Overall Satisfaction with Cancer Care Among Sexual and Gender Minority People and Their Utilization of Identity-Tailored Health Education Materials.

Purpose: This study was conducted to understand whether health education materials made specifically for members of sexual and gender minority (SGM) groups play a pivotal role in SGM cancer survivors' care satisfaction and experiences. Methods: We identified 2250 SGM cancer survivors who completed the "OUT: National Cancer Survey," conducted by the National LGBT Cancer Network in 2020-2021, and classified participants by their self-reported satisfaction with overall cancer care. We examined care satisfaction in relation to use of SGM-tailored health education resources and factors surrounding their SGM identities, which may influence their satisfaction, including feelings of safety with care teams. Results: Regardless of satisfaction with overall care, substantial proportions of survivors reported lacking vital health education resources specific to their SGM identities in areas of mental health (69%), physical activity (91%), tobacco use cessation (89%), and alcohol consumption (86%), despite attributing value to these materials. Contextualizing SGM survivor satisfaction with care, it was notable that among SGM survivors who felt safe with members of their care team knowing their SGM identity, only 3% were less than satisfied with their overall cancer care, compared to 38% who felt unsafe. Conclusion: SGM survivors value tailored information and health education resources that incorporate their intersectional identities. More research must be done to elucidate why SGM survivors do not receive these materials, while creating spaces where they feel safe receiving care. Increased delivery of SGM-tailored materials and prioritization of SGM safety in health care may have implications for overall cancer care satisfaction among SGM survivors.

Association of spatial proximity to fixed-site syringe services programs with HCV serostatus and injection equipment sharing practices among people who inject drugs in rural New England, United States.

BACKGROUND: Hepatitis C virus (HCV) disproportionately affects rural communities, where health services are geographically dispersed. It remains unknown whether proximity to a syringe services program (SSP) is associated with HCV infection among rural people who inject drugs (PWID). METHODS: Data are from a cross-sectional sample of adults who reported injecting drugs in the past 30 days recruited from rural counties in New Hampshire, Vermont, and Massachusetts (2018-2019). We calculated the road network distance between each participant's address and the nearest fixed-site SSP, categorized as ≤ 1 mile, 1-3 miles, 3-10 miles, and > 10 miles. Staff performed HCV antibody tests and a survey assessed past 30-day injection equipment sharing practices: borrowing used syringes, borrowing other used injection equipment, and backloading. Mixed effects modified Poisson regression estimated prevalence ratios (aPR) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI). Analyses were also stratified by means of transportation. RESULTS: Among 330 PWID, 25% lived ≤ 1 mile of the nearest SSP, 17% lived 1-3 miles of an SSP, 12% lived 3-10 miles of an SSP, and 46% lived > 10 miles from an SSP. In multivariable models, compared to PWID who lived within 1 mile of an SSP, those who lived 3 to 10 miles away had a higher prevalence of HCV seropositivity (aPR: 1.25, 95% CI 1.06-1.46), borrowing other used injection equipment (aPR: 1.23, 95% CI 1.04-1.46), and backloading (aPR: 1.48, 95% CI 1.17-1.88). Similar results were observed for PWID living > 10 miles from an SSP: aPR [HCV]: 1.19, 95% CI 1.01-1.40; aPR [borrowing other used equipment]:1.45, 95% CI 1.29-1.63; and aPR [backloading]: 1.59, 95% CI 1.13-2.24. Associations between living 1 to 3 miles of an SSP and each outcome did not reach statistical significance. When stratified by means of transportation, associations between distance to SSP and each outcome (except borrowing other used injection equipment) were only observed among PWID who traveled by other means (versus traveled by automobile). CONCLUSIONS: Among PWID in rural New England, living farther from a fixed-site SSP was associated with a higher prevalence of HCV seropositivity, borrowing other used injection equipment, and backloading, reinforcing the need to increase SSP accessibility in rural areas. Means of transportation may modify this relationship.

Eating Disorder Specialist Views on Gender Competency and Education for Treating Gender Minority Patients.

