Cost Analysis of Epilepsy Healthcare in Adults: A Direct Cost Estimate From a Colombian Perspective.

Objectives: To estimate the direct healthcare costs related to outpatient care and hospital stays for adults with epilepsy in the context of the Colombian healthcare system.

Methods: A cost analysis was conducted from a base case, which included direct medical costs related to diagnosis, follow-up, pharmacological and surgical treatment, and in-hospital care for status epilepticus. A Delphi panel was carried out to identify and quantify cost-generating events.

Economic effects of livestock disease burden in Ethiopia: A computable general equilibrium analysis.

The burden of animal disease is widespread globally and is especially severe for developing countries dependent on livestock production. Ethiopia has the largest livestock population in Africa and the second-largest human population on the continent. Ethiopia is one of the fastest-growing economies in Africa; however, much of the population still lives in extreme poverty, and most households depend on agriculture.

A randomized controlled trial of Native CHOICES: Impact on alcohol-exposed pregnancy risk reduction among American Indian and Alaska Native women.

Background: Prevention of alcohol-exposed pregnancy (AEP) involves reducing risky alcohol consumption among women at-risk for pregnancy, using effective contraception among women drinking at risky levels to prevent pregnancy, or both. This study presents the outcomes of a randomized controlled trial assessing the efficacy of Native CHOICES, a culturally tailored adaptation of the CHOICES intervention, among American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) women.

Methods: AI/AN women aged 18-44 who were at-risk for an AEP were randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to either the Native CHOICES intervention or a waitlist control group.

Phenotypic patterns and response to immunotherapy in a group of Very Late Onset Myasthenia Gravis: a single center study.

Background/aims: The goal of this study was to assess the clinical profile of myasthenia gravis (MG) in patients diagnosed above 65-years of age (VLOMG) and identify clinical/serological parameters associated with their MG status and prognosis.

Methods: This was a retrospective assessment of consecutive patients with VLOMG (n = 70) Demographics, clinical characteristics, medical comorbidities, the Myasthenia Gravis Foundation of America (MGFA) severity scale scores, and MGFA Post-Intervention Status (MGFA-PIS) were collected.

Results: The research population was diagnosed with MG at an average age of 73.

Measuring the Direct Medical Costs of Hospital-Onset Infections Using an Analogy Costing Framework.

Background: The majority of recent estimates on the direct medical cost attributable to hospital-onset infections (HOIs) has focused on device- or procedure-associated HOIs. The attributable costs of HOIs that are not associated with device use or procedures have not been extensively studied.

Objective: We developed simulation models of attributable cost for 16 HOIs and estimated the total direct medical cost, including nondevice-related HOIs in the USA for 2011 and 2015.

Sequenced Treatment Effectiveness for Posttraumatic Stress (STEPS) Trial: A protocol for a pragmatic comparative effectiveness trial with baseline results.

Background: There have only been two efficacy trials reporting a head-to-head comparison of medications and psychotherapy for PTSD, and neither was conducted in primary care. Therefore, this protocol paper describes a pragmatic trial that compares outcomes of primary care patients randomized to initially receive a brief trauma-focused psychotherapy or a choice of three antidepressants. In addition, because there are few trials examining the effectiveness of subsequent treatments for patients not responding to the initial treatment, this pragmatic trial also compares the outcomes of those switching or augmenting treatments.

Expanding Access to Patient Care in Community Pharmacies for Minor Illnesses in Washington State.

Introduction: As the shortage of primary care providers widens nationwide, access to care utilizing non-physician providers is one strategy to ensure equitable access to care. This study aimed to compare community pharmacist-provided care for minor ailments to care provided at three traditional sites of care: primary care, urgent care, and emergency department, to determine if care provided by pharmacists improved access with comparable quality and reduced financial strain on the healthcare system.

Methods: Pharmacy data was provided from 46 pharmacies and 175 pharmacists who participated across five pharmacy corporations over a 3-year period (2016-2019).

The cost-efficacy of a healthy food box for managing hypertension within a native American population: a group randomized controlled trial.

Background: Dietary interventions are used for the treatment of hypertension. We evaluated the cost-efficacy of delivering boxes of healthy, culturally tailored foods and checks that can only be spent on produce in a Native American population.

Methods: We conducted a group randomized controlled trial from 2018 to 2020 with N = 2 treatment counties and N = 2 control counties and a total of N = 160 Native American adults with baseline stage 1 or stage 2 hypertension.

Cost-Effectiveness Analysis Comparing QuantiFERON-TB Gold Plus Test and Tuberculin Skin Test for the Diagnosis of Latent Tuberculosis Infection in Immunocompetent Subjects in Colombia.

Objectives: To determine the cost-effectiveness of the QuantiFERON-TB Gold Plus (QFT-Plus) test versus the tuberculin skin test in diagnosing latent tuberculosis infection in immunocompetent subjects in the context of the Colombian healthcare system.

Methods: A hypothetical cohort of 2000 immunocompetent adults vaccinated with Bacillus Calmette-Guérin at birth who are asymptomatic for tuberculosis disease was simulated and included in a decision tree over a horizon of <1 year. The direct healthcare costs related to tests, antituberculosis treatment, and medical care were considered, and diagnostic performance was used as a measure of effectiveness.

Rationalising development of classification systems describing livestock production systems for disease burden analysis within the Global Burden of Animal Diseases programme.

The heterogeneity that exists across the global spectrum of livestock production means that livestock productivity, efficiency, health expenditure and health outcomes vary across production systems. To ensure that burden of disease estimates are specific to the represented livestock population and people reliant upon them, livestock populations need to be systematically classified into different types of production system, reflective of the heterogeneity across production systems. This paper explores the data currently available of livestock production system classifications and animal health through a scoping review as a foundation for the development of a framework that facilitates more specific estimates of livestock disease burdens.

