Seasonal Patterns of Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada Disease.

PURPOSE: To identify the relationship between the incidence of Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada (VKH) disease and seasonality. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study was performed, including patients with a confirmed diagnosis of VKH whose month of disease onset was available. Information on patients was entered retrospectively into a database and analyzed according to the month and season. RESULTS: Twenty-four patients who met the inclusion criteria were included in the analysis. There was a statistically significant deviation from expected values in the incidences of VKH per season (P = .043). The most common season for the onset of VKH was fall, with 50% of the patients presenting in this season, while spring was the least common season for VKH presentation, with 12.5% of the patients presenting in this season. CONCLUSION: Our study suggests that the onset of VKH in Puerto Rico follows a seasonal pattern, with most cases occurring during the fall.

Orthopedic Provider Gender Preference Among Patients in an Orthopedic Surgery Residency Program of a Hispanic American Community.

Background: There are limited data regarding the gender preferences of Hispanic Americans when selecting their orthopedic surgeon. This study aimed to evaluate the gender preferences of Hispanic Americans when choosing a physician as their orthopedic provider. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional survey was administered to all consecutive Hispanic American patients treated at the outpatient orthopedic clinics of a tertiary medical center in Puerto Rico between October 4, 2019 and March 4, 2020. Sociodemographic status and opinion of gender preference in orthopedic surgery were assessed and analyzed between female and male respondents. Results: A total of 628 surveys were completed. There were 343 (54.6%) females and 285 (45.4%) males with an average age of 51.0 ± 13.0 years. A significantly higher portion of female respondents was widowed (p = 0.01), had a higher educational level (p = 0.02), were unemployed (p = 0.01), and had a lower individual annual income salary (p = 0.04); when compared with males. Most of the respondents had no gender preference (91.1% = 572/628) for an orthopedic provider. Among those with a gender preference, 5.1% (32/628) preferred a male surgeon, and 3.8% (24/628) preferred a female surgeon. No significant difference was found between male and female respondents in the opinion of an orthopedic provider. Conclusions: This study illustrates that Hispanic Americans have no gender preference when choosing an orthopedic provider. Therefore, patient preference should not be considered a factor contributing to women's under-representation in our orthopedic surgery training program. Our findings may also assist future studies in search of other indications attributed to the under-representation of females in this field.

Characteristics, Upon Presentation, of a Cohort of Patients with Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada Disease in Puerto Rico.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the clinical features, upon initial presentation, of a cohort of patients with Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada (VKH) disease who live in Puerto Rico. METHODS: A retrospective medical record review of patients with VKH was performed. The demographic and clinical characteristics were analyzed. RESULTS: Twenty-two patients who met the diagnostic criteria for VKH were identified and included in the analysis. The median age at presentation was 41 years; 68.2% were female, and all patients were Hispanics. Bilateral disease was present in 90.9% of patients, and 59.1% of patients were categorized as having probable VKH. A headache was reported in 54.5% of patients and was the most common complaint at the time of presentation; the second most common complaint was tinnitus, which was present in 22.7% of patients. Vitiligo, alopecia, and meningismus were each preset in 9.1% of patients while hearing loss and aseptic meningitis were each reported in 4.5% of patients. Seventy-seven percent of patients had either topical or systemic corticosteroid use prior to the initial encounter. CONCLUSION: Our study suggests that in Puerto Rico, patients with Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada disease may have a distinctive prevalence of characteristics at the presentation when compared to other ethnic groups, including other Hispanic cohorts.