Medical Research Journals

10 Jun

Posted at 19:34h in Author Interviews, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, Heart Disease, JACC, Lung Cancer, Radiation Therapy
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_49629" align="alignleft" width="200"]Raymond H Mak, MD Assistant Professor of Radiation Oncology Harvard Medical School Dr. Mak[/caption]   Raymond H Mak, MD Assistant Professor of Radiation Oncology Harvard Medical School Radiation Oncology Brigham and Women's Hospital     [caption id="attachment_49693" align="alignleft" width="200"]Dr-Katelyn M. Atkins Dr. Atkins[/caption]   Katelyn M. Atkins MD PhD Harvard Radiation Oncology Program Dana-Farber Cancer Institute Brigham and Women’s Hospital Boston, Massachusetts     MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? 
  • Lung cancer remains the leading cause of cancer-related death worldwide and nearly half of patients will require radiation therapy as part of their care.
  • Cardiac toxicity following radiotherapy has been well-studied in breast cancer and lymphomas, however the impact of cardiac toxicity following lung cancer radiotherapy has historically been under-appreciated due to the high risk of lung cancer death.
  • Recent studies highlighting cardiac toxicity following lung cancer radiotherapy have been limited by small numbers of patients and, to our best knowledge, have not included validated cardiac event endpoints defined by the American Heart Association (AHA)/American College of Cardiology (ACC).

10 Jun

Posted at 12:08h in Author Interviews, Hepatitis - Liver Disease, JAMA, Kaiser Permanente, Pharmacology
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_49631" align="alignleft" width="200"]Elizabeth A. McGlynn, PhD Vice President for Kaiser Permanente Research Executive Director Kaiser Permanente Center for Effectiveness and Safety  Dr. McGlynn[/caption] Elizabeth A. McGlynn, PhD Vice President for Kaiser Permanente Research Executive Director Kaiser Permanente Center for Effectiveness and Safety  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?  Response: A report from the Institute for Safe Medication Practices based on FDA data and observations from a Kaiser Permanente physician leader raised questions about whether direct acting antiviral medications for the treatment of Hepatitis C posed any significant safety risks for patients. Since the decision to take medications requires making tradeoffs between benefits (which had been clearly established in clinical trials) and risks (which are often harder to ascertain until drugs are in widespread use in the real world) we decided this was an important question to pursue.  We found no evidence of increased risks of significant side effects associated with taking these drugs.  In this cohort study of 33,808 patients in three large health systems we found lower adjusted odds of experiencing the following adverse events:  death, multiple organ failure, hepatic decompensation, acute-on-chronic liver event, and arrhythmia. 

09 Jun

Posted at 18:30h in Author Interviews, Diabetes, Diabetologia, Stroke
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Rongrong Yang, PhD candidate Tianjin Medical University  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Worldwide, cerebrovascular disease (CBD) and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) are common disorders that have become among the top ten leading causes of death, killing approximately 8 million people in 2016. Both T2DM and CBD are complex genetic and lifestyle-related disorders. Genetic and familial environmental factors (e.g. foetal environment, maternal smoking and childhood socioeconomic status) have been shown to be involved in the development of both conditions. Accumulating evidence from previous studies suggests that T2DM is independently associated with an increased risk of CBD, especially ischemic CBD.

07 Jun

Posted at 11:38h in Author Interviews, Cost of Health Care, Heart Disease, JAMA, University of Pennsylvania
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_49581" align="alignleft" width="180"]Sameed Khatana, MD, MPH Fellow, Cardiovascular Medicine, Perleman School of Medicine Associate Fellow, Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics University of Pennsylvania Dr. Khatana[/caption] Sameed Khatana, MD, MPH Fellow, Cardiovascular Medicine, Perleman School of Medicine Associate Fellow, Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics University of Pennsylvania  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?   Response: The Affordable Care Act (ACA) led to the largest increase in Medicaid coverage since the beginning of the program. However, a number of states decided not to expand eligibility. Studies of prior smaller expansions in Medicaid, such as in individual states, have suggested evidence of improved outcomes associated with Medicaid expansion. Additionally, studies of Medicaid expansion under the ACA of certain health measures such as access to preventive care and medication adherence have suggested some improvements as well. However, there have been no large, population-level studies to examine whether Medicaid expansion under the ACA led to changes in mortality rates. Given, a high burden of cardiovascular risk factors in the uninsured, we examined whether states that had expanded Medicaid had a change in cardiovascular mortality rates after expansion, compared to states that have not expanded Medicaid.

