Interdisciplinary Team Meetings in Practice: an Observational Study of IDTs, Sensemaking Around Care Transitions, and Readmission Rates.

BACKGROUND: Interdisciplinary teams (IDTs) have been implemented to improve collaboration in hospital care, but their impact on patient outcomes, including readmissions, has been mixed. These mixed results might be rooted in differences in organization of IDT meetings between hospitals, as well as variation in IDT characteristics and function. We hypothesize that relationships between IDT members are an important team characteristic, influencing IDT function in terms of how members make sense of what is happening with patients, a process called sensemaking OBJECTIVE: (1) To describe how IDT meetings are organized in practice, (2) assess differences in IDT member relationships and sensemaking during patient discussions, and (3) explore their potential association with risk-stratified readmission rates (RSRRs). DESIGN: Observational, explanatory convergent mixed-methods case-comparison study of IDT meetings in 10 Veterans Affairs hospitals. PARTICIPANTS: Clinicians participating in IDTs and facility leadership. APPROACH: Three-person teams observed and recorded IDT meetings during week-long visits. We used observational data to characterize relationships and sensemaking during IDT patient discussions. To assess sensemaking, we used 2 frameworks that reflected sensemaking around each patient's situation generally, and around care transitions specifically. We examined the association between IDT relationships and sensemaking, and RSRRs. KEY RESULTS: We observed variability in IDT organization, characteristics, and function across 10 hospitals. This variability was greater between hospitals than between teams at the same hospital. Relationship characteristics and both types of sensemaking were all significantly, positively correlated. General sensemaking regarding each patient was significantly negatively associated with RSRR (- 0.65, p = 0.044). CONCLUSIONS: IDTs vary not only in how they are organized, but also in team relationships and sensemaking. Though our design does not allow for inferences of causation, these differences may be associated with hospital readmission rates.

Large-scale provocation studies identify maladaptive responses to ubiquitous aeroallergens as a correlate of severe allergic rhinoconjunctivitis and asthma.

BACKGROUND: Allergic asthma (AA) and allergic rhinoconjunctivitis (ARC) are common comorbid environmentally triggered diseases. We hypothesized that severe AA/ARC reflects a maladaptive or unrestrained response to ubiquitous aeroallergens. METHODS: We performed provocation studies wherein six separate cohorts of persons (total n = 217) with ARC, with or without AA, were challenged once or more with fixed concentrations of seasonal or perennial aeroallergens in an aeroallergen challenge chamber (ACC). RESULTS: Aeroallergen challenges elicited fully or partially restrained vs. unrestrained evoked symptom responsiveness, corresponding to the resilient and adaptive vs. maladaptive AA/ARC phenotypes, respectively. The maladaptive phenotype was evoked more commonly during challenge with a non-endemic versus endemic seasonal aeroallergen. In an AA cohort, symptom responses evoked after house dust mite (HDM) challenges vs. recorded in the natural environment were more accurate and precise predictors of asthma severity and control, lung function (FEV1), and mechanistic correlates of maladaptation. Correlates included elevated levels of peripheral blood CD4+ and CD8+ T-cells, eosinophils, and T-cell activation, as well as gene expression proxies for ineffectual epithelial injury/repair responses. Evoked symptom severity after HDM challenge appeared to be more closely related to levels of CD4+ and CD8+ T-cells than eosinophils, neutrophils, or HDM-specific IgE. CONCLUSIONS: Provocation studies support the concept that resilience, adaptation, and maladaptation to environmental disease triggers calibrate AA/ARC severity. Despite the ubiquity of aeroallergens, in response to these disease triggers in controlled settings (ie, ACC), most atopic persons manifest the resilient or adaptive phenotype. Thus, ARC/AA disease progression may reflect the failure to preserve the resilient or adaptive phenotype. The triangulation of CD8+ T-cell activation, airway epithelial injury/repair processes and maladaptation in mediating AA disease severity needs more investigation.

Repetitive aeroallergen challenges elucidate maladaptive epithelial and inflammatory traits that underpin allergic airway diseases.

