Application of a disease-specific mapping function to estimate utility gains with effective treatment of schizophrenia

BACKGROUND: Most tools for estimating utilities use clinical trial data from general health status models, such as the 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36). A disease-specific model may be more appropriate. The objective of this study was to apply a disease-specific utility mapping function for schizophrenia to data from a large, 1-year, open-label study of long-acting risperidone and to compare its performance with an SF-36-based utility mapping function. METHODS: Patients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder by DSM-IV criteria received 25, 50, or 75 mg long-acting risperidone every 2 weeks for 12 months. The Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) and SF-36 were used to assess efficacy and health-related quality of life. Movement disorder severity was measured using the Extrapyramidal Symptom Rating Scale (ESRS); data concerning other common adverse effects (orthostatic hypotension, weight gain) were collected. Transforms were applied to estimate utilities. RESULTS: A total of 474 patients completed the study. Long-acting risperidone treatment was associated with a utility gain of 0.051 using the disease-specific function. The estimated gain using an SF-36-based mapping function was smaller: 0.0285. Estimates of gains were only weakly correlated (r = 0.2). Because of differences in scaling and variance, the requisite sample size for a randomized trial to confirm observed effects is much smaller for the disease-specific mapping function (156 versus 672 total subjects). CONCLUSION: Application of a disease-specific mapping function was feasible. Differences in scaling and precision suggest the clinically based mapping function has greater power than the SF-36-based measure to detect differences in utility

A computer program for statistically-based decision analysis

The majority of patients with coronary artery disease do not fall into the well defined populations from randomized clinical trials. Observational databases contain a rich source of information that could be used by practicing physicians to evaluate treatment alternatives for their patients. We describe a computer system, the CABG Kibitzer, which uses an integrated approach to evaluate the treatment alternatives for CAD patients. We combine a statistical multivariate model for calculating survival advantages with DA techniques for assessing patient preferences and sensitivity analysis, to create one tool that physicians find easy to use in daily clinical practice. The development of tools of this kind is a necessary step in making the data of outcome studies accessible to practicing physicians

Epilepsy Surgery for Pharmacoresistant Temporal Lobe Epilepsy: A Decision Analysis

Context Patients with pharmacoresistant epilepsy have increased mortality compared with the general population, but patients with pharmacoresistant temporal lobe epilepsy who meet criteria for surgery and who become seizure-free after anterior temporal lobe resection have reduced excess mortality vs those with persistent seizures. Objective To quantify the potential survival benefit of anterior temporal lobe resection for patients with pharmacoresistant temporal lobe epilepsy vs continued medical management. Design Monte Carlo simulation model that incorporates possible surgical complications and seizure status, with 10 000 runs. The model was populated with health-related quality-of-life data obtained directly from patients and data from the medical literature. Insufficient data were available to assess gamma-knife radiosurgery or vagal nerve stimulation. Main Outcome Measures Life expectancy and quality-adjusted life expectancy. Results Compared with medical management, anterior temporal lobe resection for a 35-year-old patient with an epileptogenic zone identified in the anterior temporal lobe would increase survival by 5.0 years (95% CI, 2.1-9.2) with surgery preferred in 100% of the simulations. Anterior temporal lobe resection would increase quality-adjusted life expectancy by 7.5 quality-adjusted life-years (95%, CI, −0.8 to 17.4) with surgery preferred in 96.5% of the simulations, primarily due to increased years spent without disabling seizures, thereby reducing seizure-related excess mortality and improving quality of life. The results were robust to sensitivity analyses. Conclusion The decision analysis model suggests that on average anterior temporal lobe resection should provide substantial gains in life expectancy and quality-adjusted life expectancy for surgically eligible patients with pharmacoresistant temporal lobe epilepsy compared with medical management

Not Home Alone: Leveraging Telehealth and Informatics to Create a Lean Model for COVID-19 Patient Home Care

In response to the emerging COVID-19 public health emergency in March 2020, the Medical University of South Carolina rapidly implemented an analytics-enhanced remote patient monitoring (RPM) program with state-wide reach for SARS-CoV-2-positive patients. Patient-reported data and other analytics were used to prioritize the sickest patients for contact by RPM nurses, enabling a small cadre of RPM nurses, with the support of ambulatory providers and urgent care video visits, to oversee 1234 patients, many of whom were older, from underserved populations, or at high risk of serious complications. Care was escalated based on prespecified criteria to primary care provider or emergency department visit, with 89% of moderate- to high-risk patients treated solely at home. The RPM nurses facilitated the continuity of care during escalation or de-escalation of care, provided much-needed emotional support to patients quarantining at home and helped find medical homes for patients with tenuous ties to health care

2020 American College of Rheumatology Guideline for the Management of Gout

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/155484/1/art41247.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/155484/2/art41247_am.pd