Gally Reznor

The excess morbidity and mortality of emergency general surgery.

BACKGROUND Emergency general surgery (EGS) carries a disproportionate burden of risk from medical errors, complications, and death compared with non-EGS (NEGS). Previous studies have been limited by patient and procedure heterogeneity but suggest worse outcome in EGS patients because of preoperative risk factors. The aim of this study was to quantify the excess burden of morbidity and mortality associated with EGS by controlling for patient-specific factors. We hypothesized that EGS is an independent risk factor for morbidity and mortality. METHODS We retrospectively analyzed data from the American College of Surgeons-National Surgical Quality Improvement Program. Fourteen procedures common to both EGS and NEGS from 2008 through 2012 were included. Patients were stratified based on emergency status. The primary outcome was death within 30 days of operation. Secondary outcomes were postoperative complications. Variables from the American College of Surgeons-National Surgical Quality Improvement Program preoperative risk assessment were analyzed. &khgr;2 and Wilcoxon signed-rank tests were used to compare variables. Multivariate logistic regression was used to identify independent risk factors for mortality and complications. RESULTS Of 66,665 patients, 24,068 were EGS and 42,597 were NEGS. Mortality was 12.50% for EGS patients and 2.66% for NEGS patients (p < 0.0001). Major complications occurred in 32.80% of EGS patients and 12.74% of NEGS patients (p < 0.0001). When preoperative variables and procedure type were controlled, EGS was independently associated with death (odds ratio, 1.39; p = 0.029) and major complications (odds ratio, 1.31; p = 0.001). CONCLUSION EGS is an independent risk factor for death and postoperative complications. The excess morbidity and mortality of EGS are not fully explained by preoperative risk factors, making EGS an excellent target for quality improvement projects. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE Prognostic/epidemiologic study, level III.

Association of Androgen Deprivation Therapy With Depression in Localized Prostate Cancer

PURPOSE Androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) may contribute to depression, yet several studies have not demonstrated a link. We aimed to determine whether receipt of any ADT or longer duration of ADT for prostate cancer (PCa) is associated with an increased risk of depression. METHODS We identified 78,552 men older than age 65 years with stage I to III PCa using the SEER-Medicare-linked database from 1992 to 2006, excluding patients with psychiatric diagnoses within the prior year. Our primary analysis was the association between pharmacologic ADT and the diagnosis of depression or receipt of inpatient or outpatient psychiatric treatment using Cox proportional hazards regression. Drug data for treatment of depression were not available. Our secondary analysis investigated the association between duration of ADT and each end point. RESULTS Overall, 43% of patients (n = 33,882) who received ADT, compared with patients who did not receive ADT, had higher 3-year cumulative incidences of depression (7.1% v 5.2%, respectively), inpatient psychiatric treatment (2.8% v 1.9%, respectively), and outpatient psychiatric treatment (3.4% v 2.5%, respectively; all P < .001). Adjusted Cox analyses demonstrated that patients with ADT had a 23% increased risk of depression (adjusted hazard ratio [AHR], 1.23; 95% CI, 1.15 to 1.31), 29% increased risk of inpatient psychiatric treatment (AHR, 1.29; 95% CI, 1.17 to 1.41), and a nonsignificant 7% increased risk of outpatient psychiatric treatment (AHR, 1.07; 95% CI, 0.97 to 1.17) compared with patients without ADT. The risk of depression increased with duration of ADT, from 12% with ≤ 6 months of treatment, 26% with 7 to 11 months of treatment, to 37% with ≥ 12 months of treatment (P trend < .001). A similar duration effect was seen for inpatient (P trend < .001) and outpatient psychiatric treatment (P trend < .001). CONCLUSION Pharmacologic ADT increased the risk of depression and inpatient psychiatric treatment in this large study of elderly men with localized PCa. This risk increased with longer duration of ADT. The possible psychiatric effects of ADT should be recognized by physicians and discussed with patients before initiating treatment.

Racial Differences in the Surgical Care of Medicare Beneficiaries With Localized Prostate Cancer

