Delayed inflammatory leukoencephalopathy after gastric bypass surgery.

We describe an unusual leukoencephalopathy in a female who developed global language and memory difficulties as well as diffuse FLAIR lesions in the cerebral white matter (WM) ~ 30 months after bariatric surgery. She had no detectable nutritional deficiency. She died suddenly due to cardiovascular disease.

Impact of bariatric surgery on health care costs of obese persons: a 6-year follow-up of surgical and comparison cohorts using health plan data.

Importance: Bariatric surgery is a well-documented treatment for obesity, but there are uncertainties about the degree to which such surgery is associated with health care cost reductions that are sustained over time.

Objective: To provide a comprehensive, multiyear analysis of health care costs by type of procedure within a large cohort of privately insured persons who underwent bariatric surgery compared with a matched nonsurgical cohort.

Design: Longitudinal analysis of 2002-2008 claims data comparing a bariatric surgery cohort with a matched nonsurgical cohort.

Clinical outcomes after bariatric surgery: a five-year matched cohort analysis in seven US states.

Background: Bariatric surgery is the most effective weight loss treatment, yet few studies have reported on short- and long-term outcomes postsurgery.

Methods: Using claims data from seven Blue Cross/Blue Shield health plans serving seven states, we conducted a non-concurrent, matched cohort study. We followed 22,693 persons who underwent bariatric surgery during 2003-2007 and were enrolled at least 6 months before and after surgery.

Effect of cost-sharing reductions on preventive service use among Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries.

Background: Section 4104 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) waives previous cost-sharing requirements for many Medicare-covered preventive services. In 1997, Congress passed similar legislation waiving the deductible only for mammograms and Pap smears. The purpose of this study is to examine the effect of the deductible waiver on mammogram and Pap smear utilization rates.

Variation in Provider Identification of Obesity by Individual- and Neighborhood-Level Characteristics among an Insured Population.

Objective. The purpose of this study was to examine whether neighborhood- and individual-level characteristics affect providers' likelihood of providing an obesity diagnosis code in their obese patients' claims. Methods.

Trends in and patterns of obesity reduction medication use in an insured cohort.

Several prescription medications are approved to treat obesity, yet little is known about their use in the United States. Our objective was to describe recent trends and patterns of obesity reduction medication use in an insured US population. From among ~4.