Robot-Assisted Simple Prostatectomy: A Comparison of Primary Simple Prostatectomy vs Salvage Simple Prostatectomy in Treatment of Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms.

Purpose: Simple prostatectomy is indicated in patients with enlarged glands (>80 g) who present with lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) attributed to benign prostatic hyperplasia. Salvage robotic simple prostatectomy (SSP) is defined as simple prostatectomy after failed transurethral procedure. The aim of this study is to evaluate the efficacy of primary robotic simple prostatectomy (PSP) vs SSP in ameliorating LUTS. Materials and Methods: We retrospectively reviewed 124 patients who underwent RSP between 2013 and 2021. Indications for surgery were enlarged prostate, bothersome LUTS, or symptoms refractory to medical management and/or previous prostate surgery. PSP and SSP preoperative, perioperative, and postoperative variables were recorded. The severity of LUTS was assessed using the International Prostate Symptoms Score (IPSS). Two-tailed t-tests were performed to compare primary vs salvage RSP cohorts at a p-value of 0.05. Results: Of 124 patients who underwent RSP, 98 were primary and 26 were in the salvage setting with 19 patients undergoing prior transurethral resection of the prostate, 3 status post-transurethral microwave therapy, 1 status post-transurethral needle ablation of the prostate, and 3 status post-UroLIFT. Mean length of stay following RSP was 1.87 (days). At mean follow-up of ∼12 months, no patient required reoperation for LUTS. Preoperative IPSS for primary and salvage RSP was 18.56 and 16.25, respectively (p = 0.36), and postoperative IPSS for primary and salvage RSP was 5.33 and 8.00, respectively (p = 0.38). Conclusion: Regardless of primary or salvage indication, RSP remains a highly efficient and durable procedure for improvement in LUTS. RSP performed in the salvage setting greatly improved urinary function outcomes in patients after failure of previous transurethral procedures.

A Comparative Analysis of Short-term Patient Outcomes After Laparoscopic Versus Robotic Rectal Surgery.