IMPORTANCE There is extensive evidence suggesting that black men with localized prostate cancer (PCa) have worse cancer-specific mortality compared with their non-Hispanic white counterparts. OBJECTIVE To evaluate racial disparities in the use, quality of care, and outcomes of radical prostatectomy (RP) in elderly men (≥ 65 years) with nonmetastatic PCa. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS This retrospective analysis of outcomes stratified according to race (black vs non-Hispanic white) included 2020 elderly black patients (7.6%) and 24,462 elderly non-Hispanic white patients (92.4%) with localized PCa who underwent RP within the first year of PCa diagnosis in the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER)-Medicare database between 1992 and 2009. The study was performed in 2014. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES Process of care (ie, time to treatment, lymph node dissection), as well as outcome measures (ie, complications, emergency department visits, readmissions, PCa-specific and all-cause mortality, costs) were evaluated using Cox proportional hazards regression. Multivariable conditional logistic regression and quantile regression were used to study the association of racial disparities with process of care and outcome measures. RESULTS The proportion of black patients with localized prostate cancer who underwent RP within 90 days was 59.4% vs 69.5% of non-Hispanic white patients (P <  001). In quantile regression of the top 50% of patients, blacks had a 7-day treatment delay compared with non-Hispanic whites. (P <  001). Black patients were less likely to undergo lymph node dissection (odds ratio [OR], 0.76 [95% CI, 0.66-0.80]; P < .001) but had higher odds of postoperative visits to the emergency department (within 30 days: OR, 1.48 [95% CI, 1.18-1.86]); after 30 days or more (OR, 1.45 [95% CI, 1.19-1.76]) and readmissions (within 30 days: OR, 1.28 [95% CI, 1.02-1.61]); ≥ 30 days (OR, 1.27 [95% CI, 1.07-1.51]) compared with non-Hispanic whites. The surgical treatment of black patients was associated with a higher incremental annual cost (the top 50% of blacks spent

Addressing Unmet Basic Resource Needs as Part of Chronic Cardiometabolic Disease Management

1185.50 (95% CI ,

Patterns of Declining Use and the Adverse Effect of Primary Androgen Deprivation on All-cause Mortality in Elderly Men with Prostate Cancer

804.85-1

Definition and Validation of “Favorable High-Risk Prostate Cancer”: Implications for Personalizing Treatment of Radiation-Managed Patients

1566.10; P < .001) more than the top 50% of non-Hispanic whites). There was no difference in PCa-specific mortality (P = .16) or all-cause mortality (P = .64) between black and non-Hispanic white men. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE Blacks treated with RP for localized PCa are more likely to experience adverse events and incur higher costs compared with non-Hispanic white men; however, this does not translate into a difference in PCa-specific or all-cause mortality.

Surgeon and Hospital Level Variation in the Costs of Robot-Assisted Radical Prostatectomy

Importance It is unclear if helping patients meet resource needs, such as difficulty affording food, housing, or medications, improves clinical outcomes. Objective To determine the effectiveness of the Health Leads program on improvement in systolic and diastolic blood pressure (SBP and DBP, respectively), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) level, and hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) level. Design, Setting, and Participants A difference-in-difference evaluation of the Health Leads program was conducted from October 1, 2012, through September 30, 2015, at 3 academic primary care practices. Health Leads consists of screening for unmet needs at clinic visits, and offering those who screen positive to meet with an advocate to help obtain resources, or receive brief information provision. Main Outcomes and Measures Changes in SBP, DBP, LDL-C level, and HbA1c level. We compared those who screened positive for unmet basic needs (Health Leads group) with those who screened negative, using intention-to-treat, and, secondarily, between those who did and did not enroll in Health Leads, using linear mixed modeling, examining the period before and after screening. Results A total of 5125 people were screened, using a standardized form, for unmet basic resource needs; 3351 screened negative and 1774 screened positive. For those who screened positive, the mean age was 57.6 years and 1811 (56%) were women. For those who screened negative, the mean age was 56.7 years and 909 (57%) were women. Of 5125 people screened, 1774 (35%) reported at least 1 unmet need, and 1021 (58%) of those enrolled in Health Leads. Median follow-up for those who screened positive and negative was 34 and 32 months, respectively. In unadjusted intention-to-treat analyses of 1998 participants with hypertension, the Health Leads group experienced greater reduction in SBP (differential change, −1.2; 95% CI, −2.1 to −0.4) and DBP (differential change, −1.0; 95% CI, −1.5 to −0.5). For 2281 individuals with an indication for LDL-C level lowering, results also favored the Health Leads group (differential change, −3.7; 95% CI −6.7 to −0.6). For 774 individuals with diabetes, the Health Leads group did not show HbA1c level improvement (differential change, −0.04%; 95% CI, −0.17% to 0.10%). Results adjusted for baseline demographic and clinical differences were not qualitatively different. Among those who enrolled in Health Leads program, there were greater BP and LDL-C level improvements than for those who declined (SBP differential change −2.6; 95% CI,−3.5 to −1.7; SBP differential change, −1.4; 95% CI, −1.9 to −0.9; LDL-C level differential change, −6.3; 95% CI, −9.7 to −2.8). Conclusions and Relevance Screening for and attempting to address unmet basic resource needs in primary care was associated with modest improvements in blood pressure and lipid, but not blood glucose, levels.

Outcomes after emergency abdominal surgery in patients with advanced cancer: Opportunities to reduce complications and improve palliative care.

