National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Report
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AHRQ Research Studies
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Research Studies is a compilation of published research articles funded by AHRQ or authored by AHRQ researchers.
Results
26 to 50 of 171 Research Studies DisplayedReese TJ, Del Fiol G, Morgan K
A shared decision-making tool for drug interactions between warfarin and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs: design and usability study.
Exposure to life-threatening drug-drug interactions (DDIs) occurs despite the widespread use of clinical decision support. The DDI between warfarin and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs is common and potentially life-threatening. Patients can play a substantial role in preventing harm from DDIs; however, the current model for DDI decision-making is clinician centric. This study aimed to design and examine the usability of DDInteract, a tool to support shared decision-making (SDM) between a patient and provider for the DDI between warfarin and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.
AHRQ-funded; HS026198.
Citation: Reese TJ, Del Fiol G, Morgan K .
A shared decision-making tool for drug interactions between warfarin and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs: design and usability study.
JMIR Hum Factors 2021 Oct 26;8(4):e28618. doi: 10.2196/28618..
Keywords: Blood Thinners, Medication: Safety, Medication, Clinical Decision Support (CDS), Shared Decision Making, Electronic Health Records (EHRs), Health Information Technology (HIT), Adverse Drug Events (ADE), Adverse Events, Patient Safety
Bushnell GA, Rynn MA, Crystal S
Simultaneous benzodiazepine and SSRI initiation in young people with anxiety disorders.
Researchers investigated how often adolescents and young adults with anxiety disorders simultaneously initiate benzodiazepine (BZD) treatment with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) treatment and examined whether SSRI treatment duration varies by simultaneous BZD initiation. Using a commercial claims database, they found that 4% of adolescents and 17% of young adults simultaneously initiated BZD treatment, varying by age, anxiety disorder, comorbidities, health care utilization, and provider type. They concluded that simultaneous initiation of both treatments is relatively common in young adults with anxiety disorders and was not associated with longer SSRI persistence.
AHRQ-funded; HS026001.
Citation: Bushnell GA, Rynn MA, Crystal S .
Simultaneous benzodiazepine and SSRI initiation in young people with anxiety disorders.
J Clin Psychiatry 2021 Oct 19;82(6). doi: 10.4088/JCP.20m13863..
Keywords: Anxiety, Behavioral Health, Medication, Practice Patterns, Children/Adolescents, Young Adults
Desai SM, McWilliams JM
340B Drug Pricing Program and hospital provision of uncompensated care.
This study evaluated whether hospital entry into the 340B Drug Pricing Program is associated with changes in hospital provision of uncompensated care. The authors analyzed secondary data on 340B participation and uncompensated care provision among general acute care hospitals and critical access hospitals from 2003 to 2015. They constructed an annual, hospital-level data set on hospital 340B participation and on uncompensated care provision. They did not find evidence that hospitals increased provision of uncompensated care after entry into the 340B program differentially more than hospitals that never entered or had not yet entered the program.
AHRQ-funded; HS026980; HS024072.
Citation: Desai SM, McWilliams JM .
340B Drug Pricing Program and hospital provision of uncompensated care.
Am J Manag Care 2021 Oct;27(10):432-37. doi: 10.37765/ajmc.2021.88761..
Keywords: Hospitals, Healthcare Costs, Medication
Keenan KE, Rothberg MB, Herzig SJ
Association between opioids prescribed to medical inpatients with pain and long-term opioid use.
This study’s objective was to identify the association between opioid exposure during a medical hospitalization and opioid use 6 to 12 months later. This observational cohort study used electronic health record data from 10 hospitals in the Cleveland Clinic Health System in 2016. Eligible patients were opioid-naïve adults with pain 18 years and older. The authors estimated the odds of long-term opioid use (defined as ≥2 prescriptions for at least 30 pills 6 to 12 months posthospitalization) by opioid exposure during the hospitalization. Among the 2971 patients in the study, 64% received opioids during their hospitalization, and 28% were discharged with opioids. A total of 3% of patients had long-term use with a higher pain score associated with greater odds of long-term use.
