C Barrett Bowling1,2, Richard Sloane3, Carl Pieper3, Alison Luciano3, Barry R Davis4, Lara M Simpson4, Paula T Einhorn5, Suzanne Oparil6, Paul Muntner7. 1. Durham Veterans Affairs Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center, Durham Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAMC), Durham, NC, USA. barrett.bowling@duke.edu. 2. Department of Medicine, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA. barrett.bowling@duke.edu. 3. Center for Study of Aging and Human Development, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA. 4. The University of Texas School of Public Health, Houston, TX, USA. 5. Division of Cardiovascular Sciences, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA. 6. Department of Medicine, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA. 7. Department of Epidemiology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Clustering of chronic conditions is associated with high healthcare costs. Sustaining blood pressure (BP) control could be a strategy to prevent high-cost multimorbidity clusters. OBJECTIVE: To determine the association between sustained systolic BP (SBP) control and incident multimorbidity cluster dyads and triads. DESIGN: Cohort study of Antihypertensive and Lipid-Lowering Treatment to Prevent Heart Attack Trial (ALLHAT) linked to Medicare claims. PARTICIPANTS: ALLHAT included adults with hypertension and ≥1 coronary heart disease risk factor. This analysis was restricted to 5234 participants with ≥ 8 SBP measurements during a 48-month BP assessment period. MAIN MEASURES: SBP control was defined as <140 mm Hg at <50%, 50 to <75%, 75 to <100%, and 100% of study visits during the BP assessment period. High-cost multimorbidity clusters included dyads (stroke/chronic kidney disease [CKD], stroke/chronic obstructive pulmonary disease [COPD], stroke/heart failure [HF], stroke/asthma, COPD/CKD) and triads (stroke/CKD/asthma, stroke/CKD/COPD, stroke/CKD/depression, stroke/CKD/HF, stroke/HF/asthma) identified during follow-up. KEY RESULTS: Incident dyads occurred in 1334 (26%) participants and triads occurred in 481 (9%) participants over a median follow-up of 9.2 years. Among participants with SBP control at <50%, 50 to <75%, 75 to <100%, and 100% of visits, 32%, 23%, 23%, and 19% of participants developed high-cost dyads, respectively, and 13%, 9%, 8%, and 5% of participants developed high-cost triads, respectively. Compared to those with sustained BP control at <50% of visits, adjusted HRs (95% CI) for incident dyads were 0.66 (0.57, 0.75), 0.67 (0.59, 0.77), and 0.51 (0.42, 0.62) for SBP control at 50 to <75%, 75 to <100%, and 100% of visits, respectively. The corresponding HRs (95% CI) for incident triads were 0.69 (0.55, 0.85), 0.56 (0.44, 0.71), and 0.32 (0.22, 0.47). CONCLUSIONS: Among Medicare beneficiaries in ALLHAT, sustained SBP was associated with a lower risk of developing high-cost multimorbidity dyads and triads.
BACKGROUND: Clustering of chronic conditions is associated with high healthcare costs. Sustaining blood pressure (BP) control could be a strategy to prevent high-cost multimorbidity clusters. OBJECTIVE: To determine the association between sustained systolic BP (SBP) control and incident multimorbidity cluster dyads and triads. DESIGN: Cohort study of Antihypertensive and Lipid-Lowering Treatment to Prevent Heart Attack Trial (ALLHAT) linked to Medicare claims. PARTICIPANTS: ALLHAT included adults with hypertension and ≥1 coronary heart disease risk factor. This analysis was restricted to 5234 participants with ≥ 8 SBP measurements during a 48-month BP assessment period. MAIN MEASURES: SBP control was defined as <140 mm Hg at <50%, 50 to <75%, 75 to <100%, and 100% of study visits during the BP assessment period. High-cost multimorbidity clusters included dyads (stroke/chronic kidney disease [CKD], stroke/chronic obstructive pulmonary disease [COPD], stroke/heart failure [HF], stroke/asthma, COPD/CKD) and triads (stroke/CKD/asthma, stroke/CKD/COPD, stroke/CKD/depression, stroke/CKD/HF, stroke/HF/asthma) identified during follow-up. KEY RESULTS: Incident dyads occurred in 1334 (26%) participants and triads occurred in 481 (9%) participants over a median follow-up of 9.2 years. Among participants with SBP control at <50%, 50 to <75%, 75 to <100%, and 100% of visits, 32%, 23%, 23%, and 19% of participants developed high-cost dyads, respectively, and 13%, 9%, 8%, and 5% of participants developed high-cost triads, respectively. Compared to those with sustained BP control at <50% of visits, adjusted HRs (95% CI) for incident dyads were 0.66 (0.57, 0.75), 0.67 (0.59, 0.77), and 0.51 (0.42, 0.62) for SBP control at 50 to <75%, 75 to <100%, and 100% of visits, respectively. The corresponding HRs (95% CI) for incident triads were 0.69 (0.55, 0.85), 0.56 (0.44, 0.71), and 0.32 (0.22, 0.47). CONCLUSIONS: Among Medicare beneficiaries in ALLHAT, sustained SBP was associated with a lower risk of developing high-cost multimorbidity dyads and triads.
