Correlation of disease comorbidity with prescribed treatment among insured U.S. lymphedema patients.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to define the current forms of treatment in a contemporary population of lymphedema (LED) patients for LED related to breast cancer, the most prevalently diagnosed LED comorbidity in Western countries, and phlebolymphedema with venous leg ulcer (PLEDU), a sequela of chronic venous disease. The goals of LED therapy are to reduce edema, thereby improving function and related symptoms, and to improve skin integrity to prevent development of infection. Treatment is generally nonsurgical: conservative care, including complex physical therapy, manual lymphatic drainage, and compression bandaging; or pneumatic compression device (PCD) therapy by a simple nonprogrammable device or an advanced programmable device. METHODS: To determine the frequency of individual types of treatment for LED and their relationship to breast cancer-related lymphedema (BCRL) and PLEDU, we queried claims from a deidentified Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act-compliant commercial administrative insurance database with >165 million members. A total of 26,902 patients identified with LED who had been enrolled with continuous medical benefits for 12 months before and after the index date for the complete years 2012 through 2016 were separated into four treatment categories: no treatment, conservative care, simple PCD (SPCD), and advanced PCD. LED treatment was related to the BCRL and PLEDU comorbidities. RESULTS: BCRL patients, who represented 32.1% of all study patients, made up 41% of all patients receiving conservative care and 24% of patients receiving PCD therapy. By contrast, PLEDU patients (9.6% of study patients) were proportionally under-represented in the conservative care group (7.8%) but composed a disproportionately high share of the PCD therapy group (17.7%). PLEDU patients represented 23.5% of all LED patients prescribed SPCD therapy, whereas BCRL patients composed 10.3% of total LED patient SPCD prescriptions (P < .001). CONCLUSIONS: Our analysis of a large health care administrative database showed clear differences between the way BCRL and PLEDU patients are treated. Compared with BCRL patients, PLEDU patients were less likely to receive conservative care and more likely to be prescribed SPCDs for pneumatic compression therapy. These differences suggest that lymphatic therapy may be undervalued for treatment of chronic venous swelling and prevention and treatment of PLEDU.

Prophylactic Wound Drainage in Renal Transplant: A Survey of Practice Patterns in Australia and New Zealand.

OBJECTIVES: Drains are used routinely in many centers at the conclusion of kidney transplant, despite a paucity of evidence to guide practice in kidney transplant. Studies have not shown benefit from prophylactic drain placement following other major abdominal and vascular operations, and usage is consequently declining. Our aim was to understand practice patterns and rationale for behavior in drain placement and management in kidney transplant. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We conducted an online survey of surgeons who routinely perform kidney transplants across Australia and New Zealand. RESULTS: The response rate was 66% (43/66). Of respondents, 61% reported routine drain insertion, whereas 21% seldom inserted drains. Concerns about bleeding and anticoagulation (63%) and routine practice (58%) were the dominant reasons for drain insertion. The factors selected as most significant in determining drain removal were both volume and time (44%) and volume alone (33%). A volume of < 50 mL/day (51%) was the most commonly reported threshold for removal. The postoperative period of days 3 to 5 was the most commonly selected time point for drain removal (63%). Seventy-four percent of respondents would consider enrolling their patients in a randomized controlled trial to determine the benefits and harms of drain insertion. CONCLUSIONS: Although drain insertion is a common practice, transplant surgeons in Australia and New Zealand reported sufficient uncertainty concerning the potential benefits and harms to warrant design and conduct of a randomized controlled trial.

Trends in Use of Percutaneous Versus Open Surgical Drainage of Abdominal Abscesses.

