Four-year follow-up of weight loss maintenance using electronic medical record data: The PROPEL trial.

Rationale: Short-term weight loss is possible in a variety of settings. However, long-term, free-living weight loss maintenance following structured weight loss interventions remains elusive.

Objective: The purpose was to study body weight trajectories over 2 years of intensive lifestyle intervention (ILI) and up to 4 years of follow-up versus usual care (UC).

Trends in the Incidence of Hypertensive Disorders of Pregnancy Among the Medicaid Population before and During COVID-19.

Importance: Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP) are a group of high blood pressure disorders during pregnancy that are a leading cause of maternal and infant morbidity and mortality. Data on the trend in the incidence of HDP among the Medicaid population during coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) are lacking.

Objective: To determine the trends in the annual incidence of HDP among pregnant Medicaid-insured women in Louisiana before and during the COVID-19 pandemic (2016-2021).

Trends in the Incidence of Gestational Diabetes Mellitus Among the Medicaid Population Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Although there are many regional and national studies on the trends in the incidence of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), the trends in the incidence of GDM among the Medicaid population are lacking, especially before and during coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19). To investigate the trends in the incidence of GDM before and during COVID-19 pandemic (2016-2021) among the Louisiana Medicaid population. This study included 111,936, Louisiana Medicaid pregnant women of age 18-50 between January 1, 2016, to December 31, 2021.

Associations between COVID-19 therapies and outcomes in rural and urban America: A multisite, temporal analysis from the Alpha to Omicron SARS-CoV-2 variants.

Purpose: To investigate the enduring disparities in adverse COVID-19 events between urban and rural communities in the United States, focusing on the effects of SARS-CoV-2 vaccination and therapeutic advances on patient outcomes.

Methods: Using National COVID Cohort Collaborative (N3C) data from 2021 to 2023, this retrospective cohort study examined COVID-19 hospitalization, inpatient death, and other adverse events. Populations were categorized into urban, urban-adjacent rural (UAR), and nonurban-adjacent rural (NAR).

Trends of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy among the Medicaid population before and during COVID-19.

Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP) are a group of high blood pressure disorders during pregnancy that are a leading cause of maternal and infant morbidity and mortality. The trend of HDP among the Medicaid population during the coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) is severely lacking. To determine the trends in the annual prevalence of HDP among Louisiana Medicaid pregnant women before and during the COVID-19 pandemic (2016-2021), a total of 113,776 pregnant women aged 15-50 years was included in this study.

Higher hospitalization and mortality rates among SARS-CoV-2-infected persons in rural America.

Purpose: Rural communities are among the most underserved and resource-scarce populations in the United States. However, there are limited data on COVID-19 outcomes in rural America. This study aims to compare hospitalization rates and inpatient mortality among SARS-CoV-2-infected persons stratified by residential rurality.

Association of Obesity and Diabetes With the Incidence of Breast Cancer in Louisiana.

Introduction: Breast cancer is a heterogeneous disease, consisting of multiple molecular subtypes. Obesity has been associated with an increased risk for postmenopausal breast cancer, but few studies have examined breast cancer subtypes separately. Obesity is often complicated by type 2 diabetes, but the possible association of diabetes with specific breast cancer subtypes remains poorly understood.

The Inverse Correlation Between the Duration of Lifetime Occupational Radiation Exposure and the Prevalence of Atrial Arrhythmia.

Objective: Advancements in fluoroscopy-assisted procedures have increased radiation exposure among cardiologists. Radiation has been linked to cardiovascular complications but its effect on cardiac rhythm, specifically, is underexplored.

Methods: Demographic, social, occupational, and medical history information was collected from board-certified cardiologists via an electronic survey.

Comparison of weight loss data collected by research technicians versus electronic medical records: the PROPEL trial.

Background/objectives: Pragmatic trials are increasingly used to study the implementation of weight loss interventions in real-world settings. This study compared researcher-measured body weights versus electronic medical record (EMR)-derived body weights from a pragmatic trial conducted in an underserved patient population.

Subjects/methods: The PROPEL trial randomly allocated 18 clinics to usual care (UC) or to an intensive lifestyle intervention (ILI) designed to promote weight loss.

Intraclass correlation coefficients for weight loss cluster randomized trials in primary care: The PROPEL trial.

The aim of this study was to compute intra-class correlations (ICCs) for weight-related and patient-reported outcomes in a cluster randomized clinical trial (cRCT) for weight loss. Baseline and follow-up data from the Promoting Successful Weight Loss in Primary Care in Louisiana (PROPEL) cRCT were used in this analysis. ICCs were computed for baseline and follow-up measures, and changes in body weight, cardiometabolic risk factors and health-related and weight-related quality of life at 6, 12, 18 and 24 months.