BACKGROUND Primary androgen deprivation therapy (pADT) is commonly used to treat elderly men diagnosed with localized prostate cancer (CaP), despite the lack of evidence supporting its use. OBJECTIVE To examine the effect of pADT on mortality and to assess contemporary trends of pADT use in elderly men with CaP. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS Men older than 65 yr residing in Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) registry areas diagnosed with localized or locally advanced CaP between 1992 and 2009 and not receiving definitive therapy. OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS AND STATISTICAL ANALYSIS Propensity score (PS)-weighted Cox proportional hazards models were used to estimate the effect of pADT use on overall survival among patients receiving pADT. The interaction between comorbidity-adjusted life expectancy (LE) and pADT use was assessed within the Cox and PS-weighted models. Contemporary (2004-2009) trends for pADT use were analyzed by linear regression. RESULTS AND LIMITATIONS The primary cohort included 46 376 men, of whom 17 873 received pADT (39%). Patients with >10 yr LE had lower pADT utilization rates than patients with short LE. Between 2004 and 2009, the use of pADT in men with localized CaP decreased by 14% (from 36% to 22%). Relative to observation, pADT was associated with a survival disadvantage, with a hazard ratio for all-cause mortality of 1.37 (95% confidence interval 1.20-1.56). Limitations included biases not accounted for by the PS-weighted model, changes in CaP staging over the study period, the absence of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) data prior to 2004, and the limits of retrospective analysis to demonstrate causality. CONCLUSIONS The use of pADT in elderly men with localized CaP has decreased over time. For men forgoing primary definitive therapy, the use of pADT is not associated with a survival benefit compared to observation, and denies men an opportunity for cure with definitive therapy. The deleterious effect of pADT is most pronounced in men with prolonged LE. PATIENT SUMMARY In this report, we assessed the effect of primary androgen deprivation (pADT) on prostate cancer mortality and determined current trends in the use of pADT. We showed that use of pADT in men aged >65 yr with localized prostate cancer has decreased over time. We also found that pADT is detrimental to men with localized prostate cancer, and particularly men with longer life expectancy. Therefore, we conclude that ADT should not be used as a primary treatment for men with prostate cancer that has not spread beyond the prostate.

Dose‐dependent effect of androgen deprivation therapy for localized prostate cancer on adverse cardiac events

PURPOSE To define and validate a classification of favorable high-risk prostate cancer that could be used to personalize therapy, given that consensus guidelines recommend similar treatments for all radiation-managed patients with high-risk disease. METHODS AND MATERIALS We studied 3618 patients with cT1-T3aN0M0 high-risk or unfavorable intermediate-risk prostate adenocarcinoma treated with radiation at a single institution between 1997 and 2013. Favorable high-risk was defined as T1c disease with either Gleason 4 + 4 = 8 and prostate-specific antigen <10 ng/mL or Gleason 6 and prostate-specific antigen >20 ng/mL. Competing risks regression was used to determine differences in the risk of prostate cancer-specific mortality (PCSM) after controlling for baseline factors and treatment. Our results were validated in a cohort of 13,275 patients using the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER)-Medicare linked database. RESULTS Patients with favorable high-risk disease had significantly better PCSM than other men with high-risk disease (adjusted hazard ratio [AHR] 0.42, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.18-0.996, P=.049) and similar PCSM as men with unfavorable intermediate-risk disease (AHR 1.17, 95% CI 0.50-2.75, P=.710). We observed very similar results within the SEER-Medicare cohort (favorable high-risk vs other high-risk: AHR 0.21, 95% CI 0.11-0.41, P<.001; favorable high-risk vs unfavorable intermediate-risk: AHR 0.67, 95% CI 0.33-1.36, P=.268). CONCLUSIONS Patients with favorable high-risk prostate cancer have significantly better PCSM than other patients with high-risk disease and similar PCSM as those with unfavorable intermediate-risk disease, who are typically treated with shorter-course androgen deprivation therapy. This new classification system may allow for personalization of treatment within high-risk disease, such as consideration of shorter-course androgen deprivation therapy for favorable high-risk disease.

Risk Prediction Accuracy Differs for Emergency Versus Elective Cases in the ACS-NSQIP.

PURPOSE We assessed surgeon and hospital level variation in robot-assisted radical prostatectomy costs and predictors of high and low cost surgery. MATERIALS AND METHODS The study population consisted of a weighted sample of 291,015 men who underwent robot-assisted radical prostatectomy for prostate cancer by 667 surgeons at 197 U.S. hospitals from 2003 to 2013. We evaluated 90-day direct hospital costs (2014 USD) in the Premier Hospital Database. High costs per robot-assisted radical prostatectomy were those above the 90th percentile and low costs were those below the 10th percentile. RESULTS Mean hospital cost per robot-assisted radical prostatectomy was