Síndrome de resección anterior baja y su relación con la calidad de vida: aplicación de cuestionario EuroQol-5 / Low anterior resection syndrome and quality of life: application of EuroQol-5 questionnaire

Resumen Introducción: Las cirugías con preservación de esfínter tienen como consecuencia el desarrollo de una disfunción defecatoria con diferentes grados, la cual es conocida como síndrome de resección anterior baja (LARS) y es medida con el cuestionario LARS Score. Objetivo: Determinar la asociación del cuestionario EuroQol-5 (calidad de vida) con los diferentes grados de LARS Score. Materiales y Método: Estudio de tipo transversal, aplicando el cuestionario LARS Score y EuroQol-5 a pacientes operados por cáncer de recto medio y bajo, durante el periodo 2004-2017. Se realiza análisis demográfico y del tipo de cirugía. Para determinar asociaciones entre variables se utilizan diferentes pruebas estadísticas, considerando significativo un valor de p < 0,05. Resultados: Se encuestó a 54 pacientes, 62,16% hombres, promedio de edad 58,44 años, el 37,03% presentó LARS Mayor. Los índices promedio de calidad de vida para pacientes No LARS es 0,75, para LARS Menor es 0,69 y para LARS Mayor es 0,61, la diferencia entre índices presenta un valor p = 0,246. 46,3% presenta problemas en actividades habituales. LARS Mayor presenta un Odd-Ratio de 3,8 y 4,7 para dolor/malestar y angustia/depresión respectivamente. 70% de los pacientes con LARS Mayor presentaron resección total del mesorrecto (TME) y el 45% corresponde a menores de 65 años. Discusión: No existe diferencia estadísticamente significativa entre los índices de calidad de vida según LARS Score. LARS Mayor tiene mayor posibilidad de desarrollar algún grado de dolor/malestar y angustia/depresión. El porcentaje de LARS Mayor es acorde a lo publicado y la TME es uno de los factores de mayor impacto en el desarrollo de LARS. Conclusiones: El LARS Score se relaciona de manera no significativa con el índice de calidad de vida entregado por el cuestionario EuroQol-5D, existiendo una tendencia a disminuir la calidad de vida a medida que empeora el LARS.

Introduction: Sphincter-sparing surgeries result in the development of a defecatory dysfunction with different degrees, which is known as low anterior resection syndrome (LARS) and is measured with the LARS Score questionnaire. Objective: To determine the association of the EuroQol-5 questionnaire with the different degrees of LARS Score. Materials and Method: Crosssectional study, applying the LARS Score and EuroQol-5 questionnaire to patients operated with low and middle rectal cancer, during the period 2004-2017. Demographic analysis and type of surgery are performed. Different statistical tests are used to determine associations between variables, considering a significant p value < 0.05. Results: 54 patients were surveyed, 62.16% men, mean age 58.44 years, 37.03% presented Mayor-LARS. The average quality of life indices for Non-LARS patients is 0.75, for Minor-LARS is 0.69 and for Mayor-LARS is 0.61, the difference between indices presents a p value = 0.246. 46.3% present problems in habitual activities. LARS Mayor presents an Odd-Ratio of 3.8 and 4.7 for pain/discomfort and anguish/depression respectively. 70% of patients with LARS Mayor presented SMT and 45% corresponded to those under 65 years of age. Discussion: There is no statistically significant difference between the quality of life indices according to the LARS Score. Mayor-LARS is more likely to develop some degree of Pain/Discomfort and anguish/depression. The percentage of Mayor-LARS is according to what has been published and the TME is one of the factors with the greatest impact on the development of LARS. Conclusion: The LARS Score is non-significantly related to the quality of life index provided by the EuroQol-5D questionnaire, and there is a tendency to decrease quality of life as the LARS worsens.

[Current status of research on short-term quality of life after sphincteric-saving surgery in rectal cancer patients].

