Long-Term Outcomes in Patients With Diabetes Mellitus Related to Prolonging Clopidogrel More Than 12 Months After Coronary Stenting.

BACKGROUND: Recent large clinical trials show lower rates of late cardiovascular events by extending clopidogrel >12 months after percutaneous coronary revascularization (PCI). However, concerns of increased bleeding have elicited support for limiting prolonged treatment to high-risk patients. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this analysis was to determine the effect of prolonging clopidogrel therapy >12 months versus ≤12 months after PCI on very late outcomes in patients with diabetes mellitus (DM). METHODS: Using the Veterans Health Administration, 28,849 patients undergoing PCI between 2002 and 2006 were categorized into 3 groups: 1) 16,332 without DM; 2) 9,905 with DM treated with oral medications or diet; and 3) 2,612 with DM treated with insulin. Clinical outcomes, stratified by stent type, ≤4 years after PCI were determined from the Veterans Health Administration and Medicare databases and risk was assessed by multivariable and propensity score analyses using a landmark analysis starting 1 year after the index PCI. The primary endpoint of the study was the risk of all-cause death or myocardial infarction (MI). RESULTS: In patients with DM treated with insulin who received drug-eluting stents (DES), prolonged clopidogrel treatment was associated with a decreased risk of death (hazard ratio [HR]: 0.59; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.42 to 0.82) and death or MI (HR: 0.67; 95% CI: 0.49 to 0.92). Similarly, in patients with noninsulin-treated DM receiving DES, prolonged clopidogrel treatment was associated with less death (HR: 0.61; 95% CI: 0.48 to 0.77) and death or MI (HR: 0.61; 95% CI: 0.5 to 0.75). Prolonged clopidogrel treatment was not associated with a lower risk in patients without DM or in any group receiving bare-metal stents. CONCLUSIONS: Extending the duration of clopidogrel treatment >12 months may decrease very late death or MI only in patients with DM receiving first-generation DES. Future studies should address this question in patients receiving second-generation DES.

Durable improvements in prostate cancer screening from online spaced education a randomized controlled trial.

CONTEXT: Prostate cancer screening with prostate-specific antigen (PSA) is frequently performed, counter to clinical practice guidelines. BACKGROUND: It was hypothesized that an e-mail-based intervention termed "spaced education" could reduce clinicians' inappropriate screening for prostate cancer. DESIGN: The study was conducted as an RCT. SETTING/PARTICIPANTS: The study involved 95 primary care clinicians in eight Veterans Affairs medical centers from January 2007 to February 2009. INTERVENTION: Participants were randomized into two cohorts: spaced education clinicians received four isomorphic cycles of nine e-mails over 36 weeks (zero to two e-mails per week), whereas control clinicians received no intervention. Each e-mail presented a clinical scenario and asked whether it was appropriate to obtain a PSA test. Participants received immediate feedback after submitting their answers. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The primary outcome was the number and percentage of inappropriate PSA screening tests ordered. Inappropriate testing was defined as use of PSA for prostate cancer screening in patients aged >76 or <40 years. Appropriateness of screening was dichotomized based on patient age at time of screening. Patients with PSA testing for non-screening reasons were excluded using a validated protocol. Logistic regression with adjustment for patient clustering by clinician was performed. Analyses were conducted in 2009. RESULTS: During the intervention period (Weeks 1-36), clinicians receiving spaced education e-mails ordered significantly fewer inappropriate PSA screening tests than control clinicians (10.5% vs 14.2%, p=0.041). Over the 72-week period following the intervention (Weeks 37-108), spaced education clinicians continued to order fewer inappropriate tests compared to controls (7.8% vs 13.1%, respectively, p=0.011), representing a 40% relative reduction in inappropriate screening. CONCLUSIONS: Spaced education durably improves the prostate cancer screening behaviors of clinicians and represents a promising new methodology to improve patient care across healthcare systems.