Search

There is little data describing trends in the use of hydroxychloroquine for COVID-19 following publication of randomized trials that failed to demonstrate a benefit of this therapy. We identified 13,957 patients admitted for active COVID-19 at 85 U.S. hospitals participating in a national registry between March 1 and August 31, 2020. The overall proportion of patients receiving hydroxychloroquine peaked at 55.2% in March and April and decreased to 4.8% in May and June and 0.8% in July and August. At the hospital-level, median use was 59.4% in March and April (IQR 48.5–71.5%, range 0–100%) and decreased to 0.3% (IQR 0–5.4%, range 0–100%) by May and June and 0% (IQR 0–1.3%, range 0–36.4%) by July and August. The rate and hospital-level uniformity in deimplementation of this ineffective therapy for COVID-19 reflects a rapid response to evolving clinical information and further study may offer strategies to inform deimplementation of ineffective clinical care.

Despite decades of improvement in the quality and outcomes of cardiovascular care, significant gaps remain. Existing quality improvement strategies are often limited in scope to specific clinical conditions and episodic care. Health services and outcomes research is essential to inform gaps in care but rarely results in the development and implementation of care delivery solutions. Although individual health systems are engaged in projects to improve the quality of care delivery, these efforts often lack a robust study design or implementation evaluation that can inform generalizability and further dissemination. Aligning the work of health care systems and health services and outcomes researchers could serve as a strategy to overcome persisting gaps in cardiovascular quality and outcomes. We describe the inception of the Cardiovascular Quality Improvement and Care Innovation Consortium that seeks to rapidly improve cardiovascular care by (1) developing, implementing, and evaluating multicenter quality improvement projects using innovative care designs; (2) serving as a resource for quality improvement and care innovation partners; and (3) establishing a presence within existing quality improvement and care innovation structures. Success of the collaborative will be defined by projects that result in changes to care delivery with demonstrable impacts on the quality and outcomes of care across multiple health systems. Furthermore, insights gained from implementation of these projects across sites in Cardiovascular Quality Improvement and Care Innovation Consortium will inform and promote broad dissemination for greater impact.

Background: Outcome trials in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus have demonstrated reduced hospitalizations for heart failure (HF) with sodium-glucose co-transporter-2 inhibitors. However, few of these patients had HF, and those that did were not well-characterized. Thus, the effects of sodium-glucose co-transporter-2 inhibitors in patients with established HF with reduced ejection fraction, including those with and without type 2 diabetes mellitus, remain unknown. Methods: DEFINE-HF (Dapagliflozin Effects on Biomarkers, Symptoms and Functional Status in Patients with HF with Reduced Ejection Fraction) was an investigator-initiated, multi-center, randomized controlled trial of HF patients with left ventricular ejection fraction ≤40%, New York Heart Association (NYHA) class II-III, estimated glomerular filtration rate ≥30 mL/min/1.73m 2 , and elevated natriuretic peptides. In total, 263 patients were randomized to dapagliflozin 10 mg daily or placebo for 12 weeks. Dual primary outcomes were (1) mean NT-proBNP (N-terminal pro b-type natriuretic peptide) and (2) proportion of patients with ≥5-point increase in HF disease-specific health status on the Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire overall summary score, or a ≥20% decrease in NT-proBNP. Results: Patient characteristics reflected stable, chronic HF with reduced ejection fraction with high use of optimal medical therapy. There was no significant difference in average 6- and 12-week adjusted NT-proBNP with dapagliflozin versus placebo (1133 pg/dL (95% CI 1036–1238) vs 1191 pg/dL (95% CI 1089–1304), P =0.43). For the second dual-primary outcome of a meaningful improvement in Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire overall summary score or NT-proBNP, 61.5% of dapagliflozin-treated patients met this end point versus 50.4% with placebo (adjusted OR 1.8, 95% CI 1.03-3.06, nominal P =0.039). This was attributable to both higher proportions of patients with ≥5-point improvement in Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire overall summary score (42.9 vs 32.5%, adjusted OR 1.73, 95% CI 0.98–3.05), and ≥20% reduction in NT-proBNP (44.0 vs 29.4%, adjusted OR 1.9, 95% CI 1.1–3.3) by 12 weeks. Results were consistent among patients with or without type 2 diabetes mellitus, and other prespecified subgroups (all P values for interaction=NS). Conclusions: In patients with heart failure and reduced ejection fraction, use of dapagliflozin over 12 weeks did not affect mean NT-proBNP but increased the proportion of patients experiencing clinically meaningful improvements in HF-related health status or natriuretic peptides. Benefits of dapagliflozin on clinically meaningful HF measures appear to extend to patients without type 2 diabetes mellitus. Clinical Trial Registration: URL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov . Unique identifier: NCT 02653482.