BACKGROUND: Signifying the 2-compartments/1-disease paradigm, allergic rhinoconjunctivitis (ARC) and asthma (AA) are prevalent, comorbid conditions triggered by environmental factors (eg, house dust mites [HDMs]). However, despite the ubiquity of triggers, progression to severe ARC/AA is infrequent, suggesting either resilience or adaptation. OBJECTIVE: We sought to determine whether ARC/AA severity relates to maladaptive responses to disease triggers. METHODS: Adults with HDM-associated ARC were challenged repetitively with HDMs in an aeroallergen challenge chamber. Mechanistic traits associated with disease severity were identified. RESULTS: HDM challenges evoked maladaptive (persistently higher ARC symptoms), adaptive (progressive symptom reduction), and resilient (resistance to symptom induction) phenotypes. Symptom severity in the natural environment was an imprecise correlate of the phenotypes. Nasal airway traits, defined by low inflammation-effectual epithelial integrity, moderate inflammation-effectual epithelial integrity, and higher inflammation-ineffectual epithelial integrity, were hallmarks of the resilient, adaptive, and maladaptive evoked phenotypes, respectively. Highlighting a crosstalk mechanism, peripheral blood inflammatory tone calibrated these traits: ineffectual epithelial integrity associated with CD8+ T cells, whereas airway inflammation associated with both CD8+ T cells and eosinophils. Hallmark peripheral blood maladaptive traits were increased natural killer and CD8+ T cells, lower CD4+ mucosal-associated invariant T cells, and deficiencies along the TLR-IRF-IFN antiviral pathway. Maladaptive traits tracking HDM-associated ARC also contributed to AA risk and severity models. CONCLUSIONS: Repetitive challenges with HDMs revealed that maladaptation to disease triggers may underpin ARC/AA disease severity. A combinatorial therapeutic approach may involve reversal of loss-of-beneficial-function traits (ineffectual epithelial integrity, TLR-IRF-IFN deficiencies), mitigation of gain-of-adverse-function traits (inflammation), and blocking of a detrimental crosstalk between the peripheral blood and airway compartments.

Immunologic resilience and COVID-19 survival advantage.

BACKGROUND: The risk of severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) varies significantly among persons of similar age and is higher in males. Age-independent, sex-biased differences in susceptibility to severe COVID-19 may be ascribable to deficits in a sexually dimorphic protective attribute that we termed immunologic resilience (IR). OBJECTIVE: We sought to examine whether deficits in IR that antedate or are induced by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection independently predict COVID-19 mortality. METHODS: IR levels were quantified with 2 novel metrics: immune health grades (IHG-I [best] to IHG-IV) to gauge CD8+ and CD4+ T-cell count equilibrium, and blood gene expression signatures. IR metrics were examined in a prospective COVID-19 cohort (n = 522); primary outcome was 30-day mortality. Associations of IR metrics with outcomes in non-COVID-19 cohorts (n = 13,461) provided the framework for linking pre-COVID-19 IR status to IR during COVID-19, as well as to COVID-19 outcomes. RESULTS: IHG-I, tracking high-grade equilibrium between CD8+ and CD4+ T-cell counts, was the most common grade (73%) among healthy adults, particularly in females. SARS-CoV-2 infection was associated with underrepresentation of IHG-I (21%) versus overrepresentation (77%) of IHG-II or IHG-IV, especially in males versus females (P < .01). Presentation with IHG-I was associated with 88% lower mortality, after controlling for age and sex; reduced risk of hospitalization and respiratory failure; lower plasma IL-6 levels; rapid clearance of nasopharyngeal SARS-CoV-2 burden; and gene expression signatures correlating with survival that signify immunocompetence and controlled inflammation. In non-COVID-19 cohorts, IR-preserving metrics were associated with resistance to progressive influenza or HIV infection, as well as lower 9-year mortality in the Framingham Heart Study, especially in females. CONCLUSIONS: Preservation of immunocompetence with controlled inflammation during antigenic challenges is a hallmark of IR and associates with longevity and AIDS resistance. Independent of age, a male-biased proclivity to degrade IR before and/or during SARS-CoV-2 infection predisposes to severe COVID-19.

