Hospitalizations and Mortality From Myasthenia Gravis: Trends From 2 US National Datasets

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Myasthenia gravis (MG) is a rare neuromuscular disorder where IgG antibodies damage the communication between nerves and muscles, leading to muscle weakness that can be severe and have a significant impact on patients' lives. MG exacerbations include myasthenic crisis with respiratory failure, the most serious manifestation of MG. Recent studies have found MG prevalence increasing, especially in older patients. This study examined trends in hospital admissions and in-hospital mortality for adult patients with MG and readmissions and postdischarge mortality in older (65 years or older) adults with MG. METHODS: Data from the Nationwide Inpatient Sample (NIS), an all-payer national database of hospital discharges, were used to characterize trends in hospitalizations and in-hospital mortality related to MG exacerbations and MG crisis among adult patients aged 18 years or older. The Medicare Limited Data Set, a deidentified, longitudinal research database with demographic, enrollment, and claims data was used to assess hospitalizations, length of stay (LOS), readmissions, and 30-day postdischarge mortality among fee-for-service Medicare beneficiaries aged 65 years or older. The study period was 2010-2019. Multinomial logit models and Poisson regression were used to test for significance of trends. RESULTS: Hospitalization rates for 19,715 unique adult patients and 56,822 admissions increased from 2010 to 2019 at an average annualized rate of 4.9% (MG noncrisis: 4.4%; MG crisis: 6.8%; all p < 0.001). Readmission rates were approximately 20% in each study year for both crisis and noncrisis hospitalizations; the in-hospital mortality rate averaged 1.8%. Among patients aged 65 years or older, annualized increases in hospitalizations were estimated at 5.2%, 4.2%, and 7.7% for all, noncrisis, and crisis hospitalizations, respectively (all p < 0.001). The average LOS was stable over the study period, ranging from 11.3 to 13.1 days, but was consistently longer for MG crisis admissions. Mortality among patients aged 65 years or older was higher compared with that in all patients, averaging 5.0% across each of the study years. DISCUSSION: Increasing hospitalization rates suggest a growing burden associated with MG, especially among older adults. While readmission and mortality rates have remained stable, the increasing hospitalization rates indicate that the raw numbers of readmissions-and deaths-are also increasing. Mortality rates are considerably higher in older patients hospitalized with MG.

Impact of suboptimal or inappropriate treatment on healthcare resource use and cost among patients with uncomplicated urinary tract infection: an analysis of integrated delivery network electronic health records.

BACKGROUND: Although uncomplicated urinary tract infections (uUTIs; occurring in female patients without urological abnormalities or history of urological procedures or complicating comorbidities) are one of the most common community infections in the United States (US), limited data are available concerning associations between antibiotic resistance, suboptimal prescribing, and the economic burden of uUTI. We examined the prevalence of suboptimal antibiotic prescribing and antibiotic resistance and its effects on healthcare resource use and costs. METHODS: This retrospective cohort study utilized electronic health record data from a large Mid-Atlantic US integrated delivery network database, collected July 2016-March 2020. Female patients aged ≥ 12 years with a uUTI, who received ≥ 1 oral antibiotic treatment within ± 5 days of index uUTI diagnosis, and had ≥ 1 urine culture with antimicrobial susceptibility test, were eligible for inclusion in the study. The study examined the proportion of antibiotics that were inappropriately or suboptimally prescribed among patients with confirmed uUTI, and total healthcare costs (all-cause and UTI-related) within 6 months after a uUTI, stratified by antibiotic susceptibility and/or inappropriate or suboptimal treatment. Patient outcomes were assessed after 1:1 propensity score matching of patients with antibiotic-susceptible versus not-susceptible isolates and then by other covariates (e.g., demographics and recent healthcare use). A similar propensity score calculation was used to analyze the effect of inappropriate/suboptimal treatment on health outcomes. Costs were adjusted to 2020 US dollars ($). RESULTS: Among 2565 patients with a uUTI included in the analysis, the most commonly prescribed antibiotics were nitrofurantoin (61%), trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (19%), and ciprofloxacin (15%). More than one-third of the sample (40.2%) had isolates that were not-susceptible to ≥ 1 antibiotic indicated for treating patients with uUTI. Two-thirds (66.6%) of study-eligible patients were prescribed appropriate treatment; 29.9% and 11.9% were prescribed suboptimal and/or inappropriate treatment, respectively. Inappropriate or suboptimally prescribed patients had greater all-cause and UTI-related costs compared with appropriately prescribed patients. Differences were most striking among patients with antibiotic not-susceptible isolates. CONCLUSIONS: These findings highlight how the increasing prevalence of antibiotic resistance combined with suboptimal treatment of patients with uUTI increases the burden on healthcare systems. The finding underlines the need for improved prescribing accuracy by better understanding regional resistance rates and developing improved diagnostic tests.

