Understanding delays to parathyroidectomy: A mixed-methods approach.

BACKGROUND: Patients from ethnic and racial minority groups with primary hyperparathyroidism may have greater time delays to curative parathyroidectomy. Contributing factors are unclear. METHODS: This was a sequential mixed-methods study. The quantitative phase was a retrospective chart review of adults with primary hyperparathyroidism who underwent parathyroidectomy between 2015 and 2020, collecting demographic and clinical data. Social vulnerability of the patients' residential area, measured with the Social Vulnerability Index, and relevant clinical time intervals were calculated. A multivariable analysis of factors associated with greater time intervals was performed. The qualitative phase involved semistructured interviews with endocrinologists, analyzed inductively for themes. RESULTS: On chart review of 1,083 patients, the median age was determined to be 61 years and 856 (79%) were female. Six hundred twenty-eight (57.9%) were non-Hispanic White and 456 (42.1%) were Hispanic ethnicity or Asian, Pacific Islander, Black, Native American, Other or Unknown race. Patients of Hispanic ethnicity, or Asian or Pacific Islander, Black, Native American, Other or Unknown race were more likely than non-Hispanic White patients to live in the most socially vulnerable areas (19.3% vs 5.9%, P < .01) and had greater time intervals than non-Hispanic White patients between index hypercalcemia and first parathyroid hormone level, surgical referral, or parathyroidectomy (all P < .05). On multivariable analysis, age (coefficient 7.9, 95% CI 2.8-13.0) and living in the most socially vulnerable areas (coefficient 297.9, 95% CI 87-508.7) were associated with greater days between index hypercalcemia and parathyroidectomy. In the study's qualitative phase, identified themes for reasons for care delays included socioeconomic, nonsocioeconomic patient, and nonsocioeconomic nonpatient factors. CONCLUSION: Care delays are driven by a combination of socioeconomic and nonsocioeconomic factors.

The Utility of Biomarkers in the Clinical Management of Syphilis: A Systematic Review.

BACKGROUND: Routinely available laboratory tests for Treponema pallidum remain suboptimal for diagnostic, prognostic, predictive, and monitoring purposes. Biomarkers with enhanced performance characteristics can improve diagnostic confidence and facilitate management. We conducted a systematic review to examine the utility of biomarkers in the diagnosis and management of syphilis. METHODS: We used the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses to identify articles for inclusion and independently reviewed them for eligibility and study quality using a 3-stage procedure. The search, conducted by a senior library informationist, used PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, and Scopus and included any study published before May 2022. RESULTS: Of the 111 studies identified, 31 (27.9%) were included in our review. Most studies were cross-sectional or prospective. The data were strikingly heterogeneous examining a variety of biomarkers across different syphilis stages, using different methodologies and definitions of treatment success. Available publications chiefly focused on diagnosing various syphilis stages, neurosyphilis and congenital syphilis, serological cure, the serofast state, and reinfection. CONCLUSIONS: Despite increasing attempts to identify novel biomarkers, we found limited evidence to support the use of any biomarker in clinical decision making at this time; the syphilis biomarker literature is heterogenous and lacks measurement of clinically meaningful end points. We recommend the formation of a working group to set priorities for syphilis biomarker research and to guide future study of clinically meaningful biomarkers.