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Chronic coronary artery disease (CAD) and peripheral artery disease (PAD) are both associated with elevated risks of major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) and major adverse limb events (MALE). The frequency of these events in patients with CAD or PAD, and their corresponding costs, are not well understood. Accordingly, we describe the incidence and cost of both MACE and MALE in patients with CAD or PAD. Using a database that included healthcare claims linked to electronic medical records, we identified patients with evidence of chronic CAD and PAD, respectively, between January 1, 2009, and September 30, 2016. We assessed the occurrence of MACE (defined as myocardial infarction, stroke, or cardiovascular-related death) and MALE (critical limb ischemia, amputation, or peripheral artery disease-related revascularization). A total of 99,730 patients met all selection criteria: 86.0% had CAD, 25.8% had PAD, and 11.8% had both. Mean (±standard deviation) age was 67.7 (±11.5) years and 59.8% were male. During follow-up (mean: 1.8 years), 13.6% experienced MACE or MALE (6.3 per 100 person-years [PYs]), predominantly MACE (9.6% [4.3 per 100 PYs]). Adjusted 1-year healthcare costs were $44,495 greater in patients who experienced MACE or MALE (mean [95% confidence interval]: $64,099 [$33,254 to $123,557] vs $19,604 [$10,175 to $37,771]; p 0.001). In conclusion, approximately 1 in 7 patients with chronic CAD or PAD experiences additional MACE or MALE within approximately 2 years of follow-up; the relatively high risk and cost of these events highlight the need for new secondary prevention therapies that may improve outcomes in these patients.

Although clinical guidelines for management of community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) in non-intensive care unit ("non-ICU") hospitalized patients have changed substantially over the last decade, it is unknown how treatment of this disease has evolved over this period.Using data from100 U.S. hospitals, we identified all adults (aged ≥18 years) hospitalized for CAP between January 1, 2000, and June 30, 2009 ("study period"). We excluded patients admitted to ICU24 hours of admission, those not starting antibiotics24 hours of admission, those not receiving antibiotics for ≥48 hours (if alive), and those with probable healthcare-associated pneumonia. We defined "initial therapy" as all parenteral antibiotics received ≤24 hours of admission, and we examined changes in such therapy over the study period. The statistical significance of changes in initial therapy was ascertained using 2-tailed χ tests.We identified 40,392 patients who met all selection criteria. In 2000, the most frequently used initial regimens were levofloxacin (24.0% of all such admissions), ceftriaxone (9.0%), cefotaxime (7.3%), ceftriaxone plus levofloxacin (3.2%) and azithromycin plus cefotaxime (3.0%); in 2009, they were ceftriaxone plus azithromycin (18.5%), levofloxacin (12.7%), ceftriaxone (6.6%), moxifloxacin (4.7%) and ceftriaxone + levofloxacin (3.2%). Use of single-agent regimens declined between 2000 and 2009 (from 48.2%-30.0%); use of vancomycin almost doubled (13.1%-23.3%). All findings were statistically significant (P0.01).Initial antibiotic therapy for non-ICU CAP has changed substantially in the United States over the past decade, in line with evidence of widespread antibiotic resistance, evolving treatment guidelines and, most recently, quality improvement initiatives that tie hospital payments to guideline-based care.

Based in part on the pivotal COMPASS trial, “vascular dose” rivaroxaban (2.5 mg twice/day) (+ aspirin [ASA]) was recently approved to reduce risk of cardiovascular (CV) events in patients with chronic coronary artery disease (CAD) or peripheral arterial disease (PAD). As patients in clinical