BACKGROUND: The popularity of robot-assisted colorectal surgery has risen over recent years; however, patient-related advantages over laparoscopic surgery remain uncertain. OBJECTIVE: The goal of this study was to compare short-term patient outcomes following robotic and laparoscopic partial or complete rectal resections. DESIGN: This was a retrospective cohort study. SETTINGS: The study was conducted at 5 large tertiary care Kaiser Permanente medical centers across Southern California. PATIENTS: There were 863 consecutive robotic and laparoscopic pelvic rectal surgeries, including low anterior resections, proctectomies with coloanal anastomosis, and abdominoperineal resections, performed between January 2010 and December 2019. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Short-term patient outcomes, including postoperative length of hospital stay, emergency department returns, and 30-day readmissions, and mortality. RESULTS: A total of 458 surgical procedures were performed via robotic versus 405 via laparoscopic approaches. The robotic group had a higher proportion of male patients (57.4% vs 50.4%; p = 0.04) and a higher proportion of obese (27.1% vs 26.9%; p = 0.02) and overweight patients (36.9% vs 35.1%; p = 0.01). There was no difference in underlying comorbidities of diabetes or smoking, or in the rate of ileostomy creation. After adjusting for Charlson Comorbidity Index, no significant difference was found in emergency department returns between robotic and laparoscopic surgical patients ( p = 0.17). There were no significant outcome differences between the 2 groups with regards to length of stay during procedure, 30-day readmission, or death rates. LIMITATIONS: This study was limited by the lack of randomization in its design, selection of patients for surgical approach, and training and familiarity with robotic rectal surgery. CONCLUSIONS: This study shows length of stay during the procedure and postoperative 30-day readmission rates were generally similar between robotic and laparoscopic patients. Male patients and those with a higher BMI were more likely to have been operated via a robotic method. See Video Abstract at http://links.lww.com/DCR/B857 . UN ANLISIS COMPARATIVO DE LOS RESULTADOS A CORTO PLAZO DE LOS PACIENTES DESPUS DE LA CIRUGA RECTAL LAPAROSCPICA VERSUS LA ROBTICA: ANTECEDENTES:La popularidad de la cirugía colorrectal asistida por robot ha aumentado en los últimos años. Sin embargo, las ventajas relacionadas con el paciente siguen siendo inciertas sobre la cirugía laparoscópica.OBJETIVO:Nuestro objetivo era comparar los resultados de los pacientes a corto plazo después de resecciones rectales completas o parciales robóticas y laparoscópicas.DISEÑO:Este fue un estudio de cohorte retrospectivo.AJUSTE:El estudio se llevó a cabo en cinco grandes centros médicos de Kaiser Permanente de atención terciaria en el sur de California.PACIENTES:Se realizaron 863 cirugías robóticas y laparoscópicas rectales pélvicas consecutivas, incluidas resecciones anteriores bajas, proctectomías con anastomosis coloanal y resecciones abdominoperineales, realizadas entre enero de 2010 y diciembre de 2019.PRINCIPALES MEDIDAS DE RESULTADO:Resultados de los pacientes a corto plazo, incluida la duración de la estancia hospitalaria después del procedimiento, los retornos al departamento de emergencias y los reingresos y la mortalidad a los 30 días.RESULTADOS:Se realizaron un total de 458 procedimientos quirúrgicos a través del robot versus 405 con laparoscopia. El grupo robótico tuvo una mayor proporción de pacientes masculinos (57,4 vs 50,4%, p = 0,04) y una mayor proporción de pacientes obesos (27,1 vs 26,9%, p = 0,02) y con sobrepeso (36,9 vs 35,1%, p = 0,01). No hubo diferencia en las comorbilidades subyacentes de la diabetes y el tabaquismo, y en la tasa de creación de ileostomía. Después de ajustar por el índice de comorbilidad de Charlson, no se encontraron diferencias significativas en los retornos al servicio de urgencias entre los pacientes robóticos y laparoscópicos ( p = 0,17). No hubo diferencias significativas en los resultados entre los dos grupos con respecto a la duración de la estadía durante el procedimiento, las tasas de readmisión a los 30 días y las tasas de muerte.LIMITACIONES:Falta de aleatorización en el diseño del estudio, selección de pacientes para abordaje quirúrgico, capacitación y familiaridad con la cirugía rectal robótica.CONCLUSIONES:Este estudio muestra la duración de la estadía durante el procedimiento y las tasas de reingreso a los 30 días después del procedimiento fueron generalmente similares entre los pacientes robóticos y laparoscópicos. Los pacientes masculinos y aquellos con un índice de masa corporal más alto tenían más probabilidades de haber sido operados mediante un método robótico. Consulte Video Resumen en http://links.lww.com/DCR/B857 . (Traducción-Dr Yolanda Colorado ).

Implementation science for the adductor canal block: A new and adaptable methodology process.

BACKGROUND: Following the successful Perioperative Surgical Home (PSH) practice for total knee arthroplasty (TKA) at our institution, the need for continuous improvement was realized, including the deimplementation of antiquated PSH elements and introduction of new practices. AIM: To investigate the transition from femoral nerve blocks (FNB) to adductor canal nerve blocks (ACB) during TKA. METHODS: Our 13-month study from June 2016 to 2017 was divided into four periods: a three-month baseline (103 patients), a one-month pilot (47 patients), a three-month implementation and hardwiring period (100 patients), and a six-month evaluation period (185 patients). In total, 435 subjects were reviewed. Data within 30 postoperative days were extracted from electronic medical records, such as physical therapy results and administration of oral morphine equivalents (OME). RESULTS: Our institution reduced FNB application (64% to 3%) and increased ACB utilization (36% to 97%) at 10 mo. Patients in the ACB group were found to have increased ambulation on the day of surgery (4.1 vs 2.0 m) and lower incidence of falls (0 vs 1%) and buckling (5% vs 27%) compared with FNB patients (P < 0.05). While ACB patients (13.9) reported lower OME than FNB patients (15.9), the difference (P = 0.087) did not fall below our designated statistical threshold of P value < 0.05. CONCLUSION: By demonstrating closure of the "knowledge to action gap" within 6 mo, our institution's findings demonstrate evidence in the value of implementation science. Physician education, technical support, and performance monitoring were deemed key facilitators of our program's success. Expanded patient populations and additional orthopedic procedures are recommended for future study.

