life underwriting

PPI Use Linked to Elevated Mortality Risk

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PPI Use Linked to Elevated Mortality Risk

During a median 10 years’ follow-up, 37% of participants died. There were 46 excess deaths per 1000 PPI users in that time. PPIs were associated with excess mortality from cardiovascular disease (CVD) and chronic kidney disease (CKD). Patients without indications for PPI use had higher mortality risk from CVD, CKD, and also upper gastrointestinal cancer. Longer duration of use was associated with greater risk.

The NEJM Journal Watch summary has a link to the full study from BMJ.

Stress related disorders and risk of cardiovascular disease: population based, sibling controlled cohort study

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BMJ 2019; 365 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.l1255 (Published 10 April 2019) Cite this as: BMJ 2019;365:l1255

Conclusion Stress related disorders are robustly associated with multiple types of cardiovascular disease, independently of familial background, history of somatic/psychiatric diseases, and psychiatric comorbidity.

This study is Open Access and a PDF can be downloaded at the link above.

Long-term Effects of Metformin on Diabetes Prevention: Identification of Subgroups That Benefited Most in the Diabetes Prevention Program and Diabetes Prevention Program Outcomes Study

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CONCLUSIONS – Metformin reduces the development of diabetes over 15 years. The subsets that benefitted the most include subjects with higher baseline fasting glucose or HbA1c and women with a history of GDM.

You can access the abstract and full study online at this link to the Diabetes Journal.

The commentary article at this link is also an interesting read.

More Evidence for a Prevention-Related Indication for Metformin: Let the Arguments Resume!

A1c test MISSES Many Cases of Diabetes

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Must read if you’re an underwriter.  Here.

The new study included 9,000 adults without a diabetes diagnosis. The participants got both an A1c test and an oral tolerance glucose test, and the researchers compared the results. The researchers found the A1c test didn’t catch 73 percent of diabetes cases that were detected by the oral glucose test. “The A1c test said these people had normal glucose levels when they didn’t,” Chang Villacreses said.

The Demographic Apocalypse

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The ING International Survey Savings 2019, the eighth in an annual series, surveyed 14,695 people in Europe, the US, and Australia, and discovered the majority worry about not having enough money in retirement. The findings show that many people are “sleepwalking” into a financial crisis with little or no savings toward their golden years.

Zero Hedge

The ING International Survey Savings 2019 highlights the difficulties people are facing across Europe, the USA and Australia when it comes to meeting long-term savings goals, such as funding retirement. The survey, the eighth in a savings series repeated annually, canvasses the views of nearly 15,000 people in 15 countries, reveals that six in ten (61%) of non-retirees across Europe worry they won’t have enough money to live on when they retire. This is no surprise when you realise that high shares (27%) have no savings at all. Among this group, two-thirds (66%) tell us they simply don’t earn enough to put anything aside. And many who do have savings aren’t massively better off: 42% in Europe say they have no more than three months’ take-home pay put aside. Results from the USA and Australia are similar.

You can download the full study at this link.

Happy Reading!