Bacterial and metabolic phenotypes associated with inadequate response to ursodeoxycholic acid treatment in primary biliary cholangitis.

Primary biliary cholangitis (PBC) is a chronic cholestatic liver disease with ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) as first-line treatment. Poor response to UDCA is associated with a higher risk of progressing to cirrhosis, but the underlying mechanisms are unclear. UDCA modulates the composition of primary and bacterial-derived bile acids (BAs).

Leveraging longitudinal clinical laboratory results to improve prenatal care.

Objectives: To assess the impact of providing laboratory-generated near-real-time clinical insights for pregnant Medicaid members to managed care organization (MCO) care coordinators.

Study Design: A prospective, nonrandomized feasibility study was conducted over 11 months to examine the benefits of laboratory-generated clinical insights on prenatal care quality metrics and clinical outcomes. Measures included early identification of pregnancy and births to facilitate care, care gaps with prenatal laboratory testing, emergency department (ED) visits, preterm births, and neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) admissions and length of stay.

The Value of Laboratory Information Augmenting a Managed Care Organization's Comprehensive Diabetes Care Efforts in New Mexico.

Background: The National Committee on Quality Assurance's Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set on Comprehensive Diabetes Care requires patients with diabetes obtain a hemoglobin A1c (Hb A1c) and urine albumin-to-creatinine ratio (ACR) test every year. To improve these measures, managed care organizations (MCOs) rely on claim and prescription data to identify members for care management. TriCore Reference Laboratories collaborated with Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Mexico (BCBSNM) to determine if laboratory information would augment BCBSNM's diabetes care management services.