Emotion perception and theory of mind in obesity: a systematic review on the impact of social cognitive deficits on dysfunctional eating behaviors

The aim of this paper was to summarize our current understanding of emotion perception and Theory of Mind (ToM) in obesity and how they relate to dysfunctional eating behaviors (DEB), frequently found in candidates for bariatric surgery. The literature was searched using the electronic databases PsychInfo, Medline, and Web of Science databases, and by additional hand searches through reference lists and specialist eating disorders journals. Relevant studies were included if they were written in English, included participants suffering from obesity and evaluation with tasks assessing social cognition, such as emotion recognition and perception, as well as ToM. Twelve studies analyzed for this systematic review suggest that deficits in such social cognitive domains may lie behind many emotional and social difficulties present in people with obesity, be they bariatric or not, which usually favor DEB. Our review suggests that people with obesity of all ages score significantly less than controls on instruments assessing emotion recognition and ToM, justifying a possible relationship between social cognitive impairments and dysfunctional eating behaviors, such as binges, emotional eating, and addition to food, frequently seen in people with obesity. These findings have important implications for our understanding of the social cognitive foundations of eating behavior in individuals with obesity. They can help not only the presurgical behavioral assessment, but also guide postoperative follow-up of this population.     

Cardiovascular Outcomes Reported in Hemodialysis Trials

Patients on long-term hemodialysis are at very high risk for cardiovascular disease but are usually excluded from clinical trials conducted in the general population or in at-risk populations. There are no universally agreed cardiovascular outcomes for trials conducted specifically in the hemodialysis population. In this review, we highlight that trials reporting cardiovascular outcomes in hemodialysis patients are usually of short duration (median 3 to 6 months) and are small (59% of trials have <100 participants). Overall, the cardiovascular outcomes are very heterogeneous and may not reflect outcomes that are meaningful to patients and clinicians in supporting decision making, as they are often surrogates of uncertain clinical importance. Composite outcomes used in different trials rarely share the same components. In a field in which a single trial is often insufficiently powered to fully assess the clinical and economic impact of interventions, differences in outcome reporting across trials make the task of meta-analysis and interpretation of all the available evidence challenging. Core outcome sets are now being established across many specialties in health care to prevent these problems. Through the global Standardized Outcomes in Nephrology–Hemodialysis initiative, cardiovascular disease was identified as a critically important core domain to be reported in all trials in hemodialysis. Informed by the current state of reporting of cardiovascular outcomes, a core outcome measure for cardiovascular disease is currently being established with involvement of patients, caregivers, and health professionals. Consistent reporting of cardiovascular outcomes that are critically important to hemodialysis patients and clinicians will strengthen the evidence base to inform care in this very high-risk population.     

Economic evaluation of sevelamer in patients with end-stage renal disease.

BACKGROUND: There is uncertainty about the most cost-effective way to treat hyperphosphataemia in patients with end-stage renal disease. Methods. We performed an economic analysis which compared the use of sevelamer with calcium carbonate in a simulated cohort of North American dialysis patients, using the perspective of the health care purchaser and a lifetime horizon. Outcomes considered were quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) gained and health care costs. To account for uncertainty, we considered four separate modelling strategies, obtaining data on the relative effectiveness of sevelamer from the recent Dialysis Clinical Outcomes Revisited study. RESULTS: In the base analysis, the use of sevelamer was associated with a cost per QALY gained of CAN$157,00, compared with calcium carbonate. Assuming no survival or hospitalization advantage for sevelamer, use of sevelamer resulted in an incremental cost of CAN$17,00 per patient. In alternate models which assumed sevelamer to be more effective than calcium-based phosphate binders, the use of sevelamer was associated with a cost per QALY gained ranging from CAN$127,00-$278,00. Assuming that sevelamer resulted in a differential reduction in mortality in patients > or = 65 years of age, use of sevelamer in this subgroup was associated with a cost per QALY of CAN$105,500. Results were similar in groups defined by age > or = 55 or by > or = 45 years. Since dialysis is expensive, interventions for dialysis patients that improve survival without reducing the need for dialysis will be associated with a cost-utility ratio at least as great as that of dialysis itself. As such, we repeated the primary analysis excluding the costs of dialysis and transplantation and found that the cost per QALY gained for sevelamer was $77,600. CONCLUSIONS: The cost per QALY gained for treating all dialysis patients with sevelamer exceeds what would usually be considered good value for the money. While the high cost per QALY was in part due to the inclusion of the costs of dialysis and transplant in the analysis, the cost per QALY gained remained relatively unattractive even when these costs were excluded. Although a lower cost per QALY gained is realized when only patients older than 65 years are treated, this strategy remains economically unattractive, particularly given the uncertainty of clinical benefit in this group.