Dementia and the Risk of Periodontitis: A Population-Based Cohort Study

2021 ◽  
pp. 002203452110372
Author(s):  
K.S. Ma ◽  
H. Hasturk ◽  
I. Carreras ◽  
A. Dedeoglu ◽  
J.J. Veeravalli ◽  
...  

Dementia and Alzheimer’s disease (AD) are proposed to be comorbid with periodontitis (PD). It is unclear whether PD is associated with dementia and AD independent of confounding factors. We aimed at identifying the relationship between the longitudinal risk of developing PD in a cohort of patients with dementia and AD who did not show any signs of PD at baseline. In this retrospective cohort study, 8,640 patients with dementia without prior PD were recruited, and 8,640 individuals without dementia history were selected as propensity score–matched controls. A Cox proportional hazard model was developed to estimate the risk of developing PD over 10 y. Cumulative probability was derived to assess the time-dependent effect of dementia on PD. Of the 8,640 patients, a sensitivity test was conducted on 606 patients with AD-associated dementia and 606 non-AD propensity score–matched controls to identify the impact of AD-associated dementia on the risk for PD. Subgroup analyses on age stratification were included. Overall 2,670 patients with dementia developed PD. The relative risk of PD in these patients was significantly higher than in the nondementia group (1.825, 95% CI = 1.715 to 1.942). Cox proportional hazard models showed that patients with dementia were more likely to have PD than individuals without dementia (adjusted hazard ratio = 1.915, 95% CI = 1.766 to 2.077, P < 0.0001, log-rank test P < 0.0001). The risk of PD in patients with dementia was age dependent ( P values for all ages <0.0001); younger patients with dementia were more likely to develop PD. The findings persisted for patients with AD: the relative risk (1.531, 95% CI = 1.209 to 1.939) and adjusted hazard ratio (1.667, 95% CI = 1.244 to 2.232; log-rank test P = 0.0004) of PD in patients with AD were significantly higher than the non-AD cohort. Our findings demonstrated that dementia and AD were associated with a higher risk of PD dependent of age and independent of systemic confounding factors.

2017 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 79
Author(s):  
Wawan Kurniawan ◽  
C Martin Rumende ◽  
Kuntjoro Harimurti

Pendahuluan. Hipoalbuminemia merupakan salah satu penanda risiko mortalitas, tetapi belum banyak yang mempertimbangkan faktor waktu (seberapa cepat terjadinya mortalitas). Penelitian ini mengevaluasi pengaruh hipoalbuminemia terhadap kecepatan terjadinya mortalitas pada pasien usia lanjut dengan pneumonia komunitas. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui prevalensi hipoalbuminemia dan pengaruhnya terhadap kesintasan pasien usia lanjut yang dirawat dengan pneumonia komunitas.Metode. Penelitian dengan disain kohort retrospektif dilakukan terhadap 142 pasien usia lanjut dengan pneumonia komunitas yang dirawat di RSCM pada kurun waktu Januari-Oktober 2010. Data klinis dan laboratoris diambil dalam 24 jam pertama kedatangan (data sekunder) dan kemudian diikuti dalam 30 hari untuk melihat status mortalitasnya. Perbedaan kesintasan hipoalbuminemia ditampilkan dalam kurva Kaplan Meier dan perbedaan kesintasan diantara dua atau lebih kelompok akan diuji dengan Log-rank test, dengan batas kemaknaan <0.05, serta analisis multivariat dengan Cox’s proportional hazard regression untuk menghitung adjusted hazard ratio (dan interval kepercayaan 95%-nya) antara pasien usila dengan pneumonia yang mengalami hipoalbuminemia terhadap yang normoalbuminemia dengan koreksi terhadap variabel-variabel perancu.Hasil. Prevalensi hipoalbuminemia pada pasien usila dengan pneumonia komunitas sebesar 71,1% (IK95% 0,64-0,78). Rerata kesintasan pada kelompok dengan kadar albumin normal adalah 27 hari (IK95% 24,35-30,98), sedangkan pada kelompok albumin 2,5-3,4 g/dL rerata kesintasannya adalah 22 hari (IK95% 19,66-25,13) dan pada kelompok albumin kurang dari 2,5 g/dL rerata kesintasannya adalah 19 hari (IK95% 13,07-26,23). Crude hazard ratio (HR) pasien dengan kadar albumin antara 2,5-3,4 g/dL adalah 4,49 (IK95% 1,05-19,20) dan pada pasien dengan kadar albumin kurang dari 2,5 g/dL adalah 7,26 (IK95% 1,46-36,09) bila dibandingkan dengan pasien dengan kadar albumin normal (≥3,5 g/dL). Setelah penambahan variabel perancu, didapatkan fully adjusted hazard ratio sebesar 3,81 (IK95% 0,86-16,95) untuk kelompok albumin antara 2,5-3,4 g/dL dan 11,09 (IK95% 1,79-68,65) untuk kelompok albumin kurang dari 2,5 g/dL.Simpulan. Prevalensi hipoalbuminemia pada usia lanjut dengan pneumonia komunitas adalah 71,1%. Terdapat perbedaan kesintasan 30 hari pasien pneumonia usia lanjut yang mengalami hipoalbuminemia dibanding dengan yang normoalbuminemia (≥3,5 g/dL). Kesintasan pada pasien dengan keadaan hipoalbuminemia yang berat lebih buruk dibandingkan pada keadaan hipoalbuminemia ringan.


