Laser Epilation as an Adjunct to Standard Care in Reducing Pilonidal Disease Recurrence in Adolescents and Young Adults: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

Importance: Recurrence continues to be a significant challenge in the treatment and management of pilonidal disease. Objective: To compare the effectiveness of laser epilation (LE) as an adjunct to standard care vs standard care alone in preventing recurrence of pilonidal disease in adolescents and young adults. Design, Setting, and Participants: This was a single-institution, randomized clinical trial with 1-year follow-up conducted from September 2017 to September 2022. Patients aged 11 to 21 years with pilonidal disease were recruited from a single tertiary children's hospital. Intervention: LE and standard care (improved hygiene and mechanical or chemical depilation) or standard care alone. Main Outcomes and Measures: The primary outcome was the rate of recurrence of pilonidal disease at 1 year. Secondary outcomes assessed during the 1-year follow-up included disability days, health-related quality of life (HRQOL), health care satisfaction, disease-related attitudes and perceived stigma, and rates of procedures, surgical excisions, and postoperative complications. Results: A total of 302 participants (median [IQR] age, 17 [15-18] years; 157 male [56.1%]) with pilonidal disease were enrolled; 151 participants were randomly assigned to each intervention group. One-year follow-up was available for 96 patients (63.6%) in the LE group and 134 (88.7%) in the standard care group. The proportion of patients who experienced a recurrence within 1 year was significantly lower in the LE treatment arm than in the standard care arm (-23.2%; 95% CI, -33.2 to -13.1; P < .001). Over 1 year, there were no differences between groups in either patient or caregiver disability days, or patient- or caregiver-reported HRQOL, health care satisfaction, or perceived stigma at any time point. The LE group had significantly higher Child Attitude Toward Illness Scores (CATIS) at 6 months (median [IQR], 3.8 [3.4-4.2] vs 3.6 [3.2-4.1]; P = .01). There were no differences between groups in disease-related health care utilization, disease-related procedures, or postoperative complications. Conclusions and Relevance: LE as an adjunct to standard care significantly reduced 1-year recurrence rates of pilonidal disease compared with standard care alone. These results provide further evidence that LE is safe and well tolerated in patients with pilonidal disease. LE should be considered a standard treatment modality for patients with pilonidal disease and should be available as an initial treatment option or adjunct treatment modality for all eligible patients. Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT03276065.

Variability in Surveillance Strategies Following Resection of Sacrococcygeal Teratoma.

INTRODUCTION: Surveillance following sacrococcygeal teratoma (SCT) resection varies. The purpose of this study was to describe the clinical characteristics and outcomes of patients undergoing SCT resection and examine current institutional practices to detect recurrence. METHODS: A single-institution retrospective review of children who underwent resection of an SCT from January 1, 2010 to December 31, 2020 was performed. Data were summarized and surveillance strategies compared between histopathologic subtypes using nonparametric methods. RESULTS: Thirty six patients (75.0% female) underwent SCT removal at a median age of 8 d. Histopathology revealed 27 mature teratomas (75.0%), eight immature teratomas (22.2%), and one malignant germ cell tumor (2.8%). Median postoperative follow-up was 3.17 y (interquartile range [IQR]: 2.31-4.38 y). Patients had a median of 2.32 clinic visits per year (IQR: 2.00-2.70), alpha-fetoprotein levels were obtained at a median of 2.01 times per year (IQR: 0-1.66), and surveillance imaging was performed at a median of 2.31 times per year (IQR: 0-2.84). Patients with immature teratomas had alpha-fetoprotein laboratories obtained more frequently than patients with mature teratomas (3.10 times/year versus 0.93 times/year, P = 0.001). There was no significant difference in the number of imaging studies obtained between groups. Two patients (5.6%) developed recurrence, which were identified on magnetic resonance imaging at 191 and 104 d postresection, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Postoperative surveillance practices varied widely. Recurrence was noted in a single malignant case in the first year following resection. Multi-institutional studies are needed to determine the optimal surveillance strategy to detect recurrence of SCT.

