Congenital Generalized Lipodystrophy in a Division 1 Female Sprinter.

ABSTRACT: A 21-year-old African American Division 1 female sprinter presented with 3-weeks history of right great toe and forefoot pain, fatigue, and a 30-day continuous menstrual cycle despite implanted etonogestrel (Nexplanon) inserted 3 years prior. An magnetic resonance imagine (MRI) identified likely stress fracture of the second metatarsal base with a diffusely low T1 signal indicating hyperactive red marrow. Due to persistent pain, a follow-up MRI was ordered 6 months later and indicated serous atrophy of the bone marrow, prompting a further metabolic workup notable for triglycerides exceeding 4000 mg/dL and a hemoglobin A1c of 10.9%. This case highlights the manifestation of a rare congenital lipodystrophy that initially presented as a relatively classic stress fracture and metrorrhagia in a female athlete.

Delayed-Union of Acetabular Stress Fracture in Female Gymnast: Use of Teriparatide to Augment Healing.

Pelvic stress fractures are rare and present unique challenges for medical personnel. Delayed healing can lead to increased physical, psychological, and social stress for athletes. Recent literature suggests effective use of a synthetic derivative of parathyroid hormone, teriparatide, to augment healing of delayed-union stress fractures. We present a case of a female National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I gymnast successfully returned to play after a 12-week course of teriparatide injections for an ischioacetabular stress fracture.

Tenosynovial Osteochondromatosis of the Flexor Hallucis Longus in a Division I Tennis Player.

Tenosynovial (extra-articular) chondromatosis (TC) is a condition characterized by the cartilaginous proliferation of synovial cells derived from the synovial lining of bursa and tendon sheaths. These lesions are often multinodular and most commonly present with complaints of swelling or pain. Treatment of TC primarily entails surgical excision. There are no known reports of TC in collegiate athletes. We present a case of TC in a Division I tennis player.

Daily versus three times weekly dosing for treatment of iron deficiency nonanemia in NCAA Division 1 female athletes.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the effectiveness, compliance, and side effect profile between daily or three times weekly (TIW) oral iron supplementation regimens in treating iron deficiency nonanemia (IDNA) in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division 1 female track and field or soccer athletes. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study. SETTING: Division 1 collegiate athletics. PARTICIPANTS: Thirty-three NCAA Division 1 female athletes (18 track and field, 15 soccer). INTERVENTIONS: Daily or TIW dosing of ferrous bisglycinate. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Serum ferritin (µg/L) was measured before and after 8 weeks of supplementation. Self-reported compliance and side effect profile was assessed by electronic survey every 2 weeks. RESULTS: The average main effect for the TIW regimen was a significant increase of 5.17 µg/L (95% CI: 0.86-9.47) in serum ferritin (p = .02). The average main effect for the daily regimen was a significant increase of 12.88 µg/L (95% CI: 4.84-20.93) in serum ferritin (p = .003). The estimated average effect of the treatment on the treated between regimens was a nonsignificant decrease of -7.17 µg/L (95% CI: -19.02 - 3.59) in serum ferritin (p = .17). Thus, the TIW regimen increased serum ferritin 7.17 units less than the daily regimen on average after 8 weeks of supplementation. The athletes following the daily regimen experienced significantly more nausea (p = .04) and constipation (p = .002) compared to the TIW regimen. There was no statistical difference in compliance between the two groups (p = .14). CONCLUSIONS: Both the daily and TIW regimens increased serum ferritin. Compared to the daily regimen, the TIW regimen produced a smaller increase in serum ferritin but less nausea and constipation.

Autopsy after traumatic death--a shifting paradigm.

