Invasive arterial blood pressure monitoring may aid in the medical management of hypertensive patients with acute aortic disease.

INTRODUCTION: Blood pressure (BP) monitoring and management is essential in the treatment of acute aortic disease (AoD). Previous studies had shown differences between invasive arterial BP monitoring (ABPM) and non-invasive cuff BP monitoring (CBPM), but not whether ABPM would result in patients' change of clinical management. We hypothesized that ABPM would change BP management in AoD patients. METHODS: This was a prospective observational study of adult patients with AoD admitted to the Critical Care Resuscitation Unit from January 2019 to February 2021. Patients with AoD and both ABPM and CBPM measurements were included. Clinician's BP management goals were assessed in real time before and after arterial catheter placement according to current guidelines. We defined change of management as change of current antihypertensive infusion rate or adding a new agent. We used multivariable logistic and ordinal regressions to determine relevant predictors. RESULTS: We analyzed 117 patients, and 56 (47%) had type A dissection. ABPM was frequently ≥10 mmHg higher than CBPM values. Among 40 (34%) patients with changes in management, 58% (23/40) had [ABPM-CBPM] differences ≥20 mmHg. ABPM prompted increasing current antihypertensive infusion in 68% (27/40) of patients. Peripheral artery disease (OR 13, 95% CI 1.18-50+) was associated with changes in clinical management, and ordinal regression showed hypertension and serum lactate to be associated with differences between ABPM and CBPM. CONCLUSIONS: ABPM was frequently higher than CBPM, resulting in 34% of changes of management, most commonly increasing anti-hypertensive infusion rates.

Parental leave policies in general surgery residencies.

BACKGROUND: Prospective residents use program websites to glean information regarding parental leave policies. This study investigates the online availability and content of parental leave policies for general surgery residency programs. METHODS: Parental leave policy information was collected from general surgery residency program and Graduate Medical Education (GME) websites. Descriptive statistics and multivariable logistic regression were used for analysis. RESULTS: Of the 344 general surgery residency programs, parental leave policies were found on 6% of program and 52% of GME websites. Family Medical Leave Act policies were reported the most, followed by maternity, then paternity, and then adoption/other clauses. Academic programs, program location in the Southeastern US and larger program size were all significant predictors of online policy availability. CONCLUSIONS: General surgery parental leave policies vary and are not readily available online. These findings identify a significant opportunity for surgery residency programs to improve the disclosure of parental leave policy information.

Long-term retreatment outcomes after definitive management of Graves' disease with radioactive iodine versus surgery.

BACKGROUND: Common treatments for Graves' disease include antithyroid drugs (ATD), radioactive iodine (RAI), and surgery. RAI avoids surgical morbidity, but rate and durability of remission varies across studies. This study directly compared the long-term results of Graves' disease treated by surgery versus RAI and hypothesized that RAI would be associated with lower rates of long-term biochemical remission and higher likelihood of retreatment. METHODS: This retrospective cohort study included individuals diagnosed with Graves' disease who were treated surgically, with RAI, or both at a tertiary referral center. Definitive retreatment was defined as additional RAI or surgery after index treatment, and retreatment was defined as requiring ATD or a second definitive treatment after index treatment. Remission was defined by normalization of thyroid stimulating hormone without retreatment at 6 months. RESULTS: Index definitive therapy was total thyroidectomy for 72 patients and RAI for 104 patients. The median follow-up time was 3.6 years. The rate of remission at 6 months in the RAI group (68.8%) was lower than that in the surgery group (98.6%) (odds ratio: 0.03, P < .001). Patients who underwent index RAI experienced a significantly higher cumulative incidence of any retreatment at all time points than those who underwent index surgery (P < .001). Among RAI patients who achieved euthyroidism within 6 months, 19% developed subsequent relapse requiring ATD therapy or retreatment. CONCLUSION: The need for retreatment after index therapy for Graves' disease is significantly lower after thyroidectomy than after RAI.

Arterial Monitoring in Hypertensive Emergencies: Significance for the Critical Care Resuscitation Unit.

