James N. Kirkpatrick

Emerging Collaboration Between Palliative Care Specialists and Mechanical Circulatory Support Teams: A Qualitative Study

CONTEXTnDespite national requirements mandating collaboration between palliative care specialists and mechanical circulatory support (MCS) teams at institutions that place destination therapy ventricular assist devices, little is known about the nature of those collaborations or outcomes for patients and families.nnnOBJECTIVESnTo assess how Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services regulations have changed collaboration between palliative care and MCS teams and how this collaboration is perceived by MCS team members.nnnMETHODSnAfter obtaining verbal consent, members of MCS teams were interviewed using semistructured telephone interviews. Interviews were transcribed, and content was coded and analyzed using qualitative methods.nnnRESULTSnModels for collaboration varied widely between institutions. Several expected themes emerged from interviews: 1) improvements over time in the relationship between palliative care specialists and MCS teams, 2) palliative care specialists as facilitators of advance care planning, and 3) referral to hospice and ventricular assist device deactivation as specific areas for collaboration. Several unexpected themes also emerged: 4) the emergence of dedicated heart failure palliative care teams, 5) palliative care specialists as impartial voices in decision making, 6) palliative care specialists as extra support for MCS team members, and 7) the perception of improved patient and family experiences with palliative care team exposure.nnnCONCLUSIONnAlthough the structure of collaboration varies between institutions, collaboration between MCS teams and palliative care specialists is increasing and often preceded the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services requirement. Overall impressions of palliative care specialists are highly positive, with perceptions of improved patient and family experience and decreased burden on MCS team members.

Palliative care in end-stage valvular heart disease

Valvular heart disease (VHD), particularly aortic valve disease, is prevalent with increasing incidence. When surgery is not possible, or when risks outweigh benefits, percutaneous treatment options may offer effective alternatives. However, procedures may not always go as planned, and frail patients or those whose symptoms are caused by other comorbidities may not benefit from valve intervention at all. Significant effort should be made to assess frailty, comorbidities and patient goals prior to intervention. Palliative care (PC) should play a critical role in the care of patients with severe valve disease. PC is specialised medical care that aims to optimise health-related quality of life by managing symptoms and clarifying patient values and goals of care. It should be implemented at the time of diagnosis and continue throughout the disease course. Because of the paucity of studies dedicated to the provision of PC to patients with advanced VHD, further research is needed.

Association of Liability Concerns with Decisions to Order Echocardiography and Cardiac Stress Tests with Imaging.

BACKGROUNDnProfessional societies have made efforts to curb overuse of cardiac imaging and decrease practice variation by publishing appropriate use criteria. However, little is known about the impact of physician-level determinants such as liability concerns and risk aversion on decisions to order testing.nnnMETHODSnA web-based survey was administered to cardiologists and general practice physicians affiliated with two academic institutions. The survey consisted of four clinical scenarios in which appropriate use criteria rated echocardiography or stress testing as may be appropriate. Respondents degree of liability concerns and risk aversion were measured using validated tools. The primary outcome variable was tendency to order imaging, calculated as the average likelihood to order an imaging test across the clinical scenarios (1xa0= very unlikely, 6xa0= very likely). Linear regression models were used to evaluate the association between tendency to order imaging and physician characteristics.nnnRESULTSnFrom 420 physicians invited to participate, 108 complete responses were obtained (26% response rate, 54% cardiologists). There was no difference in tendency to order imaging between cardiologists and general practice physicians (3.46 [95% CI, 3.12-3.81] vs 3.15 [95% CI, 2.79-3.51], Pxa0=xa0.22). On multivariate analysis, a higher degree of liability concerns was the only significant predictor of decisions to order imaging (mean difference in tendency to order imaging, 0.36; 95% CI, 0.09-0.62; Pxa0=xa0.01).nnnCONCLUSIONnIn clinical situations in which performance of cardiac imaging is rated as may be appropriate by appropriate use criteria, physicians with higher liability concerns ordered significantly more testing than physicians with lower concerns.

