Effect of Health Service Area on Primary Care Physician Provision of Low-Value Cancer Screening.

BACKGROUND: Using a health systems approach to investigate low-value care (LVC) may provide insights into structural drivers of this pervasive problem. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the influence of service area practice patterns on low-value mammography and prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing. DESIGN: Retrospective study analyzing LVC rates between 2008 and 2018, leveraging physician relocation in 3-year intervals of matched physician and patient groups. SETTING: U.S. Medicare claims data. PARTICIPANTS: 8254 physicians and 56 467 patients aged 75 years or older. MEASUREMENTS: LVC rates for physicians staying in their original service area and those relocating to new areas. RESULTS: Physicians relocating from higher-LVC areas to low-LVC areas were more likely to provide lower rates of LVC. For mammography, physicians staying in high-LVC areas (LVC rate, 10.1% [95% CI, 8.8% to 12.2%]) or medium-LVC areas (LVC rate, 10.3% [CI, 9.0% to 12.4%]) provided LVC at a higher rate than physicians relocating from those areas to low-LVC areas (LVC rates, 6.0% [CI, 4.4% to 7.5%] [difference, -4.1 percentage points {CI, -6.7 to -2.3 percentage points}] and 5.9% [CI, 4.6% to 7.8%] [difference, -4.4 percentage points {CI, -6.7 to -2.4 percentage points}], respectively). For PSA testing, physicians staying in high- or moderate-LVC service areas provided LVC at a rate of 17.5% (CI, 14.9% to 20.7%) or 10.6% (CI, 9.6% to 13.2%), respectively, compared with those relocating from those areas to low-LVC areas (LVC rates, 9.9% [CI, 7.5% to 13.2%] [difference, -7.6 percentage points {CI, -10.9 to -3.8 percentage points}] and 6.2% [CI, 3.5% to 9.8%] [difference, -4.4 percentage points {CI, -7.6 to -2.2 percentage points}], respectively). Physicians relocating from lower- to higher-LVC service areas were not more likely to provide LVC at a higher rate. LIMITATION: Use of retrospective observational data, possible unmeasured confounding, and potential for relocating physicians to practice differently from those who stay. CONCLUSION: Physicians relocating to service areas with lower rates of LVC provided less LVC than physicians who stayed in areas with higher rates of LVC. Systemic structures may contribute to LVC. Understanding which factors are contributing may present opportunities for policy and interventions to broadly improve care. PRIMARY FUNDING SOURCE: National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health.

Genitourinary cancer and family: The reverberating psychological and cardiovascular effects of a genitourinary cancer diagnosis on first-degree relatives and spouses.

BACKGROUND: The psychological and cardiovascular health impacts on family members of patients who have been diagnosed with cancer have not been well characterized. The purpose of this study is to determine whether a family member's cancer diagnosis influences the risk of psychological illness and cardiovascular disease in first-degree relatives and spouses of patients affected by cancer. METHODS: This retrospective cohort analysis evaluated the risk of psychological illness and cardiovascular disease in first-degree relatives and spouses of patients diagnosed with a genitourinary cancer between 1990 and 2015 compared to relatives of those not diagnosed with a genitourinary cancer. The Utah Population Database was used and familial linkage was determined. Follow-up included 1-, 3-, and 5-year intervals. Patients residing outside of Utah and first-degree relatives and spouses with psychological or cardiovascular disease diagnosed before a family member's cancer diagnosis were excluded. RESULTS: A total of 49,284 patients with a genitourinary cancer were identified with 77,938 first-degree relatives and spouses. A matched control group included 246,775 patients with 81,022 first-degree relatives and spouses. Via Cox proportional hazards models, a 10% increased risk of developing a psychological illness (hazard ratio [HR], 1.10; 95% CI, 1.00-1.20) and a 28% increased risk of developing cardiovascular disease (HR, 1.28; 95% CI, 1.17-1.41) at 1 year after a family member's cancer diagnosis were found. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides population-level evidence to support the hypothesis that cancer diagnoses will lead to adverse health outcomes for family members of patients with cancer. Increased clinical attention and support are needed to reduce the harm to families caused by cancer.

