Browsing by Author "Allen, Larry A."

Now showing 1 - 5 of 5
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    Cannabis use and heart transplant listing: A survey of clinician practices
    (Public Library of Science, 2024-12-12) Ilonze, Onyedika J.; Knapp, Shannon M.; Chernyak, Yelena; Page, Robert L., II; Boyd, LaKeisha J.; Mazimba, Sula; Raman, Subha V.; Enyi, Chioma O.; Allen, Larry A.; Breathett, Khadijah; Medicine, School of Medicine
    No consensus exists for heart transplant listing for patients who use cannabis. We conducted a web-based survey to assess knowledge, and practice patterns towards patients with heart failure who use cannabis referred for transplant. A total of 140 clinicians (cardiologists (41.4%, n = 58), surgeons (7.1%, n = 10), pharmacists (9.3%, n = 13), advanced practice providers and coordinators) responded and responses were grouped by whether they responded that cannabis is "illegal in my state" (illegal), or "legal for medical and recreational use in my state," (legal). There was a statistically significant difference in responses between the groups in the frequency of cannabis use that should preclude a patient from HT listing p = 0.0330) with respondents where cannabis is legal tending to answer that higher frequencies were acceptable. The groups in the "legal group" responded that a validated cannabis screening questionnaire could evaluate HT eligibility (p = 0.0111). A majority in the illegal group responding "No" as to whether their program allows pre- or post-transplant patients to use prescribed cannabis products (p < 0.0001). A majority in the illegal group responding "No" while the majority in the legal group responded "Yes" to "Does your HT center's current selection criteria policy address medical cannabis use in potential transplant candidates?" (p = 0.0001). Health care providers generally agreed that a validated cannabis use disorder screening questionnaire would be useful and that 6 months of abstinence from cannabis is sufficient prior to HT listing. Significant heterogeneity exists regarding cannabis use as it relates to heart transplantation.
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    Cannabis Use and Heart Transplantation: Disparities and Opportunities to Improve Outcomes
    (American Heart Association, 2022-10-14) Ilonze, Onyedika J.; Vidot, Denise C.; Breathett, Khadijah; Camacho-Rivera, Marlene; Raman, Subha V.; Kobashigawa, Jon A.; Allen, Larry A.; Medicine, School of Medicine
    Heart transplantation (HT) remains the optimal therapy for many patients with advanced heart failure. Use of substances of potential abuse has historically been a contraindication to HT. Decriminalization of cannabis, increasing cannabis use, clinician biases, and lack of consensus for evaluating patients with heart failure who use cannabis all have the potential to exacerbate racial and ethnic and regional disparities in HT listing and organ allocation. Here' we review pertinent pre-HT and post-HT considerations related to cannabis use' and relative attitudes between opiates and cannabis are offered for context. We conclude with identifying unmet research needs pertaining to the use of cannabis in HT that can inform a standardized evaluation process.
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    Geographical affiliation with top 10 NIH-funded academic medical centers and differences between mortality from cardiovascular disease and cancer
    (Elsevier, 2020-12) Angraal, Suveen; Caraballo, César; Kahn, Peter; Bhatnagar, Ambika; Singh, Bikramjot; Wilson, F. Perry; Fiuzat, Mona; O’Connor, Christopher M.; Allen, Larry A.; Desai, Nihar R.; Mamtani, Ronac; Ahmad, Tariq; Pediatrics, School of Medicine
    Community engagement and rapid translation of findings for the benefit of patients has been noted as a major criterion for NIH decisions regarding allocation of funds for research priorities. We aimed to examine whether the presence of top NIH-funded institutions resulted in a benefit on the cardiovascular and cancer mortality of their local population. METHODS AND RESULTS: Based on the annual NIH funding of every academic medical from 1995 through 2014, the top 10 funded institutes were identified and the counties where they were located constituted the index group. The comparison group was created by matching each index county to another county which lacks an NIH-funded institute based on sociodemographic characteristics. We compared temporal trends of age-standardized cardiovascular mortality between the index counties and matched counties and states. This analysis was repeated for cancer mortality as a sensitivity analysis. From 1980 through 2014, the annual cardiovascular mortality rates declined in all counties. In the index group, the average decline in cardiovascular mortality rate was 51.5 per 100,000 population (95% CI, 46.8-56.2), compared to 49.7 per 100,000 population (95% CI, 45.9-53.5) in the matched group (P = .27). Trends in cardiovascular mortality of the index counties were similar to the cardiovascular mortality trends of their respective states. Cancer mortality rates declined at higher rates in counties with top NIH-funded medical centers (P < .001). CONCLUSIONS: Cardiovascular mortality rates have decreased with no apparent incremental benefit for communities with top NIH-funded institutions, underscoring the need for an increased focus on implementation science in cardiovascular diseases.