Mitigating the Effect of Pain Severity on Activity and Disability in Patients with Chronic Pain: The Crucial Context of Acceptance.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of pain severity on activity levels and physical disability in the context of high pain acceptance. We hypothesized that pain acceptance moderates the effect of pain severity on general activity and physical disability, such that at higher levels of acceptance, the deleterious effect of pain is mitigated. METHODS: Two hundred seven patients with chronic pain were recruited from three clinics in a large southwestern military treatment facility. Participants completed an anonymous self-report battery of standardized measures, including the Chronic Pain Acceptance Questionnaire, modified Oswestry Disability Index, and Pain Severity and General Activity subscales of the West Haven-Yale Multidimensional Pain Inventory. RESULTS: Chronic pain acceptance was found to significantly moderate relations between pain severity and general activity (b = 0.0061, t(198) = 2.75, P = 0.007, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.002 to 0.011) and pain severity and disability (b = 0.036, t(193) = -2.564, P = 0.011, 95% CI = -0.063 to -0.008). In the context of higher acceptance, the negative effect of pain on activity and disability appeared reduced. Conversely, in the context of low acceptance, the effect of pain on disability appeared accentuated at all levels of pain severity. CONCLUSIONS: Higher acceptance mitigated both activity level and disability in a military-affiliated clinical sample of patients with chronic pain. Results further establish the role of acceptance in relation to functioning in a unique sample of people with chronic pain. These findings have implications for understanding and enhancing functioning in chronic pain populations.

Enhancing Access to Psychiatric Care for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in Veterans with Mild Traumatic Brain Injury through Integrated Services.

(i) To describe an integrated model of psychiatric care for the treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in veterans with mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI). (ii) To evaluate access to and engagement in psychiatric care among veterans with comorbid PTSD and mTBI after implementation of an Integrated Care (IC) model compared to the previous Usual Care (UC). 100 randomly selected charts, 50 from each of UC and IC were reviewed in this non-concurrent case- control study. Polytrauma Network Site (PNS), an outpatient rehabilitation clinic, for veterans who suffered from brain and other traumatic injuries at an urban VA Polytrauma Rehabilitation Center. Veterans receiving treatment for mTBI symptoms by the rehabilitation team were referred for medication management for PTSD to UC and IC. Co-located access to psychiatric care for medication management as part of the interdisciplinary team with the goal of expediting rehabilitation and functional recovery. Number of consults for psychiatric care for medication management scheduled and completed within 30 days, and number of veterans offered, initiating, and completing evidence-based psychotherapies for PTSD in UC compared to IC. After implementation of IC there were significant improvements in timely completion of consults and patient engagement with a psychiatrist. There also were improvements in number of referrals, initiation, and completion of evidence-based psychotherapies for the treatment of PTSD. IC within the PNS shows promise as an effective care model for increasing access and engagement in care for veterans with comorbid PTSD/mTBI. Future research is needed to examine the utility of this model in other sites.

Service and Education: The Association Between Workload, Patient Complexity, and Teaching on Internal Medicine Inpatient Services.

BACKGROUND: Attending rounds remain the primary venue for formal teaching and learning at academic medical centers. Little is known about the effect of increasing clinical demands on teaching during attending rounds. OBJECTIVE: To explore the relationships among teaching time, teaching topics, clinical workload, and patient complexity variables. DESIGN: Observational study of medicine teaching teams from September 2008 through August 2014. Teams at two large teaching hospitals associated with a single medical school were observed for periods of 2 to 4 weeks. PARTICIPANTS: Twelve medicine teaching teams consisting of one attending, one second- or third-year resident, two to three interns, and two to three medical students. MAIN MEASURES: The study examined relationships between patient complexity (comorbidities, complications) and clinical workload variables (census, turnover) with educational measures. Teams were clustered based on clinical workload and patient complexity. Educational measures of interest were time spent teaching and number of teaching topics. Data were analyzed both at the daily observation level and across a given patient's admission. KEY RESULTS: We observed 12 teams, 1994 discussions (approximately 373 h of rounds) of 563 patients over 244 observation days. Teams clustered into three groups: low patient complexity/high clinical workload, average patient complexity/low clinical workload, and high patient complexity/high clinical workload. Modest associations for team, patient complexity, and clinical workload variables were noted with total time spent teaching (9.1% of the variance in time spent teaching during a patient's admission; F[8,549] = 6.90, p < 0.001) and number of teaching topics (16% of the variance in the total number of teaching topics during a patient's admission; F[8,548] = 14.18, p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Clinical workload and patient complexity characteristics among teams were only modestly associated with total teaching time and teaching topics.