PURPOSE: To compare recent trends in the use of percutaneous and surgical approaches to treating abdominal abscesses in a large population. METHODS: The nationwide Medicare Physician/Supplier Procedure Summary Master Files for 2001 through 2013 were searched. Current Procedural Terminology-4 codes were selected for the four types of abdominal abscesses that had distinct codes for both open surgical and percutaneous drainage-appendiceal, peritoneal, subphrenic, and liver. Medicare specialty codes were used to determine if the procedures were performed by radiologists or other nonradiologist physicians. Trends in use of the two approaches were compared. RESULTS: In 2001, a total of 14,068 abdominal abscesses were drained percutaneously. This volume increased progressively every year thereafter, reaching 28,486 in 2013 (+102%). Open surgical drainage volume was 8,146 in 2001, decreasing progressively to 6,397 in 2013 (-21%). In 2001, 63% of all abdominal abscesses had been drained percutaneously; by 2013, this figure had risen to 82%. In 2001, radiologists had performed 90% of all percutaneous abdominal abscess drainages; this percentage share increased to 97% in 2013. Of all abdominal abscesses treated in 2013 in Medicare patients, 79% were treated by radiologists. CONCLUSIONS: Use of percutaneous drainage of abdominal abscesses has steadily increased, whereas use of open surgical drainage has declined. The vast majority of these abscesses are now treated percutaneously. Radiologists are a strong majority of those performing the procedures. Although this database does not provide information on outcomes, percutaneous drainage is another good example of radiology-related value.

Treatment of intra-abdominal abscesses in Crohn's disease: a nationwide analysis of patterns and outcomes of care.

BACKGROUND: Abdominal abscesses are a common complication in Crohn's disease (CD). Percutaneous drainage of such abscesses has become increasingly popular and may deliver outcomes comparable to surgical treatment; however, such comparative data are limited from single-center studies. There have been no nationally representative studies comparing different treatment modalities for abdominal abscesses. METHODS: We identified all adult CD-related non-elective hospitalizations from the Nationwide Inpatient Sample 2007 that were complicated by an intra-abdominal abscess. Treatment modality was categorized into 3 strata-medical treatment alone, percutaneous drainage, and surgery. We analyzed the nationwide patterns in the treatment and outcomes of each treatment modality and examined for patient demographic, disease, or hospital-related disparities in treatment and outcome. RESULTS: There were an estimated 3,296 hospitalizations for abdominal abscesses in patients with CD. Approximately 39 % were treated by medical treatment alone, 29 % with percutaneous drainage, and 32 % with surgery with a significant increase in the use of percutaneous drainage since 1998 (7 %). Comorbidity burden, admission to a teaching hospital, and complicated Crohn's disease (fistulae, stricture) were associated with non-medical treatment. Use of percutaneous drainage was more common in teaching hospitals. Mean time to percutaneous drainage and surgical treatment were 4.6 and 3.3 days, respectively, and early intervention was associated with significantly shorter hospitalization. CONCLUSIONS: We describe the nationwide pattern in the treatment of abdominal abscesses and demonstrate an increase in the use of percutaneous drainage for the treatment of this subgroup. Early treatment intervention was predictive of shorter hospitalization.

Trauma surgery to acute care surgery: defining the paradigm shift.

BACKGROUND: Trauma surgery is gradually evolving into acute care surgery (ACS). We sought to better define this evolution by using work relative value units (wRVU) to characterize the current practices of trauma and ACS. METHODS: Fiscal year 2007-2008 data from the UHC-AAMC Faculty Practice Solutions Center database, which is comprised of coding or billing data from 85 institutions was used. We compared averages for trauma surgeons with general, oncology, and vascular surgeons. RESULTS: Trauma surgeons are distinct from other surgical specialties; only 43% of their total wRVU were procedural compared to 69% to 75% for vascular, surgical oncology, and general surgeons. The total procedures for each specialty were similar: trauma 660, general surgery 715, surgical oncology 713, vascular 835, but trauma surgeons performed more bedside procedures. Of the top 20 total wRVU generating procedures, 20% of trauma surgeon's were bedside compared to 0% of a general surgeon's. The wRVU or surgeon for cholecystectomy were comparable between trauma and general surgery (388 vs. 452); both groups perform about 75% of the cholecystectomies laparoscopically. With respect to appendectomies, wRVU or surgeon for trauma surgeons (180) exceeded general surgeons (128). Each group performed approximately 65% laparoscopically. CONCLUSIONS: Trauma surgeons are distinctly different from their colleagues, with a greater emphasis on intensive care unit "cognitive" work. The number of procedures performed by trauma surgeons is comparable to other disciplines but with more "bedside" procedures. Trauma surgeons' high appendectomy wRVUs may be a reflection of the transition to an ACS model. The characterization of trauma surgery as nonoperative and intensive care unit-based is in part substantiated but there are indications of a paradigm shift toward more operative experience with transition to an ACS model.