Healthcare resource utilization and costs among treatment-naïve people with HIV in state Medicaids: analysis of multi-tablet vs. single-tablet antiretroviral regimen initiators with and without concurrent mental health disorders.

Background: Research is needed to understand the impact of mental health disorders (MHD) on healthcare resource utilization (HCRU) and costs among people with human immunodeficiency virus (PWH).

Objectives: Examine the HCRU and cost burden among treatment-naïve PWH with and without MHD initiating single tablet antiretroviral regimens (STRs) and multi-tablet regimens (MTRs).

Methods: A retrospective database analysis of the US Medicaid population from Anlitiks' All Payor Claims database between 1 January 2016 and 30 June 2023 was conducted.

Health care resource utilization and costs for treatment-experienced people with HIV switching or restarting antiretroviral regimens since 2018.

Background: There is a need to understand health care resource utilization (HCRU) and costs associated with treatment-experienced people with HIV (PWH) switching treatment regimens.

Objective: To describe HCRU and cost during lines of antiretroviral therapy (ART) for treatment-experienced PWH switching to or restarting guideline-recommended, integrase strand transfer inhibitor (INSTI)-based multitablet regimens and single-tablet regimens.

Methods: This retrospective claims study used data from Optum Research Database (January 1, 2010, to March 31, 2020) to identify lines of therapy (LOTs) for treatment-experienced adults who switched to or restarted INSTI-based regimens between January 1, 2018, and December 31, 2019.

Correction to: Systematic Review of the Economic Burden of Overt Hepatic Encephalopathy and Pharmacoeconomic Impact of Rifaximin.

The article Systematic Review of the Economic Burden of Overt Hepatic Encephalopathy and Pharmacoeconomic Impact of Rifaximin written by Guy Neff, Woodie Zachry was originally published electronically on the publisher's internet portal (currently Springer Link) on April 12, 2018 without open access.

Systematic Review of the Economic Burden of Overt Hepatic Encephalopathy and Pharmacoeconomic Impact of Rifaximin.

Background: Hepatic encephalopathy (HE), a common neurologic complication in cirrhosis, is associated with substantial disease and economic burden. Rifaximin is a non-systemic antibiotic that reduces the risk of overt HE recurrence and overt HE-related hospitalizations.

Objective: Our objective was to provide an overview of the direct HE-related costs and cost benefits of rifaximin, lactulose, and rifaximin plus lactulose.

Barriers to access to care reported by women living with HIV across 27 countries.

Increased access to successful antiretroviral therapy (ART) is necessary in order to achieve an AIDS-free generation. Importantly, slightly over half of the people living with HIV are women. Small studies have described many barriers to accessing treatment and care among women living with HIV.

Reduced HIV symptoms and improved health-related quality of life correlate with better access to care for HIV-1 infected women: the ELLA study.

Introduction: Global HIV-1 prevalence is 35.3 million [1]; women comprise >50% of those infected. The majority of women may lack regular care and only one-fourth are virologically suppressed [2].

Evaluation of myocardial infarction and coronary artery disease in subjects taking lopinavir/ritonavir: a study using clinical trial and pharmacovigilance databases.

Objective: There is growing interest in studying age-related diseases, such as coronary artery disease (CAD) and resulting myocardial infarction (MI) in HIV-infected patients. While some cohort studies indicate that several antiretrovirals (ARVs), including the protease inhibitor lopinavir/ ritonavir (LPV/r), are associated with an increased relative risk (RR) of MI, other studies show a reduction of MI and CAD in subjects taking ARVs when compared with HIV+ patients not taking ARV therapy. This manuscript reviews data from Abbott-sponsored clinical trials and pharmacovigilance reporting system.

Development of an interactive model of the burden of future coronary heart disease from an employer perspective.

Objective: To create a computer-based model for employers to better understand the burden of coronary heart disease (CHD) to their organizations.

Methods: A user-friendly model was developed to allow employers to evaluate the burden of CHD. Inputs include the demographic distribution by age and sex, prevalence of CHD and CHD risk factors, direct and indirect medical costs of CHD events, and discount and inflation rates.

Direct medical costs for patients seeking emergency care for losses of epilepsy control in a U.S. managed care setting.

The objective of this retrospective claims database study was to compare the costs of care from a U.S. payer perspective before and after epilepsy treatment in emergent care settings and, secondarily, to describe the frequency of toxic effects and physical injuries occurring on the date of the emergent care.

Development of the burden of prior authorization of psychotherapeutics (BoPAP) scale to assess the effects of prior authorization among Texas Medicaid providers.

This study describes an instrument to measure the perceived effects of prior authorization on quality of care among Texas Medicaid patients with severe mental illness. A questionnaire was mailed to 1,650 prescribers of psychiatric medications and 226 responses were used for analyses (17.5% response rate).

Case-control analysis of ambulance, emergency room, or inpatient hospital events for epilepsy and antiepileptic drug formulation changes.

Purpose: Although antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) with multisource generic alternatives are becoming more prevalent, no case-control studies have been published examining multisource medication use and epilepsy-related outcomes. This study evaluated the association between inpatient/emergency epilepsy care and the occurrence of a recent switch in AED formulation.

Methods: A case-control analysis was conducted utilizing the Ingenix LabRx Database.

