The use of outcome data from quality registries to learn and improve; a Dutch nationwide quantitative analysis in five disease areas.

Background: Clinical quality registries (CQR) aid in measuring, collecting and monitoring outcome data but it is still unknown how these data are used by hospitals to improve the quality of care. This study assessed the current state of outcome-based quality improvement in the Netherlands in 2022 based on data from multiple disease areas and CQRs; cardiothoracic surgery (Netherlands Heart Registration [NHR]), cardiology (NHR), nephrology, (Nefrovision), intensive care (National Intensive Care Evaluation [NICE]), and orthopaedic surgery (Dutch Arthroplasty Register [LROI]).

Methods & Results: The Health Outcomes Management Evaluation (HOME) model was used to assess the current state of outcome-based quality improvement.

[Are medical professionals allowed to share data from patient health records with clinical quality registries in the Netherlands?].

This study examines, from a legal standpoint, the conditions under which patient data may be shared and processed by clinical quality registries in the Netherlands and investigates the potential impact of the proposed changes of the Healthcare Quality, Complaints and Disputes Act (WKKGZ) on these practices. Healthcare providers in the Netherlands may share patient data with clinical quality registries to measure and improve care quality, provided they have explicit patient consent or a legal basis. While there is general consensus within the field, legal ambiguity remains regarding processing data without explicit consent.

A high-volume study on the impact of diabetes mellitus on clinical outcomes after surgical and percutaneous cardiac interventions.

Background: Type I and type II diabetes mellitus (DM) patients have a higher prevalence of cardiovascular diseases, as well as a higher mortality risk of cardiovascular diseases and interventions. This study provides an update on the impact of DM on clinical outcomes, including mortality, complications and reinterventions, using data on percutaneous and surgical cardiac interventions in the Netherlands.

Methods: This is a retrospective, nearby nationwide study using real-world observational data registered by the Netherlands Heart Registration (NHR) between 2015 and 2020.

Cholinergic deficiency in Parkinson's disease patients with visual hallucinations.

Visual hallucinations can increase the burden of disease for both patients with Parkinson's disease and their caregivers. Multiple neurotransmitters have been implicated in the neuropathology of visual hallucinations, which provide targets for treatment and prevention. In this study, we assessed the association between cholinergic denervation and visual hallucinations in Parkinson's disease in vivo, using PET imaging of the cholinergic system.

Study protocol of the GRoningen early-PD Ambroxol treatment (GREAT) trial: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, single center trial with ambroxol in Parkinson patients with a GBA mutation.

Background: To date, no disease modifying therapies are available for Parkinson's disease (PD). Since PD is the second most prevalent neurodegenerative disorder, there is a high demand for such therapies. Both environmental and genetic risk factors play an important role in the etiology and progression of PD.