06 Jun

Posted at 14:28h in Author Interviews, Cost of Health Care, JAMA, Mental Health Research
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_48428" align="alignleft" width="200"]Hefei Wen, PhDAssistant Professor, Department of Health Management & PolicyUniversity of Kentucky College of Public Health Dr. Wen[/caption] Hefei Wen, PhD Assistant Professor, Department of Health Management & Policy University of Kentucky College of Public Health  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Medicaid is the principal payer of behavioral health services in the U.S. and expected to play an increasing role in financing behavioral health services following Medicaid expansions under the ACA.

05 Jun

Posted at 20:48h in Accidents & Violence, Author Interviews, Cost of Health Care, JAMA, Surgical Research, University of Michigan
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_49606" align="alignleft" width="156"]Dr. Mark R. Hemmila MD Associate Professor of Surgery Division of Acute Care Surgery University of Michigan Dr. Hemmila[/caption] Dr. Mark R. Hemmila MD Associate Professor of Surgery Division of Acute Care Surgery University of Michigan  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Traumatic injury has a tendency to be thought of as a disease that preferentially impacts younger people.  We wanted to explore the prevalence and impact of traumatic injury within the population of patients for whom Medicare is the third party payer. 

05 Jun

Posted at 11:49h in Accidents & Violence, Author Interviews, Exercise - Fitness, Geriatrics, JAMA
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_49471" align="alignleft" width="150"]Teresa Liu-Ambrose, PT, PhDCanada Research Chair (Tier II), Physical Activity, Mobility, and Cognitive NeuroscienceDirector, Aging, Mobility, and Cognitive Neuroscience LaboratoryUniversity of British Columbia Dr. Liu-Ambrose[/caption] Teresa Liu-Ambrose, PT, PhD Canada Research Chair (Tier II), Physical Activity, Mobility, and Cognitive Neuroscience Director, Aging, Mobility, and Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory University of British Columbia MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response:  Falls in older adults are the third-leading cause of chronic disability and the leading cause of hospitalization for adults over age 65. Older adults who experience multiple falls are at increased risk for disability, loss of independence, and even death. How to best prevent falls in this high risk group is not well established. 

04 Jun

Posted at 16:41h in Author Interviews, JAMA, Pediatrics, Sexual Health
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_49588" align="alignleft" width="135"]Monika K. Goyal, M.D., MSCE Assistant chief of Children’s Division Emergency Medicine and Trauma Services Dr. Goyal[/caption] Monika K. Goyal, M.D., MSCE Assistant chief of Children’s Division Emergency Medicine and Trauma Services  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Adolescents are disproportionately affected by sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and often present to the emergency department for care. I have devoted almost 15 years of my career trying to improve the sexual health of teens through advocacy and the development of novel interventions in the emergency department to increase access to sexual health services for youths.

04 Jun

Posted at 13:42h in Author Interviews, Emergency Care, JAMA, Medical Imaging, Pediatrics
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_49477" align="alignleft" width="200"]Eyal Cohen, MD, M.Sc, FRCP(C)Professor, PediatricsUniversity of TorontoCo-Founder, Complex Care ProgramThe Hospital for Sick Children Dr. Cohen[/caption] Eyal Cohen, MD, M.Sc, FRCP(C) Professor, Pediatrics University of Toronto Co-Founder, Complex Care Program The Hospital for Sick Children   MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Minimizing care that provides little benefit to patients has become an important focus to decrease health care costs and improve the quality of care delivery.  Diagnostic imaging in children is a common focus for campaigns designed to reduce overuse both in Canada and the US. There are some suggestions that there may be more overuse of care in the United States than Canada, but there has been little study in children. We compared the use of low-value diagnostic imaging rates from four pediatric emergency departments in Ontario to 26 in the United States from 2006 to 2016.  We defined low-value imaging as situations where children are discharged from an emergency department with a diagnosis for which routine use of diagnostic imaging may not be necessary, like asthma or constipation. 

