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Articles of Interest

June 3, 2011

This weekly compilation of articles appearing in recently released journals and newsletters includes:

Articles funded by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) or authored by AHRQ researchers.
Articles mentioning or discussing AHRQ staff, activities, and publications/products.
Articles related to AHRQ-funded Evidence-based Practice Centers.
Articles related to the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force or Put Prevention into Practice program.
Articles mentioning the National Healthcare Disparities Report and National Healthcare Quality Report.
Other research using AHRQ data or products.

AHRQ-Funded/Authored Articles

Academic Medicine
Pincus HA. Academic health centers and comparative effectiveness research: baggage, buckets, basics, and bottles. Acad Med 2011 Jun; 86(6):659-60. [Author acknowledges support of the Irving Institute for Clinical and Translational Research (of which he is co-director) at Columbia University, which is partially funded by the Mental Health Center for Education and Research on Therapeutics (CERTs) at Rutgers (funded by grant 5 U18 HS16097); comments on articles by VanLare, Conway, and Rowe and Zerzan, Gibson, and Libby cited below in this section, and on articles by Marantz, et al. and Rich, Bonham, and Kirch cited in AHRQ-Related Articles.]

Clancy CM. Commentary: precision science and patient-centered care. Acad Med 2011 Jun; 86(6):667-70. [Author is AHRQ director; acknowledges support of Jean Slutsky, director of AHRQ's Center for Outcomes and Evidence; discusses AHRQ's comparative effectiveness research (CER) activities conducted under the American Recover and Reinvestment Act and Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act; comments on articles by VanLare, Conway, and Rowe and Zerzan, Gibson, and Libby cited below in this section, and on articles by Marantz, et al. and Rich, Bonham, and Kirch cited in AHRQ-Related Articles.]

VanLare JM, Conway PH, Rowe JW. Building academic health centers' capacity to shape and respond to comparative effectiveness research policy. Acad Med 2011 Jun; 86(6):686-694. [Supported in part by grants U18 HS16957 (to second author, former AHRQ researcher) and R01 HS19862-21; mentions AHRQ funding for CER activities and its investment in building appropriate research capacity in academic health centers through the Effective Health Care Program, citing Comparative Effectiveness Research Grant and ARRA Awards on AHRQ's Effective Health Care Program Web site.] Select to access the abstract.

Zerzan JT, Gibson M, Libby AM. Improving state Medicaid policies with comparative effectiveness research: a key role for academic health centers. Acad Med 2011 Jun; 86(6):695-700. [Supported by Mentored Clinical Scientist Comparative Effectiveness Development Award grant K12-HS019464-01 at the Colorado Clinical Translational Sciences Institute (to third author, who is program director); describes AHRQ's Evidence-based Practice Centers (EPC) collaboration with the Drug Effectiveness Review Project (DERP) and notes the lack of evidence for best therapies for epileptic seizures found in AHRQ draft research protocol, Evaluation of Effectiveness and Safety of Antiepileptic Medications in Patients with Epilepsy, 2010, as published on AHRQ's Effective Health Care Program Web site.] Select to access the abstract.

Archives of Internal Medicine
Naik AD, Palmer N, Petersen NJ, Street RL Jr, Rao R, Suarez-Almazor M, et al. Comparative effectiveness of goal setting in diabetes mellitus group clinics: randomized clinical trial. Arch Intern Med 2011 Mar 14;171(5):453-9. [Supported by CERTs grant U18 HS16093 (for the Empowering Patients in Care study, for which sixth author is principal investigator).] Select to access the abstract.

Boult C, Reider L, Leff B, et al. The effect of guided care teams on the use of health services: results from a cluster-randomized controlled trial. Arch Intern Med 2011 Mar 14;171(5):460-6. [Supported by grant R01 HS14580.] Select to access the abstract.

