Association Between Socioeconomic Disadvantage and Risks of Early and Recurrent Admissions Among Patients With Newly Diagnosed Heart Failure.

Background: Socioeconomic disadvantage is associated with greater risks of hospital readmission and mortality among patients with heart failure (HF). However, it is less clear whether socioeconomic disadvantage has an immediate and lasting impact on the risk of admissions after the diagnosis of HF.

Methods: We used electronic health record data of patients aged 65 years and older with newly diagnosed HF between January 2015 and July 2018 in the Duke University Health System, with up to 8 years of follow-up.

Cardiovascular disease burden is associated with worsened depression symptoms in the U.S. general population.

Background: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) and depression are the leading causes of disability in the U.S. Using five cycles (2009-2018) of the U.

Pre-Diagnosis Diet and Physical Activity and Risk of Cardiovascular Disease Mortality among Female Cancer Survivors.

Sub-optimal diet and physical activity (PA) levels have been associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality. The relationship between pre-cancer diagnosis diet quality and PA level on CVD mortality risk in cancer survivors is unclear. We examined the association between pre-cancer diagnosis diet quality and leisure-time PA and their interaction on CVD mortality in cancer survivors.

Respiratory manifestations in the Ehlers-Danlos syndromes.

Persons with the Ehlers-Danlos syndromes (EDS) report a wide range of respiratory symptoms, most commonly shortness of breath, exercise limitation, and cough. Also reported are noisy breathing attributed to asthma, difficulty with deep inhalation, and inspiratory thoracic pain. The literature consists of case reports and small cross-sectional and cohort studies.

Prescription Claims for Immunomodulator and Antiinflammatory Drugs Among Persons With Ehlers-Danlos Syndromes.

Objective: Joint hypermobility in Ehlers-Danlos Syndromes (EDS) predisposes persons with EDS to frequent subluxations and dislocations, chronic arthralgia, and soft-tissue rheumatism. Epidemiologic trends of rheumatologic conditions among persons with EDS are lacking. Prescription claims databases can reflect underlying disease burdens by using medication claims as disease proxies.

A case-control study of respiratory medication and co-occurring gastrointestinal prescription burden among persons with Ehlers-Danlos syndromes.

We previously reported increased pain and gastrointestinal (GI) medication prescription claims among persons with Ehlers-Danlos syndromes (EDS) and peripubertal increase in opioid and anti-emetic claims among women with EDS. Herein, we hypothesized a higher proportion of respiratory and co-occurring respiratory and GI medication prescription claims among persons with EDS compared to their matched controls with increases among peripubertal women with EDS. We compared the proportions of respiratory and co-occurring respiratory and GI medication prescription claims among persons with EDS (aged 5-62) against their age-, sex-, state of residence-, and earliest claim date-matched controls using 10 years of private prescription claims data.

Gastrointestinal medication burden among persons with the Ehlers-Danlos syndromes.

Background: The Ehlers-Danlos syndromes (EDSs) are a group of heritable disorders of connective tissue associated with an increased prevalence of both structural and functional GI conditions.

Methods: We used 10 years (2005-2014) of administrative claims data comprised of 4294 people with clinician-diagnosed EDS, aged 5-62 years, and compared their frequency of GI drug prescription claims to their age-, sex-, state of residence-, and earliest claim date-matched controls. We categorized the GI medications into the following groups: acid suppressants, anti-emetics, irritable bowel syndrome drugs, and visceral hypersensitivity (VHS) medications.

Screening for Obstructive Sleep Apnea in Commercial Drivers Using EKG-Derived Respiratory Power Index.

Study Objectives: Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is common in commercial motor vehicle operators (CMVOs); however, polysomnography (PSG), the gold-standard diagnostic test, is expensive and inconvenient for screening. OSA is associated with changes in heart rate and voltage on electrocardiography (EKG). We evaluated the utility of EKG parameters in identifying CMVOs at greater risk for sleepiness-related crashes (apnea-hypopnea index [AHI] ≥ 30 events/h).