Psychiatric consultation requests by inpatient medical teams: an observational study.

BACKGROUND: We describe the way psychiatric issues are addressed by inpatient medical teams through analysis of discussions of patients with behavioral health concerns and examination of teams' subsequent consultation practices. METHODS: We observed morning rounds for nine inpatient medical teams for approximately month-long periods, for a total of 1941 observations. We compared discussions of patients admitted for behavioral health related medical conditions between those who did and did not receive a psychiatric consultation, developing categories to describe factors influencing consultation or other management. RESULTS: Out of 536 patients, 40 (7.5%) received a psychiatry consult. Evaluation of a known concern (i.e., substance use, affective disorder, or suicidal ideation) was the most common reason for referral (41.7%). Requests for medication review were second (30.6%). Thirty patients with concomitant behavioral and medical health issues did not receive a psychiatry consult. Cirrhosis with active substance use was the most common medical diagnosis (15), followed by alcohol withdrawal (9). CONCLUSIONS: Four primary themes emerged from our data: positive identification of behavioral health issues by physicians, medication management as a primary reason for referral, patient preference in physician decision-making, and poor management of substance abuse. Our results identify two potential areas where skills-building for inpatient physicians could have a positive impact: management of medication and of substance abuse management.

Examining the Complexity of Patient-Outpatient Care Team Secure Message Communication: Qualitative Analysis.

BACKGROUND: The value of secure messaging in streamlining routine patient care activities is generally agreed upon. However, the differences in how patients use secure messaging, including for communicating both routine and nonroutine issues, and the implications of these differences in use are less well understood. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to examine secure messaging use to extend current knowledge of how this tool is being used in outpatient care settings and generate new research questions to improve our understanding of the role of secure messaging in the patient-provider communication toolbox. METHODS: We conducted an in-depth qualitative analysis of secure message threads in 12 US Department of Veterans Affairs outpatient clinics in south Texas. We analyzed 70 secure message threads with a total of 179 unique communications between patients and their outpatient teams for patterns in communication and secure message content. We used theories from information systems and complexity science in organizations to explain our observations. RESULTS: Analysis identified content relating to 3 main themes: (1) information management, (2) uncertainty management, and (3) patient safety and engagement risks and opportunities. Within these themes, we identified 2 subcategories of information management (information exchange and problem solving), 2 subcategories of uncertainty management (relationship building and sensemaking), and 3 subcategories of patient safety and engagement risks and opportunities (unresolved issues, tone mismatch, and urgent medical issues). Secure messages were most often used to communicate routine issues (eg, information exchange and problem solving). However, the presence of subcategories pertaining to nonroutine issues (eg, relationship building, sensemaking, tone mismatch, urgent issues, and unresolved issues) requires attention, particularly for improving opportunities in outpatient care settings using secure messaging. CONCLUSIONS: Patients use secure messaging for both routine and nonroutine purposes. Our analysis sheds light on potentially new patient safety concerns, particularly when using secure messaging to address some of the more complex issues patients are communicating with providers. Secure messaging is an asynchronous communication information system operated by patients and providers who are often characterized as having significant differences in knowledge, experience and expectations. As such, justification for its use beyond routine purposes is limited-yet this occurs, presenting a multifaceted dilemma for health care organizations. Secure messaging use in outpatient care settings may be more nuanced, and thus more challenging to understand and manage than previously recognized. New information system designs that acknowledge the use of secure messaging for nonroutine and complex health topics are needed.