Assessing Alternative Approaches for Wound Closure in a National Pediatric Learning Health System.

INTRODUCTION: Our objective was to perform a feasibility study using real-world data from a learning health system (LHS) to describe current practice patterns of wound closure and explore differences in outcomes associated with the use of tissue adhesives and other methods of wound closure in the pediatric surgical population to inform a potentially large study. METHODS: A multi-institutional cross-sectional study was performed of a random sample of patients <18 y-old who underwent laparoscopic appendectomy, open or laparoscopic inguinal hernia repair, umbilical hernia repair, or repair of traumatic laceration from January 1, 2019, to December 31, 2019. Sociodemographic and operative characteristics were obtained from 6 PEDSnet (a national pediatric LHS) children's hospitals and OneFlorida Clinical Research Consortium (a PCORnet collaboration across 14 academic health systems). Additional clinical data elements were collected via chart review. RESULTS: Of the 692 patients included, 182 (26.3%) had appendectomies, 155 (22.4%) inguinal hernia repairs, 163 (23.6%) umbilical hernia repairs, and 192 (27.8%) traumatic lacerations. Of the 500 surgical incisions, sutures with tissue adhesives were the most frequently used (n = 211, 42.2%), followed by sutures with adhesive strips (n = 176, 35.2%), and sutures only (n = 72, 14.4%). Most traumatic lacerations were repaired with sutures only (n = 127, 64.5%). The overall wound-related complication rate was 3.0% and resumption of normal activities was recommended at a median of 14 d (interquartile ranges 14-14). CONCLUSIONS: The LHS represents an efficient tool to identify cohorts of pediatric surgical patients to perform comparative effectiveness research using real-world data to support medical and surgical products/devices in children.

Practice Patterns in the Operative Management of Pediatric Thyroid Disease Across Surgical Specializations.

BACKGROUND: Multiple surgical specializations are involved in the operative management of pediatric thyroid disease, but current practice patterns remain unknown. The objective of this study was to examine current practice patterns in the operative management of pediatric thyroid disease, specifically comparing practices across different surgical specializations including pediatric surgery, pediatric otolaryngology, general surgery, adult otolaryngology, and endocrine-focused general surgery. METHODS: Children 0-18 years-old undergoing thyroid surgery from 2015 to 2019 were identified using the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project State Inpatient Databases and State Ambulatory Surgery and Services Databases across 6 states. Surgeon specialization was determined for all included surgeons. Patient and hospital characteristics were compared across surgical specializations. Clinical outcomes including hypocalcemia/hypoparathyroidism, recurrent laryngeal nerve injury, hematoma, and wound infection were assessed. RESULTS: A total of 1241 pediatric thyroidectomies performed by 363 surgeons were included. Procedures were most frequently performed by pediatric surgeons (34.9%). Only 7.2% of procedures were performed by adult general surgeons. There were statistically significant differences in patient age, sociodemographics, surgical indications, and type of procedure performed between specializations (p < 0.05). Endocrine-focused general surgeons had the highest average annual thyroid procedure volume with 78.2 cases/year, and pediatric surgeons and pediatric otolaryngologists had the lowest volumes with 0.7 and 0.6 cases/year, respectively. Overall complication rates were low. CONCLUSIONS: Operative management of pediatric thyroid disease was most frequently performed by pediatric surgery. Pediatric specializations are more likely to operate on low-income, minority children with public insurance and patients with Graves' disease. Overall complications were low. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: III.

Management of Pilonidal Disease: A Review.

