Fourth Dose of BNT162b2 mRNA Covid-19 Vaccine in a Nationwide Setting.

BACKGROUND: With large waves of infection driven by the B.1.1.529 (omicron) variant of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), alongside evidence of waning immunity after the booster dose of coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) vaccine, several countries have begun giving at-risk persons a fourth vaccine dose. METHODS: To evaluate the early effectiveness of a fourth dose of the BNT162b2 vaccine for the prevention of Covid-19-related outcomes, we analyzed data recorded by the largest health care organization in Israel from January 3 to February 18, 2022. We evaluated the relative effectiveness of a fourth vaccine dose as compared with that of a third dose given at least 4 months earlier among persons 60 years of age or older. We compared outcomes in persons who had received a fourth dose with those in persons who had not, individually matching persons from these two groups with respect to multiple sociodemographic and clinical variables. A sensitivity analysis was performed with the use of parametric Poisson regression. RESULTS: The primary analysis included 182,122 matched pairs. Relative vaccine effectiveness in days 7 to 30 after the fourth dose was estimated to be 45% (95% confidence interval [CI], 44 to 47) against polymerase-chain-reaction-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection, 55% (95% CI, 53 to 58) against symptomatic Covid-19, 68% (95% CI, 59 to 74) against Covid-19-related hospitalization, 62% (95% CI, 50 to 74) against severe Covid-19, and 74% (95% CI, 50 to 90) against Covid-19-related death. The corresponding estimates in days 14 to 30 after the fourth dose were 52% (95% CI, 49 to 54), 61% (95% CI, 58 to 64), 72% (95% CI, 63 to 79), 64% (95% CI, 48 to 77), and 76% (95% CI, 48 to 91). In days 7 to 30 after a fourth vaccine dose, the difference in the absolute risk (three doses vs. four doses) was 180.1 cases per 100,000 persons (95% CI, 142.8 to 211.9) for Covid-19-related hospitalization and 68.8 cases per 100,000 persons (95% CI, 48.5 to 91.9) for severe Covid-19. In sensitivity analyses, estimates of relative effectiveness against documented infection were similar to those in the primary analysis. CONCLUSIONS: A fourth dose of the BNT162b2 vaccine was effective in reducing the short-term risk of Covid-19-related outcomes among persons who had received a third dose at least 4 months earlier. (Funded by the Ivan and Francesca Berkowitz Family Living Laboratory Collaboration at Harvard Medical School and Clalit Research Institute.).

BNT162b2 Vaccine Effectiveness against Omicron in Children 5 to 11 Years of Age.

BACKGROUND: Limited evidence is available on the real-world effectiveness of the BNT162b2 vaccine against coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) and specifically against infection with the omicron variant among children 5 to 11 years of age. METHODS: Using data from the largest health care organization in Israel, we identified a cohort of children 5 to 11 years of age who were vaccinated on or after November 23, 2021, and matched them with unvaccinated controls to estimate the vaccine effectiveness of BNT162b2 among newly vaccinated children during the omicron wave. Vaccine effectiveness against documented severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection and symptomatic Covid-19 was estimated after the first and second vaccine doses. The cumulative incidence of each outcome in the two study groups through January 7, 2022, was estimated with the use of the Kaplan-Meier estimator, and vaccine effectiveness was calculated as 1 minus the risk ratio. Vaccine effectiveness was also estimated in age subgroups. RESULTS: Among 136,127 eligible children who had been vaccinated during the study period, 94,728 were matched with unvaccinated controls. The estimated vaccine effectiveness against documented infection was 17% (95% confidence interval [CI], 7 to 25) at 14 to 27 days after the first dose and 51% (95% CI, 39 to 61) at 7 to 21 days after the second dose. The absolute risk difference between the study groups at days 7 to 21 after the second dose was 1905 events per 100,000 persons (95% CI, 1294 to 2440) for documented infection and 599 events per 100,000 persons (95% CI, 296 to 897) for symptomatic Covid-19. The estimated vaccine effectiveness against symptomatic Covid-19 was 18% (95% CI, -2 to 34) at 14 to 27 days after the first dose and 48% (95% CI, 29 to 63) at 7 to 21 days after the second dose. We observed a trend toward higher vaccine effectiveness in the youngest age group (5 or 6 years of age) than in the oldest age group (10 or 11 years of age). CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that as omicron was becoming the dominant variant, two doses of the BNT162b2 messenger RNA vaccine provided moderate protection against documented SARS-CoV-2 infection and symptomatic Covid-19 in children 5 to 11 years of age. (Funded by the European Union through the VERDI project and others.).