AHRQ-funded; HS026215.
Citation: Keenan KE, Rothberg MB, Herzig SJ .
Association between opioids prescribed to medical inpatients with pain and long-term opioid use.
South Med J 2021 Oct;114(10):623-29. doi: 10.14423/smj.0000000000001307..
Keywords: Opioids, Hospitalization, Pain, Substance Abuse, Medication
Han X, Spicer A, Carey KA
Identifying high-risk subphenotypes and associated harms from delayed antibiotic orders and delivery.
Delayed antibiotic use can cause harms including mortality in certain novel patient subphenotypes. This study’s objective was to characterize and compare patients who experienced order or delivery delays and identify those novel subphenotypes with elevated risk of harm from delays. Two tertiary care medical centers and four community-based hospitals were analyzed retrospectively from 2008 to 2017. Patient demographics, vitals, laboratory values, medical order and administration times, and in-hospital survival data were obtained from their electronic health records. Order and delivery delays for each admission was calculated. Causal forests, a machine learning method, was used to identify the high-risk subgroup. Out of 60,817 admissions included, delays occurred in 58% of patients. Each additional hour of order delay and delivery delay was associated with increased mortality. A patient subgroup was identified with higher comorbidity burden, greater organ dysfunction, and abnormal initial lactate measures that had a higher risk of death associated with delays.
AHRQ-funded; HS027910; HS026151.
Citation: Han X, Spicer A, Carey KA .
Identifying high-risk subphenotypes and associated harms from delayed antibiotic orders and delivery.
Crit Care Med 2021 Oct;49(10):1694-705. doi: 10.1097/ccm.0000000000005054..
Keywords: Antibiotics, Medication, Sepsis
Baughman AW, Triantafylidis LK, O'Neil N
Improving medication reconciliation with comprehensive evaluation at a Veterans Affairs skilled nursing facility.
This study described a quality improvement (QI) approach to improve medication reconciliation in a skilled nursing facility (SNF) setting as part of the Multi-Center Medication Reconciliation Quality Improvement Study 2 (MARQUIS2). Findings showed that SNFs represent a critical setting for medication reconciliation efforts due to challenges completing the reconciliation process and the concomitant high risk of adverse drug events in this population. Initial baseline assessments effectively identified existing problems and can be used to guide targeted interventions.
AHRQ-funded; HS023757.
Citation: Baughman AW, Triantafylidis LK, O'Neil N .
Improving medication reconciliation with comprehensive evaluation at a Veterans Affairs skilled nursing facility.
Jt Comm J Qual Patient Saf 2021 Oct;47(10):646-53. doi: 10.1016/j.jcjq.2021.06.001..
Keywords: Medication, Quality Improvement, Quality of Care
Hahn EE, Munoz-Plaza CE, Lee EA
Patient and physician perspectives of deprescribing potentially inappropriate medications in older adults with a history of falls: a qualitative study.
Investigators explored patient and clinician experiences with and perceptions of deprescribing potentially inappropriate medications in patients with a history of falls. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with primary care physicians from Kaiser Permanente Southern California (KPSC), and guided patient feedback sessions with patient members of the KPSC Regional Patient Advisory Committee. The investigators found that key barriers to deprescribing included primary care physician trepidation about raising a contentious topic and insufficient patient awareness of the potential seriousness of falls. They suggested a need for multifaceted, multilevel deprescribing approaches with clinician training strategies, patient educational resources, and a focus on building trusting patient-clinician relationships.
AHRQ-funded; HS024437.
Citation: Hahn EE, Munoz-Plaza CE, Lee EA .
Patient and physician perspectives of deprescribing potentially inappropriate medications in older adults with a history of falls: a qualitative study.
J Gen Intern Med 2021 Oct;36(10):3015-22. doi: 10.1007/s11606-020-06493-8..
Keywords: Elderly, Medication, Falls
Everhart A, Desai NR, Dowd B
Physician variation in the de-adoption of ineffective statin and fibrate therapy.