Studies exploring patient experience with eating disorder specialists have reported poor gender competency among clinicians, as revealed through patient-clinician interactions. Through interviews with eating disorder specialists, the authors sought to (1) clarify how and why current practice and clinical training may not meet the needs of transgender and gender-diverse patients, (2) assess where and how clinicians received education on gender identity, and (3) how changes can be made to meet educational and patient needs. Specialists were recruited, and semi-structured interviews were conducted. Narratives were coded by two independent coders, using thematic analysis. Four key themes emerged from 19 completed interviews: Training and education received, importance of receiving training or education, self-education, and improvements recommended by clinicians. Only ~ 16% (n = 3) of clinicians reported sufficient training both in graduate school and through their place of employment. Most with sufficient education received it at their clinic/practice. Despite lacking formal training, all clinicians engaged in some form of self-education on gender. These findings support the need for standardized and comprehensive graduate curricula, in-service training, and continuing education requirements. Advocacy is required to encourage accrediting organizations to mandate training on gender among mental health clinicians.

Self- and staff-reported pain in relation to contextual isolation in long-term nursing home residents with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias.

We evaluated the degree to which contextual isolation in nursing home residents with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias is associated with documented pain using the Minimum Data Set 3.0, a comprehensive resident assessment required of all nursing home residents in the United States. Contextual isolation was defined as having a socially salient characteristic (demographics, habits and interests, and clinical and care dimensions) shared by fewer than 20% of other residents in the same nursing home. Thirteen percent were contextually isolated on multiple characteristics. Among residents self-reporting pain, residents contextually isolated with respect to multiple characteristics were 8% more likely (95% confidence interval: 7% to 9%) to have pain relative to residents who were not contextually isolated on any characteristics. Long-stay nursing home residents with ADRD who live in settings where they were contextually isolated were more likely to have pain relative to those without contextually isolation on any characteristic.

Cancer survivors' health behaviors and outcomes: a population-based study of sexual and gender minorities.

BACKGROUND: Most case-control studies compare cancer survivors with general population controls without considering sexual orientation or gender identity. This case-control analysis compared health risk behaviors and health outcomes among sexual and gender minority cancer survivors to those of matched sexual and gender minority participants without cancer (controls). METHODS: Using data from the 2014-2021 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, a population-based sample of 4507 cancer survivors who self-identified as transgender, gay men, bisexual men, lesbian women, or bisexual women were 1:1 propensity score matched, using age at survey, race and ethnicity, marital status, education, access to health care, and US census region. Within each sexual and gender minority group, behaviors and outcomes were compared between survivors and participants without cancer, and survivors' odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals calculated. RESULTS: Gay male survivors had higher odds of depression, poor mental health, limited usual activities, difficulty concentrating, and fair or poor health. Few differences were observed between bisexual male survivors and participants without cancer. Compared with controls, lesbian female survivors had greater odds of overweight-obese status, depression, poor physical health, and fair or poor health. Bisexual female survivors had the highest rates of current smoking, depression, poor mental health, and difficulty concentrating across all sexual and gender minority groups. Statistically significantly different from transgender controls, transgender survivors had greater odds of heavy alcohol use, physical inactivity, and fair or poor health. CONCLUSIONS: This analysis revealed an urgent need to address the high prevalence of engaging in multiple health risk behaviors and not following guidelines to avoid second cancers, additional adverse outcomes, and cancer recurrences among sexual and gender minority cancer survivors.

Provider perceptions of barriers and facilitators to care in eating disorder treatment for transgender and gender diverse patients: a qualitative study.

BACKGROUND: The prevalence of eating disorders is higher in transgender and non-binary compared to cisgender people. Gender diverse people who seek eating disorder treatment often report struggling to find affirming and inclusive treatment from healthcare clinicians. We sought to understand eating disorder care clinicians' perceptions of facilitators of and barriers to effective eating disorder treatment for transgender and gender diverse patients. METHODS: In 2022, nineteen US-based licensed mental health clinicians who specialized in eating disorder treatment participated in semi-structured interviews. We used inductive thematic analysis to identify themes around perceptions and knowledge of facilitators and barriers to care for transgender and gender diverse patients diagnosed with eating disorders. RESULTS: Two broad themes were identified: (1) factors affecting access to care; and (2) factors affecting care while in treatment. Within the first theme, the following subthemes were found: stigmatization, family support, financial factors, gendered clinics, scarcity of gender-competent care, and religious communities. Within the second theme, prominent subthemes included discrimination and microaggressions, provider lived experience and education, other patients and parents, institutions of higher education, family-centered care, gendered-centered care, and traditional therapeutic techniques. CONCLUSION: Many barriers and facilitators have potential to be improved upon, especially those caused by clinicians' lack of knowledge or attitudes towards gender minority patients in treatment. Future research is needed to identify how provider-driven barriers manifest and how they can be improved upon to better patient care experiences.