Nirmatrelvir Use and Severe Covid-19 Outcomes during the Omicron Surge.

BACKGROUND: The oral protease inhibitor nirmatrelvir has shown substantial efficacy in high-risk, unvaccinated patients infected with the B.1.617.2 (delta) variant of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Data regarding the effectiveness of nirmatrelvir in preventing severe coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) outcomes from the B.1.1.529 (omicron) variant are limited. METHODS: We obtained data for all members of Clalit Health Services who were 40 years of age or older at the start of the study period and were assessed as being eligible to receive nirmatrelvir therapy during the omicron surge. A Cox proportional-hazards regression model with time-dependent covariates was used to estimate the association of nirmatrelvir treatment with hospitalization and death due to Covid-19, with adjustment for sociodemographic factors, coexisting conditions, and previous SARS-CoV-2 immunity status. RESULTS: A total of 109,254 patients met the eligibility criteria, of whom 3902 (4%) received nirmatrelvir during the study period. Among patients 65 years of age or older, the rate of hospitalization due to Covid-19 was 14.7 cases per 100,000 person-days among treated patients as compared with 58.9 cases per 100,000 person-days among untreated patients (adjusted hazard ratio, 0.27; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.15 to 0.49). The adjusted hazard ratio for death due to Covid-19 was 0.21 (95% CI, 0.05 to 0.82). Among patients 40 to 64 years of age, the rate of hospitalization due to Covid-19 was 15.2 cases per 100,000 person-days among treated patients and 15.8 cases per 100,000 person-days among untreated patients (adjusted hazard ratio, 0.74; 95% CI, 0.35 to 1.58). The adjusted hazard ratio for death due to Covid-19 was 1.32 (95% CI, 0.16 to 10.75). CONCLUSIONS: Among patients 65 years of age or older, the rates of hospitalization and death due to Covid-19 were significantly lower among those who received nirmatrelvir than among those who did not. No evidence of benefit was found in younger adults.

Myocarditis after Covid-19 Vaccination in a Large Health Care Organization.

BACKGROUND: Reports have suggested an association between the development of myocarditis and the receipt of messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccines against coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19), but the frequency and severity of myocarditis after vaccination have not been extensively explored. METHODS: We searched the database of Clalit Health Services, the largest health care organization (HCO) in Israel, for diagnoses of myocarditis in patients who had received at least one dose of the BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine (Pfizer-BioNTech). The diagnosis of myocarditis was adjudicated by cardiologists using the case definition used by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. We abstracted the presentation, clinical course, and outcome from the patient's electronic health record. We performed a Kaplan-Meier analysis of the incidence of myocarditis up to 42 days after the first vaccine dose. RESULTS: Among more than 2.5 million vaccinated HCO members who were 16 years of age or older, 54 cases met the criteria for myocarditis. The estimated incidence per 100,000 persons who had received at least one dose of vaccine was 2.13 cases (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.56 to 2.70). The highest incidence of myocarditis (10.69 cases per 100,000 persons; 95% CI, 6.93 to 14.46) was reported in male patients between the ages of 16 and 29 years. A total of 76% of cases of myocarditis were described as mild and 22% as intermediate; 1 case was associated with cardiogenic shock. After a median follow-up of 83 days after the onset of myocarditis, 1 patient had been readmitted to the hospital, and 1 had died of an unknown cause after discharge. Of 14 patients who had left ventricular dysfunction on echocardiography during admission, 10 still had such dysfunction at the time of hospital discharge. Of these patients, 5 underwent subsequent testing that revealed normal heart function. CONCLUSIONS: Among patients in a large Israeli health care system who had received at least one dose of the BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine, the estimated incidence of myocarditis was 2.13 cases per 100,000 persons; the highest incidence was among male patients between the ages of 16 and 29 years. Most cases of myocarditis were mild or moderate in severity. (Funded by the Ivan and Francesca Berkowitz Family Living Laboratory Collaboration at Harvard Medical School and Clalit Research Institute.).

BNT162b2 mRNA Covid-19 Vaccine in a Nationwide Mass Vaccination Setting.

