The prevalence of cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma in patients with human immunodeficiency virus infection.

UNLABELLED: Cirrhosis is a leading cause of death among patients infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). We sought to determine risk factors for and time trends in the prevalence of cirrhosis, decompensated cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) among patients diagnosed with HIV who received care in the Veterans Affairs (VA) health care system nationally between 1996 and 2009 (n = 24,040 in 2009). Among patients coinfected with HIV and hepatitis C virus (HCV), there was a dramatic increase in the prevalence of cirrhosis (3.5%-13.2%), decompensated cirrhosis (1.9%-5.8%), and HCC (0.07%-1.6%). Little increase was observed among patients without HCV coinfection in the prevalence of cirrhosis (1.7%-2.2%), decompensated cirrhosis (1.1%-1.2%), and HCC (0.03%-0.13%). In 2009, HCV infection was present in the majority of patients with HIV who had cirrhosis (66%), decompensated cirrhosis (62%), and HCC (80%). Independent risk factors for cirrhosis included HCV infection (adjusted odds ratio [AOR], 5.82; 95% confidence interval [CI], 5.0-6.7), hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection (AOR, 2.40; 95% CI, 2.0-2.9), age (AOR, 1.03; 95% CI, 1.02-1.04), Hispanic ethnicity (AOR, 1.76; 95% CI, 1.4-2.2), diabetes (AOR, 1.79; 95% CI, 1.6-2.1), and alcohol abuse (AOR, 1.78; 95% CI, 1.5-2.1), whereas black race (AOR, 0.56; 95% CI, 0.48-0.64) and successful eradication of HCV (AOR, 0.61; 95% CI, 0.4-0.9) were protective. Independent risk factors for HCC included HCV infection (AOR, 10.0; 95% CI, 6.1-16.4), HBV infection (AOR, 2.82; 95% CI, 1.7-4.7), age (AOR, 1.05; 95% CI, 1.03-1.08), and low CD4+ cell count (AOR, 2.36; 95% CI, 1.3-4.2). Among 5999 HIV/HCV-coinfected patients, 994 (18%) had ever received HCV antiviral treatment, of whom 165 (17%) achieved sustained virologic response. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of cirrhosis and HCC has increased dramatically among HIV-infected patients driven primarily by the HCV epidemic. Potentially modifiable risk factors include HCV infection, HBV infection, diabetes, alcohol abuse, and low CD4+ cell count.

Factors affecting medication adherence: patient perspectives from five veterans affairs facilities.

BACKGROUND: In the United States, more than 25 million people have diabetes. Medication adherence is known to be important for disease control. However, factors that consistently predict medication adherence are unclear and the literature lacks patient perspectives on how health care systems affect adherence to oral hypoglycemic agents (OHAs). This study explored facilitators and barriers to OHA adherence by obtaining the perspectives of Veterans Affairs (VA) patients with OHA prescriptions. METHODS: A total of 45 patients participated in 12 focus groups that explored a wide range of issues that might affect medication adherence. Participants were patients at clinics in Seattle, Washington; San Antonio, Texas; Portland, Oregon; Salem, Oregon, and Warrenton, Oregon. RESULTS: Key system-level facilitators of OHA adherence included good overall pharmacy service and several specific mechanisms for ordering and delivering medications (automated phone refill service, Web-based prescription ordering), as well as providing pillboxes and printed lists of current medications to patients. Barriers mirrored many of the facilitators. Poor pharmacy service quality and difficulty coordinating multiple prescriptions emerged as key barriers. CONCLUSIONS: VA patient focus groups provided insights on how care delivery systems can encourage diabetes medication adherence by minimizing the barriers and enhancing the facilitators at both the patient and system levels. Major system-level factors that facilitated adherence were overall pharmacy service quality, availability of multiple systems for reordering medications, having a person to call when questions arose, counseling about the importance of adherence and providing tools such as pillboxes and updated medication lists.

A greater analgesia, sedation, delirium order set quality score is associated with a decreased duration of mechanical ventilation in cardiovascular surgery patients.

