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Biomedical subjects

C Maynard

Publications and source records attributed to C Maynard.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Outcomes of coronary angioplasty procedures performed in rural hospitals.

PURPOSE: To determine how many rural hospitals in the United States performed coronary angioplasty; to compare patient outcomes in rural and urban hospitals; and to assess whether outcomes were better in rural hospitals in which more procedures were performed. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: In 1996, among patients 65 years of age and older, 201,869 coronary angioplasties were performed in 996 hospitals that were included in the Medicare Provider Analysis and Review files. Geographic location was defined as rural or urban, according to U.S. Census Bureau criteria. Outcome variables were in-hospital death and coronary artery bypass surgery performed during the same admission. Hospital volumes were categorized as low (< or = 100 cases or fewer per year), medium (101 to 200 cases per year), or high (> 200 cases per year). RESULTS: Fifty-one rural hospitals accounted for 4% of all angioplasties performed. After angioplasty, in-hospital mortality was greater in rural hospitals (8.1% versus 6.4%, P = 0.001) among patients with acute myocardial infarction, but was not different for patients without infarction (1.4% versus 1.3%, P = 0.41). Coronary artery bypass surgery rates during the same admission were similar in rural and urban hospitals. In general, in-hospital mortality and same-admission surgery rates were lower in high-volume centers in both rural and urban areas. CONCLUSION: Although in-hospital mortality after angioplasty for acute myocardial infarction was worse in low- and medium-volume rural centers, overall outcomes in rural and urban hospitals were similar.

Aged↗

Relation between evolutionary ST segment and T-wave direction and electrocardiographic prediction of mycardial infarct size and left ventricular function among patients with anterior wall Q-wave acute myocardial infarction who received reperfusion therapy.

In the prethrombolytic era it was found that infarct size and left ventricular ejection fraction could be predicted using the Selvester QRS score. We evaluated whether infarct size and left ventricular ejection fraction could be predicted by the predischarge QRS score in patients who had received reperfusion therapy and whether considering the configuration of the ST segments and T waves would increase the accuracy of these predictions. We evaluated 51 patients with first anterior wall myocardial infarction who had received reperfusion therapy and predischarge resting technetium-99m-sestamibi scan. The electrocardiograms recorded on the same day of the scan were analyzed for the QRS score and were divided into 3 groups: A, isoelectric ST and negative T waves; B, ST elevation (> or =0.1 mV) and negative T waves; and C, ST elevation (> or =0.1 mV) and positive T waves. Groups A, B, and C included 12, 23, and 16 patients, respectively. The myocardial perfusion defect extent increased from groups A to C (median 21%, 37%, and 43.5% in groups A, B, and C, respectively; p = 0.023). Similarly, left ventricular ejection fraction decreased (44%, 38%, and 34%, respectively; p = 0.042) from groups A to C. Overall, the correlation between the QRS score and the myocardial perfusion defect extent (rho 0.249; p = 0.08) and ejection fraction (rho -0.229; p = 0.11) was poor. A statistically significant correlation between myocardial perfusion defect size and QRS score was found only in group A (rho 0.599, p = 0.04). Among patients with anterior myocardial infarction who received reperfusion therapy, the predischarge QRS score was predictive of infarct size only in those in whom ST elevation resolved completely. In patients with residual ST elevation there was no correlation between QRS score and infarct size.

Angioplasty, Balloon, Coronary↗

Spatial, individual, and temporal variation of the high-frequency QRS amplitudes in the 12 standard electrocardiographic leads.

BACKGROUND: Analysis of high-frequency QRS amplitudes (HF-QRS) may provide an additional diagnostic tool in patients with heart disease, but the basic properties of these waveforms have not been sufficiently investigated. This study describes the spatial, individual, and temporal variation at rest of HF-QRS recorded with the 12 standard electrocardiographic leads in patients with ischemic heart disease. METHODS AND RESULTS: Two consecutive electrocardiographic recordings from 67 patients were signal averaged and analyzed within a bandwidth of 150 to 250 Hz. The HF-QRS values were expressed as root mean square values. There was a spatial variation in HF-QRS among the 12 leads, with higher amplitudes in V(2) through V(4), II, aVF, and III. The individual variation among the patients was large for all leads. The sum of the HF-QRS for all 12 leads in each patient ranged from 20 to 75 microV (mean 36 +/- 11 microV). The mean of the temporal variation in HF-QRS for all 12 leads between the 2 recordings was only 0.10 +/- 0. 09 microV. CONCLUSIONS: Because of the large individual variation, analysis of HF-QRS is probably most applicable in monitoring situations when it is possible to track changes in a patient over time. The temporal variation in HF-QRS at rest is small, both in patients with and those without prior myocardial infarction.