INTRODUCTION: Blood pressure measurement is important for treating patients. It is known that there is a discrepancy between cuff blood pressure vs arterial blood pressure measurement. However few studies have explored the clinical significance of discrepancies between cuff (CPB) vs arterial blood pressure (ABP). Our study investigated whether differences in CBP and ABP led to change in management for patients with hypertensive emergencies and factors associated with this change. METHODS: This prospective observational study included adult patients admitted between January 2019-May 2021 to a resuscitation unit with hypertensive emergencies. We defined clinical significance of discrepancies as a discrepancy between CBP and ABP that resulted in change of clinical management. We used stepwise multivariable logistic regression to measure associations between clinical factors and outcomes. RESULTS: Of 212 patients we analyzed, 88 (42%) had change in management. Mean difference between CBP and ABP was 17 milligrams of mercury (SD 14). Increasing the existing rate of antihypertensive infusion occurred in 38 (44%) patients. Higher body mass index (odds ratio [OR] 1.04, 95% confidence Interval [CI] 1.0001-1.08, P-value <0.05) and history of peripheral arterial disease (OR 0.16, 95% CI 0.03-0.97, P-value <0.05) were factors associated with clinical significance of discrepancies. CONCLUSION: Approximately 40% of hypertensive emergencies had a clinical significance of discrepancy warranting management change when arterial blood pressure was initiated. Further studies are necessary to confirm our observations and to investigate the benefit-risk ratio of ABP monitoring.

Most patients with non-hypertensive diseases at a critical care resuscitation unit require arterial pressure monitoring: a prospective observational study.

BACKGROUND: Blood pressure (BP) monitoring is essential for patient care. Invasive arterial BP (IABP) is more accurate than non-invasive BP (NIBP), although the clinical significance of this difference is unknown. We hypothesized that IABP would result in a change of management (COM) among patients with non-hypertensive diseases in the acute phase of resuscitation. METHODS: This prospective study included adults admitted to the Critical Care Resuscitation Unit (CCRU) with non-hypertensive disease from February 1, 2019, to May 31, 2021. Management plans to maintain a mean arterial pressure >65 mmHg (1 mmHg=0.133 kPa) were recorded in real time for both NIBP and IABP measurements. A COM was defined as a discrepancy between IABP and NIBP that resulted in an increase/decrease or addition/discontinuation of a medication/infusion. Classification and regression tree analysis identified significant variables associated with a COM and assigned relative variable importance (RVI) values. RESULTS: Among the 206 patients analyzed, a COM occurred in 94 (45.6% [94/206]) patients. The most common COM was an increase in current infusion dosages (40 patients, 19.4%). Patients receiving norepinephrine at arterial cannulation were more likely to have a COM compared with those without (45 [47.9%] vs. 32 [28.6%], P=0.004). Receiving norepinephrine (relative variable importance [RVI] 100%) was the most significant factor associated with a COM. No complications were identified with IABP use. CONCLUSION: A COM occurred in 94 (45.6%) non-hypertensive patients in the CCRU. Receiving vasopressors was the greatest factor associated with COM. Clinicians should consider IABP monitoring more often in non-hypertensive patients requiring norepinephrine in the acute resuscitation phase. Further studies are necessary to confirm the risk-to-benefit ratios of IABP among these high-risk patients.

Discrepancy Between Invasive and Noninvasive Blood Pressure Measurements in Patients with Sepsis by Vasopressor Status.

INTRODUCTION: Blood pressure (BP) monitoring is an essential component of sepsis management. The Surviving Sepsis Guidelines recommend invasive arterial BP (IABP) monitoring, although the benefits over non-invasive BP (NIBP) monitoring are unclear. This study investigated discrepancies between IABP and NIBP measurement and their clinical significance. We hypothesized that IABP monitoring would be associated with changes in management among patients with sepsis requiring vasopressors. METHODS: We performed a retrospective study of adult patients admitted to the critical care resuscitation unit at a quaternary medical center between January 1-December 31, 2017. We included patients with sepsis conditions AND IABP monitoring. We defined a clinically significant BP discrepancy (BPD) between NIBP and IABP measurement as a difference of > 10 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg) AND change of BP management to maintain mean arterial pressure ≥ 65 mm Hg. RESULTS: We analyzed 127 patients. Among 57 (45%) requiring vasopressors, 9 (16%) patients had a clinically significant BPD vs 2 patients (3% odds ratio [OR] 6.4; 95% CI: 1.2-30; P = 0.01) without vasopressors. In multivariable logistic regression, higher Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score (OR 1.33; 95% CI: 1.02-1.73; P = 0.03) and serum lactate (OR 1.27; 95% CI: 1.003-1.60, P = 0.04) were associated with increased likelihood of clinically significant BPD. There were no complications (95% CI: 0-0.02) from arterial catheter insertions. CONCLUSION: Among our population of septic patients, the use of vasopressors was associated with increased odds of a clinically significant blood pressure discrepancy between IABP and NIBP measurement. Additionally, higher SOFA score and serum lactate were associated with higher likelihood of clinically significant blood pressure discrepancy. Further studies are needed to confirm our observations and investigate the benefits vs the risk of harm of IABP monitoring in patients with sepsis.