Hospital Medicine Alert – September 1, 2014
September 1, 2014
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Discontinuity of Care Is Associated with Increased Hospital Cost
This study demonstrated an association between increased discontinuity of physician care in the inpatient setting and increased hospital costs at a tertiary care center. -
PEG and J-tube Placement Is Associated with High In-hospital Mortality
Percutaneous gastrostomy (PEG) and jejunostomy (J) tubes are utilized in hospital practice for medical or surgical patients in whom oral nutrition is either inadequate to meet caloric needs or unsafe as a result of structural or functional abnormality. -
Why Is the Hospitalization Rate for Patients with Atrial Fibrillation Increasing?
Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common sustained cardiac arrhythmia and has been the leading arrhythmic cause for hospitalization. With an increasing trend toward outpatient care of subacute illness, it is possible that the AF hospitalization rate is stable or decreasing despite the aging population. -
Atrial Fibrillation and Cryptogenic Stroke: Important New Information
Ischemic stroke remains a leading cause of death worldwide, and atrial fibrillation is a major risk factor, increasing the risk of ischemic stroke five-fold in those who have a confirmed diagnosis of atrial fibrillation. -
Delaying Initiation of Antiretroviral Therapy for Cryptococcal Meningitis Improves Survival
HIV-infected patients diagnosed with cryptococcal meningitis who received antiretroviral therapy (ART) 5 weeks after starting antifungal therapy had improved survival at 26 weeks compared to similar patients who received ART at 1-2 weeks (45% vs 30%, respectively, P=0.03).