Use of propensity score in cost-effectiveness analysis using drug-eluting and bare metal stents

ABSTRACTBACKGROUNDStudies on the cost-effectiveness ratio of drug-eluting stents (DES) are rare. Our objective was to evaluate the results and compare costs (incremental cost-effectiveness ratio – ICER) per restenosis avoided between DES and bare metal stents (BMS) using the propensity score.METHODSTwo hundred and twenty consecutive patients were included in the study, of which 111 were treated with DES and 109 with BMS. The propensity score was used to adjust the effect of the intervention, by means of matching, stratification and weighing.RESULTSMost patients were male (67.7% vs. 66.9%; P = 0.53), with a mean age of 65.9 years. Patients treated with the DES had a higher rate of diabetes (54% vs. 17.4%; P < 0.001), three-vessel disease (18.9% vs. 10.1%; P = 0.029) and poor ventricular function (54.1% vs. 22%; P < 0.0001). The diameter of stents was 2.76 ± 0.35mm vs. 2.91 ± 0.47mm (P = 0.006) and the sum of the lengths of stents was 37.6 ± 23mm vs. 24.8 ± 15.8mm (P < 0.0001). Restenosis was observed on 6.3% vs. 12.8% of the patients (P = 0.099) and in 4.1% vs. 9.8% of the lesions (P = 0.048). There was an incremental cost of R$9,500.00 and the ICER was R$ 147,538.00 per restenosis avoided (above the World Health Organization threshold). However, when the propensity score was used, the variables that best classified patients for DES and had a maximum ICER of R$ 4,776.96 were age > 72 years, diabetes and lesions with diameter < 3.2mm and length > 18mm.CONCLUSIONSAlthough DES were not cost-effective in the overall population, the propensity score showed that in elderly patients, diabetics and patients with long lesions or small vessels, the use of DES was cost-effective

Accuracy of probabilistic record linkage in the assessment of high-complexity cardiology procedures

OBJETIVO: Avaliar a viabilidade de estratégia de relacionamento probabilístico de bases de dados na identificação de óbitos de pacientes submetidos a procedimentos de alta complexidade em cardiologia. MÉTODOS: O custo de processamento foi estimado com base em 1.672 registros de pacientes submetidos à cirurgia de revascularização do miocárdio, relacionados com todos os registros de óbito no Brasil em 2005. A acurácia do relacionamento baseou-se em linkage probabilístico entre 99 registros de autorização de internação hospitalar de pacientes submetidos a cirurgias cardíacas em instituto de referência em cardiologia, com status vital conhecido, e todos os registros de óbito do estado do Rio de Janeiro em 2005. O linkage foi realizado em quatro etapas: padronização das bases, blocagem, pareamento e classificação dos pares. Utilizou-se a blocagem em cinco passos, com chaves de blocagem com combinação de variáveis como soundex do primeiro e último nome, sexo e ano de nascimento. As variáveis utilizadas no pareamento foram "nome completo", com a utilização da distância de Levenshtein, e "data de nascimento". RESULTADOS: O segundo e o quinto passos de blocagem tiveram os maiores números de pares formados e os maiores tempos de processamento para o pareamento. O quarto passo demandou menor custo de processamento. No estudo de acurácia, após os cinco passos de blocagem, a sensibilidade do linkage foi de 90,6% e a especificidade foi de 100%. CONCLUSÕES: A estratégia de relacionamento probabilístico utilizada apresenta boa acurácia e poderá ser utilizada em estudos sobre a efetividade dos procedimentos de alta complexidade e alto custo em cardiologia.OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the viability of a probabilistic record linkage strategy to identify patients who underwent complex cardiology procedures among the total deceased population. METHODS: The processing cost was estimated based on 1,672 records of patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting that were compared with all death records in Brazil in 2005. The accuracy of the linkage strategy was based on the probabilistic linkage of 99 hospital admissions records of patients, with known vital status, who underwent cardiac surgery at a single cardiology institute, with the death records of the state of Rio de Janeiro, Southeastern Brazil, in 2005. Linkage was conducted in four stages: standardizing the databases, blocking, matching, and rating peers. Blocking in five steps was used, with blocking keys formed by a combination of variables such as soundex codes for the first and last names, sex, and year of birth. The variables used for matching were "full name" with the use of Levenshtein distance and "birth date". RESULTS: The second and fifth blocking steps resulted in the largest number of formed pairs and the largest processing times for the matching. The fourth step required a lower processing cost. In the accuracy study, after five blocking steps, the sensitivity of the linkage was 90.6%, and the specificity was 100%. CONCLUSIONS: The probabilistic strategy used has high accuracy and can be used in studies of the effectiveness of high-complexity, high-cost cardiology procedures.OBJETIVO: Evaluar la viabilidad de estrategia de relación probabilística en la identificación de pacientes sometidos a procedimientos de alta complejidad en cardiología. MÉTODOS: El costo de procesamiento fue calculado con base en 1.672 registros de pacientes sometidos a cirugía de revascularización del miocardio, relacionados con todos los registros de óbito en Brasil en 2005. La precisión de la relación se basó en linkage probabilística de 99 registros de autorización de internación hospitalaria de pacientes sometidos a cirugías cardíacas en instituto de referencia en cardiología, con status vital conocido, con todos los registros de óbito del estado de Rio de Janeiro en 2005. El linkage fue realizado en cuatro etapas: estandarización de las bases, blocaje, pareamiento y clasificación de los pares. Se utilizó blocaje en cinco pasos, con claves de blocaje con combinación de variables como soundex del primero y último nombre, sexo y año de nacimiento. Las variables utilizadas en el pareamiento fueron "nombre completo", con la utilización de la distancia de Levenshtein y "fecha de nacimiento". RESULTADOS: El segundo y el quinto pasos de blocaje tuvieron los mayores números de pares formados y los mayores tiempos de procesamiento para el pareamiento. El cuarto paso demandó menor costo de procesamiento. En el estudio de precisión, posterior a cinco pasos de blocaje, la sensibilidad del linkage fue de 90,6% y la especificidad fue de 100%. CONCLUSIONES: La estrategia de relación probabilística utilizada presenta buena precisión y podrá ser utilizada en estudios sobre la efectividad de los procedimientos de alta complejidad y alto costo en cardiología

