Regional Variation In Outcomes Research Articles

Regional Variation in Survival Following Pediatric Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest

Although regional variation in outcome after adult out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) is known, no clinical studies have assessed this in pediatric OHCA. This nationwide, prospective, population-based observation of the whole of Japan included consecutive OHCA patients with resuscitation attempt from January 2005 through December 2009. Primary outcome was 1-month survival with neurologically favorable outcome. Japan was divided into the following 7 regions as the largest administrative units: Hokkaido-Tohoku, Kanto, Tokai-Hokuriku, Kinki, Chugoku, Shikoku, and Kyushu-Okinawa. The outcome of pediatric OHCA was then compared between the regions. Multiple logistic regression analysis was used to adjust for other factors that were considered to influence the relationship between region and outcome. A total of 8,240 pediatric OHCA patients were registered during the study period. One-month survival with neurologically favorable outcome significantly differed by region: 2.5% (24/967) in Hokkaido-Tohoku (adjusted odds ratio [AOR], 1.65; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.94-2.90), 2.9% (47/1614) in Tokai-Hokuriku (AOR, 2.06; 95% CI: 1.28-3.31), 2.1% (26/1239) in Kinki (AOR, 1.45; 95% CI: 0.84-2.51), 3.4% (16/465) in Chugoku (AOR, 3.11; 95% CI: 1.62-6.00), 1.5% (4/259) in Shikoku (AOR, 0.79; 95% CI: 0.26-2.43), and 2.8% (27/974) in Kyushu-Okinawa (AOR, 2.15; 95% CI: 1.24-3.74) referred to Kanto (1.4%, 37/2722). According to Japanese nationwide OHCA registry data there are significant regional variations in the outcome of pediatric OHCA.

Variations in Transport Outcomes of Outborn Infants among Canadian Neonatal Intensive Care Units

Outborn infants born at community hospitals and transported to tertiary neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) for treatment account for 20% of all tertiary NICU admissions in Canada. Little is known about variations in their outcomes. The Transport Risk Index of Physiologic Stability (TRIPS) is a validated score of neonatal physiological status that can identify differences between transport teams' outcomes. To examine regional variations in outcomes among outborn infants transported to Canadian tertiary NICUs using TRIPS. Transport teams prospectively collected data for all outborn infants admitted to 25 Canadian NICUs during 2006 to 2007. Singleton outborn infants ≥ 32 weeks' gestation admitted to NICUs for at least 24 hours who died or who were transferred to another NICU within 24 hours were examined for overall incidence of mortality, major morbidity, and change in TRIPS score. Complete transport data were available for 2313 (72.9%) of 3193 eligible infants. There were significant variations in interhospital and interprovincial outcomes. Factors significantly affecting change in TRIPS score were gender, pretransport TRIPS score, composition of transport team and distance traveled. Significant variation exists in transport outcomes in Canada. Further investigation is required to optimize infant transport systems, processes, and clinical care.

Editor’s Choice

Editor’s Choice

Regional variations in outcomes following cardiac operations exist

Regional variations in outcomes following cardiac operations exist

Regional Variation in Outcome of Very Low Birthweight in fants Admitted to Canadian Nicus

Regional Variation in Outcome of Very Low Birthweight in fants Admitted to Canadian Nicus

Regional Systems of Care for Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest

Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest continues to be an important public health problem, with large and important regional variations in outcomes. Survival rates vary widely among patients treated with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest by emergency medical services and among patients transported to the hospital after return of spontaneous circulation. Most regions lack a well-coordinated approach to post-cardiac arrest care. Effective hospital-based interventions for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest exist but are used infrequently. Barriers to implementation of these interventions include lack of knowledge, experience, personnel, resources, and infrastructure. A well-defined relationship between an increased volume of patients or procedures and better outcomes among individual providers and hospitals has been observed for several other clinical disorders. Regional systems of care have improved provider experience and patient outcomes for those with ST-elevation myocardial infarction and life-threatening traumatic injury. This statement describes the rationale for regional systems of care for patients resuscitated from cardiac arrest and the preliminary recommended elements of such systems. Many more people could potentially survive out-of-hospital cardiac arrest if regional systems of cardiac resuscitation were established. A national process is necessary to develop and implement evidence-based guidelines for such systems that must include standards for the categorization, verification, and designation of components of such systems. The time to do so is now.

