Developing Clinical Risk Prediction Models for Worsening Heart Failure Events and Death by Left Ventricular Ejection Fraction.

Background There is a need to develop electronic health record-based predictive models for worsening heart failure (WHF) events across clinical settings and across the spectrum of left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF). Methods and Results We studied adults with heart failure (HF) from 2011 to 2019 within an integrated health care delivery system. WHF encounters were ascertained using natural language processing and structured data.

Impact of COVID-19 in patients with heart failure with mildly reduced or preserved ejection fraction enrolled in the DELIVER trial.

Aim: COVID-19 may affect clinical risk in patients with heart failure. DELIVER began before and was conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study aimed to evaluate the association between COVID-19 and clinical outcomes among DELIVER participants.

Medical Therapy Before, During and After Hospitalization in Medicare Beneficiaries With Heart Failure and Diabetes: Get With The Guidelines - Heart Failure Registry.

Background: Patients hospitalized with heart failure (HF) and diabetes mellitus (DM) are at risk for worsening clinical status. Little is known about the frequency of therapeutic changes during hospitalization. We characterized the use of medical therapies before, during and after hospitalization in patients with HF and DM.

Health and Economic Evaluation of Sacubitril-Valsartan for Heart Failure Management.

Importance: The US Food and Drug Administration expanded labeling of sacubitril-valsartan from the treatment of patients with chronic heart failure (HF) with reduced ejection fraction (EF) to all patients with HF, noting the greatest benefits in those with below-normal EF. However, the upper bound of below normal is not clearly defined, and value determinations across a broader EF range are unknown.

Objective: To estimate the cost-effectiveness of sacubitril-valsartan vs renin-angiotensin system inhibitors (RASis) across various upper-level cutoffs of EF.

Elevated Serum Androstenedione Level in a Patient With Ectopic Adrenocorticotropic Hormone Syndrome.

Background/objective: Ectopic Cushing syndrome can be challenging to diagnose when its presentation is atypical. Herein, we highlight features of ectopic adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) syndrome in a patient with worsening hypertension, hypokalemia, ACTH-dependent hypercortisolism, and disproportionate elevation in serum androstenedione levels.

Case Report: A 59-year-old woman presented with rapidly progressing hypertension, severe hypokalemia, confusion, and weakness.

Influence of background medical therapy on efficacy and safety of dapagliflozin in patients with heart failure with improved ejection fraction in the DELIVER trial.

Aims: The Dapagliflozin Evaluation to Improve the Lives of Patients with Preserved Ejection Fraction Heart Failure (DELIVER) trial demonstrated the sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitor dapagliflozin to be beneficial in patients with symptomatic heart failure (HF) with improved ejection fraction (HFimpEF; those with prior left ventricular ejection fraction ≤40% that had improved to >40% by enrolment). Whether this benefit differs by background medical therapy is unclear. The current study aims to determine the efficacy and safety of dapagliflozin among patients with HFimpEF by background medical therapy.

Physician assessment of aortic stenosis severity, quantitative parameters, and long-term outcomes: Results from the KP-VALVE project.

Background: Contemporary outcomes for aortic stenosis (AS) and the association between physician-assessed AS severity and quantitative parameters is poorly understood. We aimed to evaluate AS natural history, compare outcomes for physicians' AS assessment vs. quantitative parameters, and identify AS parameters with the most explanatory power.

Longitudinal Follow-Up of Participants With Tobacco Exposure and Preserved Spirometry.

Importance: People who smoked cigarettes may experience respiratory symptoms without spirometric airflow obstruction. These individuals are typically excluded from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) trials and lack evidence-based therapies.

Objective: To define the natural history of persons with tobacco exposure and preserved spirometry (TEPS) and symptoms (symptomatic TEPS).

Outcomes of Adults with Severe Aortic Stenosis Undergoing Urgent or Emergent vs. Elective Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement Within an Integrated Health Care Delivery System.

Background: Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) may be used to urgently or emergently treat severe aortic stenosis, but outcomes for this high-risk population have not been well-characterized. We sought to describe the incidence, clinical characteristics, and outcomes of patients undergoing urgent or emergent vs. elective TAVR.

A New Global Definition of Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome.

Since publication of the 2012 Berlin definition of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), several developments have supported the need for an expansion of the definition, including the use of high-flow nasal oxygen, the expansion of the use of pulse oximetry in place of arterial blood gases, the use of ultrasound for chest imaging, and the need for applicability in resource-limited settings. A consensus conference of 32 critical care ARDS experts was convened, had six virtual meetings (June 2021 to March 2022), and subsequently obtained input from members of several critical care societies. The goal was to develop a definition that would ) identify patients with the currently accepted conceptual framework for ARDS, ) facilitate rapid ARDS diagnosis for clinical care and research, ) be applicable in resource-limited settings, ) be useful for testing specific therapies, and ) be practical for communication to patients and caregivers.

Comparing 7-Day Versus 6-8-Day Penicillin Treatment Intervals Among Pregnant People With Syphilis of Late or Unknown Duration: No Difference Found in Incidence of Congenital Syphilis.

Background: Guidelines recommend that pregnant patients with syphilis of late/unknown duration be treated with benzathine penicillin G, dosed as 3 weekly intramuscular injections (BPGx3) given ideally at strict 7-day intervals. Given limited pharmacokinetic data, it is unknown whether more flexible BPG treatment intervals might be effective in preventing congenital syphilis (CS).

Methods: We used California surveillance data to identify birthing parent/infant dyads wherein the pregnant parent had syphilis of late/unknown duration between January 1, 2016 - June 30, 2019.

Effect of the P-Selectin Inhibitor Crizanlizumab on Survival Free of Organ Support in Patients Hospitalized for COVID-19: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: COVID-19 has been associated with endothelial injury, resultant microvascular inflammation and thrombosis. Activated endothelial cells release and express P-selectin and von Willebrand factor, both of which are elevated in severe COVID-19 and may be implicated in the disease pathophysiology. We hypothesized that crizanlizumab, a humanized monoclonal antibody to P-selectin, would reduce morbidity and death in patients hospitalized for COVID-19.

American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy guideline on role of endoscopy in the diagnosis of malignancy in biliary strictures of undetermined etiology: methodology and review of evidence.

Biliary strictures of undetermined etiology pose a diagnostic challenge for endoscopists. Despite advances in technology, diagnosing malignancy in biliary strictures often requires multiple procedures. The Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) framework was used to rigorously review and synthesize the available literature on strategies used to diagnose undetermined biliary strictures.

American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy guideline on the role of endoscopy in the diagnosis of malignancy in biliary strictures of undetermined etiology: summary and recommendations.

This clinical practice guideline from the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy provides an evidence-based approach for the diagnosis of malignancy in patients with biliary strictures of undetermined etiology. This document was developed using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation framework and addresses the role of fluoroscopic-guided biopsy sampling, brush cytology, cholangioscopy, and EUS in the diagnosis of malignancy in patients with biliary strictures. In the endoscopic workup of these patients, we suggest the use of fluoroscopic-guided biopsy sampling in addition to brush cytology over brush cytology alone, especially for hilar strictures.

The association between changes in echocardiography and risk of heart failure hospitalizations and death in adults with chronic kidney disease.

Adults with chronic kidney disease (CKD) are at increased risk for developing heart failure (HF). However, longitudinal cardiac remodeling in CKD has not been well-characterized and its association with HF outcomes remains unknown. We evaluated the association between change in echocardiographic parameters between baseline and year 4 with the subsequent risk of HF hospitalization and death using Cox proportional hazard models in a landmark analysis of a prospective multicenter CKD cohort.