled to have a coronary intervention. Prasugrel led to better cardiovascular outcomes, but at the expense of more bleeding, including fatal bleeding.

Chitinases, a family of hydrolases, have been associated with animal models of asthma. In this cross-sectional study, circulating levels of YKL-40, a human chitinase-like protein, were examined in three cohorts of patients with asthma. Although there was overlap between controls and patients with asthma, on average, circulating YKL-40 levels were higher in patients with asthma, with the highest levels in the patients with the most severe disease.

This study compared teriparatide, an anabolic agent, with alendronate in an 18-month randomized, double-blind, controlled trial involving patients who had received glucocorticoids for at least 3 months and were at high risk for fracture. Bone mineral density increased more in patients receiving teriparatide than in those receiving alendronate, though increased calcium levels occurred more often in the teriparatide group. Teriparatide may prove to be useful in patients with glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis.

This open-label trial of the treatment of colorectal cancer with cetuximab, a chimeric monoclonal antibody against the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), showed that among patients with colorectal cancer that expressed EGFR and that had failed to respond to other treatments, overall survival and progression-free survival were better in those receiving cetuximab than in those receiving best supportive care alone.