Eating disorders are more common among transgender and non-binary compared to cisgender people. Despite this, gender diverse people who seek eating disorder treatment often report struggling to find affirming and inclusive care. We interviewed nineteen US-based licensed mental health clinicians who specialized in eating disorder treatment to learn perceptions and knowledge of facilitators and barriers to care for transgender and gender diverse patients diagnosed with eating disorders. Factors affecting access to care included stigmatization, family support, financial factors, gendered clinics, scarcity of gender-competent care, and religious communities. Factors affecting care while in treatment included discrimination and microaggressions, provider lived experience and education, other patients and parents, institutions of higher education, family-centered care, gendered-centered care, and traditional therapeutic techniques. This research identified barriers and facilitators with the potential for improvement, especially those caused by clinician's lack of knowledge or attitudes towards gender minority patients in treatment.

HCV serostatus and injection sharing practices among those who obtain syringes from pharmacies and directly and indirectly from syringe services programs in rural New England.

BACKGROUND: Among people who inject drugs (PWID), obtaining syringes via syringe services programs (SSPs) and pharmacies reduces injection sharing practices associated with hepatitis C virus (HCV). Whether indirect use of SSPs via secondary exchange confers a similar benefit remains unknown, particularly in rural settings. We compared HCV serostatus and injection sharing practices by primary syringe source among a sample of rural PWID. METHODS: Data are from a cross-sectional study of adults who use drugs recruited from eleven rural counties in New Hampshire, Vermont, and Massachusetts using respondent-driven sampling (2018-2019). Study staff performed HCV antibody testing. An audio computer-assisted self-interview assessed sociodemographic characteristics, past 30-day injection practices, and past 30-day primary syringe source. Primary syringe source was classified as direct SSP, pharmacy, indirect SSP (secondary exchange), or "other" (friend/acquaintance, street seller, partner/relative, found them). Mixed effects modified Poisson models assessed the association of primary syringe source with HCV seroprevalence and injection sharing practices. RESULTS: Among 397 PWID, the most common primary syringe source was "other" (33%), then pharmacies (27%), SSPs (22%), and secondary exchange (18%). In multivariable models, compared with those obtaining most syringes from "other" sources, those obtaining most syringes from pharmacies had a lower HCV seroprevalence [adjusted prevalence ratio (APR):0.85, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.73-0.9985]; however, the upper bound of the 95% CI was close to 1.0. Compared with those obtaining most syringes from other sources, PWID obtaining most syringes directly from SSPs or pharmacies were less likely to report borrowing used syringes [APR(SSP):0.60, 95% CI 0.43-0.85 and APR(Pharmacies):0.70, 95% CI 0.52-0.93], borrowing used injection equipment [APR(SSP):0.59, 95% CI 0.50-0.69 and APR (Pharmacies):0.81, 95% CI 0.68-0.98], and backloading [APR(SSP):0.65, 95% CI 0.48-0.88 and APR(Pharmacies):0.78, 95% CI 0.67-0.91]. Potential inverse associations between obtaining most syringes via secondary exchange and injection sharing practices did not reach the threshold for statistical significance. CONCLUSIONS: PWID in rural New England largely relied on informal syringe sources (i.e., secondary exchange or sources besides SSPs/pharmacies). Those obtaining most syringes from an SSP or pharmacy were less likely to share injection equipment/syringes and had a lower HCV seroprevalence, which suggests using these sources reduces the risk of new HCV infections or serves as proxy for past injection behavior.

Differences in Hospital, Emergency Room and Outpatient Visits Among Adults With and Without Monoclonal Gammopathy of Undetermined Significance.

