Effectiveness of nirsevimab immunoprophylaxis against respiratory syncytial virus-related outcomes in hospital and primary care settings: a retrospective cohort study in infants in Catalonia (Spain).

BACKGROUND: In Catalonia, infants under 6 months old were eligible to receive nirsevimab, a novel monoclonal antibody against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). We aimed to analyse nirsevimab's effectiveness across primary and hospital care outcomes. METHODS: Retrospective cohort study from 1 October 2023 to 31 January 2024, including all infants born between April and September 2023. We established two cohorts based on nirsevimab administration (immunised and non-immunised). We followed individuals until the earliest moment of an outcome-RSV infection, primary care attended bronchiolitis and pneumonia, hospital emergency visits due to bronchiolitis, hospital admission or intensive care unit (ICU) admission due to RSV bronchiolitis-death or the end of the study. We used the Kaplan-Meier estimator and fitted Cox regression models using a calendar time scale to estimate HRs and their 95% CIs. RESULTS: Among 26 525 infants, a dose of nirsevimab led to an adjusted HR for hospital admission due to RSV bronchiolitis of 0.124 (95% CI: 0.086 to 0.179) and an adjusted HR for ICU admission of 0.099 (95% CI: 0.041 to 0.237). Additionally, the adjusted HRs observed for emergency visits were 0.446 (95% CI: 0.385 to 0.516) and 0.393 (95% CI: 0.203 to 0.758) for viral pneumonia, 0.519 (95% CI: 0.467 to 0.576) for bronchiolitis attended in primary care and 0.311 (95% CI: 0.200 to 0.483) for RSV infection. CONCLUSION: We demonstrated nirsevimab's effectiveness with reductions of 87.6% and 90.1% in hospital and ICU admissions, respectively. These findings offer crucial guidance for public health authorities in implementing RSV immunisation campaigns.

"Decline and uneven recovery from 7 common long-term conditions managed in the Catalan primary care after two pandemic years: an observational retrospective population-based study using primary care electronic health records".

BACKGROUND: The incidence of chronic diseases during the COVID-19 pandemic has drastically been reduced worldwide due to disruptions in healthcare systems. The aim of our study is to analyse the trends in the incidence of 7 commonly managed primary care chronic diseases during the last 2 years of the COVID-19 pandemic in Catalonia. METHODS: We performed an observational retrospective population-based study using data from primary care electronic health records from January 2018 to August 2022 (5.1 million people older than 14 years). We divided the study period into two: a pre-pandemic period (before 14 March 2020) and a pandemic period. We performed a segmented regression analysis of daily incidence rates per 100,000 inhabitants of 7 chronic diseases: type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), ischemic heart disease (IHD), heart failure (HF), hypertension and hypercholesterolemia. In addition, we compared annual incidence between pandemic years (2020, 2021 and 2022) and 2019. Associated incidence rate ratios (IRR) were also calculated. Finally, we estimated the number of expected diagnoses during the pandemic period using data from 2019 and we compared it with the observed data. RESULTS: We analysed 740,820 new chronic diseases' diagnoses. Daily incidence rates of all 7 chronic diseases were drastically interrupted on 14 March 2020, and a general upward trend was observed during the following months. Reductions in 2020 were around 30% for all conditions except COPD which had greater reductions (IRR: 0.58 [95% CI: 0.57 to 0.6]) and HF with lesser drops (IRR: 0.86 [95% CI: 0.84 to 0.88]). Some of the chronic conditions have returned to pre-pandemic diagnosis levels, except asthma, COPD and IHD. The return to pre-pandemic diagnosis levels compensated for the drops in 2020 for T2DM and HF, but not for hypertension which presented an incomplete recovery. We also observed an excess of hypercholesterolemia diagnoses of 8.5% (95%CI: 1.81% to 16.15%). CONCLUSIONS: Although primary care has recovered the pre-pandemic diagnosis levels for some chronic diseases, there are still missing diagnoses of asthma, COPD and IHD that should be addressed.

Cancer diagnosis in primary care after second pandemic year in Catalonia: a time-series analysis of primary care electronic health records covering about 5 million people.

