Author Interviews, Gastrointestinal Disease, Heart Disease, Weight Research / 01.11.2013

Gianluca Iacobellis MD PhD Professor of Clinical Medicine Division of Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolism, Department of Medicine, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Miami, Florida, USAMedicalResearh.com Interview with: Gianluca Iacobellis MD PhD Professor of Clinical Medicine Division of Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolism, Department of Medicine, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Miami, Florida, USA MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Iacobellis: Our study suggests that epicardial fat, the fat pad in direct contiguity to the heart, is a good predictor of liver steatosis in obese subjects (more…)
Author Interviews, Nutrition, Pediatrics, Weight Research / 30.10.2013

MedicalResearch.com Interview Jennifer M. Poti PhD Candidate, Nutritional Epidemiology University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Answer: Consumption of solid fat and added sugar (SoFAS) by children exceeds recommendations, but it was not known where kids obtain these “empty calories.” Analyzing data from over 22,000 US children, we found that children consumed about 1/3 of their calories as solid fat and added sugar for foods consumed from retail food stores (including grocery stores and supermarkets), schools, or fast food restaurants in 2009-2010, despite significant decreases from 1977 to 2010 at each location. These mean levels of empty calorie intake greatly exceeded recommended amounts not just for fast foods, but also for foods consumed from schools and from stores. For all survey years, foods consumed by children from schools were higher in solid fat content than foods obtained and consumed from retail food stores. (more…)
Author Interviews, Autism, Genetic Research / 30.10.2013

Linda Brzustowicz, M.D. Professor and Chair Department of Genetics Rutgers University Piscataway, NJ 08854MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Linda Brzustowicz, M.D. Professor and Chair Department of Genetics Rutgers University,Piscataway, NJ 08854 MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Brzustowicz: The objective of this study was to search for locations in the human genome that impact language ability in individuals with autism as well as in their family members without autism.  To do this, we recruited families with an individual with autism and at least one other family member without autism but with a language learning impairment.  We identified two locations in the human genome that are linked to language ability in these families.  Importantly, these locations do not appear to be specific to language impairment in the individuals with autism, but are related to language ability in other family members as well.  This suggests that while individuals with autism may have new, or de novo, genetic variations that are important for risk of illness, they may also carry inherited genetic variation that influence the expression of their illness.  The effects of these inherited variants can also be seen in the language performance of family members without autism. (more…)
Author Interviews, Heart Disease, Mayo Clinic, Rheumatology / 30.10.2013

Eric Matteson, M.D. Rheumatology Chair Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn.MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Eric Matteson, M.D. Rheumatology Chair Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. MedicalResearch.com:   What are the main findings of the studies? Dr. Matteson: “The main finding is that patients with severe rheumatoid arthritis have a higher risk of heart disease.  Further, women who experience early menopause also have a higher risk of heart disease.” (more…)
Author Interviews, Exercise - Fitness / 30.10.2013

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: George Mammen, PhD Candidate Health & Exercise Psychology Unit University of Toronto MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Answer:
  • 25 out of the 30 studies found PA to protect against depression; majority of these were of high methodological quality
  • Decreasing PA overtime can increase the risk of developing depression; increasing PA overtime can reduce the risk of developing depression
  • In terms of dosage, the review highlighted studies that showed even low levels, such as 20 mins of walking a day, can prevent the onset of depression. (more…)
Author Interviews, Heart Disease, Rheumatology / 29.10.2013

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Lotta Ljung, MD, PhD Umeå University, Umeå and Karolinska  Institute Stockholm, Sweden MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Ljung:  In this observational study we observed a lower risk of acute coronary syndromes in a cohort of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) exposed to tumor necrosis factor inhibitors (TNFi) compared with the risk among patients without this exposure. The adjusted relative risk (HR) was 0.73-0.82  among TNFi exposed patients compared with the biologics-naive RA cohort, depending on the time frame evaluated, which can be concluded as a moderately lower risk. Compared with the risk in the general population, the risk in RA patients was higher, whether exposed to TNFi or not. (more…)
Author Interviews, Gastrointestinal Disease, OBGYNE / 29.10.2013

