Hypertension and Polycystic Ovary Syndrome Among Women in a Nationwide Electronic Health Records Dataset in the United States.

Introduction: Both hypertension and polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) are risk factors for future cardiovascular diseases among women of reproductive age (18-44 years). We constructed an electronic health record (EHR)-based PCOS phenotype, reported PCOS prevalence, and investigated the association of PCOS and hypertension in the United States (US).

Methods: This cross-sectional study used 2022 IQVIA's Ambulatory Electronic Medical Record (AEMR)-US data (May 2023 release).

Association Between Fixed-Dose Combination Use and Medication Adherence, Health Care Utilization, and Costs Among Medicaid Beneficiaries.

Background: Fixed-dose combination (FDC) antihypertensives combine two or more agents. Compared with non-FDC antihypertensives of multiple classes (multi-pill therapy), combination-pill therapy using FDC antihypertensives may improve hypertension control. However, combination-pill therapy remains low.

Association of US Nativity and Length of US Residence With Cardiometabolic Risk Factors, by Disaggregated Race and Ethnicity.

Background: The prevalence of cardiometabolic risk factors may vary by disaggregated race and ethnicity categories, and by acculturation-related factors. We evaluated the association between nativity and length of US residence, and prevalence of diabetes, hypertension, and hypercholesterolemia by select disaggregated race and ethnicity groups.

Methods: We conducted a pooled cross-sectional study of 218 158 US adults from the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (2013-2022).

Trends in Pediatric Blood Pressure-Lowering Prescription Fills During 2017-2023.

Introduction: There are no national estimates for blood pressure-lowering prescription trends among the U.S. pediatric population.

Blood Pressure-Elevating and Antihypertensive Medication Prescription Trends.

Background: Many medications can have blood pressure (BP)-elevating effects, which might negatively impact BP control among people with hypertension. This study examines trends in prescription fills for BP-elevating and antihypertensive medications, individually and concurrently, among US individuals.

Methods: Quarterly trends of individual and concurrent fills for BP-elevating and antihypertensive medications were reported using the nationwide sample from IQVIA's Total Patient Tracker database, covering 94% of all retail prescription fills in the United States.

Health Care Use and Expenditures Associated With Cardiac Rehabilitation Among Eligible Medicare Fee-for-Service Beneficiaries.

Background: Cardiac rehabilitation (CR) can improve cardiovascular health. We identified whether CR participation was associated with fewer subsequent inpatient hospitalizations and emergency department visits and less Medicare and out-of-pocket expenditures, and whether outcomes varied by amount of participation.

Methods: This retrospective study used Medicare fee-for-service claims data, including beneficiaries with a CR-qualifying event in 2016.

Weighted EHR-based prevalence estimates for hypertension at the state and local levels in Louisiana.

Background: Modernization of public health data systems is a national priority. Improved chronic disease surveillance can provide more timely, accurate, and local measures to inform public health policy and intervention. Although electronic health record (EHR) data have great potential for surveillance, population coverage is non-random, which may result in biased estimates.

Hospital-level variation in cardiac rehabilitation metrics.

Background: To inform the delivery of cardiac rehabilitation (CR) care nationwide at the hospital level, we described hospital-level variation in CR metrics, overall and stratified by the hospital's tier of cardiac care provided.

Methods: This retrospective cohort analysis used Medicare fee-for-service (FFS) data (2018-2020), Parts A and B, and American Hospital Association (AHA) data (2018). We included beneficiaries with an acute myocardial infarction (AMI), percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), or coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) in 2018, aged ≥65 years, and continuously enrolled in a FFS plan.

Antihypertensive Medication Adherence and Medical Costs, Health Care Use, and Labor Productivity Among People With Hypertension.

Background: Hypertension affects nearly half of US adults yet remains inadequately controlled in over three-quarters of these cases. This study aimed to assess the association between adherence to antihypertensive medications and total medical costs, health care use, and productivity-related outcomes.

Methods And Results: We conducted cross-sectional analyses using MarketScan databases, which included individuals aged 18 to 64 years with noncapitated health insurance plans in 2019.

Cardiovascular Disease Mortality Trends, 2010-2022: An Update with Final Data.

Introduction: Age-adjusted mortality rates (AAMR) for cardiovascular diseases (CVD) increased in 2020 and 2021, and provisional data indicated an increase in 2022, resulting in substantial excess CVD deaths during the COVID-19 pandemic. Updated estimates using final data for 2022 are needed.

Methods: The National Vital Statistics System's final Multiple Cause of Death files were analyzed in 2024 to calculate AAMR from 2010 to 2022 and excess deaths from 2020 to 2022 for U.

Hypertension-Associated Expenditures Among Privately Insured US Adults in 2021.

Background: There are no recent estimates for hypertension-associated medical expenditures. This study aims to estimate hypertension-associated incremental medical expenditures among privately insured US adults.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study using IQVIA's Ambulatory Electronic Medical Records-US data set linked with PharMetrics Plus claims data.

Impact of State Telehealth Parity Laws for Private Payers on Hypertension Medication Adherence Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Background: Telehealth has emerged as an effective tool for managing common chronic conditions such as hypertension, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the impact of state telehealth payment and coverage parity laws on hypertension medication adherence remains uncertain.