The objective of this study was to describe physicians' variation in de-adopting concurrent statin and fibrate therapy for type 2 diabetic patients following a reversal in clinical evidence. Researchers modeled fibrate use among Medicare Advantage and commercially insured type 2 diabetic statin users before and after the publication of the ACCORD lipid trial. Findings showed that, on average, physicians decreased fibrate prescribing following the trial; however, many physicians increased prescribing following the trial. Observable physician characteristics did not explain variations in prescribing.
AHRQ-funded; HS025164; HS000036.
Citation: Everhart A, Desai NR, Dowd B .
Physician variation in the de-adoption of ineffective statin and fibrate therapy.
Health Serv Res 2021 Oct;56(5):919-31. doi: 10.1111/1475-6773.13630..
Keywords: Diabetes, Medication, Practice Patterns, Chronic Conditions
Lipira L, Leichtling G, Cook RR
Predictors of having naloxone in urban and rural Oregon findings from NHBS and the OR-HOPE study.
Investigators determined the proportion of people who had naloxone and identified predictors of naloxone ownership among two samples of people who inject drugs (PWID) who use opioids in Portland and rural Western Oregon. Using data from participants in two studies, they found that 61% of the Portland group and 30 % of the Oregon group had naloxone. The authors concluded that naloxone ownership was insufficient and highly variable among two samples of PWID who use opioids in Oregon. Further, people who use methamphetamine, males, and people experiencing homelessness may be at increased risk for not having naloxone, and syringe service programs may play a key role in improving access.
AHRQ-funded; HS026370.
Citation: Lipira L, Leichtling G, Cook RR .
Predictors of having naloxone in urban and rural Oregon findings from NHBS and the OR-HOPE study.
Drug Alcohol Depend 2021 Oct 1;227:108912. doi: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2021.108912..
Keywords: Opioids, Substance Abuse, Behavioral Health, Medication
Butler AM, Durkin MJ, Keller MR
Risk of antibiotic treatment failure in premenopausal women with uncomplicated urinary tract infection.
This study compared treatment outcomes for various antibiotics in premenopausal women with uncomplicated urinary tract infections (UTIs). The authors compared treatment with fluoroquinolones (first-line), trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (TMP/SMX) (first-line), nitrofurantoin (first-line), narrow-spectrum β-lactams (non-first-line), and amoxicillin/ampicillin (non-recommended). Over 1.1 million patient outcomes were analyzed. The risk of treatment failure differed by the antibiotic type, with higher risk associated with TMP/SMX versus nitrofurantoin, and lower or similar risk associated with broad- versus narrow-spectrum β-lactams.
AHRQ-funded; HS019455.
Citation: Butler AM, Durkin MJ, Keller MR .
Risk of antibiotic treatment failure in premenopausal women with uncomplicated urinary tract infection.
Pharmacoepidemiol Drug Saf 2021 Oct;30(10):1360-70. doi: 10.1002/pds.5237..
Keywords: Antibiotics, Medication, Urinary Tract Infection (UTI), Women
Taber DJ, Fleming JN, Su Z
Significant hospitalization cost savings to the payer with a pharmacist-led mobile health intervention to improve medication safety in kidney transplant recipients.
This paper examined hospitalization cost savings to the payer with a pharmacist-led mobile health intervention to improve medication safety in kidney transplant recipients. This study was an economic analysis of a 12-month, parallel arm, randomized controlled trial in adult kidney recipients 6 to 36 months posttransplant (NCT03247322). All participants received usual posttransplant care, while the intervention arm received supplemental clinical pharmacist-led medication therapy monitoring and management, via a smartphone-enabled mHealth app, integrated with risk-based televisits.
AHRQ-funded; HS023754.
Citation: Taber DJ, Fleming JN, Su Z .
Significant hospitalization cost savings to the payer with a pharmacist-led mobile health intervention to improve medication safety in kidney transplant recipients.