Cameron KA, Persell SD, Brown T, et al. Patient outreach to promote colorectal cancer screening among patients with an expired order for colonoscopy. Arch Intern Med 2011 Mar 14;171(7):642-6. [Supported by grant 1 R18 HS17163-01 and Career Development Award grant 1 K08 HS15647-01 (to second author).] Select to access the abstract.

BMJ Quality and Safety
Dy SM, Taylor SL, Carr LH et al. A framework for classifying patient safety practices: results from an expert consensus process. BMJ Qual Saf 2011 May 24. [Epub ahead of print. Supported by contract HHSA-290-2009-10001C; selected patient safety practices from AHRQ Evidence Report/Technology Assessment, Making Health Care Safer: A Critical Analysis of Patient Safety Practices, 2001, AHRQ's Patient Safety Network Web site, and inputs from AHRQ staff; cites AHRQ contract final report (by article authors) Assessing the Evidence for Context-Sensitive Effectiveness and Safety of Patient Safety Practices: Developing Criteria, 2010.] Select to access the abstract.

Taylor SL, Dy S, Foy R, et al. What context features might be important determinants of the effectiveness of patient safety practice interventions? BMJ Qual Saf 2011 May 26. [Epub ahead of print. Supported by contract HHSA-290-2009-10001C; selected patient safety practices from AHRQ Evidence Report/Technology Assessment, Making Health Care Safer: A Critical Analysis of Patient Safety Practices, 2001, and inputs from AHRQ staff; cites AHRQ Evidence Report/Technology Assessment, Costs and Benefits of Health Information Technology, 2006, and AHRQ technical review, Closing the Quality Gap: A Critical Analysis of Quality Improvement Strategies, Volume 7, 2007.] Select to access the abstract.

Contraception
Kim C, Gebremariam A, Iwashyna TJ, Dalton VK, et al. Longitudinal influences of friends and parents upon unprotected vaginal intercourse in adolescents. Contraception 2011 Feb; 83(2):138-44. [Supported by grant K08 HS15491 (to fourth author, attributed to NIH).] Select to access the abstract.

Diabetes Technology & Therapeutics
Lyles CR, Harris LT, Le T, et al. Qualitative evaluation of a mobile phone and web-based collaborative care intervention for patients with type 2 diabetes. Diabetes Technol Ther 2011 May; 13(5):563-9. [Supported by grant HS13853 (to first author).] Select to access the abstract.

General Hospital Psychiatry
Vyas A, Sambamoorthi U. Multimorbidity and depression treatment. Gen Hosp Psychiatry 2011 May-Jun; 33(3):238-45. [Supported by grant R24 HS18622-01.] Select to access the abstract.

Health Care Management Science
Carey K, Stefos T. Controlling for quality in the hospital cost function. Health Care Manag Sci 2011 Jun; 14(2):125-34. [Supported by grant R03 HS17495-01; uses state discharge data for Arizona, California, New Jersey, Texas, and Wisconsin from AHRQ's Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP) State Inpatient Databases (SID), and "15 of the 16 PSIs for which the AHRQ software produces a full set of hospital level event rates;" cites Guide to Patient Safety Indicators on AHRQ's Quality Indicators Web site and AHRQ publication, Advances in Patient Safety: From Research to Implementation, Volume 4, 2005.] Select to access the abstract.

Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology
Miller EK, Williams JV, Gebretsadik T, et al. Host and viral factors associated with severity of human rhinovirus-associated infant respiratory tract illness. J Allergy Clin Immunol 2011 Apr; 127(4):883-91. [Supported by grants R01 HS18454 and R01 HS19669 (to last author, Hartert TV).] Select to access the abstract.

Journal of Cardiac Failure
Maeda JK. Evidence-based heart failure performance measures and clinical outcomes: a systematic review. J Cardiac Fail 2010 May; 16(5):411-18. [Supported by grant R36 HS17944.] Select to access the abstract.

Pressler SJ, Eckert SJ, Morrison GC, et al. Evaluation of the Health Utilities Index Mark-3 in heart failure. J Cardiac Fail 2011 Feb; 17(2):143-50. [Supported by grant R03 HS09822-01.] Select to access the abstract.

