Hepatitis C: Choice of Expensive Treatments

Hepatitis C is a disease caused by a virus that infects the liver.  The virus, called the Hepatitis C virus or HCV for short, is just one of the hepatitis viruses. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), an estimated 2.7 million people in the United States have chronic Hepatitis C infection.

Some people who get HCV have it for a short time (up to six months) and then get better on their own.  This is called acute Hepatitis C.  But most people (about 75% – 85%) will go on to develop chronic (or long-term) Hepatitis C, meaning it doesn’t go away without proper and expensive treatment.

Unless successfully treated with medication, chronic Hepatitis C infection can cause other serious health problems, such as cirrhosis, liver cancer and liver failure. However, with recent advances in Hepatitis C treatment the cure rates are higher now a days.

Stool Color Tell your Disease!!

Changes in the color of stool are common and are generally not significant if the changes are noted from one stool to the next and are not persistent. However, changes in the color of stool can also be caused by a number of minor to serious medical conditions and can occur with certain medications. Changes in stool color that are persistent and do not occur in only one stool may signal the presence of a medical condition.
- Red or black, foul-smelling stool: intestinal bleeding (typically from the stomach and upper small intestine) due to ulcers, tumors; ingestion of iron or bismuth

- Maroon stool: intestinal bleeding (from the middle intestine or proximal colon) due to ulcers, tumors, Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis

- clay-colored stool: lack of bile due to blockage of the main bile duct

- pale yellow, greasy, foul-smelling stool: malabsorption of fat due to pancreatic insufficiency, as seen with pancreatitis, pancreatic cancer, cystic fibrosis, celiac disease

- Green stool or poop is a common stool color change. It may be due to bile pigment in the stool because diarrhea moves food too quickly thorough the intestine so the chemical can't break down, or the green color may be due to certain foods like green, leafy vegetables or green food coloring.

Privacy Policy

Privacy Policy for http://talkdisease.blogspot.com/.com

The privacy of our visitors to http://talkdisease.blogspot.com/.com is important to us.

At http://talkdisease.blogspot.com/_.com, we recognize that privacy of your personal information is important. Here is information on what types of personal information we receive and collect when you use and visit http://talkdisease.blogspot.com/_.com, and how we safeguard your information.  We never sell your personal information to third parties.

Log Files
As with most other websites, we collect and use the data contained in log files.  The information in the log files include  your IP (internet protocol) address, your ISP (internet service provider, such as AOL or Shaw Cable), the browser you used to visit our site (such as Internet Explorer or Firefox), the time you visited our site and which pages you visited throughout our site.

Cookies and Web Beacons
We do use cookies to store information, such as your personal preferences when you visit our site.  This could include only showing you a popup once in your visit, or the ability to login to some of our features, such as forums.

We also use third party advertisements on http://talkdisease.blogspot.com/.com to support our site.  Some of these advertisers may use technology such as cookies and web beacons when they advertise on our site, which will also send these advertisers (such as Google through the Google AdSense program) information including your IP address, your ISP , the browser you used to visit our site, and in some cases, whether you have Flash installed.  This is generally used for geotargeting purposes (showing New York real estate ads to someone in New York, for example) or showing certain ads based on specific sites visited (such as showing cooking ads to someone who frequents cooking sites).

You can chose to disable or selectively turn off our cookies or third-party cookies in your browser settings, or by managing preferences in programs such as Norton Internet Security.  However, this can affect how you are able to interact with our site as well as other websites.  This could include the inability to login to services or programs, such as logging into forums or accounts.

PQI #5: How to Calculate COPD or Asthma in Older Adults Admission Rate

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is an umbrella term used to describe progressive lung diseases including emphysema, chronic bronchitis, refractory (non-reversible) asthma, and some forms of bronchiectasis. This disease is characterized by increasing breathlessness.

COPD affects an estimated 30 million individuals in the U.S., and over half of them have symptoms of COPD and do not know it. Early screening can identify COPD before major loss of lung function occurs.

Most cases of COPD are caused by inhaling pollutants; that includes smoking (cigarettes, pipes, cigars, etc.), and second-hand smoke.

Fumes, chemicals and dust found in many work environments are contributing factors for many individuals who develop COPD.

