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ABSTRACT BACKGROUND Opioids prescribed for acute pain frequently remain unused, creating opportunities for unintended use, accidental ingestion, or diversion. Little is known about counseling patients receive from prescribers or pharmacists on storage and disposal of opioids. OBJECTIVE To characterize clinician counseling on opioid disposal and patient-reported storage, use, and disposal practices among opioid-naïve patients prescribed opioids for acute pain. DESIGN Multicenter prospective cohort study with participant recruitment between September 2020 and March 2023. PARTICIPANTS Opioid-naïve patients prescribed opioids for acute pain in emergency departments, primary care or urgent care clinics, inpatient settings, and dental practices. MAIN MEASURES Patient-reported receipt of counseling on the importance of opioid disposal and appropriate disposal methods; opioid storage practices; use and disposition of prescribed opioids; disposal methods; and reasons for keeping or disposing of leftover opioids. KEY RESULTS Among 1708 participants, the median age was 38 years (IQR, 28-52); most were recruited from emergency departments (n=915; 53.6%) and primary care or urgent care clinics (n=307; 18.0%). Among 1233 participants who answered the question on counseling about the importance of opioid disposal, 811 (65.8%) reported receiving no counseling. Among 1220 participants who answered the question on counseling about appropriate disposal methods, 832 (68.2%) reported receiving no counseling. Among 812 participants who answered the question about storing opioids in a locked location, 610 (75.1%) reported never doing so. Among 929 participants providing information on opioid leftovers and disposition, 618 (66.5%) did not use all prescribed opioids. Among these 618 participants, 258 (42.8%) kept leftover opioids and 345 (57.2%) disposed of them. Among 256 participants who reported reasons for keeping leftover opioids, 159 (62.1%) wanted medication available for the same condition, 70 (27.3%) wanted medication available for a different condition, and 36 (14.1%) did not know how to properly dispose of the medication. CONCLUSIONS Among opioid-naïve patients prescribed opioids for acute pain, counseling about opioid disposal was uncommon, secure storage was infrequent, and leftover opioids were frequent, with many patients keeping leftover opioids for possible future use. These findings suggest opportunities to improve counseling on opioid storage and disposal and encourage safe disposal of unused opioids after acute pain treatment.

Breast biopsy markers have evolved from simple metallic devices to sophisticated multimaterial tools that have become essential for breast cancer care, demonstrating their clinical benefits in surgical planning, radiation targeting, and cost reduction.

Importance High-quality evidence guiding opioid prescribing decisions for acute pain across common diagnoses is lacking. Objective To describe pain trajectories and patterns of opioid and nonopioid treatment use among individuals who were offered opioids for the treatment of acute pain. Design, Setting, and Participants This was a prospective cohort study of patients recruited from 5 US health systems between September 2020 and March 2023 in emergency departments (EDs), primary care clinics, dental practices, or after cesarean delivery or knee replacement. Eligible patients were opioid-naive adults aged 18 years or older at all study sites, as well as adolescents aged 15 to17 years undergoing impacted molar extraction at 1 site, who were offered an opioid prescription for acute pain. Analysis was conducted April 2023 through February 2026. Exposure Offer of a prescription for an opioid analgesic. Main Outcomes and Measures Time to pain resolution (3 consecutive reports of no pain), patterns of opioid and nonopioid treatment use, and opioid-related adverse effects, ascertained from digital questionnaires. Results Among 1708 enrolled patients (median age, 38 years [IQR, 28-52 years]; 615 [36.0%] reporting race or ethnicity underrepresented in studies of acute pain management) followed up for 180 days, 915 (53.6%) were recruited in EDs, 307 (18.0%) in primary or urgent care, 263 (15.4%) in dental settings, and 223 (13.1%) in inpatient settings. Pain sources included dental (302 patients [17.7%]), trauma or injury (302 [17.7%]), obstetric (176 [10.3%]), musculoskeletal (131 [7.7%]), and low back (100 [5.9%]). Among 1502 patients reporting pain level at least once, median time to pain resolution irrespective of the treatment approach was 20 days (IQR, 8-88 days), with longer durations for surgical pain (74 days [IQR, 30 days to not reached]) and low back pain (69 days [IQR, 18 days to not reached]). The median time to opioid discontinuation among 1189 patients (69.6%) who reported any opioid use was 7 days (IQR, 2-31 days); an estimated 10.0% (95% CI, 7.7%-12.7%) of patients used opioids for at least 90 days, with higher rates in people reporting frequent pain before enrollment. Of 1482 patients (86.8%) completing at least 1 survey during the first 2 weeks of follow-up, 1153 (77.8%) reported using any opioids and 1287 (86.8%) reported using acetaminophen or ibuprofen. Among 619 (52.1%) patients with any opioid use who reported the dose of opioids taken in the first 15 days, daily doses were low (median, 10 [IQR, 5-15] morphine milligram equivalents). Most respondents reported leftover opioids (657 of 982 responding [66.9%]). Conclusions and Relevance In this cohort study of opioid-naive patients with acute pain, opioid use was generally low dose and of short duration, although some patients reported prolonged opioid use; most reported achieving pain resolution within 3 weeks, with longer times for surgical and low back pain. The findings suggest current guidelines for multimodal treatment and for short-duration opioid prescriptions if needed will serve many but not all patients, and treatment should be tailored to address individual patients’ needs.