INTRODUCTION: This study evaluated the impact of receiving a monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS) diagnosis on healthcare utilization from patients at a community-based multispecialty provider organization. METHODS: A cohort of patients with MGUS (n = 429) were matched on sex, age, and length of enrollment to a cohort of patients without MGUS (n = 1286). Healthcare utilization was assessed: 1-12 months before, 1 month before and after, and 1-12 months after diagnosis/index date. Multivariable conditional Poisson models compared change in utilization of each service in patients with and without MGUS. RESULTS: During the 2 months around diagnosis/index date, the rates of emergency room, hospital and outpatient visits were higher for patients with MGUS than patients without MGUS. In the year before MGUS diagnosis, the association was still elevated, although attenuated. CONCLUSION: Understanding the care of MGUS patients is important given that multiple myeloma patients with a pre-existing MGUS diagnosis may have a better prognosis.

Social Connectedness among Long-Stay Nursing Home Residents with Alzheimer's and Dementia: Exploring Individual and Facility-Level Variation.

INTRODUCTION: This study sought to explore individual and facility-level variation in social connectedness among long-stay nursing home residents with Alzheimer's or other dementias (ADRD). METHODS: We identified 721,074 long-stay residents with ADRD using 2016 Minimum Data Set 3.0 data. Social connectedness was defined using the social connectedness index (SCI) (high: SCI = 5, lower: 0 < SCI ≤ 4). Adjusted odds ratios (aOR) provided estimates of the associations between resident-level and facility-level characteristics, and high SCI was derived from logistic models. RESULTS: The SCI Cronbach's alpha was 0.69; 78.6% had high SCI scores. Men were less likely than women to have higher SCI scores (aOR = 0.97; 95% CI: 0.97-0.98). Increasing age was associated with higher SCI scores (e.g., aOR [85-94 vs. 40-64 years]: 1.07; 95% CI: 1.06-1.07). Those with moderate cognitive impairment (aOR: 0.87) and severe cognitive impairment (aOR: 0.85) had reduced odds of SCI = 5 relative to those with mild/intact cognitive function. Residents living in homes with special care dementia units and with higher percentage of residents with dementia had decreased odds of high social connectedness. DISCUSSION/CONCLUSION: Understanding resident- and nursing home-level variation in social connectedness may be important for targeting interventions that reduce isolation among residents with ADRD.

Prevalence of diagnosed eating disorders in US transgender adults and youth in insurance claims.

OBJECTIVE: We estimated the prevalence of diagnosed eating disorders, overall and by select demographics, among commercially insured individuals identified as transgender in a national claims database. METHODS: From the 2018 IBM® MarketScan® Commercial Database, there were 10,415 people identifiable as transgender based on International Classification of Disease (ICD-10) codes and procedure codes, specific to gender-affirming care, from inpatient and outpatient claims. Eating disorders were identified from ICD-10 codes and included anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge eating disorder, eating disorder not otherwise specified, avoidant restrictive feeding and intake disorder, and other specified feeding and eating disorders. We estimated the prevalence of specific eating disorders diagnoses by selecting patient characteristics. RESULTS: Of individuals receiving some form of gender-affirming care, 2.43% (95% confidence interval: 2.14%-2.74%) were diagnosed with an eating disorder: 0.84% anorexia nervosa, 0.36% bulimia nervosa, 0.36% binge eating disorder, 0.15% avoidant restrictive feeding and intake disorder, 0.41% other specified feeding and eating disorders, and 1.37% with an unspecified eating disorder. Among transgender-identifiable patients aged 12-15 years, 5.60% had an eating disorder diagnosis, whereas 0.52% had an eating disorder diagnosis in patients aged 45-64 years. DISCUSSION: In patients identifiable as transgender, with receipt of gender-affirming care, the prevalence of diagnosed eating disorders was low compared to extant self-reported data for eating disorder diagnosis in transgender individuals. Among this population, eating disorders were highest in adolescents and young adults. Clinically verified prevalence estimates for eating disorder diagnosis in transgender people with a history of gender-affirming care warrant further investigation. PUBLIC SIGNIFICANCE: The present study aims to provide clinically validated, contemporary prevalence estimates for diagnosed eating disorders among a medically affirmed population of transgender adults and children in the United States. We report low prevalence of having any eating disorder relative to prevalence estimates reported in prior literature without clinical validation. These findings may be explained by access to affirming care and medical care generally.