BACKGROUND: During the COVID-19 pandemic, the incidence of chronic disease had drastically been reduced due to health care interruptions. The aim of this study is to analyse cancer diagnosis during the last 2 years of the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: Time-series study of cancer diagnoses recorded in primary care settings, using data from the primary care electronic health records from January 2014 to December 2021. We obtained the expected monthly rate per 100,000 inhabitants using a time regression adjusted by trend and seasonality. We additionally compared rates of cancer diagnoses in 2019 with those of 2020 and 2021 using the t-test. We performed the analysis globally, by sex and by type of cancer. RESULTS: In 2020, the rate of cancer diagnoses had reduced by -21% compared to 2019 (P < 0.05). Greater reductions were observed during the lockdown in early 2020 (>40%) and with some types of cancers, especially prostate and skin cancers (-29.6% and -26.9%, respectively, P < 0.05). Lung cancers presented statistically non-significant reductions in both years. Cancer diagnosis returned to expected around March 2021, and the rate in 2021 was similar to that of 2019 (overall difference of 0.21%, P = 0.967). However, an 11% reduction was still found when comparing the pandemic months of 2020-2021 with pre-pandemic months. CONCLUSIONS: Although primary care cancer diagnoses in 2021 have returned to pre-pandemic levels, missing diagnoses during the last 2 years have not been fully recovered.

Unravelling the role of the mandatory use of face covering masks for the control of SARS-CoV-2 in schools: a quasi-experimental study nested in a population-based cohort in Catalonia (Spain).

OBJECTIVE: To assess the effectiveness of mandatory use of face covering masks (FCMs) in schools during the first term of the 2021-2022 academic year. DESIGN: A retrospective population-based study. SETTING: Schools in Catalonia (Spain). POPULATION: 599 314 children aged 3-11 years attending preschool (3-5 years, without FCM mandate) and primary education (6-11 years, with FCM mandate). STUDY PERIOD: From 13 September to 22 December 2021 (before Omicron variant). INTERVENTIONS: A quasi-experimental comparison between children in the last grade of preschool (5 years old), as a control group, and children in year 1 of primary education (6 years old), as an interventional group. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Incidence of SARS-CoV-2, secondary attack rates (SARs) and effective reproductive number (R*). RESULTS: SARS-CoV-2 incidence was significantly lower in preschool than in primary education, and an increasing trend with age was observed. Six-year-old children showed higher incidence than 5 year olds (3.54% vs 3.1%; OR 1.15 (95% CI 1.08 to 1.22)) and slightly lower but not statistically significant SAR (4.36% vs 4.59%; incidence risk ratio 0.96 (95% CI 0.82 to 1.11)) and R* (0.9 vs 0.93; OR 0.96 (95% CI 0.87 to 1.09)). Results remained consistent using a regression discontinuity design and linear regression extrapolation approaches. CONCLUSIONS: We found no significant differences in SARS-CoV-2 transmission due to FCM mandates in Catalonian schools. Instead, age was the most important factor in explaining the transmission risk for children attending school.

Association between two mass-gathering outdoor events and incidence of SARS-CoV-2 infections during the fifth wave of COVID-19 in north-east Spain: A population-based control-matched analysis.

BACKGROUND: Many countries have resumed mass-gathering events like music festivals, despite the risk of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) spreading. In this study, we aimed to assess the effect of two mass-gathering outdoor events, held during a peak of SARS-CoV-2 transmission, on COVID-19 incidence. METHODS: This was a retrospective, population-based control-matched analysis. The study population included attendees to two outdoor music festivals held in Catalonia (North-East Spain). The primary objective was to compare the incidence of COVID-19 within the 3-to-10 days following the event between attendees and a population-based control group. FINDINGS: The analysis included 18,275 and 27,347 attendees to the first and second festivals, respectively, and their corresponding controls. The post-festival 7-day cumulative COVID-19 incidence among attendees and controls was 4.14% (95% CI 3.86-4.44) vs. 1.69% (1.51-1.88) for the first festival (RR 2.46; 2.16-2.80), and 2.42% (2.35-2.61) and 1.10% (0.99-1.2) for the second festival (RR 2.19; 1.92-2.51). COVID-19 incidence among immunized individuals was also two-fold higher in attendees than in controls. Previous COVID-19 infection, vaccination, and adequate mask-wearing were significantly associated with a lower risk of COVID-19 infection after the events. INTERPRETATION: Despite the proven effectiveness of preventive measures such as Ag-RDT screening, mask-wearing and vaccination, caution should be taken when holding these events during a period of high community SARS-CoV-2 transmission. FUNDING: Crowdfunding campaign YoMeCorono (https://www.yomecorono.com/) and the Generalitat de Catalunya.

Comparative effectiveness and safety of homologous two-dose ChAdOx1 versus heterologous vaccination with ChAdOx1 and BNT162b2.

