Citations

Abstract Background In this longitudinal cohort study, we examined the socio-demographic and psychological predictors of alcohol use initiation during the COVID-19 pandemic in a sample of never alcohol users aged ≥21 prior to COVID-19. Methods Our study population consisted of 56 930 patients aged ≥21, as of 30 March 2019 were collected from a pre-COVID period of 1 year before 31 March 2020, and during-COVID, a period between 1 April 2020 and 30 March 2021. Univariable and multivariable logistic regression models were utilized to examine the roles of socio-demographic variables (gender, age, education, Area Deprivation Index and rural residence) changes in anxiety and depression severity as predictors of alcohol use initiation. Results Age, gender, race, ethnicity, education and rural status were significant predictors in multivariable analysis. A subgroup analysis showed neither anxiety nor depression had a significant association with alcohol use initiation. Conclusion Women, younger individuals, those living in a rural area and people who smoke cigarettes were more likely to initiate alcohol use during the pandemic. Our study has public health and clinical implications such as the need for targeted alcohol use screening and intervention for vulnerable individuals.

OBJECTIVE To examine factors associated with emergency department (ED) transport after hypoglycemia treated by emergency medical services (EMS) and assess the impact of ED transport on severe hypoglycemia recurrence. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS We retrospectively analyzed electronic health records of a multistate advanced life support EMS provider and an integrated healthcare delivery system serving an overlapping geographic area in the upper Midwest. For adults with diabetes treated by EMS for hypoglycemia between 2013 and 2019, we examined rates of ED transport, factors associated with it, and its impact on rates of recurrent hypoglycemia requiring EMS, ED, or hospital care within 3, 7, and 30 days. RESULTS We identified 1,977 hypoglycemia-related EMS encounters among 1,028 adults with diabetes (mean age 63.5 years [SD 17.7], 55.2% male, 87.4% non-Hispanic White, 42.4% rural residents, and 25.6% with type 1 diabetes), of which 46.4% resulted in ED transport (31.1% of calls by patients with type 1 diabetes and 58.0% of calls by patients with type 2 diabetes). Odds of ED transport were lower in patients with type 1 diabetes (odds ratio [OR] 0.44 [95% CI 0.31–0.62] vs. type 2 diabetes) and higher in patients with prior ED visits (OR 1.38 [95% CI 1.03–1.85]). Within 3, 7, and 30 days, transported patients experienced recurrent severe hypoglycemia 2.8, 5.2, and 10.6% of the time, respectively, compared with 7.4, 11.2, and 22.8% of the time among nontransported patients (all P < 0.001). This corresponds to OR 0.58 (95% CI 0.42–0.80) for recurrent severe hypoglycemia within 30 days for transported versus nontransported patients. When subset by diabetes type, odds of recurrent severe hypoglycemia among transported patients were 0.64 (95% CI 0.43–0.96) and 0.42 (95% CI 0.24–0.75) in type 1 and type 2 diabetes, respectively. CONCLUSIONS Transported patients experienced recurrent hypoglycemia requiring medical attention approximately half as often as nontransported patients, reinforcing the importance of engaging patients in follow-up to prevent recurrent events.

Background The opioid epidemic has driven renewed interest in local anesthesia to reduce postoperative opioid use. Our objective was to determine if local anesthesia decreased hospital pain scores, oral morphine equivalents (OME), length of stay (LOS), and nausea/vomiting. Methods Single institution retrospective study of females who underwent mastectomy without reconstruction. Results Overall, 712 patients were included; 63 (8.8%) received bupivacaine (B), 512 (72%) liposomal bupivacaine (LB), and 137 (19%) no local. 95% were discharged on POD1. Liposomal bupivacaine use increased from 2014 to 2019. Additional factors associated with use of local regimen were surgeon and extent of axillary surgery. Fewer patients used postop opioids during their hospital stay if any local was used compared to none (76 vs 88%; 0.003). Compared to none, local had shorter mean PACU LOS (95 vs 87 min; P = .02), lower mean intraoperative-OME (96 vs 106; P < .001), and lower mean postoperative OME/hr (1.4 vs 1.8 P = .001). Multivariable analysis (MVA) showed lower OME/hr with LB compared to B and none ( P = .002); this translates to 22 mg and 30 mg of oxycodone in a 24-hr period, respectively. MVA showed lower POD1 pain scores with LB relative to none ( P = .049). Local did not impact nausea/emesis. Conclusion Local anesthesia was superior to no local in several measures. However, a consistent benefit of a specific local anesthetic agent was not demonstrated (LB vs B). A prospective study is warranted to determine the optimal local regimen for this cohort and further inform clinical relevance.