MedicalResearch.com Interview with Dr. Ketil Stordal Researcher/consultant paediatrician National Institute of Public Health Norway MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Stordal: Mothers who used iron supplementation during pregnancy had an increased risk for having children with a diagnosis of celiac disease. This association was not caused by maternal anemia during pregnancy, anemia was not a predictor of celiac disease in the offspring. The risk for celiac disease when the mother had used the highest doses and for the longest period. (more…)
JAMA, Smoking / 29.10.2013

MediclResearch.com Interview with: John W. Ayers, PhD, MA Graduate School of Public Health San Diego State University, San Diego, California MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Ayers: Our study, published today in the Journal of the American Medical Association, Internal Medicine was the first to describe daily rhythms in health behaviors. Because trends in quitting contemplations are usually described annually using telephone surveys, we had to use a novel data source that could capture daily patterns. By monitoring aggregate Internet search queries we can see precisely what the population is thinking about by the content of their queries and that the population is engaged in the issue by searching. We therefore analyzed daily search volumes for smoking cessation queries (e.g., "quit smoking") in six languages across the entire globe. We found that people search about quitting smoking more often early in the week, with the highest query volumes on Mondays, using a daily measure representing the proportion of quit smoking searches to all searches. This pattern was consistent across all six languages, suggesting a global predisposition to thinking about quitting smoking early in the week, particularly on Mondays. English searches, for example, showed Monday query volumes were 11 percent greater than on Wednesdays, 67 percent greater than on Fridays, and 145 percent greater than on Saturdays. In total for all six languages, Monday query volumes were 25 percent higher than the combined mean number of searches for Tuesday through Sunday. Practically these findings are very meaningful. For example, in English alone there are about 150,000 more quit smoking queries on Monday than on a typical day; about 8,000,000 over an entire year. (more…)
Author Interviews, Education / 29.10.2013

Lauren Block, MD Assistant Professor, North Shore–LIJ Hofstra School of Medicine 2001 Marcus Ave., Suite S160 Lake Success, NY 11042MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Lauren Block, MD Assistant Professor, North Shore–LIJ Hofstra School of Medicine 2001 Marcus Ave., Suite S160 Lake Success, NY 11042   MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Block: Our goal was to look at how often doctors in training were performing basic niceties with their patients, such as introducing themselves and sitting down. We found that while the doctors usually asked open-ended questions and touched patients, resident physicians were unlikely to introduce themselves, explain their role, or sit down when talking to patients. (more…)
Author Interviews / 29.10.2013

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Lorenz Raber, MD University Hospital Bern Bern, Switzerland

MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Raber: The main finding of the clinical study is that the benefit of a biolimus-eluting stent using a biodegradable polymer (Biomatrix, BES) regarding MACE (cardiac death, target vessel MI, TLR) continued to accrue during the second year of follow-up, actually with a similar relative risk reduction as observed during the first year. After one year, the timepoint at which most patients stopped dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT), no difference in safety (cardiac death, myocardial infarction, stent thrombosis) was observed between BES and the control group (bare metal stent, BMS). This largely confirms the principle concept of biodegradable polymer stent platforms. The results of the imaging substudy provide a mechanistic explanation for the observed benefit with BES.  Specifically, BES showed a lower neointimal thickness, a low frequency of uncovered and malapposed stent struts  (OCT) and the absence of positive remodeling (IVUS) at 13 months follow-up. (more…)
Hip Fractures / 29.10.2013

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Stefano Volpato MD MPH Department of Medical Sciences, University of Ferrara Ferrara, Italy MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Volpato: In this study we evaluated clinical value of handgrip strength  assessment in older patients admitted to the hospital for hip fracture. We observed 504 older patients admitted to 4 Italian hospitals for hip surgery, able of walking independently before fracture, and we found a strong, graded and independent association of grip strength, assessed before hip surgery, and the likelihood of functional recovery over the one-year follow-up. The findings reported in our manuscript can be summarized as: a. handgrip strength significantly correlated with several prognostic factors traditionally considered in clinical practice, such as age, gender, neuro-psychological and functional status, comorbidity level, vitamin D plasma levels, and time before the surgical procedure; b. logistic regression models showed that handgrip strength was directly associated with higher probability of walking recovery, both at any follow-up (incident walking recovery), and for at least 2 consecutive follow-ups (persistent walking recovery); b. Kaplan-Meier survival estimates showed that lower grip strength was related to increased mortality after hip surgery; c. the association between grip performance and walking recovery was clinically relevant and statistically independent of potential confounders. (more…)
Author Interviews, Flu - Influenza, Pediatrics, Vaccine Studies / 29.10.2013