Economic burden of antibiotic-not-susceptible isolates in uncomplicated urinary tract infection: Analysis of a US integrated delivery network database.

BACKGROUND: Uncomplicated urinary tract infections (uUTIs) are one of the most common bacterial infections in the United States (US). Contemporary data are important for understanding the health economic impact of antimicrobial-resistant uUTIs. We compared the economic burden among patients with uUTI isolates susceptible or not-susceptible to the initial antibiotic prescription. METHODS: This retrospective cohort study utilized electronic health record data (1 July 2016-31 March 2020) from a large Mid-Atlantic US integrated delivery network database. Patients were females aged ≥ 12 years with a uUTI, who received oral antibiotic treatment and had ≥ 1 urine culture within ± 5 days of diagnosis. The primary outcome was the difference in healthcare resource use and costs (all-cause, urinary tract infection [UTI]-related) among patients with susceptible versus not-susceptible isolates during the 6 months after the index uUTI diagnosis. Secondary outcomes included: pharmacy costs, hospital admissions and emergency department visits, as well as the probability of uUTI progressing to complicated UTI (cUTI) between patients with susceptible and not-susceptible isolates. Patient outcomes were compared using 1:1 propensity score matching. Winsorized costs were adjusted to 2020 quarter 1 US dollars ($). RESULTS: A total of 2565 patients were eligible for analysis. The propensity score-matched sample comprised 2018 patients, with an average age of 44.0 and 41.0 years for the susceptible and not-susceptible populations, respectively. In the 6 months post-index uUTI event, patients with not-susceptible isolates had significantly more all-cause prescriptions orders (+ 1.41 [P = 0.001]), UTI-related prescriptions orders (+ 0.26 [P < 0.001]) and a higher probability of all-cause inpatient (+ 1.4% [P = 0.009]), outpatient (+ 6.1% [P = 0.006]), or UTI-related outpatient (+ 3.7% [P = 0.039]) encounters. Patients with a uUTI and an antibiotic-not-susceptible isolate were significantly more likely to progress to cUTI than those with susceptible isolates (odds ratio: 2.35 [confidence interval: 1.66-3.33; P < 0.001]). Over 6 months, patients with not-susceptible versus susceptible isolates had significantly higher all-cause costs (+ $426 [P = 0.031]) and UTI-related costs (+ $157 [P = 0.034]). CONCLUSIONS: Patients with a uUTI caused by antibiotic-not-susceptible isolates had higher healthcare resource usage, costs, and increased likelihood of progressing to cUTI than those with antibiotic-susceptible isolates.

The diagnostic trajectory of infants and children with clinical features of genetic disease.

We characterized US pediatric patients with clinical indicators of genetic diseases, focusing on the burden of disease, utilization of genetic testing, and cost of care. Curated lists of diagnosis, procedure, and billing codes were used to identify patients with clinical indicators of genetic disease in healthcare claims from Optum's de-identified Clinformatics® Database (13,076,038 unique patients). Distinct cohorts were defined to represent permissive and conservative estimates of the number of patients. Clinical phenotypes suggestive of genetic diseases were observed in up to 9.4% of pediatric patients and up to 44.7% of critically-ill infants. Compared with controls, patients with indicators of genetic diseases had higher utilization of services (e.g., mean NICU length of stay of 31.6d in a cohort defined by multiple congenital anomalies or neurological presentations compared with 10.1d for patients in the control population (P < 0.001)) and higher overall costs. Very few patients received any genetic testing (4.2-8.4% depending on cohort criteria). These results highlight the substantial proportion of the population with clinical features associated with genetic disorders and underutilization of genetic testing in these populations.

Two steps forward, one step back: 50 years of societal value from LDL-C-lowering therapies.

OBJECTIVES: To assess the evolving landscape of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol-lowering therapies (LLTs) and quantify their effect on cardiovascular disease (CVD)-related mortality and morbidity. STUDY DESIGN: Secondary data came from LLT clinical trials and 1999-2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) data. 1996-2016 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) data were used to estimate LLT spending. Nonfatal CVD events prevented by LLTs were calculated from clinical trials and NHANES. The value of nonfatal events prevented was calculated as the product of event treatment costs and the number of events prevented. The value of mortality reduction was calculated as the product of a value of a life-year and the life expectancy gain from LLTs. This was compared with LLT spending estimated using MEPS. METHODS: Total LLT expenditures were calculated based on MEPS LLT utilization and expenditure data. Values of prevented hospitalizations, prevented CVD events, and other LLT utilization-related outcomes were pulled from the published literature. RESULTS: Combined, statins and ezetimibe prevented 2.8 million nonfatal heart attacks and 1.7 million nonfatal strokes from 1999 to 2014. Statin use generated $2.6 trillion in societal value through CVD deaths avoided from 1987 to 2014, and 85% accrued to patients. CONCLUSIONS: LLTs have yielded significant societal value, and the majority of this value has accrued to patients.