Journal of Clinical Nursing
Lu CY, Johantgen M. Factors associated with treatment restriction orders and hospice in older nursing home residents. J Clin Nurs 2011 Feb; 20(3-4):377-87. [Supported by grant R01 HS11990.] Select to access the abstract.

Journal of Clinical Oncology
Bernard DS, Farr SL, Fang Z. National estimates of out-of-pocket health care expenditure burdens among nonelderly adults with cancer: 2001-2008. J Clin Oncol 2011 May 31. [Epub ahead of print. First author is a researcher in AHRQ's Center for Financing, Access, and Cost Trends and second author is a former AHRQ intern; Uses 2001-2008 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey-Household Component (MEPS-HC) data, AHRQ's Clinical Classifications Software, and AHRQ's HCUP Chronic Condition Indicator for ICD-9-CM.] Select to access the abstract.

Journals of Gerontology, Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences
Steinman MA, Hanlon JT, Sloane RJ, et al. Do geriatric conditions increase risk of adverse drug reactions in ambulatory elders? Results from the VA GEM Drug Study. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci 2011 Apr; 66A(4):444-51. [Supported by grants HS17695 and HS18721 (to second author).] Select to access the abstract.

Medical Care Research and Review
Reiter KL, Harless DW, Pink GH, et al. The effect of minimum nurse staffing legislation on uncompensated care provided by California hospitals. Med Care Res Rev 2011 Jun; 68(3):332-51. [Supported by grant 2 F01 HS10153-08.] Select to access the abstract.

Medical Education
White AA, Bell SK, Krauss MJ, et al. How trainees would disclose medical errors: educational implications for training programmes. Med Educ 2011 Apr; 45(4):372-80. [Supported by grants 1 U18 HS11898-01 and 1 K08 HS14012-01.] Select to access the abstract.

Public Health Reports
Mainous AG 3rd, Diaz VA, Matheson EM, et al. Trends in hospitalizations with antibiotic-resistant infections: U.S., 1997-2006. Public Health Rep 2011 May-Jun; 126(3):354-60. [Supported by contract HHSA290-2007-10015. Also refer to AHRQ-funded article by Shamliyan et al. (J Clin Epidemiol, 2011) cited in Evidence-based Practice Centers-Related Articles.] Select to access the abstract.

AHRQ-Related Articles

Academic Medicine
Sox HC. Commentary: academic health centers and comparative effectiveness research: opportunities and challenges. Acad Med 2011 Jun; 86(6):664-6. [Notes that recent AHRQ CER "funding initiatives specified research questions taken from the Institute of Medicine (IOM) list of the 100 most important CER priorities (citing Sox, Ann Intern Med, 2010); comments on articles by VanLare, Conway, and Rowe cited in AHRQ-Funded/Authored Articles, and on articles by Marantz, et al. and Rich, Bonham, and Kirch cited below in this section.]

Lauer MS. Commentary: will academia embrace comparative effectiveness research? Acad Med 2011 Jun; 86(6):671-3. [Comments on articles by VanLare, Conway, and Rowe and Zerzan, Gibson, and Libby cited in AHRQ-Funded/Authored Articles, and on articles by Marantz, et al. and Rich, Bonham, and Kirch cited below in this section.]

Rich EC, Bonham AC, Kirch DG. The implications of comparative effectiveness research for academic medicine. Acad Med 2011 Jun; 86(6):684-8. [Mentions AHRQ's receipt of comparative effectiveness research funding under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) and Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI); cites AHRQ-authored article by Conway and Clancy (former AHRQ researcher and AHRQ director, respectively) (N Engl J Med, 2009).] Select to access the abstract.