COVID-19 Knowledge, Beliefs, and Behavior Among Patients in a Safety-Net Health System.

Examine COVID-19 knowledge, concerns, behaviors, stress, and sources of information among patients in a safety-net health system in Louisiana. Research assistants surveyed participants via structured telephone interviews from April to October 2020. The data presented in this study were obtained in the pre-vaccine availability period.

Synergies between centralized and federated approaches to data quality: a report from the national COVID cohort collaborative.

Objective: In response to COVID-19, the informatics community united to aggregate as much clinical data as possible to characterize this new disease and reduce its impact through collaborative analytics. The National COVID Cohort Collaborative (N3C) is now the largest publicly available HIPAA limited dataset in US history with over 6.4 million patients and is a testament to a partnership of over 100 organizations.

The Association Between Neighborhood Social Vulnerability and COVID-19 Testing, Positivity, and Incidence in Alabama and Louisiana.

Racial/ethnic and socioeconomic disparities in COVID-19 burden have been widely reported. Using data from the state health departments of Alabama and Louisiana aggregated to residential Census tracts, we assessed the relationship between social vulnerability and COVID-19 testing rates, test positivity, and incidence. Data were cumulative for the period of February 27, 2020 to October 7, 2020.

Association between visit-to-visit HbA1c variability and the risk of cardiovascular disease in patients with type 2 diabetes.

Aim: To investigate the association between visit-to-visit HbA1c variability and the risk of cardiovascular disease in patients with type 2 diabetes.

Materials And Methods: We performed a retrospective cohort study of 29 260 patients with at least four HbA1c measurements obtained within 2 years of their first diagnosis of type 2 diabetes. Different HbA1c variability markers were calculated, including the standard deviation (SD), coefficient of variation (CV) and adjusted SD.

Racial Disparities in End-of-Life Care Between Black and White Adults With Metastatic Cancer.

Context: The comfort of patients with cancer near the end of life (EOL) is often undermined by unnecessary and burdensome treatments. There is a need for more research examining racial disparities in EOL care, especially in regions with a history of racial discrimination.

Objectives: To examine whether black adults received more burdensome EOL care than white adults in a population-based data set of cancer decedents in Louisiana, a state with a history of slavery and long-standing racial disparities.

Analysis of Pregnancy and Birth Rates Among Black and White Medicaid-Enrolled Teens.

Purpose: In the United States, black teens overall have higher pregnancy and birth rates than whites, and it is commonly believed that minority race and low income account for this disparity. We examined racial differences in pregnancy and birth rates among teens from low-income households using Medicaid-enrollment as a proxy for low income.

Methods: This was a retrospective study of Louisiana Medicaid claims data for female teens aged 15-17 years in 2014 (n = 66,069).

Effectiveness of sodium-glucose co-transporter-2 inhibitors on ischaemic heart disease.

Aim: To compare the cardiovascular risks between users and non-users of sodium-glucose co-transporter-2 (SGLT2) inhibitors based on electronic medical record data from a large integrated healthcare system in South Louisiana.

Materials And Methods: Demographic, anthropometric, laboratory and medication prescription information for patients with type 2 diabetes who were new users of SGLT2 inhibitors, either as initial treatments or as add-on treatments, were obtained from electronic health records. Mediation analysis was performed to evaluate the association of use of SGLT2 inhibitors and changes of metabolic risk factors with the risk of incident ischaemic heart disease.

Blood pressure and all-cause mortality among patients with type 2 diabetes.

Background: The recommended goal for blood pressure (BP) control has recently been adjusted for people with diabetes, but the optimal BP control range for the diabetic population is still uncertain.

Methods: We performed a prospective cohort study of 35,261 patients with type 2 diabetes. Cox proportional hazard regression models were used to estimate the association of BP with all-cause mortality.

HbA1c and all-cause mortality risk among patients with type 2 diabetes.

Background: Several prospective studies have evaluated the association between glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) and death risk among diabetic patients. However, the results have been inconsistent.

Methods: We performed a prospective study which included 13,334 men and 21,927 women with type 2 diabetes.

Comparison of the heart failure risk stratification performance of the CKD-EPI equation and the MDRD equation for estimated glomerular filtration rate in patients with Type 2 diabetes.

Aims: To investigate the risk prediction and the risk stratification performances of the Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology Collaboration (CKD-EPI) equation and the Modification of Diet in Renal Disease (MDRD) equation for estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFRCKD - EPI vs. eGFRMDRD ) on heart failure in patients with Type 2 diabetes.

Methods: The study cohort included 12 258 White and 16 886 African American low-income patients with Type 2 diabetes who were 30-90 years old at baseline.