BACKGROUND: As mass vaccination campaigns against coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) commence worldwide, vaccine effectiveness needs to be assessed for a range of outcomes across diverse populations in a noncontrolled setting. In this study, data from Israel's largest health care organization were used to evaluate the effectiveness of the BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine. METHODS: All persons who were newly vaccinated during the period from December 20, 2020, to February 1, 2021, were matched to unvaccinated controls in a 1:1 ratio according to demographic and clinical characteristics. Study outcomes included documented infection with the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), symptomatic Covid-19, Covid-19-related hospitalization, severe illness, and death. We estimated vaccine effectiveness for each outcome as one minus the risk ratio, using the Kaplan-Meier estimator. RESULTS: Each study group included 596,618 persons. Estimated vaccine effectiveness for the study outcomes at days 14 through 20 after the first dose and at 7 or more days after the second dose was as follows: for documented infection, 46% (95% confidence interval [CI], 40 to 51) and 92% (95% CI, 88 to 95); for symptomatic Covid-19, 57% (95% CI, 50 to 63) and 94% (95% CI, 87 to 98); for hospitalization, 74% (95% CI, 56 to 86) and 87% (95% CI, 55 to 100); and for severe disease, 62% (95% CI, 39 to 80) and 92% (95% CI, 75 to 100), respectively. Estimated effectiveness in preventing death from Covid-19 was 72% (95% CI, 19 to 100) for days 14 through 20 after the first dose. Estimated effectiveness in specific subpopulations assessed for documented infection and symptomatic Covid-19 was consistent across age groups, with potentially slightly lower effectiveness in persons with multiple coexisting conditions. CONCLUSIONS: This study in a nationwide mass vaccination setting suggests that the BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine is effective for a wide range of Covid-19-related outcomes, a finding consistent with that of the randomized trial.

Safety of the BNT162b2 mRNA Covid-19 Vaccine in a Nationwide Setting.

BACKGROUND: Preapproval trials showed that messenger RNA (mRNA)-based vaccines against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) had a good safety profile, yet these trials were subject to size and patient-mix limitations. An evaluation of the safety of the BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine with respect to a broad range of potential adverse events is needed. METHODS: We used data from the largest health care organization in Israel to evaluate the safety of the BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine. For each potential adverse event, in a population of persons with no previous diagnosis of that event, we individually matched vaccinated persons to unvaccinated persons according to sociodemographic and clinical variables. Risk ratios and risk differences at 42 days after vaccination were derived with the use of the Kaplan-Meier estimator. To place these results in context, we performed a similar analysis involving SARS-CoV-2-infected persons matched to uninfected persons. The same adverse events were studied in the vaccination and SARS-CoV-2 infection analyses. RESULTS: In the vaccination analysis, the vaccinated and control groups each included a mean of 884,828 persons. Vaccination was most strongly associated with an elevated risk of myocarditis (risk ratio, 3.24; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.55 to 12.44; risk difference, 2.7 events per 100,000 persons; 95% CI, 1.0 to 4.6), lymphadenopathy (risk ratio, 2.43; 95% CI, 2.05 to 2.78; risk difference, 78.4 events per 100,000 persons; 95% CI, 64.1 to 89.3), appendicitis (risk ratio, 1.40; 95% CI, 1.02 to 2.01; risk difference, 5.0 events per 100,000 persons; 95% CI, 0.3 to 9.9), and herpes zoster infection (risk ratio, 1.43; 95% CI, 1.20 to 1.73; risk difference, 15.8 events per 100,000 persons; 95% CI, 8.2 to 24.2). SARS-CoV-2 infection was associated with a substantially increased risk of myocarditis (risk ratio, 18.28; 95% CI, 3.95 to 25.12; risk difference, 11.0 events per 100,000 persons; 95% CI, 5.6 to 15.8) and of additional serious adverse events, including pericarditis, arrhythmia, deep-vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, myocardial infarction, intracranial hemorrhage, and thrombocytopenia. CONCLUSIONS: In this study in a nationwide mass vaccination setting, the BNT162b2 vaccine was not associated with an elevated risk of most of the adverse events examined. The vaccine was associated with an excess risk of myocarditis (1 to 5 events per 100,000 persons). The risk of this potentially serious adverse event and of many other serious adverse events was substantially increased after SARS-CoV-2 infection. (Funded by the Ivan and Francesca Berkowitz Family Living Laboratory Collaboration at Harvard Medical School and Clalit Research Institute.).