04 Jun

Posted at 12:18h in Author Interviews, Heart Disease, JAMA, Surgical Research
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Rajat Kalra, MBCh Cardiovascular Division University of Minnesota, Minneapolis MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: New-onset atrial fibrillation after aortic valve procedures is thought to occur frequently after aortic valve procedures, such as transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) and surgical aortic valve replacement (AVR). However, the incidence estimates and implications of this new-onset atrial fibrillation in the contemporary era are unclear. We sought to examine the incidence of atrial fibrillation after aortic valve procedures, compare the incidence between TAVI and AVR, and evaluate the associated morbidity and mortality implications using a ‘big data’ approach. This big data approach employed the National Inpatient Sample and was validated in the New York State Inpatient Database. Both are publicly available datasets that are developed as part of the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project, a federal-state-industry partnership that is sponsored by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. 

03 Jun

Posted at 18:03h in Accidents & Violence, Author Interviews, Pediatrics, Pediatrics, Toxin Research
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_49551" align="alignleft" width="144"]Dr-Gary A. Smith Dr. Gary Smith[/caption] Dr. Gary Smith, MD MPH Director, Center for Injury Research and Policy Nationwide Children’s Hospital Columbus, OH MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Our 2016 study (https://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/137/5/e20154529) investigated calls to US poison control centers related to laundry and dishwasher detergent exposures among children younger than 6 years old from 2013 through 2014 and found that poison control centers received more than 30 calls a day about children who had been exposed to a laundry detergent packet, which is about one call every 45 minutes. The current study investigated trends in calls to poison control centers across the country for exposure to liquid laundry detergent packets in order to evaluate the impact of the voluntary safety standard for this product with a focus on young children. The study found only a modest decrease (18%) in calls for children younger than 6 years of age following adoption of a 2015 product safety standard as well as an increase in calls for older children and adults. Exposures to the eyes also continued to climb. The observed decrease in exposures among young children is considerably less than the 40% to 55% decrease in toxic ingestions seen after passage of the Poison Prevention Packaging Act. This demonstrates that the current liquid laundry detergent safety standard is inadequate and needs to be strengthened.

02 Jun

Posted at 11:19h in Author Interviews, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, Exercise - Fitness, JAMA
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_49426" align="alignleft" width="133"]I-Min Lee, MD, ScDProfessor of Medicine, Harvard Medical SchoolProfessor of EpidemiologyHarvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health Prof. I-Min Lee[/caption] I-Min Lee, MD, ScD Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School Professor of Epidemiology Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: While we have many studies showing that physical activity is beneficial for health, there are few data on steps and health, particularly long-term health outcomes.  An expert committee – the 2018 Physical Activity Guidelines Advisory Committee, which reviewed the scientific evidence to support the recently released Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, 2nd edition – noted this (i.e., the relation between steps and health outcomes) to be a critical gap in knowledge, since many individuals are using wearables and monitoring their step counts. We often hear the number 10,000 steps cited as a daily goal, but the basis for this number is unclear. It likely originated as a marketing tool: in 1965, the Yamasa Clock and Instrument Company, Japan sold a pedometer called “Manpo-kei” – “ten thousand steps meter” in Japanese. For many older people, 10,000 steps/day can be a very daunting goal; thus, we wanted to investigate whether this was necessary for lower mortality rates in older women.  Additionally, steps taken can be fast or slow, and there are no published studies on step intensity and long-term health outcomes.  Note that walking pace and step intensity are not the same concept: walking pace gauges intensity when walking purposefully (e.g., for exercise or transportation), while step intensity assesses an overall best natural effort in our daily life.