Initial outcomes and insights from a novel high-risk prostate cancer screening clinic.

INTRODUCTION: Guidelines for germline testing in patients with prostate cancer (PCa) are identifying family members who require additional surveillance given pathogenic variants (PVs) that confer increased PCa risk. We established an interdisciplinary clinic for cancer surveillance in high-risk individuals aimed to implement screening recommendations. This study aimed to characterize the clinical features of this cohort. PATIENTS AND METHODS: The Prostate Cancer Risk Clinic (PCRC) was established for unaffected individuals with germline PVs or a strong PCa family history. PCa screening, urine labs, and questionnaires were included in the visit. Individuals with BRCA1/2 PVs underwent clinical breast exam as well. Data from the initial visit were abstracted from the medical record and questionnaires for analysis. RESULTS: Thirty-five individuals with increased PCa risk were followed by the PCRC with a median age of 47 years of age. Twenty individuals (57%) had a family history of PCa, and 34 (97%) had a germline PV associated with an increased risk for developing PCa. Four individuals underwent biopsy due to care in the PCRC, with one PCa identified in an individual with TP53 PV. Median patient response scores indicated mild symptoms of an enlarged prostate (AUASS), normal erectile function (SHIM), and relatively low anxiety about developing PCa (MAX-PC). However, there were notable "outlier" scores on each questionnaire. CONCLUSIONS: Individuals with prostates and BRCA1/2 PVs, among other germline PVs, can benefit from a comprehensive interdisciplinary approach to high-risk management. PCa was identified in an individual with a non-BRCA PV, emphasizing the importance and need for high-risk screening guidelines across all genes with increased risk for PCa. "Outlier" patient response scores demonstrate that some participants experienced worse symptoms or anxiety than was indicated by median scores alone.

Decision fatigue in low-value prostate cancer screening.

BACKGROUND: Low-value prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing is common yet contributes substantial waste and downstream patient harm. Decision fatigue may represent an actionable target to reduce low-value urologic care. The objective of this study was to determine whether low-value PSA testing patterns by outpatient clinicians are consistent with decision fatigue. METHODS: Outpatient appointments for adult men without prostate cancer were identified at a large academic health system from 2011 through 2018. The authors assessed the association of appointment time with the likelihood of PSA testing, stratified by patient age and appropriateness of testing based on clinical guidelines. Appointments included those scheduled between 8:00 am and 4:59 pm, with noon omitted. Urologists were examined separately from other clinicians. RESULTS: In 1,581,826 outpatient appointments identified, the median patient age was 54 years (interquartile range, 37-66 years), 1,256,152 participants (79.4%) were White, and 133,693 (8.5%) had family history of prostate cancer. PSA testing would have been appropriate in 36.8% of appointments. Clinicians ordered testing in 3.6% of appropriate appointments and in 1.8% of low-value appointments. Appropriate testing was most likely at 8:00 am (reference group). PSA testing declined through 11:00 am (odds ratio [OR], 0.57; 95% CI, 0.50-0.64) and remained depressed through 4:00 pm (P < .001). Low-value testing was overall less likely (P < .001) and followed a similar trend, declining steadily from 8:00 am (OR, 0.48; 95% CI, 0.42-0.56) through 4:00 pm (P < .001; OR, 0.23; 95% CI, 0.18-0.30). Testing patterns in urologists were noticeably different. CONCLUSIONS: Among most clinicians, outpatient PSA testing behaviors appear to be consistent with decision fatigue. These findings establish decision fatigue as a promising, actionable target for reducing wasteful and low-value practices in routine urologic care. LAY SUMMARY: Decision fatigue causes poorer choices to be made with repetitive decision making. This study used medical records to investigate whether decision fatigue influenced clinicians' likelihood of ordering a low-value screening test (prostate-specific antigen [PSA]) for prostate cancer. In more than 1.5 million outpatient appointments by adult men without prostate cancer, the chances of both appropriate and low-value PSA testing declined as the clinic day progressed, with a larger decline for appropriate testing. Testing patterns in urologists were different from those reported by other clinicians. The authors conclude that outpatient PSA testing behaviors appear to be consistent with decision fatigue among most clinicians, and interventions may reduce wasteful testing and downstream patient harms.