HDL efflux capacity and HDL particle size are associated with atherosclerotic CVD (ASCVD) events in middle-aged individuals; however, it is unclear whether these associations are present in older adults. We sampled 402 Chicago Healthy Aging Study participants who underwent a dedicated carotid MRI assessment for lipid-rich necrotic core (LRNC) plaque. We measured HDL particle size, HDL particle number, and LDL particle number with NMR spectroscopy, as well as HDL efflux capacity. We quantified the associations between HDL particle size and HDL efflux using adjusted linear regression models. We quantified associations between the presence of LRNC and HDL and LDL particle number, HDL particle size, and HDL efflux capacity using adjusted logistic regression models. HDL efflux capacity was directly associated with large (β = 0.037, P < 0.001) and medium (β = 0.0065, P = 0.002) HDL particle concentration and inversely associated with small (β = −0.0049, P = 0.018) HDL particle concentration in multivariable adjusted models. HDL efflux capacity and HDL particle number were inversely associated with prevalent LRNC plaque in unadjusted models (odds ratio: 0.5; 95% confidence interval: 0.26, 0.96), but not after multivariable adjustment. HDL particle size was not associated with prevalent LRNC. HDL particle size was significantly associated with HDL efflux capacity, suggesting that differences in HDL efflux capacity may be due to structural differences in HDL particles. Future research is needed to determine whether HDL efflux is a marker of ASCVD risk in older populations.

This study uses data from a large academic medical center to estimate the accuracy of the criteria used by Medicare to represent the burden of hospitalizations for heart failure.

Purpose Optimal doses of guideline-directed medical therapy (GDMT) are a key component for reducing hospital readmissions in patients with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF). Pharmacist-led medication titration may allow for more rapid up-titration of GDMT in the clinic setting. The objective of this study was to determine the proportion of heart failure patients discharging from the hospital on non-target doses of GDMT. This population represents the group of patients who could benefit from pharmacist-led medication titration. Methods This Institutional Review Board approved, single-center, retrospective, observational chart review study included patients who were at least 18 years old and were discharged with the diagnosis of HFrEF (EF ≤40%) between July 1, 2016 to December 31, 2016. The optimized group consisted of patients at ≥50% or maximum tolerated doses of GDMT (ACEI/ARB/ARNI and BB) at hospital discharge. The potential to optimize group consisted of patients on Results 103 patients were included in the study. At discharge, 37% of patients were on optimal doses of GDMT, whereas in 63% of patients one or both therapies were not optimized at discharge. Rate of hospital readmission at 90 days was numerically lower in patients in the optimized group compared to potential to optimize group at discharge (39% vs. 46%, P= 0.56). Reflecting national data, the number of patients who were discharged on ≥50% of GDMT was small (n= 5). This group of patients had zero readmissions during 90 days. Out of the 65 patients in the potential to optimize group at discharge, only 34% were optimized on GDMT doses by standard of care during the 90-day follow-up period. Patients who were titrated up to ≥50% of GDMT (n=2) during 90 days had zero readmissions. The most common limiting factors for dose titration in the maximum tolerated dose group were hypotension, elevated serum creatinine, and bradycardia. Conclusions In a large academic medical center, the majority of patients leaving the hospital were not optimized on GDMT doses at discharge or during the 90-day follow-up period under routine care. While the 90-day readmission rate between the groups were similar, the sub-analysis showed patients on ≥50% of GDMT (n=7) had no readmissions during the 90 days. A significant opportunity therefore exists to leverage pharmacy expertise to optimize GDMT in this population.

