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Dapagliflozin, sold by AstraZeneca as Farxiga, cut the risk of cardiovascular (CV) death and worsening of heart failure (HF) by 26% among patients with reduced ejection fraction alongside standard of care, according to results of a landmark phase 3 study presented Sunday at the European Society of Cardiology 2019 Congress. Results confirmed that the sodium glucose co-transporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitor, already approved to treat type 2 diabetes (T2D), is just as effective in preventing CV death and HF events in patients who do not have T2D.

Data in the real-world study included a large share of patients over the age of 80, who are representative of those doctors see in clinical practice.

Coverage from the European Society of Cardiology 2019 Congress in Paris, France.

Patients with lower neutrophil counts had similar reductions in pneumonia, regardless of whether their treatment contained or did not contain inhaled corticosteroids.

Here are the top 5 articles for the month of August.

The relationship between cognitive impairment and symptomatic convergence insufficiency in Parkinsonian disorders has not been previously investigated.

Researchers said that the results reveal a need for future studies in order to obtain a better understanding of the migraine-dementia relationship and how the relationship varies between the sexes.

Unlike cancers common in adults, childhood cancers are unlikely to be prevented by screening.

The findings, coming from data on more than 900 patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, indicate that as depression severity increased, so did the odds of landing in the hospital.

While the results are early, if further research proves the approach effective, it could help boost the impact of treatments like chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy, which to date hasn’t had much luck in solid tumors.

Diabetic retinopathy costs the United States $6.2 billion a year. Better screening techniques that can catch neurodegeneration at earlier stages have the potential to cut costs and improve quality of life for patients.

Coverage of our peer-reviewed research and news reporting in the healthcare and mainstream press.

Patients with multiple myeloma (MM) who had disease progression on multiple therapies may benefit from treatment with the oral therapies selinexor and dexamethasone.

Maine wants to take more control over its Affordable Care Act marketplace; Surgeon General Jerome Adams, MD, MPH, has issued an advisory against marijuana use in young people and pregnant people; the FDA is warning of rare occurrences of serious liver injury from use of 3 hepatitis C virus (HCV) drugs.

This week, the top managed care stories included a huge ruling against one opioid maker and a settlement offer from another; an expert panel calling for broader screening for hepatitis C; a review showing there are more fatal events linked to a multiple sclerosis drug than previously known.

Postmenopausal women who undergo 5 years of menopausal hormone therapy, starting at age 50, showed a significant increase in breast cancer incidence, and can remain at risk for more than a decade.

The National Psoriasis Foundation is working to get laws to curb to step therapy practices at the state level.

The researchers, who used autopsy reports of 252 people who died of AIDS in New York City between 1984 and 2016, found that infections associated with the virus are still the leading cause of death for the patient population in the state.

Shuttering startups has serious implications for the healthcare industry, with increasing closure rates discouraging further innovation that the industry, and especially consumers, still need and want.

Using a body-worn sensor to detect falls at home is feasible for elderly individuals, including those with Parkinson disease, who have a higher risk of falling, according to new study findings.

A new government analysis revealed that despite a previous warning, CMS failed to take steps to ensure that Medicare Part D does not also pay for drugs that should be covered under the Part A hospice benefit; with studies of antidepressants’ safety and efficacy only following patients for a few years and with more people taking antidepressants for longer periods of time, health professionals are concerned that some people taking the drugs for extended periods shouldn’t be and are thus subjecting themselves to side effects and potential health risks; Medicaid advocates in Nebraska have filed a lawsuit to try and force the state to implement Medicaid expansion no later than November 17, 2019.

Here are 5 interesting findings from the August 2019 issue of AJMC®.

The authors said their finding that preventive medications for migraine might be underutilized surprised them, given that guidelines for migraine prevention exist in the United States, Canada, and Europe.

Coverage from the July 11, 2019, meeting of the Institute for Value-Based Medicine®, an initiative of The American Journal of Managed Care®. The meeting took place in Arlington, Virginia.

Researchers identified a new gene mutation that impacts an individual’s sleep necessity and wakefulness.

Purdue Pharma is offering up to $12 billion to settle lawsuits over its role in the opioid epidemic; the US Preventive Services Task Force is aiming to expand its hepatitis C virus (HCV) screening recommendations to include all adults aged 18 to 79 years; the majority of Democratic voters would be more likely to support a candidate that backs a single-payer health system like Medicare for All.

Dapagliflozin’s fast track designation follows findings from last year’s DECLARE-TIMI trial, a cardiovascular outcomes trial that showed the drug’s significant impact on delaying the loss of kidney function and reducing hospitalization risk for heart failure.

New and effective antibiotics are rarely prescribed in carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) infections, which are a family of the most drug-resistant bacteria.