Arterial wave reflections and incident cardiovascular events and heart failure: MESA (Multiethnic Study of Atherosclerosis).

Objectives: This study sought to assess the relationship between central pressure profiles and cardiovascular events (CVEs) in a large community-based sample.

Background: Experimental and physiologic data mechanistically implicate wave reflections in the pathogenesis of left ventricular failure and cardiovascular disease, but their association with these outcomes in the general population is unclear.

Methods: Aortic pressure waveforms were derived from a generalized transfer function applied to the radial pressure waveform recorded noninvasively from 5,960 participants in the Multiethnic Study of Atherosclerosis.

Assessing the suitability of intervention sites for quality improvement studies in emergency departments.

Objectives: As an initial step in disseminating an emergency department (ED)-based quality improvement program (QIP) to improve antibiotic prescribing for patients with acute respiratory infections, the authors conducted a nationwide survey to assess the value and feasibility of the QIP.

Methods: Directors of EDs at 119 Veterans Administration hospitals and 160 non-Veterans Administration hospitals (identified based on the existence of accredited emergency medicine training programs and/or participation in an existing ED-based research network) were surveyed. The survey included questions on the current existence of an antibiotic QIP in the ED, enthusiasm for an antibiotic QIP program, and the existence of physical features in the ED that would support the QIP intervention.