Economic impact of a rapid, on-demand ADAMTS-13 activity assay for the diagnosis of thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura.

Background: Thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP) is a rare, life-threatening thrombotic microangiopathy (TMA), characterized by ADAMTS-13 activity <10%. ADAMTS-13 activity assays are typically performed in reference laboratories with a turnaround time of several days. First-line treatment for TTP, therapeutic plasma exchange (TPE), typically starts while results are pending. The automated, on-demand HemosIL AcuStar ADAMTS-13 Activity assay provides results in under an hour, which could reduce unnecessary TPE use and associated costs. Objectives: To estimate the hospital budget impact in the United States, United Kingdom, and France of using a rapid ADAMTS-13 activity assay. Methods: We compared routine use of a rapid assay in adults with TMA with a scenario in which results take 3 days. Model structure and variables were based on published literature, plus survey and interviews of five clinicians from the three countries. Costs for the ADAMTS-13 activity assays and TPE were included. Results: Model results suggest that if an on-demand, rapid ADAMTS-13 activity assay is used, US, UK, and French hospitals could save $18 million, £1.2 million, and €1.6 million annually, respectively. This equates to $10 788, £3497, and €4700 saved per patient with TMA in the United States, United Kingdom, and France. The model is most sensitive to the exact split of diagnoses of TMA cases, as savings accrue from non-TTP diagnoses. Conclusions: In patients with TMA, use of a rapid, on-demand ADAMTS-13 activity assay such as the HemosIL AcuStar ADAMTS-13 Activity assay has the potential to be cost saving for hospitals.

Online patient feedback is positive, but not used effectively.

The studyPowell J, Atherton H, Williams V, et al. Using online patient feedback to improve NHS services: the INQUIRE multimethod study. Health Serv Deliv Res 2019;7:38.This project was funded by the NIHR Health Services and Delivery Research programme (project number HS&DR 14/04/48).To read the full NIHR Signal, go to: https://discover.dc.nihr.ac.uk/content/signal-000861/online-patient-feedback-is-mostly-positive-but-is-not-being-used-effectively.

Clinicians prescribe antibiotics for childhood respiratory tract infection based on assessment, rather than parental expectation.

The studyCabral C, Horwood J, Symonds J, et al. Understanding the influence of parent-clinician communication on antibiotic prescribing for children with respiratory tract infections in primary care: a qualitative observational study using a conversation analysis approach. BMC Fam Pract 2019;20:102.This project was funded by the NIHR School for Primary Care Research Programme (project number SPCR204).To read the full NIHR Signal, go to: https://discover.dc.nihr.ac.uk/content/signal-000829/gps-assessment-not-parental-expectation-drives-antibiotic-prescribing.

Identification of Potential Barriers to Timely Access to Pediatric Hearing Aids.

Importance: Despite various barriers identified to early pediatric access to cochlear implantation, barriers to timely access to pediatric hearing aids are not well characterized. Objective: To identify socioeconomic, demographic, and clinical factors that may be associated with pediatric access to hearing aids. Design, Setting, and Participants: This retrospective cohort study included 90 patients aged 1 to 15 years who were referred for auditory brainstem response (ABR) testing and evaluation for hearing aids at a single tertiary care academic medical center from March 2004 to July 2018. Children who did not receive both ABR testing and hearing aids at the same center were excluded from analysis. Main Outcomes and Measures: Associations of insurance type (private vs public), race/ethnicity (white vs other), primary language (English vs other), cause of hearing loss (complex vs not complex), zip code, hearing aid manufacturer, and severity of hearing loss (in decibels) with the duration of intervals from newborn hearing screening to ABR testing, from ABR testing to ordering of hearing aids, and from ABR testing to dispensing of hearing aids. Results: Of the 90 patients, mean (SD) age was 5.6 (3.7) years, 56% were female, and 77 (86%) were non-Hispanic. Results of χ2 tests indicated significant assocations existed between public insurance and race/ethnicity and between public insurance and primary language other than English. Variables associated with the interval from newborn hearing screening to ABR testing included insurance type (mean difference, 7.4 months; 95% CI, 2.6-12.2 months) and race/ethnicity (mean difference, 6.9 months; 95% CI, 2.7-11.1 months). Increased delays between birth and a child's first ABR test were associated with public insurance (mean difference, 6.0 months; 95% CI, 1.8-10.2 months) and race/ethnicity other than white (mean difference, 6.0 months; 95% CI, 2.3-9.7 months). The mean time from birth to initial ABR testing was a mean of 6 months longer for patients from non-English-speaking families than for those from English-speaking families (mean [SD] interval, 14.9 [16.3] months vs 9.0 [8.5] months), although the difference was not statistically significant. Severity of hearing loss was associated with a decrease in the interval from ABR testing to ordering of hearing aids after accounting for other potential barriers (odds ratio, 0.6; 95% CI, 0.4-0.9). Zip code and complexity of the child's medical condition did not appear to be associated with timely access to pediatric hearing aids. Conclusions and Relevance: This study's findings suggest that insurance type, race/ethnicity, and primary language may be barriers associated with pediatric access to hearing aids, with the greatest difference observed in time to initial ABR testing. Clinical severity of hearing loss appeared to be associated with a significant decrease in time from ABR testing to ordering of hearing aids. Greater efforts to assist parents with ABR testing and coordination of follow-up may help improve access for other at-risk children.

