Articles of Interest

February 6, 2004

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These articles appeared in recently released journals and newsletters. They include articles funded by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) or authored by AHRQ researchers; articles mentioning or discussing AHRQ; articles related to AHRQ-funded Evidence-based Practice Centers; articles mentioning the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force/Put Prevention into Practice; articles mentioning the Presidents Advisory Commission on Consumer Protection and Quality in the Health Care Industry and Agency-supported activities relating to the Quality Interagency Task Force; and other research using AHRQ data.

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AHRQ-Funded/Authored Articles

American Journal of Medicine
Adams JR, Elting LS, Lyman GH, et al. Use of erythropoietin in cancer patients: assessment of oncologists' practice patterns in the United States and other countries. Am J Med 2004 Jan 1; 116(1):28-34. [Supported by Grant No. HS10370.]

Health Services Research
Phillips S, Burstin H, Dillard CD, et al. AHRQ's bioterrorism research portfolio: real linkages in real time. Health Serv Res 2004 Feb; 39(1):xi-xv. [First three authors are members of AHRQ's Center for Primary Care, Prevention and Clinical Partnerships; fourth author is AHRQ Director Carolyn Clancy.]

Borders TF, Rohrer JE, Xu KT, et al. Older persons' evaluations of health care: the effects of medical skepticism and worry about health. Health Serv Res 2004 Feb; 39(1):35-52. [Supported by Grant No. HS11606-01.]

Phillips KA, Haas JS, Liang SY, et al. Are gatekeeper requirements associated with cancer screening utilization? Health Serv Res 2004 Feb; 39(1):153-78. [Supported by Grant Nos. P01 HS10771 and P01 HS10856; uses Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) data.]

Tye S, Phillips KA, Liang SY, et al. Moving beyond the typologies of managed care: the example of health plan predictors of screening mammography. Health Serv Res 2004 Feb; 39(1):179-206. [Supported by Grant Nos. P01 HS10771 and P01 HS10856; uses Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) data.]

Joint Commission Journal on Quality and Safety
Pronovost PJ, Weast B, Bishop K, et al. Senior executive adopt-a-work unit: a model for safety improvement. Jt Comm J Qual Saf 2004 Feb; 30(2):59-68. [Supported by Grant No. U18 HS11902-01.]

Quality Management in Health Care
Nelson EC, Splaine ME, Plume SK, et al. Good measurement for good improvement work. Qual Manag Health Care 2004 Jan-Mar; 13(1):1-16. [Supported by Grant No. 1 R13 HS1008601.]

Speroff T, O'Connor GT. Study designs for PDSA quality improvement research. Qual Manag Health Care 2004 Jan-Mar; 13(1):17-32. [Supported by Grant No. 1 R13 HS1008601.]

Speroff T, James BC, Nelson EC, et al. Guidelines for appraisal and publication of PDSA quality improvement. Qual Manag Health Care 2004 Jan-Mar; 13(1):33-9. [Supported by Grant No. 1 R13 HS1008601.]

Social Science and Medicine
Horowitz CR, Rein SB, Leventhal H. A story of maladies, misconceptions and mishaps: effective management of heart failure. Soc Sci Med 2004 Feb; 58(3):631-43. [Supported by 02-54-5251 (funding mechanism not specified).]

Lee SY, Arozullah AM, Cho YI. Health literacy, social support, and health: a research guide. Soc Sci Med 2004 Feb; 58(7):1309-21. [Supported by Grant No. 1 R01 HS13004-01.]

AHRQ-Related Articles

Annals of Internal Medicine
Medlock MM, Cantilena LR Jr, Riel MA. Adverse events following discharge from the hospital [letter]. Ann Intern Med 2004 Feb 3; 140(3):231-2. [Cites AHRQ-authored article by Thomas et al. (Helen Burstin is third author), Med Care, 2000.]

Forster AJ, Bates DW. Adverse events following discharge from the hospital [letter]. Ann Intern Med 2004 Feb 3; 140(3):232-3. [Cites AHRQ-funded article by Leape et al., JAMA, 1995.]

BNA's Health Plan and Provider Report
Text: CMS schedule for enactment of MMA provisions through 2011. BNA's Health Plan Provider Rep 2004 Jan 28; 10(4):102-24. [Section-by-section list includes two AHRQ-related items.]

Health Services Research
Federman AD, Siu AL. The challenge of studying the effects of managed care as managed care evolves. Health Serv Res 2004 Feb; 39(1):7-12. [Cites use of 1996 MEPS data in study by Tye et al., cited in AHRQ Funded/Authored Articles; cites AHRQ-authored article by Clancy and Franks, J Fam Pract, 1997.]

Davidoff AJ. Identifying children with special health care needs in the National Health Interview Survey: a new resource for policy analysis. Health Serv Res 2004 Feb; 39(1):53-71. [Cites addition of CSHCN screener to 2000 MEPS.]

Neff JM, Sharp VL, Muldoon J, et al. Profile of medical charges for children by health status group and severity level in a Washington State health plan. Health Serv Res 2004 Feb; 39(1):73-89. [Cites use of MEPS data by McCormick et al., AHRQ-authored article in Ambul Pediatr, 2001.]

Bundorf MK, Schulman KA, Stafford JA, et al. Impact of managed care on the treatment, costs, and outcomes of fee-for-service Medicare patients with acute myocardial infarction. Health Serv Res 2004 Feb; 39(1):131-52. [Cites AHRQ-funded articles by Escarce et al., Health Serv Res, 2000 and Med Care, 1998, and Krumholz, Circulation, 1995.]

