The 2015 EACPT Scientific
Award for Professor Nicholas Bateman
The 2015 EACPT Scientific
Award is to be conferred on UK Scientist Professor Nicholas Bateman for work on
treating paracetamol overdose. The Award which includes a prize of 2000€ will
be presented to Professor Bateman at the 12th EACPT Congress in Madrid on Tuesday 30th June 2015.
Professor Bateman's research, which was published
in the international medical journal
The Lancet, involved a clinical trial
comparing a new regimen to treat paracetamol poisoning with the current one
(which has been used for over 40 years). It is the first large-scale, properly
powered and randomised controlled clinical trial conducted in paracetamol
poisoning, a challenging environment for trial work.
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| Professor Nicholas Bateman |
This work shows that it is
possible to do trials in a group of patients in the emergency room, and across
transfer to the wards, most of whom were intending self-harm. This work also
shows that other key trials may be possible in this group of patients and in
others with overdose. This work also shows how critical are the skills of
clinical pharmacology to the design of good clinical toxicology studies.
Paracetamol poisoning is
common worldwide and the current standard treatment is complicated and
associated with adverse effects related to concentration. The result of
Professor Bateman's trial shows that a shorter, simpler infusion regimen of
acetylcysteine can cause a major reduction in adverse effects of this important
antidote.
In combination with new
biomarkers, that allow identification of at risk patients, this offers the
opportunity to simplify treatment, reduce adverse events and shorten hospital
stays. The UK MHRA (Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency) is establishing
a working group to take the results of this work forward.
Professor David Nicholas
(Nick) BATEMAN BSc, MD, FRCP, FRCP(E), FBPhS, FBTS, FAACT, FEAPCCT, is
Honorary Professor in Clinical Toxicology at the University of Edinburgh. His
research interests are in clinical toxicology, poisons information systems, and
toxico-epidemiology. He has been awarded the Louis Roche award from the
European Association of Poisons Centres and Clinical Toxicologists and the
Lilly Prize of the British Pharmacology Society. He has published over 160
original research articles, many reviews, edited The Oxford Desk Reference
Toxicology and contributed 35 book chapters.
Professor Bateman qualified
in medicine at Guy's Hospital Medical School, London. Trained in Clinical
Pharmacology in Southampton, the Royal Postgraduate Medical School (Hammersmith
Hospital) London, and Newcastle upon Tyne, UK, where he worked for 20 years. He
moved to Edinburgh in 1998 as Consultant Clinical Toxicologist and Director,
National Poisons Information Service Edinburgh unit (Scottish Poisons
Information Bureau) (1998-2012), Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh. Professor
Bateman was Chairman of the Poisons Board (UK Home Office) from 2012-2104 and
was formerly member of the MHRA Sub-Committee on Pharmacovigilance; the
Advisory Committee on Pesticides (HSE) and Chair Medical and Scientific Sub
Committee; Veterinary Products Committee (VMD).
He is a Past-President of
the European Association of Poison Centres & Clinical Toxicologists.
He was Editor-in-Chief of Clinical Toxicology 2009-11 and formerly
managing editor of the European Journal of Clinical Pharmacology (2002-9) and
executive editor of the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology (1988-94).
Special Recognition for
researcher Dr Eva-Luise Hobl from Austria
The EACPT has also awarded
Special Recognition to researcher Dr Eva-Luise Hobl from
Austria for her work
showing that the pain-killer morphine reduces the blood-thinning effects of the
anti-platelet medicine clopidogrel.
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| Dr Eva-Luise Hobl |
It had been observed that treatment with
morphine may lead to poorer outcome after heart attack. Dr Hobl's work, published in the major US publication the
Journal of the American College of Cardiology, showed that morphine
reduces the absorption, blood levels and effects of the antiplatelet agent clopidogrel.
This important drug-drug interaction could reduce the intended effects of
clopidogrel to prevent heart attack and other serious vascular diseases. This
work suggests that when morphine use is indicated after heart attack,
alternative antiplatelet agents should be used.
Dr Hobl studied Pharmacy at the
University of Vienna and obtained her Doctor of Applied Medical Science degree
from the Medical University of Vienna. Between 2005 and 2008, she worked as a
hospital pharmacist and started her studies at the Medical University of Vienna
in 2007, where she is now postdoctoral research associate. Her main research
interest is in drug-drug interactions of antiplatelet drugs. For this work, she
has already received several awards; particularly noteworthy are the “Samuel A. Levine Young
Clinical Investigator Award” from the American Heart Association and the “EPHAR
Young Clinical Investigator Award 2014”.