OBJECTIVE: Protocols and order sets for the delivery of analgesia, sedation, and delirium care of the critically ill, mechanically ventilated patient have been shown to improve outcomes but are not uniform in hospitals across geographic areas. The extent to which greater order set quality is associated with improved patient outcomes is not known. We hypothesized that cardiac surgery patients cared for at hospitals with a greater analgesia, sedation, and delirium order set quality score (more guideline-concordant order sets) would have a shorter average duration of mechanical ventilation. DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study. SETTING: All Washington State non-federal hospitals providing cardiac surgery. PATIENTS: All mechanically ventilated cardiac surgery patients from January 1, 2008, until September 30, 2011. INTERVENTIONS: None. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: We created a multivariable linear regression model to assess the relationship between a hospital's pain, agitation and delirium order set quality, as assessed by an expert-validated order set quality score, and the average duration of mechanical ventilation of its cardiac surgery patients, independent of other hospital and patient factors. A total of 19,561 patients underwent cardiac surgery at 16 Washington state hospitals during the study period. The order set quality scores ranged from 4 to 19 with a mean of 11.8 ± 4.5. The mean duration of mechanical ventilation was 27.0 ± 196.6 hours. In the multivariable model, independent of other patient and hospital factors, a 1-point increase in the order set quality score was associated with a 3.3 ± 0.9 hour (p < 0.01) decrease in average duration of mechanical ventilation. CONCLUSIONS: Cardiac surgery hospitals with more guideline-adherent analgesia, sedation, and delirium order sets have patients with shorter mean durations of mechanical ventilation than hospitals with lower order set quality scores.

Patterns of preoperative consultation and surgical specialty in an integrated healthcare system.

BACKGROUND: Many patients scheduled for elective surgery are referred for a preoperative medical consultation. Only limited data are available on factors associated with preoperative consultations. The authors hypothesized that surgical specialty contributes to variation in referrals for preoperative consultations. METHODS: This is a cohort study using data from Group Health Cooperative, an integrated healthcare system. The authors included 13,673 patients undergoing a variety of common procedures-primarily low-risk surgeries-representing six surgical specialties, in 2005-2006. The authors identified consultations by family physicians, general internists, pulmonologists, or cardiologists in the 42 days preceding surgery. Multivariable logistic regression was used to estimate the association between surgical specialty and consultation, adjusting for potential confounders including the revised cardiac risk index, age, gender, Deyo comorbidity index, number of prescription medications, and 11 medication classes. RESULTS: The authors found that 3,063 (22%) of all patients had preoperative consultations, with significant variation by surgical specialty. Patients having ophthalmologic, orthopedic, or urologic surgery were more likely to have consultations compared with those having general surgery-adjusted odds ratios (95% CI) of 3.8 (3.3-4.2), 1.5 (1.3-1.7), and 2.3 (1.8-2.8), respectively. Preoperative consultations were more common in patients with lower revised cardiac risk scores. CONCLUSION: There is substantial practice variation among surgical specialties with regard to the use of preoperative consultations in this integrated healthcare system. Given the large number of consultations provided for patients with low cardiac risk and for patients presenting for low-risk surgeries, their indications, the financial burden, and cost-effectiveness of consultations deserve further study.

Initial validation of a self-report measure of the extent of and reasons for medication nonadherence.