McGaghie WC, Issenberg SB, Cohen ER, et al. Does simulation-based medical education with deliberate practice yield better results than traditional clinical education? A meta-analytic comparative review of the evidence. Acad Med 2011 Jun; 86(6):706-11. [Cites the objective of comparative effectiveness research and mentions AHRQ work outlining CER priorities, citing What is the Effective Health Care Program on AHRQ's Effective Health Care Program Web site.] Select to access the abstract.

Marantz PR, Strelnick AH, Currie B, et al. Developing a multidisciplinary model of comparative effectiveness research within a clinical and translational science award. Acad Med 2011 Jun; 86(6):712-17. [Discusses milestones in AHRQ's history, including development of clinical practice guidelines, the National Guideline Clearinghouse™, and the Effective Health Care Program, and AHRQ CER funding and responsibilities under the ARRA) and Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI); cites What is Comparative Effectiveness Research? on AHRQ's Effective Health Care Program Web site and Overview of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act), 2010, on the AHRQ Web site.] Select to access the abstract.

Scott DR, Weimer M, English C, et al. A novel approach to increase residents' involvement in reporting adverse events. Acad Med 2011 Jun; 86(6):742-6. [Cites AHRQ publication, Advances in Patient Safety: From Research to Implementation, Volume 4, 2005, as published on AHRQ Web site.] Select to access the abstract.

American Journal of Preventive Medicine
Kessler R, Glasgow RE. A proposal to speed translation of healthcare research into practice: dramatic change is needed. Am J Prev Med 2011 Jun; 40(6):637-44. [Encourages support and funding of pragmatic trials by AHRQ and other organizations; cites AHRQ's Practice-based Research Networks Web site and the AHRQ-funded HMO Research Network Web site.] Select to access the abstract.

BMJ Quality and Safety
Matlow AG, Cronin CM, Flintoft V, et al. Description of the development and validation of the Canadian Paediatric Trigger Tool. BMJ Qual Saf 2011 May; 20(5):416-23. [Notes that AHRQ and other agencies "have argued that indicators need to be developed for specific populations, including paediatrics," citing Pediatric Quality Indicators Overview on AHRQ's Quality Indicators Web site; cites AHRQ-authored article by Miller, Elixhauser, and Zhan (Pediatrics, 2003) and AHRQ-funded articles by Classen et al. (JAMA, 1991) and Jha et al. (J Am Med Inform Assoc, 1998).] Select to access the abstract.

Health Affairs
New online at HealthAffairs.ORG. Health Aff 2011 May; 30(5):808. [Announces availability of online video, Issue Briefing: Still Crossing the Quality Chasm: Update on the Progress of Improving the Quality of Health Care, April 2011, which features opening remarks by AHRQ Director Carolyn Clancy.]

Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology
Trinh TT, Chan PA, Edwards O, et al. Peripheral venous catheter-related Staphylococcus aureas bacteremia. Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2011 Jun; 32(6):579-83. [Cites 2005-2007 HCUP NIS data on AHRQ's HCUP Web site.] Select to access the abstract.

Gozu A, Clay C, Younus F. Hospital-wide reduction in central line-associated bloodstream infections: a tale of two small community hospitals. Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2011 Jun; 32(6):619-22. [Notes that the components of the central line insertion checklist developed for the study were "further validated by the landmark study performed by Pronovost et al. in December 2006" (N Engl J Med, 2006); cites Distribution of Database Hospitals and Respondents by Bed Size, Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture: 2010 User Comparative Database Report, on AHRQ Web site.] Select to access the abstract.

Journal of the American Geriatrics Association
Hess BJ, Lynn LA, Conforti LN, et al. Listening to older adults: elderly patients' experience of care in residency and practicing physician outpatient clinics. J Am Geriatr Assoc 2011 May; 59(5):909-15. [Cites article by Davies et al. (Health Expect, 2008) which uses AHRQ's Consumer Assessment of Health Providers and Systems (CAHPS®) survey.] Select to access the abstract.

