Articles of Interest

December 1, 2006


This weekly compilation of articles appearing in recently released journals and newsletters includes:


AHRQ-Funded/Authored Articles

Academic Emergency Medicine
Kelen GD, McCarthy ML. The science of surge. Acad Emerg Med 2006 Nov; 13(11):1089-94. [Supported by grant U01 HS014337-01.]

Phillips S. Current status of surge research. Acad Emerg Med 2006 Nov; 13(11):1103-8. [Author is researcher in AHRQ's Center for Primary Care, Prevention, and Clinical Partnerships.]

McCarthy ML, Aronsky D, Kelen GD. The measurement of daily surge and its relevance to disaster. Acad Emerg Med 2006 Nov; 13(11):1138-41. [Supported by grant U01 HS014353.]

American Heart Journal
Amin AA, Jones AM, Nugent K, et al. The prevalence of unrecognized depression in patients with acute coronary syndrome. Am Heart J 152(5):928-34. [Supported by grant R01 HS1128201.]

American Journal of Geriatric Pharmacotherapy
Kamal-Bahl SJ, Stuart BC, Beers MH. Propoxyphene use and risk for hip fractures in older adults. Am J Geriatr Pharmacother 2006 Sep; 4(3):219-26. [Supported by grant 1 R03 HS013551-01.]

American Journal of Infection Control
Krein SL, Olmsted RN, Hofer TP, et al. Translating infection prevention evidence into practice using quantitative and qualitative research. Am J Infect Control 2006 Oct; 34(8):507-12. [Supported by grant P20 HS11540.]

American Journal of Medical Quality
Clancy CM. Care transitions: a threat and an opportunity for patient safety. Am J Med Qual 2006 Nov-Dec; 21(6):415-7. [Author is AHRQ director.]

Anesthesiology
Sexton JB, Makary MA, Tersigni AR, et al. Teamwork in the operating room: frontline perspectives among hospitals and operating room personnel. Anesthesiology 2006 Nov; 105(5):877-84. [Supported by grant 1 UC1 HS014246.]

Arthritis and Rheumatism
Schneeweiss S, Solomon DH, Wang PS, et al. Simultaneous assessment of short-term gastrointestinal benefits and cardiovascular risks of selective cyclooxygenase 2 inhibitors and nonselective nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs: an instrumental variable analysis. Arthritis Rheum 2006 Nov; 54(11):3390-8. [Supported by grant 2 R01 HS10881.]

BMC Pediatrics
Lin ND, Kleinman K, Chan KA, et al. Variation in hepatitis B immunization coverage rates associated with provider practices after the temporary suspension of the birth dose. BMC Pediatr 2006 Nov 13; 6:31. [Supported by grant HS000028-19.]

Current Surgery
Carpenter RO, Spooner J, Arbogast PG, et al. Work hours restrictions as an ethical dilemma for residents: a descriptive survey of violation types and frequency. Curr Surg 2006 Nov-Dec; 63(6):448-55. [Supported by grant T32 HS13833.]

Diabetic Medicine
Rhee MK, Ziemer DC, Kolm P, et al. Postchallenge glucose rises with increasing age even when glucose tolerance is normal. Diabet Med 2006 Nov; 23(11):1174-9. [Supported by grant HS07922.]

Ergonomics
Carayon P, Hundt AS, Alvarado CJ, et al. Patient safety in outpatient surgery: the viewpoint of the healthcare providers. Ergonomics 2006 Apr 15-May 15; 49(5-6):470-85. [Supported by grant P20 HS11561-01.]

Health Affairs
Clancy CM. Getting to 'smart' health care. Health Aff 2006 Nov-Dec; 25(6):w589-92. [Author is AHRQ director.]

Health Care Financing Review
Sing M, Banthin JS, Selden TM, et al. Reconciling medical expenditure estimates from the MEPS and NHEA, 2002. Health Care Financ Rev Fall 2006; 28(1):25-40. [First three authors are researchers in AHRQ's Center for Financing, Access, and Cost Trends.]

Health Care Management Review
Jaana M, Ward MM, Pare' G, et al. Antecedents of clinical information technology sophistication in hospitals. Health Care Manage Rev 2006 Oct-Dec; 31(4):289-99. [Supported by grant HS015009.]

Journal of the American College of Surgeons
Chappel AR, Zuckerman RS, Finlayson SR. Small rural hospitals and high-risk operations: how would regionalization affect surgical volume and hospital revenue? J Am Coll Surg 2006 Nov; 203(5):599-604. [Supported by grant T32 HS000044-15.]