Am J Transplant 2021 Oct;21(10):3428-35. doi: 10.1111/ajt.16737..
Keywords: Healthcare Costs, Provider: Pharmacist, Telehealth, Health Information Technology (HIT), Transplantation, Hospitalization, Medication: Safety, Medication
Bongiovanni T, Hernandez S, Ledesma Y
Surviving traumatic injury, only to die of acute drug poisoning: should trauma centers be a path for intervention?
This study’s objective was to determine the incidence and characteristics of and risk factors for trauma patients suffering death by unintentional drug overdose. This retrospective chart review was conducted on all admitted trauma patients 18 years or older at the only level-1 trauma center in the San Francisco area from 2012 to 2012, matched with unintentional overdose decedents from the California death registry. Of 9,860 patients residing in San Francisco at the time of their trauma during the study period 1,418 died, 107 (0.3/100 person-years) from unintentional overdose. Overdose decedents were 84% male, 50% white, with a mean age of 48 years. Twenty percent of deaths occurred within 3 months of hospitalization, and 40% were attributed to a prescription opioid.
AHRQ-funded; HS026383; 233201500020I.
Citation: Bongiovanni T, Hernandez S, Ledesma Y .
Surviving traumatic injury, only to die of acute drug poisoning: should trauma centers be a path for intervention?
Surgery 2021 Oct;170(4):1249-54. doi: 10.1016/j.surg.2021.03.003.
AHRQ-funded; HS026383; 233201500020I..
AHRQ-funded; HS026383; 233201500020I..
Keywords: Trauma, Medication, Risk, Mortality
Renny MH, Yin HS, Jent V
Temporal trends in opioid prescribing practices in children, adolescents, and younger adults in the US from 2006 to 2018.
Prescription opioids are involved in more than half of opioid overdoses among younger persons. Understanding opioid prescribing practices is essential for developing appropriate interventions for this population. The objective of this study was to examine temporal trends in opioid prescribing practices in children, adolescents, and younger adults in the US from 2006 to 2018.
AHRQ-funded; HS026120.
Citation: Renny MH, Yin HS, Jent V .
Temporal trends in opioid prescribing practices in children, adolescents, and younger adults in the US from 2006 to 2018.
JAMA Pediatr 2021 Oct;175(10):1043-52. doi: 10.1001/jamapediatrics.2021.1832..
Keywords: Children/Adolescents, Young Adults, Opioids, Practice Patterns, Medication
Herzig SJ, Anderson TS, Jung Y
Relative risks of adverse events among older adults receiving opioids versus NSAIDs after hospital discharge: a nationwide cohort study.
This retrospective cohort study’s objective was to determine the incidence and risk of post-discharge adverse events among opioid claims in the week after hospital discharge, compared to those with nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) claims alone. A national sample of Medicare beneficiaries age 65 and older who were hospitalized in the United States in 2016 was used. Beneficiaries who were admitted from or discharged to a facility were excluded. The authors used 3:1 propensity matching to match beneficiaries with an opioid claim in the week after discharge (13,385) with beneficiaries with NSAID claim alone (4,677). Beneficiaries receiving opioids had a higher incidence of death, healthcare utilization, and any potential adverse effect compared to those with an NSAID claim only. Specific adverse effects included higher relative risk of fall/fracture, nausea/vomiting, and slowed colonic motility.
AHRQ-funded; HS026215.
Citation: Herzig SJ, Anderson TS, Jung Y .
Relative risks of adverse events among older adults receiving opioids versus NSAIDs after hospital discharge: a nationwide cohort study.
PLoS Med 2021 Sep 27;18(9):e1003804. doi: 10.1371/journal.pmed.1003804..
Keywords: Elderly, Opioids, Medication, Medication: Safety, Adverse Drug Events (ADE), Adverse Events, Patient Safety, Risk, Hospital Discharge
Papaleontiou M, Levine DA, Reyes-Gastelum D
Thyroid hormone therapy and incident stroke.