Journal of the National Cancer Institute
Smith BD, Pan IW, Shih YC, et al. Adoption of intensity-modulated radiation therapy for breast cancer in the United States. J Natl Cancer Inst 2011 May 18; 103(10):798-809. [Cites AHRQ-funded articles by Deyo, Cherkin, and Ciol (J Clin Epidemiol, 1992) and Romano, Roos, and Jollis (J Clin Epidemiol, 1993).] Select to access the abstract.

Medical Care Research and Review
Sidorenkov G, Haaijer-Ruskamp FM, de Zeeuw D, et al. Relation between quality-of-care indicators for diabetes and patient outcomes: a systematic literature review. Med Care Res Rev 2011 Jun; 68(3):263-89. [Cites AHRQ publication, Prevention Quality Indicators: Technical Specifications, Version 4, 2009.] Select to access the abstract.

Cunningham PJ. Explaining the increase in family financial pressures from medical bills between 2003 and 2007: do affordability thresholds change over time? Med Care Res Rev 2011 Jun; 68(3):352-66. [Cites AHRQ-authored articles by Banthin and Bernard (JAMA, 2006) and Banthin, Cunningham, and Bernard (Health Aff, 2008).] Select to access the abstract.

Rehabilitation Nursing
Absulem S, Hardin H. Home health nurses' perceived care errors. Rehabil Nurs 2011 May-Jun; 36(3):98-105, 128. [Mentions that AHRQ and other healthcare organizations "have invested many efforts to improve patient safety;" cites AHRQ-funded article by Bates et al. (JAMA, 1995) and AHRQ-sponsored report, Doing What Counts for Patient Safety: Federal Actions to Reduce Medical Errors and Their Impact, 2000, from the Quality Interagency Coordination Task Force.]

U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF)/Put Prevention Into Practice (PPIP)-Related Articles

American Journal of Preventive Medicine
Miller DP Jr, Spangler JG, Case LD, et al. Effectiveness of a Web-based colorectal cancer screening patient decision aid: a randomized controlled trial in a mixed-literacy population. Am J Prev Med 2011 Jun; 40(6):608-15. [Cites USPSTF recommendations on screening for colorectal cancer (Ann Intern Med, 2008) and USPSTF-sponsored effectiveness analysis of colorectal cancer screening by Pignone et al. (Ann Intern Med, 2002); cites AHRQ-funded systematic literature review of literacy and health outcomes by DeWalt et al. (J Gen Intern Med, 2004).] Select to access the abstract.

Journal of the American Academy of Physicians Assistants
Essary AC, Clinical and Scientific Affairs Council of the AAPA. Oral health: caring for primary care patients. JAAPA 2011 May; 24(5):27-8. [Cites USPSTF recommendation statement, Prevention of Dental Caries in Preschool Children, 2004.]

Military Medicine
Jaboori KA, Domagalski JE, Eckert LD, et al. Colonoscopy by a family physician: detecting proximal neoplasia in asymptomatic adults. Mil Med 2011 May; 176(5):573-7. [Cites USPSTF recommendations on screening for colorectal cancer and associated evidence review (both in Ann Intern Med, 2008).] Select to access the abstract.

Radiology
Zuurbier RA. Omissions of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. Radiology 2011 Apr; 259(1):305; author reply, 305-6. [Comments on USPSTF-sponsored article by Petitti et al. (Radiology, 2010) and cites About the USPSTF on the USPSTF Web site; author reply also cites U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) Procedure Manual: Section 1—Overview of U.S. Preventive Services Task Force Structure and Processes, 2008, as published on the USPSTF Web site.]

Evidence-based Practice Centers-Related Articles

Health Affairs
Woodruff TJ, Sutton P, Navigation Guide Work Group. An evidence-based medicine methodology to bridge the gap between clinical and environmental health sciences. Health Aff 2011 May; 30(5):931-7. [Notes that the establishment of AHRQ exemplifies the "timely incorporation of scientific evidence into clinical care to improve health outcomes [that] has long been a goal in the clinical arena" and notes the adoption of the GRADE system by AHRQ and other organizations; cites AHRQ Evidence Report/Technology Assessment, Systems to Rate the Strength of Scientific Evidence, 2002, and AHRQ publication, Patient Safety and Quality: An Evidence-based Handbook for Nurses, 2008.] Select to access the abstract.

