Impact of alcohol use disorder on inpatient hospitalizations: A comparison of outcomes between urban and rural Veterans Affairs hospitals.

Background: Alcohol use disorder (AUD) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality that disproportionately affects rural residents and Veterans.

Objective: To evaluate the burden of AUD in admissions at rural and urban hospitals within the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) comparing patient characteristics, clinical outcomes, and 1-, 3-, and 5-year mortality rates.

Methods: Retrospective cross-sectional study of patients admitted to VHA hospitals from 2016 to 2020, with a primary or secondary diagnosis related to AUD.

Therapeutic and Economic Benefits of Service Dogs Versus Emotional Support Dogs for Veterans With PTSD.

Objective: This work aimed to assess the therapeutic and economic benefits of service dogs versus emotional support dogs for veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Methods: Veterans with PTSD (N=227) participating in a multicenter trial were randomly assigned to receive a service or emotional support dog; 181 veterans received a dog and were followed up for 18 months. Primary outcomes included overall functioning (assessed with World Health Organization Disability Assessment Scale II [WHODAS 2.

Care Outcomes for Chiropractic Outpatient Veterans (COCOV): a single-arm, pragmatic, pilot trial of multimodal chiropractic care for U.S. veterans with chronic low back pain.

Background: Over 25% of veterans seeking care at U.S. Veterans Health Administration facilities have chronic low back pain (LBP), with high rates of mental health comorbidities.

Veteran Response to Dosage in Chiropractic Therapy (VERDICT): Study Protocol of a Pragmatic Randomized Trial for Chronic Low Back Pain.

Background: Low back pain is a leading cause of disability in veterans. Chiropractic care is a well-integrated, nonpharmacological therapy in Veterans Affairs health care facilities, where doctors of chiropractic provide therapeutic interventions focused on the management of low back pain and other musculoskeletal conditions. However, important knowledge gaps remain regarding the effectiveness of chiropractic care in terms of the number and frequency of treatment visits needed for optimal outcomes in veterans with low back pain.

Lifetime History of Sexual Assault and Emergency Department Service Use among Women Veterans.

Background: Although sexual assault survivors are at increased risk for adverse physical and mental health outcomes and tend to use more health care services, little is known about women veterans' lifetime history of experiencing sexual assault (lifetime sexual assault [LSA]) and emergency department (ED) use. We sought to examine associations between experiencing LSA, mental health diagnoses, and ED use among women veterans.

Methods: Computer-assisted telephone interviews were conducted with 980 women veterans enrolled at two Veterans Affairs (VA) Medical Centers to assess history of experiencing LSA, health care use, sociodemographic characteristics, and military history.

Identification of Military Veterans Upon Implementation of a Standardized Screening Process in a Federally Qualified Health Center.

The identification of veterans receiving care in community-based settings is important and has implications for healthcare delivery and workforce training and development. As part of a larger collaboration regarding the delivery of behavioral health services, this project partnered a Midwest Veterans Affairs Medical Center with a state primary care association and large federally qualified health center (FQHC) to standardize the method in which veteran status is captured in clinic. Before adapting the screening item and implementing it as a required field in the electronic medical record, the number of veterans reported was 56, or 0.

Design and challenges for a randomized, multi-site clinical trial comparing the use of service dogs and emotional support dogs in Veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a leading cause of impairments in quality of life and functioning among Veterans. Service dogs have been promoted as an effective adjunctive intervention for PTSD, however published research is limited and design and implementation flaws in published studies limit validated conclusions. This paper describes the rationale for the study design, a detailed methodological description, and implementation challenges of a multisite randomized clinical trial examining the impact of service dogs on the on the functioning and quality of life of Veterans with PTSD.

PTSD, Psychotropic Medication Use, and the Risk of Dementia Among US Veterans: A Retrospective Cohort Study.

Objective: To determine the associations between PTSD, psychotropic medication use, and the risk for dementia.

Design: Retrospective cohort.

Participants: Nationwide sample of US veterans (N = 417,172) aged ≥56 years during fiscal year (FY) 2003 without a diagnosis of dementia or mild cognitive impairment at baseline (FY02-03) and ≥1 clinical encounter every 2 years during follow-up (FY04-12).

An individually-tailored smoking cessation intervention for rural Veterans: a pilot randomized trial.

Background: Tobacco use remains prevalent among Veterans of military service and those residing in rural areas. Smokers frequently experience tobacco-related issues including risky alcohol use, post-cessation weight gain, and depressive symptoms that may adversely impact their likelihood of quitting and maintaining abstinence. Telephone-based interventions that simultaneously address these issues may help to increase treatment access and improve outcomes.

