A Qualitative Study on Perspectives of Parkinson's Disease Medications: Insights from Patient Focus Groups.

Purpose: Medication is an important component of the management of Parkinson's disease (PD), yet few studies investigate factors that inform medication decision-making from the perspective of those who use these therapies. This qualitative study aimed to better understand the medication experiences and perspectives of people with PD (PwPD).

Patients And Methods: Thirty-two PwPD recruited from five large movement disorder clinics from five US states participated in 1-hour on-line focus groups in 2022.

Real-world antiseizure medication treatment outcomes in drug-resistant focal epilepsy patients.

Objective: To gather real-world evidence on antiseizure medications (ASMs) treatment patterns and related outcomes in patients with drug-resistant focal epilepsy.

Methods: Medical insurance claims from the start of 2014 till the end of 2019 were used. Patient selection criteria included International Classification of Diseases (ICD) codes followed by documented ASM use.

Treatment Patterns and Healthcare Resource Use in Medicare Beneficiaries with Parkinson's Disease.

Background: Studies on real-world treatment patterns and long-term economic burden of Parkinson's disease (PD) have been limited.

Objective: To assess treatment patterns, healthcare resource utilization (HRU), and costs associated with PD symptoms and treatment-related adverse events (AEs) among Medicare beneficiaries in the United States.

Methods: A 100% Medicare Fee-For-Service data (2006-2020) of patients with PD were analyzed.

Work Loss and Direct and Indirect Costs Associated with Parkinson's Disease.

Purpose: To examine work loss and indirect costs during the three-year periods prior to and following initial diagnosis of Parkinson's disease (PD) in patients and in spouses of PD patients, as well as direct costs of healthcare.

Patients And Methods: This is a retrospective, observational cohort study using the MarketScan Commercial and Health and Productivity Management databases.

Results: A total of 286 employed PD patients and 153 employed spouses met all diagnostic and enrollment criteria for short-term disability (STD) analysis (PD Patient cohort and Caregiving Spouse cohort).

Dopamine agonist monotherapy utilization in patients with Parkinson's disease.

Objectives: To characterize patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) who initiated dopamine agonist (DA) monotherapy, describe medication utilization and provider types, and estimate medication adherence and discontinuation rates.

Methods: Retrospective study identified patients with PD in the Optum Research Database and included those with ≥1 claim for DA or levodopa between 09/01/2012 and 12/31/2018, ≥2 PD diagnoses, commercial or Medicare Advantage Part D (MAPD) insurance, ≥40 years old, and continuous medical and pharmacy coverage ≥12 months before and after index date. A subset of patients receiving DA monotherapy was selected for this analysis.

Levodopa treatment patterns in Parkinson's disease: A retrospective chart review.

Background: Medication regimens for Parkinson's disease (PD) may change as the disease progresses, symptoms fluctuate, or medication-related adverse events occur. This study evaluated treatment trends by observation year for patients initially receiving monotherapy with levodopa and a peripheral dopa decarboxylase inhibitor (PDDI).

Methods: In this retrospective chart review, therapy changes were evaluated for patients across the US diagnosed with PD on or before 6/30/2014 who initially received levodopa-PDDI monotherapy.

Natural history and patterns of treatment change in Parkinson's disease: A retrospective chart review.

Background: Parkinson's disease (PD) management seeks to balance the benefits and harms of current medications and evolves as the disease progresses. The natural history of PD and associated patterns of treatment change were analyzed to identify unmet needs in treatment of PD symptoms.

Methods: Medical charts of patients from clinics across the US diagnosed on or before June 30th, 2014 were retrospectively reviewed.

An assessment of Parkinson's disease medication treatment patterns in the Medicaid population.

Introduction: Most Parkinson's disease (PD) medication adherence studies have focused on patients with commercial or Medicare health insurance coverage. However, less is known regarding medication treatment patterns within the Medicaid population.

Methods: This retrospective cohort study utilized 2011-2019 administrative healthcare claims from 7 state Medicaid programs.