Authors: Paul K Whelton; Robert M Carey; Wilbert S Aronow; Donald E Casey; Karen J Collins; Cheryl Dennison Himmelfarb; Sondra M DePalma; Samuel Gidding; Kenneth A Jamerson; Daniel W Jones; Eric J MacLaughlin; Paul Muntner; Bruce Ovbiagele; Sidney C Smith; Crystal C Spencer; Randall S Stafford; Sandra J Taler; Randal J Thomas; Kim A Williams; Jeff D Williamson; Jackson T Wright Journal: J Am Coll Cardiol Date: 2017-11-13 Impact factor: 24.094
Authors: C Barrett Bowling; Laura Plantinga; Lawrence S Phillips; William McClellan; Katharina Echt; Neale Chumbler; Gerald McGwin; Ann Vandenberg; Richard M Allman; Theodore M Johnson Journal: J Am Geriatr Soc Date: 2016-11-23 Impact factor: 5.562
Authors: C Barrett Bowling; Luqin Deng; Swati Sakhuja; Miriam C Morey; Byron C Jaeger; Paul Muntner Journal: J Gen Intern Med Date: 2019-08-21 Impact factor: 5.128
Authors: Jeff D Williamson; Mark A Supiano; William B Applegate; Dan R Berlowitz; Ruth C Campbell; Glenn M Chertow; Larry J Fine; William E Haley; Amret T Hawfield; Joachim H Ix; Dalane W Kitzman; John B Kostis; Marie A Krousel-Wood; Lenore J Launer; Suzanne Oparil; Carlos J Rodriguez; Christianne L Roumie; Ronald I Shorr; Kaycee M Sink; Virginia G Wadley; Paul K Whelton; Jeffrey Whittle; Nancy F Woolard; Jackson T Wright; Nicholas M Pajewski Journal: JAMA Date: 2016-06-28 Impact factor: 56.272
Authors: Shia T Kent; Monika M Safford; Hong Zhao; Emily B Levitan; Jeffrey R Curtis; Ryan D Kilpatrick; Meredith L Kilgore; Paul Muntner Journal: Am J Epidemiol Date: 2015-10-05 Impact factor: 4.897
Authors: Johan Sundström; Hisatomi Arima; Rod Jackson; Fiona Turnbull; Kazem Rahimi; John Chalmers; Mark Woodward; Bruce Neal Journal: Ann Intern Med Date: 2015-02-03 Impact factor: 25.391
Authors: Andi Shahu; Jeph Herrin; Sanket S Dhruva; Nihar R Desai; Barry R Davis; Harlan M Krumholz; Erica S Spatz Journal: J Am Heart Assoc Date: 2019-07-31 Impact factor: 5.501
Authors: C Barrett Bowling; Richard Sloane; Carl Pieper; Alison Luciano; Barry R Davis; Lara M Simpson; Paula T Einhorn; Suzanne Oparil; Paul Muntner Journal: J Hypertens Date: 2021-11-01 Impact factor: 4.776