Legislation in Ohio requiring prescribers to check the PDMP was effective in reducing the quantity of opioids and benzodiazepines dispensed.

The study found that the majority of patients were satisfied with MyChart Bedside, and they reported that it helped them learn more about their medications, as well as communicate with their care team.

Asian Americans are the fastest-growing minority group in the United States, yet little is known about their multimorbidity. This study examined the association of Asian Indians, Chinese and non-Hispanic whites (NHWs) to multimorbidity, defined as the concurrent presence of two or more chronic conditions in the same individual. We used a cross-sectional design with data from the National Health Interview Survey (2012–2017) of Asian Indians, Chinese, and NHWs (N = 132,666). Logistic regressions were used to examine the adjusted association of race/ethnicity to multimorbidity. There were 1.9% Asian Indians, 1.8% Chinese, and 96.3% NHWs. In unadjusted analyses (p < 0.001), 17.1% Asian Indians, 17.9% Chinese, and 39.0% NHWs had multimorbidity. Among the dyads, high cholesterol and hypertension were the most common combination of chronic conditions among Asian Indians (32.4%), Chinese (41.0%), and NHWs (20.6%). Asian Indians (AOR = 0.73, 95% CI = (0.61, 0.89)) and Chinese (AOR = 0.63, 95% CI = (0.53, 0.75)) were less likely to have multimorbidity compared to NHWs, after controlling for age, sex, and other risk factors. However, Asian Indians and Chinese were more likely to have high cholesterol and hypertension, risk factors for diabetes and heart disease.

Background Gabapentin is an anticonvulsant medication with potential misuse reported in case reports and population studies, highlighting the need to reexamine its abuse liability. The purpose of this study was to describe gabapentin dispensing patterns and assess potential misuse. Methods We used data from Ohio's Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP) from December 1, 2016 to March 31, 2017 and restricted the population to adults who filled at least one gabapentin prescription ( N = 379,372). Gabapentin dispensing patterns are described and multiple strategies were used to assess potential misuse, including Lorenz-1 curve analysis. Supratherapeutic dosing, number of prescribers and number of pharmacies used were compared for individuals who were co-dispensed medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD) and those who were not. Results More than one million gabapentin prescriptions were dispensed during the 4-month period, with a mean dose of 1103.8 mg. While few individuals received supratherapeutic dosing, exceptionally high doses were observed. Half of the individuals (50.9%) were co-dispensed gabapentin and opioids. The Lorenz-1 value for gabapentin (5.5%) did not exceed the threshold for misuse potential. Individuals co-dispensed MOUD were more likely to have supratherapeutic dosing; however, they had a lower Lorenz-1 value compared to individuals not co-dispensed MOUD. Conclusions Among Ohio residents dispensed gabapentin, there was no evidence of misuse using PDMP data based on the Lorenz-1 value, yet supratherapeutic dosing of gabapentin was observed and was associated with OUD. New strategies may be needed to identify the non-medical use of gabapentin.

Background. There are marked differences in how individuals respond and adapt to depressive symptoms over time during the strain of public health emergencies; however, few studies have examined the interrelations between depressive symptoms in distinct depressive trajectories from the COVID-19 outbreak period to the COVID-19 control period. Therefore, this study conducted cross-lagged panel networks to investigate the temporal relationships between depressive symptoms across distinct depressive trajectories from the COVID-19 outbreak period (T1) to the COVID-19 control period (T2). Methods. A total of 35,516 young participants from the College Students’ Behavior and Health Cohort during the COVID-19 pandemic were included in the current study. Depressive symptoms were self-reported using the nine-item Patient Health Questionnaire. Unique longitudinal relationships between symptoms during the COVID-19 pandemic were estimated using a cross-lagged panel network. Results. Longitudinal relationships across distinct depressive trajectories were unique during the COVID-19 pandemic. Specifically, suicidal ideation at T1 in the chronic- and delayed-dysfunction groups was most predictive of other symptoms at T2, whereas “sleep” at T1 in the recovery group and “lack of energy” at T1 in the resistance group may be strongly related to the remission of other depressive symptoms at T2. Conclusions. These exploratory findings demonstrate the directionality of relationships underlying individual symptoms in the youth and highlight suicidal ideation, sleep, and energy as potential influencers of other depressive symptoms across distinct depressive trajectories. Targeting those symptoms during the outbreak period of COVID 19 would theoretically have been beneficial in preventing and/or reducing the likelihood of spontaneous depression during the subsequent control period.