01 Jun

Posted at 00:52h in ASCO, Author Interviews, Cancer Research, J&J-Janssen, NEJM, Prostate Cancer
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_49474" align="alignleft" width="142"]Dr. Kim Chi. MDProfessor of MedicineMedical Oncologist and Medical Director at BC Cancer – VancouverUniversity of British Columbia,Principal Investigator of the TITAN Study. Dr. Kim Chi[/caption] Dr. Kim Chi. MD Professor of Medicine Medical Oncologist and Medical Director at BC Cancer – Vancouver University of British Columbia, Principal Investigator of the TITAN Study. MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: For more than 70 years, androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) has been the standard of care therapy for patients with metastatic prostate cancer. The Phase 3 TITAN study looked at adding apalutamide (®®®®) to ADT compared with placebo plus ADT in a broad group of patients with metastatic castration-sensitive prostate cancer (mCSPC), regardless of disease volume or prior docetaxel treatment history. Metastatic castration-sensitive prostate cancer is prostate cancer that still responds to androgen deprivation therapy and has spread to other parts of the body. Patients with mCSPC tend to have a poor prognosis, with a median overall survival (OS) of less than five years, underscoring the need for new treatment options. The dual primary endpoints of this study were overall survival and radiographic progression-free survival (rPFS). 

01 Jun

Posted at 00:04h in Author Interviews, Dermatology, JAMA
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_49481" align="alignleft" width="150"]Dr-Jung Min Bae Dr. Jung Min Bae[/caption] Jung Min Bae, MD, PhD Associate Professor, Department of Dermatology St. Vincent's Hospital College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Vitiligo is a common chronic skin disease affecting 1% of the population, and it causes low self-esteem and social stigma. To date, there are no approved drugs for the treatment of vitiligo, even though growing evidence indicates favorable therapeutic responses of topical calcineurin inhibitors (TCIs) including tacrolimus and pimecrolimus. In this study, we conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of all relevant prospective studies (n = 46) and identified remarkable therapeutic responses of TCI monotherapy and TCI plus phototherapy for vitiligo.

30 May

Posted at 22:24h in Author Interviews, Boehringer Ingelheim, NEJM, Pharmaceutical Companies, Pulmonary Disease
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_49455" align="alignleft" width="200"]Donald Zoz, M.D.,Senior associate directorClinical Development & Medical AffairsBoehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Dr. Zoz[/caption] Donald Zoz, M.D., Senior associate director Clinical Development & Medical Affairs Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc. MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? How does nintedanib differ from other treatments for SSc-ILD? What are the main findings?  Response: SENSCIS is a Phase III double-blind, randomized placebo-controlled trial that included 576 patients in 32 countries. It is the largest trial to have been conducted in patients with systemic sclerosis associated interstitial lung disease (SSc-ILD). The primary endpoint was the annual rate of decline in forced vital capacity (FVC) over 52 weeks. At the end of the 52-week trial, patients receiving nintedanib had an adjusted annual rate of decline in FVC (mL/year) of -52.4 with nintedanib versus -93.3 with placebo (absolute difference 41.0mL/year [95% CI 2.9, 79.0]; p=0.04). This corresponds to a relative difference of 44% reduction in lung function decline. There are currently no approved treatments for SSc-ILD., BI conducted the SENSCIS study to evaluate in SSc-ILD patients the impact of nintedanib. Nintedanib, a selective tyrosine kinase inhibitor, is an antifibrotic agent. Results of the study, which were published in The New England Journal of Medicine and presented at the American Thoracic Society (ATS) International Conference, showed that nintedanib slowed the loss of pulmonary function by 44% in patients with SSc-ILD relative to placebo, as measured by FVC over 52 weeks. 