BACKGROUND: Self-report measures of medication nonadherence confound the extent of and reasons for medication nonadherence. Each construct is assessed with a different type of psychometric model, which dictates how to establish reliability and validity. OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the psychometric properties of a self-report measure of medication nonadherence that assesses separately the extent of nonadherence and reasons for nonadherence. RESEARCH DESIGN: Cross-sectional survey involving the new measure and comparison measures to establish convergent, discriminant, and predictive validity. The new measure was readministered 2-21 days later. SUBJECTS: A total of 202 veterans with treated hypertension were recruited from the Durham Veterans Affairs Medical Center. MEASURES: A new self-report measure assessed the extent of nonadherence and reasons for nonadherence. Comparison measures included self-reported medication self-efficacy, beliefs about medications, impression management, conscientiousness, habit strength, and an existing nonadherence measure. RESULTS: Three items assessing the extent of nonadherence produced reliable scores for this sample, α = 0.84 (95% confidence interval, 0.80-0.87). Correlations with comparison measures provided evidence of convergent and discriminant validity. Correlations with systolic ( r = 0.27, P < 0.0001) and diastolic (r = 0.27, P < 0.0001) blood pressure provided evidence of predictive validity. Reasons for nonadherence were assessed with 21 independent items. Intraclass correlations were 0.58 for the extent score and ranged from 0.07 to 0.64 for the reasons. CONCLUSIONS: The dual conceptualization of medication nonadherence allowed a stronger evaluation of the reliability and validity than was previously possible with measures that confounded these 2 constructs. Measurement of self-reported nonadherence consistent with psychometric principles will enable reliable, valid evaluation of interventions to reduce nonadherence.

The effects of smoking cessation on the risk of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease exacerbations.

BACKGROUND: Smoking cessation has been demonstrated to reduce the rate of loss of lung function and mortality among patients with mild to moderate chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). There is a paucity of evidence about the effects of smoking cessation on the risk of COPD exacerbations. OBJECTIVE: We sought to examine whether smoking status and the duration of abstinence from tobacco smoke is associated with a decreased risk of COPD exacerbations. DESIGN: We assessed current smoking status and duration of smoking abstinence by self-report. Our primary outcome was either an inpatient or outpatient COPD exacerbation. We used Cox regression to estimate the risk of COPD exacerbation associated with smoking status and duration of smoking cessation. PARTICIPANTS: We performed a cohort study of 23,971 veterans who were current and past smokers and had been seen in one of seven Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) primary care clinics throughout the US. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: In comparison to current smokers, ex-smokers had a significantly reduced risk of COPD exacerbation after adjusting for age, comorbidity, markers of COPD severity and socio-economic status (adjusted HR 0.78, 95% CI 0.75-0.87). The magnitude of the reduced risk was dependent on the duration of smoking abstinence (adjusted HR: quit < 1 year, 1.04; 95% CI 0.87-1.26; 1-5 years 0.93, 95% CI 0.79-1.08; 5-10 years 0.84, 95% CI 0.70-1.00; > or = 10 years 0.65, 95% CI 0.58-0.74; linear trend <0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Smoking cessation is associated with a reduced risk of COPD exacerbations, and the described reduction is dependent upon the duration of abstinence.

Associations between lipodystrophy or antiretroviral medications and cirrhosis in patients with HIV infection or HIV/HCV coinfection.

BACKGROUND: Many HIV antiretroviral medications have been associated with chronic liver injury. HIV-infected patients frequently develop HIV and highly active antiretroviral treatment-associated lipodystrophy syndrome (HALS), characterized by accumulation of intra-abdominal fat, insulin resistance, and hepatic steatosis. We sought to determine whether long-term exposure to specific antiretroviral medications or the presence of HALS predispose HIV-infected patients to the development of cirrhosis. METHODS: HIV-infected patients with cirrhosis who received care in the Veterans Affairs Healthcare System nationally in 2009 were matched by hepatitis C virus (HCV) coinfection status and year of first visit for HIV to the Veterans Affairs Healthcare System with HIV-infected patients without cirrhosis in a 1 : 3 ratio. RESULTS: Among HIV/HCV coinfected patients (593 with cirrhosis and 1591 matched controls), HALS was associated with a significantly increased risk for cirrhosis (adjusted odds ratio 1.6, 95% confidence interval 1.1-2.3), especially among Black patients (adjusted odds ratio 2.9, 95% confidence interval 1.6-5.2). In addition, among HIV/HCV coinfected patients, longer cumulative exposures to all antiretroviral medications, all nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors, all protease inhibitors, and selected individual medications (didanosine, stavudine, and nelfinavir) were found to be significantly associated with cirrhosis. In contrast, among HIV-infected patients not coinfected with HCV (245 with cirrhosis and 658 matched controls), HALS or exposure to antiretroviral medications was found not to be significantly associated with cirrhosis, with the exception of didanosine. CONCLUSION: HALS and cumulative exposure to nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors and protease inhibitors, especially stavudine, didanosine, and nelfinavir, were found to be associated with the development of cirrhosis in HIV/HCV coinfected patients, but not in HIV-monoinfected patients.