IL-33-dependent type 2 inflammation during rhinovirus-induced asthma exacerbations in vivo.

RATIONALE: Rhinoviruses are the major cause of asthma exacerbations; however, its underlying mechanisms are poorly understood. We hypothesized that the epithelial cell-derived cytokine IL-33 plays a central role in exacerbation pathogenesis through augmentation of type 2 inflammation. OBJECTIVES: To assess whether rhinovirus induces a type 2 inflammatory response in asthma in vivo and to define a role for IL-33 in this pathway. METHODS: We used a human experimental model of rhinovirus infection and novel airway sampling techniques to measure IL-4, IL-5, IL-13, and IL-33 levels in the asthmatic and healthy airways during a rhinovirus infection. Additionally, we cultured human T cells and type 2 innate lymphoid cells (ILC2s) with the supernatants of rhinovirus-infected bronchial epithelial cells (BECs) to assess type 2 cytokine production in the presence or absence of IL-33 receptor blockade. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: IL-4, IL-5, IL-13, and IL-33 are all induced by rhinovirus in the asthmatic airway in vivo and relate to exacerbation severity. Further, induction of IL-33 correlates with viral load and IL-5 and IL-13 levels. Rhinovirus infection of human primary BECs induced IL-33, and culture of human T cells and ILC2s with supernatants of rhinovirus-infected BECs strongly induced type 2 cytokines. This induction was entirely dependent on IL-33. CONCLUSIONS: IL-33 and type 2 cytokines are induced during a rhinovirus-induced asthma exacerbation in vivo. Virus-induced IL-33 and IL-33-responsive T cells and ILC2s are key mechanistic links between viral infection and exacerbation of asthma. IL-33 inhibition is a novel therapeutic approach for asthma exacerbations.

Use of Placebo in Urologic Oncology Randomized Controlled Trials.

INTRODUCTION: Use of placebo in oncology randomized controlled trials (RCT) is ethically controversial. Placebo may introduce bias, as toxicity profiles of treatment arms can inadvertently unblind subjects and investigators. We investigated the use of placebo in urologic oncology RCTs, hypothesizing that most placebo-controlled trials are effectively unblinded, either explicitly with open-label design or implicitly due to large differences in adverse events (AE) or oncologic outcomes. METHODS: Urologic oncology RCTs utilizing placebo were identified via ClinicalTrials.gov. Interventional prostate, bladder/urothelial, and renal cancer trials from 2014 to 2024 were included. Subject incompletion, all-cause mortality, AE rates, and serious AE (SAE) rates were identified and compared between placebo and active arms using χ2 and Fisher's exact tests. RESULTS: Sixty studies met inclusion criteria and included 66 placebo arms with 12,918 subjects and 81 active arms with 16,098 subjects. There was no significant difference in incompletion rates between placebo and active arms. Subjects enrolled in active arms reported statistically significant higher SAE and AE rates compared to those in placebo arms across the majority of physiological domains, including 18/24 domains for SAEs and 13/24 for AEs. This relationship persisted in sensitivity analyses where unblinded trials were excluded. CONCLUSIONS: In urologic oncology placebo-controlled RCTs, active arms are associated with significantly higher rates of AEs and SAEs compared with placebo arms. These findings indicate a strong possibility that true blinding is not possible in oncology RCTs, even with optimal study design, and serve to better inform future clinical trial design and implementation challenges in employing placebo control.

Urban relatives ameliorate survival disparities for genitourinary cancer in rural patients.