SARS-CoV-2 Variants and Vaccines.

Viral variants of concern may emerge with dangerous resistance to the immunity generated by the current vaccines to prevent coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19). Moreover, if some variants of concern have increased transmissibility or virulence, the importance of efficient public health measures and vaccination programs will increase. The global response must be both timely and science based.

Effectiveness of the BNT162b2mRNA COVID-19 vaccine in patients with hematological neoplasms in a nationwide mass vaccination setting.

Evidence regarding the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccine in patients with impaired immunity is limited. Initial observations suggest a lower humoral response in these patients. We evaluated the relative effectiveness of the mRNA BNT162b2 vaccine in patients with hematological neoplasms compared with matched controls. Data on patients with hematological neoplasms after 2 vaccine doses were extracted and matched 1:1 with vaccinated controls. Subpopulation analyses focused on patients receiving therapy for hematological neoplasm, patients without treatment who were only followed, and recipients of specific treatments. The analysis focused on COVID-19 outcomes from days 7 through 43 after the second vaccine dose in these areas: documented COVID-19 infection by polymerase chain reaction; symptomatic infection; hospitalizations; severe COVID-19 disease; and COVID-19-related death. In a population of 4.7 million insured people, 32 516 patients with hematological neoplasms were identified, of whom 5017 were receiving therapy for an active disease. Vaccinated patients with hematological neoplasms, compared with vaccinated matched controls, had an increased risk of documented infections (relative risk [RR] 1.60, 95% CI 1.12-2.37); symptomatic COVID-19 (RR 1.72, 95% CI 1.05-2.85); COVID-19-related hospitalizations (RR 3.13, 95% CI 1.68-7.08); severe COVID-19 (RR 2.27, 95% CI 1.18-5.19); and COVID-19-related death (RR 1.66, 95% CI 0.72-4.47). Limiting the analysis to patients on hematological treatments showed a higher increased risk. This analysis shows that vaccinated patients with hematological neoplasms, in particular patients receiving treatment, suffer from COVID-19 outcomes more than vaccinated individuals with intact immune system. Ways to enhance COVID-19 immunity in this patient population, such as additional doses, should be explored.

Assessing Real-World Data From Electronic Health Records for Health Technology Assessment: The SUITABILITY Checklist: A Good Practices Report of an ISPOR Task Force.

This ISPOR Good Practices report provides a framework for assessing the suitability of electronic health records data for use in health technology assessments (HTAs). Although electronic health record (EHR) data can fill evidence gaps and improve decisions, several important limitations can affect its validity and relevance. The ISPOR framework includes 2 components: data delineation and data fitness for purpose. Data delineation provides a complete understanding of the data and an assessment of its trustworthiness by describing (1) data characteristics; (2) data provenance; and (3) data governance. Fitness for purpose comprises (1) data reliability items, ie, how accurate and complete the estimates are for answering the question at hand and (2) data relevance items, which assess how well the data are suited to answer the particular question from a decision-making perspective. The report includes a checklist specific to EHR data reporting: the ISPOR SUITABILITY Checklist. It also provides recommendations for HTA agencies and policy makers to improve the use of EHR-derived data over time. The report concludes with a discussion of limitations and future directions in the field, including the potential impact from the substantial and rapid advances in the diffusion and capabilities of large language models and generative artificial intelligence. The report's immediate audiences are HTA evidence developers and users. We anticipate that it will also be useful to other stakeholders, particularly regulators and manufacturers, in the future.

Development and Validation of a Colorectal Cancer Prediction Model: A Nationwide Cohort-Based Study.

BACKGROUND: Early diagnosis of colorectal cancer (CRC) is critical to increasing survival rates. Computerized risk prediction models hold great promise for identifying individuals at high risk for CRC. In order to utilize such models effectively in a population-wide screening setting, development and validation should be based on cohorts that are similar to the target population. AIM: Establish a risk prediction model for CRC diagnosis based on electronic health records (EHR) from subjects eligible for CRC screening. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study utilizing the EHR data of Clalit Health Services (CHS). The study includes CHS members aged 50-74 who were eligible for CRC screening from January 2013 to January 2019. The model was trained to predict receiving a CRC diagnosis within 2 years of the index date. Approximately 20,000 EHR demographic and clinical features were considered. RESULTS: The study includes 2935 subjects with CRC diagnosis, and 1,133,457 subjects without CRC diagnosis. Incidence values of CRC among subjects in the top 1% risk scores were higher than baseline (2.3% vs 0.3%; lift 8.38; P value < 0.001). Cumulative event probabilities increased with higher model scores. Model-based risk stratification among subjects with a positive FOBT, identified subjects with more than twice the risk for CRC compared to FOBT alone. CONCLUSIONS: We developed an individualized risk prediction model for CRC that can be utilized as a complementary decision support tool for healthcare providers to precisely identify subjects at high risk for CRC and refer them for confirmatory testing.