Objectives To examine patterns of health care utilization and costs in patients with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) who begin treatment with benzodiazepine anxiolytics as add-on therapy. Study Design In a large US health insurance database, we identified all patients with evidence of GAD (International Classification of Diseases, 9th Revision, Clinical Modification diagnosis code 300.02) who received ≥90 days of therapy with a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor or venlafaxine between January 1, 2003 and December 31, 2007. Among these patients, we selected those who initiated a course of benzodiazepine add-on therapy. Designating the date of initial receipt of a benzodiazepine as the “index date,” we examined health care utilization and costs over the 6-month period preceding this date (“pre-index”) and the 12-month period following it (“follow-up”). Results A total of 2131 patients met all study inclusion criteria. Patients averaged 32 days of therapy with benzodiazepines (median [interquartile range] = 20 [10-30]); 13% of patients received >90 days of therapy, however. In general, levels of health care utilization during the first 6 months of follow-up were higher than those during the pre-index period; between months 7 and 12 of follow-up, however, they were somewhat lower than pre-index levels. Mean (SD) total health care costs were $5148 ($10,658), $6325 ($15,741), and $5373 ($11,230) during pre-index, months 1-6 of follow-up, and months 7-12 of follow-up, respectively. Conclusions Levels of health care utilization and costs increase following initiation of add-on therapy with a benzodiazepine in patients with GAD receiving selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors or venlafaxine. Although duration of add-on therapy is typically brief, some patients are treated for >90 days, raising potential concerns about risks of dependency and sedation.

Coronary artery disease (CAD) and peripheral artery disease (PAD) increase risk of cardiovascular (CV) and limb events. We ascertained “real-world” rates and economic impact of these events. We identified adults in a US database containing claims and medical records between 1/1/2009 - 9/30/2015

Objective: The aim of this analysis was to assess alternative methods of identification of patients treated with peritoneal dialysis (PD) in health care claims databases for possible use in future analyses of costs of this treatment modality. Methods: Using a US health insurance claims database spanning January 1, 2004, to December 31, 2006, we identified all patients with renal failure who satisfied a case-finding algorithm for PD anticipated to be highly specific, but not necessarily sensitive—namely, ≥2 claims for PD-related physician services (algorithm 1). All claims from these patients were assessed to identify additional PD-related codes, from which 6 additional algorithms were developed, each of which focused on specific categories of billing codes (eg, diagnostic, procedural/service, equipment). Patient selection was then reimplemented using these alternative algorithms. Concordance between the various algorithms and the extent to which resulting samples were similar in terms of patient characteristics, health care resource utilization, and costs were assessed. Results: We identified a total of 132,274 patients in the database with ≥1 claim for renal failure and valid enrollment data. Among these patients, a total of 2329 satisfied case-selection criteria for algorithm 1, and 4031 patients met criteria for at least 1 of the 7 algorithms for PD. The most sensitive algorithm identified 2859 patients who might have received PD; the least sensitive, 211. Concordance between algorithms was relatively poor. Patients identified using each algorithm were similar, however, with respect to mean age (45–50 years), sex (54%–56% male), and the prevalence of selected comorbidities. Annualized median health care costs were similar across the various algorithms (range, US $80,967-$118,668). Conclusions: Based on the results from this analysis, it seems that health care providers bill insurers for PD-related care using a variety of codes. Investigators using health insurance claims data for analyses of patients treated with PD need to take this into account.

Patients with cancer may receive erythropoiesis-stimulating agents (ESAs), including darbepoetin alfa (DA) or epoetin alfa (EA), to treat cancer-related anemia (CRA). DA and EA differ, however, with respect to their assumed duration of effect and thus their approved frequency of dosing, complicating direct comparison of their doses and costs.The objective of this study was to examine, from the perspective of a third-party payer, patterns of use and costs of DA and EA in patients with CRA, using episode-based methodology to account for differences in assumed duration of effect and frequency of dosing with these products.Using a large US health insurance claims database, we identified all patients with cancer who received ESAs between January 1, 2005, and June 30, 2005 (study period). For each such patient, we identified all unique episodes of care (EOCs) with DA or EA, and then compared mean weekly dose and cost of ESA therapy within these EOCs, which were calculated using the ratio of total dose received and total cost of ESA therapy, respectively, to total EOC duration; only the first EOC for each patient was considered. EOCs were assumed to begin on the date of first ESA administration within the study period, and end on the date of final ESA administration (within the episode) plus an assumed duration of effect based on the ESA received and corresponding dose. We also estimated the ratio of mean weekly dose of EA (in units) to mean weekly dose of DA (in micrograms) (EA/DA weekly dose ratio). Multivariate regression was used to control for differences in baseline characteristics of EA and DA patients.We identified a total of 1226 patients with complete EOCs with ESAs (EA, 381; DA, 845). DA patients were more likely to have had evidence of receipt of chemotherapy (54% vs 47% for EA; P = 0.02); they also had more comorbidities (mean Charlson comorbidity scores, 4.3 and 3.9, respectively; P0.01). Estimated mean (95% CI) weekly dose within EOCs was 97 microg (94-99) for DA, and 43,184 U (40,181-46,589) for EA; EA/DA weekly dose ratio was 445:1. Adjustment for differences in patient characteristics yielded a slightly lower ratio (403:1). Results were sensitive to the exclusion of EOCs consisting of a single administration of ESA therapy and/or the addition of an assumed duration of effect to the final ESA dose administered.Cost comparisons of DA and EA are sensitive to the assumed duration of effect added to the final dose of ESA therapy, especially for EOCs with relatively few administrations.