Importance: The management of pilonidal disease continues to be a challenge due to high rates of recurrence and treatment-associated morbidity. Observations: There is a heterogeneous repertoire of treatment modalities used in the management of pilonidal disease and wide practice variation among clinicians. Available treatment options vary considerably in their level of invasiveness, associated morbidity and disability, risks of complications, and effectiveness at preventing disease recurrence. Conservative nonoperative management strategies, including persistent improved hygiene, depilation, and lifestyle modification, focus on disease prevention and minimization of disease activity. Epilation techniques using both laser and intense pulse light therapy are also used as primary and adjunct treatment modalities. Other nonoperative treatment modalities include phenol and fibrin injection to promote closure of pilonidal sinuses. The traditional operative management strategy for pilonidal disease involves excision of affected tissue paired with a variety of closure types including primary midline closure, primary off-midline closure techniques (ie, Karydakis flap, Limberg flap, Bascom cleft lift), and healing by secondary intention. There has been a recent shift toward more minimally invasive operative approaches including sinusectomy (ie, trephination or Gips procedure) and endoscopic approaches. Overall, the current evidence supporting the different treatment options is limited by study quality with inconsistent characterization of disease severity and use of variable definitions and reporting of treatment-associated outcomes across studies. Conclusions and Relevance: Pilonidal disease is associated with significant physical and psychosocial morbidity. Optimal treatments will minimize disease and treatment-associated morbidity. There is a need for standardization of definitions used to characterize pilonidal disease and its outcomes to develop evidence-based treatment algorithms.

Procedural and Surgical Interventions for Esophageal Stricture Secondary to Caustic Ingestion in Children.

BACKGROUND: Esophageal injury after caustic ingestion can vary in severity and may result in significant long-term morbidity due to stricture development. The optimal management remains unknown. We aim to determine the incidence of esophageal stricture due to caustic ingestion and quantify current procedural and operative management strategies. METHODS: The Pediatric Health Information System (PHIS) was utilized to identify patients 0-18 years old who experienced caustic ingestion from January 2007-September 2015 and developed subsequent esophageal stricture until December 2021. Post-injury procedural and operative management was identified utilizing ICD-9/10 procedure codes for esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD), esophageal dilation, gastrostomy tube placement, fundoplication, tracheostomy, and major esophageal surgery. RESULTS: 1,588 patients from 40 hospitals experienced caustic ingestion of which 56.6% were male, 32.5% non-Hispanic White, and the median age at time of injury was 2.2 years (IQR: 1.4,4.8). Median length of initial admission was 1.0 day (IQR: 1.0, 3.0). 171/1,588 (10.8%) developed esophageal stricture. Among those who developed stricture, 144 (84.2%) underwent at least 1 additional EGD, 138 (80.7%) underwent dilation, 70 (40.9%) underwent gastrostomy tube, 6 (3.5%) underwent fundoplication, 10 (5.8%) underwent tracheostomy, and 40 (23.4%) underwent major esophageal surgery. Patients underwent a median of 9 dilations (IQR 3, 20). Major surgery was performed at a median of 208 (IQR: 74, 480) days after caustic ingestion. CONCLUSION: Many patients with esophageal stricture after caustic ingestion will require multiple procedural interventions and potentially major surgery. These patients may benefit from early multi-disciplinary care coordination and the development of a best-practice treatment algorithm. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: III.

Association between high deductible health plan coverage and age at pediatric umbilical hernia repair.

Background: High deductible health plans (HDHPs) are associated with the avoidance of both necessary and unnecessary healthcare. Umbilical hernia repair (UHR) is a procedure that is frequently unnecessarily performed in young children, contrary to best practice guidelines. We hypothesized that children with HDHPs, as compared with other types of commercial health plans, are less likely to undergo UHR before 4 years of age but are also more likely to have UHR delayed beyond 5 years of age. Methods: Children aged 0-18 years old residing in metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) who underwent UHR in 2012-2019 were identified in the IBM Marketscan Commercial Claims and Encounters Database. A quasi-experimental study design using MSA/year-level HDHP prevalence among children as an instrumental variable was employed to account for selection bias in HDHP enrollment. Two-stage least squares regression modeling was used to evaluate the association between HDHP coverage and age at UHR. Results: A total of 8601 children were included (median age 5 years, IQR 3-7). Univariable analysis revealed no differences between the HDHP and non-HDHP groups in the likelihood of UHR being performed before 4 years of age (27.7% vs 28.7%, p=0.37) or after 5 years of age (39.8% vs 38.9%, p=0.52). Geographical region, metropolitan area size, and year were associated with HDHP enrollment. Instrumental variable analysis demonstrated no association between HDHP coverage and undergoing UHR at <4 years of age (p=0.76) or >5 years of age (p=0.87). Conclusions: HDHP coverage is not associated with age at pediatric UHR. Future studies should investigate other means by which UHRs in young children can be avoided.