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Karen K. Wong, MD MPH Community Interventions for Infection Control Unit Division of Global Migration & Quarantine Centers for Disease Control and Prevention MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Wong: There were 830 pediatric influenza-associated deaths reported to CDC during the 2004–2005 through 2011–2012 seasons; deaths occurred in children of all ages, and 43% had no high-risk medical conditions. Of children 6 months of age or older whose vaccination status was known, only 16% had been fully vaccinated with seasonal influenza vaccine. (more…)
Diabetes, Diabetes Care, Heart Disease / 28.10.2013

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Marcin Sadowski Świętokrzyskie Cardiology Center, Kielce, Poland MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Sadowski: In multivariable analysis, diabetes was an independent risk factor of in-hospital and 1-year mortality in women treated for STEMI. In women with STEMI and diabetes one-year mortality was significantly lower in those treated with primary percutaneous coronary intervention than in those on optimal medical therapy. Early and long-term prognoses after STEMI were the worst in diabetic women, compared with non-diabetic women and diabetic men. (more…)
Author Interviews, Diabetes, Mediterranean Diet, Memory / 24.10.2013

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Lucia Kerti MA From the Departments of Neurology Charité–University Medicine, Berlin MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Answer: The results of our study on 141 healthy older people suggest that chronically higher blood glucose levels may have a negative influence on memory performance even in the absence of type 2 diabetes or even pre-diabetes. Moreover, our findings indicate that elevated blood glucose levels  impair the functioning of brain areas like the hippocampus, a structure particularly relevant for memory. An important novel aspect in our study was the additional analysis of diffusion tensor imaging-based mean diffusivity within the hippocampal, which allowed us to  obtain information on microstructure.  We here provided first-time data of an association between higher blood glucose levels and lower hippocampal microstructure. Decreased hippocampal microstructure as measured by mean diffusivity may reflect a disruption of neuronal membranes and increased extracellular water content, leading to decreased signaling within and between hippocampal cells. Thus, information transfer between cells, indispensable for memory encoding, storage and retrieval, would be compromised. In sum, our data suggest that chronically higher blood glucose levels even within the "normal range" may decrease memory functions, possibly in part mediated by microstructural changes within the hippocampus. (more…)
Allergies, Author Interviews, NEJM / 24.10.2013

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Jian-Jun Liu Shangdong Provincial Institute of Dermatology and Venereology MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Answer: ·      HLA-B*13:01 is associated with the development of dapsone hypersensitivity syndrome. ·      Carrying one copy of HLA-B*13:01 increases one’s risk by 34 times of getting DHS, while carrying two copies increases risk by 100 times as compared to not carrying this allele. ·      HLA-B*13:01 has a sensitivity and specificity of above 85% in predicting the risk of DHS, theoretically reducing the risk of DHS by 7 fold when implemented in clinical screening. (more…)
Alzheimer's - Dementia, Author Interviews / 24.10.2013

