PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Medicare coverage gap associated with reductions in antidepressant use in study

2012-07-03
(Press-News.org) CHICAGO – The Medicare Part D coverage gap was associated with reduced use of antidepressants in a study of beneficiaries 65 years or older with depression, according to a report by Archives of General Psychiatry, a JAMA Network publication.

Depression affects about 13 percent of Medicare beneficiaries age 65 and older, many of whom have chronic physical conditions. Maintenance medication has been shown to prevent recurrent episodes of major depression. However, the structure of the Part D benefit, particularly the coverage gap, "imposes a serious risk for discontinuing maintenance antidepressant pharmacotherapy among senior beneficiaries," the authors write in the study background. Under current provisions in the Affordable Care Act, the coverage gap will not be closed until 2020, the study notes.

Yuting Zhang, Ph.D., and colleagues from the University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, examined how older patients responded to the coverage gap by conducting a study that used a 5 percent random sample of Medicare beneficiaries 65 years or older with depression (n=65,223) who were enrolled in stand-alone Part D plans in 2007.

According to study results, being in the gap was associated with comparable reductions in the use of antidepressants, heart failure medications and antidiabetics. Relative to a comparison group that had full coverage in the gap because of Medicare coverage or low-income subsidies, the no-coverage group reduced their monthly antidepressant prescriptions by 12.1 percent and reduced their use of heart failure drugs by 12.9 percent and oral antidiabetics by 13.4 percent. Beneficiaries with generic drug coverage in the gap reduced their monthly antidepressant prescriptions by 6.9 percent, a reduction attributable to reduced use of brand-name antidepressants, researchers note.

"If patients discontinue their appropriate medication therapy abruptly, they could be placing themselves at risk for medication withdrawal effects and for relapse or recurrence. If they do not notice any effects, they might decide not to resume taking antidepressants. Thus, a gap in drug coverage could place older adults in harm's way, as a result of disruptions in appropriate maintenance antidepressant pharmacotherapy," the authors conclude.

###(Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2012;69[7]:672-679. Available pre-embargo to the media at http://media.jamanetwork.com.)

Editor's Note: Authors made financial disclosures and the study was supported by grants from the National Institute of Mental Health, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, the University of Pittsburgh Central Research Development Fund and the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Endowment in Geriatric Psychiatry. Please see the article for additional information, including other authors, author contributions and affiliations, financial disclosures, funding and support, etc.

To contact Yuting Zhang, Ph.D., call Allison Hydzik and Cyndy McGrath at 412-647-9975 or email hydzikam@upmc.edu and mcgrathc3@upmc.edu.


ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Study examines fingolimod therapy in patients with multiple sclerosis

2012-07-03
CHICAGO – The medication fingolimod reduced inflammatory lesion activity and reduced brain volume loss in patients with multiple sclerosis who participated in a two-year placebo-controlled clinical trial and were assessed by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) measures, according to a report published Online First by Archives of Neurology, a JAMA Network publication. Fingolimod is the first in a new class of drugs called the sphingosine 1-phosphate receptor (S1PR) modulators that was recently approved at 0.5 mg once daily for the treatment of relapsing multiple sclerosis ...

Study examines outcomes of patients who refuse transfusion following cardiac surgery

2012-07-03
CHICAGO – Jehovah's Witness patients who undergo cardiac surgery do not appear to be at increased risk for surgical complications or death when compared to patients who undergo cardiac surgery and receive blood transfusions, according to a report published Online First by Archives of Internal Medicine, a JAMA Network publication. Jehovah's Witness patients (Witnesses) hold beliefs that disallow blood product transfusion and encourage the use of a number of blood conservation practices, according to background information in the article. Gregory Pattakos, M.D., M.S., ...

Why cancer rate increases with age (it's not what you think)

2012-07-03
Cancers are age-related, much more frequent in the old than in the young. A University of Colorado Cancer Center review published today in the journal Oncogene argues against the conventional wisdom that the accumulation of cancer-causing mutations leads to more cancer in older people, instead positing that it is the changing features of tissue in old age that promote higher cancer rates in the elderly. "If you look at Mick Jagger in 1960 compared to Mick Jagger today, it's obvious that his tissue landscape has changed," says James DeGregori, PhD, investigator at the ...

Surprising culprit behind chemo resistance in rare cancer

2012-07-03
Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have shown how an aggressive form of multiple myeloma resists chemotherapy. Multiple myeloma is a rare cancer of plasma cells in the bone marrow. Though the finding has no immediate benefit for patients, the scientists say it could help guide research into better treatments. The results appear online July 2 in the Journal of Clinical Investigation. About 20 percent of patients with multiple myeloma have a specific genetic abnormality that is associated with a poor prognosis. Patients with this "translocation" ...

Hormone discovered that preserves insulin production and beta cell function in diabetes

2012-07-03
DURHAM, N.C. -- Researchers at Duke University Medical Center have found protective, anti-diabetic functions for a hormone that, like insulin, is produced by the islet cells of the pancreas. The new hormone was found to stimulate insulin secretion from rat and human islet cells and protect islet cells in the presence of toxic, cell-killing factors used in the study. The study, which was supported in part by JDRF, a global leader in type 1 diabetes research, appears in the July 3 issue of the journal Cell Metabolism. The findings provide insight into the health and survival ...