Small trials have suggested that heterologous vaccination with first-dose ChAdOx1 and second-dose BNT162b2 may generate a better immune response than homologous vaccination with two doses of ChAdOx1. In this cohort analysis, we use linked data from Catalonia (Spain), where those aged <60 who received a first dose of ChAdOx1 could choose between ChAdOx1 and BNT162b2 for their second dose. Comparable cohorts were obtained after exact-matching 14,325/17,849 (80.3%) people receiving heterologous vaccination to 14,325/149,386 (9.6%) receiving homologous vaccination by age, sex, region, and date of second dose. Of these, 464 (3.2%) in the heterologous and 694 (4.8%) in the homologous groups developed COVID-19 between 1st June 2021 and 5th December 2021. The resulting hazard ratio (95% confidence interval) is 0.66 [0.59-0.74], favouring heterologous vaccination. The two groups had similar testing rates and safety outcomes. Sensitivity and negative control outcome analyses confirm these findings. In conclusion, we demonstrate that a heterologous vaccination schedule with ChAdOx1 followed by BNT162b2 was more efficacious than and similarly safe to homologous vaccination with two doses of ChAdOx1. Most of the infections in our study occurred when Delta was the predominant SARS-CoV-2 variant in Spain. These data agree with previous phase 2 randomised trials.

Comparing the Clinical Characteristics and Mortality of Residential and Non-Residential Older People with COVID-19: Retrospective Observational Study.

Nursing homes have accounted for a significant part of SARS-CoV-2 mortality, causing great social alarm. Using data collected from electronic medical records of 1,319,839 institutionalised and non-institutionalised persons ≥ 65 years, the present study investigated the epidemiology and differential characteristics between these two population groups. Our results showed that the form of presentation of the epidemic outbreak, as well as some risk factors, are different among the elderly institutionalised population with respect to those who are not. In addition to a twenty-fold increase in the rate of adjusted mortality among institutionalised individuals, the peak incidence was delayed by approximately three weeks. Having dementia was shown to be a risk factor for death, and, unlike the non-institutionalised group, neither obesity nor age were shown to be significantly associated with the risk of death among the institutionalised. These differential characteristics should be able to guide the actions to be taken by the health administration in the event of a similar infectious situation among institutionalised elderly people.

Associations of BNT162b2 vaccination with SARS-CoV-2 infection and hospital admission and death with covid-19 in nursing homes and healthcare workers in Catalonia: prospective cohort study.

OBJECTIVE: To determine associations of BNT162b2 vaccination with SARS-CoV-2 infection and hospital admission and death with covid-19 among nursing home residents, nursing home staff, and healthcare workers. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study. SETTING: Nursing homes and linked electronic medical record, test, and mortality data in Catalonia on 27 December 2020. PARTICIPANTS: 28 456 nursing home residents, 26 170 nursing home staff, and 61 791 healthcare workers. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Participants were followed until the earliest outcome (confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection, hospital admission or death with covid-19) or 26 May 2021. Vaccination status was introduced as a time varying exposure, with a 14 day run-in after the first dose. Mixed effects Cox models were fitted to estimate hazard ratios with index month as a fixed effect and adjusted for confounders including sociodemographics, comorbidity, and previous medicine use. RESULTS: Among the nursing home residents, SARS-CoV-2 infection was found in 2482, 411 were admitted to hospital with covid-19, and 450 died with covid-19 during the study period. In parallel, 1828 nursing home staff and 2968 healthcare workers were found to have SARS-CoV-2 infection, but fewer than five were admitted or died with covid-19. The adjusted hazard ratio for SARS-CoV-2 infection after two doses of vaccine was 0.09 (95% confidence interval 0.08 to 0.11) for nursing home residents, 0.20 (0.17 to 0.24) for nursing home staff, and 0.13 (0.11 to 0.16) for healthcare workers. Adjusted hazard ratios for hospital admission and mortality after two doses of vaccine were 0.05 (0.04 to 0.07) and 0.03 (0.02 to 0.04), respectively, for nursing home residents. Nursing home staff and healthcare workers recorded insufficient events for mortality analysis. CONCLUSIONS: Vaccination was associated with 80-91% reduction in SARS-CoV-2 infection in all three cohorts and greater reductions in hospital admissions and mortality among nursing home residents for up to five months. More data are needed on longer term effects of covid-19 vaccines.

Primary care in the time of COVID-19: monitoring the effect of the pandemic and the lockdown measures on 34 quality of care indicators calculated for 288 primary care practices covering about 6 million people in Catalonia.

