Analysis of factors associated with patient-reported outcome (PRO) score completion rate one year after shoulder surgeries.

Background: Patient-reported outcome measurements (PROMs) are important metrics for monitoring improvements following shoulder surgery. Despite the easy accessibility of electronic PROM surveys, completion rates vary, and factors predictive of survey completion for patients enrolled in medical survey follow-up after shoulder surgery remain largely unknown. The purpose of this study is to investigate survey completion rates for common shoulder procedures and identify factors predictive of PROM completion at one-year postoperatively. We hypothesize that the response rate to shoulder PROMs may vary by the shoulder procedure type after surgery. Methods: Patients undergoing total shoulder arthroplasty (TSA), rotator cuff repair (RCR), and instability surgery (Latarjet procedure [LP], and arthroscopic Bankart repair [ABR]) from 2019 to 2021 were prospectively enrolled. Each patient was administered PROM surveys via email preoperatively and at 2-weeks, 6-weeks, 3-months, 6-months, and 12-months following surgery. Demographics and socioeconomic characteristics were collected from our institutional database. The primary outcome studied was survey completion rate by procedure. Multivariable logistic regression was performed to identify factors predictive of completing 12-month follow-up. Results: A total of 514 (251 TSA, 194 RCR, and 69 instability surgery (35 LP, 34 ABR)) patients with an average age of 58 ± 15 years were included in this study. Overall, the 12-month survey completion rate for all procedures was 57.2%. TSA had the highest completion rate (64.9%), followed by RCR (52.1%), ABR (44.2%), and LP (42.9%). ABR and LP demonstrated more than a 50% drop in survey response at 2 weeks, and the RCR cohort demonstrated an increased attrition in survey response at the 6-month mark. Patients who completed the 12-month follow-up survey were older [61 ± 14 vs. 54 ± 17; P < .001], less frequently self-identified as Hispanic [13% vs. 23%; P = .009], less frequently single [32% vs. 44%; P = .008], and most frequently classified as the American Society of Anesthesiology [ASA] score II [65%, P = .001]. Conclusion: Postoperative PROM survey completion rates vary significantly among commonly performed shoulder procedures during the first year after surgery. Hispanic ethnicity and younger age were all predictive of a lower propensity, and the TSA procedure is predictive of higher odds for PROM survey completion at the 12-month follow-up.

Analysis of Risk Factors and Impact of Tumor Size in Radical Soft Tissue Sarcoma Resection.

INTRODUCTION: There is relatively little current literature analyzing predictive factors of postoperative complications in radical soft tissue sarcoma (STS) resection. The goal was to analyze risk factors based on STS size ( < 5 cm vs. > 5 cm) with regard to STS resection in a large up-to-date, multi- center, population-based study. Additionally, we sought to determine any independent risk factors for the development of postoperative complications. METHODS: Our study was completed through a retrospec- tive analysis of 2005-2014 American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS- NSQIP). Data were queried for patients undergoing radical resection for soft tissue tumor based on CPT code. Univari- ate analysis, t-test, and multivariate logistic regressions were employed adjusting for patient demographic, preoperative, and intraoperative variables in order to identify patient- and surgery-specific predictive factors for patients who devel- oped complications. RESULTS: Based on the 1,845 patients who met the inclu- sion criteria, 1,709 (92.62%) had a STS smaller than 5 cm and 136 (7.37%) had tumors larger than 5 cm. Results indicate that larger tumors yield greater risk and greater po- tential for wound complications. Specifically, adult patients who had radical resection of soft tissue tumors greater than 5 cm were more likely to have inpatient status, history of smoking, hypertension, disseminated cancer, chemotherapy and radiation, and were more likely to have longer length of stay in the hospital. CONCLUSION: The results indicate that larger tumors (> 5 cm) carry greater risk for complications. We hypothesize that this may be due to larger tumors being more invasive and requiring greater surgical manipulation. As such, it is important to provide appropriate counseling and proper preoperative planning for these patients.

Peripheral nerve block use in inpatient and outpatient shoulder arthroplasty: a population-based study evaluating utilization and outcomes.