INTRODUCTION: Patients living in rural areas have worse cancer-specific outcomes. This study examines the effect of family-based social capital on genitourinary cancer survival. We hypothesized that rural patients with urban relatives have improved survival relative to rural patients without urban family. METHODS: We examined rural and urban based Utah individuals diagnosed with genitourinary cancers between 1968 and 2018. Familial networks were determined using the Utah Population Database. Patients and relatives were classified as rural or urban based on 2010 rural-urban commuting area codes. Overall survival was analyzed using Cox proportional hazards models. RESULTS: We identified 24,746 patients with genitourinary cancer with a median follow-up of 8.72 years. Rural cancer patients without an urban relative had the worst outcomes with cancer-specific survival hazard ratios (HRs) at 5 and 10 years of 1.33 (95% CI 1.10-1.62) and 1.46 (95% CI 1.24-1.73), respectively relative to urban patients. Rural patients with urban first-degree relatives had improved survival with 5- and 10-year survival HRs of 1.21 (95% CI 1.06-1.40) and 1.16 (95% CI 1.03-1.31), respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest rural patients who have been diagnosed with a genitourinary cancer have improved survival when having relatives in urban centers relative to rural patients without urban relatives. Further research is needed to better understand the mechanisms through which having an urban family member contributes to improved cancer outcomes for rural patients. Better characterization of this affect may help inform policies to reduce urban-rural cancer disparities.

Clinician interest in clinical decision support for PSA-based prostate cancer screening.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the interest of primary care clinicians in utilizing CDS for PSA screening. Evidence suggests that electronic clinical decision support (CDS) may decrease low-value prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing. However, physician attitudes towards CDS for PSA screening are largely unknown. METHODS: A survey was sent to 201 primary care clinicians, including both physicians and Advanced Practice Providers (APP), within a large academic health system. Eligible clinicians cared for male patients aged 40 to 80 years and ordered ≥5 PSA tests in the past year. Respondents were stratified into 3 groups, appropriate screeners, low-value screeners, or rare-screeners, based on responses to survey questions assessing PSA screening practices. The degree of interest in electronic CDS was determined via a composite Likert score comprising relevant survey items. RESULTS: Survey response rate was 29% (59/201) consisting of 85% MD/DO and 15% APP respondents. All clinicians surveyed were interested in CDS (P < 0.001) without significant difference between screener groups. Clinicians agreed most uniformly that CDS be evidence-based. Clinicians disagreed on whether CDS would decrease professional discretion over patient decisions. CONCLUSIONS: Primary care clinicians are interested in CDS for PSA screening regardless of their current screening practices. Prioritizing CDS features that clinicians value, such as ensuring CDS recommendations are evidence-based, may increase the likelihood of successful implementation, whereas perceived threat to autonomy may be a hinderance to utilization.

Impact of choosing wisely on imaging in men with newly diagnosed prostate cancer.

INTRODUCTION: Encouraging the appropriate use of staging imaging in patients with newly diagnosed prostate cancer remains a challenge. Assessing the effects of national efforts may help guide future initiatives in curtailing low-value care. The purpose of this study was to determine the impact of the Choosing Wisely campaign on imaging utilization among men with prostate cancer. METHODS: Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results - Medicare data were used to complete a longitudinal population-based study of men diagnosed with prostate cancer from 2007 to 2015. An interrupted time series analysis evaluated the impact of the Choosing Wisely campaign on trends of imaging utilization. RESULTS: From 2007 to 2015 imaging utilization in low-risk patients decreased, with computed tomography (CT) usage declining from 45.0% to 34.4% (P<0.001) and nuclear medicine bone scan (NMBS) from 27.8% to 11.7% (P<0.001). Choosing Wisely likely contributed to an absolute reduction of 2.9% (P=0.03) in utilization of NMBS in the low-risk population. Imaging usage for all modalities increased in the high-risk population, but with 32.8% continuing to not receive guideline-supported imaging. CONCLUSIONS: In 2012, the Choosing Wisely campaign sought to decrease inappropriate staging imaging for men with low-risk prostate cancer and encourage stewardship of medical resources. Overall decreases in staging imaging trends suggest a move towards higher value care. However, this study found that the Choosing Wisely recommendations had a modest impact on utilization of NMBS, but not CT or PET scans. These results may help inform future efforts to promote guideline concordant imaging.