OBJECTIVE: The role of autopsy in evaluating missed injury after traumatic death is well established and discussed in the literature. The frequency of incidental findings in trauma patients has not been reported. We believe that incidental findings are under recognized and reported by trauma surgeons. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This prospective, descriptive, cohort study was conducted at a Level 1 trauma center in a rural state. Four hundred ninety-six deaths over a 4-y period were identified from the trauma registry. Two hundred four complete autopsies were available for review. One thousand eighteen traumatic diagnoses were identified from 204 autopsies and corresponding medical records by trauma surgeons blinded to patient identity. The surgeons recorded missed diagnoses, incidental diagnoses identified at autopsy, and diagnoses known at the time of death confirmed by autopsy. RESULTS: The surgeons had a κ-score of 0.82-0.84. Forty-two patients (21% of patients) had 68 severe missed injuries; 67 patients (33% of patients) had 94 minor missed injuries. Twenty-eight patients (14%) had significant incidental findings including premature atherosclerosis, multiple endocrine neoplasia, tuberculosis, and others. CONCLUSIONS: The autopsy after traumatic death is more than a mechanism of quality control and teaching. A high proportion of patients will have incidental findings important to family members, and have public health importance. Systems need to be developed to review autopsy results with attention to identifying and communicating incidental findings. Given the incidence of significant missed injuries and incidental findings, the autopsy continues to have an important role in health care.

Oral Health in Adult Patients Receiving Palliative Care: A Mixed Method Study.

BACKGROUND: Oral disease is highly prevalent in persons receiving palliative care (PRPC). Yet, little is known about how PRPC perceive their oral health status and related treatment needs. METHODS: This mixed-method study included 49 English-speaking PRPC (age≥18) recruited from the University of Iowa Palliative Care Clinic. Participants first completed a structured review of oral symptoms, followed by an oral exam. A nested sample of 11 participants also completed a semi-structured, in-depth interview querying their perceived oral health concerns and related treatment needs. Quantitative and qualitative data was analyzed and integrated for interpretation. RESULTS: Participants averaged 58.4 years. Nearly 70% had terminal cancer and 25% had advanced organ failure. Eighty-six percent of participants reported at least one oral symptom, including dry mouth (83.7%), a pain-related symptom (40.8%), or oral function difficulties (51.0%). Among the 31 dentate participants, 52% had untreated decayed/broken teeth and 33.3% had oral soft tissue lesions. Ill-fitting dentures and denture sores were common among denture users. About 40% of participants reported compromised health and/or quality of life due to oral conditions; however, the perceived impacts were modest. With the exception of painful conditions, oral treatment was not a priority for most of the participants. CONCLUSION: Oral disease was highly prevalent in PRPC, yet its overall impact was modest. In the absence of painful symptoms, most participants reported limited desire to seek treatment for oral health conditions. However, given the serious impacts of untreated oral diseases, oral healthcare decision should not be based solely on self-reported symptoms or distress.

Head and neck cancer survivorship from the patient perspective.

BACKGROUND: Survivorship is a critical part of head and neck cancer (HNC) care. In order to design better processes, we assessed care provided to long-term HNC survivors and their priorities for ongoing care. METHODS: A survey was provided to HNC survivors at clinic appointments, including our HNC survivorship clinic. Questions focused on priorities for care in the otolaryngology clinic, types of care provided, and opioid use. RESULTS: Of 168 respondents, the most common priority for survivors was surveillance for recurrence (first priority in 75%), with general health the next most common (8%). Few respondents reported active primary care involvement in survivorship. About 10% of patients reported current opioid use. CONCLUSION: Survivors face a large burden of symptoms and deficits, but our data show that most survivors focus on recurrence. Few survivors reported recall of survivorship care plan delivery or discussing cancer care needs with primary care providers.

Rural versus urban trauma: demographic influences on autopsy rates.