BACKGROUND: To analyse the impact of the COVID-19 epidemic and the lockdown measures on the follow-up and control of chronic diseases in primary care. METHODS: Retrospective study in 288 primary care practices (PCP) of the Catalan Institute of Health. We analysed the results of 34 indicators of the Healthcare quality standard (EQA), comprising different types: treatment (4), follow-up (5), control (10), screening (7), vaccinations (4) and quaternary prevention (4). For each PCP, we calculated each indicator's percentage of change in February, March and April 2020 respective to the results of the previous month; and used the T-Student test for paired data to compare them with the percentage of change in the same month of the previous year. We defined indicators with a negative effect those with a greater negative change or a lesser positive change in 2020 in comparison to 2019; and indicators with a positive effect those with a greater positive change or a lesser negative change. RESULTS: We observed a negative effect on 85% of the EQA indicators in March and 68% in April. 90% of the control indicators had a negative effect, highlighting the control of LDL cholesterol with a reduction of - 2.69% (95%CI - 3.17% to - 2.23%) in March and - 3.41% (95%CI - 3.82% to - 3.01%) in April; and the control of blood pressure with a reduction of - 2.13% (95%CI - 2.34% to - 1.9%) and - 2.59% (95%CI - 2.8% to - 2.37%). The indicators with the greatest negative effect were those of screening, such as the indicator of diabetic foot screening with a negative effect of - 2.86% (95%CI - 3.33% to - 2.39%) and - 4.13% (95%CI - 4.55% to - 3.71%) in March and April, respectively. Only one vaccination indicator, adult Measles-Mumps-Rubella vaccine, had a negative effect in both months. Finally, among the indicators of quaternary prevention, we observed negative effects in March and April although in that case a lower inadequacy that means better clinical outcome. CONCLUSIONS: The COVID-19 epidemic and the lockdown measures have significantly reduced the results of the follow-up, control, screening and vaccination indicators for patients in primary care. On the other hand, the indicators for quaternary prevention have been strengthened and their results have improved.

Primary Care Doctor Characteristics That Determine the Use of Teleconsultations in the Catalan Public Health System: Retrospective Descriptive Cross-Sectional Study.

BACKGROUND: eConsulta is a tele-consultation service involving doctors and patients, and is part of Catalonia's public health information technology system. The service has been in operation since the end of 2015 as an adjunct to face-to-face consultations. A key factor in understanding the barriers and facilitators to the acceptance of the tool is understanding the sociodemographic characteristics of general practitioners who determine its use. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to analyze the sociodemographic factors that affect the likelihood of doctors using eConsulta. METHODS: A retrospective cross-sectional analysis of administrative data was used to perform a multivariate logistic regression analysis on the use of eConsulta in relation to sociodemographic variables. RESULTS: The model shows that the doctors who use eConsulta are 45-54 years of age, score higher than the 80th percentile on the quality of care index, have a high degree of accessibility, are involved in teaching, and work on a health team in a high socioeconomic urban setting. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that certain sociodemographic characteristics associated with general practitioners determine whether they use eConsulta. These results must be taken into account if its deployment is to be encouraged in the context of a public health system.

Effectiveness of electronic point-of-care reminders versus monthly feedback to improve adherence to 10 clinical recommendations in primary care: a cluster randomized clinical trial.

BACKGROUND: Numerous studies have analyzed the effectiveness of electronic reminder interventions to improve different clinical conditions, and most have reported a small to moderate effect. Few studies, however, have analyzed reminder systems targeting multiple conditions, and fewer still have compared electronic point-of-care reminders systems with other forms of feedback designed to improve delivery of care. METHODS: We performed an unblinded cluster randomized clinical trial to compare the effectiveness of an electronic point-of-care reminder system with that of a well-established system providing monthly feedback on adherence to clinical recommendations. The control group received monthly feedback only while the intervention group received monthly feedback in addition to on-screen point-of-care reminders for 10 clinical conditions. The study targeted all physicians and nurses at the 283 primary care centers managed by the Institut Català de la Salut (approximately 6600 professionals). RESULTS: Following exclusions and randomization, 132 primary care centers (328,728 patients with reminders) were assigned to the intervention group while 137 centers (317,117 patients with reminders) were randomized to the control group. A 20.6% improvement (OR 1.29, 95% CI: 1.25-1.34) in reminder resolution rates was observed in the intervention group. Results varied according to the clinical condition. The most effective reminder was screening for diabetic retinopathy (OR 1.51, 95% CI:1.46-1.57) while the least effective reminders were measurement of glycated hemoglobin (OR: 1.10, 95% CI: 1.07-1.13) and smoking cessation encouragement (OR 1.12, 95% CI: 1.09-1.16). CONCLUSIONS: Electronic point-of-care reminders were more effective than the existing monthly feedback system at resolving the 10 clinical situations. However, more studies are needed to investigate the variations of the effect observed. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN42391639, 08/10/2012. Retrospectively registered.