Complicating Narratives of Sexual Minority Mental Health: An Intersectional Analysis of Frequent Mental Distress at the Intersection of Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, and Race/Ethnicity.

Purpose: Research indicates that sexual minority populations experience mental health inequities. However, few studies have examined mental health outcomes in sexual minority populations while including intersecting dimensions of social identity. This study had two objectives: (1) to quantify the prevalence of frequent mental distress among U.S. adults across intersecting social identity categories and (2) to evaluate the contribution of intersectional interactions to observed inequities. Methods: Using data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System 2014-2019 (N = 1,024,261), we performed an intersectional multilevel analysis of individual heterogeneity and discriminatory accuracy (I-MAIHDA). Participants were nested in 45 intersectional groups defined by combining 3 sexual orientation (gay/lesbian, bisexual, and heterosexual), 5 gender identity (transgender women, transgender men, gender nonconforming, cisgender women, and cisgender men), and 3 racial/ethnic (non-Hispanic Black, Hispanic/Latinx, and non-Hispanic White) categories. We estimated the predicted probability of frequent mental distress for each stratum. We then calculated the variance partition coefficient (VPC) and proportional change in variance (PCV). Results: We found that multiply marginalized groups tended to have the highest prevalence of frequent mental distress. Groups with racial/ethnic minority individuals were equally represented among low- and high-prevalence groups. The VPC indicated that slightly over 10% of observed variance in prevalence was attributable to group-level differences, while the PCV revealed that a small but meaningful amount of observed heterogeneity in prevalence was due to intersectional interactions between the dimensions of social identity. Conclusion: I-MAIHDA is a promising method for examining the patterning of sexual orientation-based mental health inequities at the population level.

Intersectionality and cancer survivorship: Sexual orientation and racial/ethnic differences in physical and mental health outcomes among female and male cancer survivors.

BACKGROUND: Because of concerns about sexual minorities' poor cancer survivorship, this study compared cancer survivors' health outcomes in relation to multiple intersecting social positions, namely gender, sexual orientation, and race/ethnicity. METHODS: This secondary data analysis used 2014-2019 Behavior Risk Factor Surveillance Survey data. The survey respondents consisted of 40,482 heterosexual and sexual minority men and 69,302 heterosexual and sexual minority women who identified as White, Black, or Hispanic. Logistic regression models compared White, Black, and Hispanic male and female cancer survivors' health status, depression, and health-related quality of life by sexual orientation. Models were adjusted for sociodemographic characteristics and access to care. RESULTS: Mental health findings showed consistency, with sexual minority male and female cancer survivors having 2 to 3 times greater odds of depression and/or poor mental health among White, Black, and Hispanic survivors. Among White women, sexual minorities reported greater odds of fair or poor health, poor physical health, and poor activity days, whereas White sexual minority men showed similar odds in comparison with their heterosexual counterparts. Among Black and Hispanic sexual minority men and women, differences in the odds of fair or poor health, poor physical health, and poor activity days in comparison with their heterosexual counterparts were mostly explained by sociodemographic and access-to-care factors. CONCLUSIONS: Physical and mental health outcomes vary in relation to sexual orientation and race/ethnicity among both female and male cancer survivors. Clinicians, researchers, and health care administrators must better understand and address the unique needs of cancer survivors in relation to multiple axes of social inequality to advance cancer equity.

Prevalence and treatment of neuropathic pain diagnoses among U.S. nursing home residents.

ABSTRACT: Neuropathic pain is a common condition experienced by older adults. Prevalence estimates of neuropathic pain and descriptive data of pharmacologic management among nursing home residents are unavailable. We estimated the prevalence of neuropathic pain diagnoses and described the use of pain medications among nursing home residents with possible neuropathic pain. Using the Minimum Data Set 3.0 linked to Medicare claims for residents living in a nursing home on November 30, 2016, we included 473,815 residents. ICD-10 codes were used to identify neuropathic pain diagnoses. Identification of prescription analgesics/adjuvants was based on claims for the supply of medications that overlapped with the index date over a 3-month look-back period. The prevalence of neuropathic pain was 14.6%. Among those with neuropathic pain, 19.7% had diabetic neuropathy, 27.3% had back and neck pain with neuropathic involvement, and 25.1% had hereditary or idiopathic neuropathy. Among residents with neuropathic pain, 49.9% received anticonvulsants, 28.6% received antidepressants, 19.0% received opioids, and 28.2% had no claims for analgesics or adjuvants. Resident characteristics associated with lack of medications included advanced age, dependency in activities of daily living, cognitive impairment, and diagnoses of comorbid conditions. A diagnosis of neuropathic pain is common among nursing home residents, yet many lack pharmacologic treatment for their pain. Future epidemiologic studies can help develop a more standard approach to identifying and managing neuropathic pain among nursing home residents.