2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-7
Author(s):  
Grzegorz M. Kubiak ◽  
Radosław Kwieciński ◽  
Agnieszka Ciarka ◽  
Andrzej Tukiendorf ◽  
Piotr Przybyłowski ◽  
...  

Introduction. The data assessing the impact of beta blocker (BB) medication on survival in patients after heart transplantation (HTx) are scarce and unequivocal; therefore, we investigated this population. Methods. We retrospectively analyzed the HTx Zabrze Registry of 380 consecutive patients who survived the 30-day postoperative period. Results. The percentage of patients from the entire cohort taking BBs was as follows: atenolol 24 (17%), bisoprolol 67 (49%), carvedilol 11 (8%), metoprolol 28 (20%), and nebivolol 8 (6%). The patients receiving BBs were older (56.94 ± 14.68 years vs. 52.70 ± 15.35 years, p=0.008) and experienced an onset of HTx earlier in years (11.65 ± 7.04 vs. 7.24 ± 5.78 p≤0.001). They also had higher hematocrit (0.40 ± 0.05 vs. 0.39 ± 0.05, p=0.022) and red blood cells (4.63 (106/μl) ± 0.71 vs. 4.45 (106/μl) ± 0.68, p=0.015). Survival according to BB medication did not differ among the groups (p=0.655) (log-rank test). Univariate Cox proportional hazard regression analysis revealed that the following parameters were associated with unfavorable diagnosis: serum concentration of albumin (g/l) HR: 0.87, 95% CI (0.81–0.94), p=0.0004; fibrinogen (mg/dl) HR: 1.006, 95% CI (1.002–1.008), p=0.0017; and C-reactive protein (mg/l) HR: 1.014, 95% CI (1.004–1.023), p=0.0044. Conclusions. The use of BBs in our cohort of patients after HTx was not associated with survival benefits.


2019 ◽  
Vol 104 (6) ◽  
pp. e19.3-e20
Author(s):  
J Andersen ◽  
B Askaa ◽  
TB Jensen ◽  
H Horwitz ◽  
C Vermehren ◽  
...  

ObjectiveTo study the association between paternal exposure to methotrexate within three month before conception and during the first trimester of pregnancy and the risk of miscarriage.MethodsWe conducted a nationwide cohort study identifying all registered pregnancies in Denmark from 1997 to 2015. All births were identified using the Medical Birth Registry, and all records of induced abortion and miscarriage were from the National Hospital Register. Data on drug use were from the National Prescription Register. Cox proportional hazard regression models were used to calculate the hazard of miscarriage in women with a partner exposed to methotrexate. The study was approved by the Danish Data Protection Agency (2015-41-4309).ResultsWe identified 1,364,063 registered pregnancies with known paternity, of whom 520 fathers were exposure to methotrexate within the three months before conception to the end of the first trimester. Among these, 46 (8.9%) experienced a miscarriage compared to 122,926 (9.0%) among the unexposed.There was no increased risk of experiencing a miscarriage in pregnancies to men exposed to methotrexate before pregnancy compared to unexposed (adjusted hazard ratio 0.99 (CI95% 0.67- 1.46)). Furthermore, we found no increased risk of experiencing a miscarriage in pregnancies to men exposed to methotrexate during first trimester compared to unexposed (adjusted hazard ratio 0.90 (CI95% 0.61–1.32)).ConclusionWe found no association between paternal exposure to methotrexate before and during early pregnancy and miscarriage. Available data suggest that paternal methotrexate exposure should not be of major concern. Multinational recommendations could be changed accordingly.Disclosure(s)Nothing to disclose


2009 ◽  
Vol 111 (2) ◽  
pp. 203-210 ◽  
Author(s):  
Edward F. Chang ◽  
Aaron Clark ◽  
Randy L. Jensen ◽  
Mark Bernstein ◽  
Abhijit Guha ◽  
...  

