Published by Elsevier Inc.”
“Background: Studies investigating the clinical outcome of intravascular ultrasound (IVUS)-guided primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PPCI) in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) show conflicting results. The aim of our study was to evaluate whether IVUS-guidedPPCI with drug-eluting stents (DESs) in STEMI patients improves clinical outcome.”
“Background: Morbidity and mortality for women with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are increasing, and little is known about gender differences in perception of COPD care.
Methods: Surveys were administered to a convenience sample of COPD
patients to
evaluate perceptions about symptoms, barriers to care, and sources of information about COPD.
Results: Data on 295 female and 273 male participants were analyzed. With similar frequencies, women and men reported dyspnea and HKI-272 mw rated their health as poor/very poor. Although more women than men reported annual household income <$30,000, no significant gender differences in frequency of health insurance, physician visits, or ever having had spirometry were detected. In adjusted models (1) women were more likely to report COPD diagnostic delay (odds ratio see more [OR] 1.66, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.13-2.45, p = 0.01), although anxiety (OR 1.83, 95% CI 1.10-3.06, p = 0.02) and history of exacerbations (OR 1.60, 95% CI 1.08-2.37, Proteasome inhibitor p = 0.01) were also significant predictors, (2) female gender was associated with difficulty reaching one’s physician (OR 2.54, 95% CI 1.33-4.86, p = 0.004), as was prior history of exacerbations (OR 2.25, 95% CI 1.21-4.20, p = 0.01), and (3) female gender (OR 2.15, 95% CI 1.10-4.21, p = 0.02)
was the only significant predictor for finding time spent with their physician as insufficient.
Conclusions: Significant gender-related differences in the perception of COPD healthcare delivery exist, revealing an opportunity to better understand what influences these attitudes and to improve care for both men and women.”
“Background: Patients treated at “”safety-net hospitals,”" facilities that care for a high percentage of uninsured patients, are known to have worse outcomes. This study seeks to analyze whether care at “”trauma safety-net hospitals”" (TSNH) accounts for the known mortality disparity between uninsured and insured trauma patients.
Methods: A retrospective analysis of trauma patients (age, 18-64 years) in the National Trauma Data Bank (6.2; 2001-2005) with moderate to severe injury (Injury Severity Score >= 9) was performed. TSNH were defined as facilities treating >= 47% uninsured trauma patients. The main outcome measure was adjusted mortality of patients treated at TSNH versus non-TSNH.