Role of Echocardiography in Transcatheter Mitral Valve Replacement in Native Mitral Valves and Mitral Rings

Adaptation and evolution of transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) technologies has led to approval of TAVR for consideration in patients at intermediate risk for surgical aortic valve intervention. As TAVR becomes more mainstream, attention is shifting toward percutaneous mitral valve (MV) repair and transcatheter MV replacement (TMVR) techniques. Transcatheter heart valves (both purpose-built and off-label-use TAVR valves) are being implanted during TMVR procedures to treat clinically significant MV disease (native disease, degenerated bioprosthetic valves, and dysfunctional surgical MV annuloplasty repairs) when the risk of open heart MV surgery is prohibitive. The success of these high-risk procedures is directly related to accurate periprocedural imaging with echocardiography and other modalities. Although a multidisciplinary heart valve team approach is necessary for optimal patient selection, a multimodality team-based imaging approach and comprehensive understanding of the MV are required for safe procedural planning. Collaboration between noninvasive cardiac imagers and the intraprocedural interventional imaging team and translation of the periprocedural imaging to the implanting team are crucial to the success of TMVR technology. Currently, the TMVR procedures discussed here are conducted either as part of clinical research or off label. The US Food and Drug Administration-approved mitral valve-in-valve procedures for the treatment of degenerated mitral bioprosthetic valves are not discussed here.

Identification of adults with congenital heart disease of moderate or great complexity from administrative data

INTRODUCTIONnThere is relatively sparse literature on the use of administrative datasets for research in patients with adult congenital heart disease (ACHD). The goal of this analysis is to examine the accuracy of administrative data for identifying patients with ACHD who died.nnnMETHODSnA list of the International Classification of Diseases codes representing ACHD of moderate- or great-complexity was created. A search for these codes in the electronic health record of adults who received care in 2010-2016 was performed, and used state death records to identify patients who died during this period. Manual record review was completed to evaluate performance of this search strategy. Identified patients were also compared with a list of patients with moderate- or great-complexity ACHD known to have died.nnnRESULTSnAbout 134 patients were identified, of which 72 had moderate- or great-complexity ACHD confirmed by manual review, yielding a positive predictive value of 0.54 (95% CI 0.45, 0.62). Twenty six patients had a mild ACHD diagnosis. Thirty six patients had no identified ACHD on record review. Misidentifications were attributed to coding error for 19 patients (53%), and to acquired ventricular septal defects for 11 patients (31%). Diagnostic codes incorrect more than 50% of the time were those for congenitally corrected transposition, endocardial cushion defect, and hypoplastic left heart syndrome. Only 1 of 21 patients known to have died was not identified by the search, yielding a sensitivity of 0.95 (0.76, 0.99).nnnCONCLUSIONnUse of administrative data to identify patients with ACHD of moderate or great complexity who have died had good sensitivity but suboptimal positive predictive value. Strategies to improve accuracy are needed. Administrative data is not ideal for identification of patients in this group, and manual record review is necessary to confirm these diagnoses.

Pediatric Cardiology Provider Attitudes About Palliative Care: A Multicenter Survey Study

While availability of palliative care consultation for children with advanced heart disease increases, little is known about cardiologist attitudes towards palliative care. We sought to describe perspectives of cardiologists regarding palliative care and to characterize their perceived competence in palliative care concepts. A cross-sectional survey of pediatric cardiologists and cardiac surgeons from 19 pediatric medical centers was performed. Overall response rate was 31% (183/589). Respondents had a median of 18xa0years of experience since medical school (range 2–49) and most practiced at academic centers (91%). Sixty-percent of respondents felt that palliative care consultations occur “too late” and the majority (85%) agreed that palliative care consultations are helpful. Barriers to requesting palliative care consultation were most frequently described as “referring to palliative care services too early will undermine parents’ hope” (45%) and “concern that parents will think I am giving up on their child” (56%). Only 33% of cardiologists reported feeling “very” or “moderately” competent in prognosticating life expectancy while over 60% felt competent caring for children with heart disease around end of life, and nearly 80% felt competent discussing goals of care and code status. Greater perceived competence was associated with subspecialty (heart failure/intensivist vs. other) (OR 3.6, 95% CI 1.6–8.1, pxa0=xa00.003) and didactic training (OR 6.27, 95% CI 1.8–21.8, pxa0=xa00.004). These results underscore the need for further training in palliative care skills for pediatric cardiologists. Enhancing palliative care skills among cardiologists and facilitating partnership with subspecialty palliative care teams may improve overall care of children with advanced heart disease.