Acesso a Tratamento Endovascular para Acidente Vascular Cerebral Isquémico em Portugal

Introduction: Since the publication of endovascular treatment trials and European Stroke Guidelines, Portugal has re-organized stroke healthcare. The nine centers performing endovascular treatment are not equally distributed within the country, which may lead to differential access to endovascular treatment. Our main aim was to perform a descriptive analysis of the main treatment metrics regarding endovascular treatment in mainland Portugal and its administrative districts. Material and Methods: A retrospective national multicentric cohort study was conducted, including all ischemic stroke patients treated with endovascular treatment in mainland Portugal over two years (July 2015 to June 2017). All endovascular treatment centers contributed to an anonymized database. Demographic, stroke-related and procedure-related variables were collected. Crude endovascular treatment rates were calculated per 100 000 inhabitants for mainland Portugal, and each district and endovascular treatment standardized ratios (indirect age-sex standardization) were also calculated. Patient time metrics were computed as the median time between stroke onset, first-door, and puncture. Results: A total of 1625 endovascular treatment procedures were registered. The endovascular treatment rate was 8.27/100 000 inhabitants/year. We found regional heterogeneity in endovascular treatment rates (1.58 to 16.53/100 000/year), with higher rates in districts closer to endovascular treatment centers. When analyzed by district, the median time from stroke onset to puncture ranged from 212 to 432 minutes, reflecting regional heterogeneity. Conclusion: The overall national rate of EVT in the first two years after the organization of EVT-capable centers is one of the highest among European countries, however, significant regional disparities were documented. Moreover, stroke-onset-to-first-door times and in-hospital procedural times in the EVT centers were comparable to those reported in the randomized controlled trials performed in high-volume tertiary hospitals.Introdução: A aprovação do tratamento endovascular para o acidente vascular cerebral isquémico obrigou à reorganização dos cuidados de saúde em Portugal. Os nove centros que realizam tratamento endovascular não estão distribuídos equitativamente pelo território, o que poderá causar acesso diferencial a tratamento. O principal objetivo deste estudo é realizar uma análise descritiva da frequência e métricas temporais do tratamento endovascular em Portugal continental e seus distritos. Material e Métodos: Estudo de coorte nacional multicêntrico, incluindo todos os doentes com acidente vascular cerebral isquémico submetidos a tratamento endovascular em Portugal continental durante um período de dois anos (julho 2015 a junho 2017). Foram colhidos dados demográficos, relacionados com o acidente vascular cerebral e variáveis do procedimento. Taxas de tratamento endovascular brutas e ajustadas (ajuste indireto a idade e sexo) foram calculadas por 100 000 habitantes/ano para Portugal continental e cada distrito. Métricas de procedimento como tempo entre instalação, primeira porta e punção foram também analisadas. Resultados: Foram registados 1625 tratamentos endovasculares, indicando uma taxa bruta nacional de tratamento endovascular de 8,27/100 000 habitantes/ano. As taxas de tratamento endovascular entre distritos variaram entre 1,58 e 16,53/100 000/ano, com taxas mais elevadas nos distritos próximos a hospitais com tratamento endovascular. O tempo entre sintomas e punção femural entre distritos variou entre 212 e 432 minutos. Conclusão: Portugal continental apresenta uma taxa nacional de tratamento endovascular elevada, apresentando, contudo, assimetrias regionais no acesso. As métricas temporais foram comparáveis com as observadas nos ensaios clínicos piloto