Effectiveness of a third dose of the BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine for preventing severe outcomes in Israel: an observational study.

BACKGROUND: Many countries are experiencing a resurgence of COVID-19, driven predominantly by the delta (B.1.617.2) variant of SARS-CoV-2. In response, these countries are considering the administration of a third dose of mRNA COVID-19 vaccine as a booster dose to address potential waning immunity over time and reduced effectiveness against the delta variant. We aimed to use the data repositories of Israel's largest health-care organisation to evaluate the effectiveness of a third dose of the BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine for preventing severe COVID-19 outcomes. METHODS: Using data from Clalit Health Services, which provides mandatory health-care coverage for over half of the Israeli population, individuals receiving a third vaccine dose between July 30, 2020, and Sept 23, 2021, were matched (1:1) to demographically and clinically similar controls who did not receive a third dose. Eligible participants had received the second vaccine dose at least 5 months before the recruitment date, had no previous documented SARS-CoV-2 infection, and had no contact with the health-care system in the 3 days before recruitment. Individuals who are health-care workers, live in long-term care facilities, or are medically confined to their homes were excluded. Primary outcomes were COVID-19-related admission to hospital, severe disease, and COVID-19-related death. The third dose effectiveness for each outcome was estimated as 1 - risk ratio using the Kaplan-Meier estimator. FINDINGS: 1 158 269 individuals were eligible to be included in the third dose group. Following matching, the third dose and control groups each included 728 321 individuals. Participants had a median age of 52 years (IQR 37-68) and 51% were female. The median follow-up time was 13 days (IQR 6-21) in both groups. Vaccine effectiveness evaluated at least 7 days after receipt of the third dose, compared with receiving only two doses at least 5 months ago, was estimated to be 93% (231 events for two doses vs 29 events for three doses; 95% CI 88-97) for admission to hospital, 92% (157 vs 17 events; 82-97) for severe disease, and 81% (44 vs seven events; 59-97) for COVID-19-related death. INTERPRETATION: Our findings suggest that a third dose of the BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine is effective in protecting individuals against severe COVID-19-related outcomes, compared with receiving only two doses at least 5 months ago. FUNDING: The Ivan and Francesca Berkowitz Family Living Laboratory Collaboration at Harvard Medical School and Clalit Research Institute.

Perianal Crohn's Disease Is Associated With Poor Disease Outcome: A Nationwide Study From the epiIIRN Cohort.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Limited population-based data have explored perianal involvement in Crohn's disease (CD) and compared the disease course between severe and non-severe perianal CD (PCD). We aimed to explore the disease course of these phenotypes in a population-based study of CD. METHODS: Cases were identified from the epi-IIRN cohort and included 2 Israeli health maintenance organizations covering 78% of the population. We validated specific algorithms to identify fistulizing PCD and to differentiate severe from non-severe disease by medication utilization, International Classification of Disease, 9th Revision codes, and perianal procedures. RESULTS: A total of 12,904 CD patients were included in an inception cohort from 2005 (2186 pediatric-onset, 17%) providing 86,119 person-years of follow-up. Fistulizing PCD was diagnosed in 1530 patients (12%) (574 with severe PCD, 4%). The prevalence of PCD was 7.9%, 9.4%, 10.3%, and 11.6% at 1, 3, 5, and 10 years from CD diagnosis, respectively. At 5 years, PCD patients were more likely to be hospitalized (36% in non-PCD vs 64% in PCD; P < .001), undergo inflammatory bowel disease-related surgeries (9% vs 38%, respectively; P < .001), and develop anorectal cancer (1.2/10,000 person-years for non-PCD vs 4.2/10,000 for PCD; P = .01). Severe PCD was associated with poorer outcomes compared with non-severe PCD, as shown for hospitalizations (61% in non-severe PCD vs 73% in severe; P = .004) and surgeries (35% vs 43%; P = .001). CONCLUSIONS: Despite higher utilization of immunomodulators and biologics, PCD is associated with poor disease outcomes, especially in severe PCD.

