Survey of pelvic reconstructive surgeons on performance of opportunistic salpingectomy at the time of pelvic organ prolapse repair.

INTRODUCTION AND HYPOTHESIS: Opportunistic salpingectomy (OS) at the time of benign hysterectomy has recently emerged as a potential primary preventive modality for ovarian cancer. Our objective was to determine whether the reported rate of OS at the time of prolapse surgery is similar to the rate of OS at the time of gynecologic surgery for non-prolapse indications. METHODS: An anonymous online survey was sent to the Society of Gynecologic Surgery members. Responses were divided into surgeons who did and did not perform OS at the time of prolapse repair. Differences between surgeons who did and did not perform OS were evaluated using the chi-square test. Multivariable logistic regression was used to identify which responses related to increased odds of performing OS. RESULTS: There were 117 (33.1%) completed responses; of these, 98 (83.8%) reported performing OS at the time of prolapse repair, which was similar to the reported rate of OS at the time of hysterectomy for non-prolapse indications, 82.1%. After multivariable logistic regression, performance of salpingectomy at the time of hysterectomy for a non-prolapse indication (aOR: 17.9, 95% CI: 3.11-42.01), use of a laparoscopic or robotic surgical approach (aOR 14.1, 95% CI: 1.81-32.21) and completion of an FPMRS fellowship (aOR: 3.47, 95% CI: 1.20-10.02) were associated with a higher likelihood of performing OS at the time of prolapse repair. CONCLUSIONS: OS at the time prolapse repair is performed more frequently with concomitant hysterectomy compared with OS at the time of post-hysterectomy prolapse repair and is similar to rates of OS performed at the time of hysterectomy for non-prolapse indications.

PREVALENCE AND TYPES OF GENDER-AFFIRMING SURGERY AMONG A SAMPLE OF TRANSGENDER ENDOCRINOLOGY PATIENTS PRIOR TO STATE EXPANSION OF INSURANCE COVERAGE.

OBJECTIVE: Transgender individuals now have many options for medical intervention, including gender-affirmation surgeries. However, it is unknown how common it is for transgender individuals to undergo these surgeries. The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to assess the prevalence of gender-affirming surgeries among transgender patients in 2015, which was immediately prior to insurance changes that made gender-affirming surgery more affordable for Massachusetts residents. METHODS: A retrospective chart review of 99 transgender patients was performed at the Endocrinology Clinic at Boston Medical Center, an urban safety net hospital. The records for 99 transgender subjects who received treatment between 2004-2015, including 28 transmen and 71 transwomen, were examined. The outcome measures were the types of medical interventions chosen by transgender patients, which included hormone therapy, chest surgery, gonadectomy, genital surgery, and facial surgery. RESULTS: Thirty-five percent of subjects had undergone at least one gender-affirming surgery. Transmen were more likely to have had surgery than transwomen (54% vs. 28%). Twenty-five percent of patients had chest surgery, 13% had genital surgery or gonadectomy, and 8% had facial surgery. CONCLUSION: In 2015, a majority of transgender endocrinology clinic patients had not undergone any type of gender-affirmation surgery. Among those who did elect to have a surgery, genital surgery or gonadectomy were uncommon. The low rate of surgery among this sample of transgender patients may be attributable to the financial cost, lack of interest in surgery, or that genital surgery is not a high priority for transgender individuals relative to surgery to change visible features such as face and chest. Abbreviation: HT = hormone therapy.

Disparities in the management of ectopic pregnancy.

BACKGROUND: Ectopic pregnancy is common among young women. Treatment can consist of either surgery with salpingectomy or salpingostomy or medical management with methotrexate. In addition to acute complications, treatment of ectopic pregnancy can result in long-term sequelae that include decreased fertility. Little is known about the patterns of care and predictors of treatment in women with ectopic pregnancy. Similarly, data on outcomes for various treatments are limited. OBJECTIVE: We examined the patterns of care and outcomes for women with ectopic pregnancy. Specifically, we examined predictors of medical (vs surgical) management of ectopic pregnancy and tubal conservation (salpingostomy vs salpingectomy) among women who underwent surgery. STUDY DESIGN: The Perspective database was used to identify women with a diagnosis of tubal ectopic pregnancy treated from 2006-2015. Perspective is an all-payer database that collects data on patients at hospitals from throughout the United States. Women were classified as having undergone medical treatment, if they received methotrexate, and surgical treatment, if treatment consisted of salpingostomy or salpingectomy. Multivariable models were developed to examine predictors of medical treatment and of tubal conserving salpingostomy among women who were treated surgically. RESULTS: Among the 62,588 women, 49,090 women (78.4%) were treated surgically, and 13,498 women (21.6%) received methotrexate. Use of methotrexate increased from 14.5% in 2006 to 27.3% by 2015 (P<.001). Among women who underwent surgery, salpingostomy decreased over time from 13.0% in 2006 to 6.0% in 2015 (P<.001). Treatment in more recent years, at a teaching hospital and at higher volume centers, were associated with the increased use of methotrexate (P<.05 for all). In contrast, Medicaid recipients (adjusted risk ratio, 0.92; 95% confidence interval, 0.87-0.98) and uninsured women (adjusted risk ratio, 0.87; 95% confidence interval, 0.82-0.93) were less likely to receive methotrexate than commercially insured patients. Among those who underwent surgery, black (adjusted risk ratio, 0.76; 95% confidence interval, 0.69-0.85) and Hispanic (adjusted risk ratio, 0.80; 95% confidence interval, 0.66-0.96) patients were less likely to undergo tubal conserving surgery than white women and Medicaid recipients (adjusted risk ratio, 0.69; 95% confidence interval, 0.64-0.75); uninsured women (adjusted risk ratio, 0.60; 95% confidence interval, 0.55-0.66) less frequently underwent salpingostomy than commercially insured patients. CONCLUSION: There is substantial variation in the management of ectopic pregnancy. There are significant race- and insurance-related disparities associated with treatment.

