The increasing number of retrospective database studies related to medication compliance and persistence (C&P), and the inherent variability within each, has created a need for improvement in the quality and consistency of medication C&P research. This article stems from the International Society of Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR) efforts to develop a checklist of items that should be either included, or at least considered, when a retrospective database analysis of medication compliance or persistence is undertaken. This consensus document outlines a systematic approach to designing or reviewing retrospective database studies of medication C&P. Included in this article are discussions on data sources, measures of C&P, results reporting, and even conflict of interests. If followed, this checklist should improve the consistency and quality of C&P analyses, which in turn will help providers and payers understand the impact of C&P on health outcomes.

This systematic review suggests that specific heart failure-targeted interventions significantly decrease hospital readmissions but do not affect mortality rates.

Interventions aimed at improving patients' knowledge of medications possess the greatest potential clinical value in improving adherence with antihypertensive therapy. However, we identified several limitations of these studies, and advise future researchers to focus on using validated adherence measures, well-designed randomized controlled trials with relevant adherence and clinical outcomes, and guidelines on the appropriate design and analysis of adherence research.

Post-pyloric versus gastric tube feeding for preventing pneumonia and improving nutritional outcomes in critically ill adults.

This study describes health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of persons with haemophilia A in the United States (US) and determines associations between self-reported joint pain, motion limitation and clinically evaluated joint range of motion (ROM), and between HRQoL and ROM. As part of a 2-year cohort study, we collected baseline HRQoL using the SF-12 (adults) and PedsQL (children), along with self-ratings of joint pain and motion limitation, in persons with factor VIII deficiency recruited from six Haemophilia Treatment Centres (HTCs) in geographically diverse regions of the US. Clinically measured joint ROM measurements were collected from medical charts of a subset of participants. Adults (N = 156, mean age: 33.5 ± 12.6 years) had mean physical and mental component scores of 43.4 ± 10.7 and 50.9 ± 10.1, respectively. Children (N = 164, mean age: 9.7 ± 4.5 years) had mean total PedsQL, physical functioning, and psychosocial health scores of 85.9 ± 13.8, 89.5 ± 15.2, and 84.1 ± 15.3, respectively. Persons with more severe haemophilia and higher self-reported joint pain and motion limitation had poorer scores, particularly in the physical aspects of HRQoL. In adults, significant correlations (P < 0.01) were found between ROM measures and both self-reported measures. Except among those with severe disease, children and adults with haemophilia have HRQoL scores comparable with those of the healthy US population. The physical aspects of HRQoL in both adults and children with haemophilia A in the US decrease with increasing severity of illness. However, scores for mental aspects of HRQoL do not differ between severity groups. These findings are comparable with those from studies in European and Canadian haemophilia populations.

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Increasing epidemic proportions of overweight children in the United States presents formidable challenges for education and healthcare. Given the popularity and pervasiveness of video gaming culture in North American children, the perfect opportunity arises to investigate the potential of video games to promote healthful behaviour. Our objective was to systematically review the literature for possible benefits of active and educational video games targeting diet and physical activity in children. A review of English-language journal articles from 1998 to 2011 using EMBASE and PubMed was conducted. Thirty-four studies concerned with children, video games, physical, and/or nutritional outcomes were included. Results of these studies that showed some benefit (increased physical activity and nutritional knowledge as a result of gaming) demonstrate the possibility of video games to combat childhood obesity—looking beyond the stigma attached to gaming.

OBJECTIVES This study tested the diagnostic and prognostic utility of a rapid, visual T1 assessment method for identification of cardiac amyloidosis (CA) in a “real-life” referral population undergoing cardiac magnetic resonance for suspected CA. BACKGROUND In patients with confirmed CA, delayed-enhancement cardiac magnetic resonance (DE-CMR) frequently shows a diffuse, global hyperenhancement (HE) pattern. However, imaging is often technically challenging, and the prognostic significance of diffuse HE is unclear. METHODS Ninety consecutive patients referred for suspected CA and 64 hypertensive patients with left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) were prospectively enrolled and underwent a modified DE-CMR protocol. After gadolinium administration a method for rapid, visual T1 assessment was used to identify the presence of diffuse HE during the scan, allowing immediate optimization of settings for the conventional DE-CMR that followed. The primary endpoint was all-cause mortality. RESULTS Among patients with suspected CA, 66% (59 of 90) demonstrated HE, with 81% (48 of 59) of these meeting pre-specified visual T1 assessment criteria for diffuse HE. Among hypertensive LVH patients, 6% (4 of 64) had HE, with none having diffuse HE. During 29 months of follow-up (interquartile range: 12 to 44 months), there were 50 (56%) deaths in patients with suspected CA and 4 (6%) in patients with hypertensive LVH. Multivariable analysis demonstrated that the presence of diffuse HE was the most important predictor of death in the group with suspected CA (hazard ratio: 5.5, 95% confidence interval: 2.7 to 11.0; p < 0.0001) and in the population as a whole (hazard ratio: 6.0, 95% confidence interval 3.0 to 12.1; p < 0.0001). Among 25 patients with myocardial histology obtained during follow-up, the sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of diffuse HE in the diagnosis of CA were 93%, 70%, and 84%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS Among patients suspected of CA, the presence of diffuse HE by visual T1 assessment accurately identifies patients with histologically-proven CA and is a strong predictor of mortality.