Effectiveness of computerized point-of-care reminders on adherence with multiple clinical recommendations by primary health care providers: protocol for a cluster-randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: To determine the effectiveness of reminders compared to no reminders in improving adherence to multiple clinical recommendations measured as the resolution of the clinical condition that motivated the reminder, in a primary care setting with a well-established feedback system. METHODS/DESIGN: A 12-month, cluster-randomized, controlled clinical trial was designed (randomized by primary care team) to evaluate the impact of computerized reminders. All study participants will continue to receive the usual feedback from the electronic health records system. The control group (well-established feedback) will be compared with reminders and a well-established feedback system. The study will include all general practitioners (3425) and nurses (3262) providing primary care for a population aged 14 years or older in the 282 primary care teams reporting to the Catalan Institute of Health. Up to 10 clinical reminders are offered for each patient, recommending action related to at least one of nine clinical conditions: arterial hypertension, elevated cardiovascular risk, type 2 diabetes mellitus, cerebrovascular accident, ischemic heart disease, heart failure, atrial fibrillation, smoking habit, and hepatitis C. The outcomes are the resolution of the clinical condition that motivated the reminder and the time elapsed between the first reminder message and implementation of the recommended action (months). Due to the obvious correlation between reminders about the same patient, the profile of patients assigned to a particular professional, and the professionals assigned to a particular centre, hierarchical modelling will be used to simultaneously estimate the effect of the study variables at these different levels of analysis. To estimate the impact of the intervention arm, an analysis of adherence to each type of reminder will be carried out, using multi-level logistical regression models at level of the primary care centre. Time to adherence will be estimated by the Kaplan-Meier method and comparisons will be done using the log-rank test. DISCUSSION: The results of this study could provide new evidence on the impact of computerized reminders at the point of care on adherence to clinical guidelines in primary care with an established feedback system. Trial registration ISRCTN42391639. October 8, 2012.

Socioeconomic status and its association with the risk of developing hip fractures: a region-wide ecological study.

PURPOSE: To determine the association between socioeconomic deprivation (SES) and hip fracture risk. METHODS: Retrospective cohort study using a population-based database (primary care records) of over 5 million people. Eligibility: all living subjects registered during the period 2009-2012 and resident in an urban area. MEASURES: a validated SES composite index (proportion of unemployed, temporary workers, manual workers, low educational attainment and low educational attainment among youngsters) estimated for each area based on census data. OUTCOME: incident hip fracture rates as coded in medical records using ICD-10 codes. STATISTICS: zero-inflated Poisson models fitted to study the association between SES quintiles and hip fracture risk, adjusted for age, sex, obesity, smoking and alcohol consumption. RESULTS: Compared to the most deprived, wealthy areas had a higher hip fracture incidence (age- and sex-adjusted incidence 38.57 (37.14-40.00) compared to 34.33 (32.90-35.76) per 10,000 person-years). Similarly, most deprived areas had a crude and age- and sex-adjusted lower risk of hip fracture, RR of 0.71 (0.65-0.78) and RR of 0.90 (0.85-0.95), respectively, compared to wealthiest areas. The association was attenuated and no longer significant after adjustment for obesity: RR 0.96 (0.90-1.01). Further adjustment for smoking and high alcohol consumption did not make a difference. CONCLUSION: Wealthiest areas have an almost 30% increased risk of hip fracture compared to the most deprived. Differences in age-sex composition and a higher prevalence of obesity in deprived areas could explain this higher risk.

Linking of primary care records to census data to study the association between socioeconomic status and cancer incidence in Southern Europe: a nation-wide ecological study.