Journal of Drugs in Dermatology
Bowe WP, Filip JC, DiRienzo JM, et al. Inhibition of propionibacterium acnes by bacteriocin-like inhibitory substances (BLIS) produced by streptococcus salifarius. J Drugs Dermatol 2006 Oct; 5(9):868-70. [Supported by grant HS10399.]

Journal of General Internal Medicine
Kaul DR, Flanders SA, Beck JM, et al. Brief report: incidence, etiology, risk factors, and outcome of hospital-acquired fever: a systematic, evidence-based review. J Gen Intern Med 2006 Nov; 21(11):1184-7. [Supported by grant P20 HS11540.]

Journal of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Neonatal Nursing
Hubbard HB. A primer on economic evaluations related to expansion of newborn screening for genetic and metabolic disorders. J Obstet Gynecol Neonatal Nurs 2006 Nov-Dec; 35(6):692-9. [Author is researcher in AHRQ's Center for Quality Improvement and Patient Safety.]

Journal of Pediatrics
Chamberlain JM, Patel KM, Pollack MM. Association of emergency department care factors with admission and discharge decisions for pediatric patients. J Pediatr 2006 Nov; 149(5):644-9. [Supported by grant R01 HS10238-02.]

Paediatric and Perinatal Epidemiology
Holman RC, Stoll BJ, Curns AT, et al. Necrotising enterocolitis hospitalisations among neonates in the United States. Paediatr Perinatal Epidemiol 2006 Nov; 20(6):498-506. [Fifth author, Steiner CA, is researcher in AHRQ's Center for Delivery, Organization, and Markets; uses data from AHRQ's Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP) Kids Inpatient Database (KID).]

Pediatric Emergency Care
Trokel M, Discala C, Terrin NC, et al. Patient and injury characteristics in abusive abdominal injuries. Pediatr Emerg Care 2006 Oct; 22(10):700-4. [Supported by grant T32 HS00060-09.]

Santillanes G, Gausche-Hill M, Sosa B. Preparedness of selected pediatric offices to respond to critical emergencies in children. Pediatr Emerg Care 2006 Nov; 22(11):694-8. [Supported by grant 1 R01 HS9166.]

Prehospital Emergency Care
Cole CD, Wang HE, Abo BN, et al. Drug-assisted effects on protective airway reflexes during out-of-hospital endotracheal intubation (preliminary report). Prehosp Emerg Care 2006 Oct-Dec; 10(4):472-5. [Supported by grant K08 HS013682.]

Guyette FX, Rittenberger JC, Platt T, et al. Feasibility of basic emergency medical technicians to perform selected advanced life support interventions. Prehosp Emerg Care 2006 Oct-Dec; 10(4):518-21. [Supported by grant K08 HS013628.]

Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery
Liang GS, Chou KL, Baltuch GH, et al. Long-term outcomes of bilateral subthalamic nucleus stimulation in patients with advanced Parkinson's disease. Stereotact Funct Neurosurg 2006; 84(5-6):221-7. [Supported by grant K08 HS00004.]

AHRQ-Related Articles

Academic Medicine
Lundberg S, Wali S, Thomas P, et al. Attaining resident duty hours compliance: the Acute Care Nurse Practitioners Program at Olive View-UCLA Medical Center. Acad Med 2006 Dec; 81(12):1021-5. [Cites AHRQ-funded articles by Landrigan, et al. and Lockley, et al. (N Engl J Med, 2004).]

Ogden PE, Sibbitt S, Howell M, et al. Complying with ACGME resident duty hours restrictions: restructuring the 80-hour workweek to enhance education and patient safety at Texas A and M/Scott and White Memorial Hospital. Acad Med 2006 Dec; 81(12):1026-31. [Cites AHRQ-funded articles by Landrigan, et al. and Lockley, et al. (N Engl J Med, 2004).]

Myers JS, Bellini LM, Morris JB, et al. Internal medicine and general surgery residents' attitudes about the ACGME duty hours restrictions: a multicenter study. Acad Med 2006 Dec; 81(12):1052-8. [Cites AHRQ-funded articles by Landrigan, et al. and Lockley, et al. (N Engl J Med, 2004)).]