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Andrew S. Lim MD MMSc FRCPC DABPN Assistant Professor and Clinician Scientist Division of Neurology, Department of Medicine Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre University of Toronto MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Lim: Alzheimer disease (AD) is the result of a confluence of genetic, behavioral, and environmental risk factors.  The Apolipoprotein E (APOE) e4 allele is the most common and well established genetic risk factor for Alzheimer Disease.  10-20% of the US population carries the high risk APOE e4 allele, which confers up to a 30% lifetime risk of AD. Meanwhile, previous work had suggested that poor sleep may be a risk factor for AD and that APOE genotype and poor sleep may amplify each other's negative cognitive effects. We asked the question whether good sleep consolidation (i.e. sound sleep without repeated awakenings) may reduce the effect of APOE on the risk of incident AD and the burden of AD pathology.  We studied 698 individuals without dementia participating in the Rush Memory and Aging Project - a longitudinal cohort study of aging and risk factors for AD.  We measured sleep consolidation using wrist-watch like devices called actigraphs, and followed participants for up to 6 years, examining them annually for the development of AD.  Autopsies were perfumed on 201 participants who died during the follow-up period and we quantified the burden of AD pathology. During the follow-up period, 98 participants developed AD.  As expected, carrying the APOE e4 allele was associated with a higher risk of AD, faster cognitive decline, and a higher burden of AD pathology (amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles) at death. However, better sleep at baseline significantly reduced the negative impact of APOE e4 on the risk of AD, rate of cognitive decline, and burden of neurofibrillary tangle pathology. (more…)
Author Interviews, Johns Hopkins, Pediatrics, Vitamin D / 24.10.2013

Meredith Atkinson, MD, MHS Assistant Professor of Pediatrics Division of Pediatric Nephrology Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine Baltimore, MD 21287 MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Meredith Atkinson, MD, MHS Assistant Professor of Pediatrics Division of Pediatric Nephrology Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine Baltimore, MD 21287   MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Atkinson: First, among a healthy cross-section of U.S. children, vitamin D deficiency defined as levels below 30 ng/mL (the currently accepted threshold for adequate vs. inadequate vitamin D) were associated with nearly twice the risk for anemia compared to those with sufficient vitamin D levels.  Secondly, when we looked specifically at Caucasian and African-American children, we found that children with the lowest vitamin D levels were at increased risk for anemia in both groups, but that the specific vitamin D level below which the anemia risk started to increase was much lower in the African-American children (12 ng/mL) than in the Caucasian children (20 mg/mL). (more…)
Author Interviews, Diabetes, Diabetes Care, Stroke / 23.10.2013

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Stefanie Hägg, MB Folkhälsan Institute of Genetics, Folkhälsan Research Center, Biomedicum Helsinki Division of Nephrology, Department of Medicine, Helsinki University Central Hospital, Helsinki, Finland MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Answer: We studied the incidence of stroke in a large cohort of patients with type 1 diabetes in Finland. During 36,680 person-years of follow-up, we found that the incidence of total stroke, and the subtypes cerebral infarction and cerebral hemorrhage was 406, 286, and 120 per 100,000 person-years, respectively, which is higher than in the Finnish general population, for whom the incidence of stroke varies between 135 and 236 per 100,000 person years. Furthermore, we studied the impact of two diabetic microvascular complications, diabetic nephropathy and severe diabetic retinopathy, on the risk of stroke, as well as for the subtypes of stroke. The incidence of stroke, cerebral infarction, and cerebral hemorrhage increased with both the presence of severe diabetic retinopathy and with advancing diabetic nephropathy. Furthermore, we found that both diabetic nephropathy and severe diabetic retinopathy increased the risk for all subtypes of stroke, independently of traditional risk factors. A novel finding was that already incipient diabetic nephropathy (microalbuminuria) increased the risk of stroke, cerebral infarction, and cerebral hemorrhage more than 3-fold, compared with patients free of renal disease. The highest risk of stroke was seen in patients with end-stage renal disease. (more…)
JAMA, OBGYNE / 22.10.2013

Dr. Jennifer Fay Kawwaas MD Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USAMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Jennifer Fay Kawwaas MD Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Kawwaas: Using CDC National ART Surveillance System (NASS) data, we found an increasing trend from 2000 to 2010 in the number of donor egg cycles performed annually and in the percentage of donor cycles that resulted in a good outcome, defined as delivery of a full term infant weighing more than 5.5lbs. Donor and recipient ages remained relatively stable at 28 and 41, respectively, over the 11-year period. Elective single embryo transfer is recommended when the donor is under 35 years old, regardless of recipient’s age; transfer of a single day 5 embryo was associated with an increased chance of good perinatal outcome. Tubal or uterine factor infertility and non-Hispanic Black race were associated with a lower chance of good perinatal outcome. (more…)
Author Interviews, Melanoma / 22.10.2013