Abstract Introduction The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated use of telehealth, an expansion of services that required the appropriate technological infrastructure for health care facilities and in patient homes. Telehealth on the one hand has held promise for addressing health disparities perpetuated by inadequate rural access, but delivery requires extensive broadband and technologic access. That creates the possibility for new kinds of healthcare disparities. In addition, COVID-19 forced marked reduction in in-lab polysomnography (PSG), and concurrent expansion of home sleep apnea testing (HSAT). We hypothesized that the pandemic led to an increase in the overall frequency of telehealth and HSAT utilization, particularly in those who were younger, White, more educated, and from a non-local area. Methods We completed a retrospective chart review of all adult patients seen by all provider types across the Sleep Medicine practices in Mayo Clinic Rochester, Arizona, Florida, and the Mayo Clinic Health System between 1) 6/1/18—3/8/20 (Pre-COVID-19), 2) 3/9/20—4/19/20 (Early COVID-19), and 3) 4/20/20—present (Late COVID-19). We recorded the total number of PSGs and HSATs and total number of face-to-face and telehealth visits, along with the age, gender, race, educational level, and locality by zip code for patients served. These data were compared across the 3 timeframes. Results Average monthly visits changed from Pre-COVID-19, Early COVID-19, to Late COVID-19 [2194.7/m, 1416.5/m, 2690.6/m (P&lt;0.001)]. Average monthly sleep test volumes also changed [1004.1/m, 530.5/m, 1123.4/m (P&lt;0.001)], with a proportionate increase in HSATs across the 3 periods [34.71%, 65.37%, 53.59% (P&lt;0.005)]. The increase in Late COVID-19 in telehealth visits occurred proportionately more in those who were younger, female, non-White, college and post-graduate educated, and from a non-local area. The increase in use of HSATs occurred proportionately more in patients who were younger, female, non-White, college and post-graduate educated, and from a local area. Conclusion The COVID-19 pandemic increased the use of telehealth visits and HSATs in Sleep Medicine practices across our enterprise, particularly in those who are younger and more educated, which may be due to ease of use with and access to technology. The reasons for the presence of additional disparities based upon gender, race, and locality needs further exploration. Support (If Any)

Introduction: Advanced or “Stage D” heart failure (Adv HF) patients are at high risk of poor outcomes. However, recognition of Adv HF is limited as diagnostic criteria are complex. Administrative algorithms to identify Adv HF could enable better understanding of who has advanced HF and lead to enhanced therapeutics development, dissemination, and outcomes. Methods: In a population-based cohort of all Olmsted County, Minnesota residents with ≥1 HF billing code 2007-2017 (n=9881), we identified all patients with Adv HF (n=753) by applying the gold standard European Society of Cardiology Adv HF criteria via manual medical review by a HF cardiologist. The Adv HF index date was the date the patient first met all ESC criteria. We then developed candidate algorithms to identify Adv HF using only administrative data (billing codes and HF prescriptions or comorbidities known to affect HF outcomes), applied them to the entire HF cohort and assessed their ability to identify patients with Adv HF on or after their Adv HF index date. Results: A single hospitalization (Hsp) for HF or ventricular arrhythmias (VA, 2007-2017) identified all patients with Adv HF (sensitivity 100%), but the PPV was low (36.4%). Requiring more Hsp, other signs of Adv HF such as hyponatremia, acute kidney injury, hypotension or high-dose diuretic use decreased the sensitivity but improved specificity and PPV. As Adv HF was relatively uncommon, negative predictive values (NPV) were high regardless of algorithm characteristics. Conclusions: Algorithms using administrative data can identify patients with Adv HF with clinically useful accuracy.