Journal of Clinical Epidemiology
Shamliyan TA, Kane RL, Ansari MT, et al. Development quality criteria to evaluate nontherapeutic studies of incidence, prevalence, or risk factors of chronic diseases: pilot study of new checklists. J Clin Epidemiol 2011 Jun; 64(6):637-57. [Supported by contract 290-02-0009; notes collaboration with experts from the EPCs; cites AHRQ Evidence Report/Technology Assessments, Prevention of Urinary and Fecal Incontinence in Adults, 2007 (prepared by the Minnesota EPC under same contract), Post-Myocardial Infarction Depression, 2005 (prepared by the John Hopkins University EPC), Manifestations and Management of Chronic Insomnia in Adults, 2005 (prepared by the University of Alberta EPC), Preventing Violence and Related Health-Risking Social Behaviors in Adolescents, 2004 (prepared by the Southern California EPC), Diagnosis and Treatment of Coronary Heart Disease in Women; Systematic Reviews of Evidence on Selected Topics, 2003 (prepared by the University of California San Francisco-Stanford EPC), and Systems to Rate the Strength of Scientific Evidence, 2002 (prepared by the Research Triangle Institute-University of North Carolina EPC); cites AHRQ-funded articles by Atkins (former AHRQ researcher) et al. (BMC Health Serv Res, 2005 and 2004).] Select to access the abstract.

Journal of the National Cancer Institute
Mai PL, Garceau AO, Graubard BI, et al. Confirmation of family cancer history reported in a population-based survey. J Natl Cancer Inst 2011 May 18; 103(10):788-97. [Cites AHRQ Evidence Report/Technology Assessments, Collection and Use of Cancer Family History in Primary Care, 2007, and Family History and Improving Health, 2009; cites USPSTF publication, Guide to Clinical Preventive Services on the USPSTF Web site.] Select to access the abstract.

Medical Care Research and Review
Furukawa MF, Raghu TS, Shao BB. Electronic medical records, nurse staffing, and nurse-sensitive patient outcomes: evidence from the National Database of Nursing Quality Indicators. Med Care Res Rev 2011 Jun; 68(3):311-31. [Cites AHRQ-funded systematic review of the impact of health information technology on quality, efficiency, and costs of medical care (Ann Intern Med, 2006) prepared by the Southern California EPC; cites AHRQ publications, Advances in Patient Safety: New Directions and Alternative Approaches, 2008, and Patient Safety and Quality: An Evidence-based Handbook for Nurses, 2008.] Select to access the abstract.

[Also refer to articles by Zerzan, Gibson, and Libby (Acad Med, 2011), Dy et al. (BMJ Qual Saf, 2011), and Taylor et al. (BMJ Qual Saf, 2011) cited in AHRQ-Funded/Authored Articles and article by Miller et al. (Am J Prev Med, 2011) cited in U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF)/Put Prevention Into Practice (PPIP)-Related Articles.

National Healthcare Quality Report (NHQR)/National Healthcare Disparities Report (NHDR)-Related Articles

Pediatric Emergency Medicine Reports
Knepel S, Aemisegger A. Pediatric drowning. Pediatr Emerg Med Rep 2011 Jun. [Cites AHRQ's National Healthcare Disparities Report, 2007.]

Research by Others Using AHRQ Data or Products

Academic Medicine
Mickelsen S, McNeil R, Parikh P, et al. Reduced resident "code blue" experience in the era of quality improvement: new challenges in physician training. Acad Med 2011 Jun; 86(6):726-30. [Uses "national data using International Classification of Diseases codes associated with resuscitation procedures…derived from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) online database," citing the AHRQ Web site (data is presumed to be from AHRQ's HCUP Nationwide Inpatient Sample (NIS).] Select to access the abstract.

