RESUMEN
OBJECTIVE: Childbirth evacuation, the transfer of patients from rural and remote communities to urban centers for pregnancy care or childbirth, can be associated with numerous adverse health outcomes and contributes to widening health disparities between Inuit and non-Indigenous populations in Quebec. We examined the indications and outcomes of childbirth evacuations among Inuit from Nunavik, northern Quebec transferred to a southern tertiary care center. METHODS: A five-year retrospective chart review included 677 pregnancies of 597 Inuit with obstetric indications transferred to a tertiary care center between 2015 and 2019. RESULTS: The most common reasons for transfer were diabetes (70/677, 10.3%), hypertension (69/677, 10.2%), abnormal prenatal screen/soft markers (57/677, 8.4%), and threatened preterm labour (55/677, 8.1%). Of 534 (78.9%) Inuit who gave birth at the tertiary center, 84.1% (449/534) were vaginal births. Overall, 27.0% (144/534) had obstetric complications, with postpartum hemorrhage (58/534, 10.9%) and retained placenta (34, 6.37%) being the most common. Of the 549 neonates, 9 were stillbirths (1.6%), and 69 neonates (12.6%) required admission to neonatal intensive care unit. Some 3.4% (18/534) had complications within the postpartum period, the most common being retained products of conception (4/18, 22.2%) and postpartum preeclampsia (4/18, 22.2%). CONCLUSION: A relatively young and multiparous population, Inuit from Nunavik have unique health profiles and care needs. Further investment in health care capacity in Nunavik, alongside locally adapted, prevention-focused perinatal health programming, might improve perinatal health profiles and reduce the rates of childbirth evacuation.
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OBJECTIVE: In the present study, we evaluated the effects of inframalleolar (IM) disease on the occurrence of major adverse limb events (MALE) in patients undergoing endovascular revascularization for chronic limb-threatening ischemia (CLTI). METHODS: Patients who had undergone endovascular revascularization for CLTI between January 2015 and December 2019 at two university-affiliated hospitals were reviewed retrospectively. Patients with severe IM disease (pedal score of 2) were compared with those with mild to moderate IM disease (score of 0 or 1) using the Global Vascular Guidelines. The primary outcome was MALE (open revascularization, acute leg ischemia, major amputation). The secondary outcomes were mortality, reintervention, major adverse cardiac events, and perioperative complications ≤30 days after endovascular revascularization, primary limb-based patency, and the occurrence of any limb event (defined as any amputation, acute leg ischemia, or open revascularization). Kaplan-Meier estimates were used to compare the primary outcome, and the Cox proportion hazard model was used to assess the effects of IM disease. RESULTS: The study included 167 limbs in 149 patients (36% female; mean age, 74 ± 12 years). Severe IM disease was identified in 71 limbs (43%). No differences were found in the baseline characteristics, except for a higher prevalence of dyslipidemia in the patients with severe IM disease (66% vs 43%; P = .003). Most patients in both groups had had a WIfI (Wound, Ischemia, foot Infection) score of 4 (severe IM disease, 64%; vs mild to moderate IM disease, 57%; P = .462) and GLASS (global limb anatomic severity scale) III anatomy (severe IM disease, 54%; vs mild to moderate IM disease, 48%; P = .752). The Kaplan-Meier estimates showed that severe IM disease was associated with lower freedom from MALE (69% vs 82%; P = .026). The Cox proportion hazard regression model showed that severe IM disease was an independent predictor of increased MALE and amputation risk (hazard ratio, 1.715; 95% confidence interval, 1.015-2.896; P = .044) after adjusting for covariates. During follow-up, patients with severe IM disease had had mortality (27% vs 31%; P = .567) and reintervention (42% vs 38%; P = .608) similar to those for patients with mild to moderate IM disease. Primary limb-based patency was also similar (79% vs 84%; P = .593) at a mean follow-up of 3.8 ± 0.8 years. CONCLUSIONS: Severe IM disease was prevalent in 43% of limbs that had undergone endovascular revascularization for CLTI and was associated with lower freedom from MALE. Severe IM disease also independently increased the hazard of adverse limb outcomes and amputations in patients with CLTI by >70%, highlighting its importance as a measure of foot perfusion.