Color Doppler twinkling improves visibility and ultrasound-guided localization of biopsy markers made of polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA). This study examines the time- and frequency-domain features of twinkling. We performed beamforming on the raw radiofrequency (RF) data collected using a L7-4 transducer, followed by in-phase/quadrature (IQ) demodulation and wall filtering. Frequency content variations were evaluated both within individual Doppler ensembles (pulse-to-pulse) and across multiple frames. Normalized FFT magnitude spectra were computed for both twinkling and non-twinkling (metal) cases using beamformed RF and IQ data. The median of the normalized FFT magnitude (3–10 MHz) was consistently higher for the twinkling case compared to the metal case across RF (–13.75 dB vs –17.29 dB) and the IQ real component (–12.72 dB vs –16.15 dB), indicating broader and more energetic spectral content in twinkling. The frequency spread above the –20 dB threshold was approximately 2.5 times wider (5.38 MHz vs 1.95 MHz) in the twinkling case compared to the metal case. In time domain, the RMS of the standard deviation for the twinkling signal was approximately 28 times higher than that of the metal case across both RF and IQ data. These findings indicate that the ultrasound data from twinkling exhibits a more distributed frequency profile, consistent with observed aperiodic nature.

Color Doppler twinkling is associated with rough-surfaced objects like kidney stones, some clinical breast biopsy markers, and polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) bone cement. Microbubbles are theorized as the predominant source of twinkling, supported by decreased twinkling under increased pressure. PMMA, metallic breast markers, a low-twinkling PMMA sample, and a non-twinkling metal rod were scanned in a pressure chamber up to 1000 psi using a General Electric Logiq E9 system and C1-6 probe (1.7–3.6 MHz Doppler transmit frequency). Clinical markers maintained distinct twinkling up to 250 psi. PMMA often twinkled at higher pressures, sometimes up to 1000 psi. The controls showed no twinkling. To understand physical structure associations with twinkling, the samples were scanned in a micro-CT system with a pixel resolution of 2 μm. Analysis of PMMA and Cork internal voids showed no correlation with twinkling. However, a correlation between Sa (average difference between the mean surface profile and actual surface profile) values and twinkling was found. This indicates that internal structure is not important for twinkling, and certain surface roughness is critical, possibly providing sites for surface microbubbles to oscillate from incident ultrasound waves.

Background: Fecal microbiota, live-jslm (RBL) is approved in the United States and Canada for prevention of recurrent Clostridioides difficile infection (rCDI) in adults following standard-of-care (SOC) antibiotic treatment. Objectives: Provide an updated integrated safety analysis, incorporating final safety data from Punch CD3-OLS. Design: Safety data were combined from five RBL trials: three phase II and two phase III trials. Methods: Adult participants had documented rCDI and completed SOC therapy before receiving one or two doses of RBL or placebo, rectally administered as one treatment course. Treatment-emergent adverse events (TEAEs) were recorded for ⩽6 months. Results: TEAEs were reported in 70.9% (845/1192) of RBL recipients; most TEAEs were mild to moderate and gastrointestinal in nature. Most serious TEAEs were related to preexisting conditions or CDI. There was no clustering of serious TEAEs. Most TEAEs leading to death were related to preexisting conditions. Conclusion: Overall, data demonstrate RBL has a favorable 6-month safety profile. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT01925417; NCT02299570; NCT02589847; NCT03244644; NCT03931941.