BACKGROUND: Area-based measures of economic deprivation are seldom applied to large medical records databases to establish population-scale associations between deprivation and disease. OBJECTIVE: To study the association between deprivation and incidence of common cancer types in a Southern European region. METHODS: Retrospective ecological study using the SIDIAP (Information System for the Development of Research in Primary Care) database of longitudinal electronic medical records for a representative population of Catalonia (Spain) and the MEDEA index based on urban socioeconomic indicators in the Spanish census. Study outcomes were incident cervical, breast, colorectal, prostate, and lung cancer in 2009-2012. The completeness of SIDIAP cancer recording was evaluated through linkage of a geographic data subset to a hospital cancer registry. Associations between MEDEA quintiles and cancer incidence was evaluated using zero-inflated Poisson regression adjusted for sex, age, smoking, alcoholism, obesity, hypertension, and diabetes. RESULTS: SIDIAP sensitivity was 63% to 92% for the five cancers studied. There was direct association between deprivation and lung, colorectal, and cervical cancer: incidence rate ratios (IRR) 1.82 [1.64-2.01], IRR 1.60 [1.34-1.90], IRR 1.22 [1.07-1.38], respectively, comparing the most deprived to most affluent areas. In wealthy areas, prostate and breast cancers were more common: IRR 0.92 [0.80-1.00], IRR 0.91 [0.78-1.06]. Adjustment for confounders attenuated the association with lung cancer risk (fully adjusted IRR 1.16 [1.08-1.25]), reversed the direction of the association with colorectal cancer (IRR 0.90 [0.84-0.95]), and did not modify the associations with cervical (IRR 1.27 [1.11-1.45]), prostate (0.74 [0.69-0.80]), and breast (0.76 [0.71-0.81]) cancer. CONCLUSIONS: Deprivation is associated differently with the occurrence of various cancer types. These results provide evidence that MEDEA is a useful, area-based deprivation index for analyses of the SIDIAP database. This information will be useful to improve screening programs, cancer prevention and management strategies, to reach patients more effectively, particularly in deprived urban areas.

Effectiveness of an intervention designed to optimize statins use: a primary prevention randomized clinical trial.

BACKGROUND: Although hypercholesterolemia is considered a cardiovascular risk factor, in isolation it is not necessarily sufficient cause for a cardiovascular event. To improve event prediction, cardiovascular risk calculators have been developed; the REGICOR calculator has been validated for use in our population. The objective of this project is to develop an intervention with general practitioners (GPs) and evaluate its impact on prescription adequacy of cholesterol-lowering drugs in primary prevention of cardiovascular disease and in controlling the costs associated with this disease. METHODS: This nonblinded, cluster-randomized clinical trial analyzes data from primary care electronic medical records (ECAP) and other databases. Inclusion criteria are patients aged 35 to 74 years with no known cardiovascular disease and a new prescription for cholesterol-lowering drugs during the 2-year study period. Dependent variables include the following: RETIRA, defined as new cholesterol-lowering drugs initiated during the year preceding the intervention, considered inadequate, and withdrawn during the study period; EVITA, defined as new cholesterol-lowering drugs initiated during the study period and considered inadequate; COST, defined as the total cost of inadequate new treatments prescribed; and REGISTER, defined as the recording of cardiovascular risk factors. Independent variables include the GP's quality-of-care indicators and randomly assigned study group (intervention vs control), patient demographics, and clinical variables. Aggregated descriptive analysis will be done at the GP level and multilevel analysis will be performed to estimate the intervention effect, adjusted for individual and GP variables. DISCUSSION: The study objective is to generate evidence about the effectiveness of implementing feedback information programs directed to GPs in the context of Primary Care. The goal is to improve the prescription adequacy of lipid-lowering therapies for primary prevention. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT01997671. November 28, 2013.

Prescription in patients with chronic heart failure and multimorbidity attended in primary care.

BACKGROUND: Multimorbidity and polypharmacy pose challenges to improving the quality of care. OBJECTIVES: To determine the association between prescription of recommended treatment in ambulatory patients with chronic heart failure and multiple comorbidities and hospitalisation events. DESIGN: A population-based retrospective cohort study in Catalonia (north-east Spain). PARTICIPANTS: We included 7173 newly registered patients with chronic heart failure (59% women; mean [SD] age 76.3 [10.7] years). Patients were selected from the electronic patient records of primary care practices and followed for three years. OUTCOME MEASURES: Prescription of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs), angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs) and beta-blockers (BBs). RESULTS: Prescription of ACEI/ARBs in patients managed in primary care without a hospitalisation event during the follow-up rose from 50.8 to 83.5% for 0 and ≥4 comorbidities, respectively, and for ACEI/ARBs and BB from 13.1 to 30.6% for 0 and ≥4 comorbidities respectively. Patients with a hospitalisation event were treated more often (ACEI/ARBs or 1.47 [1.17 to 1.85]; ACEI/ARBs and BB or 1.41 [1.17 to 1.69]). Comorbid conditions receiving more treatment were hypertension (ACEI/ARBs or 3.75 [3.33 to 4.22]; ACEI/ARBs and BB or 1.40 [1.23 to 1.59]), diabetes mellitus (ACEI/ARBs or 1.79 [1.57 to 2.04]; ACEI/ARBs and BB or 1.33 [1.18 to 1.49]) and ischaemic heart disease (ACEI/ARBs or 1.25 [1.10 to 1.42]; ACEI/ARBs and BB or 3.01 [2.68 to 3.38]). CONCLUSION: Prescription of recommended treatment in patients with chronic heart failure increased as the number of comorbidities increased. Family physicians can provide equivalent care to more complex patients and those less complex, according to the number of comorbidities.