Adult↗

Association between week of the month and death from acute myocardial infarction in Washington state, 1988 to 1997.

BACKGROUND: Deaths caused by substance abuse, circulatory disorders, and external causes such as suicide, homicide, and accidents are more likely to occur during the first week of the month than the last week of the preceding month. The purpose of this report is to determine if death caused by acute myocardial infarction occurs more often in the first 7 days of the month than in the last 7 days of the preceding month. METHODS AND RESULTS: This study used computerized death records for Washington state from 1988 to 1997. There were 401,314 deaths, of which 33,436 (8.3%) had an underlying cause of acute myocardial infarction. The week of the month during which death occurred was defined as occurring during the first 7 days of the month or the last 7 days of the preceding month. R, the ratio of the number of deaths during the first 7 days of the month to the number of deaths in the last 7 days of the preceding month multiplied by 100, was calculated, as were 95% confidence intervals. R values for other cardiac causes and substance abuse-related causes were also calculated. Deaths caused by acute myocardial infarction occurred more often in the first week of the month than in the last week of the previous month (R = 104.4, 95% confidence interval 101. 7-107.8). This pattern of death was most apparent for individuals > or =75 years of age (R = 107.3, 95% confidence interval 102.1-111.1) and was not evident for other cardiac causes, including congestive heart failure or myocardial ischemia. By comparison, substance abuse-related deaths occurred much more frequently during the first week of the month (R = 117.6, 95% confidence interval 110.0-125.8). CONCLUSIONS: This pattern of death for acute myocardial infarction may be in part caused by stressful events associated with the first week of the month.

Adult↗

Mother and father self-reports of corporal punishment and severe physical aggression toward clinic-referred youth.

Examined the extent to which 359 mothers and 140 fathers of clinic-referred youth (ages 2 to 17) reported using corporal punishment and severe physical aggression when asked directly via intake screening questionnaires at a community mental health center; higher prevalence rates emerged compared to families in the general population. Clinic-referred parents reported greater use of corporal punishment for younger relative to older youth, sons relative to daughters, and by single relative to married mothers. In cases with reports from both parents, mothers used corporal punishment more frequently than fathers. Demographic factors were not linked to severe physical aggression, except for mothers' treatment of sons versus daughters. After controlling for demographic factors, maternal and paternal reports of child externalizing behavior accounted for significant variance in their own and their partner's use of corporal punishment, and in mothers' use of severe physical aggression.

Adolescent↗

Utilization of services by persons discharged from involuntary chemical dependency treatment.

This report compares services utilization pre-admission and post-discharge in 735 consecutive persons involuntarily committed to a chemical dependency treatment program in Washington State. Patients entering treatment were in their late 30s, had multiple health problems, previous arrests for misdemeanors or felonies, and minimal structured daily activities. Post discharge, there were decreases in the use of costly acute care services including detox, psychiatric hospitalization, and mental health crisis services. Patients who completed the program were less likely to use acute care services and were more likely to participate in outpatient treatment after discharge. The overall death rate of 29.4 per 1000 persons per year was 4 times greater than the age adjusted death rate for the US adult population. Further studies of other involuntary chemical dependency treatment programs are needed to evaluate the results of this report.

Adult↗

The association between institutional primary angioplasty procedure volume and outcome in elderly Americans.

BACKGROUND: The association between greater procedure volume and improved patient outcome in cardiac procedures has been established in percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA), coronary stent placement and coronary bypass surgery. The association between primary angioplasty volume and outcome has not been evaluated. METHODS: We evaluated the association between the volume of primary angioplasty procedures with short- and long-term outcome in 6,124 patients with documented acute myocardial infarction. Patients without shock on presentation treated with primary coronary angioplasty within 12 hours of hospital admission were selected from consecutive infarct patients included in the Cooperative Cardiovascular Project database. Patients were divided into quartiles based on the volume of primary PTCA procedures performed at their admitting hospital. RESULTS: The majority of United States (US) hospitals performed less than three primary PTCA procedures per month. Patients admitted to hospitals in the lowest volume quartile of primary PTCA had 31% higher 30-day mortality than those admitted to the highest volume quartile. After adjustment for baseline differences in patient characteristics, there was an association between admission to higher volume primary PTCA hospitals and lower 30-day mortality (odds ratio per volume quartile = 0.91; 95% confidence interval = 0.83-0.99). CONCLUSION: Eighty-two percent of US hospitals perform less than three primary PTCA procedures per month. In elderly Americans treated with primary PTCA, we observed an association between admission to higher volume hospitals and lower short- and long-term mortality. This association was independent of total PTCA volumes.