ABSTRACT Genital lymphedema presents significant challenges in surgical management, with limited effective interventions. This case report explores the use of contrast‐enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) with microbubble injection as an alternative adjunct technique for lymphatic mapping in lymphaticovenous anastomosis (LVA) surgery for genital lymphedema. A retrospective chart review approved by our institutional review board was performed for patients with genital lymphedema undergoing LVA surgery between 2020 and 2024. Intraoperative CEUS for lymphatic mapping was used with intradermal injection of microbubble suspension Lumason (Bracco Suisse, Monroe Township, NJ, USA). Data regarding demographics, comorbidities, clinical and operative characteristics, complications, and surgical outcomes were retrieved. Three patients with genital lymphedema who underwent LVA were identified. The first patient was a 34‐year‐old female with recurrent lymphangioma circumscriptum and vesicular drainage. She successfully underwent CEUS‐guided LVA followed by two debulking procedures. The second patient was a 16‐year‐old male with congenital scrotal and lower extremity lymphedema. He had two CEUS‐guided LVAs and subsequent debulking for anterior scrotal swelling, with long‐term reduction in edema. The third patient was a 31‐year‐old female with primary lymphedema of the right lower extremity and genital region. She underwent seven CEUS and indocyanine green lymphography (ICG) guided anastomoses targeting the mons and lower abdomen, resulting in substantial symptomatic and volumetric improvement. CEUS detected target lymphatic vessels in all cases, including cases where ICG imaging failed to identify candidate lymphatic vessels. CEUS with intradermal microbubble injection successfully identified target lymphatic vessels in the preoperative planning for LVA surgery in patients with genital lymphedema.

Background: Lymphaticovenous anastomosis (LVA) is an effective surgical treatment for extremity lymphedema. Indocyanine green (ICG) fluorescent lymphography, the traditional standard for imaging lymphatic vessels, has limitations, including difficulty depicting deeper or congested lymphatics and contraindication in iodine hypersensitivity. This study evaluated contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) with microbubbles for identifying lymphatic vessels for LVA and compared it with ICG lymphography. Methods: In this single-center retrospective review, intraoperative CEUS with intradermal injection of microbubble suspension (Lumason, Bracco Diagnostics, Inc.) was used in patients before LVA surgery between October 2019 and February 2023. Pre- or intraoperative ICG lymphography was also used to identify target lymphatic vessels. All patients diagnosed with primary or secondary extremity lymphedema who underwent LVA were included. Technical success rate was defined as lymphatic vessels identified by CEUS that led to successful LVAs. Descriptive statistics were used. Results: Thirty-two patients underwent LVA surgery, with a mean age of 58.5 ± 13.9 years. CEUS identified lymphatic vessels in all 32 patients, including 7 in whom ICG failed. Two patients with ICG allergy underwent CEUS only. CEUS identified more candidate lymphatics per patient (5.3 ± 4.2) compared with ICG (2.5 ± 2.7). Of the 182 anastomoses, 96 (52.8%) were identified by both CEUS and ICG, 75 (41.2%) by CEUS only, and 11 (6%) by ICG only. Conclusions: CEUS is a promising tool for identifying lymphatic vessels in patients with lymphedema undergoing LVA, particularly when ICG lymphography is inadequate or contraindicated.

The Doppler twinkling artifact (TA) plays a crucial role in detecting some biopsy markers including those made of polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), facilitating precise lymph node localization in diagnostic and therapeutic procedures. This study presents comprehensive signal processing analysis methods to quantify and characterize the TA phenomenon using raw, per-channel radiofrequency (RF) data acquired from PMMA markers scanned with an L7-4 linear array transducer. We evaluated signals at different stages along the image reconstruction pipeline including (1) beamforming, (2) beamformed RF signal conversion into in-phase/quadrature (IQ) signals, and (3) Doppler velocity calculations and image reconstruction. We analyzed changes of pulses within an ensemble and between ensembles (i.e., frames). We also evaluated the impact of wall filters with various cutoff frequencies on color and power Doppler image reconstruction. Comparative analysis between PMMA markers and a non-twinkling control sample demonstrated distinct TA signatures or lack thereof in color and power Doppler images. The IQ data from PMMA marker locations exhibiting TA signatures showed substantially higher variability compared to non-twinkling samples, with standard deviations approximately 20 times higher between ensembles and 5 times higher within ensembles. This quantitative analysis framework provides valuable insight into the TA signal, potentially leading to more reliable and accurate diagnostic interpretations.