RAndomized Cluster Evaluation of Cardiac ARrest Systems (RACE-CARS) trial: Study rationale and design.

Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) occurs in nearly 350,000 people each year in the United States (US). Despite advances in pre and in-hospital care, OHCA survival remains low and is highly variable across systems and regions. The critical barrier to improving cardiac arrest outcomes is not a lack of knowledge about effective interventions, but rather the widespread lack of systems of care to deliver interventions known to be successful.

Comprehensive Quality-of-Life Outcomes With Invasive Versus Conservative Management of Chronic Coronary Disease in ISCHEMIA.

Background: ISCHEMIA (International Study of Comparative Health Effectiveness with Medical and Invasive Approaches) compared an initial invasive treatment strategy (INV) with an initial conservative strategy in 5179 participants with chronic coronary disease and moderate or severe ischemia. The ISCHEMIA research program included a comprehensive quality-of-life (QOL) substudy.

Methods: In 1819 participants (907 INV, 912 conservative strategy), we collected a battery of disease-specific and generic QOL instruments by structured interviews at baseline; at 3, 12, 24, and 36 months postrandomization; and at study closeout.

Health-Status Outcomes with Invasive or Conservative Care in Coronary Disease.

Background: In the ISCHEMIA trial, an invasive strategy with angiographic assessment and revascularization did not reduce clinical events among patients with stable ischemic heart disease and moderate or severe ischemia. A secondary objective of the trial was to assess angina-related health status among these patients.

Methods: We assessed angina-related symptoms, function, and quality of life with the Seattle Angina Questionnaire (SAQ) at randomization, at months 1.

Addressing Diabetes and Poorly Controlled Hypertension: Pragmatic mHealth Self-Management Intervention.

Background: Patients with diabetes and poorly controlled hypertension are at increased risk for adverse renal and cardiovascular outcomes. Identifying these patients early and addressing modifiable risk factors is central to delaying renal complications such as diabetic kidney disease. Mobile health (mHealth), a relatively inexpensive and easily scalable technology, can facilitate patient-centered care and promote engagement in self-management, particularly for patients of lower socioeconomic status.

Effect of Catheter Ablation vs Medical Therapy on Quality of Life Among Patients With Atrial Fibrillation: The CABANA Randomized Clinical Trial.

Importance: Catheter ablation is more effective than drug therapy in restoring sinus rhythm in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF), but its incremental effect on long-term quality of life (QOL) is uncertain.

Objective: To determine whether catheter ablation is more beneficial than conventional drug therapy for improving QOL in patients with AF.

Design, Setting, And Participants: An open-label randomized clinical trial of catheter ablation vs drug therapy in 2204 symptomatic patients with AF older than 65 years or 65 years or younger with at least 1 risk factor for stroke.

Economic and Quality-of-Life Outcomes of Natriuretic Peptide-Guided Therapy for Heart Failure.

Background: The GUIDE-IT (GUIDing Evidence Based Therapy Using Biomarker Intensified Treatment in Heart Failure) trial prospectively compared the efficacy of an N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP)-guided heart failure treatment strategy (target NT-proBNP level <1,000 pg/ml) with optimal medical therapy alone in high-risk patients with heart failure and reduced ejection fraction. When the study was stopped for futility, 894 patients had been enrolled.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to assess treatment-related quality-of-life (QOL) and economic outcomes in the GUIDE-IT trial.

Simultaneous Risk Factor Control Using Telehealth to slOw Progression of Diabetic Kidney Disease (STOP-DKD) study: Protocol and baseline characteristics of a randomized controlled trial.

Unlabelled: Diabetic kidney disease (DKD) is the leading cause of end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) in the United States. Multiple risk factors contribute to DKD development, yet few interventions target more than a single DKD risk factor at a time. This manuscript describes the study protocol, recruitment, and baseline participant characteristics for the Simultaneous Risk Factor Control Using Telehealth to slOw Progression of Diabetic Kidney Disease (STOP-DKD) study.

Quality-of-Life Outcomes With Anatomic Versus Functional Diagnostic Testing Strategies in Symptomatic Patients With Suspected Coronary Artery Disease: Results From the PROMISE Randomized Trial.

Background: The Prospective Multicenter Imaging Study for Evaluation of Chest Pain (PROMISE) trial found that initial use of ≥64 detector-row computed tomography angiography versus standard functional testing strategies (exercise ECG, stress nuclear methods, or stress echocardiography) did not improve clinical outcomes in 10 003 stable symptomatic patients with suspected coronary artery disease requiring noninvasive testing. Symptom burden and quality of life (QOL) were major secondary outcomes.

Methods And Results: We prospectively collected a battery of QOL instruments in 5985 patients at baseline and 6, 12, and 24 months postrandomization.

Predictors of early discontinuation of evidence-based medicine after acute coronary syndrome.

Use of evidence-based medicine (EBM) improves outcomes after acute coronary syndromes (ACS), yet patients often discontinue prescribed therapies after discharge. Although such discontinuation is well documented, patients' reasons for medication discontinuation have not been reported. MAINTAIN is a longitudinal follow-up registry of CRUSADE/ACTION, which enrolled patients during an ACS hospitalization from January 2006 to September 2007.

Propionibacterium endocarditis: a case series from the International Collaboration on Endocarditis Merged Database and Prospective Cohort Study.

Propionibacterium species are occasionally associated with serious systemic infections such as infective endocarditis. In this study, we examined the clinical features, complications and outcome of 15 patients with Propionibacterium endocarditis using the International Collaboration on Endocarditis Merged Database (ICE-MD) and Prospective Cohort Study (ICE-PCS), and compared the results to 28 cases previously reported in the literature. In the ICE database, 11 of 15 patients were male with a mean age of 52 y.