Medicine (Austin & Northern Health) - Research Publications

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    The Association Between Sarcopenia and Functional Improvement in Older and Younger Patients Who Completed Inpatient Rehabilitation: A Prospective Cohort Study
    Churilov, I ; Churilov, L ; Brock, K ; Murphy, D ; MacIsaac, RJJ ; Ekinci, EII (FRONTIERS MEDIA SA, 2021-10-21)
    Objective: To investigate the association between sarcopenia and functional improvement in patients older and younger than 65 years upon completion of an inpatient rehabilitation program. Design: Prospective cohort study. Participants: Adult consecutive patients who completed the inpatient rehabilitation program at a metropolitan tertiary referral hospital general inpatient rehabilitation unit. Methods: Sarcopenia status was determined using the European Working Group on Sarcopenia in Older People 2 algorithm, using muscle mass measured by BioImpedance Analysis and grip strength. Progress in rehabilitation was measured using change in the Functional Independence Measure and Goal Attainment Scaling score. To investigate the age group by sarcopenia status interaction we used quantile regression models with bootstrapped standard error estimation for functional improvement and linear regression model with robust standard error estimation for GAS score. Results: 257 participants [128 (50%) male, median age 63 years (IQR: 52-72)], 33(13%) with sarcopenia, completed inpatient rehabilitation [median length of stay 16 days (IQR: 11-27.5)]. Participants' median Functional Independence Measure change was 24 (IQR 15-33.5) and mean total Goal Attainment Scaling score was 57.6 (SD 10.2). Adjusting for admission Functional Independence Measure score, the median difference in Functional Independence Measure change between participants with and without sarcopenia was: -4.3 (95% CI: -10.6, 1.9); p = 0.17 in participants 65 years and younger, and 4.6 (95% CI: 1.0, 8.2); p = 0.01 in participants older than 65; age-by-sarcopenia interaction p = 0.02. Conclusions: Unlike younger people, older people with sarcopenia have greater functional improvement in inpatient rehabilitation than those without sarcopenia.
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    Evaluation of the diagnostic performance of the creatinine-based Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology Collaboration equation in people with diabetes: A systematic review
    Zafari, N ; Churilov, L ; Wong, LY-L ; Lotfaliany, M ; Hachem, M ; Kiburg, KV ; Kong, L ; Torkamani, N ; Baxter, H ; MacIsaac, RJ ; Ekinci, EI (WILEY, 2021-01)
    AIMS: GFR estimated with the creatinine-based Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology Collaboration (CKD-EPICr ) equation is used to screen for diabetic kidney disease and assess its severity. We systematically reviewed the process and outcome of evaluating CKD-EPICr in estimating point GFR or GFR decline over time in adults with type 1 or type 2 diabetes. METHODS: In this systematic review, MEDLINE, Embase and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials were searched up to August 2019. Observational studies comparing CKD-EPICr with measured GFR (mGFR) in adults with diabetes were included. Studies on people with kidney transplant, non-diabetes related kidney disease, pregnancy, potential kidney donors, and those with critical or other systematic illnesses were excluded. Two independent reviewers extracted data from published papers and disagreements were resolved by consensus. Risk-of-bias was assessed using the Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies-2 tool. (PROSPERO registration number: CRD42018108776). RESULTS: From the 2820 records identified, 29 studies (14 704 participants) were included. All studies were at risk of bias. Bias (eight different forms) ranged from -26 to 35 ml min-1  1.73 m-2 ; precision (five different forms) ranged between 9 and 63 ml min-1  1.73 m-2 ; accuracy (five different forms) ranged between 16% and 96%; the correlation coefficient between CKD-EPICr and mGFR (four different forms) ranged between 0.38 and 0.86; and the reduced major axis regression slope ranged between 0.8 and 1.8. CONCLUSIONS: Qualitative synthesis of data suggested CKD-EPICr was inaccurate in estimating point GFR or GFR decline over time. Furthermore, a lack of consistency in the methods and processes of evaluating the diagnostic performance of CKD-EPICr limits reliable quantitative assessment. The equation needs to be improved in adults with diabetes.