30 May

Posted at 15:39h in Author Interviews, Clots - Coagulation, Duke, Genetic Research, Heart Disease, JAMA
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_49440" align="alignleft" width="133"]Thomas J. Povsic, MD, PhDInterventional CardiologistDuke Clinical Research InstituteDuke University School of MedicineDurham, North Carolina  Dr. Povsic[/caption] Thomas J. Povsic, MD, PhD Interventional Cardiologist Duke Clinical Research Institute Duke University School of Medicine Durham, North Carolina  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?  Response: The background for this study is that it is unknown how mandatory reporting of CYP2C19 metabolizer status affects how doctors treat patients or to what degree provision of this information would affect choice of a P2Y12 inhibitor within a clinical trial. As part of the GEMINI-ACS trial, all patients underwent CYP2C19 metabolizer testing.  This trial enrolled patients with a recent acute coronary syndrome and randomized them to aspirin or a low dose of rivaroxaban.  All patients were also to be treated with ticagrelor or clopidogrel, which was at the discretion of the investigator.  Investigators were given information regarding the CYP2C19 metabolizer status about a week after randomization.  Importantly prior to randomization, all investigators were asked how they expected to use this information, and then we followed what they actually did.

29 May

Posted at 11:47h in Author Interviews, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, Cancer Research, FDA, JAMA, Pharmacology
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_49366" align="alignleft" width="200"]Bishal Gyawali  MD PhD Med Onc. Asst. Professor  Dr. Gyawali[/caption] Bishal Gyawali  MD PhD
  • Program on Regulation, Therapeutics, and Law (PORTAL), Division of Pharmacoepidemiology and Pharmacoeconomics, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
  • Department of Oncology, Department of Public Health Sciences, and Division of Cancer Care and Epidemiology, Queen’s University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Accelerated approval pathway from the FDA allows cancer drugs to come to market sooner by showing improvement in surrogate measures such as change in tumor size. Surrogate measures do not reflect clinical benefit in terms of living longer or feeling better. So, when a drug receives accelerated approval, the drug is required to undergo a confirmatory trial to confirm that true clinical benefit from the drug actually exists. Last year, a paper from the FDA argued that accelerated approval pathway is working effectively because 55% of such drugs confirmed clinical benefit. However, we saw that most of those drugs were actually improving only a surrogate measure even in confirmatory trials. So the confirmatory trials were not confirming clinical benefit but actually confirming benefit in a surrogate endpoint. We investigate that issue in our study using updated results from the confirmatory trials that were ongoing at the time of FDA review. Our main finding is that only one-fifth of cancer drugs that received accelerated approval actually improved overall survival later in confirmatory trials. For, 20% of other drugs, the confirmatory trials tested the same surrogate endpoint as did the preapproval trial. For another 21%, the confirmatory trial showed benefit in a surrogate endpoint different from the one used in preapproval trial. Furthermore, when drugs fail to confirm clinical benefits in confirmatory trials, they still continue to remain on market. 

29 May

Posted at 11:25h in Author Interviews, Exercise - Fitness, JAMA, Mental Health Research, Pediatrics, UCLA
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Molly C. Easterlin, MD Fellow, UCLA National Clinician Scholars Program Clinical Instructor, Pediatrics, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Adverse childhood experiences or ACEs (including physical or emotional neglect or abuse, sexual abuse, domestic abuse, exposure to household substance misuse or mental illness, parental separation or divorce, and parental incarceration) are common with about half of children experiencing 1 and one-quarter of children experiencing 2 or more. Children exposed to adverse childhood experiences have worse mental health throughout life, including higher rates of depression and anxiety. However, little is known about what factors improve long-term mental health in those exposed to ACEs. Additionally, as far as we are aware, no studies have looked at team sports participation as a potential factor that may be associated with improved mental health among those with adverse childhood experiences.

28 May

Posted at 23:10h in Author Interviews, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, JAMA, Lipids
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_49391" align="alignleft" width="133"]Samia Mora, MD, MHSAssociate Physician, Brigham and Women's HospitalAssociate Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical SchoolBrigham and Women's HospitalDepartment of MedicinePreventive MedicineBoston, MA 02115  Dr. Mora[/caption] Samia Mora, MD, MHS Associate Physician, Brigham and Women's Hospital Associate Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School Brigham and Women's Hospital Department of Medicine Preventive Medicine Boston, MA 02115  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?  Response: Lipid testing plays a major role in cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk screening, prediction, and treatment. In the past decade, several pivotal studies (including the Women’s Health Study, the Copenhagen City Heart Study, and the Copenhagen General Population Study) compared populations of individuals who had fasting lipid testing with populations of individuals who had nonfasting lipid testing, and found that non-fasting lipids were at least as good as fasting lipids in cardiovascular risk screening and predicting CVD risk. To date, however, no study has examined the cardiovascular predictive value of lipids measured on the same individuals who had both fasting and nonfasting lipid testing. This is important because individual-level variability in fasting versus nonfasting lipids may not be captured when looking at population-level risk associations, and evidence from randomized studies is lacking. Furthermore, it is unclear whether substituting nonfasting lipids would misclassify cardiovascular risk for individuals who may be eligible for statin therapy.

27 May

Posted at 10:42h in Author Interviews, JAMA, Mental Health Research, Surgical Research, UCSF
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_49343" align="alignleft" width="144"]Carter Lebares, MDAssistant Professor of SurgeryDirector, Center for Mindfulness in SurgeryDepartment of Surgery, UCSF Dr. Lebares[/caption] Carter Lebares, MD Assistant Professor of Surgery Director, Center for Mindfulness in Surgery Department of Surgery, UCSF  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?  Response: This study was inspired by extensive evidence of the effectiveness of mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) for mitigating stress and enhancing performance in other high-stress populations like police and the military.  We know that overwhelming stress is related to burnout and to cognitive errors - two critical issues within surgery, today. This prompted us to tailor and streamline an MBI specifically for surgeons, and to test it in our trainees.

27 May

Posted at 10:40h in Author Interviews, Frailty, Hospital Readmissions, JAMA, Stanford, Surgical Research
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: hospital-frailty-surgeryKara Anne Rothenberg.MD Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Vascular Surgery Shipra Arya, MD SM FACS Associate Professor of Surgery Stanford University School of Medicine MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: There is a growing body of literature showing that frailty, a syndrome where patients have increased vulnerability to a stressor (such as surgery), is associated with increased postoperative complications, failure to rescue, and hospital readmissions. The Risk Analysis Index (RAI), is an easy to use frailty measurement tool that better predicts postoperative mortality than age or comorbidities alone. As the rates of outpatient surgeries rise nationwide, we noted that most of the surgical frailty studies focus only on inpatient surgeries. Elective, outpatient surgery is generally considered low risk for complications and unplanned readmissions, however we hypothesized that for frail patients, it might not be.

27 May

Posted at 10:36h in Author Interviews, Heart Disease, JAMA, NIH, Stroke
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_49363" align="alignleft" width="128"]Lenore J. Launer, PhD.Chief Neuroepidemiology Section Intramural Research ProgramNational Institute on Aging Dr. Launer[/caption] Lenore J. Launer, PhD. Chief Neuroepidemiology Section Intramural Research Program National Institute on Aging MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: The prevalence of cerebral infarction on MRI can be as high as 30% in community-based studies. These lesions detected on brain MRI, are often clinically silent, but are associated with impairments in cognitive and physical function and can increase the risk for clinical events. For a large number, the origin of these brain lesions is unknown. There is also a lack of population-based data on unrecognized myocardial infarction, which is associated with an increased for clinical coronary disease and mortality. Unrecognized MI was detected in 17% of participants using state-of-the-art cardia MRI, a more sensitive measure of the lesions, than the standard ECG. We investigated the contribution to these lesions of recognized and unrecognized myocardial infarction [MI] identified on cardiac MRI. We found both recognized and unrecognized myocardial infarction increased the risk for cerebral infarction, and that in particular unrecognized MI was associated with cerebral infarction of embolic origins of an unknown source. Given their prevalence, unrecognized MI may be an underestimated contributor to the risk for cerebral infarction in older persons. 