Patient-Family and Provider Partnerships in the Management of Pediatric Uncomplicated Appendicitis.

In recent years, studies have demonstrated non-operative management with antibiotics alone to be a safe and effective treatment option for children with uncomplicated acute appendicitis. Shared decision-making is critical in the treatment of uncomplicated appendicitis due to the markedly different risks and benefits associated with surgery and non-operative management. In this report, we discuss the importance of shared decision-making in surgery using a case of uncomplicated appendicitis as an example. We present both the patient-family and provider perspectives on evaluating and deciding between operative and non-operative management and discuss the value of shared decision-making in the unique setting of an acute pathologic process with surgical and medical treatment options.

Use and Accuracy of Intraoperative Frozen Section Analysis for Ovarian Masses in Children and Adolescents.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: Describe the current practice patterns and diagnostic accuracy of frozen section (FS) pathology for children and adolescents with ovarian masses DESIGN: Prospective cohort study from 2018 to 2021 SETTING: Eleven children's hospitals PARTICIPANTS: Females age 6-21 years undergoing surgical management of an ovarian mass INTERVENTIONS: Obtaining intraoperative FS pathology MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Diagnostic accuracy of FS pathology RESULTS: Of 691 patients who underwent surgical management of an ovarian mass, FS was performed in 27 (3.9%), of which 9 (33.3%) had a final malignant pathology. Among FS patients, 12 of 27 (44.4%) underwent ovary-sparing surgery, and 15 of 27 (55.5%) underwent oophorectomy with or without other procedures. FS results were disparate from final pathology in 7 of 27 (25.9%) cases. FS had a sensitivity of 44.4% and specificity of 94.4% for identifying malignancy, with a c-statistic of 0.69. Malignant diagnoses missed on FS included serous borderline tumor (n = 1), mucinous borderline tumor (n = 2), mucinous carcinoma (n = 1), and immature teratoma (n = 1). FS did not guide intervention in 10 of 27 (37.0%) patients: 9 with benign FS underwent oophorectomy, and 1 with malignant FS did not undergo oophorectomy. Of the 9 patients who underwent oophorectomy with benign FS, 5 (55.6%) had benign and 4 (44.4%) had malignant final pathology. CONCLUSIONS: FSs are infrequently utilized for pediatric and adolescent ovarian masses and could be inaccurate for predicting malignancy and guiding operative decision-making. We recommend continued assessment and refinement of guidance before any standardization of use of FS to assist with intraoperative decision-making for surgical resection and staging in children and adolescents with ovarian masses.

The December Effect in Pediatric Elective Surgery Utilization: Differences Between Privately and Publicly Insured Children.

OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study was to identify differences in December elective surgery utilization between privately and publicly insured children, given that increases in the prevalence and size of annual deductibles may be driving more families with commercial health insurance to delay elective pediatric surgical procedures until later in the calendar year. STUDY DESIGN: We identified patients aged <18 years who underwent myringotomy, tonsillectomy ± adenoidectomy, tympanoplasty, hydrocelectomy, orchidopexy, distal hypospadias repair, or repair of inguinal, umbilical, or epigastric hernia using the 2012-2019 state inpatient and ambulatory surgery and services databases of 9 states. Log-binomial regression models were used to compare relative probabilities of procedures being performed each month. Linear regression models were used to evaluate temporal trends in the proportions of procedures performed in December. RESULTS: Our study cohort (n = 1 001 728) consisted of 56.7% privately insured and 41.8% publicly insured children. Peak procedure utilization among privately and publicly insured children was in December (10.1%) and June (9.6%), respectively. Privately insured children were 24% (95% CI 22%-26%) more likely to undergo surgery in December (P < .001), with a significant increase seen for 8 of 9 procedures. There was no trend over time in the percentage of procedures performed in December, except for hydrocelectomies, which increased by 0.4 percentage points/year among privately insured children (P = .02). CONCLUSIONS: Privately insured children are >20% more likely than publicly insured children to undergo elective surgery in December. However, despite increases in the prevalence of high deductibles, the proportion of procedures performed in December has not increased over recent years.