Object Medical and surgical management of low-grade gliomas (LGGs) is complicated by a highly variable clinical course. The authors recently developed a preoperative scoring system to prognosticate outcomes of progression and survival in a cohort of patients treated at a single institution (University of California, San Francisco [UCSF]). The objective of this study was to validate the scoring system in a large patient group drawn from multiple external institutions. Methods Clinical data from 3 outside institutions (University of Utah, Toronto Western Hospital, and University of California, Los Angeles) were collected for 256 patients (external validation set). Patients were assigned a prognostic score based upon the sum of points assigned to the presence of each of the 4 following factors: 1) location of tumor in presumed eloquent cortex, 2) Karnofsky Performance Scale (KPS) Score ≤ 80, 3) age > 50 years, and 4) maximum diameter > 4 cm. A chi-square analysis was used to analyze categorical differences between the institutions; Cox proportional hazard modeling was used to confirm that the individual factors were associated with shorter overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS); and Kaplan–Meier curves estimated OS and PFS for the score groups. Differences between score groups were analyzed by the log-rank test. Results The median OS duration was 120 months, and there was no significant difference in survival between the institutions. Cox proportional hazard modeling confirmed that the 4 components of the UCSF Low-Grade Glioma Scoring System were associated with lower OS in the external validation set; presumed eloquent location (hazard ratio [HR] 2.04, 95% CI 1.28–2.56), KPS score ≤ 80 (HR 5.88, 95% CI 2.44–13.7), age > 50 years (HR 1.82, 95% CI 1.02–3.23), and maximum tumor diameter > 4 cm (HR 2.63, 95% CI 1.58–4.35). The stratification of patients based on scores generated groups (0–4) with statistically different OS and PFS estimates (p < 0.0001, log-rank test). Lastly, the UCSF patient group (construction set) was combined with the external validation set (total of 537 patients) and analyzed for OS and PFS. For all patients, the 5-year survival probability was 0.79; the 5-year cumulative OS probabilities stratified by score group were: score of 0, 0.98; score of 1, 0.90; score of 2, 0.81; score of 3, 0.53; and score of 4, 0.46. Conclusions The UCSF scoring system accurately predicted OS and PFS in an external large, multiinstitutional population of patients with LGGs. The strengths of this system include ease of use and ability to be applied preoperatively, with the eventual goal of aiding in the design of individualized treatment plans for patients with LGG at diagnosis.


Author(s):  
Parisa Khodabandeh Shahraki ◽  
Awat Feizi ◽  
Ashraf Aminorroaya ◽  
Mahboubeh Farmani ◽  
Massoud Amini

Aim: Although, the effectiveness of metformin in diabetes treatment is well established, its preventive effect in the development of diabetes is still unclear in real world. We aimed to determine the effectiveness of metformin therapy as a single preventive agent in patients with prediabetes in a cohort study (IDPS). Study Design: In this prospective observational study. Place and Duration of Study: Isfahan Endocrine and Metabolism Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran. Methodology: We included 410 patients with prediabetes (168 metformin user, 242 non-users), who participated in IDPS. To determine the association between metformin use and incidence of type 2 diabetes, Cox proportional hazard method, Kaplan-Meier and log Rank test were used. Results: In fully adjusted model for all confounders, significant hazard ratio (HR) for staying prediabetes rather than returning to normal was detected in male group of metformin non-user (HR: 2·41 [95% CI 1.01-5.79]; P<0·05) and those metformin non-user who had both Impaired Fasting Glucose and Impaired Glucose Tolerance (IFG & IGT) (HR: 2.13 [95% CI 1.05-4.34]; P=0·04).  There was no significant difference in terms of developing diabetes risk between metformin users and non-users. Conclusion: This study evidenced that males and patients with IFG & IGT who had not used metformin are at higher risk to staying prediabetes than returning to normal.