Jagsi R, Shapiro J, Weissman JS, et al. The educational impact of ACGME limits on resident and fellow duty hours: a pre-post survey study. Acad Med 2006 Dec; 81(12):1059-68. [Cites AHRQ-funded article by Landrigan, et al. (N Engl J Med, 2004).]

AHA News
Ament L. AHA wants to make sure hospitals are ready for the HCAHPS® survey. AHA News 2006 Nov 27; 42(24):1-3. [Discusses hospital preparations for participating in the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) survey process.]

American Health Line
Diagnostic errors: WSJ examines efforts to address issue. Am Health Line 2006 Nov 29; #7. [Reports findings from a 2002 AHRQ-funded study on diagnostic accuracy.]

Archives of Internal Medicine
Gilbody S, Bower P, Fletcher J, et al. Collaborative care for depression: a cumulative meta-analysis and review of longer-term outcomes. Arch Intern Med 2006 Nov 27; 166(21):2314-21. [Cites AHRQ guideline, Depression in Primary Care: Detection, Diagnosis, and Treatment, 2000.]

Health Affairs
Rowe JW, Cortese JW, McGinnis JM. The emerging context for advances in comparative effectiveness assessment. Health Aff 2006 Nov-Dec; 25(6):w593-5. [Notes that AHRQ is implementing the comparative effectiveness provisions of Section 1013 of the Medicare law, having met resistance to such work prior to the Medicare Modernization Acts passage in 2003, and that only $15 million has been appropriated for comparative effectiveness assessment in each of the past two years.]

Health Care Financing Review
Huskamp HA, Sinaiko AD, Newhouse JP. Future directions for the national health expenditure accounts: conference overview. Health Care Financ Rev 2006 Fall; 28(1):1-8. [Notes that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has worked with AHRQ on the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) household and insurance component surveys; summarizes presentation by Merrile Sing and Jessica Banthin (researchers in AHRQ's Center for Financing, Access, and Cost Trends) on AHRQ and CMS efforts to reconcile MEPS and NHEA spending estimates (article by Sing, et al.) and conference participants recommendation for more frequent reconciliation of MEPS and NHEA data.]

Medicine and Health
Reducing medical errors in hospitals—made easy. Med Health 2006 Nov 27; 60(43):5-7. [Describes AHRQ publication, 10 Patient Safety Tips for Hospitals, 2006.]

Medication costs to blame for skyrocketing diabetes-treatment expenditures, statistics show. Med Health 2006 Nov 27; 60(43):8. [Briefly reports on data from both Proportion and Medical Expenditures of Adults Being Treated for Diabetes, 1996 and 2003: MEPS Statistical Brief #146, 2006, and Hospital Stays among Patients with Diabetes, 2004: HCUP Statistical Brief #17, 2006.]

Modern Healthcare
Sloane T. For comparison's sake; Wanted: An agency to put the evidence in evidence-based medicine. Mod Healthc 2006 Nov 27; 36(47):20. [Notes that an issue of Health Affairs posted several articles on its Web site about the need for an independent group to finance and oversee a drastic expansion of clinical trials, especially nonpharmaceutical trials and that the lead study called for a quasi-governmental group—likely under the aegis of AHRQ—to take on the job.]

DoBias M and Robeznieks A. AHA asks IRS for help with IT; Letter requests clarification on anti-kickback rules. Mod Healthc 2006 Nov 27; 36(47):32. [Includes comments by AHRQ Director Carolyn Clancy on the need for health IT research.]

U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF)/Put Prevention Into Practice (PPIP)-Related Articles

American Family Physician
Schnitzer PG. Prevention of unintentional childhood injuries. Am Fam Physician 2006 Dec 1; 74(11):1864-9. [Cites Guide to Clinical Preventive Services, 2003.]

National Healthcare Quality Report (NHQR)/National Healthcare Disparities Report (NHDR)-Related Articles

American Journal of Medical Quality
Teleki SS, Damberg CL, Pham C, et al. Will financial incentives stimulate quality improvement? Reactions from frontline physicians. Am J Med Qual 2006 Nov-Dec; 21(6):367-74. [Cites NHDR, 2003.]

Research By Others Using AHRQ Data or Products

Pain Medicine
Fishbain DA, Cole B, Cutler RB, et al. Chronic pain and the measurement of personality: do states influence traits? Pain Med 2006 7(6):509-29. [Uses AHRQ-developed guidelines for reviewing evidence (Institute of Medicine, Clinical Practice Guidelines: Directions for a New Program, 1990) to categorize selected studies.]


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