A retrospective cohort study of comorbidity trajectories associated with traumatic brain injury in veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

OBJECTIVES: To identify and validate trajectories of comorbidity associated with traumatic brain injury in male and female Iraq and Afghanistan war Veterans (IAV). METHODS: Derivation and validation cohorts were compiled of IAV who entered the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) care and received 3 years of VA care between 2002-2011. Chronic disease and comorbidities associated with deployment including TBI were identified using diagnosis codes. A latent class analysis (LCA) of longitudinal comorbidity data was used to identify trajectories of comorbidity. RESULTS: LCA revealed five trajectories that were similar for women and men: (1) Healthy, (2) Chronic Disease, (3) Mental Health, (4) Pain and (5) Polytrauma Clinical Triad (PCT: pain, mental health and TBI). Two additional classes found in men were 6) Minor Chronic and 7) PCT with chronic disease. Among these gender-stratified trajectories, it was found that women were more likely to experience headache (Pain trajectory) and depression (Mental Health trajectory), while men were more likely to experience lower back pain (Pain trajectory) and substance use disorder (Mental Health trajectory). The probability of TBI was highest in the PCT-related trajectories, with significantly lower probabilities in other trajectories. CONCLUSIONS: It was found that TBI was most common in PCT-related trajectories, indicating that TBI is commonly comorbid with pain and mental health conditions for both men and women. The relatively young age of this cohort raises important questions regarding how disease burden, including the possibility of neurodegenerative sequelae, will accrue alongside normal age-related decline in individuals with TBI. Additional 'big data' methods and a longer observation period may allow the development of predictive models to identify individuals with TBI that are at-risk for adverse outcomes.

A national cohort study of the association between the polytrauma clinical triad and suicide-related behavior among US Veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan.

OBJECTIVES: We examined the association of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), traumatic brain injury, and chronic pain-the polytrauma clinical triad (PCT)-independently and with other conditions, with suicide-related behavior (SRB) risk among Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF; Afghanistan) and Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) veterans. METHODS: We used Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) administrative data to identify OEF and OIF veterans receiving VA care in fiscal years 2009-2011; we used International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification codes to characterize 211652 cohort members. Descriptive statistics were followed by multinomial logistic regression analyses predicting SRB. RESULTS: Co-occurrence of PCT conditions was associated with significant increase in suicide ideation risk (odds ratio [OR] = 1.9; 95% confidence interval [CI]=1.5, 2.4) or attempt and ideation (OR=2.6; 95% CI=1.5, 4.6), but did not exceed increased risk with PTSD alone (ideation: OR=2.3; 95% CI=2.0, 2.6; attempt: OR=2.0; 95% CI=1.4, 2.9; ideation and attempt: OR=1.8; 95% CI=1.2, 2.8). Ideation risk was significantly elevated when PTSD was comorbid with depression (OR=4.2; 95% CI=3.6, 4.8) or substance abuse (OR=4.7; 95% CI = 3.9, 5.6). CONCLUSIONS: Although PCT was a moderate SRB predictor, interactions among PCT conditions, particularly PTSD, and depression or substance abuse had larger risk increases.

Erosion of the healthy soldier effect in veterans of US military service in Iraq and Afghanistan.

BACKGROUND: This research explores the healthy soldier effect (HSE) - a lower mortality risk among veterans relative to the general population-in United States (US) veterans deployed in support of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan (OEF/OIF/OND). While a HSE has been affirmed in other OEF/OIF/OND populations, US veterans of OEF/OIF/OND have not been systematically studied. METHODS: Using US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) administrative data, we identified veterans who (1) had been deployed in support of OEF/OIF/OND between 2002 and 2011 and (2) were enrolled in the VA health care system. We divided the VA population into VA health care utilizers and non-utilizers. We obtained Department of Defense (DOD) administrative data on the OEF/OIF/OND population and obtained VA and DOD mortality data excluding combat deaths from the analyses. Indirect standardization was used to compare VA and DOD cohorts to the US population using total population at risk to compute the Standardized Mortality Ratio (SMR). A directly standardized relative risk (DSRR) was calculated to enable comparisons between cohorts. To compare VA enrollee mortality on military specific characteristics, we used a DOD population standard. RESULTS: The overall VA SMR of 2.8 (95% Confidence Interval [CI] 2.8-2.9), VA utilizer SMR of 3.2 (95% CI 3.1-3.3), VA non-utilizer SMR of 0.9 (95% CI 0.8-1.1), and DOD SMR of 1.5 (95% CI 1.4-1.5) provide no evidence of a HSE in any cohort relative to the US standard population. Relative to DOD, both the total VA population SMR of 2.1 (95% CI 2.0-2.2) and the SMR for VA utilizers of 2.3 (95% CI 2.3-2.4) indicate mortality twice what would be expected given DOD mortality rates. In contrast, the VA enrollees who had not used clinical services had 40% lower than expected mortality relative to DOD. CONCLUSIONS: No support was found for the HSE among US veterans of OEF/OIF/OND. These findings may be attributable to a number of factors including post-deployment risk-taking behavior, an abbreviated follow up period, and the nature of the OEF/OIF/OND conflict.

