Patient satisfaction with telemedicine for prechemotherapy evaluation during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Aims: This project aims to address the question of whether patients were satisfied with using a video visit for prechemotherapy evaluation during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods & materials: This project used a survey tool with patients undergoing prechemotherapy evaluation that was administered at the time of chemotherapy; 70 surveys were collected. Descriptive statistics of survey questions are presented. Results: 73% of patients reported satisfaction with their video visit experience. 65% of patients reported that they prefer in-person visits as their preferred choice for prechemotherapy evaluation. Conclusion: Patient satisfaction was favorable, but not consistent with results from prior published studies. Patients also mostly preferred an in-person visit for prechemotherapy evaluation. Further research is needed to determine patient attitudes to telemedicine for different types of consultations.

Lay abstract In this study, we looked at how satisfied patients were with video visits to consult with their physicians prior to receiving chemotherapy. We collected 70 surveys from June to July 2020 in the clinic's infusion center. Most patients were satisfied with using video visits, but maybe were not as satisfied with using video visits as has been reported in other studies. Most patients also still preferred an in-person visit to a video visit. Patients may have preferred in-person visits because that is what they were used to. More research is needed to find why satisfaction with video visits can be so varied.

Chronic Effects of Blast-Related TBI on Subcortical Functional Connectivity in Veterans.

OBJECTIVES: Blast explosions are the most frequent mechanism of traumatic brain injury (TBI) in recent wars, but little is known about their long-term effects. METHODS: Functional connectivity (FC) was measured in 17 veterans an average of 5.46 years after their most serious blast related TBI, and in 15 demographically similar veterans without TBI or blast exposure. Subcortical FC was measured in bilateral caudate, putamen, and globus pallidus. The default mode and fronto-parietal networks were also investigated. RESULTS: In subcortical regions, between-groups t tests revealed altered FC from the right putamen and right globus pallidus. However, following analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) with age, depression (Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale), and posttraumatic stress disorder symptom (PTSD Checklist - Civilian version) measures, significant findings remained only for the right globus pallidus with anticorrelation in bilateral temporal occipital fusiform cortex, occipital fusiform gyrus, lingual gyrus, and cerebellum, as well as the right occipital pole. No group differences were found for the default mode network. Although reduced FC was found in the fronto-parietal network in the TBI group, between-group differences were nonsignificant after the ANCOVA. CONCLUSIONS: FC of the globus pallidus is altered years after exposure to blast related TBI. Future studies are necessary to explore the trajectory of changes in FC in subcortical regions after blast TBI, the effects of isolated versus repetitive blast-related TBI, and the relation to long-term outcomes in veterans. (JINS, 2016, 22, 631-642).

Bowel perforation from malignant atrophic papulosis treated with eculizumab.

We present the case of a 57-year-old man with known cutaneous manifestations of malignant atrophic papulosis, also known as Köhlmeier-Degos disease, who developed an almost-fatal small bowel perforation following a parathyroidectomy. He required two surgical interventions during his initial hospitalization and was started on eculizumab. Despite these therapies, the patient developed recurrent bowel perforations and ultimately died.