Scoping Review of Experiential Measures from Psychedelic Research and Clinical Trials.

Subjective responses to psychoactive drugs have served as intriguing windows into consciousness as well as useful predictors. Subjective reactions to psychedelic molecules are particularly interesting given how they covary with subsequent improvements associated with psychedelic-assisted treatments. Although links between subjective reactions and decreases in treatment-resistant clinical depression, end-of-life anxiety, and maladaptive consumption of alcohol and nicotine appear in the empirical literature, the measurement of these subjective responses has proven difficult.

Consumer willingness to pay for pharmacy services: An updated review of the literature.

Background: Quantifying the value of pharmacy services is imperative for the profession as it works to establish an expanded role within evolving health care systems. The literature documents the work that many have contributed toward meeting this goal. To date, however, the preponderance of evidence evaluates the value of pharmacist services to third-party payers; few published studies address the value that consumers place on these services.

A Comparison of Brand and Biosimilar Granulocyte-Colony Stimulating Factors for Prophylaxis of Chemotherapy-Induced Febrile Neutropenia.

Background: Filgrastim-sndz, a granulocyte-colony stimulating factor (G-CSF), was introduced as a biosimilar to filgrastim in 2015, but real-world comparative effectiveness for filgrastim versus filgrastim-sndz has not been reported to date.

Objectives: To (a) compare the incidence of febrile neutropenia for patients taking filgrastim versus those taking filgrastim-sndz and (b) compare the incidence of a potential serious adverse event for filgrastim versus filgrastim-sndz.

Methods: This retrospective cohort study identified patients receiving a G-CSF following chemotherapy, using administrative claims from the Humana Research Database.

A health plan's investigation of Healthy Days and chronic conditions.

Objectives: To investigate whether self-reported unhealthy days are related to 6 chronic conditions and other health indicators by using administrative claims.

Study Design: Cross-sectional study using Healthy Days survey data linked to administrative claims.

Methods: Survey respondents 65 years or older with Medicare Advantage coverage in November or December 2014 and 12 months continuous presurvey enrollment were identified.

Comorbid Arthritis Is Associated With Lower Health-Related Quality of Life in Older Adults With Other Chronic Conditions, United States, 2013-2014.

Introduction: Arthritis is related to poor health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in adults aged 18 years or older. We sought to determine whether this relationship persisted in an older population using claims-based arthritis diagnoses and whether people who also had arthritis and at least 1 of 5 other chronic conditions had lower HRQoL.

Methods: We identified adults aged 65 years or older with Medicare Advantage coverage in November or December 2014 who responded to an HRQoL survey (Healthy Days).

Leveraging Health-Related Quality of Life in Population Health Management: The Case for Healthy Days.

Measuring population health with morbidity and mortality data, often collected at the site of care, fails to capture the individual's perspective on health and well-being. Because health happens outside the walls of medical facilities, a holistic and singular measure of health that can easily be captured for an entire population could aid in understanding the well-being of communities. This paper postulates that Healthy Days, a health-related quality of life measure developed and validated by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is an ideal survey instrument to advance population health.

Characteristics Relating to Adherence and Persistence to Basal Insulin Regimens Among Elderly Insulin-Naïve Patients with Type 2 Diabetes: Pre-Filled Pens versus Vials/Syringes.

Introduction: Previous studies have found higher rates of adherence in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) using insulin pens compared to vial and syringe administration; however, little evidence is available to support this observation in elderly patients.

Methods: This was a retrospective claims database analysis of a predominantly elderly Medicare Advantage with Prescription Drug (MAPD) insurance population consisting of 3172 insulin-naïve patients with T2DM who initiated basal insulin using pre-filled pens or vial and syringe ('vial'). The index date was defined by the first pharmacy claim for basal insulin.

Antidiabetic treatment patterns in a medicare advantage population in the United States.

Background: Published guidelines for treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) agree on initial pharmacotherapy. However, few specific recommendations on second-line agents are provided.

Objective: The objective of this study was to describe antidiabetic treatment patterns in Medicare Advantage patients with T2DM within 6 months of measurement of the glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) level.

Factors associated with increased healthcare costs in Medicare Advantage patients with type 2 diabetes enrolled in a large representative health insurance plan in the US.

Aim: The objective of this study was to apply quantile regression (QR) methodology to a population from a large representative health insurance plan with known skewed healthcare utilization attributes, co-morbidities, and costs in order to identify predictors of increased healthcare costs. Further, this study provides comparison of the results to those obtained using ordinary least squares (OLS) regression methodology.

Methods: Members diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes and with 24 months of continuous enrollment were included.

Lessons from the leucovorin shortages between 2009 and 2012 in a medicare advantage population: where do we go from here?

Background: Three distinct shortages of the generic drug leucovorin, a reduced form of folic acid used in several chemotherapy regimens, were reported by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) between 2008 and 2014. Levoleucovorin, an alternative therapy to leucovorin, failed to demonstrate superiority over leucovorin in clinical trials and is substantially more expensive.

Objective: To calculate the impact of the leucovorin shortages on primary treatment costs to patients and a health plan, and to present strategies for health plans to deal with future drug shortages.

Prevalence and risk of polypharmacy among the elderly in an outpatient setting: a retrospective cohort study in the Emilia-Romagna region, Italy.

Background: Polypharmacy, the simultaneous taking of many medications, has been well documented and is a topic of much concern for those looking to improve the quality of care for the elderly. Elderly patients often develop complicated and multifactorial health states that require extensive pharmacotherapy, leaving this population at risk for exposure to drug-drug interactions and other adverse events. Previous literature supports an association between an increase in the rate of adverse events as the number of drugs taken by a patient increases.

Localized Rac activation dynamics visualized in living cells.

Signaling proteins are thought to be tightly regulated spatially and temporally in order to generate specific and localized effects. For Rac and other small guanosine triphosphatases, binding to guanosine triphosphate leads to interaction with downstream targets and regulates subcellular localization. A method called FLAIR (fluorescence activation indicator for Rho proteins) was developed to quantify the spatio-temporal dynamics of the Rac1 nucleotide state in living cells.