Using a large US health insurance claims database, we identified all persons aged 18 years or older with 2 or more medical encounters in calendar year 2000 for painful neuropathic disorders (PNDs). We also identified an age- and gender-matched group of patients without PNDs (matched control subjects). We then compared the clinical characteristics and economic costs of PND patients with those of matched control subjects. There were a total of 55,686 patients with PNDs in the study database. The most frequently noted PNDs were back and neck pain with neuropathic involvement (62.3% of PND patients), causalgia (12.1%), and diabetic neuropathy (10.8%). In comparison with matched control subjects, PND patients were more likely to have other pain-related conditions, including fibromyalgia (6.0% vs 0.6% for control subjects), osteoarthritis (13.6% vs 3.6%), and other chronic comorbidities, such as coronary heart disease (13.6% vs 6.5%) and depression (6.4% vs 2.3%). Total calendar year 2000 health care charges were 3-fold higher for PND patients than matched control subjects ($17,355 vs $5,715, respectively). Our results suggest that patients with PNDs are generally in poorer health and have higher health care costs than their peers without these conditions. Perspective Use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory agents and opioids was widespread in patients with PNDs, while relatively few received antiepileptic drugs and tricyclic antidepressants, both of which are often more effective against neuropathic pain. Our study raises questions about the optimality of PND treatment in clinical practice.

Background: Postherpetic neuralgia (PHN) is a chronic painful disorder that sometimes develops after an acute episode of herpes zoster infection (shingles) and can be difficult to treat. Although opioids are sometimes effective for chronic neuropathic pain, adverse effects are common, particularly among the elderly, and may cause many patients to discontinue therapy. Objective: This study examined changes in opioid use after the initiation of gabapentin therapy in patients with PHN. Methods: A health insurance claims database was used to identify all persons aged ≥ 18 years who began therapy with gabapentin in 2000 or 2001 and had either (1) ≥2 medical claims with a diagnosis of PHN during the 6-month period before the first receipt of gabapentin (index date) or (2) 1 such claim ≤14 days before the index date. Persons who were not continuously eligible for medical and drug benefits for 6 months before and after the index date (pretreatment and follow-up, respectively) were dropped from the study sample. Use of opioids, including both short- and long-acting formulations, was compared between pretreatment and follow-up. Patients were stratified in the study analyses by whether they received 1 or ≥2 prescriptions for gabapentin. Results: Forty-five patients with PHN began therapy with gabapentin during the period of interest; 35 (77.8%) received ≥2 prescriptions for gabapentin. The proportion of patients receiving opioids decreased significantly between pretreatment and follow-up (from 88.9% to 71.1%; P = 0.03); the mean number of opioid prescriptions per patient also decreased significantly (from 3.9 to 3.0; P = 0.03). These reductions were observed only in patients who received ≥2 prescriptions for gabapentin; there was no significant change in opioid use among those who received only 1 prescription for gabapentin. Conclusion: In this study, initiation of gabapentin therapy in patients with PHN was associated with a reduction in the use of opioid analgesics.