Pain Behaviors and Pharmacological Pain Management Among Newly Admitted Nursing Home Residents.

BACKGROUND: Clinicians may place more weight on vocal complaints of pain than the other pain behaviors when making decisions about pain management. OBJECTIVES: We examined the association between documented pain behaviors and pharmacological pain management among nursing home residents. METHODS: We included 447,684 residents unable to self-report pain, with staff-documented pain behaviors (vocal, nonverbal, facial expressions, protective behaviors) and pharmacological pain management documented on the 2010-2016 Minimum Data Set 3.0. The outcome was no pharmacological pain medications, as needed only (pro re nata [PRN]), as scheduled only, or as scheduled with PRN medications. We estimated adjusted odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals from multinomial logistic models. RESULTS: Relative to residents with vocal complaints only, those with one pain behavior documented (i.e., nonverbal, facial, or protective behavior) were more likely to lack pain medication versus scheduled and PRN medications. Residents with multiple pain behaviors documented were least likely to have no treatment relative to scheduled with PRN medications, PRN only, or scheduled only pain medication regimens. DISCUSSION: The type and number of pain behaviors observed are associated with pharmacological pain management regimen. Improving staff recognition of pain among residents unable to self-report is warranted in nursing homes.

Sources of Missing Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Data in the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System.

INTRODUCTION: This paper describes the sources, magnitude, and correlates of missing data in the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity module. METHODS: Missing data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity module fielded from 2014 to 2019 were ascribed to 4 sources: the optional nature of the Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity module, out-of-state cell phone respondents, interview termination, and item nonresponse. The prevalence of missingness from these 4 sources was examined in relation to sociodemographic factors and survey process factors. Data were analyzed in 2018-2020. RESULTS: From 2014 to 2019, of 2,698,738 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System respondents, 1,330,025 (44.8%, weighted) were in states that did not administer the Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity module. Among 723,301 cell phone interviews in states administering the module, 12.5% (weighted) were out of state. Among 1,316,174 otherwise potential respondents, 9.4% (weighted) terminated the interview before Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity module administration. Among 1,205,177 administered the module, item-level missingness was 3.4% for sexual orientation and 1.3% for gender identity. Correlates of missingness varied considerably at each stage. CONCLUSIONS: Missing the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity data is much more prevalent than item nonresponse alone would suggest. Analytic techniques that consider only item nonresponse, such as complete case analysis, risk producing biased findings. Including the Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity module in the required core demographics section is the only feasible method to reduce the amount and complexity of missing data.

Differences in survival among multiple myeloma patients in the United States SEER population by neighborhood socioeconomic status and race/ethnicity.

PURPOSE: We examined the combined influences of race/ethnicity and neighborhood socioeconomic status (SES) on long-term survival among patients with multiple myeloma (MM). METHODS: Data from the 2000-2015 NCI Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Program (SEER-18) were used. Census tract-level SES index was assessed in tertiles (low, medium, high SES). Competing-risk modeling was used to estimate sub-hazard ratios (SHR) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for SES tertile adjusted for sex and age at diagnosis and stratified by race/ethnicity. RESULTS: Overall, living in a low SES neighborhood was associated with worse MM survival. However, we observed some variation in the association by racial/ethnic group. Living in a low versus a high SES neighborhood was associated with a 35% (95% CI = 1.16-1.57) increase in MM-specific mortality risk among Asian/Pacific Islander cases, a 17% (95% CI = 1.12-1.22) increase among White cases, a 14% (95% CI = 1.04-1.23) increase among Black cases, and a 7% (95% CI = 0.96-1.19) increase among Hispanic cases. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that the influence of both SES and race/ethnicity should be considered when considering interventions to remedy disparities in MM survival.