Thiazolidinediones are associated with a reduced risk of COPD exacerbations.

BACKGROUND: Thiazolidinediones (TZDs) are oral antihyperglycemic medications that are selective agonists to peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma and have been shown to have potent anti-inflammatory effects in the lung. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to assess whether exposure to TZDs is associated with a decreased risk of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) exacerbation. METHODS: A cohort study was performed by collecting data on all US veterans with diabetes and COPD who were prescribed oral antihyperglycemic medications during from period of October 1, 2005 to September 30, 2007. Patients who had two or more prescriptions for TZDs were compared with patients who had two or more prescriptions for an alternative oral anti-hyperglycemic medication. Multivariable negative binomial regression was performed with adjustment for potential confounding factors. The primary outcome was COPD exacerbations, including both inpatient and outpatient exacerbations. RESULTS: We identified 7,887 veterans who were exposed to TZD and 42,347 veterans who were exposed to non-TZD oral diabetes medications. COPD exacerbations occurred in 1,258 (16%) of the TZD group and 7,789 (18%) of the non-TZD group. In multivariable negative binomial regression, there was a significant reduction in the expected number of COPD exacerbations among patients who were exposed to TZDs with an incidence rate ratio of 0.86 (95% CI 0.81-0.92). CONCLUSION: Exposure to TZDs was associated with a small but significant reduction in risk for COPD exacerbation among diabetic patients with COPD.

Survey nonresponders incurred higher medical utilization and lower medication adherence.

OBJECTIVES: To compare healthcare costs, utilization, and medication adherence between diabetic responders and nonresponders to a patient satisfaction survey. STUDY DESIGN: We performed a retrospective cohort study of 40,766 patients with diabetes who had been randomly selected to receive the 2006 Veterans Affairs' Survey of Healthcare Experiences of Patients. Outcomes were measured during the following year. METHODS: We used multivariable models to compare healthcare costs (generalized linear models), utilization (negative binomial regression), and adherence to oral hypoglycemic medications (logistic regression) between survey responders and nonresponders. RESULTS: There were 26,051 patients (64%) who responded to the survey. Survey nonresponders incurred significantly higher healthcare costs (incremental effect, $792; 95% CI, $599-$986; P < .01). Nonresponders had a modest increase in primary care (incidence rate ratio [IRR], 1.06; 95% CI, 1.05-1.08; P < .01) and specialty care visits (IRR, 1.17; 95% CI, 1.12-1.22; P < .01), but more substantial increases in mental health visits (IRR, 1.74; 95% CI, 1.62-1.87; P < .01) and hospitalizations (IRR, 1.60; 95% CI, 1.46-1.75; P < .01). Medication adherence was significantly lower among survey nonresponders (odds ratio, 0.68; 95% CI, 0.65-0.74; P < .01). CONCLUSIONS: Nonresponders to a patient satisfaction survey incurred higher healthcare costs and utilization, but had lower medication adherence. Understanding these characteristics helps to assess the impact of nonresponse bias on patient satisfaction surveys and identifies clinical practices to improve care delivery.

Iron deficiency and gastrointestinal malignancy: a population-based cohort study.

