scholarly journals Factors Associated With Potentially Inappropriate Phosphodiesterase-5 Inhibitor Use for Pulmonary Hypertension in the United States, 2006 to 2015

Author(s):  
Kari R. Gillmeyer ◽  
Seppo T. Rinne ◽  
Mark E. Glickman ◽  
Kyung Min Lee ◽  
Qing Shao ◽  
...  

Background: Use of phosphodiesterase-5 inhibitors (PDE5i) for groups 2 and 3 pulmonary hypertension (PH) is rising nationally, despite guidelines recommending against this low-value practice. Although receiving care across healthcare systems is encouraged to increase veterans’ access to specialists critical for PH management, receiving care in 2 systems may increase risk of guideline-discordant prescribing. We sought to identify factors associated with prescribing of PDE5i for group 2/3 PH, particularly, to test the hypothesis that veterans prescribed PDE5i for PH in the community (through Medicare) will have increased risk of subsequently receiving potentially inappropriate treatment in Veterans Health Administration (VA). Methods and Results: We constructed a retrospective cohort of 34 775 Medicare-eligible veterans with group 2/3 PH by linking national patient-level data from VA and Medicare from 2006 to 2015. We calculated adjusted odds ratios (ORs) of receiving daily PDE5i treatment for PH in VA using multivariable models with facility-specific random effects. In this cohort, 1556 veterans received VA prescriptions for PDE5i treatment for group 2/3 PH. Supporting our primary hypothesis, the variable most strongly associated with PDE5i treatment in VA for group 2/3 PH was prior treatment through Medicare (OR, 6.5 [95% CI, 4.9–8.7]). Other variables strongly associated with increased likelihood of VA treatment included more severe disease as indicated by recent right heart failure (OR, 3.3 [95% CI, 2.8–3.9]) or respiratory failure (OR, 3.7 [95% CI, 3.1–4.4]) and prior right heart catheterization (OR, 3.8 [95% CI, 3.4–4.3]). Conclusions: Our data suggest a missed opportunity to reassess treatment appropriateness when pulmonary hypertension patients seek prescriptions from VA—a relevant finding given policies promoting shared care across VA and community settings. Interventions are needed to reinforce awareness that pulmonary vasodilators are unlikely to benefit group 2/3 pulmonary hypertension patients and may cause harm.

Author(s):  
Lin Xue ◽  
Yicheng Yang ◽  
Bo Sun ◽  
Bingyang Liu ◽  
Qixian Zeng ◽  
...  

Background Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is defined as a mean pulmonary arterial pressure (PAP) ≥25 mm Hg measured by right heart catheterization. However, the upper limit of a normal mean PAP is 20 mm Hg. There is a gap between the upper limit of normal and the threshold for diagnosing PH. Therefore, we aimed to investigate whether individuals with a mildly elevated PAP, defined as 20 mm Hg < mean PAP <25 mm Hg, are at an increased risk of progression to PH or mortality than those with a normal PAP. Methods and Results We reviewed studies evaluating the risk of progression to PH and/or mortality in individuals with a mildly elevated PAP versus those with a normal PAP. The mean PAP value of each participant was confirmed by right heart catheterization. We reviewed 1213 studies and 8 fulfilled our inclusion criteria. Our results indicated that individuals with a mildly elevated PAP were 1.81 to 2.45 times more likely to progress to PH than individuals with a normal PAP. There was a statistically significant difference in mortality between the mildly elevated PAP and normal PAP groups (hazard ratio, 2.48; 95% CI, 1.69–3.64). We also pooled survival probabilities in each arm to obtain a summary survival curve for each group, and the pooled survival rates in the mildly elevated PAP group were numerically lower than those in the normal PAP group. Conclusions Our study revealed that individuals with a mildly elevated PAP were at an increased risk of progression to PH and mortality than those with a normal PAP.


2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 204589401876427 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bin Q. Yang ◽  
Tufik R. Assad ◽  
Jared M. O'Leary ◽  
Meng Xu ◽  
Stephen J. Halliday ◽  
...  

African Americans (AA) have a higher incidence of pulmonary hypertension (PH) risk factors. Few studies have examined the racial differences in the prevalence and etiology of PH and direct comparison of invasive hemodynamics between AAs and Caucasians has rarely been reported. In this study, we examined whether racial differences exist in patients referred for right heart catheterization (RHC) and hypothesized that AA race is an independent risk factor for PH and is associated with increased adjusted mortality. We extracted data for AA and Caucasian patients who underwent RHC at Vanderbilt between 1998 and 2014. Clinical information was obtained from Vanderbilt's Synthetic Derivative, a de-identified mirror of our Electronic Medical Record. A total of 4576 patients were analyzed, including 586 (13%) AAs and 3990 (87%) Caucasians. AAs were younger than Caucasians by an average of eight years, but had more prevalent heart failure, features of metabolic syndrome, and higher creatinine. AAs also had higher mean pulmonary artery pressure and pulmonary vascular resistance. After adjusting for relevant co-morbidities, the AA race is associated with 41% increased risk of PH (odds ratio [OR] = 1.41, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.12–1.79). Among patients with PH, AA race is associated with 24% increased adjusted mortality (hazard ratio [HR] = 1.24, 95% CI = 1.09–1.45). AAs were younger but had more prevalent cardiometabolic and renal disease and worse pulmonary hemodynamics. The AA race is an independent risk factor for PH. Among patients with PH, the AA race is associated with increased adjusted mortality. Future studies should focus on delineating whether genetic or environmental factors contribute to PH risk in AAs.