C reactive protein testing in general practice safely reduces antibiotic use for flare-ups of COPD.

The studyButler CC, Gillespie D, White P, et al. C-reactive protein testing to guide antibiotic prescribing for COPD exacerbations. N Engl J Med 2019;381:111-20.This research was funded by the NIHR Technology Assessment Programme (project number 12/33/12). The testing machines used in the study were loaned to researchers by the manufacturer, who also provided training on their use. The manufacturer had no other role in any part of the trial.To read the full NIHR Signal, go to https://discover.dc.nihr.ac.uk/content/signal-000820/crp-testing-safely-reduces-antibiotic-use-for-copd-flare-ups.

Partial knee replacement could be first choice for some patients with osteoarthritis.

The studyBeard D, Davies L, Cook J, et al. The clinical and cost-effectiveness of total versus partial knee replacement in patients with medial compartment osteoarthritis (TOPKAT): 5-year outcomes of a randomised controlled trial. Lancet 2019;394:746-56.The study was funded by the NIHR Health Technology Assessment Programme (project number 08/14/08).To read the full NIHR Signal, go to https://discover.dc.nihr.ac.uk/content/signal-000824/partial-knee-replacement-could-be-first-choice-in-some-patients.

Laser capture microdissection assessment of virus compartmentalization in the central nervous systems of macaques infected with neurovirulent simian immunodeficiency virus.

Nonhuman primate-simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) models are powerful tools for studying the pathogenesis of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) in the brain. Our laboratory recently isolated a neuropathogenic viral swarm, SIVsmH804E, a derivative of SIVsmE543-3, which was the result of sequential intravenous passages of viruses isolated from the brains of rhesus macaques with SIV encephalitis. Animals infected with SIVsmH804E or its precursor (SIVsmH783Br) developed SIV meningitis and/or encephalitis at high frequencies. Since we observed macaques with a combination of meningitis and encephalitis, as well as animals in which meningitis or encephalitis was the dominant component, we hypothesized that distinct mechanisms could be driving the two pathological states. Therefore, we assessed viral populations in the meninges and the brain parenchyma by laser capture microdissection. Viral RNAs were isolated from representative areas of the meninges, brain parenchyma, terminal plasma, and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and from the inoculum, and the SIV envelope fragment was amplified by PCR. Phylogenetic analysis of envelope sequences from the conventional progressors revealed compartmentalization of viral populations between the meninges and the parenchyma. In one of these animals, viral populations in meninges were closely related to those from CSF and shared signature truncations in the cytoplasmic domain of gp41, consistent with a common origin. Apart from magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and positron-emission tomography (PET) imaging, CSF is the most accessible assess to the central nervous system for HIV-1-infected patients. However, our results suggest that the virus in the CSF may not always be representative of viral populations in the brain and that caution should be applied in extrapolating between the properties of viruses in these two compartments.