Genetics can also play a role in an individual’s development of COPD—even if the person has never smoked or has ever been exposed to strong lung irritants in the workplace.

How To Calculate Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) or Asthma in Older Adults Admission Rate

Know About Acne: Home Remedies, Treatment And Cause

Acne is a skin problem that occurs when the hair follicles of your skin are blocked by a mix of dead skin cells and sebum (oil). When this happens, bacteria can grow in the plugged hair follicles and cause more skin irritation.
Acne can occur anywhere on skin, but is most common on the face, neck, chest, and back. It usually starts in the early teen years, when the oil glands in the body start making more sebum, but can last into or begin in adulthood, too.

Causes Of Acne:
- When the hair follicle becomes plugged with oil and skin cells, a “whitehead” forms in the hair follicle.
- If the follicle is plugged near the surface of the skin and air touches the plug, it turns black and is called a “blackhead.” A blackhead isn’t caused by dirt.
- If the wall of a plugged hair follicle breaks, the area swells and turns into a red bump. If the hair follicle wall breaks near the skin surface, the bump usually becomes a pimple.
- If the follicle wall breaks deep in the skin, acne nodules or cysts can form. This is called “cystic acne.”

Know About Migraine : Home Remedies, Treatment And Cause

A migraine is a throbbing painful headache, usually on one side of the head, that is often initiated or "triggered" by specific compounds or situations (environment, stress, hormones, and many others). They occur more often in women (75%, approximately) and may affect a person’s ability to do common tasks.

Migraine Symptoms:
Throbbing pain, usually on one side of a person's head, can be intense enough to cause a person to be unable to do simple tasks or to work. The headache pain may radiate toward the eyes, forehead, or temple and make a person develop nausea, vomiting, vision problems, and sensitivity to normal light or mild exertion.

Trigger:
Flashing Lights: Migraine headaches are often triggered to occur when the person is exposed to a specific set of circumstances. One of the most common triggers is strong flickering light. For example, faulty fluorescent lights, a television picture rapidly going on and off, or sunlight reflected off of waves in a lake or the ocean are all potential triggers.

How to Calculate PQI #3: Diabetes Long-term Complications Admission Rate

Diabetes is a complicated disease. But don’t confuse this thought with the term “diabetes complications”! Complications generally occur after years of high blood glucose. The blood vessels become damaged unless you can keep your glucose levels in a healthy range most of the time. The range of complications span from being simply annoying to actually life threatening. The lesser conditions include dry and itchy skin, mild gum disease, a tendency to be more susceptible to colds and flu, and in women, yeast infections. The more serious complications - some life-changing or life-threatening - include eye disease, kidney disease, nerve disease and heart disease.

Numerator
All discharges age 18 years and older with ICD-9-CM principal diagnosis code for diabeteslong-term complications (renal, eye, neurological, circulatory, or complications not otherwise specified). 

How to Calculate PQI #2: Perforated Appendix Admission Rate

A perforated appendix is one of the complications of acute appendicitis. If appendicitis is left untreated, ischemic necrosis of a portion of appendiceal wall may occur, leading to perforation. An appendicolith is thought to be associated with a higher probability of perforation. Perforation of the appendix is more common among the elderly population due to an increased frequency of late and atypical presentation of appendicitis, delay in diagnosis, delayed decision for surgery and to the age-specific physiological changes.

Population Measured (Denominator)
Discharges, for patients ages 18 years and older, with any-listed ICD-CM diagnosis codes for appendicitis. Discharges are assigned to the denominator based on the metropolitan area or county of the patient residence, not the metropolitan area or county of the hospital where the discharge occurred.

How to Calculate PQI #1 Diabetes Short-Term Complications Admission Rate

Population Measured (Denominator)
After applying the exclusions outlined in the next section, all inpatient utilization of the member were counted. Percentage can be counted based on the member count or by the IP admit count.