Perianal Crohn Disease Is More Common in Children and Is Associated With Complicated Disease Course Despite Higher Utilization of Biologics: A Population-based Study From The epidemiology group of the Israeli IBD Research Nucleus (epiIIRN).

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Both perianal and pediatric-onset Crohn disease (CD) disease are associated with complicated disease course and higher drug utilization. we aimed to explore the differences between pediatric and adult-onset perianal CD and their disease course. METHODS: We included all patients with newly diagnosed CD from 2005 to 2019 at two Israeli Health Maintenance Organizations, covering 78% of the population. A combination of ICD-9 codes, radiology and procedures was used to define fistulizing perianal CD (PCD) and its severity according to the association with simple and complex perianal disease. RESULTS: A total of 12,905 patients were included (2186 [17%] pediatric-onset, 10,719 [83%] adults), with a median follow-up of 7.8 years. PCD was diagnosed in 1530 (12%) patients, with higher incidence in children (308 [14%] children vs 1222 adults [11%]; P  < 0.001). Children had higher incidence of severe PCD (141/308 [47%] vs 433/1222 [35%]; P < 0.001). At 5 years, children with PCD were more likely than adults to be treated with biologics (212 [69%] vs 515 [42%]; odds ratio [OR] 2.6 [95% confidence interval (CI) 1.6-4.0]; P < 0.001) and immunomodulators (238 [74%] vs 643 [53%]; OR 2.8 [95% CI 2.1-3.6]; P < 0.001). PCD in children was still associated with poorer disease outcomes as shown for surgeries (36 [12%] vs 93 [8%]; P = 0.02) and steroid-dependency (52 [17%] vs 156 [13%]; P < 0.001). Multivariable modeling indicated that the severity of PCD is a stronger predictor of disease course than age. CONCLUSION: PCD is more common in pediatric-onset CD and is associated with higher drug utilization and worse disease outcomes, in large due to higher rate of severe PCD in children.

Using population-level incidence of hepatitis C virus and immigration status for data-driven screening policies: a case study in Israel.

BACKGROUND: Most studies estimate hepatitis C virus (HCV) disease prevalence from convenience samples. Consequently, screening policies may not include those at the highest risk for a new diagnosis. METHODS: Clalit Health Services members aged 25-74 as of 31 December 2009 were included in the study. Rates of testing and new diagnoses of HCV were calculated, and potential risk groups were examined. RESULTS: Of the 2 029 501 included members, those aged 45-54 and immigrants had lower rates of testing (12.5% and 15.6%, respectively), higher rates of testing positive (0.8% and 1.1%, respectively), as well as the highest rates of testing positive among tested (6.1% and 6.9%, respectively). DISCUSSION: In this population-level study, groups more likely to test positive for HCV also had lower rates of testing. Policy makers and clinicians worldwide should consider creating screening policies using on population-based data to maximize the ability to detect and treat incident cases.

Improving Cardiovascular Disease Prediction Using Automated Coronary Artery Calcium Scoring from Existing Chest CTs.

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) prediction models are widely used in modern medicine and are incorporated into prominent guidelines. Coronary artery calcium (CAC) is a marker of coronary atherosclerotic disease and has proven utility for predicting cardiovascular disease. Despite this, current guidelines recommend against including CAC scores in CVD prediction models due to the medical and financial costs of acquiring it, and the insufficient evidence concerning its ability to improve existing models. Modern machine learning models are capable of automatically extracting coronary calcium scores from existing chest computed tomography (CT) scans, negating these costs. To determine whether the inclusion of CAC scores, automatically extracted using a machine learning algorithm from chest CTs performed for any reason, improves the performance of the American Heart Association/American College of Cardiology 2013 pooled cohort equations (PCE). A retrospective cohort of patients with available chest CTs prior to an index date (2012) was used to compare the performance of the PCE model and an augmented-PCE model which utilizes the CT-based CAC scores on top of the existing model. The PCE and the augmented-PCE predictions were calculated as of an index date (2012) using data from the electronic health record and existing chest CTs. The performance of both models was evaluated by comparing their predictions to cardiovascular events that occurred during a 5-year follow-up period (until 2017). A total of 14,135 patients aged 40-79 years were included in the study, of whom 470 (3.3%) had documented CVD events during the follow-up. The augmented-PCE model showed a significant improvement in c-statistic (0.64 ≥ 0.69, Δ = 0.05, 95% CI: 0.03 to 0.06), sensitivity (53% ≥ 57%, Δ = 4.7%, 95% CI: 0-9.0%), specificity (67% ≥ 70%, Δ = 2.8%, 95% CI: 0.9-5.1%), in positive predictive value (5% ≥ 6%, Δ = 0.9%, 95% CI: 0.4 to 1.4%), negative predictive value (97.7% ≥ 97.9%, Δ = 0.3%, 95% CI: 0.1 to 0.5%), and in the categorical net reclassification index (7.4%, 95% CI: 2.4 to 12.1%). Automatically generated CAC scores from existing CTs can aid in CVD risk determination, improving model performance when used on top of existing predictors. Use of existing CTs avoids most pitfalls currently cited against the routine use of CAC in CVD predictions (e.g., additional radiation exposure), and thus affords a net gain in predictive accuracy.