Complex comorbidity clusters in OEF/OIF veterans: the polytrauma clinical triad and beyond.

BACKGROUND: A growing body of research on US Veterans from Afghanistan and Iraq [Operations Enduring and Iraqi Freedom, and Operation New Dawn (OEF/OIF)] has described the polytrauma clinical triad (PCT): traumatic brain injury (TBI), posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and pain. Extant research has not explored comorbidity clusters in this population more broadly, particularly co-occurring chronic diseases. OBJECTIVES: The aim of the study was to identify comorbidity clusters among diagnoses of deployment-specific (TBI, PTSD, pain) and chronic (eg, hypertension, diabetes) conditions, and to examine the association of these clusters with health care utilization and adverse outcomes. RESEARCH DESIGN: This was a retrospective cohort study. SUBJECTS: The cohort comprised OEF/OIF Veterans who received care in the Veterans Health Administration in fiscal years (FY) 2008-2010. MEASURES: We identified comorbidity using validated ICD-9-CM code-based algorithms and FY08-09 data, followed by which we applied latent class analysis to identify the most statistically distinct and clinically meaningful patterns of comorbidity. We examined the association of these clusters with process measures/outcomes using logistic regression to correlate medication use, acute health care utilization, and adverse outcomes in FY10. RESULTS: In this cohort (N=191,797), we found 6 comorbidity clusters. Cluster 1: PCT+Chronic Disease (5%); Cluster 2: PCT (9%); Cluster 3: Mental Health+Substance Abuse (24%); Cluster 4: Sleep, Amputation, Chronic Disease (4%); Cluster 5: Pain, Moderate PTSD (6%); and Cluster 6: Relatively Healthy (53%). Subsequent health care utilization patterns and adverse events were consistent with disease patterns. CONCLUSIONS: These comorbidity clusters extend beyond the PCT and may be used as a foundation to examine coordination/quality of care and outcomes for OEF/OIF Veterans with different patterns of comorbidity.

Relationship quality and patient-assessed quality of care in VA primary care clinics: development and validation of the work relationships scale.

PURPOSE: Efforts to better understand the impact of clinic member relationships on care quality in primary care clinics have been limited by the absence of a validated instrument to assess these relationships. The purpose of this study was to develop and validate a scale assessing relationships within primary care clinics. METHODS: The Work Relationships Scale (WRS) was developed and administered as part of a survey of learning and relationships among 17 Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) primary care clinics. A Rasch partial-credit model and principal components analysis were used to evaluate item performance, select the final items for inclusion, and establish unidimensionality for the WRS. The WRS was then validated against semistructured clinic member interviews and VA Survey of Healthcare Experiences of Patients (SHEP) data. RESULTS: Four hundred fifty-seven clinicians and staff completed the clinic survey, and 247 participated in semistructured interviews. WRS scores were significantly associated with clinic-level reporting for 2 SHEP variables: overall rating of personal doctor/nurse (r(2) =0.43, P <.01) and overall rating of health care (r(2)= 0.25, P <.05). Interview data describing relationship characteristics were consistent with variability in WRS scores across low-scoring and high-scoring clinics. CONCLUSIONS: The WRS shows promising validity as a measure assessing the quality of relationships in primary care settings; moreover, primary care clinics with lower WRS scores received poorer patient quality ratings for both individual clinicians and overall health care. Relationships play an important role in shaping care delivery and should be assessed as part of efforts to improve patient care within primary care settings.

