Effect of recombinant erythropoietin on hospital admissions, readmissions, length of stay, and costs of dialysis patients

To examine the effects of recombinant human erythropoietin (rHuEPO) on hospital utilization, hospital costs, and Medicare reimbursements for hospital care, a longitudinal, matched cohort study was conducted using Medicare claims data of 23,806 Medicare-eligible, dialysis patients who received rHuEPO, did not have a transplant, and were alive for 18 mo or longer and 22,720 controls matched on age, sex, race, cause of ESRD, and dialysis modality. The relative odds (rHuEPO versus control) of admission for all causes and for specific causes over 9 mo, adjusted for admission in the prior 9 mo and the per patient change in total admissions, inpatient days, hospital costs, and Medicare hospital payments between the prior 9-mo period and the subsequent 9-mo period was examined. The adjusted relative odds (95% confidence interval) of admission (rHuEPO versus control) was: higher and statistically significant for all causes, 1.08 (1.03 to 1.14); seizure, 1.52 (1.28 to 1.75); vascular access revision, 1.11 (1.06 to 1.17), and heart failure, 1.17 (1.09 to 1.26); higher but not statistically significant for angina, 1.09 (0.99 to 1.20) and stroke, 1.08 (0.86 to 1.31); and lower but not statistically significant for myocardial infarction, 0.91 (0.72 to 1.10); peripheral vascular disease, 0.81 (0.60 to 1.02); anemia, 0.86 (0.56 to 1.17); and depression, 0.89 (0.37 to 1.40). The mean change per 1,000 patients in admissions was less by 38 (P = 0.03) because of fewer readmissions, and in days was 1,309 less (P < 0.001), for patients treated with rHuEPO versus controls. The mean change per patient in hospital costs was $371 less and was statistically significant (P = 0.03) and in Medicare hospital payments was $132 less but was not statistically significant (P = 0.43) for patients treated with rHuEPO versus controls. rHuEPO was associated with an increase in the probability of hospital admission (particularly admissions potentially related to adverse effects) but a decrease in readmissions, overall admissions, hospital days, and cost to hospitals in this cohort of patients surviving for 18 mo. Although not realized short term, Medicare savings from potential rHuEPO-related reductions in hospital care may be long term through future adjustments in diagnosis-related group-based hospital payment.     

Management of allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis without maintenance oral corticosteroids: a fifteen-year follow-up

Five non-smoking patients were diagnosed as having allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis in 1978/9. All have been treated since then with inhaled corticosteroids, using short courses of self-administered oral corticosteroids for symptomatic exacerbations. Over a mean 15 years of follow-up, they have required on average less than one course of oral drugs per annum. Regular monitoring of spirometry has shown no evidence of deterioration, and all have close to normal gas transfer. All have some localized bronchiectasis on CT scanning, in two cases probably occurring after treatment started, but in no case is there any respiratory disability. We conclude that this is a safe and effective method for the management of allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis when diagnosed before persistent hyphal colonization of the airways has occurred.     

Randomized trial of the addition of gram-positive prophylaxis to standard antimicrobial prophylaxis for patients undergoing autologous bone marrow transplantation

The purpose of the study reported here was to investigate the impact of prophylaxis against gram-positive infections in patients undergoing high-dose chemotherapy and autologous bone marrow transplantation in a randomized trial. Forty-three patients undergoing high-dose chemotherapy with autologous bone marrow transplant were enrolled in a nonblinded randomized trial to receive or not to receive prophylaxis for gram-positive infections with 10(6) U of penicillin intravenously (i.v.) every 6 h (q6h) (if penicillin allergic, 750 mg of vancomycin i.v. q12h) in addition to standard antimicrobial prophylaxis with 400 mg of norfloxacin orally three times a day, 200 mg of fluconazole orally once a day, and 5 mg of acyclovir per kg of body weight i.v. q12h. The patients were being treated for germ cell cancer (n = 15), breast cancer (n = 16), Hodgkin's disease (n = 3), non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (n = 4), acute myeloid leukemia (n = 1), acute lymphoblastic leukemia (n = 1), and ovarian cancer (n = 3). The trial was stopped because of excess morbidity in the form of streptococcal septic shock in the group not receiving gram-positive prophylaxis. There were significantly fewer overall infections (10 versus 3; P = 0.016) and streptococcal infections (9 versus 1; P = 0.0078) in the group receiving gram-positive prophylaxis. There were no significant differences in the numbers of deaths, duration of broad-spectrum antibiotics, or incidence of neutropenic fever between the two groups. Prophylaxis for gram-positive infections with penicillin or vancomycin is effective in reducing the incidence of streptococcal infections in patients undergoing high-dose chemotherapy and autologous bone marrow transplant. However, this approach may carry a risk of fostering resistance among streptococci to penicillin or vancomycin.