Operating in an Opioid Crisis: A Temporal Analysis of Pain Medication Prescribing Practices in Plastic Surgery.

BACKGROUND: In response to the opioid epidemic, the United States declared a public health emergency in 2017. We evaluated pain medication prescribing practices among plastic and reconstructive surgeons, assessing pain medication prescription rates and opioid-related mortality both nationally and regionally within the United States. METHODS: A retrospective analysis of Medicare Part D prescriber data among plastic surgeons from 2013 through 2017 was conducted. Pain medications were categorized as opioid and nonopioid medications. Trends in surgeon prescribing habits were evaluated using the Cochrane-Armitage trend test. RESULTS: A total of 708,817 pain medication claims were identified: 612,123 claims (86%) were for opioid pain medications and 96,694 claims (14%) were for nonopioid pain medications. Total pain medication claims decreased from 44% of all medications in 2013 to 37% in 2017 (P < 0.001). Opioid medications decreased from 37% of total medication claims to 32% (P < 0.001). The overall opioid prescription rate fell from 1.53 claims per beneficiary in 2013 to 1.32 in 2017 (P < 0.001). Nonopioid pain medications decreased from 7% in 2013 to 6% in 2017 (P < 0.001); nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug claims increased by 44%. The prescription rate of nonopioid medications decreased from 2.40 claims per beneficiary in 2013 to 2.32 in 2017 (P < 0.001). An overall increase in opioid-related mortality was observed. Trends in pain medication prescriptions varied significantly among US regions and divisions. CONCLUSIONS: Plastic surgeons are prescribing less opioids and relying more on nonopioid pain medications. Increased adoption of multimodal pain treatment approaches among surgeons is a likely explanation for this trend in face of the current opioid crisis.

Trends in Medicare Reimbursement for the Top 20 Surgical Procedures in Craniofacial Trauma.

BACKGROUND: Research regarding financial trends in craniofacial trauma surgery is limited. Understanding these trends is important to the evolvement of suitable reimbursement models in craniofacial plastic surgery. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the trends in Medicare reimbursement rates for the top 20 most utilized surgical procedures for facial trauma. METHODS: The 20 most commonly utilized Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) codes for facial trauma repairs in 2018 were queried from The National Summary Data File from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Reimbursement data for each procedure was then extracted from The Physician Fee Schedule Lookup Tool. Changes to the United States consumer price index (CPI) were used to adjust all gathered data for inflation to 2021 US dollars (USD). The average annual and the total percent change in reimbursement were calculated for the included procedures based on the adjusted trends from the years 2000 to 2021. RESULTS: From 2000 to 2021, the average reimbursement for all procedures decreased by 16.6% after adjusting for inflation. Closed treatment of temporomandibular joint dislocation and closed treatment of nasal bone fractures without manipulation demonstrated the greatest decrease in mean adjusted reimbursement at -48.7% and -48.3%, respectively, while closed treatment of nasal bone fractures without stabilization demonstrated the smallest mean decrease at -1.4% during the study period. Open treatment of nasal septal fractures with or without stabilization demonstrated the greatest increase in mean adjusted reimbursement at 18.9%, while closed treatment of nasal septal fractures with or without stabilization demonstrated the smallest increase at 1.2%. The average reimbursement for all closed procedures in the top 20 decreased by 19.3%, while that for all open procedures decreased by 15.5%. The adjusted reimbursement rate for all top 20 procedures decreased by an average of 0.8% each year. CONCLUSIONS: To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to comprehensively evaluate trends in Medicare reimbursement for facial trauma surgical repairs. Adjusting for inflation, Medicare reimbursement for the top 20 most commonly utilized procedures has largely decreased from 2000 to 2021. Consideration of these trends by surgeons, hospital systems, and policymakers will be important to assure continued access to meaningful surgical facial trauma care in the United States.

Ethics Education in U.S. Allopathic Medical Schools: A National Survey of Medical School Deans and Ethics Course Directors.