Sphincteric-saving surgery (SSS) is currently a hot spot in the treatment of mid-low rectal cancer. Although it preserves the anatomical continuity of the colon and anus, the postoperative functional outcomes and quality of life (QOL) remains to be confirmed. Current studies have shown that quality of life worsens at the first month after surgery, improves within 3-6 months, and stabilizes at about 1 year. The QOL was associated with patient-related factors, tumor-related factors, treatment-related factors and postoperative complications. For patient-related factors, younger patients have worse role function and sexual function but better cognitive function and physical function. Male patients deteriorate significantly in sexual and social function. For tumor-related factors, patients with lower rectal cancer have poorer defecation function. Those with advanced rectal cancer are more likely to suffer from side-effects related to chemotherapy. For treatment-related factors, patients undergoing intersphincteric resection have worse role function, body image and sexual interest. Preventive ileostomy results in the deterioration of role function, body image and sexual interest. Chemotherapy causes taste changes and chest pain. For postoperative complication, patients with anastomotic leakage have worse bowel function and psychological state. Patients with major low anterior resection syndrome and genitourinary dysfunction have worse global health score, social function and role function. In conclusion, short-term quality of life after sphincteric-saving surgery is acceptable. To improve QOL, specific intervention and guidance should be given to patients in this stage. Meanwhile, since many factors influence the quality of life simultaneously, researchers are confused about the questionnaire outcomes. Therefore, more specific and comprehensive tools are needed to evaluate QQL after sphincteric-saving surgery.

Functional bowel complaints and quality of life after surgery for colon cancer: prevalence and predictive factors.

AIM: Low anterior resection syndrome (LARS) severely affects the quality of life (QoL) of patients after surgery for rectal cancer. There are very few studies that have investigated LARS-like symptoms and their effect on QoL after colon cancer surgery. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of functional abdominal complaints and related QoL after colon cancer surgery compared with patients with similar complaints after rectal cancer surgery. METHOD: All patients who underwent colorectal cancer resections between January 2008 and December 2015, and who were free of colostomy for at least 1 year, were eligible (n = 2136). Bowel function was assessed by the LARS score, QoL by the EORTC QLQ-C30 and QLQ-CR29 questionnaires. QoL was compared between the LARS score categories and tumour height categories. RESULTS: A total of 1495 patients (70.0%) were included in the analyses, of whom 1145 had a colonic and 350 a rectal tumour. Symptoms of LARS were observed in 55% after rectal cancer resection compared with 21% after colon cancer resection. Female gender (OR 1.88, CI 1.392-2.528) and a previous diverting stoma (OR 1.84, CI 1.14-2.97) were independently associated with a higher prevalence of LARS after colon cancer surgery. Patients with LARS after colon cancer surgery performed significantly worse in most QoL domains. CONCLUSION: The results of this study highlight the presence of LARS-like symptoms after surgery for colonic cancer. Patients suffering from major LARS-like symptoms after colon resection reported the same debilitating effect on their QoL as patients with major LARS after rectal resection. This should be addressed by colorectal cancer specialists in order to adequately inform patients.

The low anterior resection syndrome in a reference population: prevalence and predictive factors in the Netherlands.

AIM: The low anterior resection syndrome (LARS) severely affects quality of life (QoL) after colorectal cancer surgery. There are no data about these complaints and the association with QoL in a reference population. The aim of this study was to assess LARS and the association with QoL in a reference population. METHODS: Six hundred patients who visited the outpatient clinic because of general or trauma surgical indications were asked to participate in this study. They received an invitation letter containing three validated questionnaires to assess LARS (assessed with the LARS score) and both general [European Organization for the Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) QLQ-C30] and colorectal-specific (EORTC QLQ-CR29) QoL. RESULTS: Five hundred and one respondents could be included for the analyses. The median age at inclusion was 68 years and 47.3% were men. Major LARS was observed in 15% of patients (11.4% in men and 18.9% in women, P = 0.021). Women reported more urgency (P = 0.070) and incontinence for both flatus (P < 0.001) and stool (P = 0.063) compared to men. In univariate analyses, women reported major LARS significantly more often than men (OR 1.82; 95% CI 1.10-3.01). Patients with major LARS scored significantly worse in most QoL domains compared to patients with no/minor LARS. CONCLUSION: This is the first study demonstrating major LARS and the association with QoL in a reference population of patients without colorectal cancer. Our data can assist in the interpretation of LARS in past and future research about abdominal complaints after colorectal cancer surgery.

Surgeon Workload in Colorectal Surgery: Perceived Drivers of Procedural Difficulty.

