Research Activities

January 2006, No. 305

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Contents

About Research Activities

Feature Story

National anatomic pathology errors database can reduce hospital pathology errors

Health Information Technology

Computerized drug-laboratory interaction alerts change doctors' prescriptions
Small medical practices are slow to adopt health information technology

Disparities/Minority Health

Black patients fare worse than white patients after treatment for heart attack or unstable angina
Nearly half of urban American Indians and Alaskan Natives travel back to their reservation to visit during the year
Management of chest pain in patients with hypertension differs in men, women, and ethnic groups

Child/Adolescent Health

Broad-spectrum antibiotics given during labor are linked to late-onset serious bacterial infections in infants
Cognitive behavioral therapy offers adolescents with depression some benefit over treatment with antidepressants alone
Having a usual source of care increases wellness visits among children with asthma
Despite increase in cat ownership, the hospitalization rate for children with cat-scratch disease remains stable

Women's Health

Women with mild-to-moderate pelvic inflammatory disease have similar reproductive outcomes from inpatient and outpatient care

Outcomes/Effectiveness Research

Certain clinical and surgical factors affect a patient's risk of death or stroke following carotid endarterectomy
Improved survival rate after prostate cancer treatment may reflect a statistical artifact

Clinical Decisionmaking

Patients refuse lung cancer treatment for complicated social and psychological reasons
Watchful waiting is an option for men with minimally symptomatic inguinal hernias

Chronic Disease

Individual characteristics, complications, and treatments influence quality of life among adults with diabetes
Few cardiology fellowship programs offer advanced congenital heart disease training

Health Care Costs and Financing

Studies examine the impact of Medicaid managed care programs on access to and use of care
Insurance status influences patients' access to urgent followup appointments after emergency department care
State-subsidized health insurance programs provide both benefits and difficulties for low-income children
Implantable pacemakers are cost-effective in preventing sudden death in people without a life-threatening cardiac arrhythmia

Pharmaceutical Research

Prohibiting physicians from dispensing drugs reduces overall drug use and inappropriate prescribing

Acute Care/Hospitalization

Salmonella aortitis should be considered in adults with evidence of salmonella bloodstream infection but no associated GI symptoms

Complementary and Alternative Medicine

Study describes training and practice characteristics of massage therapists

Agency News and Notes

AHRQ releases 2005 National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Reports

Announcements

AHRQ announces new brochure to help people make decisions about surgery
AHRQ announces recent recipients of Health Services Research Dissertation awards
Research Briefs

AHRQ Publication No. 06-0022
Current as of January 2006

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Internet Citation:

Research Activities Newsletter. January 2006, No. 305. AHRQ Publication No. 06-0022. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, MD. http://www.ahrq.gov/research/jan06/

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