Immune resilience despite inflammatory stress promotes longevity and favorable health outcomes including resistance to infection.

Some people remain healthier throughout life than others but the underlying reasons are poorly understood. Here we hypothesize this advantage is attributable in part to optimal immune resilience (IR), defined as the capacity to preserve and/or rapidly restore immune functions that promote disease resistance (immunocompetence) and control inflammation in infectious diseases as well as other causes of inflammatory stress. We gauge IR levels with two distinct peripheral blood metrics that quantify the balance between (i) CD8+ and CD4+ T-cell levels and (ii) gene expression signatures tracking longevity-associated immunocompetence and mortality-associated inflammation. Profiles of IR metrics in ~48,500 individuals collectively indicate that some persons resist degradation of IR both during aging and when challenged with varied inflammatory stressors. With this resistance, preservation of optimal IR tracked (i) a lower risk of HIV acquisition, AIDS development, symptomatic influenza infection, and recurrent skin cancer; (ii) survival during COVID-19 and sepsis; and (iii) longevity. IR degradation is potentially reversible by decreasing inflammatory stress. Overall, we show that optimal IR is a trait observed across the age spectrum, more common in females, and aligned with a specific immunocompetence-inflammation balance linked to favorable immunity-dependent health outcomes. IR metrics and mechanisms have utility both as biomarkers for measuring immune health and for improving health outcomes.

Engaging Veterans, caregivers, and system stakeholders to improve VA home and community-based services.

OBJECTIVE: To understand Veterans', caregivers', and stakeholders' perceptions of home-based and caregiver support services and their suggestions for improvement to better align services with needs. DATA SOURCES: We identified Veterans and caregivers at four EDCoE sites using the VA high-need, high-risk list, representing Veterans who qualify for home-based primary care. We randomly selected Veterans and their caregivers, stratifying by age. We also identified leaders and clinicians involved in clinical service delivery. STUDY DESIGN: Between February and November 2019, we conducted in-person and telephone interviews and focus groups using semi-structured questions tailored to each group, analyzing them through a rapid qualitative analysis approach and providing real-time feedback to operational partners. DATA COLLECTION: Thirty-four Veterans, 24 caregivers, and 39 leaders and clinicians participated. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Respondents identified key categories of experience that could be monitored and improved, including navigating an increasingly complex system, coordinating and communicating across services, and unmet household and financial needs. Veterans and caregivers described quality in terms of reliability, timeliness, standardization, and accountability. Summaries were created to contextualize results and to highlight gaps and opportunities for new measures and policy development. CONCLUSIONS: Collaborating with Veterans, caregivers, and stakeholders enables us to understand their daily experiences and to develop meaningful approaches to evaluating services that incorporate their perspectives. Providing regular, actionable feedback to operational partners informs policy and operational initiatives, such as the scope of services and infrastructure for system navigation.

Screening and Recognition of Chronic Kidney Disease in VA Health Care System Primary Care Clinics.

