High-fiber diet may be beneficial for heart attack survivors.

TIME (4/30) reports on its website that a “study of heart attack survivors shows that people who ate the most fiber had a 25% lower chance of dying nine years later from any cause compared to people who consumed less.” Researchers found that each “increase of 10g of fiber each day was on average linked to a 15% lower risk of dying over the study period.”

        HealthDay (4/30, Norton) reports that “fiber from grains seemed particularly important, the researchers reported April 29 in the online edition of BMJ.” Those “who ate the most ‘cereal fiber’ – from foods like oatmeal, barley and whole-wheat pasta – were 27 percent less likely to die during the study period, versus those who ate the least.” BBC News (4/30, Roberts) also covers the story.

Today’s Statin Users Are Consuming More Calories and Fat

Caloric intake among statin users rose by 9.6% over the decade between 1999–2000 and 2009–2010, and fat consumption jumped by 14.4%. In contrast, caloric and fat intake by non-statin users did not change significantly. Also, in the 1999–2000 period, statin users were consuming fewer calories and less fat than individuals who didn’t take these medications, but that is no longer the case. The JAMA Internal Medicine findings, which come from NHANES data, suggest that people who take statins may have developed a false sense of security that could lead to heart disease and other obesity-related illnesses.

Silent Hypoglycemia May Cause Heart Problems in Diabetics

Asymptomatic and prolonged hypoglycemia may increase the risk of arrhythmias in patients with type 2 diabetes and high cardiovascular risk, according to a study of 25 insulin-treated patients who underwent simultaneous continuous interstitial glucose and electrocardiogram monitoring. There were 134 hours of recording at hypoglycemia, 65 hours at hyperglycemia, and 1258 hours at normal blood glucose levels. Bradycardia and atrial and ventricular ectopic counts were significantly elevated during nighttime hypoglycemia. Arrhythmias were more frequent during nighttime vs. daytime hypoglycemia. Abnormal heart measurements (QT intervals >500 ms and abnormal T-wave morphology) were also observed during hypoglycemia in some participants. The findings were published in Diabetes.

Leapfrog Group releases hospital safety scores.

On Tuesday, Leapfrog Group released its Hospital Safety Score for more than 2,500 US acute care hospitals. Several local papers reported on their area hospitals’ results.

        In California, the Santa Cruz (CA) Sentinel (4/29) reports, “Dominican Hospital and Watsonville Community Hospital are among 104 hospitals in California rated ‘A.’”

        In Florida, the Orlando (FL) Sentinel (4/29) reports “that more than half of Central Florida’s 23 hospitals got A grades. None got lower than a C.” Florida Today (4/28) reports that “Parrish Medical Center in Titusville and Heath First Cape Canaveral Hospital in Cocoa Beach each earned an A in the group’s Hospital Safety Scores.”

        In Georgia, the Augusta (GA) Chronicle (4/29) reports, “University got an ‘A’ in the interim report after getting a ‘C’ in October in the previous ranking. Doctors Hospital and Georgia Regents Medical Center maintained their ‘C’ grades. Trinity Hospital of Augusta was not included in the rankings because of problems transmitting its data, spokeswoman Rachel Covar said.”

        In Pennsylvania, the Allentown (PA) Morning Call (4/28) reports, “Lehigh Valley Health Network led the region, getting an ‘A’ grade for its hospitals in Salisbury Township, Allentown and Bethlehem.”

        In Virginia, the Roanoke (VA) Times (4/29) reports that “a national scorecard that grades hospitals on safety has given A’s and B’s to all of the facilities it ranked in the Roanoke region — with one exception. Carilion Franklin Memorial Hospital received a C.”

Hepatitis C medication cost raising concerns.

The Washington Post (4/28, Millman) reports in its “Wonkblog” that the hepatitis C drug Sovaldi [sofosbuvir] is simultaneously “being hailed as a potential breakthrough treatment” and “vexing insurers.” The former sentiment comes from its efficacy in treating a disease affecting roughly 3.2 million people in the United States. However, concerns come from the $84,000 price tag for a 12-week full course of treatment. Between 20% and 30% of people with hepatitis C are covered by Medicaid.

        Bruce Japsen also discusses Sovaldi in Forbes (4/28).

Higher Hemodialysis Doses Linked with Longer Survival

A recent study concerning the effects of delivered doses of hemodialysis [single-pool Kt/V (spKt/V)] among 68,110 patients from 2001 to 2005, found baseline spKt/V showed a weak negative association with premature mortality in conventional Cox models, but higher time-averaged spKt/V was strongly associated with lower mortality risk. In marginal structural models, compared with a spKt/V range of 1.2 to <1.4, a spKt/V range of <1.2 was associated with a 67% increased risk of mortality, while mortality risks were lower with higher spKt/V. The greatest survival advantage of a higher dialysis dose was observed for a spKt/V range of 1.8 to <2.0. The findingswere published in the American Journal of Nephrology.

Researchers Characterize Glomerulonephritis Epidemiology

Using an employer health plan database of 13,712,946 enrollees from 2007 to 2011, researchers estimated the prevalence rates of primary glomerulonephritis (GN) and GN resulting from systemic immunologic disease to be 69.8 and 52.3 cases per 100,000 persons, respectively. Incidence rates were 19.9 and 9.5 cases per 100,000 person-years, respectively. ESRD rates were 36.2 and 15.9 per 1000 patient-years, respectively. Less than half of primary GN patients were female, while more than half with GN from systemic immunologic disease were female. The findings, presented at the National Kidney Foundation’s 2014 Spring Clinical Meetings, were highlighted by Renal & Urology News.