Aged↗

Early use of ACE inhibitors in the treatment of acute myocardial infarction in the United States: experience from the National Registry of Myocardial Infarction 2. National Registry of Myocardial Infarction 2 participants.

This study was undertaken to examine recent trends in the use of angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors within 24 hours of admission in patients hospitalized for acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and to identify clinical factors associated with ACE inhibitor-prescribing patterns. Demographic, procedural, and acute medication use from 202,438 patients with AMI were collected at 1,470 US hospitals participating in the National Registry of Myocardial Infarction 2 from June 1994 through June 1996. Acute ACE inhibitor use increased from 14.0% in 1994 to 17.3% in 1996. After controlling for all important clinical variables, we found that there was a significant increase in the odds of acute ACE inhibitor treatment over time (odds ratio [OR]1.07 for each 180-day period; 95% confidence intervals [CI] 1.06 to 1.08; p<0.0001). Univariate data suggested that patients treated acutely with ACE inhibitors tended to be older (70.9 vs. 67.2 years) and had lower rates of in-hospital mortality (8.8% vs. 11.0%). Independent predictors of receiving an ACE inhibitor acutely included anterior wall infarction (OR 1.36; 95% CI 1.32 to 1.40), Killip class 2 or 3 (OR 1.77; 95% CI 1.72 to 1.83), prior myocardial infarction (OR 1.33; 95% CI 1.30 to 1.37), prior history of congestive heart failure (OR 1.88; 95% CI 1.82 to 1.95), and diabetes mellitus (OR 1.34; 95% CI 1.30 to 1.38). Physicians are prescribing ACE inhibitors acutely in patients with AMI with increasing frequency. Patients with evidence of congestive heart failure and those with anterior myocardial infarction have the greatest expected benefit from such therapy, and these persons receive such treatment most often. However, most patients hospitalized with AMI do not receive this potentially life-saving therapy.

Aged↗

Terminal QRS distortion on admission is better than ST-segment measurements in predicting final infarct size and assessing the Potential effect of thrombolytic therapy in anterior wall acute myocardial infarction.

We assessed predicting final infarct size (using predischarge Selvester score) by 3 electrocardiographic variables in 267 patients with first anterior wall acute myocardial infarction (AMI) undergoing (n = 86) or not undergoing (n = 181) thrombolysis. Patients with previous AMI or inverted T waves in leads with ST elevation were excluded. The sum (sigma) of ST elevation, the number of leads with ST elevation, and the initial electrocardiographic pattern were determined on the admission electrocardiogram (absence (QRS-) or presence (QRS+) of distortion of the terminal portion of the QRS in > or =2 leads (J point > or =0.5 of the R-wave amplitude in leads I, aVL, V4 to V6, or presence of ST elevation without S waves in leads V1 to V3). There was no association between sigmaST elevation and final infarct size in patients who did or did not receive thrombolytic therapy. Analysis of covariance showed that the number of leads with ST elevation (F = 19.6), thrombolysis (F = 25.2), and QRS+ initial pattern (F = 19.5) were all associated with final infarct size (p <0.0001 for all). Among patients who did not receive thrombolytic therapy, the average Selvester score was 19.7+/-9.9 for the QRS- patients and 26.1+/-10.4 for the QRS+ patients (p = 0.02). Among patients who received thrombolytic therapy, the average Selvester score was 11.7+/-9.8 for the QRS- patients and 24.2+/-10.1 for the QRS+ patients (p <0.0001). Thrombolysis reduced final Selvester score only in the QRS- group (p <0.00001), but not in the QRS+ group (p = 0.45). It is concluded that (1) final Selvester score in anterior wall AMI can be predicted by the number of leads with ST elevation, the initial electrocardiographic pattern, and thrombolysis, and (2) thrombolysis reduces final Selvester score only in patients with QRS- pattern.

Adult↗

Combined historical and electrocardiographic timing of acute anterior and inferior myocardial infarcts for prediction of reperfusion achievable size limitation.