BACKGROUND: The autopsy has long been considered the gold standard for quality assurance review. Studies characterizing autopsies have been completed in large urban centers, but there is a paucity of research regarding autopsies at rural trauma centers. This is problematic considering that a majority of preventable trauma deaths occur in rural areas and death rates for unintentional injuries in rural populations are higher than urban populations. Rural trauma centers have differing characteristics warranting further research into the demographic differences between rural and urban trauma patients and the effects on autopsy rates. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This is a demographic study of a rural trauma center, University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics (UIHC), with the goal of identifying characteristics of trauma patients on whom autopsy was performed. Four hundred ninety-six deaths were identified from the trauma registry between January 2002 and May 2007 (231 of which were autopsied) and demographic data (including age, race, length of hospital stay, etc.) regarding these patients was gathered into a database. Univariate and multivariate linear regression models were used to analyze differences between autopsied and non-autopsied trauma patients. Autopsy rate and basic demographics were also compared with 2 recent reports from urban trauma centers. RESULTS: Autopsied patients were younger than non-autopsied patients (mean age 45 y versus 71 y; P < 0.0001) and have a shorter median length of hospital stay (1 d versus 4 d; P < 0.0001). Autopsy rates for patients with blunt trauma were lower than rates for patients with penetrating or burn trauma (42% versus 67% and 56%; P = 0.004). If patients died while on a subspecialty service, they were less likely to have an autopsy. Compared with urban centers, this rural trauma center had lower autopsy rates, higher rates of blunt trauma, a higher mean age of deceased patients, and a lower percentage of males. CONCLUSIONS: UIHC, a rural trauma center, has a number of demographic characteristics that make it unique from urban trauma centers: an older population, lower percentage of male trauma patients, higher rates of blunt trauma, and lower rates of penetrating trauma. All of these factors influenced the lower rate of autopsies completed at rural trauma centers. Within a rural trauma center, those patients less likely to receive autopsy were older patients, those who died after 48 h in the hospital, and patients who suffered blunt injuries. The demographics of trauma patients most likely to receive an autopsy tend to correspond with those of an urban trauma population, thus providing a demographic explanation for the variation in autopsy rates among trauma systems.

Concurrent Proximal Fractures Are Rare in Distal Forearm Fractures: A National Cross-sectional Study.

INTRODUCTION: Distal forearm fractures (DFF) account for 1.5% of emergency department (ED) visits in the United States. Clinicians frequently obtain imaging above/below the location of injury to rule out additional injuries. We sought to determine the incidence of associated proximal fractures (APF) in the setting of DFF and to evaluate the imaging practices in a nationally representative sample of EDs. METHODS: We queried the 2013 National Emergency Department Sample using International Classification of Diseases, 9th edition, diagnostic codes for DFF and APF. Current Procedural Technology codes identified associated imaging studies. We calculated national estimates using a weighted analysis of patient and hospital-level characteristics associated with APF and imaging practices. An analysis of costs estimated the financial impact of additional imaging in patients with DFF using Medicare reimbursement to approximate costs according to the 2018 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule. RESULTS: In 2013, an estimated 297,755 ED visits (weighted) were associated with a DFF, of which 1.6% (4836 cases) had an APF. The incidence of APF was lower among females (odds ratio [OR] (0.76); 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.64-0.91) but higher in metropolitan teaching hospitals compared to metropolitan non-teaching hospitals (OR [2.39]; 95% CI, 1.43-3.99) and Level 1 trauma centers (OR [3.9]; 95%, 1.91-7.96) compared to non-trauma centers. Approximately 40% (n = 117,948) of those with only DFF received non-wrist radiographs and 19% (n = 55,236) underwent non-wrist/non-forearm imaging. Factors independently associated with additional imaging included gender, payer, patient and hospital rurality, hospital region, teaching status, ownership, and trauma center level. Nearly $3.6 million (2018 U.S. dollars) was spent on the aforementioned additional imaging. CONCLUSION: Despite the frequency of proximal imaging in patients with DFF, the incidence of APF was low. Further study to identify risk factors for APF based on mechanism and physical examination factors may result in reduced imaging and decreased avoidable healthcare spending.

Survival outcomes in elderly patients with untreated upper aerodigestive tract cancer.