This study’s objective was to determine the relationship between thyroid hormone treatment intensity and incidence of atrial fibrillation (AFIB) and stroke. This retrospective cohort study used data from the Veterans Health Administration between 2004 and 2017, with a median follow-up of 59 months. Total study population was comprised of 733,208 thyroid hormone users aged ≥18 years with at least 2 thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) measurements between thyroid hormone initiation and incident event (atrial fibrillation or stroke) or study conclusion. Overall, 71,333 (11.08%) developed incident atrial fibrillation and 41,931 (6.32%) stroke. Higher incidence of stroke was associated with low thyroid-stimulation hormone (TSH) or high free thyroxine (T4) levels compared to patients with normal TSH or T4 levels. Risk of developing AFIB and stroke was cumulative over time for patients with exogenous hyperthyroidism or hypothyroidism.
AHRQ-funded; HS024512.
Citation: Papaleontiou M, Levine DA, Reyes-Gastelum D .
Thyroid hormone therapy and incident stroke.
J Clin Endocrinol Metab 2021 Sep 27;106(10):e3890-e900. doi: 10.1210/clinem/dgab444..
Keywords: Medication, Medication: Safety, Risk, Stroke
Herzig SJ, Rothberg MB, Moss CR
Risk of in-hospital falls among medications commonly used for insomnia in hospitalized patients.
This study investigated the risk of in-hospital falls among patients receiving medications commonly used for insomnia. This retrospective cohort study was conducted at a large academic medical center from January 2007 to July 2013. Adults admitted for a primary psychiatric disorder were excluded. Medications of interest included benzodiazepines, non-benzodiazepine benzodiazepine receptor agonists, trazodone, atypical antipsychotics, and diphenhydramine. Among 225,498 hospitalizations, 37.7% had exposure to at least one of the medication classes of interest with benzodiazepines being the most commonly prescribed. A fall occurred in 1.1% (2,427) of hospitalizations. The rate of falls per 1,000 hospital days was greater among patients with exposure to each of the medications of interest compared to unexposed patients.
AHRQ-funded; HS026215.
Citation: Herzig SJ, Rothberg MB, Moss CR .
Risk of in-hospital falls among medications commonly used for insomnia in hospitalized patients.
Sleep 2021 Sep 13;44(9):zsab064. doi: 10.1093/sleep/zsab064..
Keywords: Falls, Medication, Adverse Events, Risk, Hospitals
Enzinger AC, Ghosh K, Keating NL
US trends in opioid access among patients with poor prognosis cancer near the end-of-life.
This study looked at trends in opioid prescriptions for cancer patients near the end-of-life (EOL) defined as the 30 days before death or hospice enrollment. The authors looked at Medicare part D data from 2007 to 2017 for 270,632 Medicare fee-for-service decedents with poor prognosis cancers. During that time, the proportion of decedents with poor prognosis cancers receiving 1 or greater opioid prescriptions near EOL declined 15.5% and the proportion receiving 1 or greater long-acting opioid prescriptions declined 36.5% to 18.1%. The mean daily dose fell from 24.5%, from 85.6 morphine milligram equivalents per day (MMED) to 64.6. The total amount of opioids prescribed fell from 1,075 morphine milligram equivalents per decedent to 666 morphine milligram equivalents per decedents. At the same time, the proportion of patients with pain-related ED visits increase 50.8% from 13.2% to 19.9%.
AHRQ-funded; HS024072.
Citation: Enzinger AC, Ghosh K, Keating NL .
US trends in opioid access among patients with poor prognosis cancer near the end-of-life.
J Clin Oncol 2021 Sep 10;39(26):2948-58. doi: 10.1200/jco.21.00476..
Keywords: Cancer, Opioids, Palliative Care, Pain, Access to Care, Medication, Practice Patterns
Johnson LF, Kariminia A, Trickey A
Achieving consistency in measures of HIV-1 viral suppression across countries: derivation of an adjustment based on international antiretroviral treatment cohort data.
