JAMA network open
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Relapse to smoking among former smokers is a serious clinical concern, and use of electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) has been proposed as a new risk factor for relapse. Understanding the specificity of this risk can help guide clinical practice and lead to improved health outcomes. ⋯ In this study, use of ENDS and other tobacco products was associated with increased risk of cigarette smoking relapse among former cigarette smokers who did not use any tobacco product at wave 1 of the PATH Study. For clinicians treating former smokers who have successfully quit all nicotine products, the implications are that use of ENDS products should be discouraged, just as use of all other tobacco products is discouraged.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Effect of Colchicine vs Standard Care on Cardiac and Inflammatory Biomarkers and Clinical Outcomes in Patients Hospitalized With Coronavirus Disease 2019: The GRECCO-19 Randomized Clinical Trial.
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection has evolved into a global pandemic. Low-dose colchicine combines anti-inflammatory action with a favorable safety profile. ⋯ In this randomized clinical trial, participants who received colchicine had statistically significantly improved time to clinical deterioration. There were no significant differences in high-sensitivity cardiac troponin or C-reactive protein levels. These findings should be interpreted with caution.
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Social determinants of health, such as income, education, housing quality, and employment, are associated with disparities in Alzheimer disease and health generally, yet these determinants are rarely incorporated within neuropathology research. ⋯ The findings of this cross-sectional study suggest that social determinants of health data can be linked to preexisting autopsy samples as a means to study sociobiological mechanisms involved in neuropathology. This novel technique has the potential to be applied to any brain bank within the United States. To our knowledge, this is the first time Alzheimer disease neuropathology has been associated with neighborhood disadvantage.
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Direct-acting antiviral (DAA) therapy for hepatitis C is highly effective but expensive. Evidence is scarce on whether DAA therapy reduces downstream medical costs. ⋯ This study reported that DAA therapy appeared to be associated with a decrease in hepatitis C or liver disease-related costs for 30 months after treatment and with reduction in total medical costs for only 12 months after treatment in patients with or without cirrhosis. Longer-term follow-up studies with diverse outcomes are necessary to assess the value of DAA therapy.
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Use of effective contraception decreases unintended pregnancy. It is not known whether Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act increased use of contraception for women who are underserved in the US health care safety net. ⋯ In this study, Medicaid expansion was associated with an increase in use of long-acting reversible contraceptive methods among women at risk of pregnancy seeking care in the US safety net system, and gains were greatest among adolescents.