Healthcare resource use and direct costs in severe aplastic anemia (SAA) patients before and after treatment with eltrombopag.

This study evaluated healthcare resource utilization (HCRU), and direct costs among severe aplastic anemia (SAA) patients treated with eltrombopag (EPAG) using US claims data. This retrospective, real-world claims database study identified SAA patients aged ≥2 years treated with EPAG who initiated any SAA treatment between 1 July 2014 and 31 December 2017 (identification period) using the Truven MarketScan databases. A subset of 82 patients treated with EPAG during the identification period were evaluated for all-cause and SAA-related HCRU and direct costs as well as blood transfusion 1 month before EPAG initiation (baseline) and at Month 6 after EPAG initiation (follow-up period).

Treatment patterns and economic burden of sickle-cell disease patients prescribed hydroxyurea: a retrospective claims-based study.

Background: This study aimed to evaluate sickle-cell disease (SCD) treatment patterns and economic burden among patients prescribed hydroxyurea (HU) in the US, through claims data.

Methods: SCD patients with pharmacy claims for HU were selected from the Medicaid Analytic Extracts (MAX) from January 1, 2009 - December 31, 2013. The first HU prescription during the identification period was defined as the index date and patients were required to have had continuous medical and pharmacy benefits for ≥6 months baseline and 12 months follow-up periods.

A Comprehensive Review of Methods to Measure Oral Oncolytic Dose Intensity Using Retrospective Data.

Background: Understanding the real-world use of oral oncolytics is essential to assess drug effectiveness. Retrospective analyses using medical and pharmacy claims data allow observation of drug use patterns and health outcomes. However, studies of medication adherence to oral oncolytics may not be sufficient in characterizing exposure because they typically measure refill frequency, not the administered dose or dose changes.

Healthcare costs and resource utilization in patients with severe aplastic anemia in the US.

This study aimed to evaluate the healthcare resource utilization (HCRU) and costs for patients with severe aplastic anemia (SAA) using US claims data. This retrospective, observational database study analyzed claims data from the Truven MarketScan databases. SAA patients aged ≥2 years identified between 2014 and 2017 who were continuously enrolled for 6 months before their first SAA treatment or blood transfusion, with a ≥6-month follow-up, were included.

Evaluation of Vaso-occlusive Crises in United States Sickle Cell Disease Patients: A Retrospective Claims-based Study.

Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a life-threatening vascular disease that burdens affected persons physically. SCD-related vaso-occlusive crises (VOCs) are one of the primary causes of morbidity and mortality. Our objective was to examine the epidemiology of pain crises and the relationship between pain crises and major acute complications among SCD patients.

Placement of selected new FDA-approved drugs in Medicare Part D formularies, 2009-2013.

Objectives: To assess formulary decisions by Part D plans for selected newly approved drugs.

Study Design: Retrospective cohort study.

Methods: Formulary placement and restrictions were identified for 33 drugs in 8 therapeutic classes (antihyperglycemics, anticoagulants, antiplatelets, disease-modifying agents for multiple sclerosis [MS] and rheumatoid arthritis [RA], chronic obstructive pulmonary disease [COPD] drugs, antiepileptics, and antipsychotics) in 863 Part D plans with continuous CMS contracts between 2009 and 2013.

Increasing Patient Involvement in Drug Development.

Background: To ensure the creation of treatments that maximize value at the lowest cost, all aspects of the health care system need to align with patient needs and preferences. Despite growing efforts to engage patients in research and regulatory activities, the pharmaceutical industry has yet to maximize patient involvement in the drug development process.

Objective: To gain a better understanding of the present state of patient involvement in drug development.

Difference-in-Differences Method in Comparative Effectiveness Research: Utility with Unbalanced Groups.

Background: Comparative effectiveness research (CER) often includes observational studies utilizing administrative data. Multiple conditioning methods can be used for CER to adjust for group differences, including difference-in-differences (DiD) estimation.

Objective: This study presents DiD and demonstrates how to apply this conditioning method to estimate treatment outcomes in the CER setting by utilizing the MarketScan® Databases for multiple sclerosis (MS) patients receiving different therapies.