2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 49-58
Author(s):  
Haykal Abidin ◽  
Novita Eka Chandra ◽  
Mohammad Syaiful Pradana

The purpose of this research is modeling the Cox proportional hazard regression form on divorce data in Pelaihari sub-district, Tanah Laut district, South Kalimantan province. The source of the data comes from the Court Decision in Pelaihari District, Tanah Laut Regency, South Kalimantan. The data analysis technique uses software R with the steps, namely data description, Log-Rank test, checking proportional hazard assumptions, Cox regression model parameter estimation, backward selection with AIC, the best model parameter significance test, calculating Hazard ratio and interpretation of each predictor variable. Based on the results of the analysis and discussion, it was found that for the Log-Rank test, the variable survival time for domestic violence, forced marriage, lying and stories of disgrace differed significantly. While the model that meets the criteria after iteration up to 15 times is the 15th model with the smallest AIC value and p-value <0.05 with factors that significantly influence divorce in Pelaihari sub-district based on modeling results using Cox proportional Hazard regression. are the variables of cheating, gambling, domestic violence, forced marriage, lies, jealousy and disgrace story variables


Blood ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 120 (21) ◽  
pp. 3797-3797
Author(s):  
Koichi Takahashi ◽  
Naveen Pemmaraju ◽  
Miloslav Beran ◽  
Alfonso Quintás-Cardama ◽  
Jorge E. Cortes ◽  
...  

Abstract Abstract 3797 Background: Since the time of initial proposal of the MD Anderson Prognostic Score (MDAPS) in 2000, there has been substantial development in diagnosis and treatment for patients (pts) with CMML. MDAPS did not incorporate cytogenetic abnormalities, which is one of the most important factors of prognostication in other myeloid malignancies. Therefore, we analyzed a large cohort of patients with CMML and developed new prognostic scoring system that also incorporates cytogenetic abnormalities (named MDAPS-R). Methods: From 2003 and 2012, we identified 358 pts with diagnosis of CMML, using standards strictly defined by World Health Organization (WHO) criteria. Potential prognostic factors were identified by log-rank test. Of those, independent prognostic factors were extracted after Cox proportional hazard regression. Based on the relative strength of hazard ratio (HR), MDAPS-R was developed and was verified by log-rank test. Result: Median age of the analyzed group was 68 years (range:23–89);113 (32%) pts were female. Two hundred twenty one (62%) pts were classified as CMML-1 and 104 (29%) were CMML-2 (unknown in 33 pts). Thirty nine (11%) pts had prior exposure to chemotherapy and/or radiation therapy. Mean (± SE) white blood cell count (WBC) was 24.5 ± 1.5 (x103/μL), hemoglobin (Hb) was 10.8 ± 0.1(g/dL), platelet count (Plt) was 132 ± 7.0 (x103/μL) and bone marrow blast count (BMBL) was 6.9 ± 0.3 (%), respectively. Cytogenetics was diploid in 224 (63%) pts. Trisomy 8 was detected in 14 (4%) pts, del 20q in 12 (3.4%), -Y in 13 (3.6%), del 7q/-7 in 25 (7%), and del 5q/-5 in 10 (2.8%) pts, respectively. Complex cytogenetic abnormality was detected in 16 (4.5%) pts. Two hundred eighty (78%) pts had RAS mutation analysis and 49 (18%) had NRAS mutation while 16 (5.7%) had KRAS mutation. FLT3 alteration was tested in 297 pts (83%):3 (1%) had D835 mutation while 10 (3.4%) had ITD. JAK2 mutation was tested in 161 (45%) pts of which 19 (12%) had V617F mutation. Less commonly occurring mutations included: NPM1 (5/88 tested), c-kit (3/156), CEBPA (6/83), IDH1 (1/59), IDH2 (3/58), and DNMT3a (1/4). During the median follow up duration of 15 months (range; 1–145), 53 (15%) pts transformed to acute leukemia and 182 (51%) pts died. Median transformation free survival (TFS) and overall survival (OS) of the analyzed group was 24.9 months (range; 1–145) and 26.8 months (range; 1–145), respectively. Log-rank test identified significant covariates in association with OS that include: BMBL (<10 vs. ≥10; P = 0.024), WBC (≤10 vs. >10; P = 0.01), Hb (<12 vs. ≥12; P < 0.001), CMML subtype (CMML-1 vs. 2; P = 0.007), prior exposure to chemo and/or radiation (Yes vs. No; P < 0.001), cytogenetics (diploid vs. complex or del7q/-7 vs. others; P < 0.001), serum β2 microglobulin (β2MG) (≤4.0 vs >4.0; P < 0.001), serum LDH (≤700 vs. >700; P < 0.001), peripheral absolute lymphocyte count (ALC) (≤2.5 vs. >2.5; P < 0.001), and peripheral absolute monocyte count (≤4.0 vs. >4.0; P = 0.012). None of the molecular mutations had impact on OS. After being fitted into Cox proportional hazard regression, following covariates remained independently significant: BMBL ≥10 % (vs. <10; HR = 1.6), Hb < 12 g/dL (vs. ≥12; HR = 1.9), LDH > 700 IU/L (vs. ≤700; HR = 1.5), ALC > 2.5 × 103/μL (vs. <2.5; HR = 1.7), β2MG > 4.0 mg/L (vs. ≤ 4.0; HR = 1.6), and complex cytogenetics or del 7q/-7 (vs. diploid; HR = 2.3 and others vs. diploid; HR = 1.5). We developed MDAPS-R based on relative strength of HR in each of these above factors (1 point assigned to each of the following: BM BL '10 %, Hb<12 g/dL, LDH 700 IU/L, ALC .2.5 × 103/μL, and β2MG > 4.0 mg/L; 0 points for diploid cytogenetics, 2 points for −7/del 7q or complex cytogenetics, and 1 point for all other abnormal karyotype). Among 358 pts, 282 (79%) were evaluable for analysis via MDAPS-R. MDAPS-R stratified pts into 4 distinct prognostic groups: score 0–1 = low risk (N = 70, median OS 56 months), 2–3 = intermediate-1 risk (N = 133, median OS 28 months), 4–5 = intermediate-2 risk (N = 68, median OS 18 months), and 6–7 = high risk (N = 11, median OS 7.5 months) (P < 0.001, Figure 1A). MDAPS-R also predicted TFS in the same cohort (median TFS: low = 54, int-1 = 26, int-2 = 15, and high = 7 months, P < 0.001, Figure 1B). Conclusion: We propose a refined version of MDAPS (MDAPS-R) specifically for pts with CMML that incorporates cytogenetic abnormalities. This model may help risk-stratified decision making in CMML pts. Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.