2021 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 155798832110090
Author(s):  
Jessica Thames Chambliss ◽  
Retta Evans ◽  
Anneliese Bolland ◽  
Martha S. Wingate ◽  
John M. Bolland

Risky sexual behaviors among adolescents can increase adverse outcomes including unplanned pregnancy or contraction or transmission of disease. Adolescents who engage in risky sexual activities are at increased risk for adverse health and social outcomes compared to those who do not engage. Despite declines in adolescent pregnancy and birth rates, the diagnosis of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) is steadily increasing among adolescents. Moreover, African American adolescent boys in the United States, specifically in the southeastern region are disproportionally at greater risk for STIs, and STI diagnosis within this population has increased over time, compared to their white counterparts. This study sought to identify factors associated with condom use among adolescent boys in the Deep South. Using data from the Mobile Youth Survey, a longitudinal adolescent community-based survey, this study assessed the relationship between personal, behavioral, and environmental factors and condom use among African American adolescent boys (14–19 years). Younger participants (14–15 and 16–17) were more likely to use a condom during the last sexual intercourse compared to older participants (18–19 years). High positive attachment to boy/girlfriend was associated with increased condom use. The number of sexual partners, age at their first sexual encounter, recent sexual behavior, and having an STI were also associated with increased condom use among participants. The study provides further insights into factors associated with condom use among African American adolescent boys and results can inform the development of sexual health interventions.


Diagnostics ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 1110
Author(s):  
Ekkehard Grünig ◽  
Christina A. Eichstaedt ◽  
Rebekka Seeger ◽  
Nicola Benjamin

Various parameters reflecting right heart size, right ventricular function and capacitance have been shown to be prognostically important in patients with pulmonary hypertension (PH). In the advanced disease, patients suffer from right heart failure, which is a main reason for an impaired prognosis. Right heart size has shown to be associated with right ventricular function and reserve and is correlated with prognosis in patients with PH. Right ventricular reserve, defined as the ability of the ventricle to adjust to exercise or pharmacologic stress, is expressed by various parameters, which may be determined invasively by right heart catheterization or by stress-Doppler-echocardiography as a noninvasive approach. As the term “right ventricular contractile reserve” may be misleading, “right ventricular output reserve” seems desirable as a preferred term of increase in cardiac output during exercise. Both right heart size and right ventricular reserve have been shown to be of prognostic importance and may therefore be useful for risk assessment in patients with pulmonary hypertension. In this article we aim to display different aspects of right heart size and right ventricular reserve and their prognostic role in PH.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vishal Ahuja ◽  
Carlos A. Alvarez ◽  
John R. Birge ◽  
Chad Syverson

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates the approval and safe public use of pharmaceutical products in the United States. The FDA uses postmarket surveillance systems to monitor drugs already on the market; a drug found to be associated with an increased risk of adverse events (ADEs) is subject to a recall or a warning. A flawed postmarket decision-making process can have unintended consequences for patients, create uncertainty among providers and affect their prescribing practices, and subject the FDA to unfavorable public scrutiny. The FDA’s current pharmacovigilance process suffers from several shortcomings (e.g., a high underreporting rate), often resulting in incorrect or untimely decisions. Thus, there is a need for robust, data-driven approaches to support and enhance regulatory decision making in the context of postmarket pharmacovigilance. We propose such an approach that has several appealing features—it employs large, reliable, and relevant longitudinal databases; it uses methods firmly established in literature; and it addresses selection bias and endogeneity concerns. Our approach can be used to both (i) independently validate existing safety concerns relating to a drug, such as those emanating from existing surveillance systems, and (ii) perform a holistic safety assessment by evaluating a drug’s association with other ADEs to which the users may be susceptible. We illustrate the utility of our approach by applying it retrospectively to a highly publicized FDA black box warning (BBW) for rosiglitazone, a diabetes drug. Using comprehensive data from the Veterans Health Administration on more than 320,000 diabetes patients over an eight-year period, we find that the drug was not associated with the two ADEs that led to the BBW, a conclusion that the FDA evidently reached, as it retracted the warning six years after issuing it. We demonstrate the generalizability of our approach by retroactively evaluating two additional warnings, those related to statins and atenolol, which we found to be valid. This paper was accepted by Vishal Gaur, operations management.


