American Medical Association (AMA) Research This is an RSS file. You can use it to subscribe to this data in your favourite RSS reader or to display this data on your own website or blog.

Apixaban to Prevent Recurrence After Cryptogenic Stroke
In this study, atrial cardiopathy was defined by meeting any of the following criteria: serum N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) levels greater than 250 pg/mL, P-wave terminal force in electrocardiography lead V1 greater than 5000 μV × ms, or left atrial diameter index of 3 cm/m2 or greater. Notably, approximately 46% of participants were enrolled based on the serum NT-proBNP criterion alone. While serum NT-proBNP levels are positively correlated with left atrial remodeling and dysfunction, they are not robust predictor s of atrial fibrillation and are influenced by various noncardiac factors such ...
Source: JAMA - Journal of the American Medical Association - May 13, 2024 Category: General Medicine Source Type: research

Apixaban to Prevent Recurrence After Cryptogenic Stroke —Reply
In Reply In response to our recent article, Dr Chi and colleagues raise an important point regarding uncertainty about optimal biomarkers of atrial cardiopathy. Compared with ARCADIA patients who qualified for enrollment in our study only by the NT-proBNP criterion, those who qualified by only the electrocardiographic criterion had significantly younger mean age (64.1 vs 71.1 years), higher mean weight (87.0 vs 83.9 kg), and a lower mean CHA2DS2-VASc (congestive heart failure, hypertension, age ≥75 years [doubled], diabetes, stroke/transient ischemic attack/thromboembolism [doubled], vascular disease [prior myocardial in...
Source: JAMA - Journal of the American Medical Association - May 13, 2024 Category: General Medicine Source Type: research

Prognostic Value of Cardiovascular Biomarkers in the Population
This study evaluates the prognostic value of routinely available cardiovascular biomarkers when added to established risk factors in the identification of individuals at high risk for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. (Source: JAMA - Journal of the American Medical Association)
Source: JAMA - Journal of the American Medical Association - May 13, 2024 Category: General Medicine Source Type: research

The State of State Biomarker Testing Insurance Coverage Laws
This Viewpoint discusses laws mandating insurance coverage of biomarker testing to broaden access to care for patients with cancer. (Source: JAMA - Journal of the American Medical Association)
Source: JAMA - Journal of the American Medical Association - May 13, 2024 Category: General Medicine Source Type: research

Addressing Health Disparities —The Case for Variant Transthyretin Cardiac Amyloidosis Grows Stronger
There has been a transformational change in understanding heart failure due to transthyretin cardiac amyloidosis (ATTR-CA). Previously considered a rare condition, the widespread adaptation of nuclear imaging to establish the diagnosis has led to the recognition that ATTR-CA is commonly encountered in clinical practice. Additionally, the advent of effective disease-modifying therapies that reduce morbidity and mortality among affected patients has afforded hope to those newly diagnosed. Because these disease-modifying therapies are more effective when administered early in the course of the illness, before significant end-...
Source: JAMA - Journal of the American Medical Association - May 12, 2024 Category: General Medicine Source Type: research

Heart Failure in African American Individuals, Version 2.0
An antecedent body of work established nearly 20 years ago benchmarked the nuanced distinctions of heart failure affecting African American people. Summative statements established a nearly 2-fold higher incidence, earlier onset, greater severity at the time of diagnosis, a more likely nonischemic etiology, a putative pathophysiology attributed to hypertensive heart disease, greater morbidity, and in younger ages (45-64 years) higher mortality. The coincident burden of adverse social determinants of health further delineates the disproportionate burden of heart failure in African American individuals. Given that race is a ...
Source: JAMA - Journal of the American Medical Association - May 12, 2024 Category: General Medicine Source Type: research

Cardiovascular Burden of V142I Transthyretin Variant
This study used data on Black participants in 4 large observational studies to better define the natural history of disease in V142I variant carriers across mid to late life, assess variant modifiers, and estimate cardiovascular burden to the US population. (Source: JAMA - Journal of the American Medical Association)
Source: JAMA - Journal of the American Medical Association - May 12, 2024 Category: General Medicine Source Type: research