2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (8) ◽  
pp. 866-871
Author(s):  
Ioannis Leventis ◽  
Kalliopi Perlepe ◽  
Dimitrios Sagris ◽  
Gaia Sirimarco ◽  
Davide Strambo ◽  
...  

Background and aims Patients with embolic strokes of undetermined source (ESUS) usually present with mild symptoms. We aimed to compare the baseline characteristics between mild and severe ESUS, identify predictors for severe ESUS, and assess outcomes of patients with severe ESUS. Methods In the AF-ESUS (AF-ESUS) dataset, we stratified ESUS severity using the median National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score on admission as cut-off. We performed multivariable stepwise regression analyses to identify independent predictors of severe ESUS and to assess the association between ESUS severity and stroke recurrence, death, and new incident atrial fibrillation (AF) on follow-up. The 10-year cumulative probabilities of outcome incidence were estimated by the Kaplan–Meier product limit method. Results In 772 patients (median NIHSS: 6 (interquartile range: 3–12)), 414 (53.6%) patients had severe ESUS (i.e. NIHSS ≥6). Female sex was the only independent predictor for severe ESUS (odds ratio: 1.72 (1.27–2.33)). The rates of recurrence (3.3%/year vs. 3.4%/year, adjusted-hazard ratio: 1.09 (0.73–1.62)) and new incident AF (13.5% vs. 17.0%, adjusted odds ratio: 0.67 (0.44–1.03)) were similar between severe and mild ESUS, but mortality was higher (5.4%/year vs. 3.7%/year, adjusted-hazard ratio: 1.51 (1.05–2.16)) in severe ESUS. The 10-year cumulative probability for stroke recurrence was similar between severe and mild ESUS (38.1% (29.2–48.6) vs. 36.6% (27.8–47.0), log-rank test: 0.01, p = 0.920). The 10-year cumulative probability of death was higher in patients with severe ESUS compared with mild ESUS (40.5% (32.5–50.0) vs. 34.0% (26.0–43.6) respectively; log-rank test: 4.54, p = 0.033). Conclusions Women have more severe ESUS compared with men. Patients with severe ESUS have similar rates of stroke recurrence and new incident AF, but higher mortality compared with mild ESUS.


2020 ◽  
Vol 41 (S1) ◽  
pp. s476-s478
Author(s):  
JaHyun Kang ◽  
Eunjeong Ji ◽  
Jeong Hee Kim ◽  
Hyunok Bae ◽  
Eu Suk Kim ◽  
...  