BACKGROUND: Peripheral nerve block (PNB) is an effective pain management option after shoulder arthroplasty with increasing popularity over the past decade. Large-scale US data in shoulder arthroplasties are lacking, especially regarding impacts on opioid utilization. This population-based study aimed to evaluate PNB utilization patterns and their effect on outcomes after inpatient and outpatient shoulder arthroplasty. METHODS: This retrospective cohort study used data from the nationwide Premier Healthcare claims database (2006-2016). This study includes n=94 787 and n=3293 inpatient and outpatient (total, reverse and partial) shoulder arthroplasty procedures. Multivariable mixed-effects models estimated associations between PNB use and opioid utilization in oral morphine equivalents and cost of hospitalization/stay. For the inpatient group, additional outcome measures were length of stay (LOS), admission to a skilled nurse facility, 30-day readmission, combined complications and naloxone use (as a proxy for opioid-related complications). We report OR (or % change for continuous variables) and 95% CIs. RESULTS: Overall, PNB was used in 19.1% (n=18 144) and 20.8% (n=685) of inpatient and outpatient shoulder arthroplasties, respectively, with an increasing trend for inpatient procedures. PNB utilization was consistently associated with lower (up to -14.0%, 95% CI -15.4% to -12.5% decrease, with median 100 and 90 oral morphine equivalents for inpatient and outpatient procedures) opioid utilization on the day of surgery with more potent effects seen for inpatient shoulder arthroplasties. Other outcomes were minimally impacted. DISCUSSION: In this first national study on PNB use in shoulder arthroplasty, we found increasing PNB use among specifically, inpatient procedures, resulting in particularly reduced opioid use on the day of surgery. While our findings may support PNB use in shoulder arthroplasty, its current low utilization and trends towards more outpatient procedures necessitate continuous monitoring of more extensive benefits.

Safety and Effectiveness of Talus Subchondroplasty and Bone Marrow Aspirate Concentrate for the Treatment of Osteochondral Defects of the Talus.

Eleven patients with symptomatic talus osteochondral defects who underwent subchondroplasty with bone marrow aspirate concentrate injection were retrospectively reviewed. Foot and Ankle Outcome Score and visual analog scale pain score were recorded preoperatively and at the 1-year postoperative visit. The mean osteochondral defect size was 1.3×1.4 cm. The weight-bearing visual analog scale pain score improved from a mean of 7.8 to 1.8, and the Foot and Ankle Outcome Score improved from a mean of 67.1 to 89.6. At 1-year follow-up, 10 patients reported they would have the procedure again. Subchondroplasty and bone marrow aspirate concentrate injection offered good pain relief for talus osteochondral defects. The procedure allows immediate weight bearing postoperatively and does not compromise future treatments. [Orthopedics. 2018; 41(5):e734-e737.].

Examining the Ability of Artificial Neural Networks Machine Learning Models to Accurately Predict Complications Following Posterior Lumbar Spine Fusion.

STUDY DESIGN: A cross-sectional database study. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to train and validate machine learning models to identify risk factors for complications following posterior lumbar spine fusion. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA: Machine learning models such as artificial neural networks (ANNs) are valuable tools for analyzing and interpreting large and complex datasets. ANNs have yet to be used for risk factor analysis in orthopedic surgery. METHODS: The American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS-NSQIP) database was queried for patients who underwent posterior lumbar spine fusion. This query returned 22,629 patients, 70% of whom were used to train our models, and 30% were used to evaluate the models. The predictive variables used included sex, age, ethnicity, diabetes, smoking, steroid use, coagulopathy, functional status, American Society for Anesthesiology (ASA) class ≥3, body mass index (BMI), pulmonary comorbidities, and cardiac comorbidities. The models were used to predict cardiac complications, wound complications, venous thromboembolism (VTE), and mortality. Using ASA class as a benchmark for prediction, area under receiver operating curves (AUC) was used to determine the accuracy of our machine learning models. RESULTS: On the basis of AUC values, ANN and LR both outperformed ASA class for predicting all four types of complications. ANN was the most accurate for predicting cardiac complications, and LR was most accurate for predicting wound complications, VTE, and mortality, though ANN and LR had comparable AUC values for predicting all types of complications. ANN had greater sensitivity than LR for detecting wound complications and mortality. CONCLUSION: Machine learning in the form of logistic regression and ANNs were more accurate than benchmark ASA scores for identifying risk factors of developing complications following posterior lumbar spine fusion, suggesting they are potentially great tools for risk factor analysis in spine surgery. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 3.