The role of Medicaid home- and community-based services in use of Medicare post-acute care.

Objective: Medicaid-funded long-term services and supports are increasingly provided through home- and community-based services (HCBS) to promote continued community living. While an emerging body of evidence examines the direct benefits and costs of HCBS, there may also be unexplored synergies with Medicare-funded post-acute care (PAC). This study aimed to provide empirical evidence on how the use of Medicaid HCBS influences Medicare PAC utilization among the dually enrolled.

Association Between Acute Exposure to Crime and Individual Systolic Blood Pressure.

Introduction: Hypertension is associated with adverse cardiovascular outcomes and is geographically concentrated in urban underserved neighborhoods. This study examines the temporal-spatial association between individual exposure to violent crime and blood pressure.

Methods: A retrospective observational cohort study analyzed 39,211 patients with 227,595 blood pressure measurements from 2014 to 2016 at 3 outpatient clinics at an academic medical center in Chicago.

A retrospective analysis of high sensitivity cardiac troponin-T ranges in non-myocardial infarction emergency department visits.

Introduction: Current evidence suggests that high sensitivity cardiac troponin-T (hs-cTnT) values differ based on sex, race, age, and kidney function. However, most studies examining the relationship of hs-cTnT and these individual factors are in healthy participants, leading to difficulty in interpreting hs-cTnT values in the Emergency Department (ED) setting. We seek to examine the relationship between hs-cTnT values and sex, race, age, and kidney function in a contemporary, urban academic setting.

Social determinants of health and hospital readmissions: can the HOSPITAL risk score be improved by the inclusion of social factors?

Background: The HOSPITAL Risk Score (HRS) predicts 30-day hospital readmissions and is internationally validated. Social determinants of health (SDOH) such as low socioeconomic status (SES) affect health outcomes and have been postulated to affect readmission rates. We hypothesized that adding SDOH to the HRS could improve its predictive accuracy.

SALAD-BAAR: A numerical risk score for hospital admission or emergency department presentation in ambulatory patients with cardiovascular disease.

Background: While many interventions to reduce hospital admissions and emergency department (ED) visits for patients with cardiovascular disease have been developed, identifying ambulatory cardiac patients at high risk for admission can be challenging.

Hypothesis: A computational model based on readily accessible clinical data can identify patients at risk for admission.

Methods: Electronic health record (EHR) data from a tertiary referral center were used to generate decision tree and logistic regression models.

Community Health Workers Reduce Rehospitalizations and Emergency Department Visits for Low-Socioeconomic Urban Patients With Heart Failure.

Background: Low-socioeconomic, urban, minority patients with heart failure (HF) often have unique barriers to care. Community health workers (CHWs) are specially trained laypeople who serve as liaisons between underserved communities and the health system. It is not known whether CHWs improve outcomes in low-socioeconomic, urban, minority patients with HF.

Association of Rising Violent Crime With Blood Pressure and Cardiovascular Risk: Longitudinal Evidence From Chicago, 2014-2016.

Background: The purpose of this study was to examine the longitudinal association between rising violent crime and elevated blood pressure (BP).

Methods: We analyzed 217,816 BP measurements from 17,783 adults during a temporal surge in violent crime in Chicago (2014-2016). Serial observations were abstracted from the electronic health record at an academic medical center and paired to the City of Chicago Police Data Portal.

Cost-utility of extracorporeal cardiopulmonary resuscitation in patients with cardiac arrest.

Background: Extracorporeal cardiopulmonary resuscitation (ECPR) is a resource-intensive tool that provides haemodynamic and respiratory support in patients who have suffered cardiac arrest. In this study, we investigated the cost-utility of ECPR (cost/QALY) in cardiac arrest patients treated at our institution.

Methods: We performed a retrospective review of patients who received ECPR following cardiac arrest between 2012 and 2018.

Molecular Evolution of MDM1, a "Duplication-Resistant" Gene in Vertebrates.

Background: The mouse double minute 1 (Mdm1) gene was first reported and cloned in mouse tumor cell lines as an oncogene candidate. Later, it was found that mutation of Mdm1 might cause age-related retinal degeneration 2 in mice by genetic linkage analysis. Additionally, the MDM1 protein was found to be expressed in the centrosomes, cilia, and the nucleus of multiciliated tracheal epithelial cells in mice.

Evolutionary and developmental analysis reveals KANK genes were co-opted for vertebrate vascular development.

Gene co-option, usually after gene duplication, in the evolution of development is found to contribute to vertebrate morphological innovations, including the endothelium-based vascular system. Recently, a zebrafish kank gene was found expressed in the vascular vessel primordium, suggesting KANK genes are a component of the developmental tool kit for the vertebrate vascular system. However, how the KANK gene family is involved in vascular vessel development during evolution remains largely unknown.