Perioperative outcomes in minimally-invasive versus open surgery in infants undergoing repair of congenital anomalies.

BACKGROUND: This study compared perioperative outcomes among infants undergoing repair of congenital anomalies using minimally invasive (MIS) versus open surgical approaches. METHODS: The ACS NSQIP Pediatric (2013-2018) was queried for patients undergoing repair of any of the following 9 congenital anomalies: congenital lung lesion (LL), mediastinal mass (MM), congenital malrotation (CM), anorectal malformation (ARM), Hirschsprung disease (HD), congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH), tracheoesophageal fistula (TEF), hepatobiliary anomalies (HB), and intestinal atresia (IA). Inverse probability of treatment weights (IPTW) derived from propensity scores were utilized to estimate risk-adjusted association between surgical approach and 30-day outcomes. RESULTS: 12,871 patients undergoing congenital anomaly repair were included (10,343 open; 2528 MIS). After IPTW, MIS was associated with longer operative time (difference; 95% CI) (16 min; 9-23) and anesthesia time (13 min; 6-21), but less postoperative ventilation days (-1.0 days; -1.4- -0.6) and shorter postoperative length of stay (-1.4 days; -2.4- -0.3). MIS repairs had decreased risk of any surgical complication (risk difference: -6.6%; -9.2- -4.0), including hematologic complications (-7.3%; -8.9- -5.8). There was no significant difference in risk of complication when hematologic complications were excluded (RD -2.3% [-4.7%, 0.1%]). There were no significant differences in the risk of unplanned reoperation (0.4%; -1.5-2.2) or unplanned readmission (0.2%; -1.2-1.5). CONCLUSIONS: MIS repair of congenital anomalies is associated with improved perioperative outcomes when compared to open. Additional studies are needed to compare long-term functional and disease-specific outcomes. MINI-ABSTRACT: In this propensity-weighted multi-institutional analysis of nine congenital anomalies, minimally invasive surgical repair was associated with improved 30-day outcomes when compared to open surgical repair. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: III.

Demographic and Clinical Characteristics Associated With the Failure of Nonoperative Management of Uncomplicated Appendicitis in Children: Secondary Analysis of a Nonrandomized Clinical Trial.

