Incorporating Expected Outcomes Into Clinical Decision-Making for Total Knee Arthroplasty.

Objective: Expected outcomes (e.g., expected survivorship after a cancer treatment) have improved decision-making around treatment options in many clinical fields.

Development of a 5 year life expectancy index in older adults using predictive mining of electronic health record data.

Objective: Incorporating accurate life expectancy predictions into clinical decision making could improve quality and decrease costs, but few providers do this. We sought to use predictive data mining and high dimensional analytics of electronic health record (EHR) data to develop a highly accurate and clinically actionable 5 year life expectancy index.

Materials And Methods: We developed the index using EHR data for 7463 patients ≥50 years old with ≥1 visit(s) in 2003 to a large, academic, multispecialty group practice.

Variations in US hospital performance on imaging-use measures.

Background: The Hospital Outpatient Quality Reporting Program (HOQR) publicly reports measures of US hospitals' use of 4 imaging studies that may be problematic if overused: magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for low back, follow-up imaging after screening mammography, and abdominal and thoracic computed tomography (CT) with and without contrast.

Objectives: To characterize performance on these measures, determine whether performance was consistent across measures, and identify hospital characteristics associated with highest-decile imaging use.

Research Design: Cross-sectional analysis.

Use of electronic health record data to evaluate overuse of cervical cancer screening.

Background: National organizations historically focused on increasing use of effective services are now attempting to identify and discourage use of low-value services. Electronic health records (EHRs) could be used to measure use of low-value services, but few studies have examined this. The aim of the study was to: (1) determine if EHR data can be used to identify women eligible for an extended Pap testing interval; (2) determine the proportion of these women who received a Pap test sooner than recommended; and (3) assess the consequences of these low-value Pap tests.

Impact of an electronic alert and order set on smoking cessation medication prescription.

Introduction: Tobacco cessation medication use increases the likelihood of a successful quit attempt, but few smokers are prescribed medications. Electronic health records (EHRs) may increase cessation medication prescription. This study aimed to assess the impact of an electronic alert and linked order set on cessation medication prescription.

Resveratrol causes cell cycle arrest, decreased collagen synthesis, and apoptosis in rat intestinal smooth muscle cells.

One of the most difficult and treatment-resistant complications of Crohn's disease is the development of fibrotic intestinal strictures due to mesenchymal cell hyperplasia and collagen deposition. Resveratrol, a phytoalexin found in berries, peanuts, grapes, and red wine, has been shown to inhibit fibrosis in vasculature, heart, lung, kidney, liver, and esophagus in animal models. Resveratrol has also been shown to inhibit oxidation, inflammation, and cell proliferation and to decrease collagen synthesis in several cell types or animal models.