BMC Health Services Research
Ward JK, McEachan RR, Lawton R, et al. Patient involvement in patient safety: protocol for developing an intervention using patient reports of organisational safety and patient incident reporting. BMC
Health Serv Res 2011 May 27;11(1):130. [Epub ahead of print. Uses AHRQ's Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture; mentions CAHPS® and cites AHRQ-authored article by Goldstein et al. (Health Serv Res, 2005) which describes the CAHPS® hospital survey development process.] Select to access the abstract.

Clinical Oncology
Wright F, Spithoff K, Easson A, et al. Primary excision margins and sentinel lymph node biopsy in clinically node-negative melanoma of the trunk or extremities. Clin Oncol 2011 May 21. [Epub ahead of print. Uses AHRQ's National Guideline Clearinghouse™ to identify relevant guidelines.] Select to access the abstract.

General Hospital Psychiatry
Vyas A, Sambamoorthi U. Multimorbidity and depression treatment. Gen Hosp Psychiatry 2011 May-Jun;33(3):238-45. [Uses 2007 MEPS data.] Select to access the abstract.

Health Affairs
Sheffield P, Roy A, Wong K, et al. Fine particulate matter pollution linked to respiratory illness in infants and increased hospital costs. Health Aff 2011 May; 30(5): 871-8. [Uses 1999-2007 HCUP NIS data merged with data from EPA's Air Quality System.] Select to access the abstract.

Journal of Family and Economic Issues
Witt WP, Litzelman K, Mandic CG, et al. Healthcare-related financial burden among families in the U.S.: the role of childhood activity limitations and income. J Fam Econ Issues 2011 Jun 1; 32(2):308-26. [Uses 1996-2006 MEPS data, citing MEPS HC-097: 2005 Full Year Consolidated Data File, MEPS Data Documentation, published on AHRQ's MEPS Web site.]

Journal of Thoracic Oncology
Chi A, Liao Z, Nguyen NP, et al. Intensity-modulated radiotherapy after extrapleural pneumonectomy in the combined-modality treatment of malignant pleural mesothelioma. J Thorac Oncol 2011 Jun; 6(6):1132-41. [Uses AHRQ's National Guideline Clearinghouse™ to identify relevant guidelines.] Select to access the abstract.

Medical Care Research and Review
Shwartz M, Cohen AB, Restuccia JD, et al. How well can we identify the high-performing hospital? Med Care Res Rev 2011 Jun; 68(3):290-310. [Uses AHRQ's Inpatient Quality Indicators, 2007, Hospital CAHPS (HCAHPS) data/measures on patient satisfaction, and AHRQ's Elixhauser comorbidity measures (Elixhauser, et al. Med Care, 1998).] Select to access the abstract.

Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal
Singleton RJ, Holman RC, Wenger J, et al. Trends in hospitalization for empyema in Alaska native children younger than 10 years of age. Pediatr Infect Dis J 2010 Dec 15. [Epub ahead of print. Uses 1998-2007 HCUP NIS data, citing NIS Database Documentation, as published on AHRQ's HCUP Web site.] Select to access the abstract.

Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
Chung KC, Noone RB, Directors of the American Board of Plastic Surgery. Adherence to practice guidelines based on American Board of Plastic Surgery Maintenance of Certification data. Plast Reconstr Surg 2011 May;127(5):2101-7. [Uses AHRQ's National Guideline Clearinghouse™ to identify relevant guidelines. Also refer to articles by Carey and Sefos (Health Care Manag Sci, 2011) and by Bernard, Farr, and Fang (J Clin Oncol, 2011), both cited in AHRQ-Funded/Authored Articles.] Select to access the abstract.

Current as of June 2011

Internet Citation:

Articles of Interest, June 3, 2011. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, MD. http://www.ahrq.gov/news/articles/art060311.htm