Importance: The factors associated with the failure of nonoperative management of appendicitis and the differences in patient-reported outcomes between successful and unsuccessful nonoperative management remain unknown. Objectives: To investigate factors associated with the failure of nonoperative management of appendicitis and compare patient-reported outcomes between patients whose treatment succeeded and those whose treatment failed. Design, Setting, and Participants: This study was a planned subgroup secondary analysis conducted in 10 children's hospitals that included 370 children aged 7 to 17 years with uncomplicated appendicitis enrolled in a prospective, nonrandomized clinical trial between May 1, 2015, and October 31, 2018, with 1-year follow-up comparing nonoperative management with antibiotics vs surgery for uncomplicated appendicitis. Statistical analysis was performed from November 1, 2019, to February 12, 2022. Interventions: Nonoperative management with antibiotics vs surgery. Main Outcomes and Measures: Failure of nonoperative management and patient-reported outcomes. The relative risk (RR) of failure based on sociodemographic and clinical characteristics was calculated. Patient-reported outcomes were compared based on the success or failure of nonoperative management. Results: Of 370 patients (34.6% of 1068 total patients; 229 boys [61.9%]; median age, 12.3 years [IQR, 10.0-14.6 years]) enrolled in the nonoperative group, treatment failure occurred for 125 patients (33.8%) at 1 year, with 53 patients (14.3%) undergoing appendectomy during initial hospitalization and 72 patients (19.5%) experiencing delayed treatment failure after hospital discharge. Higher patient-reported pain at presentation was associated with increased risk of in-hospital treatment failure (RR, 2.1 [95% CI, 1.0-4.4]) but not delayed treatment failure (RR, 1.3 [95% CI, 0.7-2.3]) or overall treatment failure at 1 year (RR, 1.5 [95% CI, 1.0-2.2]). Pain duration greater than 24 hours was associated with decreased risk of delayed treatment failure (RR, 0.3 [95% CI, 0.1-1.0]) but not in-hospital treatment failure (RR, 1.2 [95% CI, 0.5-2.7]) or treatment failure at 1 year (RR, 0.7 [95% CI, 0.4-1.2]). There was no increased risk of treatment failure associated with age, white blood cell count, sex, race, ethnicity, primary language, insurance status, transfer status, symptoms at presentation, or imaging results. Health care satisfaction at 30 days and patient-reported, health-related quality of life at 30 days and 1 year were not different. Satisfaction with the decision was higher with successful nonoperative management at 30 days (28.0 vs 27.0; difference, 1.0 [95% CI, 0.01-2.0]) and 1 year (28.1 vs 27.0; difference, 1.1 [95% CI, 0.2-2.0]). Conclusions and Relevance: This analysis suggests that a higher pain level at presentation was associated with a higher risk of initial failure of nonoperative management and that a longer duration of pain was associated with lower risk of delayed treatment failure. Although satisfaction was high in both groups, satisfaction with the treatment decision was higher among patients with successful nonoperative management at 1 year. Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02271932.

Variability in the management of adhesive small bowel obstruction in children.

BACKGROUND: This study assessed inter-hospital variability in operative-vs-nonoperative management of pediatric adhesive small bowel obstruction (ASBO). METHODS: A multi-institutional retrospective study was performed examining patients 1-21 years-of-age presenting with ASBO from 2010 to 2019 utilizing the Pediatric Health Information System. Multivariable mixed-effects logistic regression was performed assessing inter-hospital variability in operative-vs-nonoperative management of ASBO. RESULTS: Among 6410 pediatric ASBO admissions identified at 46 hospitals, 3,239 (50.5%) underwent surgery during that admission. The hospital-specific rate of surgery ranged from 35.3% (95%CI: 28.5-42.6%) to 74.7% (66.3-81.6%) in the unadjusted model (p < 0.001), and from 35.1% (26.3-45.1%) to 73.9% (66.7-79.9%) in the adjusted model (p < 0.001). Factors associated with operative management for ASBO included admission to a surgical service (OR 2.8 [95%CI: 2.4-3.2], p < 0.001), congenital intestinal and/or rotational anomaly (OR 2.5 [2.1-3.1], p < 0.001), diagnostic workup including advanced abdominal imaging (OR 1.7 [1.5-1.9], p < 0.001), non-emergent admission status (OR 1.5 [1.3-1.8], p < 0.001), and increasing number of complex chronic comorbidities (OR 1.3 [1.2-1.4], p < 0.001). Factors associated with nonoperative management for ASBO included increased hospital-specific annual ASBO volume (OR 0.98 [95%CI: 0.97-0.99], p = 0.002), older age (OR 0.97 [0.96-0.98], p < 0.001), public insurance (OR 0.87 [0.78-0.96], p = 0.008), and presence of coinciding non-intestinal congenital anomalies, neurologic/neuromuscular disease, and/or medical technology dependence (OR 0.57 [95%CI: 0.47-0.68], p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Rates of surgical intervention for ASBO vary significantly across tertiary children's hospitals in the United States. The variability was independent of patient and hospital characteristics and is likely due to practice variation. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: III.

Superusers: Drivers of health care resource utilization in the national trauma population.