The historical time of acute symptom onset is not always an accurate indication of the timing of onset of an acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Consideration of electrocardiographic (ECG) timing parameters could supplement historical timing alone as a clinical guide for decisions regarding the use of reperfusion therapy. Three hundred ninety-five patients from 4 trials of thrombolytic therapy conducted in the northwestern United States and western Canada are included in the present study. A total of 316 patients received either streptokinase or tissue plasminogen activator, and 79 received no reperfusion therapy. Historical time of symptom onset was acquired by emergency or cardiology department personnel and recorded on patient report forms. An ECG method for estimating the timing of the AMI, the Anderson-Wilkins (AW) acuteness score, was calculated from the initial standard 12-lead recording by investigators blinded to the knowledge of symptom duration or any other study variables. Tomographic thallium-201 imaging 7 weeks after hospital admission was used to measure final AMI size. The ECG timing method achieved a relation with final AMI size similar to that previously reported for historical timing. The AW acuteness score proved most useful for anterior AMI location when there was a > or = 2 hour delay following symptom onset, but was most useful for the inferior AMI location when there was a < 2 hour delay. Despite a longer delay, patients with high AW acuteness scores had 50% lower final anterior AMI size than those with low scores; and despite a shorter delay, those with low ECG acuteness scores had 50% greater final inferior AMI size than those with high scores. The AW acuteness score combined with the historical estimation of symptom duration should provide a more accurate basis for predicting the potential for limitation of final AMI size than either method alone. These results could potentially provide the basis for developing a new method for noninvasive guidance of clinical decisions regarding administration of reperfusion therapy in the initial evaluation of patients with AMI.

Electrocardiography↗

Association between percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty volumes and outcomes in the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project 1993-1994.

Studies from a variety of settings have indicated that outcomes for coronary angioplasty are improved when performed in institutions with high caseloads (> 400/year). The purpose of this investigation was to examine the volume outcome hypothesis for coronary angioplasty in a 20% stratified sample of acute care, non-federal hospitals in 17 states. Data were derived from the Nationwide Inpatient Sample from the Health Care Cost and Utilization Project releases 2 and 3. From these records, 163,527 angioplasties from 214 hospitals were selected. Outcomes included hospital mortality, same-admission coronary artery bypass surgery, and a combined end point of either death or same-admission surgery, or both. Hospital volumes were defined as low (< or = 200 cases/year), medium (201 to 400), and high (> 400). Analyses were conducted separately for patients with and without a principal discharge diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction (AMI). For both AMI and no-AMI groups, the rates of adverse outcomes were generally lower in high-volume institutions, and this finding was true in both univariate and multivariate analyses. Although 27% of hospitals were in the low-volume category, only 5% of all procedures were performed in these institutions. Projecting to all United States hospitals for the 2 years, if all procedures performed in low-volume centers had been done in high-volume institutions, 137 deaths could have been averted (90 AMIs, 47 no-AMIs) as well as 404 (46 AMIs, 358 no-AMIs) same-admission surgeries. The results of this study support the hypothesis that better results are obtained in higher volume institutions, but also show that in 1993 and 1994, relatively few patients had their procedures performed in low-volume institutions.

Angioplasty, Balloon, Coronary↗

Utilization of services for mentally ill chemically abusing patients discharged from residential treatment.

Little is known about outcomes of treatment for individuals with mental illness and chemical dependencies. This article compares services utilization preadmission and postdischarge in 534 patients discharged from a residential treatment program in Washington State. A number of services, including chemical dependency detoxification, mental health crisis, inpatient psychiatric, medical emergency, and general medical inpatient hospitalization, were used less frequently in the period after discharge. The total reimbursement for all Medicaid services decreased by 44% from $5 million in the year prior to discharge to $2.8 million in the year after discharge. Also, individuals (32%) who completed the program were less likely to use costly, acute care services. This study was limited by the absence of a control group and posttreatment alcohol and drug use data. In addition, other unmeasured factors could have explained the association between program completion and better outcomes.

Adult↗

Coronary artery stent outcomes in a Medicare population: less emergency bypass surgery and lower mortality rates in patients with stents.

BACKGROUND: Randomized trials of coronary stents versus conventional balloon angioplasty have demonstrated improved short- and long-term outcomes for selected patients receiving stents. The purpose of this study was to compare outcomes in patients receiving stents with those undergoing conventional balloon angioplasty in everyday clinical practice. METHODS AND RESULTS: This study uses information from the Medicare Provider Analysis and Review files for fiscal years 1994 and 1996, the first year the coronary stent code was used. For patients 65 years of age and older, 165,657 cases in 1994 and 201,869 in 1996, including 74,836 cases with stent placement, were identified. Outcomes included hospital deaths, use of same- admission coronary artery bypass surgery, and either or both. Analyses were performed separately for those with and those without a principal diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction. Hospital mortality rates were similar in both years, but the use of same-admission coronary artery bypass surgery was lower in 1996. In that year, for both patients with and those without acute myocardial infarction, hospital death and the use of same-admission coronary artery bypass surgery were lower in the stent group. Additionally, results in the stent group were generally better at high-volume (>200 cases per year) institutions, as was the case for the prestent, 1994 results. CONCLUSIONS: This study documents improved short-term outcomes in older patients who undergo coronary stent placement. Stenting did not eliminate the finding of improved outcomes at high-volume centers.

Aged↗

Evaluation of the efficacy of hand-held computer screens for cardiologists' interpretations of 12-lead electrocardiograms.

BACKGROUND: Newly designed computer-based applications and the development of wireless technology have allowed the transmission of 12-lead electrocardiogram (ECG) waveforms from remote locations to the hand-held computers of cardiologists. If these computer ECGs can be reliably interpreted, then the time to treatment for cardiac patients may be reduced. METHODS AND RESULTS: Twenty classic examples of cardiac abnormalities were chosen to test the efficacy of the hand-held computer's liquid crystal display (LCD) screen in the interpretation of 12-lead ECGs. Ten cardiologists interpreted these 20 ECGs on the hand-held computers and then twice later on traditional printed paper. The control intraobserver agreement between the sets of paper-displayed ECGs was measured against the agreement between each of the paper sets and the LCD-displayed set of ECGs. Eighty-nine percent (178/200) of the ECGs were interpreted identically by the participants between the 2 paper sets. When comparing the interpretations of the LCD-displayed ECGs with those of each of the paper sets of ECGs, 88.0% (176/200) and 87.5% (175/200) of identical diagnoses were noted. These differences of 1.0% and 1.5% in intraobserver agreement between paper-to-paper and each of the 2 paper-to-LCD comparisons were not significant (P =.75 and P =.88, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: The strong intraobserver agreement shows that cardiologists make the same diagnoses when viewing LCD-displayed ECGs as they do when viewing paper-displayed ECGs. A study to measure the intraobserver agreement of the decision regarding administration of reperfusion therapy after interpretation of ECGs of patients with acute chest pain is now underway.

Data Display↗

Attribution of responsibility for injury and long-term outcome of patients with paralytic spinal cord trauma.

STUDY DESIGN: Survey. OBJECTIVE: To assess the association between patients' perceptions of responsibility for the injury and long term outcomes. SETTING: Duke University Medical Center Spinal Injury Service. METHODS: One hundred and forty patients, who suffered spinal cord injuries between 1985 and 1990, were selected to participate in the study, and 26 (19%), including eight with quadriplegia, completed a telephone interview. The mean age at interview was 39+/-12 years and 12% were women. The mean time from injury to completion of the study was 8.7+/-1.5 years. Attribution of cause of injury, the Craig Handicap Assessment Reporting Technique, and the SF36 mental health depression/vitality surveyed instruments attribution of responsibility for the injury, functional capacity, mental health depression, and vitality. RESULTS: The majority (18/26) of patients either totally blamed themselves or others for their injuries. Overall, there was no statistically significant association between attribution of injury and long-term outcomes. Outcomes were similar in patients who either totally blamed themselves or others for their predicament. CONCLUSION: In this study, long-term outcomes were not influenced by whether patients perceived themselves as being responsible for their injuries.

Activities of Daily Living↗

Intracellular accumulation of detergent-soluble amyloidogenic A beta fragment of Alzheimer's disease precursor protein in the hippocampus of aged transgenic mice.

To study amyloid beta-protein (A beta) production and aggregation in vivo, we created two transgenic (Tg) mouse lines expressing the C-terminal 100 amino acids of human amyloid precursor protein (APP): Tg C100.V717F and Tg C100.WT. Western blot analysis showed that human APP-C100 and A beta were produced in brain and some peripheral tissues and A beta was produced in serum. Using antibodies specific for the A beta C terminus we found that Tg C100.V717F produced a 1.6-fold increase in A beta42/A beta40 compared with Tg C100.WT. Approximately 30% of total brain A beta (approximately 122 ng/g of wet tissue) was water-soluble. The remaining 70% of A beta partitioned into the particulate fraction and was completely sodium dodecyl sulfate-soluble. In contrast, human Alzheimer's disease brain has predominantly sodium dodecyl sulfate-insoluble A beta. Immunohistochemistry with an A beta(5-8) antibody showed that A beta or A beta-containing fragments accumulated intracellularly in the hippocampus of aged Tg C100.V717F mice. The soluble A beta levels in Tg brain are similar to those in normal human brain, and this may explain the lack of microscopic amyloid deposits in the Tg mice. However, this mouse model provides a system to study the intracellular processing and accumulation of A beta or A beta-containing fragments and to screen for compounds directed at the gamma-secretase activity.

Aging↗