Treatment with psychostimulants and atomoxetine in people with psychotic disorders: reassessing the risk of clinical deterioration in a real-world setting.

BACKGROUND: Although attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is often comorbid with schizophrenia spectrum and other psychotic disorders (SZSPD), concerns about an increased risk of psychotic events have limited its treatment with either psychostimulants or atomoxetine. AIMS: To examine whether the risk of hospital admission for psychosis in people with SZSPD was increased during the year following the introduction of such medications compared with the year before. METHOD: This was a retrospective cohort study using Quebec (Canada) administrative health registries, including all Quebec residents with a public prescription drug insurance plan and a diagnosis of psychotic disorder, defined by relevant ICD-9 or ICD-10 codes, who initiated either methylphenidate, amphetamines or atomoxetine, between January 2010 and December 2016, in combination with antipsychotic medication. The primary outcome was time to hospital admission for psychosis within 1 year of initiation. State sequence analysis was also used to visualise admission trajectories for psychosis in the year following initiation of these medications, compared with the previous year. RESULTS: Out of 2219 individuals, 1589 (71.6%) initiated methylphenidate, 339 (15.3%) amphetamines and 291 (13.1%) atomoxetine during the study period. After adjustment, the risk of hospital admission for psychosis was decreased during the 12 months following the introduction of these medications when used in combination with antipsychotics (adjusted HR = 0.36, 95% CI 0.24-0.54; P < 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that, in a real-world setting, when used concurrently with antipsychotic medication, methylphenidate, amphetamines and atomoxetine may be safer than generally believed in individuals with psychotic disorders.

Trajectories of care of community-dwelling people living with dementia: a multidimensional state sequence analysis.

BACKGROUND: The type and level of healthcare services required to address the needs of persons living with dementia fluctuate over disease progression. Thus, their trajectories of care (the sequence of healthcare use over time) may vary significantly. We aimed to (1) propose a typology of trajectories of care among community-dwelling people living with dementia; (2) describe and compare their characteristics according to their respective trajectories; and (3) evaluate the association between trajectories membership, socioeconomic factors, and self-perceived health. METHODS: This is an observational study using the data of the innovative Care Trajectories -Enriched Data (TorSaDE) cohort, a linkage between five waves of the Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS), and health administrative data from the Quebec provincial health-insurance board. We analyzed data from 690 community-dwelling persons living with dementia who participated in at least one cycle of the CCHS (the date of the last CCHS completion is the index date). Trajectories of care were defined as sequences of healthcare use in the two years preceding the index date, using the following information: 1) Type of care units consulted (Hospitalization, Emergency department, Outpatient clinic, Primary care clinic); 2) Type of healthcare care professionals consulted (Geriatrician/psychiatrist/neurologist, Other specialists, Family physician). RESULTS: Three distinct types of trajectories describe healthcare use in persons with dementia: 1) low healthcare use (n = 377; 54.6%); 2) high primary care use (n = 154; 22.3%); 3) high overall healthcare use (n = 159; 23.0%). Group 3 membership was associated with living in urban areas, a poorer perceived health status and higher comorbidity. CONCLUSION: Further understanding how subgroups of patients use healthcare services over time could help highlight fragility areas in the allocation of care resources and implement best practices, especially in the context of resource shortage.

Association between sustained opioid prescription and frequent emergency department use: a cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Chronic non-cancer pain (CNCP) is common among frequent emergency department (ED) users, although factors underlying this association are unclear. This study estimated the association between sustained opioid use and frequent ED use among patients with CNCP. METHODS: Retrospective cohort study using a Canadian provincial health insurer database (Régie d'Assurance Maladie du Québec). The database included adults with both ≥1 chronic condition and ≥ 1 ED visit in 2012 or 2013. Inclusion in the study further required a CNCP diagnosis, public drug insurance coverage and 1-year survival after the first ED visit in 2012 or 2013 (index visit). Multivariable logistic regression was used to derive ORs of frequent ED use (≥5 visits in the year following the index visit) subsequent to sustained opioid use (≥60 days opioids prescription within 90 days preceding the index visit), adjusting for important covariables. RESULTS: From 576 688 patients in the database, 58 237 were included in the study. Of these, 4109 (7.1%) had received a sustained opioid prescription and 4735 (8.1%) were frequent ED users in the follow-up year. Sustained opioid use was not associated with frequent ED use in the multivariable model (OR: 1.06, 95% CI 0.94 to 1.19). Novel associated covariables were benzodiazepine prescription (OR: 1.21, 95% CI 1.12 to 1.30) and polypharmacy (OR: 1.23, 95% CI 1.13 to 1.34). CONCLUSIONS: Due to confounding by social and medical vulnerability, patients with CNCP with sustained opioid use appear to have a higher propensity for frequent ED use in unadjusted models. However, sustained opioid use was not associated with frequent ED use in these patients after adjustment.