Researchers find abuse during childhood may contribute to obesity in adulthood

2012-07-03
(Boston) - Investigators from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) and Boston University's Slone Epidemiology Center report research findings that may shed light on influences on obesity during adulthood. Appearing in the journal Pediatrics, the study found an association of severity of sexual and physical abuse during childhood and adolescence with obesity during adulthood. The findings were based on the ongoing Black Women's Health Study, which has followed a large cohort of African-American women since 1995. Information provided in 2005 by more than 33,000 ...

Study: Women infected with common parasite have increased risk of attempting suicide

2012-07-03
BALTIMORE, July 2, 2012 -- Women infected with the Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii) parasite, which is spread through contact with cat feces or eating undercooked meat or unwashed vegetables, are at increased risk of attempting suicide, according to a new study of more than 45,000 women in Denmark. A University of Maryland School of Medicine psychiatrist with expertise in suicide neuroimmunology is the senior author of the study, which is being published online today in the Archives of General Psychiatry. "We can't say with certainty that T. gondii caused the women to try ...

VA and BUSM researchers discover dissociative subtype of post-traumatic stress disorder

2012-07-03
(Boston) - A recent study by Erika J. Wolf, PhD, and Principal Investigator Mark W. Miller, PhD, both from the National Center for PTSD at the VA Boston Healthcare System and Department of Psychiatry at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM), found an association between posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and dissociation. The findings, published in the Archives of General Psychiatry, suggest that symptoms of dissociation, which reflect problems in consciousness and awareness, are a prominent feature of PTSD in a distinct subtype of individuals with the disorder. ...

Nearly 30 percent of teens send nude pictures despite being 'bothered' by requests

2012-07-03
GALVESTON, Texas -- Teens are sexting -- and at higher rates than previously reported. In the first study of the public health impact of teen sexting, researchers found that close to 30 percent are engaging in the practice of sending nude pictures of themselves via email or text. Further, the practice is indicative of teens' sexual behavior overall and, particularly, girls' participation in risky sexual behaviors. These findings, from a University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston study that is the first to explore the public health impact of sexting, are published ...

Researchers able to better pinpoint history of droughts through exploration of tree rings

2012-07-03
PITTSBURGH-- Through an exploration of tree rings and oxygen isotopes, researchers at the University of Pittsburgh are now able to better pinpoint the history of droughts in the arid and semiarid areas of the American West. A paper published in the online July 2 issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences explores the Medieval Climate Anomaly, a particularly warm period occurring in the northern hemisphere of the American West around 950 to 1250 C.E. While this time period is known as being a "dry period," the Pitt researchers have discovered an unexpected ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Being consistently physically active in adulthood linked to 30–40% lower risk of death

Nerve pain drug gabapentin linked to increased dementia, cognitive impairment risks

Children’s social care involvement common to nearly third of UK mums who died during perinatal period

‘Support, not judgement’: Study explores links between children’s social care involvement and maternal deaths

Ethnic minority and poorer children more likely to die in intensive care

Major progress in fertility preservation after treatment for cancer of the lymphatic system

Fewer complications after additional ultrasound in pregnant women who feel less fetal movement

Environmental impact of common pesticides seriously underestimated

The Milky Way could be teeming with more satellite galaxies than previously thought

New study reveals surprising reproductive secrets of a cricket-hunting parasitoid fly

Media Tip Sheet: Symposia at ESA2025

NSF CAREER Award will power UVA engineer’s research to improve drug purification

Tiny parasitoid flies show how early-life competition shapes adult success

New coating for glass promises energy-saving windows

Green spaces boost children’s cognitive skills and strengthen family well-being

Ancient trees dying faster than expected in Eastern Oregon

Study findings help hone precision of proven CVD risk tool

Most patients with advanced melanoma who received pre-surgical immunotherapy remain alive and disease free four years later

Introducing BioEmu: A generative AI Model that enables high-speed and accurate prediction of protein structural ensembles

Replacing mutated microglia with healthy microglia halts progression of genetic neurological disease in mice and humans

New research shows how tropical plants manage rival insect tenants by giving them separate ‘flats’

Condo-style living helps keep the peace inside these ant plants

Climate change action could dramatically limit rising UK heatwave deaths

Annual heat-related deaths projected to increase significantly due to climate and population change

Researchers discover new way cells protect themselves from damage

Rivers choose their path based on erosion — a discovery that could transform flood planning and restoration

New discovery reveals dopamine operates with surgical precision, not as a broad signal

New AI tool gives a helping hand to x ray diagnosis

New Leicester study reveals hidden heart risks in women with Type 2 Diabetes

Over 400 different types of nerve cell have been grown – far more than ever before

[Press-News.org] Medicare coverage gap associated with reductions in antidepressant use in study