BACKGROUND: To understand how surgeon expectation of case difficulty relates to workload for colon and rectal procedures and to identify possible surgeon-perceived drivers contributing to case difficulty. MATERIALS AND METHODS: For 3 mo, surgeons were asked to complete a modified NASA-Task Load Index (NASA-TLX) questionnaire following each surgical case. Questions included items on distractions, fatigue, procedural difficulty, and expectation plus the validated NASA-TLX items. All but expectation were rated on a 20-point scale (0 = low, 20 = high). Expectation was rated on a 3-point scale (i.e., more difficult than expected, as expected, less difficult than expected). Surgeons also reported perceived drivers contributing to case ease or difficulty. Patient and procedural data were analyzed for procedures with completed surveys. RESULTS: Seven surgeons (three female) rated 122 procedures over the research period using a modified NASA-TLX survey. Mean surgeon-perceived workload was highest for effort (mean [M] = 10.83, standard deviation [SD] = 5.66) followed by mental demand (M = 10.18, SD = 5.17), and physical demand (M = 9.19, SD = 5.60). Procedural difficulty varied significantly by procedure type (P < 0.001). Thirty-five percent of cases were considered more difficult than expected. Surgeon-perceived workload and most subscales differed significantly according to expectation level. There was no significant difference in patient factors by expectation level. Surgeons most frequently reported patient anatomy, body habitus, and operative team characteristics as drivers to difficulty and ease of cases. CONCLUSIONS: Procedural difficulty significantly differed across procedure type. More than one-third of cases were more difficult than expected, during which surgeons attributed this to operative team characteristics as well as issues in patient anatomy and body habitus.

Sexual function after proctectomy in patients with inflammatory bowel disease: A prospective study.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC) show a multifactorial impact on patients' quality of life, including sexual function (SF). The need for surgical intervention remains high, whereas proctectomy is frequently required in these patients. We tried to evaluate the impact of pelvic dissection during proctectomy in IBD patients' SF. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We conducted a prospective study, examining the pre- and postoperative (at 6 months) SF of 57 IBD patients that underwent proctectomy in our surgical department, in the period between 2010 and 2016. The 5-item International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF-5) and the Female Sexual Function Index were our research tools for men and women, respectively. We tried to evaluate the impact of gender, age, type of the disease, and surgical procedure on postoperative outcome. RESULTS: Ileal pouch-anal anastomosis (IPAA) was offered to 45 patients, whereas 12 patients underwent total proctocolectomy with permanent end ileostomy (TPC). Men showed a non-significant improvement in median IIEF-5 score after proctectomy (22.0 vs 23.0, p=0.152). The majority of men had no erectile dysfunction either before (56.4%) or after (51.3%) surgery (p=0.599). Changes remained insignificant for subgroup analysis according to age, disease and surgical procedure. Female patients had also a non-significant improvement in overall median score (23.0 vs 24.1, p=0.856). Women's score remained below the cut-off value of 26.5 for almost every subgroup analyzed. CONCLUSIONS: Proctectomy did not affect SF of IBD patents six months after surgery. Female patients seem to face more frequently a poor SF compared to men.

Evaluating unmet needs in patients undergoing surgery for colorectal cancer: a patient reported outcome measures study.

AIM: Patient reported outcome measures (PROMs) are self-reported measures of patients' health status or health-related quality of life at a single point in time. We aimed to evaluate the use of a colorectal PROM and conducted a focus group to further explore this and other unmet needs in our patient population treated surgically for colorectal cancer. METHOD: A multidisciplinary research group consisting of colorectal surgeons, nurse specialists, psychologists, sociologists and patient representatives devised a composite tool of new and existing outcome measures which was piloted in our local population (n = 35). Participants were subsequently invited to attend a semi-structured focus group during which the PROM was reviewed and an unmet needs analysis was performed. Thematic analysis of focus group transcripts was undertaken for emergent themes. RESULTS: Initial consensus was for a tool including the EQ-5D, Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy - Colorectal (FACT-C), the distress thermometer, a validated measure of stigma, an unmet needs analysis, and questions assessing the psychological impact of cancer. Median and interquartile range values suggested that all metrics were discriminatory with the exception of FACT-C. All participants agreed that the tool was acceptable and reflected the current state of their health and emotions. Thematic analysis of focus group transcripts identified four major themes: physical symptoms, emotional response, information provision and coping mechanisms. CONCLUSION: Through expert consensus, local piloting and patient focus groups we have evaluated a novel PROM for colorectal cancer. Furthermore, through our direct engagement with patients we have identified several unmet needs which we are currently exploring within the clinical service.