Study Objectives The mechanisms responsible for the development of obstructive sleep apnea (phenotypic “traits”) are known to differ between individuals and may differ across ethnicities. We aimed to examine whether loop gain, arousal threshold, pharyngeal collapsibility and muscle compensation differ between Chinese and Caucasian individuals with OSA. Methods We noninvasively determined the relative contribution of loop gain, arousal threshold, pharyngeal collapsibility, and muscle compensation from the ventilatory flow pattern recorded during a standard clinical polysomnography in a cohort of age and AHI matched Caucasian and Chinese patients with moderate-severe OSA (n = 90). Results Chinese participants had significantly more collapsible pharyngeal airways as indicated by a lower Vpassive (68.9 [51.5–75.2] vs. 74.0 [65.1–80.4] %Veupnea, U = 703, p = 0.012), but less ventilatory control instability as indicated by a lower loop gain (0.60 [0.50–0.67] vs. 0.63 [0.57–0.81], U = 762, p = 0.043) compared with Caucasian participants. Further, multiple logistic regression analyses demonstrated that the combined pharyngeal collapsibility (Vpassive) and loop gain traits help to better explain the differences between the groups beyond upper-airway collapsibility alone. No statistically significant group differences were found in muscle compensation or arousal threshold traits between groups. Conclusion Individuals of Chinese descent appear to have OSA that is driven much more by the relative contribution of their anatomical predisposition and to a lesser extent nonanatomical causes compared with Caucasians. Future research should focus on determining if Chinese versus Caucasian ethnicity is an important contributing factor to clinical outcomes and therapeutic responses in OSA.

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BackgroundTreatment of elderly patients with lung cancer is significantly hindered by concerns about treatment tolerability, toxicity and limited clinical trial data in the elderly – potentially giving rise to treatment nihilism amongst clinicians. This study aims to describe survival in elderly patients with lung cancer and explore potential causes for excess mortality.MethodsPatients diagnosed with lung cancer in the Victorian Lung Cancer Registry between 2011–2018 were analysed (n=3481). Patients were age-categorised and compared using Cox-regression modelling to determine mortality risk, after adjusting for confounding. Probability of being offered cancer treatments was also determined, further stratified by disease stage.ResultsThe eldest patients (≥80 years old) had significantly shorter median survival compared to younger age groups (<60: 2.0 years; 60–69: 1.5 years; 70–79: 1.6 years; ≥80: 1.0 years; p<0.001). Amongst those diagnosed with stage 1 or 2 lung cancer, there was no significant difference in adjusted-mortality between age groups. However, in those diagnosed with stage 3 or 4 disease, the eldest patients had an increased adjusted-mortality risk of 28% compared to patients younger than 60 years (p=0.005), associated with markedly reduced probability of cancer treatment, after controlling for sex, performance status, comorbidities and histology type (OR 0.24, compared to <60 years old strata, p<0.001).ConclusionCompared to younger patients, older patients with advanced-stage lung cancer have a disproportionately higher risk of mortality and lower likelihood of receiving cancer treatments, even when performance status and comorbidity are equivalent. These healthcare inequities could be indicative of widespread treatment nihilism towards elderly patients.

Background: The predictors of clinically significant bleeding events (CSBE) associated with direct oral anticoagulants (DOAC) are poorly characterised in the literature.Aim: To determine the incidence and predictors of CSBE in patients receiving DOAC. Methods: Patients who received DOAC during admission to a general medical unit over a 2-year period were retrospectively studied. Following the index admission, patients were followed for 12 months or for the duration of treatment (if the latter was less than 12 months). The relevant data were obtained by review of medical records.Results: A total of 203 patients was studied over a mean follow-up period of 293 (AE81) days. The incidence of CSBE was 13.7 (95% confidence interval (CI): 9.5-21.1) per 100 person-years. Age ≥ 75 years (P = 0.01), concurrent use of antiplatelet medications (P = 0.02) and lower estimated creatinine clearance (CrCl) (P = 0.03) had a significant univariate association with CSBE. However, in the multivariate logistic regression, only concurrent use of antiplatelet medications remained significantly associated with CSBE (adjusted odds ratio (OR) 3.6; 95% CI: 1.4-9.6; P = 0.01). Concurrent use of antiplatelet medications was also independently associated with major bleeding events (MBE) (adjusted OR 4.9; 95% CI: 1.1-21.4; P = 0.04). Although 39 (19.2%) patients received antiplatelet medications, the indications for concurrent antiplatelet use complied with current guidelines in only 3 (7.7%) patients. Conclusion:Caution should be exercised when prescribing antiplatelet medications with DOAC as this combination is a potential risk factor for both major and non-major clinically significant bleeding events. In most patients, the concurrent use of antiplatelet medications was discordant with the current consensus guidelines.