Susan Vallow | GlaxoSmithKline, LLP (original) (raw)

Papers by Susan Vallow

Research paper thumbnail of Direct costs of opioid abuse in an insured population in the United States

Journal of managed care pharmacy : JMCP

To (a) describe the demographics of opioid abusers; (b) compare the prevalence rates of selected ... more To (a) describe the demographics of opioid abusers; (b) compare the prevalence rates of selected comorbidities and the medical and drug utilization patterns of opioid abusers with patients from a control group, for the period from 1998 to 2002; and (c) calculate the mean annual per-patient total health care costs (e.g., inpatient, outpatient, emergency room, drug, other) from the perspective of a private payer. An administrative database of medical and pharmacy claims from 1998 to 2002 of 16 self-insured employer health plans with approximately 2 million lives was used to identify "opioid abusers"--patients with claims associated with ICD-9-CM (International Classification of Diseases, 9th Revision, Clinical Modification) codes for opioid abuse (304.0, 304.7, 305.5, and 965.0 [excluding 965.01]). A control group of nonabusers was selected using a matched sample (by age, gender, employment status, and census region) in a 3:1 ratio. Per-patient annual health care costs (mean...

Research paper thumbnail of Validation of the Restless Legs Syndrome Quality of Life Instrument (RLS-QLI): Findings of a Consortium of National Experts and the RLS Foundation

Quality of Life Research, 2000

The Restless Legs Syndrome Quality of Life questionnaire (RLSQoL) assesses the impact of RLS on d... more The Restless Legs Syndrome Quality of Life questionnaire (RLSQoL) assesses the impact of RLS on daily life, emotional well-being, social life, and work life. This study investigates its validity and reliability.

Research paper thumbnail of Neuropsychological effects of long-term opioid use in chronic pain patients

Journal of Pain and Symptom Management, 2003

Opioids are thought to worsen the performance of psychomotor tasks due to their sedating and ment... more Opioids are thought to worsen the performance of psychomotor tasks due to their sedating and mental-clouding effects. As a result, some safety regulations currently restrict the use of opioids when driving or using heavy equipment. We investigated the psychomotor effects of long-term opioid use in 144 patients with low back pain. All subjects were administered two neuropsychological tests (Digit Symbol and Trail Making Test-B) before being prescribed opioids for pain; tests were re-administered at 90-and 180-day intervals. Test scores significantly improved while subjects were taking opioids for pain, which suggests that long-term use of oxycodone with acetaminophen or transdermal fentanyl does not significantly impair cognitive ability or psychomotor function. J Pain Symptom Manage 2003;26:913-921. Ć 2003 U.S. Cancer Pain Relief Committee. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Research paper thumbnail of The direct cost of care for psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis in the United States

Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, 2002

Relatively little information is available in the literature concerning the cost of psoriasis in ... more Relatively little information is available in the literature concerning the cost of psoriasis in the United States, and much of that information is out of date. The present analyses estimate the direct cost of medical care for psoriasis (including psoriatic arthritis) from a societal perspective among adults in the United States. The costs of hospitalizations, outpatient and physician office visits, prescription and over-the-counter (OTC) medications, and medical procedures were estimated from the literature, analysis of publicly available health databases (Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, National Hospital Discharge Survey, Medicare Public Use Files, National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey, and the National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey), and analysis of privately available health databases (United Health Care/Diversified Pharmaceutical Services, the Medstat Group diagnosis-related group guide, and the National Disease and Therapeutic Index). Costs were expressed as of 1997 by using Medicare and health maintenance organization reimbursement rates and wholesale drug costs. Costs of OTC medications were derived by adjusting a previous estimate in the literature for inflation in over-the-counter drugs and population increases. The cost of illness for the approximately 1.4 million individuals with clinically significant disease is substantial-approximately 30.5millionforhospitalizations,30.5 million for hospitalizations, 30.5millionforhospitalizations,86.6 million for outpatient physician visits, 27.4millionforphotochemotherapy,27.4 million for photochemotherapy, 27.4millionforphotochemotherapy,147.9 million for dermatologic prescription drugs, and 357.2millionforOTCdrugs,foratotaldirectcostof357.2 million for OTC drugs, for a total direct cost of 357.2millionforOTCdrugs,foratotaldirectcostof649.6 million. Cost estimates from this study are substantially less than those found in previous studies ($1.09 billion and $4.32 billion after adjustment of estimates in the literature for medical inflation and population increases). This appears to be principally a result of decreases in hospitalization rates since 1979 and the valuation methodology per unit of medical services (with prior studies using "list" prices and the current study using reimbursement rates).