24 May

Posted at 20:52h in Author Interviews, Hearing Loss, JAMA, NIH, NYU/NYMC
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_49355" align="alignleft" width="150"]Jan Blustein, MD PhDProfessor of Health Policy and MedicineWagner Graduate School and School of MedicineNew York University, New York Dr. Blustein[/caption] Jan Blustein, MD PhD Professor of Health Policy and Medicine Wagner Graduate School and School of Medicine New York University, New York MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?   Response: The National Institutes of Health (NIH), the nation’s largest public funder of health research, provides annual reports about levels of funding for many diseases and conditions.  These reports, issued as part of the NIH’s Research, Condition and Disease Categorization (RCDC) process, allow members of the public to track funding across key conditions and across time. Hearing loss is not included among the reported conditions. This runs counter to two of the NIH’s stated goals, according to researcher Jan Blustein (M.D., Ph.D.), professor of health policy and medicine at New York University’s Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service, in a Research Letter in the May 15th issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association Otolaryngology and Head & Neck Surgery. “First, the NIH is committed to transparency about how it divides funds across diseases and conditions,” said Dr. Blustein.  “Second, it has said that it will prioritize its funding to those conditions that cause the greatest disease burden.”  Hearing loss causes great disease burden, ranking 10th in the U.S. among all conditions as a contributor to Disability Adjusted Life Years (a widely-used measure of disease burden), according to the World Health Organization.

22 May

Posted at 11:03h in Author Interviews, JAMA, Lipids, Pediatrics
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_49239" align="alignleft" width="148"]Amanda Marma Perak, MD, MSAssistant Professor of Pediatrics (Cardiology) and Preventive Medicine Dr. Marma Perak[/caption] Amanda Marma Perak, MD, MS Assistant Professor of Pediatrics (Cardiology) and Preventive Medicine MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Blood cholesterol is a critical initiator of atherosclerotic plaques in the arteries that can lead to heart attack in adulthood. It is well established that these changes in the blood vessels occur already in childhood. Thus, it is important to know the status of cholesterol levels in youth to inform public health efforts aimed at preventing cardiovascular disease in the population. In the US there have been changes in childhood obesity prevalence (which may worsen cholesterol levels), the food supply (such as reduction of trans fats which may improve cholesterol levels), and other factors in recent years. We therefore designed a study to examine trends in cholesterol levels among youth in recent years.

22 May

Posted at 11:00h in Author Interviews, Cost of Health Care, JAMA
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_49269" align="alignleft" width="150"]Dan LyPh.D. Program in Health PolicyHarvard Dan Ly[/caption] Dan Ly, MD, MPP Ph.D. Program in Health Policy Harvard MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: There is some mixed evidence regarding whether state level tort reform reduces defensive medicine, or the practicing of medicine in such a way to reduce medical liability. This includes “positive” defensive medicine, or performing certain tests and procedures to reduce such liability. Other research finds that the perception of malpractice risk drives such defensive medicine, including the use of diagnostic imaging, such as CT scans and MRIs. I was interested in exploring what influenced the perception of this risk, hypothesizing that, for a physician, a report of an injury against one’s colleague might increase the perception of this risk and lead to an increase the use of diagnostic imaging.

22 May

Posted at 10:57h in Annals Internal Medicine, Author Interviews, Technology
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_49198" align="alignleft" width="129"]Coleman Drake, PhDAssistant Professor, Health Policy and ManagementPitt Public HealthUniversity of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health Dr. Drake[/caption] Coleman Drake, PhD Assistant Professor, Health Policy and Management Pitt Public Health University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?  Response: Telemedicine is frequently proposed as a solution to improve access to care in rural areas where driving to the nearest physician can take up to several hours. However, there needs to be sufficient broadband infrastructure for patients to actually use telemedicine. We found that broadband infrastructure is often insufficient to support telemedicine in the most rural areas, particularly in areas where there is inadequate access to primary care physicians and psychiatrists. 