PURPOSE: We investigated whether iron deficiency, with or without anemia, is associated with an increased likelihood of gastrointestinal malignancy. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Data were obtained from the first National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey and Epidemiologic Followup Study, a nationally representative, prospective cohort study that measured hemoglobin levels and iron saturation and recorded follow-up diagnoses. We included persons 25 to 74 years of age with no previous gastrointestinal malignancy. Anemia was defined as a hemoglobin value below the fifth percentile for each age group and sex. Iron deficiency was defined as an iron saturation below 15%. RESULTS: Eighteen (0.2%) gastrointestinal malignancies were identified among the 9024 participants during the first 2 years of follow-up. None of the 442 premenopausal women with iron deficiency (92 with anemia and 350 without anemia) were diagnosed with gastrointestinal malignancy. Among men and postmenopausal women, the proportion diagnosed with gastrointestinal malignancy was 31 times greater (95% confidence interval [CI]: 9 to 107) in those with iron deficiency anemia (3/51 [6%]) and five times greater (95% CI: 1 to 21) in those with iron deficiency without anemia (2/223 [1%]), compared with those with normal hemoglobin levels and iron saturation (11/5733 [0.2%]). CONCLUSIONS: Gastrointestinal malignancy is uncommon in iron-deficient premenopausal women with or without anemia. Among men and postmenopausal women, gastrointestinal malignancy is significantly more common in those with iron deficiency than in persons with normal serum iron saturation and hemoglobin levels.

Massachusetts health reform and Veterans Affairs health system enrollment.

OBJECTIVES: Veterans Health Administration (VA) operates the largest integrated health system in the nation. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) does not require any changes to VA, but the individual mandate and expanded health insurance options may change veterans' preferences for coverage. We examined the impact of healthcare reform in Massachusetts, which also included these policy changes, on veterans' enrollment in VA, private insurance, and Medicaid. STUDY DESIGN: Massachusetts' healthcare reform in June 2006 served as a natural experiment. Using data from the 2004-2013 Current Population Surveys, we examined enrollment in VA, private insurance, and Medicaid, comparing veterans residing in Massachusetts with veterans residing in neighboring New England states that did not undergo health reform. METHODS: We estimated the probability of being enrolled in VA, private insurance, and Medicaid before and after healthcare reform, using multivariate probit models while adjusting for individual characteristics. Using a difference-in-difference approach, we compared pre-post changes in enrollment probability among Massachusetts and non-Massachusetts veterans, respectively. RESULTS: Compared with other New England veterans, Massachusetts veterans decreased their enrollment in VA and private insurance by 0.2 (P = .857) and 0.9 (P = .666) percentage points, respectively, following health reform. In contrast, Medicaid enrollment increased by 2.5 percentage points (P = .038). CONCLUSIONS: Healthcare reform in Massachusetts was associated with greater Medicaid enrollment, but was not significantly associated with VA and private insurance enrollment. Our results are significant for informing VA fiscal planning in the post ACA era.

Thiazolidinediones and the risk of asthma exacerbation among patients with diabetes: a cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Thiazolidinediones are oral diabetes medications that selectively activate peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma and have potent anti-inflammatory properties. While a few studies have found improvements in pulmonary function with exposure to thiazolidinediones, there are no studies of their impact on asthma exacerbations. Our objective was to assess whether exposure to thiazolidinediones was associated with a decreased risk of asthma exacerbation. METHODS: We performed a cohort study of diabetic Veterans who had a diagnosis of asthma and were taking oral diabetes medications during the period of 10/1/2005 - 9/30/2006. The risk of asthma exacerbations and oral steroid use during 10/1/2006 - 9/30/2007 was compared between patients who were prescribed thiazolidinediones and patients who were on alternative oral diabetes medications. Multivariable logistic regression and negative binomial regression analyses were used to characterize this risk. A sensitivity analysis was performed, restricting our evaluation to patients who were adherent to diabetes therapy. RESULTS: We identified 2,178 patients who were on thiazolidinediones and 10,700 who were not. Exposure to thiazolidinediones was associated with significant reductions in the risk of asthma exacerbation (OR = 0.79, 95% CI, 0.62 - 0.99) and oral steroid prescription (OR = 0.73, 95% CI 0.63 - 0.84). Among patients who were adherent to diabetes medications, there were more substantial reductions in the risks for asthma exacerbation (OR = 0.64, 95% CI 0.47 - 0.85) and oral steroid prescription (OR = 0.68, 95% CI 0.57 - 0.81). CONCLUSIONS: Thiazolidinediones may provide a novel anti-inflammatory approach to asthma management by preventing exacerbations and decreasing the use of oral steroids.