Two-Thirds of Unhoused People Have Mental Health Disorders
The majority of people who are currently unhoused —67%—have mental health disorders, according to a systematic review and meta-analysis of 85 studies mainly from Canada, Germany, and the US involving more than 48 400 participants. The lifetime prevalence of mental health disorders among people experiencing homelessness was 77%. The lifetime p revalence was higher among male than female individuals: 85% vs 69%, respectively. (Source: JAMA - Journal of the American Medical Association)
Source: JAMA - Journal of the American Medical Association - May 10, 2024 Category: General Medicine Source Type: research

Clinicians Underprescribe Newer Antibiotics for Drug-Resistant Disease
About 42% of patients with infections caused by pathogens that were resistant to all first-line antibiotics received only older antibiotics rather than newer ones more recently approved by the US Food and Drug Administration, a new study found. The results were based on data from 619 US hospitals and more than 2600 infections caused by drug-resistant gram-negative pathogens. (Source: JAMA - Journal of the American Medical Association)
Source: JAMA - Journal of the American Medical Association - May 10, 2024 Category: General Medicine Source Type: research

Five-in-One Meningitis Vaccine Rolls Out
Nigeria will be the first country in the world to vaccinate residents aged 1 through 29 years with Men5CV, a novel 1-dose vaccine that protects people from 5 major strains of the meningococcus bacteria (Neisseria meningitidis), the World Health Organization (WHO) announced. The news comes amid a 50% surge in meningitis cases in Africa last year, as well as an uptick in the disease worldwide, including in the US. (Source: JAMA - Journal of the American Medical Association)
Source: JAMA - Journal of the American Medical Association - May 10, 2024 Category: General Medicine Source Type: research

Permanent Procedures to Prevent Pregnancy in US Jumped After Dobbs
The number of young people who sought permanent contraception —such as tubal ligations or vasectomies—rose immediately after the US Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Organization, researchers reported in JAMA Health Forum. The data came from US patients aged 18 to 30 years. (Source: JAMA - Journal of the American Medical Association)
Source: JAMA - Journal of the American Medical Association - May 10, 2024 Category: General Medicine Source Type: research

Deprescribing Program Tied to Reductions in PPI Use in US
Previous studies have suggested that many people who use proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) might not have a clinical indication for doing so, which is concerning because PPIs have been associated with chronic kidney disease and infection in some observational studies. Now, recent results published in The BMJ show that an intervention targeting overprescribing of PPIs might lead to quick, lasting reductions in their use. (Source: JAMA - Journal of the American Medical Association)
Source: JAMA - Journal of the American Medical Association - May 10, 2024 Category: General Medicine Source Type: research

Exercise Might Lower Heart Disease Risk in Part By Decreasing Stress in the Brain
Physical activity might reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease partly by decreasing activity in parts of the brain related to stress, a study in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology suggests. Researchers looked at data from more than 50  300 adults in Massachusetts who completed an exercise survey and more than 700 who underwent brain imaging. People who exercised more tended to have fewer cardiovascular disease events and lower activity in stress-related brain regions, the researchers reported. (Source: JAMA - Journal of the American Medical Association)
Source: JAMA - Journal of the American Medical Association - May 10, 2024 Category: General Medicine Source Type: research

Study: Stigma in Medical Records Tied to Diagnostic Errors
Patients who were affected by diagnostic errors were more likely to have stigmatizing language in their medical records, according to a new analysis in JAMA Internal Medicine. The cohort study involved more than 2300 hospital admissions during which patients died or were transferred to the intensive care unit. Stigmatizing language included phrases that questioned a patient ’s credibility, stereotyped them by race or social class, or implied that the patient was “difficult.” It was more common among Black patients and those with housing instability. (Source: JAMA - Journal of the American Medical Association)
Source: JAMA - Journal of the American Medical Association - May 10, 2024 Category: General Medicine Source Type: research

Imaging Approach Tracked Subtle Changes Linked With Mild Brain Injury
Currently, there are few reliable tools for diagnosing mild traumatic brain injuries or predicting their likely course, which can include poor neuropsychiatric outcomes. But results published in JAMA Network Open show that an advanced form of magnetic resonance imaging picked up changes in the brain ’s white matter microstructure among military service members with mild traumatic brain injuries. The researchers examined 65 male participants who had experienced a head injury more than 2 years ago and 33 service members who hadn’t. (Source: JAMA - Journal of the American Medical Association)
Source: JAMA - Journal of the American Medical Association - May 10, 2024 Category: General Medicine Source Type: research