Remote Patient Monitoring via Non-Invasive Digital Technologies: A Systematic Review.

Background: We conducted a systematic literature review to identify key trends associated with remote patient monitoring (RPM) via noninvasive digital technologies over the last decade.

Materials And Methods: A search was conducted in EMBASE and Ovid MEDLINE. Citations were screened for relevance against predefined selection criteria based on the PICOTS (Population, Intervention, Comparator, Outcomes, Timeframe, and Study Design) format.

Cluster analysis and its application to healthcare claims data: a study of end-stage renal disease patients who initiated hemodialysis.

Background: Cluster analysis (CA) is a frequently used applied statistical technique that helps to reveal hidden structures and "clusters" found in large data sets. However, this method has not been widely used in large healthcare claims databases where the distribution of expenditure data is commonly severely skewed. The purpose of this study was to identify cost change patterns of patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) who initiated hemodialysis (HD) by applying different clustering methods.

Assessing the importance of predictors in unplanned hospital readmissions for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Purpose: The all-cause readmission rate within 30 days of index admissions for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) was approximately 21% in the United States in 2008. This study aimed to examine patient and clinical characteristics predicting 30-day unplanned readmissions for an initial COPD hospitalization and to determine those predictors' importance.

Patients And Methods: A retrospective study was conducted in patients with COPD-related hospitalizations using commercial claims data from 2010 to 2012.

Health economics and outcomes research fellowship practices reviewed.

The guidelines for health economics and outcomes research (HEOR) fellowship training programs devised by the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP) and the International Society of Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR) suggest that continuous improvements are made to ensure that postgraduate training through didactic and professional experiences prepare fellows for HEOR research careers. The HEOR Fellowship Program at Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation was standardized to enhance the fellows' HEOR research understanding and align professional skill sets with the ACCP-ISPOR Fellowship Program Guidelines. Based on feedback from an internal task force comprised of HEOR employees and current and former fellows, the HEOR Fellowship Program was normatively and qualitatively assessed to evaluate the current curricular program.

Costs and health care resource utilization among chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients with newly acquired pneumonia.

Background: Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are at increased risk for lung infections and other pathologies (eg, pneumonia); however, few studies have evaluated the impact of pneumonia on health care resource utilization and costs in this population. The purpose of this study was to estimate health care resource utilization and costs among COPD patients with newly acquired pneumonia compared to those without pneumonia.

Methods: A retrospective claims analysis using Truven MarketScan(®) Commercial and Medicare databases was conducted.

Group-based trajectory modeling to assess adherence to biologics among patients with psoriasis.

Background: Proportion of days covered (PDC), a commonly used adherence metric, does not provide information about the longitudinal course of adherence to treatment over time. Group-based trajectory model (GBTM) is an alternative method that overcomes this limitation.

Methods: The statistical principles of GBTM and PDC were applied to assess adherence during a 12-month follow-up in psoriasis patients starting treatment with a biologic.

Inhaled corticosteroid use in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and the risk of pneumonia: a retrospective claims data analysis.

Background: The use of inhaled corticosteroids in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) has been associated with an increased risk of pneumonia in controlled clinical trials and case-control analyses.

Objective: Using claims databases as a research model of real-world diagnosis and treatment, to determine if the use and dose of inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) among patients with newly diagnosed COPD are associated with increased risk of pneumonia.

Patients And Methods: This was a retrospective cohort analysis of patients diagnosed with COPD between January 01, 2006 and September 30, 2010, drawn from databases (years 2006-2010).

Factors related to immunosuppressant medication adherence in renal transplant recipients.

Non-adherence to immunosuppressant medications (ISM) is a significant issue for transplant recipients. This study examines factors influencing ISM adherence in renal transplant recipients (RTRs). Patient-reported data were collected through a cross-sectional survey including use of ISMs, adherence behaviors, perceived adherence barriers, beliefs and attitudes toward ISMs, and patient life satisfaction.