AbstractPurpose: to characterize ethics course content, structure, resources, pedagogic methods, and opinions among academic administrators and course directors at U.S. medical schools. METHOD: An online questionnaire addressed to academic deans and ethics course directors identified by medical school websites was emailed to 157 Association of American Medical Colleges member medical schools in two successive waves in early 2022. Descriptive statistics were utilized to summarize responses. RESULTS: Representatives from 61 (39%) schools responded. Thirty-two (52%) respondents were course directors; 26 (43%) were deans of academic affairs, medical education, or curriculum; and 3 with other roles also completed the survey (5%). All 61 schools reported some form of formal ethics education during the first year of medical school, with most (n = 54, 89%) reporting a formal mandatory introductory course during preclinical education. Schools primarily utilized lecture and small-group teaching methods. Knowledge-based examinations, attendance, and participation were most commonly used for assessment. A large majority regarded ethics as equally or more important than other foundational courses, but fewer (n = 37, 60%) provided faculty training for teaching ethics. CONCLUSIONS: Despite a response rate of 39 percent, the authors conclude that medical schools include ethics in their curricula in small-group and lecture formats with heterogeneity regarding content taught. Preclinical curricular redesigns must innovate and implement best practices for ensuring sound delivery of ethics content in future curricula. Additional large-scale research is necessary to determine said best practices.

The effect of contralateral prophylactic mastectomy on breast-related charges: A 5-year analysis.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to determine charges following unilateral mastectomy (UM) and bilateral mastectomy (BM) for patients with unilateral breast cancer (UBC). We hypothesized that BM may be associated with fewer charges over time. METHODS: A retrospective review was conducted of patients with UBC treated between 2006 and 2010 with UM and BM in a large healthcare system. Institutional billing data were investigated for 5 years postoperatively to calculate the immediate and subsequent charges of all inpatient and outpatient breast-related care associated with the initial diagnosis for a subset of patients identified using propensity score matching method. RESULTS: A subset of matched patients (n = 320) undergoing UM (n = 160) or BM (n = 160) were included in this analysis. At 1 year, there was a trend toward lower total charges following UM as compared with BM (median, $125 230 vs $138 467; P = .6075). However, during years 2 to 5, total charges were significantly higher following UM vs BM ($22 128 vs $13 478; P = .0116). CONCLUSIONS: While initially higher, overall charges for BM are lower than UM between 2 and 5 years out from surgery. Further study is necessary to determine if this trend is sustained over the long term. These data can inform patient decision making regarding mastectomy for their breast cancer.

Patient satisfaction with nipple-sparing mastectomy: A prospective study of patient reported outcomes using the BREAST-Q.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The authors sought to study patient-reported outcomes following nipple-sparing mastectomy (NSM). METHODS: From 2008 to 2011, the BREAST-Q was administered to women undergoing NSM surgery for cancer treatment or risk-reduction prior to surgery and at 2 years after completion of reconstruction. The change in score over time and the impact of surgical indication, complication occurrence, and laterality on scores were analyzed. RESULTS: The BREAST-Q was prospectively administered to 39 women undergoing NSM for cancer treatment (n = 17) or risk-reduction (RR) (n = 22). At 2 years after operation, median overall satisfaction with breasts was 75 (IQR = 67,100). There were significant postoperative increases in scores for overall satisfaction with breasts (+8, P = 0.021) and psychosocial well-being (+14, P = 0.003). Postoperatively, RR patients had significantly higher scores for psychosocial wellness, physical impact (chest), and overall satisfaction with outcome compared to cancer treatment patients (P < 0.05). Also, increase from preoperative to postoperative psychosocial wellness was higher in the RR compared to cancer treatment patients (+17 vs. +1, P = 0.043). Complication occurrence did not significantly impact postoperative scores. CONCLUSIONS: Following NSM for cancer treatment or RR, patients demonstrated high levels of satisfaction and quality of life as measured by BREAST-Q. Satisfaction level increased 2 years following operation. J. Surg. Oncol. 2016;114:416-422. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Oxygen and wound care: a review of current therapeutic modalities and future direction.