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    The prevalence of sarcopenia in middle‐aged and older patients in post‐acute inpatient rehabilitation: a cross‐sectional study
    Churilov, I ; Churilov, L ; Brock, K ; Curtain, N ; Murphy, D ; Muthukrishnan, K ; MacIsaac, RJ ; Ekinci, EI (Wiley, 2021-01)
    Abstract Background Despite the recommendation of European Working Group on Sarcopenia in Older People 2 (EWGSOP2) consensus statement not to exclude patients younger than 65 years, the prevalence of sarcopenia has not been investigated in younger post‐acute inpatient rehabilitation population. The objectives of this study were to: estimate the prevalence of sarcopenia in post‐acute inpatient rehabilitation population; compare the prevalence of sarcopenia in patients above and below 65 years. Methods This cross‐sectional observational study recruited adult patients admitted to an inpatient rehabilitation unit at a metropolitan tertiary referral hospital in Melbourne, Australia. Participants' sarcopenia status was determined using the EWGSOP2 algorithm based on grip strength and muscle mass. Results Between November 2016 and January 2019, 203 participants were enrolled. Participants' broad diagnostic streams included musculoskeletal, neurologic, spinal, cardiac, amputee, and deconditioning. The overall prevalence of sarcopenia was 18% [95% confidence interval (CI) 13% to 24%]. The prevalence of sarcopenia in patients younger than 65 was 14% (95% CI 8% to 22%), and the prevalence in patients 65 and older was 23% (95% CI 15% to 32%), risk difference of 9% (95% CI: −1.2% to 20%; P = 0.1). With incorporation of these results into the most recent meta‐analysis of sarcopenia in inpatient rehabilitation, the mean pooled prevalence of sarcopenia was 47% (95% CI 23% to 71%). Stratified by age, patients with sarcopenia had significantly longer preceding length of stay in the acute hospital (P = 0.015). Conclusions The overall estimated prevalence of sarcopenia in patients admitted to inpatient rehabilitation was 18%, and the estimated prevalence of sarcopenia in patients younger than 65 was 14%.
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    Change in emotional eating after bariatric surgery: systematic review and meta-analysis
    Wong, LY ; Zafari, N ; Churilov, L ; Stammers, L ; Price, S ; Ekinci, EI ; Sumithran, P (OXFORD UNIV PRESS, 2020-12)
    BACKGROUND: The effect of bariatric surgery on 'emotional eating' (EE) in people with obesity is unclear. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to examine changes in self-reported emotional eating behaviour after bariatric surgery. METHODS: Fifteen electronic databases were searched from inception to August 2019. Included studies encompassed patients undergoing primary bariatric surgery, quantitatively assessed EE, and reported EE scores before and after surgery in the same participants. Studies were excluded if they were not in English or available in full text. The systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted according to the PRISMA guidelines. Random-effects models were used for quantitative analysis. Study quality was assessed using the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute quality assessment tool for before-after (pre-post) studies with no control group. RESULTS: Some 23 studies containing 6749 participants were included in the qualitative synthesis, with follow-up of from 2 weeks to 48 months. EE scores decreased to 12 months after surgery. Results were mixed beyond 12 months. Quantitative synthesis of 17 studies (2811 participants) found that EE scores decreased by a standardized mean difference of 1·09 (95 per cent c.i. 0·76 to 1·42) 4-18 months after surgery, indicating a large effect size. CONCLUSION: Bariatric surgery may mitigate the tendency to eat in response to emotions in the short to medium term.
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    Feasibility of once weekly exenatide-LAR and enhanced diabetes care in Indigenous Australians with type 2 diabetes (Long-acting-Once-Weekly-Exenatide laR-SUGAR, 'Lower SUGAR' study)
    Ekinci, E ; Pyrlis, F ; Hachem, M ; Maple-Brown, LJ ; Brown, A ; Maguire, G ; Churilov, L ; Cohen, N (WILEY, 2021-09)
    BACKGROUND: Diabetes is 3-4 times more prevalent in Indigenous Australians with blood glucose levels often above target range. Once weekly formulations of exenatide(exenatide-LAR) have demonstrated significantly greater improvements in glycaemic management with no increased risk of hypoglycaemia and with reductions in bodyweight but have not been studied in Indigenous Australians. AIMS: To assess the feasibility and metabolic effects of once weekly supervised injection of exenatide-LAR in addition to standard care in Indigenous Australians with type 2 diabetes. METHODS: Two communities in Central Australia with longstanding specialist clinical outreach services were allocated by random coin toss to receive once-weekly exenatide-LAR injection with weekly nurse review and adjustment of medication for 20 weeks (community with exenatide-LAR) or to weekly nurse review in addition to standard care over 20 weeks (community without exenatide-LAR). The primary outcome was the feasibility of an intensive diabetes management model of care with and without weekly supervised exenatide-LAR. Secondary outcomes included change in HbA1c. RESULTS: Thirteen participants from the community with exenatide-LAR and nine participants from the community without exenatide-LAR were analysed. Eighty-five percent of individuals in the community with exenatide-LAR and 67% in the community without exenatide-LAR attended more than half of clinic visits. Median difference in the change in HbA1c from baseline to final visit, adjusted for baseline HbA1c, between the community with exenatide-LAR and the community without exenatide-LAR was -3.1%, 95% CI (-5.80%, -0.38%; P = 0.03). CONCLUSIONS: Weekly exenatide-LAR combined with weekly nurse review demonstrated greater improvements in HbA1c, highlighting its potential for use in remote communities.