Stopping ovarian cancer screening in BRCA1/2 mutation carriers: effects on risk management decisions & outcome of risk-reducing salpingo-oophorectomy specimens.

OBJECTIVE: Ovarian cancer screening (OCS) for BRCA1/2 mutation carriers was stopped in our family cancer clinic in 2009 because of its ineffectiveness. The study objective was to investigate the effect of stopping OCS on the timing and uptake of risk-reducing salpingo-oophorectomy (RRSO) and on the percentage of occult cancers in the specimens. METHODS: 419 BRCA1/2 mutation carriers were recruited between January 1999 and June 2013. Uptake, timing and the outcome of the RRSO specimens before stopping OCS (period I) were compared to those after stopping OCS (period II). RESULTS: The percentage of women undergoing RRSO within the recommended age range increased from 81% to 95%. Receiving DNA test results in period II independently predicted a shorter time interval to RRSO (hazard ratio: 2.48, 95% confidence interval: 1.81-3.39). The incidence of detecting occult cancers in RRSO specimens before and after stopping OCS was 1.3% and 1.8%, respectively, and was not statistically significantly different. CONCLUSIONS: The presentation of risk management options to women may influence their decision. The increased patient awareness of the ineffectiveness of OCS could have led to a higher percentage of women undergoing RRSO and doing so more often within the recommended age range.

Factors influencing uptake and timing of risk reducing salpingo-oophorectomy in women at risk of familial ovarian cancer: a competing risk time to event analysis.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate factors affecting uptake of risk-reducing salpingo-oophorectomy (RRSO) over time in women at high-risk of familial ovarian cancer. DESIGN: Prospective observational cohort. SETTING: Tertiary high-risk familial gynaecological cancer clinic. POPULATION/SAMPLE: New clinic attendees between March 2004 and November 2009, fulfilling the high-risk criteria for the UK Familial Ovarian Cancer Screening Study. METHODS: Risk management options discussed included RRSO and ovarian surveillance. Outcome data were analysed from a bespoke database. The competing risk method was used to model the cumulative incidence function (CIF) of RRSO over time, and the sub-hazard ratio (SHR) was used to assess the strength of the association of variables of interest with RRSO. Gray's test was used to evaluate the difference in CIF between two groups and multivariable competing risk regression analysis was used to model the cumulative probabilities of covariates on the CIF. RESULTS: Of 1133 eligible women, 265 (21.4%) opted for RRSO and 868 (69.9%) chose screening. Women undergoing RRSO were older (49 years, interquartile range 12.2 years) than those preferring screening (43.4 years, interquartile range 11.9 years) (P < 0.0005). The CIF for RRSO at 5 years was 0.55 (95% CI 0.45-0.64) for BRCA1/2 carriers and 0.22 (95% CI 0.19-0.26) for women of unknown mutation status (P < 0.0001); 0.42 (95% CI 0.36-0.47) for postmenopausal women (P < 0.0001); 0.29 (95% CI 0.25-0.33) for parity ≥1 (P = 0.009) and 0.47 (95% CI 0.39-0.55) for a personal history of breast cancer (P < 0.0001). Variables of significance from the regression analysis were: a BRCA1/2 mutation (SHR 2.31, 95% CI 1.7-3.14), postmenopausal status (SHR 2.16, 95% CI 1.62-2.87)) and a personal history of breast cancer (SHR 1.5, 95% CI 1.09-2.06). CONCLUSIONS: Decision-making is a complex process and women opt for surgery many years after initial risk assessment. BRCA carriers, postmenopausal women and women who had breast cancer are significantly more likely to opt for preventative surgery.