Assessment of ChatGPT generated educational material for head and neck surgery counseling.

BACKGROUND: ChatGPT is becoming very popular as an information source for the public. The adequacy of ChatGPT generated patient counseling material has not yet been extensively assessed. METHODS: ChatGPT was presented with perioperative counseling and complication questions regarding five different procedure, and accuracy of responses was assessed. The chat was then asked to present an explanation of each procedure, and quality of the responses were compared to online educational material. RESULTS: ChatGPT responses were comprehensive when discussing counseling points commonly discussed by a provider prior to a procedure. Responses to questions on surgical complications were less accurate and comprehensive. In comparison to online educational material, ChatGPT scored at or above the median SAM and PEMAT scores for all procedures. CONCLUSIONS: ChatGPT did well addressing basic counseling points during the perioperative period, although it did not perform as well when addressing surgical complications. Chat response quality was comparable to currently available online educational material.

Early institutional head and neck oncologic and microvascular surgery practice patterns across the United States during the SARS-CoV-2 (COVID19) pandemic.

BACKGROUND: The SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) pandemic has caused rapid changes in head and neck cancer (HNC) care. "Real-time" methods to monitor practice patterns can optimize provider safety and patient care. METHODS: Head and neck surgeons from 14 institutions in the United States regularly contributed their practice patterns to a shared spreadsheet. Data from 27 March 2020 to 5 April 2020 was analyzed. RESULTS: All institutions had significantly restricted HNC clinic evaluations. Two institutions stopped free-flap surgery with the remaining scheduling surgery by committee review. Factors contributing to reduced clinical volume included lack of personal protective equipment (PPE) (35%) and lack of rapid COVID-19 testing (86%). CONCLUSIONS: The COVID-19 pandemic has caused a reduction in HNC care. Rapid COVID-19 testing and correlation with infectious potential remain paramount to resuming the care of patients with head and neck cancer. Cloud-based platforms to share practice patterns will be essential as the pandemic evolves.

Spatial control of protein within biomimetically nucleated mineral.

An ideal approach for bone tissue engineering allows for osteoconductivity, osteoinductivity, and cell transplantation. In this study, we examined coprecipitation and surface adsorption schemes with respect to their abilities to control the spatial quantity and localization of a model protein, bovine serum albumin (BSA), that is incorporated into a biomimetic apatite layer nucleated onto polylactic-co-glycolic acid (PLGA) films. Protein incorporation was characterized by determining protein: presence, quantity loaded, retention, effects on mineral morphology, and localization. FT-IR confirmed the presence of protein in all coprecipitation samples with stronger peaks in the coprecipitated samples compared to the surface adsorbed samples. Coprecipitation resulted in higher loading capacities and higher protein retention versus adsorption. Protein incorporation via coprecipitation changed the mineral morphology from sharp plate-like structures to more rounded structures, whereas, surface adsorption did not change mineral structure. By using confocal microscopy to examine the incorporation of fluorescently labeled proteins, spatial control over protein localization was exhibited. By controlling the loading quantity and localization of the model protein through the mineral thickness, a desired release profile can be achieved. A desired and effective delivery system of biological agents utilizing coprecipitation for bone regeneration can therefore be designed.