Abstract BACKGROUND With a dramatic rise in prescription opioid use, it is imperative to review postsurgical prescribing patterns given their contributions to the opioid epidemic. OBJECTIVE To evaluate the impact of departmental postoperative prescribing guidelines on opioid prescriptions following elective spine surgery. METHODS Patients undergoing elective cervical or lumbar spine surgery between 2017 and 2018 were identified. Procedure-specific opioid prescribing guidelines to limit postoperative prescribing following neurosurgical procedures were developed in 2017 and implemented in January 2018. Preguideline data were available from July to December 2017, and postguideline data from July to December 2018. Discharge prescriptions in morphine milliequivalents (MMEs), the proportion of patients (i) discharged with an opioid prescription, (ii) needing refills within 30 d, (iii) with guideline compliant prescriptions were compared in the 2 groups. Multivariable (MV) analyses were performed to assess the impact of guideline implementation on refill prescriptions within 30 d. RESULTS A total of 1193 patients were identified (cervical: 308; lumbar: 885) with 569 (47.7%) patients from the preguideline period. Following guideline implementation, fewer patients were discharged with a postoperative opioid prescription (92.5% vs 81.7%, P < .001) and median postoperative opioid prescription decreased significantly (300 MMEs vs 225 MMEs, P < .001). The 30-d refill prescription rate was not significantly different between preguideline and postguideline cohorts (pre: 24.4% vs post: 20.2%, P = .079). MV analyses did not demonstrate any impact of guideline implementation on need for 30-d refill prescriptions for both cervical (odds ratio [OR] = 0.68, confidence interval [CI] = 0.37-1.26, P = .22) and lumbar cohorts (OR = 0.95, CI = 0.66-1.36, P = .78). CONCLUSION Provider-aimed interventions such as implementation of procedure-specific prescribing guidelines can significantly reduce postoperative opioid prescriptions following spine surgery without increasing the need for refill prescriptions for pain control.

ObjectiveFailure to recognize symptoms of human papillomavirus–associated oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (HPV(+)OPSCC) at presentation can delay diagnosis and treatment. This study aims to identify patient factors and provider patterns that contribute to delayed diagnosis.Study DesignRetrospective case series.SettingTertiary care center.MethodsPatients with HPV(+)OPSCC receiving intent‐to‐cure treatment from 2006 to 2016. Clinical data, workup, and care timelines were abstracted. Univariate and multivariable linear regressions were performed to determine associations.ResultsOf 703 included patients, 627 (89%) were male, and mean (SD) age at diagnosis was 59 (9) years. The mean (SD) delay to diagnosis was 148.8 (243.51) days, with an average delay of 63 (154.91) days from symptom onset to first presentation and 82.8 (194.25) days from first presentation to diagnosis. Most patients visited at least 2 providers (n = 546, 78%) before diagnosis and saw their primary care physician at first presentation (n = 496, 71%). The most common imaging and biopsy obtained before diagnosis was neck computed tomography (n = 391, 56%) and neck fine‐needle aspiration (n = 423, 60%), respectively. On multivariable linear regression, being a homemaker, being a current smoker, seeing 3 or more providers, and getting a magnetic resonance imaging scan were associated with significant delays in diagnosis (P <. 01, all). Treatment with antibiotics and a suspicion for HPV(+)OPSCC at first presentation were associated with decreased delays in diagnosis (P <. 01, both).ConclusionsPatient delays in seeking medical attention and provider delays in recognizing the appropriate diagnosis both contribute to delays of care in HPV(+)OPSCC. Improved patient and provider education is necessary to expedite the diagnosis of HPV(+)OPSCC.