High-fat diet induces obesity in adult mice but fails to develop pre-penile and penile vascular dysfunction.

Obesity can lead to cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and erectile dysfunction (ED), which decreases overall quality of life. Mechanisms responsible for obesity-induced ED are unknown. Current mouse models of high-fat diet (HFD)-induced obesity yield conflicting results. Genetic variants among common "wild type" strains may explain contradictory data. Adult male C57BL/6N and 6J mice were fed a 45% HFD for 12 weeks. Weekly food intake, weight gain, and body-fat percentage were measured. After 12 weeks, ex vivo vascular reactivity was measured in aortas, internal pudendal arteries, and penises. We assessed smooth muscle contractility, endothelial-dependent and -independent relaxation, and penile neurotransmitter-mediated relaxation. C57BL/6N mice developed greater obesity and glucose sensitivity compared to C57BL/6J mice. Aortas from both strains that fed a HFD had decreased contraction, yet contraction was unchanged in HFD pudendal arteries and penises. Interestingly, endothelial-dependent and -independent relaxation was unchanged in both systemic and penile vasculature. Likewise, HFD did not impair penile neurotransmitter-mediated relaxation. Both strains fed 12 weeks of HFD-developed obese phenotypes. However, HFD did not impair pre-penile or penile smooth muscle vasoreactivity as demonstrated in previous studies, suggesting that this preclinical model does not accurately represent the clinical phenotype of obesity-induced ED.

Graphene on glassy carbon microelectrodes demonstrate long-term structural and functional stability in neurophysiological recording and stimulation.

Objective.There is a growing interest in the use of carbon and its allotropes for microelectrodes in neural probes because of their inertness, long-term electrical and electrochemical stability, and versatility. Building on this interest, we introduce a new electrode material system consisting of an ultra-thin monoatomic layer of graphene (Gr) mechanically supported by a relatively thicker layer of glassy carbon (GC).Approach.Due to its high electrical conductivity and high double-layer capacitance, Gr has impressive electrical and electrochemical properties, two key properties that are useful for neural recording and stimulation applications. However, because of its two-dimensional nature, Gr exhibits a lack of stiffness in the transverse direction and hence almost non-existent flexural and out-of-plane rigidity that will severely limit its wider use. On the other hand, GC is one of carbon's important allotropes and consists of three-dimensional microstructures of Gr fragments with a natural molecular similarity to Gr. Further, GC has exceptional chemical inertness, good electrical properties, high electrochemical stability, purely capacitive charge injection, and fast surface electrokinetics coupled with lithography patternability. This makes GC an ideal candidate for addressing Gr's lack of out-of-plane rigidity through providing a matching sturdier and robust mechanical backing. Combining the strengths of these two allotropes of carbon, we introduce a new neural probe that consists of ∼1 nm thick layer of patterned Gr microelectrodes supported by another layer of 3-5µm thick patterned GC.Main results. We present the fabrication technology for the newGr on GC(graphene on glassy carbon) microelectrodes and the accompanying pattern transfer technology on flexible substrate and report on the bond between these two allotropes of carbon through FTIR, surface morphology through SEM, topography through atomic force microscopy, and microstructure imaging through scanning transmission electron microscopy. A long-term (18 weeks)in vivostudy of the use of theseGr on GCmicroelectrodes assessed the quality of the electrocorticography-based neural signal recording and stimulation through electrophysiological measurements. The probes were demonstrated to be functionally and structurally stable over the 18 week period with minimal glial response-the longest reported so far for Gr-based microelectrodes.Significance.TheGr on GCmicroelectrodes presented here offers a compelling case for expanding the potentials of Gr-based technology in the broad areas of neural probes.

Clinical Germline Testing Results of Men With Prostate Cancer: Patient-Level Factors and Implications of NCCN Guideline Expansion.