Association between previous and future antipsychotic adherence in patients initiating clozapine: real-world observational study.

BACKGROUND: Although recognised as the most effective antipsychotic for treatment-resistant schizophrenia, clozapine remains underused. One reason is the widespread concern about non-adherence to clozapine because of poor adherence before initiating clozapine. AIMS: To determine if prior poor out-patient adherence to treatmentbefore initiating clozapine predisposes to poor out-patient adherence to clozapine or to any antipsychotics (including clozapine) after its initiation. METHOD: This cohort study included 3228 patients with schizophrenia living in Quebec (Canada) initiating (with a 2-year clearance period) oral clozapine (index date) between 2009 and 2016. Using pharmacy data, out-patient adherence to treatment was measured by the medication possession ratio (MPR), over a 1-year period preceding and following the index date. Five groups of patients were formed based on their prior MPR level (independent variable). Two dependent variables were defined after clozapine initiation (good out-patient adherence to any antipsychotics and to clozapine only). Along with multiple logistic regressions, state sequence analysis was used as a visual representation of antipsychotic-use trajectories over time, before and after clozapine initiation. RESULTS: Although prior poor adherence to antipsychotics was associated with poor adherence after clozapine initiation, the absolute risk of subsequent poor adherence remained low, regardless of previous adherence level. Most patients adhered to their treatment after initiating clozapine (>68% to clozapine and >84% to any antipsychotics). CONCLUSIONS: Despite the fact that poor adherence prior to initiating clozapine is widely recognised by clinicians as a barrier for the prescription of clozapine, the current study supports the initiation of clozapine in all eligible patients.

Comparative effectiveness and safety of antipsychotic drugs in patients with schizophrenia initiating or reinitiating treatment: A Real-World Observational Study.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the effectiveness and safety of various second-generation antipsychotics (SGAs), newer oral and long-acting injectable (LAI) SGAs, and first-generation antipsychotics (FGAs) treatments in patients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder (SCZ). METHODS: This retrospective cohort study included medical administrative information for patients with a diagnosis of SCZ living in Quebec (Canada), initiating or reinitiating at least one antipsychotic (AP) drug (with a clearance baseline period of 12 months without any APs). Effectiveness was defined by a reduced risk of hospitalization for mental disorder and discontinuation, and safety by a reduced risk of all-cause death and hospitalization for non-mental disorder, 2 years after AP initiation or reinitiation. Cox proportional hazard models were used to estimate the events associated with different antipsychotics compared with oral olanzapine. RESULTS: The study cohort included 19,615 patients initiating or reinitiating an antipsychotic drug between January 2006 and December 2015. Results showed better effectiveness of clozapine (adjusted HR 0.36, 95% CI 0.30-0.42, p < 0.0001) and LAI SGAs (adjusted HR 0.56, 95% CI 0.51-0.61, p < 0.0001) compared with oral olanzapine when adding discontinuation to hospitalizations for mental disorder as a composite measure of effectiveness, as opposed to oral FGAs (adjusted HR 1.36, 95% CI 1.27-1.46, p < 0.0001) and LAI FGAs (adjusted HR 1.22, 95% CI 1.12-1.32, p < 0.0001). Most APs were as safe as oral olanzapine. CONCLUSION: The effectiveness of LAI SGAs and clozapine appears to justify their use and are as safe as a recognized treatment (oral olanzapine) in Quebec (Canada).

Antipsychotic utilization trajectories three years after initiating or reinitiating treatment of schizophrenia: A state sequence analysis approach.

