Patient Perspectives on Virtual Care for Diabetes Management in the Era of COVID-19.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to characterize patient perspectives on the quality of diabetes care at The Ottawa Hospital Endocrinology and Metabolism multidisciplinary clinic delivered virtually during the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: An online survey was developed to collect quantitative and qualitative data on patients' experiences with virtual diabetes clinic visits between March 2020 and April 2021. RESULTS: A total of 333 patients were included in this study; 45% were female and had a mean age of 60 years. Seventy-nine percent were born in Canada and 87% identified as Caucasian. Thirty-six percent were treated for type 1 diabetes and 62% for type 2 diabetes. Eighty-seven percent of virtual visits occurred by phone, with 12% of these on Zoom. Overall, 83% were "very satisfied" or "satisfied" with their virtual care experience. Most respondents perceived all treatment-related factors to be equally well addressed virtually as in person, except for physical examination. Auxiliary factors like travel, cost, and time spent were rated more favourably with virtual care. Qualitative findings provided further contextualization and identified gaps in virtual care delivery. For future visits, 44% wanted in-person visits only as needed, 36% wanted a hybrid of in-person and virtual appointments, and 11% preferred in-person appointments only. CONCLUSIONS: Patients perceive that virtual care provides high-fidelity diabetes management while reducing their pandemic risks as well as minimizing travel and time associated with in-person care. Virtual care is an important medium for diabetes care delivery that should be used according to patient preference and intermixed with in-person appointments.

Infected Rastelli Conduit in an Immunocompromised Patient That Was Not Visible on Transthoracic Echocardiogram.

An 18-year-old man with a history of right ventricle to pulmonary artery conduit implantation for repair of congenital heart disease and vasculitis requiring chronic immunosuppression with azathioprine presented to the University of Ottawa with bacteremia. A transthoracic echocardiogram revealed no abnormalities at the site of the conduit. A fludeoxyglucose positron emission tomography scan was subsequently obtained that demonstrated an infected right ventricle to pulmonary artery conduit. It is important to remember that, as is true for classic valve endocarditis, an unremarkable transthoracic echocardiogram does not rule out an infected conduit in this population, and nuclear imaging may have important diagnostic utility.

Un homme de 18 ans, chez qui on avait implanté un conduit ventricule droit-artère pulmonaire (VD-AP) pour réparer une cardiopathie congénitale et qui avait des antécédents de vascularite nécessitant une immunosuppression continue par l'azathioprine, s'est présenté à l'hôpital affilié à l'Université d'Ottawa pour une bactériémie. Une échocardiographie transthoracique n'a révélé aucune anomalie au site du conduit. Elle a été suivie d'un examen de tomographie par émission de positrons (TEP) au fludésoxyglucose, qui a mis en évidence une infection du conduit VD-AP. Il est important de retenir que, comme dans le cas d'une endocardite valvulaire classique, un échocardiogramme transthoracique sans particularité ne permet pas d'exclure une infection de conduit dans cette population, et que l'imagerie nucléaire peut être d'une grande utilité diagnostique.

Validation of clinical risk score for colorectal liver metastases resected in a contemporary multicenter cohort.

BACKGROUND: Recent advances in care for colorectal liver metastases (CRLM) have lengthened 5-year survival. In this new era, prognostic tools such as the clinical risk score (CRS) for colorectal liver metastases require reevaluation. METHODS: Patients undergoing resection for CRLM between 2008 and 2012 at 4 specialty hepatobiliary centers in Canada (N = 740) were stratified by CRS and analyzed in Kaplan-Meier survival curves. Primary outcome of overall survival (OS) and secondary outcome of recurrence-free survival (RFS). Multivariate Cox regression compared CRS to patient factors. RESULTS: Median OS not reached (>60 months), median RFS 16 months. Original CRS strata was a significant (p < 0.001) predictor of both OS (5-year OS: 0; 75%, 1; 71%, 2; 57%, 3; 57%, 4; 46%) and RFS (5-year RFS: 0; 39%, 1; 33%, 2; 21%, 3; 21%, 4; 8%). The presence of extrahepatic colorectal metastatic disease increased recurrence risk (RFS hazard ratio of 1.32 (1.06-1.65)), and the use of intraoperative portal pedicle clamping reduced recurrence risk (RFS hazard ratio of 0.78 (0.61-0.99)). CONCLUSIONS: The CRS remains a relevant tool for predicting long-term outcomes for patients undergoing resection of CRLM. Additional factors such as the presence of extrahepatic colorectal metastatic disease and the use of intraoperative portal pedicle clamping may improve the prognostic power of the CRS.