BACKGROUND: This study is an evaluation of survival in patients with upper aerodigestive tract (UADT) cancer who did not receive guideline-directed therapy. METHODS: The National Cancer Institute's Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database was examined to identify patients with invasive cancer of the UADT. Patients were classified as "untreated" if they received neither surgery nor radiotherapy. Kaplan-Meier observed survival estimates were computed and stage-specific actuarial estimates of relative survival were computed. RESULTS: Of 3589 untreated patients, 13.7% were black, compared to 9.5% white, and 9.2% all other races (p <.0001). Patients with stage IV disease were more likely to be untreated than those with stage I disease (11.9% vs 3.8%; p <.0001). Median survival was 39 months for treated patients and 4 months for untreated patients. CONCLUSION: The median survival for untreated patients was 4 months. Stage, race, and primary site were independently associated with untreated status. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Head Neck 39: 215-218, 2017.

Lactate: Friend or Foe.

Lactic acid has played an important role in the traditional theory of muscle fatigue and limitation of endurance exercise performance. It has been called a waste product of anaerobic metabolism and has been believed to be responsible for the uncomfortable "burn" of intense exercise and directly responsible for the metabolic acidosis of exercise, leading to decreased muscle contractility and ultimately cessation of exercise. Although this premise has been commonly taught, it is not supported by the scientific literature and has led to a great deal of confusion among the sports medicine and exercise science communities. This review will provide the sports medicine clinician with an understanding of contemporary lactate theories, including lactate's role in energy production, its contributions to metabolic acidosis, and its function as an energy substrate for a variety of tissues. Lactate threshold concepts will also be discussed, including a practical approach to understanding prediction of performance and monitoring of training progress based on these parameters.

Long-term outcomes of patients with necrotizing fasciitis.

CONTEXT: Necrotizing fasciitis is an aggressive infection affecting the skin and soft tissue. It has a very high acute mortality. The long-term survival and cause of death of patients who survive an index hospitalization for necrotizing fasciitis are not known. OBJECTIVE: To define the long-term survival of patients who survive an index admission for necrotizing fasciitis. We hypothesize that survivors will have a shorter life span than population controls. DESIGN: Long-term follow-up of a registry of patients from 1989 to 2006 who survived a hospitalization for necrotizing fasciitis. Last date of follow-up was January 1, 2008. SETTINGS: A university-based Burn and Trauma Center. PATIENTS: A prospective registry of patients with necrotizing fasciitis has been collected from 1989 to 2006. This registry was linked to data from the Department of Health, Department of Motor Vehicles, and the University Hospital Medical Records Department in January 2008 to obtain follow-up and vital status data. INTERVENTION: None. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Date and cause of death were abstracted from death certificates. Date of last live follow-up was determined from the medical record and by the last driver's license renewal. The death rate of the cohort was standardized for age and sex against 2005 statewide mortality rates. Cause of death was collated into infectious and noninfectious and compared with the statewide causes of death. Statistical analysis included standardized mortality rates, Kaplan-Meier survival curves, and Aalen's additive hazard model. RESULTS: Three hundred forty-five patients of the 377 in the registry survived at least 30 days and were analyzed. Average age at presentation was 49 years (range, 1-86; median, 49). Patients were followed up an average of 3.3 years (range, 0.0-15.7; median, 2.4). Eighty-seven of these patients died (25%). Median survival was 10.0 years (95% confidence interval: 7.25-13.11). There was a trend toward higher mortality in women. Twelve of the 87 deaths were due to infectious causes. Using three different statistical analytic techniques, there was a statistically significant increase in the long-term death rate when compared with population-based controls. Infectious causes of death were statistically higher than controls as well. CONCLUSIONS: Patients who survive an episode of necrotizing fasciitis are at continued risk for premature death; many of these deaths were due to infectious causes such as pneumonia, cholecystitis, urinary tract infections, and sepsis. These patients should be counseled, followed, and immunized to minimize chances of death. Modification of other risk factors for death such as obesity, diabetes, smoking, and atherosclerotic disease should also be undertaken. The sex difference in long-term survival is intriguing and needs to be addressed in further studies.