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to describe the utilization patterns of antipsychotic (AP) medication in patients with schizophrenia (SCZ), three years after initiating or reinitiating a given AP. METHODS: Based on medico-administrative information on patients living in Quebec (Canada), this retrospective cohort study included 6444 patients with a previous diagnosis of SCZ initiating or reinitiating AP medication between January 1, 2012, and December 31, 2014, with continuous coverage by public drug insurance. For each day of follow-up (1092 days), patient was either exposed to one of the chosen categories of APs, or to none. This patient's sequence of AP exposure overtime has been referred to as the "antipsychotic utilization trajectory". These trajectories were analyzed using a State Sequence Analysis, an innovative approach which provides useful visual information on the continuation and discontinuation patterns of use over time. RESULTS: Clozapine and long-acting injectable second-generation APs had the best continuation and discontinuation patterns over 3 years among all other groups, including less switching of APs, while oral first-generation APs had the poorest patterns. These findings were comparable among incident and non-incident cohorts. Oral second-generation antipsychotics, excluding clozapine, had a poorer continuation and discontinuation pattern than long-acting injectable antipsychotics. CONCLUSION: State Sequence Analysis provides a clear representation of treatment adherence in comparison with dichotomous indicators of adherence or discontinuation. Consequently, this innovative method has shed light on the impact of the AP chosen to initiate or reinitiate treatment in SCZ, which has been identified as a key factor for long-term treatment continuation and discontinuation.

Risk of Frequent Emergency Department Use Among an Ambulatory Care Sensitive Condition Population: A Population-based Cohort Study.

BACKGROUND: A small fraction of patients use a disproportionately large amount of emergency department (ED) resources. Identifying these patients, especially those with ambulatory care sensitive conditions (ACSC), would allow health care professionals to enhance their outpatient care. OBJECTIVE: The objectives of the study were to determine predictive factors associated with frequent ED use in a Quebec adult population with ACSCs and to compare several models predicting the risk of becoming an ED frequent user following an ED visit. RESEARCH DESIGN: This was an observational population-based cohort study extracted from Quebec's administrative data. SUBJECTS: The cohort included 451,775 adult patients, living in nonremote areas, with an ED visit between January 2012 and December 2013 (index visit), and previously diagnosed with an ACSC but not dementia. MEASURES: The outcome was frequent ED use (≥4 visits) during the year following the index visit. Predictors included sociodemographics, physical and mental comorbidities, and prior use of health services. We developed several logistic models (with different sets of predictors) on a derivation cohort (2012 cohort) and tested them on a validation cohort (2013 cohort). RESULTS: Frequent ED users represented 5% of the cohort and accounted for 36% of all ED visits. A simple 2-variable prediction model incorporating history of hospitalization and number of previous ED use accurately predicted future frequent ED use. The full model with all sets of predictors performed only slightly better than the simple model (area under the receiver-operating characteristic curve: 0.786 vs. 0.759, respectively; similar positive predictive value and number needed to evaluate curves). CONCLUSIONS: The ability to identify frequent ED users based only on previous ED and hospitalization use provides an opportunity to rapidly target this population for appropriate interventions.

Healthcare utilization after a first hospitalization for COPD: a new approach of State Sequence Analysis based on the '6W' multidimensional model of care trajectories.

BACKGROUND: Published methods to describe and visualize Care Trajectories (CTs) as patterns of healthcare use are very sparse, often incomplete, and not intuitive for non-experts. Our objectives are to propose a typology of CTs one year after a first hospitalization for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), and describe CT types and compare patients' characteristics for each CT type. METHODS: This is an observational cohort study extracted from Quebec's medico-administrative data of patients aged 40 to 84 years hospitalized for COPD in 2013 (index date). The cohort included patients hospitalized for the first time over a 3-year period before the index date and who survived over the follow-up period. The CTs consisted of sequences of healthcare use (e.g. ED-hospital-home-GP-respiratory therapists, etc.) over a one-year period. The main variable was a CT typology, which was generated by a 'tailored' multidimensional State Sequence Analysis, based on the "6W" model of Care Trajectories. Three dimensions were considered: the care setting ("where"), the reason for consultation ("why"), and the speciality of care providers ("which"). Patients were grouped into specific CT types, which were compared in terms of care use attributes and patients' characteristics using the usual descriptive statistics. RESULTS: The 2581 patients were grouped into five distinct and homogeneous CT types: Type 1 (n = 1351, 52.3%) and Type 2 (n = 748, 29.0%) with low healthcare and moderate healthcare use respectively; Type 3 (n = 216, 8.4%) with high healthcare use, mainly for respiratory reasons, with the highest number of urgent in-hospital days, seen by pulmonologists and respiratory therapists at primary care settings; Type 4 (n = 100, 3.9%) with high healthcare use, mainly cardiovascular, high ED visits, and mostly seen by nurses in community-based primary care; Type 5 (n = 166, 6.4%) with high healthcare use, high ED visits and non-urgent hospitalisations, and with consultations at outpatient clinics and primary care settings, mainly for other reasons than respiratory or cardiovascular. Patients in the 3 highest utilization CT types were older, and had more comorbidities and more severe condition at index hospitalization. CONCLUSIONS: The proposed method allows for a better representation of the sequences of healthcare use in the real world, supporting data-driven decision making.

