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Researchers determined that patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) present with significant Aqueduct of Sylvius enlargement over time, which may be attributable to regional atrophy changes and ex vacuo expansion of the aqueduct, according to a study recently published in Fluids and Barriers of the CNS.

Three standards—Direct, Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR), and cloud fax—all hold promise for helping healthcare organizations more easily share information.

Researchers discovered a link between circadian clock disturbances in pancreatic cells and type 2 diabetes (T2D), according a study published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

New targeted therapies like ibrutinib, idelalisib, and venetoclax appear to be highly successful in the treatment of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), but investigators say it’s unclear how those therapies impact autoimmune complications of the cancer.

Infectious disease experts at the University of Maryland School of Medicine recently warned there is an urgent need for the administration of influenza vaccines among detainees at the southern border.

The FDA launched a mobile-friendly, interactive database providing information on eligible HIV antiretroviral treatments available; an HIV vaccine trial by Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center ended after failing to provide protection from the virus; New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy established a coronavirus task force to manage the state’s preparedness and response to the virus.

A transcriptome-wide association study found 106 genes that may point to the pathogenesis of age-related macular degeneration, according to results recently published in Scientific Reports.

Using a deep learning–based model to characterize sleep staging, researchers were able to accurately and automatically detect patients with and without obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), but accuracy decreased with increasing OSA severity, according to study findings.

Electronic medical record data showed migraine is associated with a systematic increase in morbidity across the spectrum of the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10), according to a recently published study in The Journal of Headache and Pain.

Cancer cells present in skin lesions resulting from mycosis fungoides originate from the blood, disproving previously held hypotheses regarding the disease’s pathogenesis, according to a study published in the American Society of Hematology’s Blood.

Antiretroviral treatment (ART) is the regimen mainstay for everyone who has HIV, irrespective of infection duration. More than twice as many options for ART were available in 2018 as were offered in 2012—but this did not equal cheaper prices. Between 2012 and 2018, the average wholesale price for initial ART jumped 34% for most people with HIV.

The US declares a public health emergency over the coronavirus outbreak; the FDA approves the first treatment for peanut allergy in children, sold as Palforzia; the Trump administration rejects California's healthcare tax on managed care organizations.

The authors noted that pregnant women are typically excluded from clinical trials investigating the safety and tolerability of HIV medications.

The case study involved a 61-year-old obese Caucasian male with a medical history of smoking, hypertension, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and sleep apnea who initially presented to the hematology clinic with polycythemia.

Although arterial stiffness in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) increases over time, a greater annual increase may be associated with the severity of emphysema, systemic inflammation, and dyslipidemia, according to study findings.

Migraine was the most common type of headache in patients with hyperprolactinemia.

This week's paper from our editors-in-chief presented the idea of tying a prescription drug's cost-sharing to its clinical value to the patient.

Medicare beneficiaries with untreated obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) have increased healthcare utilization (HCU) and costs across all points of service, according to results of a recent study published by the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine.

“The course of history shows that as government grows, liberty decreases.” --Thomas Jefferson

This week, top managed care stories included a new plan for Medicaid block grants; federal officials’ response to the novel coronavirus; FDA offers guidance for gene therapies.

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

The incidence of open globe injuries decreased in the US from 2006 to 2014, according to a recent study published in JAMA Ophthalmology.

Results come at the decision point for practices: Will it be 1-sided or 2-sided risk?

A. Mark Fendrick, MD, director of the Center for Value-Based Insurance Design (V-BID) at the University of Michigan and co-editor-in-chief of The American Journal of Managed Care®, and Suzanne F. Delbanco, PhD, executive director of Catalyst for Payment Reform, discuss V-BID X for employers, a plan constructed through benefit-design and payment reform that works to promote high-value services and deter low-value care.

Three proteasome inhibitors (PIs) are approved for patients with multiple myeloma (MM): Bortezomib, a first-in class PI, fights both newly diagnosed and relapsed/refractory MM (RRMM); carfilzomib, a next-generation PI, treats RRMM as both a monotherapy and in combination; and ixazomib, the first oral PI, treats RRMM in combination. PIs work by preventing the proteasomes in cancerous plasma cells from “recycling” what is essentially garbage protein.

The World Health Organization issued a global health emergency over coronavirus; a judge orders Johnson & Johnson to pay hundreds of millions in a pelvic mesh suit; the House of Representatives passes a ban on fentanyl look-alikes.

For the first time since 2007, the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) issued a report on maternal mortality, which they define as any death that occurs while a woman is pregnant or within 42 days following the termination of the pregnancy. NCHS also released reports on life expectancy and mortality for 2018.

The drug-shock strategy was more effective for patients experiencing atrial fibrillation for the first time and for patients younger than 70 years, the researchers said.