Origem anômala de uma artéria pulmonar da aorta ascendente: resolução da hipertensão arterial pulmonar com a correção cirúrgica Anomalous origin of one pulmonary artery from the ascending aorta: surgical repair resolving pulmonary arterial hypertension

OBJETIVO: Enfatizar a possibilidade diagnóstica da origem anômala de uma artéria pulmonar da aorta ascendente, em lactentes com quadro de insuficiência cardíaca clinicamente intratável e sem defeito estrutural intracardíaco. MÉTODOS: Estudo retrospectivo em quatro lactentes com insuficiência cardíaca intratável, submetidos a estudo ecocardiográfico bidimensional com cortes subcostal, supraesternal e paraesternal, e a estudo hemodinâmico e angiocardiográfico na projeção ântero-posterior. RESULTADOS: Três dos quatro lactentes tinham a artéria pulmonar direita originando-se da aorta ascendente, como diagnóstico principal. No quarto paciente a artéria pulmonar esquerda originava-se da aorta ascendente associada à ampla comunicação interventricular. Os lactentes tinham pressão em ambas artérias pulmonares em nível sistêmico. Todos foram submetidos a tratamento cirúrgico que consistiu na translocação da artéria pulmonar anômala da aorta. Não houve óbitos cardíacos imediatos ou tardios. CONCLUSÃO: Uma vez estabelecido o diagnóstico de origem anômala de artéria pulmonar da aorta ascendente, na forma isolada, a correção cirúrgica deverá ser prontamente realizada, não só pelo desenvolvimento de doença vascular pulmonar, como pelos excelentes resultados cirúrgicos atualmente obtidos.OBJECTIVE: To emphasize the diagnostic possibility of the anomalous origin of one pulmonary artery from the ascending aorta in infants with clinically refractory heart failure and no intracardiac structural defect. METHODS: Retrospective study of 4 infants with refractory heart failure undergoing 2-dimensional echocardiographic study with subcostal, suprasternal, and parasternal views, and hemodynamic and angiocardiographic study in the anteroposterior projection. RESULTS: Three of the 4 infants had their right pulmonary artery originating from the ascending aorta as their major diagnosis. In the fourth patient, the left pulmonary artery originated from the ascending aorta in association with a large interventricular septal defect. The pressure level in both pulmonary arteries in all infants was that of the systemic level. All patients underwent surgery, which consisted of translocation of the anomalous pulmonary artery from the aorta. Neither immediate nor late cardiac deaths occurred. CONCLUSION: Once the diagnosis of anomalous origin of the pulmonary artery from the ascending aorta in the isolated form is established, the surgical correction should be immediately performed, not only because of the risk of developing pulmonary vascular disease, but also because of the excellent surgical results currently obtained

Neonate Aortic Stenosis: Importance of Myocardial Perfusion in Prognosis

OBJECTIVE: To analyze our experience with percutaneous aortic balloon valvuloplasty in newborn infants with aortic stenosis, emphasizing the extraordinary importance of myocardial perfusion.METHODS: Over a 10-year-period, 21 neonates underwent percutaneous aortic balloon valvuloplasty. Age ranged from 2 to 27 days, weight ranged from 2.2 to 4.1 kg and 19 were males. All patients presented with congestive heart failure that could not be treated clinically. The onset of symptoms in the first week of life occurred in 9 patients considered as having critical aortic stenosis. Severe aortic stenosis occurred in 12 patients with the onset of symptoms in the second week of life.RESULTS: Mortality reached 100% in the patients with critical aortic stenosis. The procedure was considered effective in the 12 patients with severe aortic stenosis. Vascular complications included the loss of pulse in 12 patients and rupture of the femoral artery in 2 patients. Cardiac complications included acute aortic regurgitation in 2 patients and myocardial perforation in one. In an 8.2<FONT FACE=Symbol>&plusmn;</FONT>1.3-year follow-up, 5 of the 12 patients died (2 patients due to septicemia and 3 patients due to congestive heart failure). Five of the other 7 patients underwent a new procedure and 2 required surgery.CONCLUSION: Percutaneous aortic valvuloplasty in neonates is not an effective procedure in the 1st week of life, because at this age the common presentation is cardiogenic shock. It is possible that, in those patients with critical aortic stenosis, dilation of the aortic valve during fetal life may change the prognosis of its clinical outcome