Factors associated with chronic frequent emergency department utilization in a population with diabetes living in metropolitan areas: a population-based retrospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: A small proportion of patients utilizes a disproportionately large amount of emergency department (ED) resources. Being able to properly identify chronic frequent ED users, i.e. frequent ED users over a multiple-year period, would allow healthcare professionals to intervene before it occurs and, if possible, redirect these patients to more appropriate health services. The objective of this study was to explore the factors associated with chronic frequent ED utilization in a population with diabetes. METHODS: A population-based retrospective cohort study using administrative data was conducted on 62,316 patients with diabetes living in metropolitan areas of Quebec (Canada), having visited an ED during 2006, and still alive in 31 December 2009. The dependant variable was being a chronic frequent ED user, defined as having at least 3 ED visits per year during three consecutive years (2007-2009). Independent variables, measured during 2006, included age, sex, neighbourhood deprivation, affiliation to a general practitioner, and number of physical and mental health comorbidities. Logistic regression and tree-based method were used to identify factors associated with chronic frequent ED use. RESULTS: A total of 2.6% of the cohort (patients with diabetes and at least one ED visit in 2006) was identified as chronic frequent ED users. These patients accounted for 16% of all ED visits made by the cohort during follow-up. The cumulative effect of a high illness burden combined with mental health disorders was associated with an increased risk of chronic frequent ED use. CONCLUSIONS: Interventions must target the population at higher risk of becoming chronic frequent ED users and should be designed to manage the complex interaction between high illness burden and mental health.

Predicting One-year Mortality After a "First" Hospitalization for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease: An Eight-Variable Assessment Score Tool.

Several authors have studied predictors of outcomes following a hospitalization for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD); however, few have reported outcomes following a first hospitalization for COPD. The objective is to develop a predictive mortality risk model in patients surviving a first hospitalization for COPD. This is a retrospective cohort study using linked administrative and clinical data. The cohort included 1129 patients of 40-84 years, discharged alive from a hospitalization for COPD in a regional hospital (Sherbrooke, Canada) between 04/2006 and 03/2013 and to whom were prescribed at least two COPD drugs during their hospitalization. One-year mortality was analysed using logistic regression on a derivation sample and validated on a testing sample. In total, 141 (12.5%) patients died within one year from discharge of their first hospitalization for COPD. Predictors were: older age (OR (95% CI): 1.055 (1.026-1.085)), male sex (OR (95% CI): 1.474 (0.921-2.358)), having a severe COPD exacerbation (OR (95% CI): 2.548 (1.571-4.132)), higher hospital length of stay (OR (95% CI): 1.024 (0.996-1.053)), higher Charlson co-morbidity index (OR (95% CI): 1.262 (1.099-1.449)), being diagnosed of cancer (OR (95% CI): 2.928 (1.456-5.885)), the number of prior all-cause hospitalizations (OR (95% CI): 1.323 (1.097-1.595)), and a COPD duration exceeding 3 years (OR (95% CI): 1.710 (1.058-2.763)). A simple clinical prognosis tool is proposed and shows good discrimination in both the derivation and validation cohorts (c-statistic >0.78). One over eight patients discharged alive from a first COPD hospitalization will die the following year. It is thus important to identify higher-risk patients in order to plan and manage appropriate treatment.

[Initiating an antipsychotic drug treatment for schizophrenia: the situation in Quebec, Canada, from 1998 to 2006]. / Amorcer un traitement antipsychotique en schizophrénie : la situation au Québec de 1998 à 2006.