Palliative Care Clinicians Caring for Patients Before and After Continuous Flow-Left Ventricular Assist Device

Left ventricular assist devices (LVADs) are an available treatment option for carefully selected patients with advanced heart failure. Initially developed as a bridge to transplantation, LVADs are now also offered to patients ineligible for transplantation as destination therapy (DT). Individuals with a DT-LVAD will live the remainder of their lives with the device in place. Although survival and quality of life improve with LVADs compared with medical therapy, complications persist including bleeding, infection, and stroke. There has been increased emphasis on involving palliative care (PC) specialists in LVAD programs, specifically the DT-LVAD population, from the pre-implantation process through the end of life. Palliative care specialists are well poised to provide education, guidance, and support to patients, families, and clinicians throughout the LVAD journey. This article addresses the complexities of the LVAD population, describes key challenges faced by PC specialists, and discusses opportunities for building collaboration between PC specialists and LVAD teams.

Putting the “Informed” in the informed consent process for implantable cardioverter-defibrillators: Addressing the needs of the elderly patient

Implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) management complexities challenge the ethos of fully informed consent, particularly for the typically multimorbid elderly patient considering the device for primary prevention. The Heart Rhythm Society recommends providers include discussion on the potential need for later device deactivation or nonreplacement at the time of first implant, and to revisit this at appropriate intervals. The initial consent procedure could meet this standard by incorporating the future need to discuss further such issues when the recipients clinical condition changes to such an extent that defibrillation would no longer be beneficial. At the time of obtaining consent, some patients may lack the will or capacity to make medically complex decisions when it would be necessary for healthcare surrogate decision‐makers to contribute to this process. Ensuring an appropriate level of understanding and response may be enhanced by the use of information and decision aids. With improved communication regarding the nuances of ICD therapy, device eligible patients, and those close to them, will be empowered with a better understanding of the nature, benefits, and risks of ICD implantation, allowing them to make treatment decisions consistent with their values.

Contrast-Enhanced Echocardiography Has the Greatest Impact in Patients with Reduced Ejection Fractions

Background: Contrast‐enhanced echocardiography (CE) helps to improve image quality in patients with suboptimal acoustic windows. Despite current recommendations, contrast use remains low. The aim of this study was to identify populations that would benefit more from contrast use. Methods: A total of 176 subjects (137 men; mean age, 60.8 ± 13.7 years) with technically difficult transthoracic echocardiographic studies who received clinically indicated intravenous contrast were prospectively studied. The impact on clinical decision making (including alterations in medical therapy, referral, imaging, or clinical procedures) was evaluated. Results: The use of CE enabled biplane left ventricular (LV) ejection fraction measurement in 97.2% of studies and the interpretation of regional wall motion in 95% of studies. CE allowed definitive assessment of the presence or absence of LV thrombus in 99% of the cases. In the 174 patients whose ordering physicians could be reached at the time of image interpretation, changes in management occurred in 51% of subjects. There was no difference in the proportion of management changes between inpatients and outpatients (60.0% vs 48.1%, P = .225). Subjects with heart failure, cardiomyopathy, and arrhythmia had a higher proportion of changes (61.4% vs 44.2% [P = .031], 62.5% vs 45.0% [P = .028], and 72.0% vs 47.7% [P = .030], respectively). The proportion of management change after CE increased as pre‐CE estimated ejection fraction decreased. Logistic regression showed that pre‐CE estimated LV ejection fraction < 50% was the only significant predictor of change of management after contrast (P = .004). Conclusions: The use of CE has a significant impact on clinical decision making in patients with suboptimal acoustic windows, especially in those with depressed pre‐CE LV ejection fractions.

The Relationship Between Psychological Symptoms and Ventricular Assist Device Implantation

CONTEXTnVentricular assist devices (VADs) improve quality of life in advanced heart failure patients, but there are little data exploring psychological symptoms in this population.nnnOBJECTIVEnThis study examined the prevalence of psychiatric symptoms and disease over time in VAD patients.nnnMETHODSnThis prospective multicenter cohort study enrolled patients immediately before or after VAD implant and followed them up to 48 weeks. Depression and anxiety were assessed with Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System Short Form 8a questionnaires. The panic disorder, acute stress disorder (ASD) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) modules of the Structured Clinical Interview for the DSM were used.nnnRESULTSnEighty-seven patients were enrolled. After implant, depression and anxiety scores decreased significantly over time (Pxa0=xa00.03 and Pxa0<xa00.001, respectively). Two patients met criteria for panic disorder early after implantation, but symptoms resolved over time. None met criteria for ASD or PTSD.nnnCONCLUSIONSnOur study suggests VADs do not cause serious psychological harms and may have a positive impact on depression and anxiety. Furthermore, VADs did not induce PTSD, panic disorder, or ASD in this cohort.