Methods: Data from the 2016 to 2021 Merative MarketScan Commercial Claims and Encounters Database were used to construct the study cohort, which included nonpregnant individuals aged 25 to 64 years with hypertension.

Pediatric Lipid Screening Prevalence Using Nationwide Electronic Medical Records.

Importance: Universal screening to identify unfavorable lipid levels is recommended for US children aged 9 to 11 years and adolescents aged 17 to 21 years (hereafter, young adults); however, screening benefits in these individuals have been questioned. Current use of lipid screening and prevalence of elevated lipid measurements among US youths is not well understood.

Objective: To investigate the prevalence of ambulatory pediatric lipid screening and elevated or abnormal lipid measurements among US screened youths by patient characteristic and test type.

Preventive Service Usage and New Chronic Disease Diagnoses: Using PCORnet Data to Identify Emerging Trends, United States, 2018-2022.

Background: Data modernization efforts to strengthen surveillance capacity could help assess trends in use of preventive services and diagnoses of new chronic disease during the COVID-19 pandemic, which broadly disrupted health care access.

Methods: This cross-sectional study examined electronic health record data from US adults aged 21 to 79 years in a large national research network (PCORnet), to describe use of 8 preventive health services (N = 30,783,825 patients) and new diagnoses of 9 chronic diseases (N = 31,588,222 patients) during 2018 through 2022. Joinpoint regression assessed significant trends, and health debt was calculated comparing 2020 through 2022 volume to prepandemic (2018 and 2019) levels.

Validation of Multi-State EHR-Based Network for Disease Surveillance (MENDS) Data and Implications for Improving Data Quality and Representativeness.

Introduction: Surveillance modernization efforts emphasize the potential use of electronic health record (EHR) data to inform public health surveillance and prevention. However, EHR data streams vary widely in their completeness, accuracy, and representativeness.

Methods: We developed a validation process for the Multi-State EHR-Based Network for Disease Surveillance (MENDS) pilot project to identify and resolve data quality issues that could affect chronic disease prevalence estimates.

MENDS-on-FHIR: leveraging the OMOP common data model and FHIR standards for national chronic disease surveillance.

Objectives: The Multi-State EHR-Based Network for Disease Surveillance (MENDS) is a population-based chronic disease surveillance distributed data network that uses institution-specific extraction-transformation-load (ETL) routines. MENDS-on-FHIR examined using Health Language Seven's Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (HL7 FHIR) and US Core Implementation Guide (US Core IG) compliant resources derived from the Observational Medical Outcomes Partnership (OMOP) Common Data Model (CDM) to create a standards-based ETL pipeline.

Materials And Methods: The input data source was a research data warehouse containing clinical and administrative data in OMOP CDM Version 5.

Long-term cardiovascular disease outcomes in non-hospitalized medicare beneficiaries diagnosed with COVID-19: Population-based matched cohort study.

Background: SARS-CoV2, the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), can affect multiple human organs structurally and functionally, including the cardiovascular system and brain. Many studies focused on the acute effects of COVID-19 on risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and stroke especially among hospitalized patients with limited follow-up time. This study examined long-term mortality, hospitalization, CVD and stroke outcomes after non-hospitalized COVID-19 among Medicare fee-for-service (FFS) beneficiaries in the United States.

County-Level Cardiac Rehabilitation and Broadband Availability: Opportunities for Hybrid Care in the United States.

Purpose: Cardiac rehabilitation (CR) improves patient outcomes and quality of life and can be provided virtually through hybrid CR. However, little is known about CR availability in conjunction with broadband access, a requirement for hybrid CR. This study examined the intersection of CR and broadband availability at the county level, nationwide.

Type 1 Diabetes Genetic Risk in 109,954 Veterans With Adult-Onset Diabetes: The Million Veteran Program (MVP).

Objective: To characterize high type 1 diabetes (T1D) genetic risk in a population where type 2 diabetes (T2D) predominates.

Research Design And Methods: Characteristics typically associated with T1D were assessed in 109,594 Million Veteran Program participants with adult-onset diabetes, 2011-2021, who had T1D genetic risk scores (GRS) defined as low (0 to <45%), medium (45 to <90%), high (90 to <95%), or highest (≥95%).

Results: T1D characteristics increased progressively with higher genetic risk (P < 0.

Telehealth use during the early COVID-19 public health emergency and subsequent health care costs and utilization.

Telehealth utilization increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, yet few studies have documented associations of telehealth use with subsequent medical costs and health care utilization. We examined associations of telehealth use during the early COVID-19 public health emergency (March-June 2020) with subsequent total medical costs and health care utilization among people with heart disease (HD). We created a longitudinal cohort of individuals with HD using MarketScan Commercial Claims data (2018-2022).

Relationship Between Ultra-Processed and Minimally Processed Food Intake and Cardiovascular Health Among US Women of Reproductive Age.

Ultra-processed food (UPF) intake is associated with worse cardiovascular health (CVH), but associations between unprocessed/minimally processed foods (MPFs) and CVH are limited, especially among women of reproductive age (WRA). For 5,773 WRA (20-44 years) in National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2007-2018, we identified UPFs and MPFs using the Nova classification and based on 24-hour dietary recalls. We calculated usual percentages of calories from UPFs and MPFs using the National Cancer Institute's usual intake method.