Objectives To describe factors associated with the following characteristics of the first prescription of an antipsychotic drug treatment (ADT): 1) prescribing physician type (psychiatrist vs. general practitioner); 2) second-generation vs. first-generation antipsychotic drug; 3) in conjunction with at least one additional antipsychotic drug (multitherapy); 4) never renewed by the patient.Methods This is a pharmacoepidemiologic study using administrative data from the Régie de l'assurance maladie du Québec (RAMQ), the public healthcare insurer in Quebec, Canada. Available data sample was exhaustive for adults with a diagnosis of schizophrenia who received an ADT under RAMQ drug coverage from 1998 to 2006. We report multiple logistic regression results.Results Among 16,225 patients who met inclusion criteria 46.2% were women and 70% were beneficiaries of governmental financial assistance. Patients who had their ADT prescribed by psychiatrists tended to be younger and were more burdened by their mental illness. Multitherapy was associated with hospitalization with a psychotic disorder as main diagnosis, lower socioeconomic status, and age between 35 and 64. Second-generation antipsychotic use became progressively more prominent during the period under study. Antipsychotic non renewal was correlated with substance use disorders and was less likely to happen following hospitalization with a psychiatric main diagnosis. Conclusions Although this study is subject to the intrinsic limitations of secondary analysis of administrative data, the database available for study was exhaustive within the Quebec healthcare system and included data from both general practice and specialized care, which allowed us to draw a relevant picture of how ADT were initiated for schizophrenia in Quebec, Canada, from 1998 to 2006. This timeframe is especially relevant since the 1990s were marked by the introduction of second-generation antipsychotics in Canada.

Predicting chronic benzodiazepine use in adults with depressive disorder: Retrospective cohort study using administrative data in Quebec.

OBJECTIVE: To identify predictive variables of incident chronic benzodiazepine (BZD) use that could be assessed by prescribing physicians. DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study using public health and drug insurance administrative data. SETTING: Quebec. PARTICIPANTS: New adult BZD users from January 1, 1999, to March 31, 2006, with a diagnosis of depressive disorder in the previous year were included. Chronic BZD use was defined as BZD availability at least 50% of the days between day 181 and day 365 following initiation. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Potential associations between chronic BZD use and age; sex; drug insurance status; recent hospitalization; comorbidity; presence of chronic pain; use of psychotropic medication; mental health diagnoses; number, type, and duration of BZDs prescribed; and the prescribing physician's specialty. RESULTS: Selection led to an exhaustive cohort of 13 688 patients aged 18 to 64 years, and 3683 aged 65 and older. For the 18 to 64 age group, the combination of disability insurance and more than 1 BZD increased the proportion of chronic users from 14.4% to 53.4%. For patients 65 and older, the main correlates of chronic BZD use included claiming more than 1 BZD (adjusted odds ratio 2.24, 99% CI 1.65 to 3.06) and recent hospitalization (adjusted odds ratio 1.70, 99% CI 1.38 to 2.10). Recently hospitalized older patients with a prescription duration of less than 8 days were the highest-risk group identified (57.8%). CONCLUSION: Physicians should be aware that patients are more likely to become chronic BZD users if they receive disability insurance or following a hospitalization. Combination of BZDs is a potentially problematic practice that could be increasing the risk of chronic use.

Neighbourhood immigration, health care utilization and outcomes in patients with diabetes living in the Montreal metropolitan area (Canada): a population health perspective.