While the importance of oxygen to the wound healing process is well accepted, research and technological advances continue in this field and efforts are ongoing to further utilize oxygen as a therapeutic modality. In this paper, the authors briefly review the role of oxygen in wound healing and discuss the distinct mechanism of action as well as the advantages and disadvantages of the three major oxygen-based therapies currently in clinical use (Hyperbaric Oxygen and Topical Oxygen and Continuous Diffusion of Oxygen), as well as review the existing literature regarding these distinct therapeutic modalities.

Propofol Induced Subacute Cutaneous Lupus Erythematosus: A Case Report.

We report a case of a woman who experienced unexplained recurrent rashes of varying severity after multiple exposures to anesthesia, and then 2 successful surgeries under general anesthesia with no resultant rashes after removing propofol from her anesthetic plans. We infer her previous postanesthetic rashes were likely associated with drug-induced subacute cutaneous lupus erythematosus (DI-SCLE) triggered by propofol.

Pushing the DIEP Envelope with ERAS: 24 Hour Discharge is Safe in Appropriately Selected Patients.

Enhanced recovery after surgery protocols have become increasingly adopted for autologous breast reconstruction, demonstrating improved quality of care and reduced hospital stays. Despite this, average length of stay remains over 3 days. We have found, in appropriately selected patients, hospital length of stay can be safely reduced to less than 48 hours. Methods: Retrospective review was performed of patients who underwent microsurgical breast reconstruction by the senior author (M.H.) from April 2019 to December 2021. Demographics, operative details, length of stay, and postoperative complications are reported to assess for safety of discharge within 48 hours, with the primary outcome measure being flap loss. Results: In total, 188 flaps were performed on 107 patients. Average age was 51.4 years (SD 10.1 years) with average BMI 26.6 kg/m2 (SD 4.8 kg/m2). Average length of stay was 1.97 days (SD 0.61 days), and 96 patients (89.7%) were discharged within 48 hours. Six flaps (3.2%) required operative takebacks. Five of the six (83.3%) takebacks occurred on postoperative days zero or one, and all five of these flaps were salvaged. There were four breast hematomas (2.1%), four breast seromas (2.1%), eight breast infections (4.3%), 13 breasts (6.9%) with wound dehiscence, four flaps (2.1%) with partial flap loss, and 24 breasts (12.8%) with mastectomy flap necrosis. One hundred fifty flaps (79.8%) had no complications. Overall success rate of flap reconstruction was 99.5%. Conclusion: Hospital discharge in 24-48 hours is safe in appropriately selected patients undergoing autologous tissue breast reconstruction.

A Scoping Review of Mobile Apps in Plastic Surgery: Patient Care, Trainee Education, and Professional Development.

Over the past 10 years, smartphones have become ubiquitous, and mobile apps serve a seemingly endless number of functions in our everyday lives. These functions have entered the realm of plastic surgery, impacting patient care, education, and delivery of services. This article reviews the current uses of plastic surgery mobile apps, app awareness within the plastic surgery community, and the ethical issues surrounding their use in patient care. Methods: A scoping review of electronically available literature within PubMed, Embase, and Scopus databases was conducted in two waves in November and May 2022. Publications discussing mobile application use in plastic surgery were screened for inclusion. Results: Of the 80 nonduplicate publications retrieved, 20 satisfied the inclusion criteria. Articles acquired from the references of these publications were reviewed and summarized when relevant. The average American Society of Plastic Surgeons evidence rating of the publications was 4.2. Applications could be categorized broadly into three categories: patient care and surgical applications, professional development and education, and marketing and practice development. Conclusions: Mobile apps related to plastic surgery have become an abundant resource for patients, attending surgeons, and trainees. Many help bridge gaps in patient care and surgeon-patient communication, and facilitate marketing and practice development. Others make educational content more accessible to trainees and performance assessment more efficient and equitable. The extent of their impact on patient decision-making and expectations has not been completely elucidated.