Allostatic Load Among Black Sexual Minority Women.

Background: Allostatic load is the physiological deterioration that accumulates as the body responds to stress, resulting in disparities in chronic disease. Although perceptions of stress vary, marginalization and social disadvantage are associated with elevated allostatic load. Allostatic load is understudied in the multiply marginalized populations of sexual minority Black women. Methods: We used data from six waves of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2001-2010, 2015-2016) to identify heterosexual (n = 78), lesbian (n = 21), and bisexual (n = 57) Black women. We quantified allostatic load using nine biomarkers, and compared mean allostatic load across the three groups, adjusting for age, educational attainment, income, and country of birth to account for possible confounding. Results: We found no significant differences in allostatic load among heterosexual, lesbian, and bisexual Black women. Conclusions: These findings suggest that sexual orientation may not contribute to within-group differences in allostatic load among Black women, a group previously noted to have elevated allostatic load.

Priority-Setting to Address the Geriatric Pharmacoparadox for Pain Management: A Nursing Home Stakeholder Delphi Study.

BACKGROUND: Evidence to guide clinical decision making for pain management in nursing home residents is scant. OBJECTIVE: Our objective was to explore the extent of consensus among expert stakeholders regarding what analgesic issues should be prioritized for comparative-effectiveness studies of beneficial and adverse effects of analgesic regimens in nursing home residents. METHODS: Two stakeholder panels (nurses only and a mix of clinicians/researchers) were engaged (n = 83). During a three-round online modified Delphi process, participants rated and commented on the need for new evidence on nonopioid analgesic regimens and opioid regimens, short-term adverse effects, long-term adverse effects, comorbid conditions, and other factors in the nursing home setting (9-point scale; 1 = not essential to 9 = very essential to obtain new evidence). The quantitative data were analyzed to determine the existence of consensus using an approach from the RAND/UCLA Appropriateness Method User's Manual. The qualitative data, consisting of participant explanations of their numeric ratings, were thematically analyzed by an experienced qualitative researcher. RESULTS: For nursing home residents, evidence generation was deemed essential for opioids, gabapentin (alone or with serotonin norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors [SNRIs]), and nonsteroid anti-inflammatory drugs with SNRIs. Experts prioritized the following outcomes as essential: long-term adverse effects, including delirium, cognitive decline, and decline in activities of daily living (ADLs). Kidney disease and depression were deemed essential conditions to consider in studies of pain medications. Coprescribing analgesic regimens with benzodiazepines, sedating medications, serotonergic medications, and non-SNRI antidepressants were considered essential areas of study. Experts noted that additional study was essential in residents with moderate/severe cognitive impairment and limitations in ADLs. CONCLUSIONS: Stakeholder priorities for more evidence reflect concerns related to treating medically complex residents with complex drug regimens and included long-term adverse effects, coprescribing, and sedating medications. Carefully conducted observational studies are needed to address the vast evidence gap for nursing home residents.

Development and psychometric evaluation of the Social Connectedness Index in nursing home residents with Alzheimer's disease and dementia using the Minimum Data Set 3.0.

OBJECTIVES: To develop a reliable and valid measure of social connectedness among nursing home residents with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD) using items available in the Minimum Dataset 3.0 (MDS). METHODS: We conducted a retrospective scale development study using the 2016 MDS with two populations of nursing home residents with ADRD: (1) new admissions (not post-acute care) (n = 146,694); (2) residents with comprehensive annual assessments (n = 294,704). Twenty-nine items were included for consideration. Psychometric evaluation included content validity, item analysis, internal consistency reliability, criterion-related validity, and exploratory factor analysis. Analyses were stratified by self- or staff-assessed pain. RESULTS: The resulting five item Social Connectedness Index (SCI) has good content (Fleiss Kappa = 0.67), criterion-related and construct validity and adequate internal consistency reliability (Kuder Richardson-20: 0.63-0.74) in persons with ADRD. As anticipated, younger residents, men, and those with severe cognitive impairment, anxiety, and depression were more likely to be categorized in the low social connectedness group. CONCLUSION: The SCI is a promising measure for estimating the amount of social connectedness present for nursing home residents with ADRD. Further work needs to be done to evaluate the usefulness of the SCI for evaluating health and well-being among this population over time.