BACKGROUND: Understanding health care utilization by neighbourhood is essential for optimal allocation of resources, but links between neighbourhood immigration and health have rarely been explored. Our objective was to understand how immigrant composition of neighbourhoods relates to health outcomes and health care utilization of individuals living with diabetes. METHODS: This is a secondary analysis of administrative data using a retrospective cohort of 111,556 patients living with diabetes without previous cardiovascular diseases (CVD) and living in the metropolitan region of Montreal (Canada). A score for immigration was calculated at the neighbourhood level using a principal component analysis with six neighbourhood-level variables (% of people with maternal language other than French or English, % of people who do not speak French or English, % of immigrants with different times since immigration (<5 years, 5-10 years, 10-15 years, 15-25 years)). Dependent variables were all-cause death, all-cause hospitalization, CVD event (death or hospitalization), frequent use of emergency departments, frequent use of general practitioner care, frequent use of specialist care, and purchase of at least one antidiabetic drug. For each of these variables, adjusted odds ratios were estimated using a multilevel logistic regression. RESULTS: Compared to patients with diabetes living in neighbourhoods with low immigration scores, those living in neighbourhoods with high immigration scores were less likely to die, to suffer a CVD event, to frequently visit general practitioners, but more likely to visit emergency departments or a specialist and to use an antidiabetic drug. These differences remained after controlling for patient-level variables such as age, sex, and comorbidities, as well as for neighbourhood attributes like material and social deprivation or living in the urban core. CONCLUSIONS: In this study, patients with diabetes living in neighbourhoods with high immigration scores had different health outcomes and health care utilizations compared to those living in neighbourhoods with low immigration scores. Although we cannot disentangle the individual versus the area-based effect of immigration, these results may have an important impact for health care planning.

Proximity and emergency department use: Multilevel analysis using administrative data from patients with cardiovascular risk factors.

OBJECTIVE: To determine if geographic proximity to an emergency department (ED) is related to ED use in a metropolitan population of patients with cardiovascular risk factors. DESIGN: Population-based, retrospective cohort study. SETTING: The census metropolitan area of Montreal, Que. PARTICIPANTS: Cohort of 99 400 patients with diabetes, hypertension, or dyslipidemia in 2007 without a history of cardiovascular disease. Each patient was spatially referred to 1 of 5857 dissemination areas (DAs). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Annual number of visits to an ED with respect to the distance between the centroid of a patient's DA and the closest ED, controlling for age, sex, comorbidities, and neighbourhood immigration, social, and material characteristics. Multilevel logistic and negative binomial regressions were used to determine if the proximity to the closest ED was related to ED use, frequent ED use (≥ 4 visits in a year), and number of ED visits. RESULTS: A total of 25 889 (26.0%) patients in the cohort visited an ED at least once during a 1-year period, among which 4563 (4.6%) were frequent users with at least 4 visits. These frequent users were responsible for 28 249 (45.5%) of all 62 021 visits to EDs. The distance between a DA and its closest ED was significantly and negatively correlated with ED use (P < .001), even after controlling for confounding variables. Patients living in a DA close to an ED were also more likely to be frequent users, but the extent of use among them (range from 4 to 82 ED visits) was not related to the distance to the closest ED. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that patients at risk of cardiovascular disease living in a metropolitan area are more likely to seek a medical encounter at the ED if they live closer to it.

Beta-blockers are associated with increased risk of first cardiovascular events in non-diabetic hypertensive elderly patients.

PURPOSE: Although treatment should be considered for elderly patients with hypertension (HTN), the effectiveness of beta-blockers (BBs) compared with other medications is less clear. This study's objective is to assess the relative effectiveness of BBs in elderly primary prevention patients with uncomplicated HTN. METHODS: This is a population-based nested case-control study. The cohort is composed of 94,844 elderly patients followed through 2009 and diagnosed with HTN between 2000 and 2004, without recent antecedents of diabetes, renal disease, or cardiovascular disease (CVD). Individuals with a CVD outcome were considered cases, and controls were matched to cases according to age, sex, date of cohort entry, and comorbidity index. Patients whose treatment included a BB were compared with patients on other HTN drug(s). RESULTS: The BB use by patients was associated with an increased risk for CVD events (odds ratio (OR) = 1.36, 95%CI: 1.31-1.40) compared with patients using antihypertensive therapies without BBs. Sensitivity analyses suggest that this increased risk is not due to differences in prescription patterns on the basis of perceived disease severity. CONCLUSIONS: In real-world settings, antihypertensive therapies that include BBs are associated with less effective prevention of adverse outcomes in elderly hypertensive patients in primary prevention compared with antihypertensive therapies without BBs. Pending further studies, we recommend caution when prescribing BBs in primary prevention except when otherwise indicated.

Care trajectories around a first dementia diagnosis in patients with serious mental illness.