A 20-Year Analysis of Medicare Reimbursement for Abdominal Wall Reconstruction (2000 to 2020).

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to evaluate monetary trends in Medicare reimbursement rates for 30 abdominal wall reconstruction surgical procedures over a 20-year period (2000 to 2020). METHODS: The Physician Fee Schedule Look-Up Tool from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services was used for each of the 30 included current CPT codes, and reimbursement data were extracted. Monetary data were adjusted for inflation to 2020 U.S. dollars using changes to the United States consumer price index. The R 2 values for the average annual percentage change and the average total percentage change in reimbursement were calculated based on these adjusted trends for all included procedures. RESULTS: After adjusting for inflation, the average reimbursement for all procedures decreased by 17.1% from 2000 to 2020. The greatest mean decrease was observed for CPT code 49568 (the implantation of mesh or other prosthesis for open incisional or ventral hernia repair or mesh for closure of débridement for necrotizing soft-tissue infection, -34.4%). The only procedure with an increased adjusted reimbursement rate throughout the study period was CPT code 20680 (+3.9%). From 2000 to 2020, the adjusted reimbursement rate for all included procedures decreased by an average of 0.85% each year, with an average R 2 value of 0.78, indicating a stable decline throughout the study period. CONCLUSIONS: Reimbursement rates are declining when adjusted for inflation. Increased awareness of these trends is helpful to maintain access to optimal abdominal reconstruction care in the United States.

A Comparative Analysis of the Common Injections Performed by Plastic Surgeons: 2012 and 2019.

Background: Plastic surgeons regularly perform injections for both cosmetic and functional purposes. This article examines the most common injections utilized by plastic surgeons under Medicare and how their usage and billing has changed between 2012 and 2019. Methods: Using the earliest and latest data available on the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' Provider Utilization and Payment Data File, we first determined Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System injection codes most billed to Medicare in 2012 and 2019. The number of services, amount of Medicare beneficiaries, and reimbursement rates were collected and analyzed for each Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System code from the Provider Utilization and Payment Data File for years 2012 and 2019. We compared the change in reimbursement rate for each injection to the rate of inflation in US dollars over the same period. Results: The unadjusted Medicare reimbursement rate for eight included injection types increased an average of 31.63% during the study period. This was not significantly different from the rate of inflation during the same period (+11.33%, P = 0.311). When all Medicare reimbursement data were adjusted for inflation to 2019 dollars, the average percentage change in reimbursement for all included injections in this study increased by 17.58% from 2012 to 2019. Conclusions: The findings from our study suggest that injections administered by plastic surgeons appear to be unique in their general stability in reimbursement rates as compared to rates in other fields. Further research should be performed to better understand the driving factors for usage and reimbursement changes.

Outcomes of Lymphovenous Anastomosis for Lower Extremity Lymphedema: A Systematic Review.

Lymphovenous anastomosis (LVA) is a microsurgical treatment for lymphedema of the lower extremity (LEL). This study systematically reviews the most recent data on outcomes of various LVA techniques for LEL in diverse patients. Methods: A comprehensive literature search was conducted in the Ovid MEDLINE, Ovid EMBASE, and Scopus databases to extract articles published through June 2021. Studies reporting data on objective postoperative improvement in lymphedema and/or subjective improvement in quality of life for patients with LEL were included. Extracted data comprised demographics, number of patients and lower limbs, duration of symptoms before LVA, surgical technique, duration of follow-up, and objective and subjective outcomes. Results: A total of 303 articles were identified and evaluated, of which 74 were ultimately deemed eligible for inclusion in this study, representing 6260 patients and 2554 lower limbs. The average patient age ranged from 22.6 to 76.14 years. The duration of lymphedema before LVA ranged from 12 months to 11.4 years. Objective rates of improvement in lymphedema ranged from 23.3% to 100%, with the greatest degree of improvement seen in patients with early-stage LEL. Conclusions: LVA is a safe and effective technique for the treatment of LEL of all stages. Several emerging techniques and variations may lead to improved patient outcomes.