Jeffrey Weber, M.D, Ph.D. Senior Researcher, Moffitt Cancer Center Tampa, FloridaMedicalResearch.com Interview with:  Jeffrey Weber, M.D, Ph.D. Senior Researcher, Moffitt Cancer Center Tampa, Florida MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Weber: That the PD-1 blocking antibody nivolumab has a 25% ORR with long duration of response in ipilimumab refractory patients, and that patients with prior grade 3-4 ipilimumab related immune related side effects may be safely treated with nivolumab without reproducing the prior IPI related side effects. (more…)
Author Interviews, Stem Cells / 22.10.2013

David T Harris, Phd Department of Immunobiology University of Arizona PO Box 245221, Tucson, AZ 85724Medicalresearch.com Interview with: David T Harris, Phd Department of Immunobiology University of Arizona PO Box 245221, Tucson, AZ 85724. MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Harris: The primary finding of the study was that it was routinely possible to harvest left-over adipose tissue and stem cells from both liposuction and cosmetic procedures, cryopreserve it for prolonged periods of time, and then thaw the tissue later when needed.  Frozen and thawed adipose tissue was routinely viable and able to be differentiated into additional fat, as well as bone, cartilage and neuron-like cells.  Thus, one can bank adipose tissue and stem cells without first isolating the stem cells allowing one to use the frozen and thawed tissue at later times for both cosmetic applications as well as for regenerative medicine. (more…)
Author Interviews, Johns Hopkins, Sleep Disorders / 22.10.2013

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Ruth Tamrat, Minh-Phuong Huynh-Le, and Madhav Goyal Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, MSIV MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Answer: Despite the known adverse effects of sleep deprivation on recovery from illness, studies have shown that sleep deprivation remains an incompletely addressed problem among inpatients.  Behavioral interventions are recommended as first line therapy prior to using pharmacologic therapy due to the adverse side effects of sedative hypnotics. This systematic review sought to identify the efficacy of non-pharmacologic interventions that have been used to improve the sleep of general inpatients.  The results of this review demonstrate a lack of high quality evidence regarding the efficacy of these non-pharmacologic interventions in improving the sleep quality or quantity of patients in the hospital. (more…)
Author Interviews, Emergency Care / 22.10.2013

Dr. Gina Agarwal Assistant Professor Department of Family Medicine McMaster Family Practice 690 Main Street West Hamilton , Ontario L8S 1A4MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Gina Agarwal Assistant Professor Department of Family Medicine McMaster Family Practice 690 Main Street West Hamilton , Ontario L8S 1A4 MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Agarwal: The study findings are just preliminary as of yet, but suggest that the CHAP-EMS program is potentially a feasible and effective health program for seniors housing buildings in urban areas. The program delivered tailored health risk assesments to seniors living in subsidized city housing, also assessing their risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes and falls using validated tools. Paramedics were trained in how to assess, and deliver risk assessment results and then provide community resource information. Seniors attending the program could drop in any time and were encouraged to come back for follow up sessions. Results of each attendance were forwarded to family doctors to close the loop. At the 5th month of implementation, we have recorded 241 participant visits by 40 unique participants; 37 had 2 or more visits; 70% had elevated BPs initially; 77.8% of those previously diagnosed hypertensive and 55.8% of those undiagnosed hypertensive had elevated BP; 82.5% had moderate to high CANRISK scores. Preliminary data shows a 32% reduction in EMS calls. (more…)
Author Interviews, Pediatrics, Vaccine Studies / 22.10.2013

MedicalResearch.com Interview with Katherine Auger, MD, MSc Assistant Professor of Pediatrics Division of Hospital Medicine Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Auger: We examined hospitalization rates in infants for pertussis before versus after the recommendation to universally vaccinate all adolescents with Tdap.  We used mathematical modeling to predict the number of infant hospitalizations that would be expected without the Tdap vaccine policy.  We then compared these predicted numbers to the actual observed numbers of infant hospitalizations.  In 3 of the 4 years after Tdap vaccine policy, there were significantly fewer infant hospitalizations for pertussis than expected base on the predictions. (more…)
Author Interviews, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, Hearing Loss, Medical Research Centers, Vitamin D, Weight Research / 22.10.2013

