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OBJECTIVE: Patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are vulnerable to severe complications of influenza. We assessed whether health care resource use (HRU) and costs differed between patients with RA and influenza who received antiviral medication compared with matched patients with RA and influenza not receiving antiviral therapy. METHODS: This was a retrospective US health insurance claims analysis over three influenza seasons (each October to April) in 2016-2019. Adults with RA and a subsequent diagnosis of influenza were included. Treated patients (receiving antiviral influenza treatment within 2 days of diagnosis) and untreated patients were propensity score matched using baseline covariates. HRU and costs were assessed for inpatient, emergency department (ED), and outpatient visits and compared between cohorts using χ2 tests and t tests. RESULTS: After matching, 2638 treated and 1319 untreated patients were included. For treated versus untreated patients, the mean number of all-cause outpatient visits was 0.96 versus 1.21 during 14 days of follow-up (P < 0.001) and 1.94 versus 2.24 over 28 days (P = 0.001), respectively. Over 28 days, the mean number of all-cause ED visits was lower among treated (0.23) than untreated (0.30) patients (P = 0.042). The mean number of respiratory-related outpatient visits was significantly lower for treated versus untreated patients, and mean costs for these visits were $17.89 versus $35.27 over 14 days (P < 0.001) and $28.92 versus $48.77 over 28 days (P < 0.001) for treated versus untreated patients, respectively. CONCLUSION: Our findings demonstrate that prompt antiviral treatment after influenza diagnosis may reduce HRU and costs in patients with RA.
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BACKGROUND: Central nervous system (CNS) metastasis is common in advanced melanoma patients. New treatment options have improved overall prognosis, but information is lacking for patients with CNS metastases. We investigated treatment patterns and survival outcomes in older melanoma patients with and without CNS metastases. METHODS: A retrospective analysis of SEER-Medicare, a population-based linked database, was undertaken in patients aged > 65 years with advanced melanoma diagnosed from 2004 to 2011 and followed until 2013. RESULTS: A total of 2522 patients were included. CNS metastases were present in 24.8% of patients at initial metastatic diagnosis; 16.5% developed CNS metastases during follow-up. Chemotherapy was the most common treatment regardless of CNS metastases. Overall survival (OS) was better for patients without CNS metastases (median, 9.5 months; 95% confidence interval [CI], 8.8-10.2) vs patients with CNS metastases (3.63 months; 95% CI, 3.4-3.9). Among patients with CNS metastases, median OS for targeted therapy, immunotherapy, and chemotherapy was 6 (95% CI, 2.5-9.6), 5.5 (95% CI, 3.8-7.5), and 4.5 (95% CI, 3.8-5.4) months, respectively, vs 2.4 (95% CI, 2.1-2.7) and 2.1 (95% CI, 1.8-2.7) months for local radiotherapy and no treatment, respectively. Stereotactic radiosurgery demonstrated higher OS vs whole-brain radiation therapy (median, 4.98 [95% CI, 3.5-7.5] vs 2.4 [95% CI, 2.1-2.7] months). CONCLUSION: Patients with CNS metastases from melanoma remain a population with high unmet medical need despite recent advances in treatment. Systemic treatments (eg, BRAF-targeted therapy and immunotherapy) and stereotactic radiosurgery demonstrated meaningful but modest improvements in OS. Further explorations of combinations of radiotherapy, BRAF-targeted therapies, and immunotherapies are needed.