Germline likely pathogenic or pathogenic variants (PVs) have been identified in up to 17% of men with prostate cancer (PC) and may drive disease severity or be targetable by novel therapies. National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) guidelines encouraging germline testing in metastatic PC were recently expanded to include all men with high-risk, very high-risk, or regional PC. Our aim was to assess the impact of expanded NCCN guidelines on the detection rate of germline PVs and to determine patient-level factors associated with a PV germline testing result. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Men with PC underwent multigene germline genetic testing for PVs from June 2016 to December 2018, and trends were compared. The association of patient-level factors with a PV germline testing result, where ≥ 1 PV was identified, was assessed using analysis of variance and univariate logistic regression. Sensitivity analyses were limited to clinically actionable variants and those associated with disease severity or progression (BRCA1/2 and ATM). RESULTS: Of 408 men undergoing germline testing, 42 (10.3%) men had PVs and 366 (89.7%) men did not have PVs identified. The proportion of men identified with a germline PV remained stable following testing criteria expansion (9.4% v 10.6%, P = .73). No patient-level factors were significantly associated with increased odds of a PV germline testing result, including age at diagnosis, race, pretreatment prostate-specific antigen, Gleason grade group, NCCN risk group, and family history of cancer (breast and/or ovarian, prostate, or any cancer). CONCLUSION: This study demonstrated a stable PV detection rate in men with PC using expanded criteria aligned to the updated NCCN testing guidelines. However, we did not find strong evidence to suggest that patient-level factors are associated with PV germline testing results. These findings support the recent expansion of NCCN germline testing guidelines in PC.

Leveraging Behavioral Economics to Reduce Low-value Prostate Cancer Screening.

Behavioral economic principles model decision-making behavior, and offer promising and unexplored mechanisms for understanding the etiology of low-value care in urologic oncology. Clinical decision support built around these principles is poised to substantially reduce wasteful spending in prostate cancer screening.

Sediment Facilitates Microbial Degradation of the Herbicides Endothall Monoamine Salt and Endothall Dipotassium Salt in an Aquatic Environment.

Endothall dipotassium salt and monoamine salt are herbicide formulations used for controlling submerged aquatic macrophytes and algae in aquatic ecosystems. Microbial activity is the primary degradation pathway for endothall. To better understand what influences endothall degradation, we conducted a mesocosm experiment to (1) evaluate the effects of different water and sediment sources on degradation, and (2) determine if degradation was faster in the presence of a microbial community previously exposed to endothall. Endothall residues were determined with LC-MS at intervals to 21 days after endothall application. Two endothall isomers were detected. Isomer-1 was abundant in both endothall formulations, while isomer-2 was only abundant in the monoamine endothall formulation and was more persistent. Degradation did not occur in the absence of sediment. In the presence of sediment, degradation of isomer-1 began after a lag phase of 5⁻11 days and was almost complete by 14 days. Onset of degradation occurred 2⁻4 days sooner when the microbial population was previously exposed to endothall. We provide direct evidence that the presence and characteristics of sediment are of key importance in the degradation of endothall in an aquatic environment, and that monoamine endothall has two separate isomers that have different degradation characteristics.

A Comprehensive Evaluation of Nasal and Bronchial Cytokines and Chemokines Following Experimental Rhinovirus Infection in Allergic Asthma: Increased Interferons (IFN-γ and IFN-λ) and Type 2 Inflammation (IL-5 and IL-13).