Primary health care utilization by immigrants as compared to the native population: a multilevel analysis of a large clinical database in Catalonia.

BACKGROUND: Immigration is a relevant public health issue and there is a great deal of controversy surrounding its impact on health services utilization. OBJECTIVE: To determine differences between immigrants and non-immigrants in the utilization of primary health care services in Catalonia, Spain. METHODS: Population based, cross-sectional, multicentre study. We used the information from 16 primary health care centres in an area near Barcelona, Spain. We conducted a multilevel analysis for the year 2008 to compare primary health care services utilization between all immigrants aged 15 or more and a sample of non-immigrants, paired by age and sex. RESULTS: Overall, immigrants living in Spain used health services more than non-immigrants (Incidence Risk Ratio (IRR) 1.16 (95% Confidence Interval (CI): 1.15-1.16) and (IRR 1, 26, 95% CI: 1.25-1.28) for consultations with GPs and referrals to specialized care, respectively. People coming from the Maghreb and the rest of Africa requested the most consultations involving a GP and nurses (IRR 1.34, 95% CI: 1.33-1.36 and IRR 1.06, 95% CI: 1.03-1.44, respectively). They were more frequently referred to specialized care (IRR 1.44, 95% CI: 1.41-1.46) when compared to Spaniards. Immigrants from Asia had the lowest numbers of consultations with a GP and referrals (IRR 0.76, 95% CI: 0.66-0.88 and IRR 0.76, 95% CI: 0.61-0.95, respectively. CONCLUSION: On average, immigrants living in Catalonia used the health services more than non-immigrants. Immigrants from the Maghreb and other African countries showed the highest and those from Asia the lowest, number of consultations and referrals to specialized care.

Validez del Sistema de Información para el Desarrollo de la Investigación en Atención Primaria (SIDIAP) en el estudio de enfermedades vasculares: estudio EMMA / Validity for use in research on vascular diseases of the SIDIAP (Information System for the Development of Research in Primary Care): the EMMA study

Introducción y objetivos. Las bases de datos clínicas de atención primaria ofrecen un gran potencial para la investigación. Nuestro objetivo es analizar la validez de los datos del estudio EMMA, basado en el Sistema de Información para el Desarrollo de Investigación en Atención Primaria. Métodos. Se compararon las prevalencias de los factores de riesgo cardiovascular -hipertensión, diabetes mellitus, hipercolesterolemia (y sus tratamientos), obesidad y tabaquismo- observadas en el EMMA con datos equivalentes del estudio Registre Gironí del Cor (REGICOR) en el año 2000. También se compararon la incidencia de enfermedad vascular y su asociación con dichos factores de riesgo en un seguimiento a 5 años. Resultados. Se analizaron datos de 34.823 participantes de 35 a 74 años incluidos en el EMMA y 2.540 participantes del estudio REGICOR2000. Las prevalencias de los factores de riesgo no difirieron significativamente entre los dos estudios, excepto para la prevalencia de exfumadores varones, que fue superior en el REGICOR2000 (el 24,7% [intervalo de confianza del 95%, 23,9-25,5%] frente al 30,1% [intervalo de confianza del 95%, 27,1-33,1%]) y la proporción de hipertensos tratados y pacientes con tratamiento hipolipemiante, que fueron superiores en el EMMA (el 46,9 frente al 32,7% y el 8,7 frente al 6,3%, respectivamente). No se observaron diferencias entre uno y otro estudio en la comparación de la incidencia de enfermedad vascular (varones, el 2,1% en ambos estudios; mujeres, el 1,18% [intervalo de confianza del 95%, 0,7-1,7%] en el REGICOR2000 frente al 0,75% [intervalo de confianza del 95%, 0,64-0,87%] en el EMMA) ni en su asociación con los factores de riesgo. Conclusiones. Las prevalencias de los factores de riesgo cardiovascular y su relación con la incidencia de enfermedades vasculares observada en el EMMA concuerdan con las observadas en un estudio epidemiológico estandarizado de base poblacional (AU)

