Facility-level antibiotic prescribing rates and the use of antibiotics among nursing home residents.

Background: The high frequency of antibiotic use in US nursing homes is a public health concern. Facility-level prescribing patterns may provide a measure for antibiotic stewardship targeting.

Methods: An analysis of 2018-2019 data from linked files from the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare was conducted.

Affordable in-house tests for bacteriuria can improve antimicrobial stewardship and access to care.

Objective: To evaluate the clinical utility of 3 in-house tests to screen for bacteriuria in dogs with urinary conditions: a computerized urine sediment analyzer (SediVue), a rapid immunoassay (RapidBac), and in-house urine culture. Accuracy of culture and antimicrobial susceptibility (C&S) results from submission of the positive in-house culture plate and a 24- to 48-hour refrigerated urine sample was also assessed.

Methods: Sterile urine samples from 101 client-owned dogs were used to evaluate sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of 3 in-house diagnostic tests to detect bacteriuria using C&S testing at a reference laboratory as the reference standard.

Cognitive and functional change in skilled nursing facilities: Differences by delirium and Alzheimer's disease and related dementias.

Background: Whether cognitive and functional recovery in skilled nursing facilities (SNF) following hospitalization differs by delirium and Alzheimer's disease related dementias (ADRD) has not been examined.

Objective: To compare change in cognition and function among short-stay SNF patients with delirium, ADRD, or both.

Design: Retrospective cohort study using claims data from 2011 to 2013.

Reproducibility of semi-quantitative assessment of aortic valve calcification and valve motion on echocardiography: a small-scale study.

Background: Aortic stenosis (AS) is the most common degenerative valve disease in high income countries. While hemodynamic metrics are commonly used to assess severity of stenosis, they are impacted by loading conditions and stroke volume and are often discordant. Anatomic valve assessments such as aortic valve calcification (AVC) and valve motion (VM) during transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) can offer clues to disease severity.

Nursing Home Characteristics Associated with Antipsychotic Prescribing After Implementation of the National Antipsychotic Reduction Initiative (ARI).

Objectives: To describe nursing home (NH) characteristics associated with antipsychotic use and test whether associations changed after implementation of the National Partnership to Improve Dementia Care's antipsychotic reduction initiative (ARI).

Methods: Longitudinal quasi-experimental design using data from multiple sources and piecewise linear mixed models were used for statistical analyses.

Results: There was a significant decrease in monthly antipsychotic use across the study period (pre-ARI b = -0.