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Exactly why the USA need a NHS...! Nic 57/15 On Thu, Oct 8, 2009 at 6:25 PM, mschild <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > > > Black Americans newly diagnosed with Parkinson's disease are a quarter as > likely as whites to walk out of their first office visit with a > prescription for > anti-PD treatment, according to a new study. > > Researchers identified new diagnoses of PD from Medicaid records in > Pennsylvania between 1999 and 2003, excluding patients with possible > secondary > parkinsonism, as well as those who received anti-PD treatments in the prior > 12 > months. Of the 307 identified cases, 264 were white and 43 were black. > Compared > to historical averages for all PD patients, patients in this study were > somewhat younger (mean age 55) and more likely to be female (61%), but > there > were no significant differences in these variables between blacks and > whites. > The initial visit was with a neurologist for 33% of blacks and 39% of > whites > (difference not significant); about 90% of both groups were eligible for > Medicaid because of a disability; and blacks were more likely to receive > care > in an urban setting compared to whites (p<0.0001). > > Thirty-four percent of patients received a prescription for anti-PD > medication > or physical therapy at their first office visit, but the rates differed by > race: > 12% of blacks and 38% of whites received prescriptions. The odds ratio for > receiving a prescription was 0.24 (95% confidence interval 0.09-0.64) for > blacks. The two groups had about equal rates of six-month follow-up > appointments. > > The authors point out that the sample was relatively young, poor, and > disabled, and that "multiple comorbid conditions that require treatment may > discourage clinicians from adding therapies with potential cross- > interactions," potentially affecting the generalizability of the results to > the > larger population. > > "Our data cannot explain whether differences in treatment were due to > differences in provider recommendations or differences in patient > acceptance of > treatment," the authors note. "Understanding the underlying causal > mechanisms > of these racial disparities such as patient and physician preferences, > patient-physician communication, and confounding socioeconomic differences > is > important to develop interventions to reduce inequities in care and improve > health for all patients with PD." > > Treatment disparities in Parkinson's disease > N Dahodwala, M Xie, E Noll, A Siderowf, DS Mandell > Ann Neurol 2009;66:142-145 > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto: > [log in to unmask] > In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn