Citations

Background: Estimating operative time with low accuracy and precision leads to suboptimal scheduling of available operating rooms (ORs) and waste of healthcare resources. We aimed to develop a predictive machine learning (ML) model for operative time using our institutional data to improve the scheduling of neurosurgical ORs, minimize waste, and maximize resource utilization. Methods: We developed a predictive model using our institution’s multicenter registry, which included diverse neurosurgical cases across three tertiary hospitals. We applied multiple ML techniques, including linear regression, support vector regression, deep neural networks, and extreme gradient boosting regression (XGBR). The best model was combined with the first fit decreasing bin-packing algorithm to create a practical OR scheduling system based on prior data. Results: The XGBR model exhibited the best performance, with lower mean absolute errors (MAEs) (root mean squared error: 52.24, MAE: 37.25) and higher R2 (0.76) values than other models. Implementing this model in a simulated OR scheduling scenario using institutional data, we successfully scheduled 30 random procedures with minimal residual time, such that the model ran out of procedures for the week with 86 and 171 min remaining in the cranial and spinal ORs, respectively, demonstrating potential efficiency gains. The cranial procedures were scheduled over 4 days and spinal procedures over 6 days, optimizing available OR time. Conclusion: Integrating ML models into operative time prediction can significantly improve the accuracy and efficiency of surgical schedules. This approach minimizes wasted OR time and enhances resource allocation, potentially improving patient outcomes and satisfaction by reducing waiting times.

Background: Prophylactic antimicrobials for pediatric patients requiring extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) support are not well delineated; there are no consistent guidelines nationally or internationally. We analyzed antimicrobial use before and after implementing a narrow-spectra ECMO antimicrobial prophylaxis protocol intended to standardize prophylaxis by risk related to ECMO type and configuration. Methods: This retrospective, single-center study included children under 18 years old requiring ECMO between May 2018 and December 2021. Medical and cardiac surgical patients requiring open-chested (central) or peripheral veno-venous or veno-arterial ECMO were included. We evaluated the impact of an ECMO antimicrobial prophylaxis protocol by comparing the appropriateness of antimicrobial use as well as nosocomial infections in the pre versus post protocol. Results: Our study included 55 children with 58 individual ECMO episodes. More than 50% of the patients were open-chested during ECMO support, and the majority of ECMO support was veno-arterial. In the post protocol period, patients were 4 times as likely to have appropriate antimicrobial prescribing (Odds ratio 4.4; 95% confidence interval: 1.1–19; P = 0.036), including both prophylactic (per protocol) and therapeutic (chart documentation of an infection with appropriate therapeutic antimicrobials, including drug and duration). There was no difference in the odds of nosocomial infection occurring during ECMO pre protocol versus post protocol (pre vs. post protocol, P = 0.71 for invasive infections, P = 0.73 for all infections including potential colonization). Conclusions: After implementation of a standardized narrow-spectra ECMO antimicrobial prophylaxis protocol, we observed an increase in appropriate and standardized antimicrobial prescribing without concomitant increase in nosocomial infections.

ABSTRACT Precision medicine approaches have gained attention for their potential to more effectively manage obesity by tailoring diagnosis and treatment strategies to individual characteristics, including genetic background, phenotypes, metabolic profiles, and environmental exposures. The current review evaluates the evidence for precision medicine in weight management by summarizing the proceedings of a Pennington Biomedical Scientific Symposium titled “Precision Prevention, Diagnostics, and Treatment of Obesity: Pipedream or Reality?” This review discusses the extent to which we can classify and predict obesity risk based on individual‐level factors; whether we have the diagnostic capability to prospectively identify people who will benefit most from specific interventions; whether prospective trials demonstrate superior prevention and treatment of obesity when precision approaches are applied; and whether evidence is sufficient to guide policy decisions. Expert opinions were presented on the current evidence of precision medicine for obesity to collectively evaluate key barriers and opportunities for implementation of precision approaches in clinical and public health settings.

ImportanceStudies suggest that everolimus may reduce the risk of rejection, cardiac allograft vasculopathy (CAV), chronic kidney disease (CKD), and cytomegalovirus (CMV) after heart transplant. Everolimus use is controversial because of data demonstrating higher infection deaths when everolimus is introduced de novo after transplant. It is unclear whether everolimus is safe and effective when initiated at 6 months posttransplant in children, a population in which median graft survival is limited to 15 years and randomized clinical trials are lacking.ObjectiveTo evaluate the safety and efficacy of everolimus combined with low-dose tacrolimus to prevent major adverse transplant events (MATEs) in children after heart transplant.Design, Setting, and ParticipantsMulticenter, randomized, open-label, clinical trial enrolling 211 patients who were alive 6 months after pediatric heart transplant at 25 US sites from February 2018 to August 2020. The last date of follow-up was April 17, 2023.InterventionsParticipants were randomized to receive everolimus and low-dose tacrolimus (n = 107) or standard-dose tacrolimus and mycophenolate mofetil (n = 104) for 30 months.Main Outcomes and MeasuresThe primary efficacy end point was the MATE-3 score at 30 months, a validated composite ordinal end point including acute cellular rejection, CAV, and CKD. The primary safety end point was the MATE-6 score, encompassing the MATE-3 score plus antibody-mediated rejection, infection, and posttransplant lymphoproliferative disorder.ResultsAmong 211 children randomized, the mean age was 8.2 (SD, 6.3) years, 97 (46%) underwent transplant for congenital heart disease, and 49 (23%) were treated for rejection before 6 months. At 30 months, the mean MATE-3 score did not differ between the 2 treatment groups (mean difference, −0.32; 95% CI, −0.90 to 0.20; P = .16). The mean MATE-6 score was no higher in the everolimus group than in the mycophenolate group (baseline-adjusted mean difference, −0.40; 95% CI, −1.81 to 0.93), meeting the success criterion for safety (noninferiority margin <3). There were no differences in graft survival, MATE-free survival, or freedom from any individual MATE. Everolimus was associated with greater improvement in estimated glomerular filtration rate at 12 months (mean difference, 10.5 mL/min/1.73 m2; 95% CI, 1.09-19.91 mL/min/1.73 m2) and a lower incidence of CMV infection (hazard ratio, 0.50; 95% CI, 0.26-0.93).Conclusions and RelevanceAmong 6-month pediatric heart transplant survivors, everolimus and low-dose tacrolimus did not differ from tacrolimus and mycophenolate in preventing the composite of cellular rejection, CAV, and CKD at 30 months. However, everolimus and low-dose tacrolimus appear to be safe based on the total burden of 6 MATEs and may be associated with improved kidney function and less CMV infection.Trial RegistrationClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT03386539

OBJECTIVE The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) requires a low C-peptide level for insulin pump coverage unless the individual is β-cell autoantibody positive, which precludes coverage of automated insulin delivery (AID) systems for many people with type 2 diabetes. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS In the Randomized Trial Evaluating the Efficacy and Safety of Control-IQ+ Technology in Adults With Type 2 Diabetes Using Basal-Bolus Insulin Therapy study evaluating the t:slim X2 insulin pump with Control-IQ+ technology, adults with insulin-treated type 2 diabetes were categorized into high C-peptide (n = 195) and low C-peptide (n = 59) groups based on CMS criteria. RESULTS In the AID group, mean HbA1c decreased from baseline by 0.8%, which was significantly greater than in the control group with both high (P < 0.001) and low (P = 0.02) C-peptide levels. Results were similar in participants ≥65 years old. CONCLUSIONS The benefit of AID is present with high and low C-peptide levels. Thus, requiring a low C-peptide level as a prerequisite for AID therapy is not warranted.

Importance Advances in Alzheimer disease (AD) have shifted research focus to earlier disease stages, necessitating more scalable approaches to identify cognitively unimpaired individuals with amyloid β (Aβ) pathology. Objective To assess the utility of plasma phosphorylated tau 217 (p-tau217) for classifying Aβ status in cognitively unimpaired individuals, both as a stand-alone test and in a 2-step approach where positive plasma results were confirmed using a second modality (Aβ positron emission tomography [PET] or cerebrospinal fluid [CSF]). Design, Setting, and Participants This cross-sectional cohort study used data collected between June 2009 and March 2024. We included 2916 cognitively unimpaired participants from 12 international independent observational cohorts in the US, Europe, Australia, and Canada with available plasma p-tau217 levels and CSF or PET Aβ biomarkers. Performance comparisons between mass spectrometry and immunoassay-based p-tau217 measurements were also performed (n = 964). Exposures Plasma p-tau217 levels measured by immunoassay. Main Outcome and Measures Aβ status, determined by CSF or Aβ PET biomarkers. Results Participants had a mean (SD) age of 66.9 (9.9) years; 971 (33.3%) were Aβ positive by either CSF or PET, 1667 (57.2%) were women, and 1108 (38.1%) carried at least 1 APOE ε4 allele. As a stand-alone test, plasma p-tau217 achieved a positive predictive value (PPV) of 79% (95% CI, 74-84) and an overall accuracy of 81% (95% CI, 80-82). In a 2-step workflow, the PPV and accuracy significantly increased to 91% (95% CI, 86-95). While this approach required screening of 677 individuals with plasma p-tau217 to identify 100 Aβ-positive individuals, compared to 536 participants when using PET alone, it reduced the need for PET testing to 124. Immunoassays demonstrated comparable PPVs to mass spectrometry (80% [95% CI, 74-86] vs 85% [95% CI, 81-90]; P = .12) but significantly lower overall accuracy (82% [95% CI, 79-84]% vs 88 [95% CI, 86-90]; P < .001) and true Aβ-positive detection rate (49% [95% CI, 43-55] vs 69% [95% CI, 64-75]; P < .001). Conclusions and Relevance The findings highlight the potential of plasma p-tau217 as a stand-alone test—or when used in a sequential 2-step approach alongside PET or CSF testing—as a cost-effective, scalable, and minimally burdensome strategy for identifying preclinical AD. Tailored screening workflows that incorporate p-tau217 can improve efficiency in participant selection for preclinical AD trials and, in the future, help guide access to disease-modifying treatments.