22 May

Posted at 00:40h in Author Interviews, Immunotherapy, NEJM, Pulmonary Disease
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_49320" align="alignleft" width="148"]Gerard J. Criner, MD, FACP, FACCPChair and Professor, Thoracic Medicine and SurgeryLewis Katz School of MedicineTemple University Dr. Criner[/caption] Gerard J. Criner, MD, FACP, FACCP Chair and Professor, Thoracic Medicine and Surgery Lewis Katz School of Medicine Temple University  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: An earlier, Phase II trial of benralizumab found a non-statistically significant reduction in COPD exacerbation rate for patients with eosinophilic inflammation in the airways. In this Phase III trial, the researchers sought to discover whether benralizumab's ability to deplete the airways of blood eosinophils in patients with eosinophilic inflammation would lead to a reduction in COPD exacerbations. The Phase III, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group clinical trials GALATHEA and TERRANOVA evaluated the efficacy and safety of benralizumab for the prevention of exacerbations in patients with moderate to very severe COPD, eosinophilic inflammation, and increased risk of exacerbations. Benralizumab is a type of drug called an interleukin-5 receptor alpha-directed cytolytic monoclonal antibody. It is approved by the FDA for the treatment of severe eosinophilic asthma.

20 May

Posted at 17:32h in Author Interviews, Hospital Readmissions, JAMA, Neurology, Outcomes & Safety, University of Pennsylvania
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_49220" align="alignleft" width="180"]Sameed Khatana, MDFellow, Cardiovascular Medicine, Perleman School of MedicineAssociate Fellow, Leonard Davis Institute of Health EconomicsUniversity of Pennsylvania Dr. Khatana[/caption] Sameed Khatana, MD Fellow, Cardiovascular Medicine, Perleman School of Medicine Associate Fellow, Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics University of Pennsylvania MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: There has been a growing use of quality metrics and indices in the US healthcare system. Much attention has been paid to quality measurement programs used by public payors, however, the use of such programs by commercial payors is much less studied. "Centers of excellence" are one type of quality designation program that is growing in use by commercial payors where certain hospitals are determined to be "high quality" for a certain disease state or procedure based on meeting certain criteria. For some people, this is even impacting the choice of providers and hospitals they can use by payors. We evaluated centers of excellence programs from three large commercial payors, Aetna, Cigna and Blue Cross Blue Shield, targeted at cardiovascular diseases and interventions and examined publicly reported outcomes for all hospitals performing percutaneous coronary interventions (cardiac stenting) in New York State. 

20 May

Posted at 17:29h in Accidents & Violence, Author Interviews, JAMA
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_49216" align="alignleft" width="200"]XinQi DongDirector, Institute for Health, Health Care Policy, and Aging ResearchHenry Rutgers Distinguished Professor of Population Health SciencesProfessor, Department of Medicine - Division of General Internal Medicine, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School XinQi Dong[/caption] XinQi Dong Director, Institute for Health, Health Care Policy, and Aging Research Henry Rutgers Distinguished Professor of Population Health Sciences Professor, Department of Medicine - Division of General Internal Medicine, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Interpersonal violence is a substantial public health issue across all socio-demographic and socioeconomic strata globally. A depth of prior studies have found that victims of childhood sexual abuse might have higher risks of re-experiencing sexual violence as adults. But the “re-victimization” phenomenon has been insufficiently examined among the rapidly growing aging populations. There lacks examinations about life-course violence experiences and the accumulative effect of which in older ages. Our study examined three most common forms of interpersonal violence (child maltreatment, intimate partner violence, and elder abuse) across the life span and found an interconnectedness among them. Individuals with a history of child maltreatment and/or intimate partner violence had two to six times higher risks of elder abuse compared to those without a past experience of the violence.