Kerry McBrien

Intensive and Standard Blood Pressure Targets in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

BACKGROUND Treatment of hypertension in patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) has been shown to improve cardiovascular outcomes; however, the value of intensive blood pressure (BP) targets remains uncertain. We sought to determine the effectiveness and safety of treating BP to intensive targets (upper limit of 130 mm Hg systolic and 80 mm Hg diastolic) compared with standard targets (upper limit of 140-160 mm Hg systolic and 85-100 mm Hg diastolic) in patients with type 2 DM. METHODS Using electronic databases, bibliographies, and clinical trial registries, we conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to identify randomized trials enrolling adults diagnosed as having type 2 DM and comparing prespecified BP targets. Data on study characteristics, risk for bias, and outcomes were collected. Random-effects models were used to pool relative risks and risk differences for mortality, myocardial infarction, and stroke. RESULTS The use of intensive BP targets was not associated with a significant decrease in the risk for mortality (relative risk difference, 0.76; 95% CI, 0.55-1.05) or myocardial infarction (relative risk difference, 0.93; 95% CI, 0.80-1.08) but was associated with a decrease in the risk for stroke (relative risk, 0.65; 95% CI, 0.48-0.86). The pooled analysis of risk differences associated with the use of intensive BP targets demonstrated a small absolute decrease in the risk for stroke (absolute risk difference, -0.01; 95% CI, -0.02 to -0.00) but no statistically significant difference in the risk for mortality or myocardial infarction. CONCLUSION Although the use of intensive compared with standard BP targets in patients with type 2 DM is associated with a small reduction in the risk for stroke, evidence does not show that intensive targets reduce the risk for mortality or myocardial infarction.

Enrolment in primary care networks: impact on outcomes and processes of care for patients with diabetes

Background: Primary care networks are a newer model of primary care that focuses on improved access to care and the use of multidisciplinary teams for patients with chronic disease. We sought to determine the association between enrolment in primary care networks and the care and outcomes of patients with diabetes. Methods: We used administrative health care data to study the care and outcomes of patients with incident and prevalent diabetes separately. For patients with prevalent diabetes, we compared those whose care was managed by physicians who were or were not in a primary care network using propensity score matching. For patients with incident diabetes, we studied a cohort before and after primary care networks were established. Each cohort was further divided based on whether or not patients were cared for by physicians enrolled in a network. Our primary outcome was admissions to hospital or visits to emergency departments for ambulatory care sensitive conditions specific to diabetes. Results: Compared with patients whose prevalent diabetes is managed outside of primary care networks, patients in primary care networks had a lower rate of diabetes-specific ambulatory care sensitive conditions (adjusted incidence rate ratio 0.81, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.75 to 0.87), were more likely to see an ophthalmologist or optometrist (risk ratio 1.19, 95% CI 1.17 to 1.21) and had better glycemic control (adjusted mean difference −0.067, 95% CI −0.081 to −0.052). Interpretation: Patients whose diabetes was managed in primary care networks received better care and had better clinical outcomes than patients whose condition was not managed in a network, although the differences were very small.

Health Care Costs in People With Diabetes and Their Association With Glycemic Control and Kidney Function

OBJECTIVE To determine the association between laboratory-derived measures of glycemic control (HbA1c) and the presence of renal complications (measured by proteinuria and estimated glomerular filtration rate [eGFR]) with the 5-year costs of caring for people with diabetes. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS We estimated the cumulative 5-year cost of caring for people with diabetes using a province-wide cohort of adults with diabetes as of 1 May 2004. Costs included physician visits, hospitalizations, ambulatory care (emergency room visits, day surgery, and day medicine), and drug costs for people >65 years of age. Using linked laboratory and administrative clinical and costing data, we determined the association between baseline glycemic control (HbA1c), proteinuria, and kidney function (eGFR) and 5-year costs, controlling for age, socioeconomic status, duration of diabetes, and comorbid illness. RESULTS We identified 138,662 adults with diabetes. The mean 5-year cost of diabetes in the overall cohort was

Hypoglycemia Associated With Hospitalization and Adverse Events in Older People: Population-based cohort study

26,978 per patient, excluding drug costs. The mean 5-year cost for the subset of people >65 years of age, including drug costs, was

Patient navigators for people with chronic disease: protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis

44,511 (Canadian dollars). Cost increased with worsening kidney function, presence of proteinuria, and suboptimal glycemic control (HbA1c >7.9%). Increasing age, Aboriginal status, socioeconomic status, duration of diabetes, and comorbid illness were also associated with increasing cost. CONCLUSIONS The cost of caring for people with diabetes is substantial and is associated with suboptimal glycemic control, abnormal kidney function, and proteinuria. Future studies should assess if improvements in the management of diabetes, assessed with laboratory-derived measurements, result in cost reductions.

