New Heart Attack Study Findings Have Been Reported by Investigators at University of Florida (The relative burden of community-acquired pneumonia…

Clinical Trials Week

New Heart Attack Study Findings Have Been Reported by Investigators at University of Florida (The relative burden of community-acquired pneumonia hospitalizations in older adults: a retrospective observational study in the United States)

By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Clinical Trials Week -- Research findings on Heart Disorders and Diseases - Heart Attack are discussed in a new report. According to news reporting out of Gainesville, Florida, by NewsRx editors, research stated, "The risk of community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) increases with age and significantly impacts morbidity and mortality in the elderly population. The burden of illness and cost of preventing CAP has not been compared to other serious diseases."

Our news journalists obtained a quote from the research from the University of Florida, "This retrospective analysis used claims data from 2014 to 2015 and compared hospitalizations for CAP, myocardial infarction (MI), stroke, and osteoporotic fractures (OF) in adults aged >= 65 years enrolled in a Medicare Advantage insurance plan. Individuals who had not already been hospitalized for one of these conditions and did not have evidence of long-term care were included in the study. Hospitalizations for each condition were described by length of stay, readmissions, mortality, and total costs. Preventive measures included vaccinations for CAP and medications for MI, stroke, and OF. A total of 1,949,352 individuals were included in the cohort. In 2015, the rate of CAP-related hospitalizations was the highest at 846.7 per 100,000 person-years compared to 405 for MI, 278.9 for stroke, and 343.9 for OF. Vaccination costs for CAP were $40.2 million including $14.1 million for pneumococcal and $26.1 million for influenza vaccines. The cost of preventive medications for MI and stroke reached over $661 million and OF totaled $169 million. Although CAP has a higher burden of hospitalization and total costs than MI, stroke, and OF in the elderly population, prevention efforts were disproportionately smaller for CAP."

According to the news editors, the research concluded: "Prioritization of CAP prevention is needed to substantially reduce the burden of CAP."

For more information on this research see: The relative burden of community-acquired pneumonia hospitalizations in older adults: a retrospective observational study in the United States. BMC Geriatrics, 2018;18():1-11. BMC Geriatrics can be contacted at: Biomed Central Ltd, 236 Grays Inn Rd, Floor 6, London WC1X 8HL, England. (BioMed Central - www.biomedcentral.com/; BMC Geriatrics - www.biomedcentral.com/bmcgeriatr/)

Our news journalists report that additional information may be obtained by contacting J.D. Brown, University of Florida, Coll Pharm, Dept. of Pharmaceut Outcomes & Policy, Gainesville, FL 32611, United States. Additional authors for this research include J. Harnett, R. Chambers and R. Sato (see also Heart Disorders and Diseases - Heart Attack).

Keywords for this news article include: Gainesville, Florida, United States, North and Central America, Respiratory Tract Diseases and Conditions, Lung Diseases and Conditions, Respiratory Tract Infections, Heart Disorders and Diseases, Clinical Trials and Studies, Community-Acquired Disease, Myocardial Infarction, Risk and Prevention, Health and Medicine, Infectious Disease, Clinical Research, Heart Attack, Pulmonology, Pneumonia, University of Florida.