Beneficiaries are excluded from the population measured if they:
• were under the age of 18
• were enrolled in Medicare managed care (a Medicare Advantage plan) for any month during the performance period
• were enrolled in Medicare Part A only or Medicare Part B only for any month during the performance period
• resided outside of the United States, its territories, and its possessions for any month during the performance period
• Hospitalizations are excluded from the measure outcome if:
• the hospital admission is a transfer from a hospital, skilled nursing facility, intermediate care facility, or other health care facility
• the hospitalization is missing a principal diagnosis
• the discharge had any diagnosis code for sickle-cell anemia or HB-S disease, or any diagnosis or procedure code for immunocompromised state (bacterial pneumonia
component measure only)
• the discharge had any diagnosis code for kidney/urinary tract disorder or any diagnosis or procedure code for immunocompromised state (urinary tract infection component measure only)
• the discharge had any diagnosis code for chronic renal failure (dehydration component measure only)





NUMERATOR:
ICD-9-CM    Description
250.10    Diabetes with ketoacidosis, type II or unspecified type, not stated as uncontrolled
250.11    Diabetes with ketoacidosis, type I [juvenile type], not stated as uncontrolled
250.12    Diabetes with ketoacidosis, type II or unspecified type, uncontrolled
250.13    Diabetes with ketoacidosis, type I [juvenile type], uncontrolled
250.20    Diabetes with hyperosmolarity, type II or unspecified type, not stated as uncontrolled
250.21    Diabetes with hyperosmolarity, type I [juvenile type], not stated as uncontrolled
250.22    Diabetes with hyperosmolarity, type II or unspecified type, uncontrolled
250.23    Diabetes with hyperosmolarity, type I [juvenile type], uncontrolled
250.30    Diabetes with other coma, type II or unspecified type, not stated as uncontrolled
250.31    Diabetes with other coma, type I [juvenile type], not stated as uncontrolled
250.32    Diabetes with other coma, type II or unspecified type, uncontrolled
250.33    Diabetes with other coma, type I [juvenile type], uncontrolled

ICD-10-CM    Description
E10.10    Type 1 diabetes mellitus with ketoacidosis without coma
E10.11    Type 1 diabetes mellitus with ketoacidosis with coma
E10.641    Type 1 diabetes mellitus with hypoglycemia with coma
E10.65    Type 1 diabetes mellitus with hyperglycemia
E11.00    Type 2 diabetes mellitus with hyperosmolarity without nonketotic hyperglycemic-hyperosmolar coma (NKHHC)
E11.01    Type 2 diabetes mellitus with hyperosmolarity with coma
E11.641    Type 2 diabetes mellitus with hypoglycemia with coma
E11.65    Type 2 diabetes mellitus with hyperglycemia
E13.00    Other specified diabetes mellitus with hyperosmolarity without nonketotic hyperglycemic-hyperosmolar coma (NKHHC)
E13.01    Other specified diabetes mellitus with hyperosmolarity with coma
E13.10    Other specified diabetes mellitus with ketoacidosis without coma
E13.11    Other specified diabetes mellitus with ketoacidosis with coma
E13.641    Other specified diabetes mellitus with hypoglycemia with coma

NUMERATOR Exclude cases:
•transfer from a hospital (different facility) 
•transfer from a skilled Nursing Facility (SNF) or Intermediate Care Facility (ICF) 
•transfer from another health care facility
•MDC 14 (pregnancy, childbirth, and puerperium)

ACUTE AND CHRONIC AMBULATORY CARE –SENSITIVE CONDITION

AMBULATORY CARE –SENSITIVE CONDITION or PQIs can be categorized into two basic category: Acute Conditions Composite & Chronic Conditions Composite. The measures are adapted from the area- level Prevention Quality Indicators (PQIs), which were developed by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) and include measures of potentially avoidable hospitalizations.

Acute ACSC Composite:
The Acute Conditions Composite is a hospitalization during the performance period with a primary diagnosis of one or more of the following conditions:
- Bacterial Pneumonia (PQI #11)
- Urinary Tract Infection (PQI #12) 
- Dehydration (PQI #10)

Chronic ACSC Composite:
- Short-Term Complications from Diabetes (PQI #1)
- Long-Term Complications from Diabetes (PQI #3)
- Uncontrolled Diabetes (PQI #14)
- Lower Extremity Amputation among Patients with Diabetes (PQI #16)
- Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) or Asthma in Older Adults (PQI #5)
- Heart Failure (PQI #8)