Regional cardiac resuscitation systems of care

Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OOHCA) is a common public health problem, with large and important regional variations in outcomes. Survival rates vary widely among patients treated with OOHCA by emergency medical services (EMS), or among patients transported to the hospital after return of spontaneous circulation. Most regions lack a well-coordinated approach to post–cardiac arrest care. Effective hospital-based interventions for OOHCA exist but are used infrequently. Increased volume of patients or procedures of individual providers and hospitals is associated with better outcomes for several other clinical disorders. Regional systems of cardiac resuscitation include a process for identification of patients with OOHCA, standard field and hospital care protocols for patients with OOHCA, monitoring of care processes and out-come, and periodic review and feedback of these quality improvement data to identify problems and implement solutions. Similar systems have improved provider experience and patient outcomes for those with ST-elevation myocardial infarction and life-threatening traumatic injury. Many more people could survive OOHCA if regional systems of cardiac resuscitation were implemented and maintained. The time has come to do so wherever feasible. 

Hospitalisation as an outcome measure in schizophrenia

People with schizophrenia comprise the majority of patients with severe mental illness recruited to recent mental health service studies of new teams (e.g. assertive outreach, crisis resolution). Reduction in hospitalisation has been the most consistent outcome measure in these studies, but results are inconsistent. To understand inconsistency of results from studies using hospitalisation as an outcome measure. The advantages and disadvantages of hospitalisation are explored, including the ways in which it is recorded. Regional variation in outcomes and the impact of control services are reviewed. Hospitalisation has face validity as an outcome but translates poorly between differing healthcare contexts. These variations can be exploited positively to distinguish potentially effective ingredients in community care (outreach, combined health and social care, team structure) from redundant components. Hospitalisation is a good proxy outcome measure in schizophrenia care in randomised controlled trials, but the dangers of extrapolating to new contexts require care.

Staphylococcus aureus Native Valve Infective Endocarditis: Report of 566 Episodes from the International Collaboration on Endocarditis Merged Database

Staphylococcus aureus native valve infective endocarditis (SA-NVIE) is not completely understood. The objective of this investigation was to describe the characteristics of a large, international cohort of patients with SA-NVIE. The International Collaboration on Endocarditis Merged Database (ICE-MD) is a combination of 7 existing electronic databases from 5 countries that contains data on 2212 cases of definite infective endocarditis (IE). Of patients with native valve IE, 566 patients [corrected] had IE due to S. aureus, and 1074 patients had IE due to pathogens other than S. aureus (non-SA-NVIE). Patients with S. aureus IE were more likely to die (20% vs. 12%; P < .001), to experience an embolic event (61% [corrected] vs. 31%; P < .001), or to have a central nervous system event (21% [corrected] vs. 13%; P < .001) and were less likely to undergo surgery (26% vs. 39%; P < .001) than were patients with non-SA-NVIE. Multivariate analysis of prognostic factors of mortality identified age (odds ratio [OR], 1.4; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.1-1.7), periannular abscess (OR, 2.4; 95% CI, 1.0 [corrected] -5.6), heart failure (OR, 3.9; 95% CI, 2.3-6.7), and absence of surgical therapy (OR, 2.3; 95% CI, 1.3-4.2) as variables that were independently associated with mortality in patients with SA-NVIE. After adjusting for patient-, pathogen-, and treatment-specific characteristics by multivariate analysis, geographical region was also found to be associated with mortality in patients with SA-NVIE (P < .001). S. aureus is an important and common cause of IE. The outcome of SA-NVIE is worse than that of non-SA-NVIE. Several clinical parameters are independently associated with mortality for patients with SA-NVIE. The clinical characteristics and outcome of SA-NVIE vary significantly by geographic region, although the reasons for such regional variations in outcomes of SA-NVIE are unknown and are probably multifactorial. A large, prospective, multinational cohort study of patients with IE is now under way to further investigate these observations.

Regional Variation in Outcomes as Determined by Investigators and Clinical Events Committee in an International Trial of Eptifibatide in Non-ST Segment Elevation Acute Coronary Syndromes

Regional Variation in Outcomes as Determined by Investigators and Clinical Events Committee in an International Trial of Eptifibatide in Non-ST Segment Elevation Acute Coronary Syndromes

Regional variation in outcomes as determined by investigators and clinical events committee in an international trial of eptifibatide in non-ST segment elevation acute coronary syndromes

Regional variation in outcomes as determined by investigators and clinical events committee in an international trial of eptifibatide in non-ST segment elevation acute coronary syndromes