Adoption of transradial percutaneous coronary intervention and outcomes according to center radial volume in the Veterans Affairs Healthcare system: insights from the Veterans Affairs clinical assessment, reporting, and tracking (CART) program.

BACKGROUND: Studies examining the association between radial approach and post-percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) bleeding and mortality have reached conflicting conclusions. There are no current data about the use and outcomes of transradial PCI (r-PCI) in the Veterans Affairs system. METHODS AND RESULTS: Consecutive veterans (n=24143 patients) undergoing PCI in the Veterans Affairs between 2007 and 2010 were examined. On the basis of propensity to undergo r-PCI, 3 cohorts matched with veterans undergoing transfemoral access were constructed among sites performing ≥ 1 r-PCI, ≥ 50 r-PCI (high volume), and <50 r-PCI (low volume). Cox proportional hazard models were used to determine the association between PCI access site, blood transfusion, and mortality. The prevalence of r-PCI increased over time (2007=2.1%; 2010=8.8%). Overall, there was no difference in procedure success between matched groups (r-PCI 97.3% versus transfemoral PCI 96.6%; P=0.182), or in the risk of postprocedure transfusion or mortality. Among matched patients treated at high r-PCI volume sites, radial access was associated with a decreased risk of post-PCI blood transfusion (hazard ratio, 0.4; 95% confidence interval, 0.3-0.7; P<0.001), and no significant difference in the risk of mortality (hazard ratio, 0.7; 95% confidence interval, 0.4-1.3; P=0.279). CONCLUSIONS: Within the Veterans Affairs, the use of r-PCI increased over time. r-PCI may be associated with a significant decreased risk of post-PCI blood transfusion among higher volume r-PCI sites. These data demonstrate that potential benefits of r-PCI in terms of reduced post-PCI blood transfusions may be more pronounced at sites that routinely use radial access.

A randomized trial to improve communication about end-of-life care among patients with COPD.

OBJECTIVE: Patients with COPD consistently express a desire to discuss end-of-life care with clinicians, but these discussions rarely occur. We assessed whether an intervention using patient-specific feedback about preferences for discussing end-of-life care would improve the occurrence and quality of communication between patients with COPD and their clinicians. METHODS: We performed a cluster-randomized trial of clinicians and patients from the outpatient clinics at the Veterans Affairs Puget Sound Health Care System. Using self-reported questionnaires, we assessed patients' preferences for communication, life-sustaining therapy, and experiences at the end of life. The intervention clinicians and patients received a one-page patient-specific feedback form, based on questionnaire responses, to stimulate conversations. The control group completed questionnaires but did not receive feedback. Patient-reported occurrence and quality of end-of-life communication (QOC) were assessed within 2 weeks of a targeted visit. Intention-to-treat regression analyses were performed with generalized estimating equations to account for clustering of patients within clinicians. RESULTS: Ninety-two clinicians contributed 376 patients. Patients in the intervention arm reported nearly a threefold higher rate of discussions about end-of-life care (unadjusted, 30% vs 11%; P < .001). Baseline end-of-life communication was poor (intervention group QOC score, 23.3; 95% CI, 19.9-26.8; control QOC score, 19.2; 95% CI, 15.9-22.4). Patients in the intervention arm reported higher-quality end-of-life communication that was statistically significant, although the overall improvement was small (Cohen effect size, 0.21). CONCLUSIONS: A one-page patient-specific feedback form about preferences for end-of-life care and communication improved the occurrence and quality of communication from patients' perspectives. TRIAL REGISTRY: ClinicalTrials.gov; No.: NCT00106080; URL: www.clinicaltrials.gov.

The incidence and timing of noncardiac surgery after cardiac stent implantation.