Background: The successful implementation of interventions targeted to improve kidney health requires early identification of CKD which involves screening at-risk populations as well as recognizing CKD. We aim to determine CKD screening and recognition rates, factors associated with these rates, and evaluate the effect of CKD awareness on delivery of care. Methods: A retrospective cohort study of veterans enrolled with Veterans Integrated Service Network 17 who had hypertension (HTN) and/or diabetes (DM) and were seen at least twice in primary care clinics within 18 months. The final cohort of 270,170 patients (52% HTN, 5% DM, and 44% both) was examined for serum creatinine/eGFR, urine protein/albumin, International Classification of Diseases (ICD) codes for CKD, and nephrology referral. CKD was defined as eGFR <60 ml/min per 1.73 m2 and/or urine albumin-creatinine ratio (uACR) >30 mg/g at least twice 90 days apart. Clinical covariates, HTN control, and prescription rates of renal prudent medications and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) were assessed. Results: Overall, 254,831 (94%) patients had either eGFR, urine protein/albumin, or both. However, screening for protein/albuminuria was low (56%), particularly in patients with isolated HTN (35%). Of 254,831 patients, 92,900 (36%) had laboratory evidence of CKD and, of these, 40,586 (44%) were recognized to have CKD by ICD code and/or nephrology referral. CKD due to presence of uACR criteria alone had the lowest recognition (19%) as compared with CKD due to eGFR criteria (44%) or both (67%). Frequency of emergency room visits, hospitalization, and cardiac and endovascular procedures requiring contrast had the highest odds and races other than white had the lower odds of screening. In contrast, CKD recognition was high in races other than white and increased with worsening eGFR and increasing uACR. In screened and recognized CKD, prescription was higher for angiotensin inhibitors, statins, and diuretics, and was lower for NSAIDs. Conclusions: Although overall CKD screening rate was high, screening of protein/albuminuria in isolated HTN and overall recognition of CKD was low in at-risk veterans. Increased recognition was associated with a favorable prescription rate for renal prudent medications.

Association of hydrophilic versus lipophilic angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor use on pneumonia-related mortality.

BACKGROUND: Recent studies suggest that angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors may have beneficial effects for patients with or at risk for pneumonia. However, other studies have not found a survival benefit. Other research suggests that ACE inhibitors that are lipophilic may be superior to hydrophilic ACE inhibitors in terms of tissue penetration and inhibition of ACE. Our aim was to examine the associations of prior outpatient use of lipophilic and hydrophilic ACE inhibitors on mortality for patients hospitalized with community-acquired pneumonia. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study of subjects hospitalized with pneumonia at 2 tertiary teaching hospitals. We examined whether the prior outpatient use of hydrophilic or lipophilic ACE inhibitors was associated with 30-day mortality in a logistic regression analysis that adjusted for potential confounders using a propensity score. RESULTS: Data were abstracted on 787 subjects at the 2 hospitals. In our cohort, 24% (n=186) were on ACE inhibitors at presentation: 111 lipophilic and 74 hydrophilic. Mortality was 9.2% at 30 days. In the multivariable model, lipophilic ACE inhibitor use (odds ratio 0.3, 95% confidence interval 0.1-0.8), but not hydrophilic ACE inhibitor use (0.7, 0.3-1.7), was significantly associated with 30-day mortality. CONCLUSIONS: Our study suggests that future research of ACE inhibitors in pneumonia must describe the specific medications received. Confirmatory studies are needed, as well as research to determine the mechanism(s) of this protective effect.

Systematic review of the chronic care model in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease prevention and management.

BACKGROUND: Implementation of the chronic care model (CCM) has been shown to be an effective preventative strategy to improve outcomes in diabetes mellitus, depression, and congestive heart failure, but data are lacking regarding the effectiveness of this model in preventing complications in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. METHODS: We searched the MEDLINE, CINAHL, and Cochrane databases from inception to August 2005 and included English-language articles that enrolled adults with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and (1) contained intervention(s) with CCM component(s), (2) included a comparison group or measures at 2 points (before/after), and (3) had relevant outcomes. Two reviewers independently extracted data. RESULTS: Symptoms, quality of life, lung function, and functional status were not significantly different between the intervention and control groups. However, pooled relative risks (95% confidence intervals) for emergency/unscheduled visits and hospitalizations for the group that received at least 2 CCM components were 0.58 (0.42-0.79) and 0.78 (0.66-0.94), respectively. The weighted mean difference (95% confidence interval) for hospital stay was -2.51 (-3.40 to -1.61) days shorter for the group that received 2 or more components. There were no significant differences for those receiving only 1 CCM component. CONCLUSIONS: Limited published data exist evaluating the efficacy of CCM components in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease management. However, pooled data demonstrated that patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease who received interventions with 2 or more CCM components had lower rates of hospitalizations and emergency/unscheduled visits and a shorter length of stay compared with control groups. The results of this review highlight the need for well-designed trials in this population.