Introduction and objectives. Information in primary care databases can be useful in research, but the validity of these data needs to be evaluated. We sought to analyze the validity of the data used in the EMMA study based on data from the Information System for the Development of Research in Primary Care. Methods. We compared the prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors observed in EMMA -hypertension, diabetes, hypercholesterolemia (and its treatments), obesity, and smoking- with equivalent data from the Registre Gironí del Cor (REGICOR), a population-based study that uses standardized methodology, in 2000. We also compared the incidence rates of vascular diseases and its association with these risk factors in a 5-year follow-up. Results. We analyzed data from 34 823 participants included in EMMA and 2540 REGICOR2000 study participants aged 35 to 74. The prevalence of risk factors did not differ significantly between the 2 studies, except for the prevalence of former smokers in men, which was higher in REGICOR2000 (24.7% [95% confidence interval, 23.9%-25.5%] vs 30.1% [95% confidence interval, 27.1%-33.1%]), and the proportion of patients with lipid-lowering and antihypertensive therapy, which was higher in EMMA (46.9% vs 32.7% and 8.7% vs 6.3%, respectively). There were no differences between the 2 studies when comparing the incidence of vascular diseases (2.1% in both studies in men and 1.18% [95% confidence interval, 0.7%-1.7%] in REGICOR2000 vs 0.75% [95% confidence interval, 0.64%-0.87%] in EMMA in women) and its association with risk factors. Conclusions. The prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors and their association with the incidence of vascular disease observed in the EMMA study are consistent with those observed in an epidemiological population-based study with a standardized methodology (AU)

Validity for use in research on vascular diseases of the SIDIAP (Information System for the Development of Research in Primary Care): the EMMA study.

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES: Information in primary care databases can be useful in research, but the validity of these data needs to be evaluated. We sought to analyze the validity of the data used in the EMMA study based on data from the Information System for the Development of Research in Primary Care. METHODS: We compared the prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors observed in EMMA-hypertension, diabetes, hypercholesterolemia (and its treatments), obesity, and smoking-with equivalent data from the Registre Gironí del Cor (REGICOR), a population-based study that uses standardized methodology, in 2000. We also compared the incidence rates of vascular diseases and its association with these risk factors in a 5-year follow-up. RESULTS: We analyzed data from 34 823 participants included in EMMA and 2540 REGICOR2000 study participants aged 35 to 74. The prevalence of risk factors did not differ significantly between the 2 studies, except for the prevalence of former smokers in men, which was higher in REGICOR2000 (24.7% [95% confidence interval, 23.9%-25.5%] vs 30.1% [95% confidence interval, 27.1%-33.1%]), and the proportion of patients with lipid-lowering and antihypertensive therapy, which was higher in EMMA (46.9% vs 32.7% and 8.7% vs 6.3%, respectively). There were no differences between the 2 studies when comparing the incidence of vascular diseases (2.1% in both studies in men and 1.18% [95% confidence interval, 0.7%-1.7%] in REGICOR2000 vs 0.75% [95% confidence interval, 0.64%-0.87%] in EMMA in women) and its association with risk factors. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors and their association with the incidence of vascular disease observed in the EMMA study are consistent with those observed in an epidemiological population-based study with a standardized methodology.

Construction and validation of a scoring system for the selection of high-quality data in a Spanish population primary care database (SIDIAP).

BACKGROUND: Computerised databases of primary care clinical records are widely used for epidemiological research. In Catalonia, the Information System for the Development of Research in Primary Care (SIDIAP) aims to promote the development of research based on high-quality validated data from primary care electronic medical records. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study is to create and validate a scoring system (Registry Quality Score, RQS) that will enable all primary care practices (PCPs) to be selected as providers of researchusable data based on the completeness of their registers. METHODS: Diseases that were likely to be representative of common diagnoses seen in primary care were selected for RQS calculations. The observed/expected cases ratio was calculated for each disease. Once we had obtained an estimated value for this ratio for each of the selected conditions we added up the ratios calculated for each condition to obtain a final RQS. Rate comparisons between observed and published prevalences of diseases not included in the RQS calculations (atrial fibrillation, diabetes, obesity, schizophrenia, stroke, urinary incontinence and Crohn's disease) were used to set the RQS cutoff which will enable researchers to select PCPs with research-usable data. RESULTS: Apart from Crohn's disease, all prevalences were the same as those published from the RQS fourth quintile (60th percentile) onwards. This RQS cut-off provided a total population of 1 936 443 (39.6% of the total SIDIAP population). CONCLUSIONS: SIDIAP is highly representative of the population of Catalonia in terms of geographical, age and sex distributions. We report the usefulness of rate comparison as a valid method to establish research-usable data within primary care electronic medical records.