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Sharon Curhan, MD, ScM Channing Division of Network Medicine Brigham and Women's Hospital Harvard Medical School Boston, MA 02115 MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Curhan: The main findings of our study are that higher body mass index and larger waist circumference are associated with an increased risk of acquired hearing loss, and higher level of physical activity is associated with a decreased risk of acquired hearing loss in women. Specifically, after adjusting for potential confounders, compared with women with BMI <25 kg/m2, the relative risk for hearing loss was 25% higher for women with BMI >40. Compared with women with waist circumference <71 cm, the relative risk for hearing loss was 27% higher for women with waist circumference >88 cm. Higher physical activity was inversely related to risk; compared with women in the lowest quintile of physical activity, women in the highest quintile of physical activity had a 17% lower risk of hearing loss. Walking, the most common form of physical activity among these women, was associated with a lower risk; women who walked 2 hours per week or more had a 15% lower risk of hearing loss than women who walked less than one hour per week. These findings provide evidence that maintaining healthy weight and staying physically active, potentially modifiable lifestyle factors, may help reduce the risk of hearing loss. (more…)
Author Interviews, Diabetes, Heart Disease, Nutrition, Omega-3 Fatty Acids / 22.10.2013

MedicalResearch.com Interview wit: Elin Strand

Researcher, Department of Clinical Science University of Bergen, Norway MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of this study? Answer: The main findings in this prospective observational cohort study among patients with established coronary artery disease were that a very high intake of omega-3 fatty acids was associated with a reduced risk of acute myocardial infarction in patients with diabetes, but with an increased risk of fatal acute myocardial infarction and with lower glycosylated hemoglobin in those without impaired glucose metabolism. (more…)
Cost of Health Care, Emergency Care, Pediatrics, University of Michigan / 20.10.2013

Adrianne Haggins, MD, MS University of Michigan Health System Department of Emergency Medicine Ann Arbor, MI 48109-5303MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Adrianne Haggins, MD, MS University of Michigan Health System Department of Emergency Medicine Ann Arbor, MI  48109-5303 MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Haggins: Since the implementation of the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) in 1997, the last national health care reform that broadly expanded insurance coverage, adolescent use of primary care and specialty care has increased substantially in comparison to no change seen among the comparison group (young adults, who were not covered).  Broadening insurance coverage for adolescents did not result in a decrease in emergency department use, while ED use in the comparison group increased over time.   (more…)
Cost of Health Care / 20.10.2013

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Gigi Cuckler Economist National Health Statistics Group Office of the Actuary, CMS MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Answer: Below we provide the major findings, but it’s important to note that these estimates incorporate two substantial changes from prior projections.
  • First, the estimates incorporate the June 2012 US Supreme Court ruling that made the Medicaid eligibility expansion under health reform optional for states.
  • Second, unless otherwise stated, the estimates focus on an outlook for spending in which the scheduled Medicare physician payment rate updates under the Sustainable Growth Rate formula do not occur.  The following are highlights from our most recent report:
  • Over the projection period, 2012-22, national health spending is projected to grow at an average rate of 5.8 percent, which is 1.0 percentage point faster than expected average annual growth in the economy over the period.  Consequently, the health share of GDP is projected to increase from 17.9 percent in 2011 to 19.9 percent of the economy by 2022.
  • In the near term of the projection, through 2013, national health spending growth is expected to remain just under 4.0 percent due to the sluggish economic recovery, continued increases in cost-sharing requirements for the privately insured, and low growth for Medicare and Medicaid.
  • However, in 2014, national health spending growth is projected to accelerate to 6.1 percent, reflecting the expanded insurance coverage that will become available through the Affordable Care Act.
  • After 2014 through the remainder of the projection period, national health spending is projected to grow 6.2 percent per year on average, largely as a result of the continued implementation of the coverage expansions under reform, faster projected economic growth, the aging of the population, and the end of the sequester.
  • While projected health spending growth is faster compared to recent experience, it is still slower than the growth experienced over the longer-term history. (more…)