2014 ◽  
Vol 40 (4) ◽  
pp. 421-424 ◽  
Author(s):  
Igor Bastos Polonio ◽  
Milena Marques Pagliareli Acencio ◽  
Rogério Pazetti ◽  
Francine Maria de Almeida ◽  
Bárbara Soares da Silva ◽  
...  

We assessed the effects of lodenafil on hemodynamics and inflammation in the rat model of monocrotaline-induced pulmonary hypertension (PH). Thirty male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into three groups: control; monocrotaline (experimental model); and lodenafil (experimental model followed by lodenafil treatment, p.o., 5 mg/kg daily for 28 days) Mean pulmonary artery pressure (mPAP) was obtained by right heart catheterization. We investigated right ventricular hypertrophy (RVH) and IL-1 levels in lung fragments. The number of cases of RVH was significantly higher in the monocrotaline group than in the lodenafil and control groups, as were mPAP and IL-1 levels. We conclude that lodenafil can prevent monocrotaline-induced PH, RVH, and inflammation.


2020 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
pp. 100015
Author(s):  
Ambalavanan Arunachalam ◽  
Neal F. Chaisson ◽  
Adriano R. Tonelli

2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 86-91
Author(s):  
Md Harisul Hoque ◽  
SM Mustafa Zaman ◽  
Khurshid Ahmed ◽  
Sajal Krisna Banerjee ◽  
Md Faisal Ibne Kabir ◽  
...  

Pulmonary hypertension is a hemodynamic disorder defined by abnormally high pulmonary artery pressure that affects the arteries in your lungs and the right side of your heart. In this study, hepatic venous duplex will be done to diagnose and quantify the PH. So that Patients can avoid unnecessary invasive right heart catheterization. This practical demonstration is the key to enrich our experience and knowledge in the field of PH. Objectives of this study was to assess PH status by Hepatic venous Duplex (HVD) as well by right heart catheterization and to compare them. This study was conducted in the Department of Cardiology, BSMMU, Shahbagh, Dhaka extending from July 2018 to December 2019. Total 100 (One hundred) subjects were enrolled in this study. It was an Observational study and includes the subjects between 18 years to 45 years of age. Results of this study shows very close proximity to that of Right heart catheterization. Hemodynamic changes in Hepatic venous duplex study could be used as an alternative diagnostic tool for evaluating moderate to severe pulmonary hypertension. This method could counteract the weakness of the currently used diagnostic methods and improve the accuracy of assessing pulmonary hypertension when combined with other methods. University Heart Journal Vol. 16, No. 2, Jul 2020; 86-91


2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 204589401877305 ◽  
Author(s):  
Batool AbuHalimeh ◽  
Milind Y. Desai ◽  
Adriano R. Tonelli

The diagnosis of pulmonary hypertension (PH) requires a right heart catheterization (RHC) that reveals a mean pulmonary artery pressure ≥ 25 mmHg. The pulmonary artery catheter traverse the right atrium and ventricle on its way to the pulmonary artery. The presence of abnormal right heart structures, i.e. thrombus, vegetation, benign or malignant cardiac lesions, can lead to complications during this procedure. On the other hand, avoidance of RHC delays the diagnosis and treatment of PH, an approach that might be associated with worse outcomes. This paper discusses the impact of right heart lesions on the diagnosis of PH and suggests an approach on how to manage this association.


2020 ◽  
Vol 5-6 (215-216) ◽  
pp. 15-23
Author(s):  
Nazym Junusbayeva ◽  
◽  
Bakytsholpan Issayeva ◽  

Systemic sclerosis is the most common autoimmune disease associated with pulmonary hypertension. Pulmonary hypertension is a potential predictor of early death, and therefore, recently, interest in a comprehensive study of the diagnosis of pulmonary hypertension associated with systemic sclerosis has been increasing among researchers. Aim. Consideration of current diagnostic issues, as well as the principles of using diagnostic algorithms to verify pulmonary hypertension associated with systemic sclerosis, applied in daily clinical practice. Material and methods. In order to study the literature data, a search was carried out for information on this problem up to 10 years in depth in the Web of Science, PubMed/MEDLINE. During the search, the following terms were used individually and in combination: "systemic sclerosis", "pulmonary hypertension", "DETECT algorithm", "catheterization of the right heart chambers". The main search criteria were studies based on the study of patients with pulmonary hypertension associated with systemic sclerosis: meta-analyzes, original studies, retrospective and cohort studies. Results and discussion. The clinical symptoms of pulmonary hypertension can be nonspecific, which greatly complicates the diagnosis of the disease in the early stages. The absence of a specific clinical picture before the development of an advanced stage of pulmonary hypertension leads to late verification of the diagnosis. Key algorithms used in the daily practice of a doctor make it possible to minimize the number of undiagnosed cases of pulmonary hypertension. Conclusions. Diagnosis of PH associated with systemic sclerosis is often challenging for clinicians to practice. Early diagnosis and therefore treatment of PH are of paramount importance as they improve survival rates in patients with systemic sclerosis. Keywords: systemic sclerosis, pulmonary hypertension, screening, DETECT algorithm, right heart catheterization.


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