Physical activity and bleeding outcomes among people with severe hemophilia on extended half-life or conventional recombinant factors.

BACKGROUND: Few have assessed physical activity (PA) and annual bleed rates (ABRs) among people with hemophilia on extended half-life (EHL) factors (recombinant factor VIII Fc [rFVIIIFc]/recombinant factor IX Fc [rFIXFc]) and conventional factors (recombinant factor VIII [rFVIII]/recombinant factor IX [rFIX]). OBJECTIVE: To assess changes in PA and ABR at consecutive annual visits in individuals with severe hemophilia A and B (HA/HB) on prophylactic treatment with rFVIIIFc/rFIXFc versus rFVIII/rFIX. PATIENTS/METHODS: We conducted a retrospective chart review of 344 people with severe HA/HB (ages 6-35) receiving prophylaxis with rFVIIIFc/rFIXFc (EHL factors) or rFVIII/rFIX (conventional factors) for ≥6 months in 2014-2015. Differences in changes in outcomes from 2014 to 2015 were compared across the treatment groups. RESULTS: Baseline characteristics and adherence to the prophylactic regimen were similar across the treatment groups. Greater increase in weekly PA frequency and duration were observed among all EHL groups, except for children treated with rFIXFc. The increase in PA frequency was greater among the children on rFVIIIFc group, adults on rFVIIIFc group, and adults on rFIXFc group by 1.2, 1.2, and 1.4 events/week, respectively, compared to their rFVIII/rFIX counterparts. The increases in PA duration were 44, 60, and 80 min/wk greater among the children on rFVIIIFc, adults on rFVIIIFc, and adults on rFIXFc groups, respectively. Larger reductions in total ABR were observed in children and adults treated with rFVIIIFc compared to rFVIII (0.4 and 0.7 fewer bleeds). Larger reductions were also observed in spontaneous ABR in adult rFVIIIFc and rFIXFc groups (0.8 and 0.3 fewer bleeds, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests that rFVIIIFc/FIXFc agents can positively impact PA while maintaining low ABRs.

Disparities in the Management of Newly Diagnosed Paroxysmal Supraventricular Tachycardia for Women Versus Men in the United States.

Background Information on differences in paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia (PSVT) diagnosis, healthcare resource use, expenditures, and treatment among women versus men is limited. Methods and Results Study participants identified in the IBM MarketScan Commercial Research Databases were aged 18 to 40 years with newly diagnosed PSVT (International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision [ICD-9]: 427.0; International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision [ICD-10]: I47.1) from October 1, 2012, through September 30, 2016, observable 1 year preindex and postindex diagnosis. Study outcomes were mean annual per-patient healthcare resource use and expenditures before and after diagnosis. Among 5466 patients newly diagnosed with PSVT, most (66.9%) were women. Compared with men, women with PSVT tended to have higher rates of anxiety (13.9% versus 10.9%; P<0.01) and chronic pulmonary disease (10.9% versus 8.3%; P<0.01). Following diagnosis, mean annual per-patient expenditures increased for all patients, but were significantly lower for women ($26 922 versus $33 112; P<0.05), reflecting lower spending for services billed as a result of a PSVT diagnosis ($8471 versus $11 405; P<0.05). After diagnosis, nearly half of all patients had at least 1 emergency department visit (women versus men, 49.6% versus 44.5%; P<0.01) and more had hospital admissions (women versus men, 24.7% versus 20.0%; P<0.01). Fewer women were treated with cardiac ablation (12.6% versus 15.3%; P<0.01), and more were treated with medical therapy, including ß blockers or calcium channel blockers (odds ratio, 1.15; 95% CI, 1.02-1.31). Conclusions Among patients aged 18 to 40 years, ≈2 of 3 patients diagnosed with PSVT were women. After diagnosis, spending was significantly lower for women, reflecting lower ablation rates and less spending on services with a PSVT diagnosis.

Incremental Health Care Burden of Treatment-Resistant Depression Among Commercial, Medicaid, and Medicare Payers.