This aim of this research is to propose that countries with different viral suppression thresholds make adjustments to standardize estimates to the <1000 HIV-1 RNA copies/ml threshold in patients on antiretroviral treatment (ART) by 2020. The authors considered three possible distributions for viral loads in ART patients: Weibull, Pareto and reverse Weibull. The models were fitted to data on viral load distribution in ART patients in the International epidemiology Databases to Evaluate AIDS (IeDEA) collaboration and the ART Cohort Collaboration, using separate random effects models for adults and children. The models were validated using data from the World Health Organization (WHO) HIV drug resistance report and the Brazilian national ART program. Models were calibrated using 921,157 adult and 37,431 pediatric viral load measurements from 2010 to 2019. The Parento and reverse Weibull models provided the best fits to the data.
J Int AIDS Soc 2021 Sep;24(Suppl 5):e25776. doi: 10.1002/jia2.25776.
Citation: Johnson LF, Kariminia A, Trickey A .
Achieving consistency in measures of HIV-1 viral suppression across countries: derivation of an adjustment based on international antiretroviral treatment cohort data.
AHRQ-funded; 90051652..
Keywords: Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), Chronic Conditions, Medication
Abrahamson K, Davila H, Kirk L
Can a nursing home psychotropic reduction project be successfully implemented in assisted living?
This study’s objective was to compare implementation of a psychotropic medication reduction project across nursing homes (NH) and assisted living (AL) facilities. Fifteen NHs and 14 AL facilities within a single corporate chain participated. In-person and telephone interviews with 62 staff members from participating NH and AL facilities were conducted to investigate project implementation experience. Implementation at nursing homes made more dramatic changes in residents’ lives and medication use than at assisted living facilities. AL staff identified numerous barriers to implementation.
AHRQ-funded; HS018464.
Citation: Abrahamson K, Davila H, Kirk L .
Can a nursing home psychotropic reduction project be successfully implemented in assisted living?
J Appl Gerontol 2021 Sep;40(9):1071-79. doi: 10.1177/0733464820948328..
Keywords: Elderly, Nursing Homes, Long-Term Care, Medication, Dementia
Heins SE, Castillo RC
Changes in opioid prescribing following the implementation of state policies limiting morphine equivalent daily dose in a commercially insured population.
The study’s objective was to evaluate the impact of state-level morphine equivalent daily dose (MEDD) policies on opioid prescribing among the privately insured using claims data from 9 policy states and 2 control states and a comparative interrupted time series design. Findings showed that MEDD policies were associated with decreased use of any opioids relative to control states, but with no change in high-dose prescribing. Recommendations included further research to understand the mechanisms through which MEDD policies may influence prescribing behavior.
AHRQ-funded; HS025557.
Citation: Heins SE, Castillo RC .
Changes in opioid prescribing following the implementation of state policies limiting morphine equivalent daily dose in a commercially insured population.
Med Care 2021 Sep;59(9):801-07. doi: 10.1097/mlr.0000000000001587..
Keywords: Opioids, Medication, Policy, Practice Patterns
Abdus S
AHRQ Author: Abdus S
Financial burdens of out-of-pocket prescription drug expenditures under high-deductible health plans.
This study examines financial burdens of out-of-pocket prescription drug expenditures across different levels of deductibles, focusing on low-income adults with multiple, prevalent chronic conditions. The results of this study suggest that for low-income adults with multiple chronic conditions who are enrolled in employer-sponsored high-deductible plans, out-of-pocket prescription drug costs may still result in significant financial hardships. The key takeaway point of this paper for general internists is that for patients with chronic conditions, out-of-pocket costs of prescription drugs could be excessively burdensome if they are enrolled in high-deductible plans.
AHRQ-authored.
Citation: Abdus S .
Financial burdens of out-of-pocket prescription drug expenditures under high-deductible health plans.
J Gen Intern Med 2021 Sep;36(9):2903-05. doi: 10.1007/s11606-020-06226-x..
Keywords: Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS), Health Insurance, Healthcare Costs, Medication
Gilson AM, Stone JA, Morris AO
Impact of a pilot community pharmacy system redesign on reducing over-the-counter medication misuse in older adults.