Joint Commission Journal on Quality and Safety
Sherman SE, Chapman A, Garcia D, et al. Improving recognition of depression in primary care: a study of evidence-based quality improvement. Jt Comm J Qual Saf 2004 Feb; 30(2):80-8. [Cites AHRQ guidelines, Depression in Primary Care, Volumes 1 and 2, Quick Reference Guide for Clinicians, and Patient Booklet, 1993; cites article by Brown et al., Jt Comm J Qual Improv, 1995, on the adaptation of AHRQ's depression guideline at Kaiser Permanente Northwest Region.]

Medical Decision Making
Mrus JM, Tsevat J. Cost-effectiveness of interventions to reduce vertical HIV transmission from pregnant women who have not received prenatal care. Med Decis Making 2004 Jan-Feb; 24(1):30-9. [Cites AHRQ-authored article by Hsia et al., Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med, 1995, as source for annual cost estimates for HIV-infected children.]

Caspi O, Koithan M, Criddle MW. Alternative medicine or "alternative" patients: a qualitative study of patient-oriented decision-making processes with respect to complementary and alternative medicine. Med Decis Making 2004 Jan-Feb; 24(1):64-79. [Quotes former AHRQ Director John Eisenberg in article in Health Aff, 2002: "World-wide access to evidence-based clinical decision making must coexist with respect for individual decision making shaped by local culture and circumstances. This is the balance between globalizing the evidence and localizing the decisions that will improve delivery of health care worldwide."]

Pink Sheet
Outcomes research may be "next frontier" in drug development science. Pink Sheet 2004 Feb 2; 66(5):27-28. [Reviews comments by speakers at AHRQ-sponsored pharmaceutical outcomes research workshop; mentions Medicare reform bill's authorization of $50 million for AHRQ to conduct effectiveness research; quotes remarks by AHRQ Pharmaceutical Studies Director Lynn Bosco on growth and impact of CERTs program.]

Quality Management in Health Care
Whittington J, Cohen H. OSF healthcare's journey in patient safety. Qual Manag Health Care 2004 Jan-Mar; 13(1):53-9. [Cites AHRQ-funded study by Classen et al., JAMA, 1991.]

Report on Medical Guidelines and Outcomes Research
Rollins G. Majority of older women with fractures don't get guideline-recommended treatment for osteoporosis. Rep Med Guidelines Outcomes Res 2004 Jan 23; 15(2):1-2, 6-7. [Reviews findings from AHRQ-funded article by Feldstein et al., J Bone Joint Surg, 2003.]

Manos D. HHS releases benchmark quality of care reports. Rep Med Guidelines Outcomes Res 2004 Jan 23; 15(2):9-10, 12. [Reviews and summarizes findings from AHRQ's National Healthcare Quality Report and National Healthcare Disparities Report.]

Following evidence from randomized trials that show adverse cardiovascular disease events and other risks associated with hormone therapy (oral estrogen combined with progestin), rapid clinical response has resulted in many patients discontinuing therapy or lowering doses. Rep Med Guidelines Outcomes Res 2004 Jan 23; 15(2):11. [Summarizes findings from AHRQ-funded article by Hersh et al., JAMA, 2004.]

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

Academic Medicine
Huang J, Yu H, Marin E, et al. Physician's weight loss counseling in two public hospital primary care clinics. Academic Medicine 2004 Feb; 79(2):156-61. [Cites Guide to Clinical Preventive Services, 1996.]

Annals of Internal Medicine
Chan AT, Giovannucci EL, Schernhammer ES, et al. A prospective study of aspirin use and the risk for colorectal adenoma. Ann Intern Med 2004 Feb 3; 140(3):157-66. [Cites USPSTF recommendations on aspirin for the primary prevention of cardiovascular events as published in Ann Intern Med, 2002.]

Haas JS, Kaplan CP, Gerstenberger EP, et al. Changes in the use of postmenopausal hormone therapy after the publication of clinical trial results. Ann Intern Med 2004 Feb 3; 140(3):184-8. [Cites USPSTF recommendations on postmenopausal hormone replacement therapy for primary prevention of chronic conditions as published in Ann Intern Med, 2002.]

Sandler RS. Aspirin prevention of colorectal cancer: more or less? Ann Intern Med 2004 Feb 3; 140(3):224-5. [Cites USPSTF recommendations on aspirin for the primary prevention of cardiovascular events in AHRQ-funded article by Hayden et al., Ann Intern Med, 2002.]

Journal Watch
Marton KI. Easy way to screen for depression in primary care. Journal Watch 2004 Feb 1; 24(3):24. [Cites USPSTF recommendations on screening for depression as published in Ann Intern Med, 2002.]

Saitz R. Selective screening with colonoscopy? Journal Watch 2004 Feb 1; 24(3):28. [Reviews findings from articles which cite USPSTF recommendations on colonoscopy screening.]

Obstetrics and Gynecology
Wright TC Jr, Schiffman M, Solomon D, et al. Interim guidance for the use of human papillomavirus DNA testing as an adjunct to cervical cytology for screening. Obstet Gynecol 2004 Feb; 103(2):304-9. [Cites Guide to Clinical Preventive Services: Periodic Updates, 2003.]

Evidence-based Practice Centers-Related Articles

Report on Medical Guidelines and Outcomes Research
New atrial fibrillation guidelines focus on heart rate over sinus rhythm. Rep Med Guidelines Outcomes Res 2004 Jan 23; 15(2):3. [Summarizes AAFP/ACP recommendations based on May 2000 evidence-based report from AHRQ.]

Current as of February 2004