Publications by authors named "W V Steele"
Lessons Learned From Characterizing Long COVID Among US Medicare Beneficiaries.
Pharmacoepidemiol Drug Saf
February 2025
Purpose: To characterize long-term effects of COVID-19 among older adults (aged ≥ 65 years).
Methods: This retrospective descriptive study utilized Medicare Fee-for-Service beneficiaries' claims to characterize post-COVID condition diagnosis code usage, long COVID (defined as post-COVID condition diagnoses made ≥ 28 days after an initial COVID-19 diagnosis) incidence, patient demographics, and concurrent diagnoses.
Results: During April 1, 2020 to May 21, 2022, 193 691 (0.
Background: Peer workers are individuals who draw on their personal experiences in a professional capacity to support clients. Existing research on the role of peer workers in mental health, homelessness, and substance use services has primarily focused on their impact on client outcomes. This paper describes the development of peer workers as they transition into, through, and beyond this role.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFArticle Synopsis
- A study was conducted using Medicare data to evaluate the effectiveness of a third COVID-19 vaccine dose among beneficiaries aged 65 and older during the Omicron variant surge.
- The results showed that 73.3% of the eligible individuals had received a third dose by March 2022, and it significantly reduced the risk of hospitalization and death, especially within the first 60 days.
- However, the added protection from the third dose declined after four months, highlighting the importance of ongoing vaccination efforts.
Background Context: Transcranial Motor Evoked Potentials (TcMEPs) can improve intraoperative detection of femoral plexus and nerve root injury during lumbosacral spine surgery. However, even under ideal conditions, TcMEPs are not completely free of false-positive alerts due to the immobilizing effect of general anesthetics, especially in the proximal musculature. The application of transcutaneous stimulation to activate ventral nerve roots directly at the level of the conus medularis (bypassing the brain and spinal cord) has emerged as a method to potentially monitor the motor component of the femoral plexus and lumbosacral nerves free from the blunting effects of general anesthesia.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Long-term care residents were among the most vulnerable during the COVID-19 pandemic. We estimated vaccine effectiveness of mRNA COVID-19 vaccines in Medicare nursing home residents aged ≥65 years during pre-Delta and high Delta periods.
Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study from 13 December 2020 to 20 November 2021 using Medicare claims data.