Tetrahydrocannabinol and Cannabidiol Use in an Outpatient Palliative Medicine Population.

BACKGROUND: Palliative medicine physicians are challenged by lack of guidance regarding effectiveness and dosing of cannabis products in the setting of their emerging popularity. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to describe early patterns of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) use in Florida following passage of the state's first medical marijuana law. We describe here the perceived benefits, side effects, and beliefs expressed by patients in a single outpatient academic palliative medicine practice. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey was performed of a sequential convenience sample of patients who presented to an outpatient academic palliative medicine clinic over a 3-month period. RESULTS: In all, 24% (14/58) of respondents reported THC use, with half using THC on a daily basis. Patients reported improvements in pain, appetite, and nausea. In all, 71% (10/14) began using THC after the diagnosis of their chronic illness, and the most common form of usage was vaping. In all, 24% (14/58) of patients reported CBD use. Patients reported improvements in pain, and the most common form of usage was topical application. None of the patients had used CBD prior to the onset of their chronic illness. In all, 21% (3/14) of THC users and 21% (3/14) of CBD users thought that their substance was helping to cure their illness. Individual reported side effects in both groups were minimal. CONCLUSIONS: Approximately a quarter of outpatient palliative care patients use THC or CBD, often on a daily basis. Palliative care providers should be aware of the frequency, diverse usage, and beliefs behind cannabis product use in this patient population.

Application of Ice for Postoperative Total Knee Incisions - Does this Make Sense? A Pilot Evaluation of Blood Flow Using Fluorescence Angiography.

Introduction Total knee arthroplasty (TKA) is a common procedure with significant advances over the past several years, many pertaining to improved perioperative pain control. Cryotherapy is one method thought to decrease swelling and pain postoperatively. To our knowledge no study has directly visualized the effect cryotherapy has on skin blood flow following TKA. The primary aim was to determine if cryotherapy (icing) affects peri-incisional skin blood flow and if this is lessened with an alternate placement of the ice. We hypothesized that blood flow would decrease following cryotherapy, and this decrease would be greater with ice placed directly over the incision as compared to placement along the posterior knee. Methods This study included 10 patients who underwent TKA. During the postoperative hospitalization, they were given an injection of indocyanine green dye. A baseline image was recorded of the skin blood flow. Images were then collected following a five-minute interval placement of ice over the incision. The experiment was then repeated with the ice placed along the posterior knee.  Results There was an approximate 40% decrease in skin blood flow following placement of the ice compared to baseline. We observed a greater decrease in blood flow when ice was placed over the incision as compared to when ice was placed posterior to the knee (p ≤ 0.020). Conclusion We found a significant decrease in peri-incisional blood flow with icing of the knee. Physicians should be cognizant of this when recommending cryotherapy to patients after surgery, especially in at-risk wounds.

Early In-Hospital Pain Control Is a Stronger Predictor for Patients Requiring a Refill of Narcotic Pain Medication Compared to the Amount of Narcotics Given at Discharge.

BACKGROUND: The United States is combating an opioid epidemic. Orthopedic surgeons are the third highest opioid prescribers and therefore have an opportunity and obligation to assist in the efforts to reduce opioid use and abuse. In this article, we evaluate risk factors for patients requiring an opioid refill after primary total knee arthroplasty, with the goal to reduce opioid prescriptions for those patients at low risk of requiring a refill in order to reduce the amount of unused medication. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed narcotic-naïve patients who underwent total knee arthroplasty from December 2017 to May 2018. We performed multivariable analysis on demographics and preoperative, operative, and postoperative characteristics to determine risk factors for requiring a prescription refill following hospital discharge. RESULTS: One-hundred fifty-seven patients were included in the analysis. Sixty percent of patients required a prescription refill. Risk factors included younger age (P = .003) and increased pain on postoperative day one (P < .001). The amount of narcotic medication given at discharge did not independently affect the refill rate (P = .21). CONCLUSION: There is strong evidence that elderly patients and those with good pain control on postoperative day 1 are at a lower risk of requiring a narcotic refill postoperatively. With this information, physicians may begin to tailor narcotic prescriptions based on patient risk factors for requiring a prescription refill rather than provide patients with the same number of pills for a given surgery in an effort to reduce unused narcotic medication.

Association of antinuclear antibody status with clinical features and malignancy risk in adult-onset dermatomyositis.

BACKGROUND: The clinical significance of antinuclear antibody (ANA) status in adults with dermatomyositis (DM) has yet to be fully defined. OBJECTIVE: We compared the incidence of amyopathic disease, risk of malignancy, and clinical findings in ANA+ and ANA- patients with adult-onset DM. METHODS: This was a retrospective cohort study of patients with ANA+ or ANA- adult-onset DM determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. RESULTS: Of 231 patients, 140 (61%) were ANA+ and 91 (39%) were ANA-. Compared with the ANA- patients, the ANA+ patients had a lower frequency of dysphagia (15% vs 26% [P = .033]) and heliotrope rash (38% vs 53% [P = .026]). In all, 54 patients (23%) developed malignancy within 3 years of diagnosis of their DM; 11% of the ANA+ patients developed malignancy versus 43% of the ANA- patients (P < .001). There was a strong association between ANA positivity and lower likelihood of malignancy in multivariable analysis (odds ratio, 0.16; P < .001). Conversely, ANA positivity was not associated with amyopathic disease (odds ratio, 0.94; P = .87). LIMITATIONS: The retrospective nature of the study was a limitation. CONCLUSION: In patients with adult-onset DM, ANA negativity is associated with increased likelihood of development of malignancy within 3 years of diagnosis of their DM. Particularly close follow-up and frequent malignancy screening may be warranted in ANA- individuals with DM.