Research paper thumbnail of Direct costs of opioid abuse in an insured population in the United States

Journal of managed care pharmacy : JMCP

To (a) describe the demographics of opioid abusers; (b) compare the prevalence rates of selected ... more To (a) describe the demographics of opioid abusers; (b) compare the prevalence rates of selected comorbidities and the medical and drug utilization patterns of opioid abusers with patients from a control group, for the period from 1998 to 2002; and (c) calculate the mean annual per-patient total health care costs (e.g., inpatient, outpatient, emergency room, drug, other) from the perspective of a private payer. An administrative database of medical and pharmacy claims from 1998 to 2002 of 16 self-insured employer health plans with approximately 2 million lives was used to identify "opioid abusers"--patients with claims associated with ICD-9-CM (International Classification of Diseases, 9th Revision, Clinical Modification) codes for opioid abuse (304.0, 304.7, 305.5, and 965.0 [excluding 965.01]). A control group of nonabusers was selected using a matched sample (by age, gender, employment status, and census region) in a 3:1 ratio. Per-patient annual health care costs (mean...

Research paper thumbnail of Validation of the Restless Legs Syndrome Quality of Life Instrument (RLS-QLI): Findings of a Consortium of National Experts and the RLS Foundation

Quality of Life Research, 2000

The Restless Legs Syndrome Quality of Life questionnaire (RLSQoL) assesses the impact of RLS on d... more The Restless Legs Syndrome Quality of Life questionnaire (RLSQoL) assesses the impact of RLS on daily life, emotional well-being, social life, and work life. This study investigates its validity and reliability.

Research paper thumbnail of Neuropsychological effects of long-term opioid use in chronic pain patients

Journal of Pain and Symptom Management, 2003

Opioids are thought to worsen the performance of psychomotor tasks due to their sedating and ment... more Opioids are thought to worsen the performance of psychomotor tasks due to their sedating and mental-clouding effects. As a result, some safety regulations currently restrict the use of opioids when driving or using heavy equipment. We investigated the psychomotor effects of long-term opioid use in 144 patients with low back pain. All subjects were administered two neuropsychological tests (Digit Symbol and Trail Making Test-B) before being prescribed opioids for pain; tests were re-administered at 90-and 180-day intervals. Test scores significantly improved while subjects were taking opioids for pain, which suggests that long-term use of oxycodone with acetaminophen or transdermal fentanyl does not significantly impair cognitive ability or psychomotor function. J Pain Symptom Manage 2003;26:913-921. Ć 2003 U.S. Cancer Pain Relief Committee. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Research paper thumbnail of The direct cost of care for psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis in the United States

Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, 2002

Relatively little information is available in the literature concerning the cost of psoriasis in ... more Relatively little information is available in the literature concerning the cost of psoriasis in the United States, and much of that information is out of date. The present analyses estimate the direct cost of medical care for psoriasis (including psoriatic arthritis) from a societal perspective among adults in the United States. The costs of hospitalizations, outpatient and physician office visits, prescription and over-the-counter (OTC) medications, and medical procedures were estimated from the literature, analysis of publicly available health databases (Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, National Hospital Discharge Survey, Medicare Public Use Files, National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey, and the National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey), and analysis of privately available health databases (United Health Care/Diversified Pharmaceutical Services, the Medstat Group diagnosis-related group guide, and the National Disease and Therapeutic Index). Costs were expressed as of 1997 by using Medicare and health maintenance organization reimbursement rates and wholesale drug costs. Costs of OTC medications were derived by adjusting a previous estimate in the literature for inflation in over-the-counter drugs and population increases. The cost of illness for the approximately 1.4 million individuals with clinically significant disease is substantial-approximately 30.5millionforhospitalizations,30.5 million for hospitalizations, 30.5millionforhospitalizations,86.6 million for outpatient physician visits, 27.4millionforphotochemotherapy,27.4 million for photochemotherapy, 27.4millionforphotochemotherapy,147.9 million for dermatologic prescription drugs, and 357.2millionforOTCdrugs,foratotaldirectcostof357.2 million for OTC drugs, for a total direct cost of 357.2millionforOTCdrugs,foratotaldirectcostof649.6 million. Cost estimates from this study are substantially less than those found in previous studies ($1.09 billion and $4.32 billion after adjustment of estimates in the literature for medical inflation and population increases). This appears to be principally a result of decreases in hospitalization rates since 1979 and the valuation methodology per unit of medical services (with prior studies using "list" prices and the current study using reimbursement rates).