Residential Racial Segregation in Aortic Stenosis Diagnosis and Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation Among Medicare Patients.

Background: Transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) rates are lower among Black compared with White individuals. However, it is unclear whether racial residential segregation, which remains common in the United States, contributes to observed disparities in TAVI rates.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the association between county-level racial segregation, and aortic stenosis (AS) diagnosis, management, and outcomes.

Characterizing the Accuracy of Administrative Claims for Aortic Valve Disease.

Background: Administrative claims for aortic stenosis (AS) regurgitation may be useful, but their accuracy and ability to identify individuals at risk for valve-related outcomes have not been well characterized.

Methods: Using echocardiographic (transthoracic echocardiogram [TTE]) reports linked to US Medicare claims, 2017 to 2018, the performance of candidate claims to ascertain AS/aortic regurgitation was evaluated. The optimal performing algorithm was tested against outcomes at 1-year after TTE in a separate 100% sample of US Medicare claims, 2017 to 2019.

Heart Failure Home Management Challenges and Reasons for Readmission: a Qualitative Study to Understand the Patient's Perspective.

Background: Heart failure patients have high 30-day hospital readmission rates. Interventions designed to prevent readmissions have had mixed success. Understanding heart failure home management through the patient's experience may reframe the readmission "problem" and, ultimately, inform alternative strategies.

Incorporating patient-centered factors into heart failure readmission risk prediction: A mixed-methods study.

Background: Capturing and incorporating patient-centered factors into 30-day readmission risk prediction after hospitalized heart failure (HF) could improve the modest performance of current models.

Methods: Using a mixed-methods approach, we developed a patient-centered survey and evaluated the additional predictive utility of the survey compared to a traditional readmission risk model (the Krumholz et al. model).

Association Between Patient-Reported Medication Adherence and Anticoagulation Control.

Background: The prevention of thromboembolism events remains challenging in cases of poor medication adherence. Unfortunately, clinical prediction of future adherence has been suboptimal. The objective of this study was to examine the correlation between 2 measures of real-time, self-reported adherence and anticoagulation control.