This pilot study’s goal was to decrease misuse of over-the-counter (OTC) medications by older adults aged 65 years or older by creating a pharmacy “Senior Section”. The Senior Section contains a curated selection of OTC medications and it located close to the prescription department to facilitate pharmacy staff-patient engagement to reduce misuse. The study recruited 87 older adults from 3 pharmacies. Misuse outcomes measured were drug-drug, drug-disease, drug-age, and drug-label, with 5 subtypes. The Senior Section reduced drug-label misuse for different models. Misuse was found to decrease after implementation for 7 of 11 comparisons.
AHRQ-funded; HS024490.
Citation: Gilson AM, Stone JA, Morris AO .
Impact of a pilot community pharmacy system redesign on reducing over-the-counter medication misuse in older adults.
J Am Pharm Assoc (2003) 2021 Sep-Oct;61(5):555-64. doi: 10.1016/j.japh.2021.04.007..
Keywords: Elderly, Provider: Pharmacist, Medication, Medication: Safety
Trivedi LU, Femnou Mbuntum L, Halm EA
Is statin use associated with risk of thyroid diseases? Results of a retrospective cohort study.
Given the ubiquity of statin use and prevalence of thyroid diseases, such as thyroid cancer, hyperthyroidism, and thyroiditis, understanding their association deserves further attention. The objective of the study was to examine the association between statin use and thyroid cancer, thyrotoxicosis, goiter, and thyroiditis. The investigators concluded that this study did not demonstrate any association of statins with harmful effects on thyroid diseases, which offers assurance to clinicians and patients.
AHRQ-funded; HS022418.
Citation: Trivedi LU, Femnou Mbuntum L, Halm EA .
Is statin use associated with risk of thyroid diseases? Results of a retrospective cohort study.
Ann Pharmacother 2021 Sep;55(9):1110-19. doi: 10.1177/1060028020986552..
Keywords: Medication, Risk, Adverse Drug Events (ADE)
Viswanathan M, Cook Middleton J, Stuebe AM
Maternal, fetal, and child outcomes of mental health treatments in women: a meta‐analysis of pharmacotherapy
The authors systematically reviewed evidence on pharmacotherapy for perinatal mental health disorders. The investigators concluded that evidence from few studies supported the use of pharmacotherapy for perinatal mental health disorders. Although many studies reported on adverse events, they could not rule out underlying disease severity as the cause of the association between exposures and adverse events.
AHRQ-funded; 290201500011I.
Citation: Viswanathan M, Cook Middleton J, Stuebe AM .
Maternal, fetal, and child outcomes of mental health treatments in women: a meta‐analysis of pharmacotherapy
Psych Res Clin Pract 2021 Sep;3(3):123-40. doi: 10.1176/appi.prcp.20210001..
Keywords: Behavioral Health, Women, Maternal Care, Pregnancy, Medication, Evidence-Based Practice
Fischer MA, Mahesri M, Lii J
Non-visit-based and non-infection-related antibiotic use in the US: a cohort study of privately insured patients during 2016-2018.
Ambulatory antibiotic prescriptions without a clinic visit or without documentation of infection could represent overuse and contribute to adverse outcomes. We aim to describe US ambulatory antibiotic prescribing, including those without an associated visit or infection diagnosis. The investigators conducted an observational cohort study using data of all patients receiving antibacterial, antibiotic prescriptions from 04/01/2016 to 06/30/2018 in a large US private health insurance plan. They concluded that over half of ambulatory antibiotic use was either non-visit-based or non-infection-related.
AHRQ-funded; HS02493.
Citation: Fischer MA, Mahesri M, Lii J .
Non-visit-based and non-infection-related antibiotic use in the US: a cohort study of privately insured patients during 2016-2018.
Open Forum Infect Dis 2021 Sep;8(9):ofab412. doi: 10.1093/ofid/ofab412..
Keywords: Antibiotics, Medication, Antimicrobial Stewardship