Background: To assess the effect of oral nutrition supplements (ONS) on 30‐day readmission rates, length of stay (LOS), and episode costs in hospitalized Medicare patients, aged 65 and over, with diagnoses affected by new Medicare reimbursement rules under the Affordable Care Act (ACA): acute myocardial infarction (AMI), congestive heart failure (CHF), and pneumonia (PNA). Methods: […]

Background: Over the past decade, there have been great interests in eliminating the LAA as a source of emboli through a catheter based approach. A novel epicardial‐deployed percutaneous LAA ligation device called the LARIAT® (SentreHeart, Redwood City, CA) has been recently described in the literature to exclude the LAA. Although the percutaneous left atrial appendage […]

Background: To examine the impact of Hurricane Sandy and the subsequent blackout in southern Manhattan on emergency room (ER) visits of patients with a diagnosis of cancer, as 4 neighboring hospitals (2 private, 1 city and 1 VA center) and most ambulatory facilities were closed during the time frame examined. Methods: The records of cancer […]

Background: Congestive Heart failure (CHF) is a contributor/risk factor for osteoporosis. The hypothesis is that due to renal insufficiency there is an activation of the renin‐angiotensin‐aldosterone system, increased parathyroid hormone levels, and hence decreased bone mineral density due to reabsorption. This is particularly marked in the elderly population. Till date there have been no studies […]

Background: It is estimated that severe sepsis /septic shock is one of the most common causes of mortality in the ICU and a large percentage of those cases are identified in the emergency room. Rivers, et al., in 2001, demonstrated that the early directed therapy for severe sepsis/septic shock resulted in significant benefits in patients […]

Background: Red blood cell (RBC) transfusion is a common procedure in hospitals, with approximately 14 million units transfused in the U.S. in 2011. Although direct transmission of infectious agents via allogeneic RBC transfusion is now quite low, transfusion‐related immunomodulation has been associated with an increased risk of infection. Leukoreduction of RBCs, which is done for […]

Background: Current VTE prophylaxis guidelines strongly promote risk assessment on the individual level. The IMPROVE VTE risk assessment model (RAM) is a composite score formulated to predict individual VTE risk during hospitalization. It is developed from a derivation cohort and has preliminary validation. This score sums 7 risk factors into risk categories: 0‐1—Low Risk, 2‐3—Moderate […]

Background: Pre‐renal replacement therapy (RRT) patient education leads to reduced central venous catheter use, increased uptake of peritoneal dialysis, and improved access to transplant for patients with end‐stage renal disease. Yet many patients with advanced chronic kidney disease (CKD) do not receive this important education due to lack of identification or understanding of their kidney […]

Background: Secondary prevention of stroke in patients newly diagnosed with carotid artery stenosis remains a challenge. Several studies have reported the use of single as well as dual antiplatelet therapy in patients with stroke, but the rationale for it’s use in patients with carotid artery stenosis remains to be explored. Efficacy of dual anti‐platelet therapy […]

Background: Atrial fibrillation (AF) represents one of the leading diagnoses for hospitalized patients and is a common cause of cardioembolic stroke. Patients with AF are five times more likely to have a stroke than those without this condition and although anticoagulation is very effective at reducing AF‐related strokes, studies estimate that a large percent of […]