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    Group Dynamics and Allocation of Advanced Heart Failure Therapies-Heart Transplants and Ventricular Assist Devices-By Gender, Racial, and Ethnic Group
    (American Heart Association, 2023) Breathett, Khadijah; Yee, Ryan; Pool, Natalie; Thomas Hebdon, Megan C.; Knapp, Shannon M.; Herrera-Theut, Kathryn; de Groot, Esther; Yee, Erika; Allen, Larry A.; Hasan, Ayesha; Lindenfeld, JoAnn; Calhoun, Elizabeth; Carnes, Molly; Sweitzer, Nancy K.; Medicine, School of Medicine
    Background: US regulatory framework for advanced heart failure therapies (AHFT), ventricular assist devices, and heart transplants, delegate eligibility decisions to multidisciplinary groups at the center level. The subjective nature of decision‐making is at risk for racial, ethnic, and gender bias. We sought to determine how group dynamics impact allocation decision‐making by patient gender, racial, and ethnic group. Methods and Results: We performed a mixed‐methods study among 4 AHFT centers. For ≈ 1 month, AHFT meetings were audio recorded. Meeting transcripts were evaluated for group function scores using de Groot Critically Reflective Diagnoses protocol (metrics: challenging groupthink, critical opinion sharing, openness to mistakes, asking/giving feedback, and experimentation; scoring: 1 to 4 [high to low quality]). The relationship between summed group function scores and AHFT allocation was assessed via hierarchical logistic regression with patients nested within meetings nested within centers, and interaction effects of group function score with gender and race, adjusting for patient age and comorbidities. Among 87 patients (24% women, 66% White race) evaluated for AHFT, 57% of women, 38% of men, 44% of White race, and 40% of patients of color were allocated to AHFT. The interaction between group function score and allocation by patient gender was statistically significant (P=0.035); as group function scores improved, the probability of AHFT allocation increased for women and decreased for men, a pattern that was similar irrespective of racial and ethnic groups. Conclusions: Women evaluated for AHFT were more likely to receive AHFT when group decision‐making processes were of higher quality. Further investigation is needed to promote routine high‐quality group decision‐making and reduce known disparities in AHFT allocation.
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    Social Determinants of Health and Rates of Implantation for Patients Considering Destination Therapy Left Ventricular Assist Device
    (Elsevier, 2021) Flint, Kelsey; Chaussee, Erin L.; Henderson, Kamal; Breathett, Khadijah; Khazanie, Prateeti; Thompson, Jocelyn S.; McIlvennan, Colleen K.; LaRue, Shane J.; Matlock, Daniel D.; Allen, Larry A.; Medicine, School of Medicine
    Background: A left ventricular assist device (LVAD) is a treatment option available to select patients with advanced heart failure. However, there are important social determinants of health that can play a role in determining patients' outcomes after device placement. Methods and results: We leveraged the DECIDE-LVAD Trial to assess social determinants of health-relationship status, household income, race/ethnicity, educational attainment, and health insurance-at the time of evaluation, and their association with rate of LVAD placement in the subsequent year. About a quarter of patients were unpartnered (i.e., single/divorced/widowed/separated; n = 55 [26%]). A similar proportion had a household income of less than $20,000 per year (n = 50 [24%]). Few patients were other race (n = 39 [18%]), had less than a high school education (n = 14 [6.6%]), or had Medicaid as their primary payor (n = 17 [8.4%]). LVAD implantation was significantly lower among patients who were unpartnered compared with patients who were married or partnered. LVAD implantation was not associated with income, race, educational attainment or insurance status. Conclusions: Our data from diverse LVAD centers at U.S. private and academic hospitals found that, among a broad sample of patients being evaluated for LVAD, married or partnered status was favorably associated with LVAD implantation, but other social determinants of health were not. Future research and policy changes should consider novel interventions for improving access to LVAD implantation for patients with inadequate social support.