Effects of a psychotherapeutic drug prior authorization (PA) requirement on patients and providers: a providers' perspective.

This study describes the effects of a Texas Medicaid PA requirement for psychotherapeutic medications from the perspective of mental health care providers. Three focus groups were conducted and a content analysis was performed on the generated transcripts. Providers identified five categories of issues that are relevant to the PA process: (1) system/administrative factors; (2) costs/ outcomes; (3) prescribing issues; (4) evaluation criteria; and (5) patient-provider relationship and patient visit.

Risk of treatment-emergent diabetes mellitus in patients receiving antipsychotics.

Background: Type 2 diabetes mellitus has been reported during antipsychotic treatment.

Objective: To quantify the potential risk of treatment-emergent diabetes mellitus among patients receiving antipsychotic medications.

Methods: The MEDLINE and Psychinfo databases were searched using the key words antipsychotic (including individual drug names), diabetes, risk, and incidence for all English-language articles published between 1966 and 2005.

Cost-effectiveness analysis of simvastatin and lovastatin/extended- release niacin to achieve LDL and HDL goal using NHANES data.

Objective: The Third Report of the Expert Panel on Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Cholesterol in Adults, Adult Treatment Panel III (ATP III) encouraged reduced low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels for a greater number of patients and reemphasized the benefits of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol. The purpose of this study was to compare 2 regimens achieving simultaneous LDL and HDL goals.

Methods: A decision-analytic model compared the cost-effectiveness of simvastatin and lovastatin/extended-release niacin.

Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor therapy in patients with heart failure enrolled in a managed care organization: effect on costs and probability of hospitalization.

Study Objective: To evaluate the effect of angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor therapy on risk of hospitalization and resource utilization in patients with heart failure enrolled in a managed care organization.

Design: Retrospective medical and pharmacy claims analysis.

Patients: One thousand five hundred seventy-three patients with heart failure enrolled in a managed care organization.

Health care professionals' perceptions of the role of pharmacogenomic data.

Objective: To explore the perceptions of health care professionals in examining the uses of pharmacogenomic data.

Methods: A mailed questionnaire elicited respondent perceptions of how the use of pharmacogenomic information would impact the provision of health-related services (7-point scale: 7=strongly increase to 1=strongly decrease). Respondents were also asked to describe their level of agreement to statements related to how pharmacogenomic information should be used (7-point scale: 7=strongly agree to 1=strongly disagree).

Clinicians' responses to direct-to-consumer advertising of prescription medications.

Background: The direct-to-consumer advertising (DTCA) of prescription medications is proliferating in the United States. The relationship between patient exposure to DTCA and the response of clinicians is not well understood.

Methods: A randomized postal survey of Arizona primary care provider physicians (n = 1080) and physician assistants (n = 704) was conducted.

A 3-stage model for assessing the probable economic effects of direct-to-consumer advertising of pharmaceuticals.

Background: The pharmaceutical industry employs a variety of marketing strategies that have previously been directed primarily toward physicians. However, mass media direct-to-consumer (DTC) advertising of prescription drugs has emerged as a ubiquitous promotional strategy.

Objective: This article explores the economics of DTC advertising in greater depth than has been done in the past by using a 3-stage economic model to assess the pertinent literature and to show the probable effects of DTC advertising in the United States.

Patient autonomy and the regulation of direct-to-consumer advertising.

Background: The current direction of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) policy on direct-to-consumer advertising (DTCA) of pharmaceuticals is a subject of debate. The literature addresses the benefits and drawbacks of DTCA, but the foundations for such policies have not been investigated in detail.

Objective: This paper explores the most recent FDA guidance on broadcast DTCA based on a critical examination of the principle of autonomy.

Relationship between direct-to-consumer advertising and physician diagnosing and prescribing.

The relationships between direct-to-consumer advertising expenditures and the monthly frequencies of diagnoses and prescriptions written associated with the products advertised are examined. The analyses utilized quasi-experimental time-series techniques. Data from the National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey and Competitive Media Reporting were used to calculate monthly levels of the dependent and independent variables.

Inpatient utilization of medical services associated with peripheral arterial disease-related inpatient procedures in the Department of Defense.

The objective of this study was to describe the inpatient procedural medical care utilization the first 10 years after initial inpatient confirmation of peripheral arterial disease (PAD). A retrospective review was carried out of the computer records of all the army beneficiaries of the Department of Defense healthcare system since 1971. Over 8000 subjects with an initial inpatient confirmation of PAD between January 1, 1980 and December 31, 1985 were reviewed for 10 years following the initial visit.

Procedure costs and outcomes associated with pharmacologic management of peripheral arterial disease in the Department of Defense.

This study was undertaken to determine if differences existed between pharmacologic treatments of peripheral arterial disease (PAD) with respect to PAD-related costs and health care outcomes in the United States Department of Defense health care system. We performed a retrospective review of hospital and prescription data to explore the effects of at least 90 days of aspirin, pentoxifylline, papaverine, or dipyridamole on 4 PAD-related outcomes: number of PAD-related invasive procedures (INV), number of PAD-related examination procedures (EXM), number of PAD-related hospitalization days (HDAYS), and cost of PAD-related procedures (COST) during 5 years. A covariate representing the number of PAD-related hospitalizations before the study period was used to attempt to control for severity of disease state.