AIM: To develop a typology of care trajectories (CTs) 1 year before and after a first dementia diagnosis in individuals aged ≥65 years, with prevalent schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. METHODS: This was a longitudinal, retrospective cohort study using health administrative data (1996-2016) from Quebec (Canada). We selected patients aged ≥65 years with an incident diagnosis of dementia between 1 January 2014 and 31 December 2016, and a diagnosis of schizophrenia and/or or bipolar disorder. A CT typology was generated by a multidimensional state sequence analysis based on the "6 W" model of CTs. Three dimensions were considered: the care setting ("where"), the reason for consultation ("why") and the specialty of care providers ("which"). RESULTS: In total, 3868 patients were categorized into seven distinct types of CTs, with varying patterns of healthcare use and comorbidities. Healthcare use differed in terms of intensity, but also in its distribution around the diagnosis. For instance, whereas one group showed low healthcare use, healthcare use abruptly increased or decreased after the diagnosis in other groups, or was equally distributed. Other significant differences between CTs included mortality rates and use of long-term care after the diagnosis. Most patients (67%) received their first dementia diagnosis during hospitalization. CONCLUSIONS: Our innovative approach provides a unique insight into the complex healthcare patterns of people living with serious mental illness and dementia, and provides an avenue to support data-driven decision-making by highlighting fragility areas in allocating care resources. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2024; 24: 577-586.

Care trajectories of individuals with anxiety disorders: A retrospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Anxiety disorders (ADs) are associated with increased healthcare use (HCU), and individuals may seek healthcare through various pathways according to clinical and individual characteristics. This study aimed to characterize care trajectories (CTs) of individuals with ADs. METHODS: This is a retrospective cohort study using the Care Trajectories - Enriched Data cohort, a linkage between the Canadian Community Health Surveys (CCHS), and health administrative data from Quebec. The cohort included 5143 respondents reporting ADs to the CCHS between 2009 and 2016. We measured CTs over 5 years before CCHS using a state sequence analysis. RESULTS: The cohort was categorized into five types of CTs. Type 1 (52.7 %) was the lowest care-seeking group, with fewer comorbidities. Type 2 (24.0 %) had higher levels of physical and mental health comorbidities and moderate HCU, mainly ambulatory visits to general practitioners. Type 3 (13.1 %) represented older patients with the highest level of physical illnesses and high HCU, predominantly ambulatory consultation of specialists other than psychiatrists. Types 4 and 5 combined young and middle-aged patients suffering from severe psychological distress. HCU of type 4 (6.7 %) was high, mainly consultations of ambulatory psychiatrists, and HCU of type 5 (3.5 %), was the highest and mostly in acute care. LIMITATIONS: Administrative and survey data may have coding errors, missing data and self-report biases. CONCLUSION: Five types of CTs showed distinct patterns of HCU often modulated by physical and mental health comorbidities, which emphasizes the importance of considering ADs when individuals seek care for other mental health conditions or physical illness.

Prevalence of claims-based recurrent low back pain in a Canadian population: a secondary analysis of an administrative database.

BACKGROUND: There is a vast literature reporting that the point prevalence of low back pain (LBP) is high and increasing. It is also known that a large proportion of acute LBP episodes are recurrent within 12 months. However, few studies report the annual trends in the prevalence of recurrent LBP or describe these trends according to age and sex categories. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective cohort study involving 401 264 adults selected from the administrative database of physician claims for the province of Quebec, Canada. These adults, aged 18 years and over, met the criteria of having consulted a physician three times within a 365-day period between 2000 and 2007 for a LBP condition corresponding to ICD-9 codes 721, 722, 724 or 739. All data were analyzed by sex and clustered according to specific age categories. RESULTS: We observed a decrease from 1.64% to 1.33% in the annual prevalence between 2000 and 2007 for men. This decrease in prevalence was mostly observed between 35 and 59 years of age. Older (≥ 65 years) women were 1.35 times more at risk to consult a physician for LBP in a recurrent manner than older men. The most frequently reported diagnosis was non-specific LBP between 2000 to 2007. During the same period, sequelae of previous back surgery and spinal stenosis were the categories with the largest increases. CONCLUSION: The annual prevalence of claims-based recurrent LBP progressively decreased between 2000 and 2007 for younger adults (<65 years) while older adults (≥ 65 years) showed an increase. Given the aging Canadian population, recurrent low back pain could have an increasing impact on the quality of life of the elderly as well as on the healthcare system.