BACKGROUND: Rhinovirus infection is a major cause of asthma exacerbations. OBJECTIVES: We studied nasal and bronchial mucosal inflammatory responses during experimental rhinovirus-induced asthma exacerbations. METHODS: We used nasosorption on days 0, 2-5 and 7 and bronchosorption at baseline and day 4 to sample mucosal lining fluid to investigate airway mucosal responses to rhinovirus infection in patients with allergic asthma (n=28) and healthy non-atopic controls (n=11), by using a synthetic absorptive matrix and measuring levels of 34 cytokines and chemokines using a sensitive multiplex assay. RESULTS: Following rhinovirus infection asthmatics developed more upper and lower respiratory symptoms and lower peak expiratory flows compared to controls (all P<0.05). Asthmatics also developed higher nasal lining fluid levels of an anti-viral pathway (including IFN-γ, IFN-λ/IL-29, CXCL11/ITAC, CXCL10/IP10 and IL-15) and a type 2 inflammatory pathway (IL-4, IL-5, IL-13, CCL17/TARC, CCL11/eotaxin, CCL26/eotaxin-3) (area under curve day 0-7, all P<0.05). Nasal IL-5 and IL-13 were higher in asthmatics at day 0 (P<0.01) and levels increased by days 3 and 4 (P<0.01). A hierarchical correlation matrix of 24 nasal lining fluid cytokine and chemokine levels over 7days demonstrated expression of distinct interferon-related and type 2 pathways in asthmatics. In asthmatics IFN-γ, CXCL10/IP10, CXCL11/ITAC, IL-15 and IL-5 increased in bronchial lining fluid following viral infection (all P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Precision sampling of mucosal lining fluid identifies robust interferon and type 2 responses in the upper and lower airways of asthmatics during an asthma exacerbation. Nasosorption and bronchosorption have potential to define asthma endotypes in stable disease and at exacerbation.

An unusual cause of acute abdominal pain - a case presentation.

BACKGROUND: In 1983, Graham Hughes described a condition of Antiphospholipid Syndrome in which there was a danger of thrombosis. The condition is readily detectable by blood tests and, once diagnosed; the risk of further thrombosis can be significantly reduced by anticoagulation treatments. Affected groups of patients can be distinguished by a specific blood test - the detection of antiphospholipid antibody (Ref-1). Patients with Hughes syndrome have hypercoaguable state with a markedly increased risk of both arterial and venous thrombosis and there is temporal persistence of antibody positivity. CASE PRESENTATION: A 44-year-old woman was admitted under the acute surgical "take" with left sided abdominal pain radiating to her back. She had a history of borderline thyrotoxicosis in the early 1990s. She was on etonogestrel-releasing implants for contraception and there was no history of previous deep venous thrombosis. She was very tender, locally, over the left side of the abdomen. Investigations showed haemoglobin of 13.2 g/dl, white cell count of 19.9 10*9/L, and platelets 214 10*9/L with neutrophilia. Amylase and renal function tests were found to be normal. Liver function tests were deranged with Gamma GT 244 u/l (twice normal). An abdominal Ultrasound Scan suggested a possible splenic infarction, which was confirmed by a CT scan of her abdomen. Tests were carried out to investigate the possibility of a post thrombotic state. Coagulation risk factors for thrombosis were within the normal limits; Protein S 67 %(60-140), Protein C 103 % (72-146), Antithrombin 3 110 %(80-120) and Activated P C Resistance was 1.9(2.0-4.3). The Hams test was negative but the Anticardiolipin antibody test was positive. IgM level was 52 (normal is up to 10) and IgG was 18.8 (normal is up to 10). She also had border line APC Sensitivity 1.9 (2 to 4.3). Kaolin time 49 sec (70-120) Ktmix 64 sec (70-120), thyroid function test revealed TSH 0.32 micro/L, fT4 20.2 pmol/L (10-25). Subsequent determination of Anticardiolipin antibody was negative. Her symptoms were settled with the use of simple analgesia and she was discharged home with long-term anticoagulation medication. The INR target for long-term anticoagulation was aimed at >3. CONCLUSION: This case presented to us as an acute abdominal pain. Subsequent investigations revealed the presence of splenic infarction. Coagulation risk factors for thrombosis proved negative. Haematological investigations revealed the presence of anticardiolipin antibodies at the first instance but subsequent determinations were negative. Hence, it mimicked Hughes syndrome initially but the criteria for temporal persistence of anticardiolipin antibody was not fulfilled. Unusual surgical presentation of a thrombotic abnormality as abdominal pain due to splenic infarction.