ABSTRACT Introduction Laryngotracheoesophageal clefts (LTEC) are aspiration‐related lesions often assessed using swallow studies and symptoms like respiratory or feeding difficulties. However, these indicators are unreliable predictors of disease severity. Lung inflammation and injury, though significant concerns, are rarely and inconsistently evaluated or reported. As a result, the correlation between swallow study findings and actual pulmonary disease remains unclear. Methods A retrospective cohort of children with LTEC seen in our Aerodigestive Program between October 1, 2012, and September 30, 2023, who underwent videofluoroscopic swallow study (VFSS) or flexible endoscopic evaluation of swallowing (FEES) were included. Data collected included clinical history, risk factors, BAL, chest CT, impedance probe, VFSS/FEES findings, and FOIS‐P/I scores at baseline and follow‐up. Results Eight‐two subjects identified. Lung inflammation and bronchiectasis were common and correlated. Clinical factors, impedance probe, and the presence/severity of swallowing abnormalities on VFSS/FEES were not predictive of lung disease. Fifty‐seven patients underwent LTEC repair for a range of indications, only 49% based on CT and/or BAL findings. Of 57 children who had LTEC repair, only 49% were based on CT or BAL findings. LTEC repair was associated with modest improvement feeding and swallowing. Discussion Children with LTEC have a high prevalence of inflammatory lung disease and injury and undergo repair for a variety of reasons. Swallow studies detect functional swallowing issues but do not reliably identify lung disease. Despite this limitation, LTEC repair is linked to improved feeding and swallowing in some patients, though not all benefit.

Abstract Objective To create a short-term medical service trip (MST) focused, standardized, evidence-based, cost-effective, locally appropriate formulary. Methods Documents from the World Health Organization (WHO), related entities, and primary literature were reviewed to determine best practices. Specific diagnosis and treatment formularies (DTFs) for MST use in the WHO Regions of Africa and the Americas were created. Key findings The DTF guiding principles were being WHO-region specific, addressing primary health needs, including essential medications based on disease prevalence, local availability and affordability, and optimizing patient labeling. Conclusions A thoughtfully crafted DTF for MSTs is one way to advance equitable and safe health care.

Objective: To develop, implement, and evaluate a novel process used for residency application review that deemphasizes metrics known to create bias with the goal of interviewing and matching a more diverse resident cohort. Methods: Between 2020 and 2023, a novel standardized rubric and application review process were developed and implemented at the authors’ academic training program. The rubric deemphasized USMLE scores, honor society membership, and number of publications while utilizing an AI-driven pre-sort of applications, facilitating holistic review. This weighted applicant attributes identified in personal statements, life experiences, achievements in community, leadership roles, otolaryngology-specific impressions highlighted in letters of recommendation, and otolaryngology-specific research and publications similarly to academic metrics (clerkship grades and standardized test scores). Demographics of applicants interviewed and matched into our program were compared pre- and post-implementation using descriptive statistics. Results: Using a standardized rubric to review residency applications that deemphasizes traditional metrics, the authors’ otolaryngology residency program has interviewed, ranked, and matched more diverse candidates. As a result, from 2019 to 2022, the overall resident cohort has diversified from 4% historically marginalized residents to 24%, from 28% female residents to 44%, and from 33% of residents outside our geographic region to 66%. Conclusion: There is significant underrepresentation among otolaryngology residents. Selection based upon USMLE Step 1 scores, honor society membership, and number of publications have been shown to restrict diversity. Purposeful holistic review increases diversity in interviewed and matched resident cohort.