Objective To quantify the association between high-density lipoprotein (HDL) subfractions, efflux capacity, and inflammatory markers at baseline, and the effect of supervised exercise on these HDL parameters in patients with peripheral artery disease (PAD). Methods The Study to Improve Leg Circulation (SILC) was a randomized trial of supervised treadmill exercise, leg resistance training, or control in individuals with PAD. In a post-hoc cross-sectional analysis, we quantified the associations between baseline HDL subfraction concentrations (HDL2 and HDL3), HDL cholesterol efflux capacity, and inflammatory markers (C-reactive protein [CRP] and interleukin-6 [IL-6]). We then examined the effect of supervised exercise on changes in these lipoprotein parameters and inflammatory markers in 88 patients from SILC. Results Baseline HDL cholesterol efflux capacity was associated with baseline concentrations of HDL2 (β=0.008, P=0.0106), HDL3 (β=0.013, P

Background: Co-management of hospitalized heart failure (HHF) patients by hospitalists and cardiologists may enhance care quality. Aided by an enterprise data warehouse (EDW) screen for HHF patients, we implemented a house surveillance model of heart failure consultation, whereby cardiology consultation and multidisciplinary heart failure intervention was offered for patients meeting criteria. Objective: To analyze the impact of house surveillance for HHF on cardiology consultation rates for patients coding into heart failure diagnosis-related groups (DRGs) on medicine units. Methods: An EDW screen for HHF was deployed, and services with HHF patients were offered cardiology consultation. The intervention was deployed 7/2015; chart review for patients 6 months pre- and post-intervention was conducted to ascertain consultation rate. Results: There were 386 patient discharges from a non-cardiac service with a heart failure DRG. In the six months prior to intervention, 40% of patients had cardiology consultation. This figure rose to 69% post-intervention, a highly statistically significant result. Conclusions: EDW-enabled active surveillance for HHF increases cardiology consultation rate, allowing for multidisciplinary intervention, co-management, and potentially improved outcomes for HHF patients.

Background: Multidisciplinary transitional care teams represent a model for reducing heart failure readmissions. Within this context, early identification of patients hospitalized with acute decompensated heart failure (ADHF) permits meaningful transitional care plan development. Improving the efficiency of early identification of the higher risk ADHF patient represents an area not well studied in hospitalized heart failure (HF). Objective: To validate the sensitivity and specificity of an enterprise data warehouse (EDW)-based strategy for early identification of patients with ADHF. Methods: An EDW query was constructed to identify patients with ADHF based on clinical and diagnosis-related parameters, including BNP level and administration of intravenous diuretics. The EDW query was run daily; expert clinicians verified the diagnosis of ADHF based on comprehensive chart review. This classification was used to determine specificity of the query for ADHF. We computed the sensitivity of the EDW-based approach by matching query results to heart failure diagnosis related group (DRG) data and primary discharge diagnosis data from separate hospital systems. Results: During the study period of 70 days, a total of 2354 charts were screened (33.6 charts per day). A total of 410 patients were identified by chart review as having heart failure requiring active management, for a specificity of 17.4%. Sensitivity was computed using both heart failure DRG data and primary discharge diagnosis data. Of the 114 patients discharged with a heart failure DRG (291, 292, or 293), all 114 were detected a priori by the admission EDW screen, for a sensitivity of 100%. A similar analysis conducted using HF principal diagnoses, which includes cardiac surgery-related admissions, yielded a sensitivity of 97.2%. Conclusions: EDW-based screening of patients based on simple clinical parameters early in the hospitalization is highly sensitive for detection of ADHF hospitalizations, but specificity is low. Brief chart review by expert clinicians is rapid, and identifies a specific cohort of patients that can be targeted for multidisciplinary HF transitional care. A better delineation of risk has broad outpatient workflow implications. Ongoing process improvements will demonstrate if early identification of at-risk patients yields significant reduction in HF readmissions.