Chronic obstructive lung disease and posttraumatic stress disorder: current perspectives.

Background: Several studies have reported on the co-occurrence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and psychiatric conditions, with the most robust evidence base demonstrating an impact of comorbid anxiety and depression on COPD-related outcomes. In recent years, research has sought to determine if there is a co-occurrence between COPD and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as well as for associations between PTSD and COPD-related outcomes. To date, there have been no published reviews summarizing this emerging literature.

Geographical diffusion of prazosin across Veterans Health Administration: Examination of regional variation in daily dosing and quality indicators among veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder.

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a high-priority treatment area for the Veterans Health Administration (VHA), and dissemination patterns of innovative, efficacious therapies can inform areas for potential improvement of diffusion efforts and quality prescribing. In this study, we replicated a prior examination of the period prevalence of prazosin use as a function of distance from Puget Sound, Washington, where prazosin was first tested as an effective treatment for PTSD and where prazosin use was previously shown to be much greater than in other parts of the United States. We tested the following three hypotheses related to prazosin geographic diffusion: (1) a positive geographical correlation exists between the distance from Puget Sound and the proportion of users treated according to a guideline recommended minimum therapeutic target dose (>/=6 mg/d), (2) an inverse geographic correlation exists between prazosin and benzodiazepine use, and (3) no geographical correlation exists between prazosin use and serotonin reuptake inhibitor/serotonin norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (SSRI/SNRI) use.

Validating administrative records in post-traumatic stress disorder.

There is insufficient data on the accuracy of administrative coding data (ACD) for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Medical records were reviewed for (1) a diagnosis of PTSD; (2) treatment for PTSD. The records were compared against the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) data in order to determine the positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV) of three commonly used approaches.

Satellite-based PM concentrations and their application to COPD in Cleveland, OH.

A hybrid approach is proposed to estimate exposure to fine particulate matter (PM(2.5)) at a given location and time. This approach builds on satellite-based aerosol optical depth (AOD), air pollution data from sparsely distributed Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) sites and local time-space Kriging, an optimal interpolation technique.

Aligning clinical practice to PTSD treatment guidelines: medication prescribing by provider type.

Objective: Veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are frequently prescribed psychiatric medications that are currently not supported by a guideline developed by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the U.

Patterns of illness explaining the associations between posttraumatic stress disorder and the use of CT.

Purpose: To examine the relationship between posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and computed tomography (CT) utilization and to determine whether there were patterns of comorbid illness that could explain the relationship.

Materials And Methods: The study was approved by the University of Iowa Institutional Review Board and the Iowa City Veterans Affairs Medical Center Research and Development Committee. By using a retrospective cohort design, a national sample of new veteran enrollees aged 18-35 years was studied.

Benzodiazepine prescribing variation and clinical uncertainty in treating posttraumatic stress disorder.

Objective: Despite guideline recommendations against their use, benzodiazepines are among the most commonly prescribed psychotropic medications among veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in the Veterans Health Administration (VHA). This observation suggests the potential for significant clinical uncertainty concerning the role of benzodiazepines in PTSD, which was examined by characterizing prescribing variation in the VHA across multiple levels of geographic aggregation and over time.

Methods: Veterans with PTSD were identified from national VHA administrative data in fiscal years 1999 through 2009.

A systematic review of validated methods for identifying pancreatitis using administrative data.

Purpose: To systematically review algorithms identifying cases of pancreatitis in administrative data, with a focus on studies examining algorithm validity.

Methods: A literature search was conducted using PubMed and the Iowa Drug Information Service database. Reviews were conducted by two investigators identifying studies using data sources from the USA or Canada.

Acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and the effect of existing psychiatric comorbidity on subsequent mortality.

Objectives: Studies investigating associations between chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) outcomes and psychiatric comorbidity have yielded mixed findings. We examined a national sample of hospitalized COPD patients to evaluate the impact of three psychiatric conditions on mortality and readmission.

Methods: Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) administrative and laboratory data were used to identify 26,591 consecutive patients admitted for COPD during October 2006 to September 2008.

Geographic isolation and the risk for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease-related mortality: a cohort study.

Background: Little is known about the possible differences in outcomes between patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) who live in rural areas and those who live in urban areas of the United States.

Objective: To determine whether COPD-related mortality is higher in persons living in rural areas, and to assess whether hospital characteristics influence any observed associations.

Design: Retrospective cohort study.