Association of Renin-Angiotensin-Aldosterone Inhibitors with COVID-19 Infection and Disease Severity among Individuals with Hypertension.

BACKGROUND: The association between use of renin-angiotensin-aldosterone (RAAS) inhibitors and both SARS-CoV-2 infection and the development of severe COVID-19 has been presented in the recent medical literature with inconsistent results. OBJECTIVES: To assess the association between RAAS inhibitor use and two outcomes: infection with SARS-CoV-2 (Model 1) and severe COVID-19 among those infected (Model 2). METHODS: We accessed used electronic health records of individuals from Israel who were receiving anti-hypertensive medications for this retrospective study. For Model 1 we used a case-control design. For Model 2 we used a cohort design. In both models, inverse probability weighting adjusted for identified confounders as part of doubly robust outcome regression. RESULTS: We tested 38,554 individuals for SARS-CoV-2 who had hypertension and were being treated with medication; 691 had a positive test result. Among those with a positive test, 119 developed severe illness. There was no association between RAAS inhibitor use and a positive test. Use of RAAS inhibitors was associated with a decreased risk for severe COVID-19 (adjusted odds ratio [OR] 0.47, 95% confidence interval [95%CI] 0.29-0.77) compared with users of non-RAAS anti-hypertensive medication. The association remained significant when use of angiotensin-converting-enzyme inhibitors (adjusted OR 0.46, 95%CI 0.27-0.77) and angiotensin II receptor blockers (adjusted OR 0.39, 95%CI 0.16-0.95) were analyzed separately. CONCLUSIONS: Among individuals with hypertension using RAAS inhibitors, we found a lower risk of severe disease compared to those using non-RAAS anti-hypertensive medications. This finding suggests that RAAS inhibitors may have a protective effect on COVID-19 severity among individuals with medically treated hypertension.

Identification of elderly patients at risk for 30-day readmission: Clinical insight beyond big data prediction.

AIM: This study explores the potential benefit of combining clinicians' risk assessments and the automated 30-day readmission prediction model. BACKGROUND: Automated readmission prediction models based on electronic health records are increasingly applied as part of prevention efforts, but their accuracy is moderate. METHODS: This prospective multisource study was based on self-reported surveys of clinicians and data from electronic health records. The survey was performed at 15 internal medicine wards of three general Clalit hospitals between May 2016 and June 2017. We examined the degree of concordance between the Preadmission Readmission Detection Model, clinicians' readmission risk classification and the likelihood of actual readmission. Decision trees were developed to classify patients by readmission risk. RESULTS: A total of 694 surveys were collected for 371 patients. The disagreement between clinicians' risk assessment and the model was 34.5% for nurses and 33.5% for physicians. The decision tree algorithms identified 22% and 9% (based on nurses and physicians, respectively) of the model's low-medium-risk patients as high risk (accuracy 0.8 and 0.76, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Combining the Readmission Model with clinical insight improves the ability to identify high-risk elderly patients. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING MANAGEMENT: This study provides algorithms for the decision-making process for selecting high-risk readmission patients based on nurses' evaluations.

MHC Haplotyping of SARS-CoV-2 Patients: HLA Subtypes Are Not Associated with the Presence and Severity of COVID-19 in the Israeli Population.