BACKGROUND: In November 2007, national guidelines were released recommending delay of elective noncardiac surgery after cardiac revascularization with drug eluting stents (DES) for 12 months compared with 6 weeks after implantation of bare metal stents (BMS). STUDY DESIGN: To determine the incidence of noncardiac surgery within 24 months after stent placement, national VA data on cardiac stent implantation were merged with data from the VA National Surgery Office and Medicare. Using chi-square tests and log-rank analyses, we measured the incidence of noncardiac surgery after BMS and DES in relation to guideline release and surgical characteristics. RESULTS: From 2000 to 2010, 126,773 stent procedures were followed by 25,977 (20.5%) noncardiac operations within 24 months. Overall, 11.8% of the BMS surgery cohort had early surgery (less than 6 weeks) compared with 46.7% of the DES surgery cohort, which had early surgery (less than 12 months). The incidence of surgery differed significantly by stent type (BMS 24.1% vs DES 17.5%, p < 0.001) and in relation to guideline release (pre- 24.6% vs postguideline 13.1%, p < 0.001). Higher complexity operations (work relative value units) were more likely to occur in the early period for both BMS (p < 0.0001) and DES (p < 0.003). After guideline release, the incidence of surgery within 12 months decreased from 16.7% to 10.0% (p < 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: We found evidence that guidelines recommending delaying surgery appear to be effective in decreasing the incidence of early surgery; however, early surgery is still a frequent occurrence. Additional research is needed to better define the risk of cardiac and bleeding complications in patients undergoing subsequent noncardiac surgery, as well as the optimal time for surgery and method of antiplatelet management.

AUDIT-C alcohol screening results and postoperative inpatient health care use.

BACKGROUND: Alcohol screening scores ≥5 on the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test-Consumption (AUDIT-C) up to a year before surgery have been associated with postoperative complications, but the association with postoperative health care use is unknown. This study evaluated whether AUDIT-C scores in the year before surgery were associated with postoperative hospital length of stay, total ICU days, return to the operating room, and hospital readmission. STUDY DESIGN: This cohort study included male Veterans Affairs patients who completed the AUDIT-C on mailed surveys (October 2003 through September 2006) and were hospitalized for nonemergent noncardiac major operations in the following year. Postoperative health care use was evaluated across 4 AUDIT-C risk groups (scores 0, 1 to 4, 5 to 8, and 9 to 12) using linear or logistic regression models adjusted for sociodemographics, smoking status, surgical category, relative value unit, and time from AUDIT-C to surgery. Patients with AUDIT-C scores indicating low-risk drinking (scores 1 to 4) were the referent group. RESULTS: Adjusted analyses revealed that among eligible surgical patients (n = 5,171), those with the highest AUDIT-C scores (ie, 9 to 12) had longer postoperative hospital length of stay (5.8 [95% CI, 5.0-6.7] vs 5.0 [95% CI, 4.7-5.3] days), more ICU days (4.5 [95% CI, 3.2-5.8] vs 2.8 [95% CI, 2.6-3.1] days), and increased probability of return to the operating room (10% [95% CI, 6-13%] vs 5% [95% CI, 4-6%]) in the 30 days after surgery, but not increased hospital readmission within 30 days postdischarge, relative to the low-risk group. CONCLUSIONS: AUDIT-C screening results could be used to identify patients at risk for increased postoperative health care use who might benefit from preoperative alcohol interventions.

Does medication adherence following a copayment increase differ by disease burden?

OBJECTIVES: To compare changes in medication adherence between patients with high- or low-comorbidity burden after a copayment increase. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective observational study at four Veterans Affairs (VA) medical centers by comparing veterans with hypertension or diabetes required to pay copayments with propensity score-matched veterans exempt from copayments. Disease cohorts were stratified by Diagnostic Cost Group risk score: low- (<1) and high-comorbidity (>1) burden. Medication adherence from February 2001 to December 2003, constructed from VA pharmacy claims data based on the ReComp algorithm, were assessed using generalized estimating equations. RESULTS: Veterans with lower comorbidity were more responsive to a U.S.$5 copayment increase than higher comorbidity veterans. In the lower comorbidity groups, veterans with diabetes had a greater reduction in adherence than veterans with hypertension. Adherence trends were similar for copayment-exempt and nonexempt veterans with higher comorbidity. CONCLUSION: Medication copayment increases are associated with different impacts for low- and high-risk patients. High-risk patients incur greater out-of-pocket costs from continued adherence, while low-risk patients put themselves at increased risk for adverse health events due to greater nonadherence.