Operating hurts: a study of EAES surgeons.

BACKGROUND: Work-related pain and discomfort experienced by surgeons is widely reported in the literature. A survey was, therefore, conducted to explore this issue among members of the European Association for Endoscopic Surgery (EAES). METHODS: The survey was emailed to 2980 EAES members in 2017 enquiring about their working practice, musculoskeletal (MSK) pain and burnout. RESULTS: A total of 569 (19%) surgeons responded, of whom 556 were practicing surgeons; 86% were consultants, 84% were male, and 94% were right-handed. Respondents operated on average 3.3 days/week with 27% of their procedures lasting longer than 3 h. The 386 endoscopists surveyed reported performing an average of 5.3 procedures/day with 83% performing endoscopy at least once per week. Over half of practicing surgeons (62%) reported their worst pain score was 3 or higher (10-point scale) in the past 7 working days, encompassing 71% of their open, 72% laparoscopic, 48% robot-assisted cases and 52% of their endoscopies. Of the 120 surgeons who had ever sought medical help for aches, pain or discomfort, 38% were currently in pain and 16% had considered leaving surgery due to their MSK pain, 26% had reported work-related pain to their employer, 26% had been on short-term disability during their career and 4% long-term disability due to MSK disorders. A significant proportion of the respondents (49%) felt their physical discomfort would influence the ability to perform or assist with surgical procedures in the future. These surgeons reported significantly lower satisfaction from their work (p = 0.024), higher burnout (p = 0.005) and significantly higher callousness toward people (p < 0.001) than those not fearing loss of career longevity. CONCLUSION: The results show that MSK pain is prevalent amongst EAES members. Nearly half the respondents had career longevity fears from pain/discomfort which, in turn, correlated with more prevalent feelings of burnout. More emphasis should be placed on the aetiology, prevention and management of musculoskeletal pain in the surgical workforce.

Assessing the quality of primary care referrals to surgery of patients with diabetes in the East of England: A multi-centre cross-sectional cohort study.

AIM: Peri-operative hyperglycaemia is associated with an increased incidence of adverse outcomes. Communication between primary and secondary care is paramount to minimise these harms. National guidance in the UK recommends that the glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) should be measured within 3 months prior to surgery and that the concentration should be less that 69 mmol/mol (8.5%). In addition, national guidance outlines the minimum dataset that should be included in any letter at the time of referral to the surgeons. Currently, it is unclear how well this process is being carried out. This study investigated the quality of information being handed over during the referral from primary care to surgical outpatients within the East of England. METHODS: Primary care referrals to nine different NHS hospital Trusts were gathered over a 1-week period. All age groups were included from 11 different surgical specialties. Referral letters were analysed using a standardised data collection tool based on the national guidelines. RESULTS: A total of 1919 referrals were received, of whom 169 (8.8%) had previously diagnosed diabetes mellitus (DM). However, of these, 38 made no mention of DM in the referral letter but were on glucose-lowering agents. Only 13 (7.7%) referrals for patients with DM contained a recent HbA1c, and 20 (11.8%) contained no documentation of glucose-lowering medication. CONCLUSION: This study has shown that the quality of referral letters to surgical specialties for patients with DM in the East of England remain inadequate. There is a clear need for improving the quality of clinical data contained within referral letters from primary care. In addition, we have shown that the rate of referral for surgery for people with diabetes is almost 50% higher than the background population with diabetes.

Sirolimus-induced pneumonitis following liver transplantation.

Sirolimus-induced pneumonitis has emerged as a potentially serious complication in renal transplantation but only single case reports of this condition have been described after liver transplantation (LT), where experience with sirolimus is relatively limited. We report our experience, the largest to date, of sirolimus-induced pneumonitis following LT. Between 1999 and 2006, 186 liver transplant patients received sirolimus-based immunosuppression, after initial therapy with calcineurin inhibitors (CNIs). All cases of sirolimus-induced pneumonitis were recorded and a retrospective review of the case notes of such patients was undertaken for the purpose of this analysis. Of 186 liver transplant patients receiving sirolimus, 4 (2.2%) developed pneumonitis that was attributed to the drug; the time from starting sirolimus to presentation was varied (1.5-30 months). The most common presenting symptoms were dyspnea, cough and fatigue. The median sirolimus level at the time of diagnosis was 9.7 ng/mL (range, 7-19.5 ng/mL). All patients in the series underwent thoracic computed tomography, which showed similar changes in all patients, and lung biopsy, which revealed features consistent with a drug-induced pneumonitis. In all 4 patients, sirolimus-induced pneumonitis resolved following cessation of therapy but took weeks to months for complete recovery. In conclusion, sirolimus-induced pneumonitis occurred in at least 2% of liver transplant recipients and should be suspected in patients who develop respiratory symptoms while on sirolimus. Although it may be life threatening, early recognition and cessation of sirolimus can lead to complete resolution of pneumonitis.