Background: Contact isolation (ie, patient isolation with contact precautions) has been frequently used for preventing healthcare-associated infections caused by epidemiologically important pathogens (eg, vancomycin-resistant enterococcus [VRE]) via direct or indirect contact with patients. Based on ineffective components of routine contact isolations (eg, fewer healthcare provider visits), some studies have reported an association between the likelihood of adverse events and contact isolation. Objective: Given no strong evidence for this association due to most studies’ invalid study designs and systematic misclassification, we compared adverse events between a VRE isolation cohort and a matched comparison cohort, using a propensity score matching cohort study design. Methods: This study was conducted at a 1,337-bed, tertiary-care, university-affiliated, Korean hospital equipped with a full electronic medical record (EMR) system for all patient records. With institutional review board approval, all relevant EMR records were extracted for the study period 2015–2017. All contact isolation information of VRE patients were confirmed through EMR manual review by 1 trained research nurse. For propensity score matching, risk factors for adverse events (ie, decubitus ulcer, fall, and cardiopulmonary resuscitation [CPR]) were selected based on literature reviews: length of stay, age, gender, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, albumin, Charlson comorbidity index, Braden scale score, and Hendrich II fall risk. For each VRE case, the 1:1 matched case was selected through the nearest neighbor matching with calculated propensity scores. The retrospective observation period was from the cohort entry date (ie, contact isolation start date) to the cohort exit date (ie, discharge or discontinue of contact isolation). A time-to-event analysis with a Cox proportional hazard model was conducted using SAS version 9.4 software. Results: Among the 98,527 inpatients (323 VRE positive; 98,204 VRE negative), the VRE cohort (N = 141 of 216, 65% of total VRE patients admitted to general wards without adverse event history before contact isolation) and the matched comparison (no isolation) cohort (N = 141, 0.1%) showed no differences in characteristic comparisons (Table 1). The Cox proportional hazard model was not applicable for CPR because no CPR case was available in the matched comparison cohort. The hazard ratios for adverse events showed no statistically significant difference for both cohorts: decubitus ulcer (hazard ratio [HR], 1.049; 95% CI, 0.328–3.352; fall (HR, 0.418; 95% CI, 0.051–3.349) (Table 2). Conclusions: Based on the full EMR records for 3 years, our propensity-score–matched cohort study reported no association between the likelihoods of adverse events and contact isolation.Funding: This work was supported by the Collaborative Research Program of Medical Science and Nursing Science from Seoul National University College of Medicine (Grant no. 800-20180001 & 810-20180001).Disclosures: None.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yun-Wen Chiao ◽  
Hanoch Livneh ◽  
How-Ran Guo ◽  
Wei-Jen Chen ◽  
Ming-Chi Lu ◽  
...  

Objective: Subjects with insomnia have a higher risk of depression, thus possibly making them live with serious health conditions. To date, information regarding the effect of Chinese herbal medicines (CHMs), a commonly used complementary and alternative medicine, on depression risk among people with insomnia is still unknown. This study aimed to investigate the effect of CHMs on the risk of depression among individuals with insomnia.Methods: This cohort study used a national health insurance database to identify 68,573 subjects newly diagnosed with insomnia, aged 20–70 years, who received treatment between 1998 and 2010. Using propensity score matching, we randomly selected 26,743 CHMs users and 26,743 non-CHMs users from this sample. All enrollees were followed to the end of 2012 to identify any treatment for depression as the end point. Cox proportional hazards regression was used to compute the adjusted hazard ratio of depression associated with CHMs use.Results: After utilizing the propensity score matching, we randomly selected 26,743 CHMs users and 26,743 non-CHMs users from this sample. During follow up, 3,328 CHMs users and 6,988 non-CHMs users developed depression at incidence rates of 17.24 and 37.97 per 1,000 person-years, respectively. CHMs users had a lower depression risk than the non-CHMs users (adjusted hazard ratio = 0.44; 95% Confidence Interval, 0.42–0.46). The greatest effect was observed for those taking CHMs for more than 2 years. Gegen, Huangqin, Dan-Shen, Beimu, Dahuang, Shegan, Shu-jing-huo-xue-tang, Ge-gen-tang, Shao-yao-gan-cao-tang and Píng wèi sǎn were significantly associated with a lower risk of depression.Conclusions: Findings from this study demonstrated that adding CHMs to conventional treatment significantly reduces depression risk among patients with insomnia.


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