Healthcare Costs Attributable to Hypertension: Canadian Population-Based Cohort Study

OBJECTIVE Little is known about the prognostic impact of hypoglycemia associated with hospitalization. We hypothesized that hospitalized hypoglycemia would be associated with increased long-term morbidity and mortality, irrespective of diabetes status. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS We undertook a cohort study using linked administrative health care and laboratory databases in Alberta, Canada. From 1 January 2004 to 31 March 2009, we included all outpatients 66 years of age and older who had at least one serum creatinine and one A1C measured. To examine the independent association between hospitalized hypoglycemia and all-cause mortality, we used time-varying Cox proportional hazards (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR]), and for all-cause hospitalizations, we used Poisson regression (adjusted incidence rate ratio [aIRR]). RESULTS The cohort included 85,810 patients: mean age 75 years, 51% female, and 50% had diabetes defined by administrative data. Overall, 440 patients (0.5%) had severe hypoglycemia associated with hospitalization and most (93%) had diabetes. During 4 years of follow-up, 16,320 (19%) patients died. Hospitalized hypoglycemia was independently associated with increased mortality (60 vs. 19% mortality for no hypoglycemia; aHR 2.55 [95% CI 2.25–2.88]), and this increased in a dose-dependent manner (aHR no hypoglycemia = 1.0 vs. one episode = 2.49 vs. one or more = 3.78, P trend <0.001). Hospitalized hypoglycemia was also independently associated with subsequent hospitalizations (aIRR no hypoglycemia = 1.0 vs. one episode = 1.90 vs. one or more = 2.61, P trend <0.001) and recurrent hypoglycemia (aHR no hypoglycemia = 1.0 vs. one episode = 2.45 vs. one or more = 9.66, P trend <0.001). CONCLUSIONS Older people who have an episode of hospitalized hypoglycemia are easily identified and at substantially increased risk of morbidity and mortality.

Comparative Effectiveness of Mesalamine, Sulfasalazine, Corticosteroids, and Budesonide for the Induction of Remission in Crohn's Disease: A Bayesian Network Meta-analysis.

BackgroundIndividuals with chronic diseases may have difficulty optimizing their health and getting the care they need due to a combination of patient, provider, and health system level barriers. Patient navigator programs, in which trained personnel assess and assist patients in overcoming barriers to care, may improve care and outcomes for patients with chronic disease by providing an alternative approach to conventional information and support resources.MethodsThis systematic review will evaluate the evidence for patient navigator programs, compared to usual care, in patients with chronic disease. We will include RCTs, cluster RCTs, and quasi-randomized RCTs that study the effects of patient navigator programs on clinical outcomes, patient experience, and markers of adherence to care. Studies will be identified by searching MEDLINE, Embase, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), CINAHL, PsycINFO, Social Work Abstracts, and the references of included studies. Two authors will screen titles and abstracts independently. Full texts will be reviewed for relevance and data extraction will be done independently by two authors. Studies will be included if they assess patients of any age with one or more chronic diseases. Outcomes will be categorized into groups characterized by their proximity to mechanism of action of the intervention: patient-level outcomes, intermediate outcomes, and process outcomes. Descriptive data about the elements of the patient navigator intervention will also be collected for potential subgroup analyses. Risk of bias will be assessed using the Effective Practice and Organisation of Care Group (EPOC) risk of bias tool. Data will be analyzed using random effects meta-analysis (relative risk for dichotomous data and mean difference for continuous data), if appropriate.DiscussionA comprehensive review of patient navigator programs, including a summary of the elements of programs that are associated with a successful intervention, does not yet exist. This systematic review will synthesize the evidence of the effect of patient navigator interventions on clinical and patient-oriented outcomes in populations across a comprehensive set of chronic diseases.Systematic Review RegistrationPROSPERO CRD42013005857.

Online clinical pathway for managing adults with chronic kidney disease

Accurately documenting the current and future costs of hypertension is required to fully understand the potential economic impact of currently available and future interventions to prevent and treat hypertension. The objective of this work was to calculate the healthcare costs attributable to hypertension in Canada and to project these costs to 2020. Using population-based administrative data for the province of Alberta, Canada (>3 million residents) from 2002 to 2010, we identified individuals with and without diagnosed hypertension. We calculated their total healthcare costs and estimated costs attributable to hypertension using a regression model adjusting for comorbidities and sociodemographic factors. We then extrapolated hypertension-attributable costs to the rest of Canada and projected costs to the year 2020. Twenty-one percent of adults in Alberta had diagnosed hypertension in 2010, with a projected increase to 27% by 2020. The average individual with hypertension had annual healthcare costs of

Barriers to care in patients with diabetes and poor glycemic control—A cross-sectional survey

5768, of which

Use of outcomes to evaluate surveillance systems for bioterrorist attacks

2341 (41%) were attributed to hypertension. In Alberta, the healthcare costs attributable to hypertension were