Background: Congestive heart failure has been used to identify high‐risk patients in acute pulmonary embolism. Diastolic dysfunction is one of the major causes of congestive heart failure but has been poorly understood. The implications of diastolic dysfunction in acute pulmonary embolism have not been investigated before. Methods: Patients who were admitted with the diagnosis of […]

Background: It is well known that peripherally inserted central catheters (PICCs) are associated with an increased risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE). While most PICC VTE studies have focused on upper‐extremity deep vein thrombosis (DVT), some suggest that PICCs may also be associated with lower‐extremity DVT. The extent of this association and its magnitude compared to […]

Background: Growing use of peripherally inserted central catheters (or, “PICCs”), has led to increasing recognition of the risk of bloodstream infection (BSI). Despite increasing awareness of this outcome, limited data regarding risk factors associated with PICC‐BSI exist. We sought to identify specific patient‐, provider‐ and device‐characteristics associated with PICC‐BSI after controlling for confounding factors. Methods: […]

Background: In the United States, survival in patients experiencing out‐of‐hospital cardiac arrest varies significantly between and within hospitals. Many studies have shown less favorable outcomes for cardiovascular disease entities on weekends relative to weekdays. We investigated whether outcomes are similarly affected in patients with non‐traumatic out‐of‐hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA). Methods: The 2010 Nationwide Inpatient Sample […]

Background: Enoxaparin, a low‐molecular weight heparin (LMWH), is frequently used in place of unfractionated heparin (UFH) for anticoagulation. LMWH have been favored by expert groups in many clinical settings given their advantages over UFH, including more predictable pharmacokinetics, greater ease of administration, better safety margin, possible improved efficacy and lack of need for therapeutic drug […]

Background: Previous studies have shown that coffee consumption is protective against hepatic fibrosis, cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma. However, few have examined the relationship between coffee/caffeine and nonalcoholic hepatic steatosis (NAFLD). Aim: To assess the association between coffee, caffeine and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. Methods: We used data on 11,563 adults, aged 20‐74 years, from the […]

Background: Early or 30‐day hospital readmission rates are used to measure quality of inpatient hospital care. Consequences of early readmission often include duplication for much of the assessment, diagnosis, and treatment from the previous admission. This repetition of services results in an economic burden to hospitals and healthcare systems which is often disproportionately allocated to […]

Background: In an era of healthcare reform, an important priority to reduce costs and produce savings is to decrease and avoid hospital stay since hospital admissions account for a large proportion of healthcare spending. Our objective was to characterize the recent trends and predictors of hospital costs for ABSSSI admissions in the US. Methods: A […]

Background: A recent study showed that many hospitalized women, particularly those who are low income and at high risk for developing breast cancer, are non‐adherent with breast cancer screening recommendations. This same study found that a majority of these women would be amenable to inpatient screening it were offered. This study explores hospitalists’ views about […]

Background: Lower rates for breast cancer screening persists among low income and uninsured women despite the proven mortality benefit. This study explores the amount of money that hospitalized women, most of whom were low income and at high risk for breast cancer, were willing‐to‐pay to offset the cost of inpatient screening mammogram using the contingent […]