Development and Standardization of an Osteoradionecrosis Classification System in Head and Neck Cancer: Implementation of a Risk-Based Model.

PURPOSE: Osteoradionecrosis of the jaw (ORN) can manifest in varying severity. The aim of this study is to identify ORN risk factors and develop a novel classification to depict the severity of ORN. METHODS: Consecutive patients with head and neck cancer (HNC) treated with curative-intent intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) (≥45 Gy) from 2011 to 2017 were included. Occurrence of ORN was identified from in-house prospective dental and clinical databases and charts. Multivariable logistic regression model was used to identify risk factors and stratify patients into high-risk and low-risk groups. A novel ORN classification system was developed to depict ORN severity by modifying existing systems and incorporating expert opinion. The performance of the novel system was compared with 15 existing systems for their ability to identify and predict serious ORN event (jaw fracture or requiring jaw resection). RESULTS: ORN was identified in 219 of 2,732 (8%) consecutive patients with HNC. Factors associated with high risk of ORN were oral cavity or oropharyngeal primaries, received IMRT dose ≥60 Gy, current/ex-smokers, and/or stage III to IV periodontal condition. The ORN rate for high-risk versus low-risk patients was 12.7% versus 3.1% (P < .001) with an AUC of 0.71. Existing ORN systems overclassified serious ORN events and failed to recognize maxillary ORN. A novel ORN classification system, ClinRad, was proposed on the basis of vertical extent of bone necrosis and presence/absence of exposed bone/fistula. This system detected serious ORN events in 5.7% of patients and statistically outperformed existing systems. CONCLUSION: We identified risk factors for ORN and proposed a novel ORN classification system on the basis of vertical extent of bone necrosis and presence/absence of exposed bone/fistula. It outperformed existing systems in depicting the seriousness of ORN and may facilitate clinical care and clinical trials.

Development and Standardization of a Classification System for Osteoradionecrosis: Implementation of a Risk-Based Model.

Purpose: Osteoradionecrosis of the jaw (ORN) can manifest in varying severity. The aim of this study is to identify ORN risk factors and develop a novel classification to depict the severity of ORN. Methods: Consecutive head-and-neck cancer (HNC) patients treated with curative-intent IMRT (≥ 45Gy) in 2011-2018 were included. Occurrence of ORN was identified from in-house prospective dental and clinical databases and charts. Multivariable logistic regression model was used to identify risk factors and stratify patients into high-risk and low-risk groups. A novel ORN classification system was developed to depict ORN severity by modifying existing systems and incorporating expert opinion. The performance of the novel system was compared to fifteen existing systems for their ability to identify and predict serious ORN event (jaw fracture or requiring jaw resection). Results: ORN was identified in 219 out of 2732 (8%) consecutive HNC patients. Factors associated with high-risk of ORN were: oral-cavity or oropharyngeal primaries, received IMRT dose ≥60Gy, current/ex-smokers, and/or stage III-IV periodontal disease. The ORN rate for high-risk vs low-risk patients was 12.7% vs 3.1% (p<0.001) with an area-under-the-receiver-operating-curve (AUC) of 0.71. Existing ORN systems overclassified serious ORN events and failed to recognize maxillary ORN. A novel ORN classification system, RadORN, was proposed based on vertical extent of bone necrosis and presence/absence of exposed bone/fistula. This system detected serious ORN events in 5.7% of patients and statistically outperformed existing systems. Conclusion: We identified risk factors for ORN, and proposed a novel ORN classification system based on vertical extent of bone necrosis and presence/absence of exposed bone/fistula. It outperformed existing systems in depicting the seriousness of ORN, and may facilitate clinical care and clinical trials.

A nationwide survey of emergency medicine resident workflow efficiency: Are training programs teaching residents to be efficient?

BACKGROUND: Workflow efficiency (WFE) is essential to the practice of emergency medicine (EM), but a standardized approach to measuring and teaching it during residency is lacking. In this study we sought to describe how EM residency programs in the United States currently measure and teach WFE and to assess the relative importance of WFE teaching to EM residency program leaders. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional survey of all accredited EM residency training programs in the United States in Fall 2019. We invited all allopathic EM residency programs to participate in the study by directly emailing program directors and assistant/associate program directors. We conducted the study and performed descriptive statistics using SurveyMonkey software. RESULTS: We received a total of 133 responses out of 190 total programs (70%) with proportionate representation from 3- and 4-year programs and all regions of the United States. When asked to what extent teaching efficiency should be a priority compared to other educational goals, 65% of program leaders responded with "significant" or "moderate" priority. Most EM programs collect WFE data on their residents, either by tracking patients per hour (78%) or by written evaluations (59%). Common methods for providing WFE data to residents were: "individual data provided along with deidentified rank" (35%), "data provided only during private feedback meetings" (26%), and "no data or rank provided to residents" (16%). Regarding targeted WFE teaching to residents, 88% reported utilizing general on-shift teaching, 48% reported teaching WFE during formal didactics, and 45% during dedicated private feedback sessions. CONCLUSION: This national study of allopathic U.S. EM programs suggests that most EM program leaders do value WFE teaching. However, we found no consistent approach among programs for tracking or distributing resident WFE data, and many programs lack a formalized way to teach efficiency to their residents.

Screening for Dental Infections Achieves 6-Fold Reduction in Dental Emergencies During Induction Chemotherapy for Acute Myeloid Leukemia.

PURPOSE: Patients with newly diagnosed acute myeloid leukemia (AML) are at risk of infection, including odontogenic infections, during induction chemotherapy. It is unknown whether clinical dental screening to diagnose and treat odontogenic disease in these patients can reduce the incidence of dental emergencies. METHODS: Between November 1, 2014, and December 31, 2016, we screened 147 patients with newly diagnosed AML before their admission for induction chemotherapy (n1 = 147, "screened" group). The patients not screened acted as controls (n2 = 190, "unscreened" group), as did patients diagnosed with AML in the 26 months before the initiation of the screening program (n3 = 304, "prescreening" group). The number of patients in each group who presented for emergency dental assessment during admission for induction chemotherapy was determined by 2 independent reviewers. RESULTS: Among the 147 patients in the screened group, only 1 patient presented with an infectious odontogenic emergency (0.68% [95% CI, -0.64% to 1.98%]). In the unscreened group, 8 developed an infectious odontogenic emergency during induction chemotherapy (4.21% [95% CI, 1.37% to 7.15%]), a statistically significant difference (P = .046, a = 0.05). A similar rate of infectious dental emergencies was observed in the prescreening group (4.28% [95% CI, 2.0% to 7.2%]). CONCLUSION: Clinical dental screening before induction chemotherapy in patients with AML resulted in a 6-fold reduction in infectious dental emergencies during the induction period.