Sensory profiling of pears from the Pacific Northwest: Consumers' perspective and descriptive analysis.

This study used data from consumer testing, descriptive analysis (DA), and preference mapping to determine the sensory characteristics of pear cultivars from two harvest seasons in the Pacific Northwest (PNW). A trained sensory panel (n = 10) used generic DA to evaluate multiple sensory modalities of 22 pear cultivars. Six pears from summer and six from winter season were evaluated by consumers (n = 219) to assess their liking of different attributes.

The Differential Effects of Childhood and Chronic Bullying Victimization on Health and Risky Health Behaviors.

Unlabelled: We examine the heterogeneous effects of childhood bullying victimization and chronic bullying victimization on a wide range of outcomes using data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth in the United States. Bullying victimization is categorized as childhood or chronic depending on the duration of victimization. We find that bullying victimization negatively affects the physical and mental health of youths, and increases the likelihood of engaging in risky behaviors, such as, smoking and marijuana use.

The Livestock for Health Study: A Field Trial on Livestock Interventions to Prevent Acute Malnutrition Among Women and Children in Pastoralist Communities in Northern Kenya.

Background: Livestock-dependent communities in Africa's drylands disproportionately experience acute malnutrition, especially during drought seasons. We detail the design and implementation of the Livestock for Health (L4H) study aimed at determining the effect of providing livestock feed and nutritional counselling to prevent seasonal spikes of acute malnutrition.

Methods: The L4H study employed a 3-arm cluster randomized controlled trial to compare households in pastoralist settings in northern Kenya receiving livestock feeds during critical dry periods, with or without nutritional counseling, with control households.

Livestock health and disease economics: a scoping review of selected literature.

Animal diseases in production and subsistence environments have the potential to negatively affect consumers, producers, and economies as a whole. A growing global demand for animal sourced food requires safe and efficient production systems. Understanding the burden of animal disease and the distribution of burden throughout a value chain informs policy that promotes safe consumption and efficient markets, as well as providing more effective pathways for investment.

Economics of East Coast fever: a literature review.

East Coast fever (ECF) is a cattle disease caused by a protozoan parasite called (). is transmitted among cattle by ticks. It is endemic in parts of central, eastern, and southern Africa and imposes an economic burden through illness and death of approximately a half of a billion U.

Comparison of the broncoalveolar lavage fluid proteomics between foals and adult horses.

Neonates have different cellular composition in their bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) when compared to foals and adult horses; however, little is known about the non-cellular components of BALF. The objective of this study was to determine the proteomic composition of BALF in neonatal horses and to compare it to that of foals and adult horses. Bronchoalveolar lavage fluid samples of seven neonates (< 1 week age), four 5 to 7-week-old foals, and six adult horses were collected.

The use of patient navigation to transition detoxification patients to substance use treatment in the Alaska Interior.

Objectives: Detoxification clinics manage acute intoxication and withdrawal from alcohol and other drugs. At discharge, patients are referred to treatment, yet many are readmitted to detoxification, creating a "revolving door" of discharges and admissions. This pattern disproportionately affects some groups such as Alaska Native and American Indian (AN/AI) people.

Effects of Behaviour Change Communication on Knowledge and Prevention of Malaria Among Women in Ghana.

Behaviour change communication (BCC) remains a central component of the interventions used in the fight against malaria in Ghana. However, there is limited evidence of its effectiveness. This study evaluated the effects of BCC strategies on knowledge (symptoms, causes and prevention) and overall knowledge of malaria among Ghanaian women aged 15-49 years.

Can women's reports in client exit interviews be used to measure and track progress of antenatal care services quality? Evidence from a facility assessment census in Malawi.

Introduction: Unlike household surveys, client exit interviews are conducted immediately after a consultation and therefore provides an opportunity to capture routine performance and level of service quality. This study examines the validity and reliability of women's reports on selected ANC interventions in exit interviews conducted in Malawi.

Methods: Using data from the 2013-2014 Malawi service provision facility census, we compared women's reports in exit interviews regarding the contents of ANC received with reports obtained through direct observation by a trained healthcare professional.

Household production and consumption impacts of foot and mouth disease at the Uganda-Tanzania border.

Introduction: Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is a highly contagious viral disease that is endemic in East Africa. FMD virus infection incurs significant control costs and reduces animal productivity through weight loss, lowered milk yield, and potentially death but how household's respond to these losses may differentially affect household income and food consumption.

Methodology: To address this, we use unique data from a FMD outbreak to assess how household production and consumption activities change from before to during the outbreak.

Climate analogs can catalyze cross-regional dialogs for US specialty crop adaptation.

Communication theory suggests that interactive dialog rather than information transmission is necessary for climate change action, especially for complex systems like agriculture. Climate analogs-locations whose current climate is similar to a target location's future climate-have garnered recent interest as transmitting more relatable information; however, they have unexplored potential in facilitating meaningful dialogs, and whether the way the analogs are developed could make a difference. We developed climate context-specific analogs based on agriculturally-relevant climate metrics for US specialty crop production, and explored their potential for facilitating dialogs on climate adaptation options.

Cost-Utility Analysis Comparing Ocrelizumab Versus Rituximab in the Treatment of Relapsing-Remitting Multiple Sclerosis: The Colombian Perspective.

Objectives: This study aimed to determine the cost-utility of ocrelizumab versus rituximab in patients with RRMS, from the perspective of the Colombian healthcare system.

Methodology: Cost-utility study based on a Markov model, with a 50-year horizon and payer perspective. The currency was the US dollar for the year 2019, with a cost-effectiveness threshold of $5180 defined for Colombian health system.