BACKGROUND: Health care spending is driven by a very small percentage of Americans, many of whom are patients with prolonged durations of stay. The objective of this study was to characterize superusers in the trauma population. METHODS: The National Trauma Data Bank for 2008-2012 was queried. Superusers were defined as those with a duration of stay in the top 0.06% of the population and were compared with the remainder of the population to determine differences in demographic characteristics, comorbidities, prehospital factors, and outcomes. Multivariate analysis was used to determine independent predictors of being classified as a superuser. RESULTS: A total of 3,617,261 patients met inclusion criteria, with 34,728 qualifying as superusers. Mean duration of stay for superusers was 58.7 days compared with the average 4.6 days (P < .001). Superusers were more likely to be male, black, Medicaid insured, and have a higher Injury Severity Score and lower Glasgow Coma Scale score. The hospital course of superusers was likely to be complicated by pneumonia, acute respiratory distress syndrome, decubitus ulcer, and acute kidney injury. CONCLUSION: Age, sex, race, and insurance were associated with prolonged use of inpatient care in the trauma patient population. Specific comorbidities and complications are associated with being a superuser. This subset of the trauma population confers a disproportionate burden on the health care system and can serve as a potential target for intervention.

The National Trauma Data Bank story for emergency department thoracotomy: How old is too old?

BACKGROUND: The fastest growing segment of the American population is the elderly (>65 years). This change in demographics also is being seen in trauma centers. Emergency department thoracotomy is utilized in an attempt to restore circulation for patients arriving in extremis. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between clinical variables, particularly age, and outcomes for injured patients receiving an emergency department thoracotomy. METHODS: Using the National Trauma Data Bank for years 2008-2012, observations with International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification procedure codes for exploratory thoracotomy were identified. Emergency department thoracotomy was defined as any observation that occurred at a time to thoracotomy less than the total time spent in the emergency department thoracotomy, and within 15 minutes of arrival. Mechanisms of injury, demographic data, and injuries were analyzed for predictors of survival and mortality rates. Mortality rates were determined for each decade and year of life. RESULTS: There were 11,380 observations for thoracotomy identified. Of these, 2,519 were emergency department thoracotomy, with the majority (n= 2,026, 80% observations) performed for penetrating wounds. Mortality rates ranged from 80% to 100% for each decade of life. Mortality was 100% for patients >57 years old with either penetrating or blunt mechanisms of injury. CONCLUSION: Emergency department thoracotomy offered no survival benefit for patients older than 57 years of age. These data suggest that emergency department thoracotomy performed in elderly patients may be futile.

Enzymatic activities of circulating plasma proteasomes in newly diagnosed multiple myeloma patients treated with carfilzomib, lenalidomide and dexamethasone.

The proteasome inhibitor carfilzomib is highly effective in the treatment of multiple myeloma. It irreversibly binds the chymotrypsin-like active site in the ß5 subunit of the 20S proteasome. Despite impressive response rates when carfilzomib is used in combination with immunomodulatory agents in newly diagnosed multiple myeloma patients; no biomarker exists to accurately predict response and clinical outcomes. We prospectively assessed the activity in peripheral blood of the chymotrypsin-like (CHYM), caspase-like (CASP) and trypsin-like (TRYP) proteolytic sites in 45 newly diagnosed multiple myeloma patients treated with eight cycles of carfilzomib, lenalidomide and dexamethasone (CRd) (NCT01402284). Samples were collected per protocol and proteasome activity measured through a fluorogenic assay. Median CHYM levels after one dose of carfilzomib decreased by >70%. CHYM and CASP activity decreased throughout treatment reaching a minimum after eight cycles of treatment. Higher levels of proteasome activity associated with higher disease burden (r > 0.30; p < 0.05) and higher disease stage (0.10 < p <0.20). No association was found with the probability of achieving a complete response, minimal residual disease negativity or time to best response. Further studies evaluating proteasome activity in malignant plasma cells may help elucidate how proteasome activity can be used as a biomarker in multiple myeloma.