Latest Conference Articles

As the American Heart Association (AHA) rolls out its new hypertension guidelines, it has developed a 2-pronged approach for how to get the message out and drive awareness about the new guidelines and recommended lifestyle changes, explained Mary Ann Bauman, MD, of AHA.

We need to educate both the public and providers on medication-assisted treatment and understand that it is not substituting one drug for another, said Frank James, MD, JD, of American Society of Addiction Medicine.

Documenting when a patient falls outside of a recommended pathway has the dual benefits of improving the algorithm and helping a provider get reimbursed faster, explained Torrie K. Fields, MPH, senior program manager of Palliative Care Program Design & Implementation for Blue Shield of California.

Workload, work-life integration, and flexibility in daily work are among the factors that can exacerbate or cause clinician burnout, said Barbara Balik, EdD, MS, RN, Co-Founder, Aefina Partners; Senior Faculty, Institute of Healthcare Improvement.

The evolution of the navigator role has been an important development in cancer care, according to panelists who offered various perspectives on helping patients along the cancer journey.

The biggest challenge of implementing behavioral interventions to improve care for patients with cardiovascular disease is reimbursement models, said Justin Bachmann, MD, MPH, FACC, Cardiologist and Clinical Investigator, Instructor of Medicine and Health Policy, Vanderbilt University Medical Center.

High chemotherapy costs are only one reason for the rising cost of cancer care. End-of-life care and hospitalizations are within an oncologist's control and must be better managed given new reimbursement structures.

When shifting to the value-based care model, organizations should do a few things at a time instead of trying to do too much as once, said Dr Mark Friedberg, MD, MPP, Senior Natural Scientist, Director, Boston Office, RAND Corporation.

The new hypertension guidelines made major changes to the classification of blood pressure, in general, and changed the name of one category to convey more importance, explained Robert Carey, MD, MACP, professor of medicine and dean emeritus at the University of Virginia.

Reimbursement policy has been a driver of change in the way hospitals handle heart failure patients.

The findings, presented at the 2017 American Heart Association Scientific Sessions, suggest that a "precision medicine" approach to tailoring adherence strategies to individual patients may be needed, according to the study's lead author.

Recent results from a team-based, scalable intervention to promote medication adherence highlighted that the relationship between adherence and clinical outcomes is not always clear cut, said Niteesh Choudhry, MD, PhD, associate professor at Harvard Medical School.

The outcomes in the COMPASS trial of rivaroxaban to treat patients with peripheral artery disease have been very positive, and a new analysis has looked at the cost impact of bringing the drug to market, explained Andre Lamy, MD, MHSc, FRSC, a cardiac surgeon with the Population Health Research Institute in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.

It is important to treat addiction as a chronic disease and to address the stigmatization of both the addiction and the treatments we have available to treat it, said Dr Frank James, MD, JD, of American Society of Addiction Medicine.

The analysis presented at the American Heart Association looks strictly at healthcare costs, but a broader cost-effectiveness study is planned that will consider drug costs as well as effect on patient quality of life.

Researchers presenting at the American Heart Association look at specific populations within 2 large diabetes drug trials, CANVAS and EMPA-REG OUTCOME.

The time a patient is in a doctor's office represents a very small window of the body normally, which makes out-of-office blood pressure measurements important to confirm diagnosis of hypertension, explained Paul Whelton, MD, MSc, professor of global public health at Tulane University.

The chair of the guidelines committee said just because it's hard to change diet and exercise habits doesn't mean doctors and patients shouldn't try.

Results from higher-risk subgroups could help clinicians target this cholesterol-fighting therapy to patients who most need it, authors of one abstract say.

The EMPA-REG trial has been a big step forward for clinicians being able to put patients with type 2 diabetes onto treatment that also reduces cardiovascular disease risk, which is the primary cause of death in these patients, explained Eliot A. Brinton, MD, FAHA, FNLA, president of the Utah Lipid Center.

Most studies on the potential of marijuana, classic hallucinogens, 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine, and ketamine have been small with methodological flaws, but the promising results from existing studies suggest that larger studies are warranted, said William M. Suavé, MD, medical director, Greenbrook TMS NeuroHealth Centers, during a presentation on the therapeutic potential of illicit drugs.

During a session at the 2017 Neuroscience Education Institute (NEI) Congress, Ira D. Glick, MD, professor emeritus, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford School of Medicine, emphasized the importance of combining psychological and psychopharmacologic strategies for patients with Axis I disorders and provided guidelines for administering the combination.

Roger S. McIntyre, MD, FRCPC, professor, Departments of Psychiatry and Pharmacology, University of Toronto, and of the Head, Mood Disorders, Psychopharmacology Unit, University Health Network, discussed the contributing factors and effects of misdiagnosing or inappropriately treating patients with antidepressants.

During a session on distinguishing between bipolar disorder and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, David W. Goodman, MD, FAPA, assistant professor, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, and director and founder, Adult Attention Deficit Disorder Center of Maryland, explained that many of the symptoms for the 2 disorders overlap.

An economic analysis presented at the 2017 Neuroscience Educational Institute (NEI) Congress in Colorado Springs, Colorado, showed that pharmacogenomic testing in patients with specific psychiatric disorders can reduce the utilization of benzodiazepines.

Christi Deaton, PhD, RN, FAHA, FESC, of the University of Cambridge discusses the necessary steps for patients to take in order to prevent cardiovascular conditions.

A panel of doctors at the 2017 Neuroscience Education Institute (NEI) Congress discussed the impact of losing a patient to suicide and how they deal with it.

At the 2017 Neuroscience Education Institute (NEI) Congress, a Friday session focused on the physiology of fear and its impact on wellness. It was presented by Mary D. Moller, PhD, DNP, ARNP, PMHCNS-BC, CPRP, FAAN, associate professor, Pacific Lutheran University School of Nursing, and director of Psychiatric Services, Northwest Center for Integrated Health.