Granular cell tumor involving the axillary nerve: an unusual occurrence. Case report.

Granular cell tumors (GCTs) are benign lesions that, paradoxically, despite originating from the Schwann cell, are most commonly seen in nonneuronal tissue including the skin, subcutaneous tissue, and tongue. Their presence in the brachial plexus is quite rare, but their involvement of peripheral nerves is exceptional. The authors report on a case of GCT involving the axillary nerve in a 54-year-old woman who underwent complete resection of the lesion. To the author's knowledge, this case marks the first report of a GCT involving the axillary nerve. Aspects pertaining to the radiographic and histopathological features as well as the surgical management of this lesion are discussed.

Systemic Therapy for Early-Stage Breast Cancer: What the Plastic Surgeon Should Know.

Objective: We review the types, indications, and common regimens of systemic forms of therapy offered in early-stage breast cancer. We further detail the mechanism of action, approved uses, major toxicities, and relevance to breast reconstruction of specific agents. Methods: A review of the literature on PubMed and Cochrane databases was undertaken to define the indications and common regimens of systemic therapy in early-stage breast cancer. In addition, literature describing relevant information regarding specific systemic agents was reviewed. Results: The main objectives of systemic therapy, when provided in the perioperative setting, are to reduce the risk for future recurrence and prolong overall survival. Systemic forms of therapy consist of chemotherapy, hormonal therapy, and targeted therapy and are increasingly being offered to women with early-stage breast cancer. Similarly, as more women are diagnosed with disease that is amenable to surgical extirpation, rates of breast reconstruction are on the rise. Many agents have effects that may impact patient safety with respect to breast reconstruction. Conclusions: Increasingly, women with breast cancer receive 1 or more forms of systemic therapy during the course of their treatment. It is therefore of significant importance that plastic surgeons have a clear understanding of the issues surrounding the use of systemic agents.

Postoperative Pain and Length of Stay Lowered by Use of Exparel in Immediate, Implant-Based Breast Reconstruction.

BACKGROUND: Patients undergoing mastectomy and prosthetic breast reconstruction have significant acute postsurgical pain, routinely mandating inpatient hospitalization. Liposomal bupivacaine (LB) (Exparel; Pacira Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Parsippany, N.J.) has been shown to be a safe and effective pain reliever in the immediate postoperative period and may be advantageous for use in mastectomy and breast reconstruction patients. METHODS: Retrospective review of 90 immediate implant-based breast reconstruction patient charts was completed. Patients were separated into 3 groups of 30 consecutively treated patients who received 1 of 3 pain treatment modalities: intravenous/oral narcotic pain control (control), bupivacaine pain pump, or LB injection. Length of hospital stay, patient-reported Visual Analog Scale (VAS) pain scores, postoperative patient-controlled analgesia usage, and nausea-related medication use were abstracted and subjected to analysis of variance and multiple linear-regression analysis, as appropriate. RESULTS: Subjects were well-matched for age (P = 0.24) regardless of pain-control modality. Roughly half (53%) of control and pain pump-treated subjects had bilateral procedures, as opposed to 80% of LB subjects. Mean length of stay for LB subjects was significantly less than control (1.5 days vs 2.00 days; P = 0.016). LB subjects reported significantly lower VAS pain scores at 4, 8, 12, 16, and 24 hours compared with pain pump and control (P < 0.01). There were no adverse events in the LB group. CONCLUSION: Use of LB in this group of immediate breast reconstruction patients was associated with decreased patient VAS pain scores in the immediate postoperative period compared with bupivacaine pain pump and intravenous/oral narcotic pain management and reduced inpatient length of stay.