HLA haplotypes were found to be associated with increased risk for viral infections or disease severity in various diseases, including SARS. Several genetic variants are associated with COVID-19 severity. Studies have proposed associations, based on a very small sample and a large number of tested HLA alleles, but no clear association between HLA and COVID-19 incidence or severity has been reported. We conducted a large-scale HLA analysis of Israeli individuals who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 infection by PCR. Overall, 72,912 individuals with known HLA haplotypes were included in the study, of whom 6413 (8.8%) were found to have SARS-CoV-2 by PCR. A total of 20,937 subjects were of Ashkenazi origin (at least 2/4 grandparents). One hundred eighty-one patients (2.8% of the infected) were hospitalized due to the disease. None of the 66 most common HLA loci (within the five HLA subgroups: A, B, C, DQB1, DRB1) was found to be associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection or hospitalization in the general Israeli population. Similarly, no association was detected in the Ashkenazi Jewish subset. Moreover, no association was found between heterozygosity in any of the HLA loci and either infection or hospitalization. We conclude that HLA haplotypes are not a major risk/protecting factor among the Israeli population for SARS-CoV-2 infection or severity. Our results suggest that if any HLA association exists with the disease it is very weak, and of limited effect on the pandemic.

Prediction of Childhood Obesity from Nationwide Health Records.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate body mass index (BMI) acceleration patterns in children and to develop a prediction model targeted to identify children at high risk for obesity before the critical time window in which the largest increase in BMI percentile occurs. STUDY DESIGN: We analyzed electronic health records of children from Israel's largest healthcare provider from 2002 to 2018. Data included demographics, anthropometric measurements, medications, diagnoses, and laboratory tests of children and their families. Obesity was defined as BMI ≥95th percentile for age and sex. To identify the time window in which the largest annual increases in BMI z score occurs during early childhood, we first analyzed childhood BMI acceleration patterns among 417 915 adolescents. Next, we devised a model targeted to identify children at high risk before this time window, predicting obesity at 5-6 years of age based on data from the first 2 years of life of 132 262 children. RESULTS: Retrospective BMI analysis revealed that among adolescents with obesity, the greatest acceleration in BMI z score occurred between 2 and 4 years of age. Our model, validated temporally and geographically, accurately predicted obesity at 5-6 years old (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.803). Discrimination results on subpopulations demonstrated its robustness across the pediatric population. The model's most influential predictors included anthropometric measurements of the child and family. Other impactful predictors included ancestry and pregnancy glucose. CONCLUSIONS: Rapid rise in the prevalence of childhood obesity warrant the development of better prevention strategies. Our model may allow an accurate identification of children at high risk of obesity.

Pediatric-onset Inflammatory Bowel Disease Has Only a Modest Effect on Final Growth: A Report From the epi-IIRN.

OBJECTIVES: The impact of pediatric-onset inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) on growth is debated. We aimed to investigate the effect of IBD on anthropometric measures at young adulthood. METHODS: Children diagnosed with Crohn disease (CD) or ulcerative colitis (UC) (2005-2019) were identified in a national database along with matched non-IBD controls. RESULTS: Overall, 2229 IBD cases (68% CD) were matched to 4338 controls. Only females with CD differed in final height from controls (z scores: -0.37 ±â€Š1.09 vs -0.25 ±â€Š1.06, respectively; P = 0.01), corresponding to a mean difference of 0.7 ±â€Š0.2 cm (all females) and 1.2 ±â€Š0.3 cm in females diagnosed <14 years (P = 0.02). Final height was reduced in both sexes according to adjusted mean height difference analysis (-0.43 cm, 95% confidence interval -0.85 to -0.02; P = 0.04). This difference increased in patients with CD who underwent abdominal surgery (-0.91 cm, 95% confidence interval -1.39 to -0.42; P = 0.01). The proportion of patients with CD achieving final height z scores of -1 and zero differed significantly from controls for both males (71.1% and 34.8% vs 79.1% and 43.0%, respectively; P < 0.001) and females (67.7% and 30.4% vs 79.6%, and 43.3%, respectively; P < 0.001). Patients treated with anti-tumor necrosis factor agents during growth potential had similar height improvement to other regimens. Predominantly, patients with CD were leaner, with a greater proportion of subjects with underweight, compared with controls. CONCLUSIONS: In pediatric-onset IBD, absolute final height was modestly affected by females with CD. Nevertheless, greater proportions of both sexes with early diagnosis of CD failed to achieve normal final height, compared with controls.