Background Retinopathy is associated with increased mortality risk in general populations. We evaluated the joint effect of retinopathy and chronic kidney disease (CKD) on mortality in a representative sample of US adults. Study Design Prospective cohort study. Setting & Participants 7,640 adults from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 1988–1994 with mortality linkage through 12/31/2006. Predictors CKD, defined as low estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR; <60 ml/min/1.73 m2) or albuminuria (urine protein-creatinine ratio ≥30mg/g), and retinopathy, defined as presence of microaneurysms, hemorrhages, exudates, microvascular abnormalities, or other evidence of diabetic retinopathy by fundus photograph. Outcomes All-cause and cardiovascular mortality. Measurements Multivariable-adjusted Cox proportional hazards. Results Overall, 4.6% of participants had retinopathy and 15% had CKD. Mean age was 56 years, 53% were women and 81% non-Hispanic white. Prevalence of retinopathy in CKD was 11%. We identified 2,634 deaths during 14.5 years’ follow-up. In multivariable analyses, compared with individuals with neither CKD nor retinopathy, the HRs for all-cause mortality were 1.02 (95% CI, 0.75–1.38), 1.52 (95% CI, 1.35–1.72), and 2.39 (95% CI, 1.77–3.22) for individuals with retinopathy only, for those with CKD only, and for those with both CKD and retinopathy, respectively. Corresponding HRs for cardiovascular mortality were 0.96 (95% CI, 0.50–1.84), 1.72 (95% CI, 1.47–2.00) and 2.96 (95% CI, 2.11–4.15), respectively. There was a significant synergistic interaction between retinopathy and CKD on all-cause mortality (p=0.04). Limitations Presence of retinopathy was evaluated only once. Small sample size of some of the subpopulations studied. Conclusions In the presence of CKD, retinopathy is a strong predictor of mortality in this adult population.

IntroductionThe prevalence of chronic pain is enormous. In America, the management of chronic pain and opioids remains a critical focus. Guidelines recommend pain agreements as part of the management of chronic pain and opioids; however, evidence of improvement in patient outcomes is lacking. An aspect of patient outcome includes utilization of healthcare resources, such as emergency department visits and hospitalizations. It remains uncertain whether the use of pain agreements lessens healthcare utilization.MethodsRetrospective chart review of a Midwest Veterans Affairs primary care clinic. Subjects were veterans on chronic opioids between 1 April 2014 and 1 April 2015. Outcome measures included emergency department visits, hospitalizations, clinic visits, telephone triage, telephone/secure messages, and nurse visits.ResultsThe charts of 635 veterans on chronic opioids were reviewed. Of these, 295 were on a pain agreement. There were no significant differences in demographics, medical, or psychiatric diagnoses between patients with and without pain agreements. There were significant differences in opioid schedule and number of opioids based on pain agreement (p < 0.01). Patients on pain agreements did not utilize healthcare resources less than patients without a pain agreement. In fact, patients on pain agreements were likely to have more telephone calls, secure messages, and nurse visits compared with patients not on an agreement (p = 0.02).ConclusionsPain agreements are becoming standard of care for chronic pain management. However, there continues to be a lack of evidence demonstrating improvement in healthcare outcomes with their use, despite guideline recommendations. Further studies are needed to examine specific patient outcomes, such as overdose and death, in regard to pain agreements.FundingAdvancing a Healthier Wisconsin—Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Program.

PurposeAmbulatory resources such as telephone calls, secure messages, nurse visits, and telephone triage are vital to the management of patients on chronic opioid therapy (COT). They are also often overlooked as health care services and yet to be broadly studied. The aim of the present study was to describe the Veterans Affairs (VA) health care utilization by patients based on COT, type, and amount of opioids prescribed.Patients and methodsA retrospective chart review was done on 617 patients on COT at a VA primary care clinic. Instances of health care utilization (emergency department visits [EDVs], hospitalizations, clinic visits, telephone triage calls, telephone calls/secure messages/nurse visits) were obtained.ResultsPatients were likely to have more telephone calls, secure messages, or nurse visits if they were prescribed a schedule II opioid or if they were on more than one opioid. Model-based results found that patients on COT were more likely to have EDVs, telephone triage calls, and clinic contact compared to patients who were not on chronic opioids.ConclusionThe results are despite having a Patient Aligned Care Team, which is the VA’s patient-centered medical home. This suggests that reducing health care utilization for patients on COT may not be possible with just a primary care involvement.

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