Rising Mortality among Non-Hispanics due to Pancreatic Cancer in the United States. A CDC Database analysis.

PURPOSE: To examine mortality trends among non-Hispanic (NH) adults with pancreatic cancer. METHOD: CDC-WONDER database was used to extract death certificate data on pancreatic cancer-related mortality in NH adults aged ≥ 45 from 1999 to 2020. Age-adjusted mortality rates (AAMRs) per 100,000 persons and annual percent changes (APCs) were calculated and stratified by year, age, sex, race, and region. RESULTS: From 1999 to 2020, 783,772 deaths occurred among middle-aged (45-64) and older (65-85 +) NH adults. Overall AAMR increased from 31.7 in 1999 to 33.8 in 2020 (APC: 0.35; 95% CI:0.28-0.41). NH older adults had higher AAMRs (67.9) than NH middle-aged adults (12.5). Men consistently had higher AAMRs (37.7) than women (28.4). NH African Americans had the highest AAMRs (40.8) compared to NH Whites (32.1), NH American Indians (23.9), and NH Asians (22.4). Metropolitan areas had a higher AAMR (32.7) than non-metropolitan areas (32.2). The Northeast region had the highest AAMR (34.0) followed by Midwest (33.2), South (32.2), and West (30.1). Delaware, District of Columbia, Louisiana, Michigan, and Mississippi had the highest AAMRs among states. CONCLUSIONS: Pancreatic cancer-related mortality among NH adults has increased from 1999 to 2020. Highest AAMRs were reported in older men, NH African Americans, the Northeastern and metropolitan areas.

Uterine artery embolization versus myomectomy: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Introduction: Uterine fibroids are the commonest benign tumors of the reproductive tract in women of childbearing age. They are usually asymptomatic but can cause menorrhagia. Treatments include myomectomy and uterine artery embolization (UAE). The latter is a relatively new procedure, therefore of special interest. Objectives: We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of all published studies to provide a comprehensive outlook on the effectiveness of UAE by comparing its outcomes to those of myomectomy. Electronic databases (PubMed and Cochrane Central) were systematically searched from January 2000 to March 2022 for published randomized control trials, observational studies, and meta-analyses that compared UAE to myomectomy for at least one of the pre-specified outcomes, namely re-intervention rates, length of hospital stay, and complications. Methods: We shortlisted nine studies for the final analysis. For continuous outcomes, results from random-effects meta-analysis were presented as mean differences (MDs) and corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Risk ratios (RRs) for dichotomous outcomes were pooled using a random-effects model. Results: The final analysis consisted of nine studies. Factors like re-intervention, hospitalization, and complications, each with its unique follow-up duration were assessed. Pooled analysis demonstrated significant results for greater re-intervention rates with UAE as compared to myomectomy (RR: 2.16, 95% CI: (1.27-3.66), p-value 0.004, heterogeneity I2 = 85%). UAE holds a greater but statistically insignificant risk for major complications (RR: 0.62, 95% CI: (0.29-1.33), p-value 0.22, heterogeneity I2 = 0%) and myomectomy shows a statistically insignificant greater risk for minor complications (RR: 1.72, 95% CI: (0.92-3.22), p-value 0.09, heterogeneity I2 = 0%). UAE had a shorter but statistically insignificant duration of hospital stay (MD: -1.12, 95% CI: (-2.50 to 0.27), p-value 0.11, heterogeneity I2 = 96%) (p-value for subgroup differences = 0.005). Conclusion: Our meta-analysis of approximately 196,595 patients demonstrates that myomectomy results in a significant reduction in re-intervention rate compared to UAE.

Efficacy and safety of corticosteroids for the treatment of community-acquired pneumonia: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

BACKGROUND: The role of corticosteroids in the treatment of community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) remains uncertain. We conducted an updated meta-analysis to investigate the effectiveness and potential effect modifiers of adjunctive corticosteroids in patients with CAP. METHODS: The protocol of this meta-analysis was registered with PROSPERO (CRD42022354920). We searched MEDLINE, Embase, the Cochrane Library and trial registers from inception till March 2023 to identify randomized controlled trials (RCTs) investigating corticosteroids in adult patients with CAP. Our primary outcome was the risk of all-cause mortality within 30 days after randomization (if not reported at day 30, we extracted the outcome closest to 30 days). Risk ratios (RR) and mean differences (MDs) were pooled under a random-effects model. RESULTS: Fifteen RCTs (n = 3252 patients) were included in this review. Corticosteroids reduced the risk of all-cause mortality in CAP patients (RR: 0.69, 95% CI: 0.53-0.89; high certainty). This significant result was restricted to hydrocortisone therapy and patients with severe CAP. Additionally, younger patients demonstrated a greater reduction in mortality. Corticosteroids reduced the incidence of shock and the need for mechanical ventilation (MV), and decreased the length of hospital and ICU stay (moderate certainty). CONCLUSIONS: Corticosteroids reduce the risk of all-cause mortality, especially in younger patients receiving hydrocortisone, and probably decrease the need for MV, the incidence of shock, and the length of hospital and ICU stay in patients with CAP. Our findings indicate that patients with CAP, especially severe CAP, will benefit from adjunctive corticosteroid therapy.