OBJECTIVE: This study compared health care use and costs among patients with treatment-resistant versus treatment-responsive depression across Medicaid, Medicare, and commercial payers. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study was conducted by using Truven Health Analytics' commercial (2006-2017; N=111,544), Medicaid (2007-2017; N=24,036), and Medicare supplemental (2006-2017; N=8,889) claims databases. Participants were adults with major depressive disorder who had received one or more antidepressant treatments. Treatment resistance was defined as failure of two or more antidepressant treatments of adequate dose and duration. Annual use (hospitalizations and outpatient and emergency department [ED] visits) and costs were compared across patients by treatment-resistant status in each payer population. Incremental burden of treatment-resistant depression was estimated with regression analyses. Monthly changes in costs during 1-year follow-up were assessed to understand differential cost trends by treatment-resistant status. RESULTS: In the three payer populations, patients with treatment-resistant depression incurred higher health care utilization than those with treatment-responsive depression (hospitalization, odds ratios [ORs]=1.32-1.76; ED visits, ORs=1.38-1.45; outpatient visits, incident rate ratio=1.29-1.54; p<0.001 for all). Compared with those with treatment-responsive depression, those with treatment resistance incurred higher annual costs (from $4,093 to $8,054 higher; p<0.001). Patients with treatment-resistant depression had higher costs at baseline compared with patients with treatment-responsive depression and incurred higher costs each month throughout follow-up. CONCLUSIONS: Treatment-resistant depression imposes a significant health care burden on insurers. Treatment-resistant depression may exist and affect health care burden before a patient is identified as having treatment-resistant depression. Findings underscore the need for effective and timely treatment of treatment-resistant depression.

Healthcare Resource Use and Expenditures in Patients Newly Diagnosed With Paroxysmal Supraventricular Tachycardia.

Information on paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia (PSVT) patient characteristics and the associated economic burden of the disease is limited. Therefore, we sought to characterize newly diagnosed PSVT patients and quantify their healthcare resource use and expenditures. We used enrollment, demographic, and claims data from IBM MarketScan Research Database and Medicare Limited Data Set (LDS) to identify patients newly diagnosed with PSVT (ICD-9: 427.0; ICD-10: I47.1) from 10/1/2012 to 9/30/2016. Patients were required to be observable 1-year before and after index diagnosis. Patients were stratified by age (<65 years and ≥65 years), and propensity-matched to patients without PSVT. Expenditures and healthcare resource use were analyzed 1 year before and 1-year following index diagnosis. Among 49,316 patients <65 years and 23,954 patients ≥65 years, most were female (64% and 63%, respectively). Compared with matched controls, all PSVT patients had significantly more emergency department visits pre- and postdiagnosis, and more hospitalizations following diagnosis. Mean annual per patient expenditures paid by insurers were significantly higher in the year post-PSVT diagnosis, tripling for patients <65 years ($9,028 to $29,867) and nearly doubling for patients ≥65 years ($10,867 to $20,143). Spending for PSVT services accounted for 43% and 33% of the increase in expenditures in these patient-groups, respectively. Few patients had an ablation within 1 year of diagnosis, although ablations were more frequent in patients age <65 years (13% vs 3%). In conclusion, PSVT imposes a substantial economic burden, with increases in expenditures following initial diagnosis in both younger (<65 years) and older (≥65 years) patients who are not accounted for by cardiac ablation spending alone.

Does knowledge of patient non-compliance change prescribing behavior in the real world? A claims-based analysis of patients with serious mental illness.

BACKGROUND: New digital technologies offer providers the promise of more accurately tracking patients' medication adherence. It is unclear, however, whether access to such information will affect provider treatment decisions in the real world. METHODS: Using prescriber-reported information on patient non-compliance from health insurance claims data between 2008 and 2014, we examined whether prescribers' knowledge of non-compliance was associated with different prescribing patterns for patients with serious mental illness (SMI). We examined patients who initiated an oral atypical antipsychotic, but were later objectively non-adherent to this treatment, defined as proportion of days covered (PDC) <0.8. We examined how a physician's awareness of patient non-compliance (ICD-9 diagnosis code: V15.81) was correlated with the physician's real-world treatment decisions for that patient. Treatment decisions studied included the share of patients who increased antipsychotic dose, augmented treatment, switched their antipsychotic, or used a long-acting injectable (LAI). RESULTS: Among the 286,249 patients with SMI who initiated an antipsychotic and had PDC <0.8, 4,033 (1.4%) had documented non-compliance. When prescribers documented non-compliance, patients were more likely to be switched to another antipsychotic (32.8% vs 24.7%, P<0.001), have their dose increased (24.4% vs 22.1%, P=0.004), or receive an LAI (0.09% vs 0.04%, P=0.008), but were less likely to have augmented therapy with another antipsychotic (1.1% vs 1.3%, P=0.035) than patients without documented non-compliance. CONCLUSION: Among SMI patients with documented non-compliance, the frequency of dose, medication switches, and LAI use were higher and augmentation was lower compared to patients without documented non-compliance. Access to adherence information may help prescribers more rapidly switch ineffective medications as well as avoid unnecessary medication augmentation.