Research Activities

October 2004, No. 290

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Contents

About Research Activities

Feature Story

AHRQ and its partners launch new tools to help combat childhood obesity

Women's/Children's Health

Quality-of-life benefits of short-term hormone therapy may outweigh the risks for some menopausal women
After more than 20 years, quality of life is similar for women who had a hysterectomy or went through natural menopause
Prolonged Candida infections in children with central venous catheters can lead to bloodstream and internal organ infections
Instruments that measure the health status of children need to account for the impact of race, ethnicity, and income on health

Primary Care

Doctors can use conversational techniques during an illness visit to create an opportunity to deliver preventive care

Outcomes/Effectiveness Research

Higher volume in trauma centers does not necessarily correlate with improved survival of trauma victims
Short-term symptoms of urinary or other dysfunction after brachytherapy for prostate cancer may indicate long-term outcomes
Doubling of PSA blood levels after prostate cancer treatment is linked with an increased risk of death from prostate cancer
Researchers examine use of emergency care and depression-related disability among adults with diabetes
Parents are willing to travel to distant hospitals to achieve a better outcome following pediatric cardiac surgery
Computerized information systems prompt monitoring tests and medication adjustment that can improve diabetes care and outcomes

Pharmaceutical Research

Potentially inappropriate drugs are commonly prescribed for elderly outpatients
More effective and convenient medications for osteoporosis have increased recognition and treatment of the disease

Health Care Delivery

Use of mechanical ventilation in adult noncardiac surgery patients increased in Ontario during the 1990s
Testing for hypercoagulable disorders in patients with deep vein thrombosis followed by 2 years of anticoagulation is cost effective
Participants in a community-based mind-body training program report moderate improvements in quality of life after 3 months

Quality/Patient Safety

Very little of the variation in quality of diabetes care is explained by practice factors
Daily visit volume is similar for dying patients receiving hospice care in nursing homes and in the community
Extended work shifts, common among nurses, substantially increases the likelihood of medical errors
Physicians say they favor disclosure of medical errors to patients and families, but disclosure often does not occur

Mental Health

Cognitive testing can indicate when patients with Alzheimer's disease may lose the ability to make medical decisions
Latinos benefit more than whites from psychotherapy-based quality improvement for depression, and they have lower costs for care

Health Care Costs and Financing

Over the period 1963-2000, per person spending on health care grew most rapidly among those aged 65 and older
CHIRI™ study finds that SCHIP benefits low-income children, and vulnerable children share in the improvements
Medicare drug benefits with high out-of-pocket costs might not be effective for low-income beneficiaries with chronic diseases
Large firms are more likely to offer health insurance plans with high quality ratings

Agency News and Notes

New grants and contracts will help improve patient safety and quality of care
New AHRQ Senior Nurse Scholar-in-Residence now on board

Announcements

AHRQ publishes new evidence reports on treatment for extremely obese individuals and other topics
New guide now available for using AHRQ's Quality Indicators for hospital quality reporting and payment
Grant final reports now available from NTIS

Research Briefs

AHRQ Publication No. 05-0008
Current as of October 2004

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Internet Citation:

Research Activities Newsletter. October 2004, No. 290. AHRQ Publication No. 05-0008. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, MD. http://www.ahrq.gov/research/oct04/

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