Where Adults with Congenital Heart Disease Die: Insights from the CDC-WONDER Database.

The population of adults with congenital heart disease (ACHD) is rapidly increasing. There is limited understanding of location of death and associated disparities in these patients. From 2005-2018, a trend-level analysis was performed using death certificate data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Wide-ranging Online Data for Epidemiologic Research Database, with individual-level mortality data obtained from National Center for Health Statistics. Places of death were classified as hospital, home, hospice facility, nursing home/long-term care and other. A total of 15,507 total deaths were identified in ACHD from 2005-2018 (54% Male, 84% White). ACHD patients were more likely to die in the hospital (64%) compared to general population (41%). Younger decedents (20-34) with ACHD were more likely to die in the hospital, while older decedents (≥65) were more likely to die at Hospice/Nursing facilities. Black and Hispanic patients with ACHD were more likely to die in the hospital compared to White and non-Hispanic patients. A significantly large proportion of ACHD deaths are observed in younger patients and occur in inpatient facilities. End-of-life planning among socially vulnerable populations should be prioritized.

DOACs or VKAs or LMWH - What is the optimal regimen for cancer-associated venous thromboembolism? A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Clinical guidelines have supported the use of direct anticoagulants (DOACs) for the treatment of cancer-associated venous thromboembolism (Ca-VTE). However, recent trials have reported increased bleeding risks associated with DOACs usage, raising concerns regarding its efficacy. Objectives: The authors conducted a meta-analysis to study the efficacy and safety of DOACs for the treatment of VTE in cancer patients, compared with Low-weight molecular heparin (LMWH) and Vitamin-K antagonists (VKAs). Methods: PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) were searched according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines from inception to June 17th, 2021.The primary outcomes studied were VTE recurrence and major bleeding. Results: A total of 8 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) enrolling almost 7000 patients were included. Direct oral anticoagulants significantly reduced VTE Recurrence in cancer patients when compared to patients treated with LMWH or VKAs (Hazard ratio [HR] 0.62, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.46-0.83; P = 0.002; I2 = 26%). There were no statistically significant differences for major bleeding (HR 0.86, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.56-1.33; P = 0.50; I2 = 34%), clinically relevant non-major bleeding (HR 1.23, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.79-1.91; P = 0.35; I2 = 66%), pulmonary embolism (HR 0.71, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.47-1.06; P = 0.10; I2 = 7%), and all-cause mortality (HR 0.98, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.86-1.12; P = 0.78; I2 = 1%), between DOACs and LMWH. Conclusion: This analysis shows that DOACs are the optimal regimen to treat Ca-VTE. They have a similar to slightly increased bleeding risk compared with LMWH and are a safer alternative to VKAs.

Efficacy and safety of direct oral anticoagulants with and without Aspirin: A systematic review and Meta-analysis.

Background: Various anticoagulant therapies are prescribed to patients under physicians' discretion and recently Direct Oral Anticoagulants(DOAC) have been under trials to evaluate their safety and efficacy. In addition to this, the regimen of DOACs and Aspirin is of keen interest as researchers continue to find an optimal regimen to treat blood clots in patients. This study is a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials and observational studies that asses the safety and efficacy of DOAC with and without Aspirin. Methods: We queried MEDLINE and Cochrane CENTRAL from their inception to April 2021, for published and randomized controlled trials and observational studies in any language that compared dual (DOAC + ASA) therapy or mono (DOAC alone) therapy in patients with AF. The results from the studies were presented as risk ratios (RRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) and were pooled using a random-effects model. Endpoints of interest included major bleeding, myocardial infarction (MI), major adverse cardiovascular events (MACEs), hospitalizations, all-cause mortality, and stroke. Results: The risk of major bleeding was significantly lower in the DOAC alone group compared with DOAC plus aspirin group. Non-significant results were obtained (P value greater than 0.05) for other outcomes establishing that DOAC monotherapy was not superior to the combined regimen in reducing the risk of MACE, Stroke, Hospitalization, Death. Conclusion: Among patients with NVAF (Non valvular Atrial Fibrillation) and VTE (Venous thromboembolism) receiving anticoagulation prophylaxis, in terms of safety profile our comparisons showed a statistically significant reduction in Major Bleeding in DOAC Alone group compared with DOAC Plus Aspirin.