The Role of Intraoperative Urinary Catheters on Postoperative Urinary Retention after Total Joint Arthroplasty: A Multi-Hospital Retrospective Study on 9,580 Patients.

BACKGROUND: Urinary catheters (UC) are used by some surgeons during total joint arthroplasty (TJA). This study investigated the impact of intraoperative urinary catheters on postoperative urinary retention (POUR) following TJA cases. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective comparative study across 11 medical centers on 9,580 TJA patients. Visits to urgent care or the emergency department within 7 and 30 postoperative days were reviewed. Medical records over a 12-month period for all patients older than 18 years old were used to gather demographic and surgical data as well as the incidence of urinary tract infection (UTI). Chi-squared tests (RStudio) were used to determine statistical significance against P-Values (P) < 0.05. RESULTS: 13 (0.14%) patients returned within 7 days for POUR. POUR was more common in males [10 (0.3%) vs. 3 (0.1%) females, (P = 0.01)]. There was no difference in POUR when comparing total hip and knee arthroplasty procedures [0.16% vs. 0.12%, (P = 0.60)]. Of all operations, 25% had intraoperative UC use. There was no difference in POUR between the UC and no UC groups [0.21 vs. 0.11%, (P = 0.26)]. However, there was an increase in UTI in UC vs. no UC use within 7 postoperative days [0.92 vs. 0.43%, (P = 0.005)] and 30 postoperative days [2.60 vs. 1.50 %, (P < 0.001)]. CONCLUSION: In our study, there was no difference in POUR rates between the intraoperative UC vs. no UC groups. Therefore, the use of intraoperative UC may not decrease the rate of POUR following TJA procedures. Additionally, UTI risk was higher in the UC group which may be attributable to other factors, especially when comparing female vs. male patients.

Population Management Approach to Kidney Stone Care Improves Patient Compliance to Preventive Measures and Reduces Resource Utilization in Patients at High Risk for Stone Recurrence.

INTRODUCTION: Nephrolithiasis is a chronic condition with 5 to 10-year recurrence rates as high as 50%. Stone recurrence can be reduced by implementing American Urological Association kidney stone medical management guidelines, which recommend additional metabolic testing for high risk, recurrent and interested first-time stone formers. However, clinician adherence to guidelines is variable, and patient compliance with preventive evaluations is low. We evaluated our kidney stone population management program's role in patient compliance with completing American Urological Association metabolic studies. We assessed the program's impact on office encounters, operating room procedures and emergency department visits for known high risk kidney stone patients. METHODS: A retrospective review of electronic medical records between 2009 and 2017 identified 4,029 kidney stone patients. A total of 873 patients were at high risk for kidney stone recurrence. In 2013, we established a population management program in which high risk patients were referred and followed by a nurse case manager. Patients were contacted by email or telephone if metabolic serum and urine collections were incomplete. Office, operating room and emergency department visits were compared before and after the program's implementation. RESULTS: Metabolic evaluation orders increased from 17% to 35% in our institution's urology department. Patient compliance with recommended studies improved from <10% to 82%, and reductions in office visits by 48%, surgical procedures by 38% and emergency department encounters by 40% were observed. CONCLUSIONS: Our program improved patient compliance with American Urological Association recommended studies for high risk kidney stone patients. Reductions in stone events may have been due to our program but require further study in the future.

Effectiveness of onabotulinumtoxinA (BOTOX) in pediatric patients experiencing migraines: a randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled crossover study in the pediatric pain population.

INTRODUCTION: OnabotulinumtoxinA (OBTA) is approved for treating chronic headaches and migraines in adults, but there is limited scientific literature on the outcomes in pediatric patients. The aim of this study was to determine if subjects treated with OBTA reported a statistically significant improvement in the primary features (frequency, intensity, duration and disability scoring) associated with migraines compared with placebo at follow-up visits. METHODS: After obtaining approval by the appropriate local (HS# 2016-3108) and federal institutions, the principal investigator enrolled candidates aged 8 to 17 years old diagnosed with chronic migraines (at least 6 months), and 15 or more headache days in a 4-week baseline period. This randomized control trial consisted of two phases: double-blind and open-label for the first two and last two sets of treatments, respectively. Subjects were randomly assigned to receive a treatment protocol-155 units at 31 injection sites-in 3-month intervals and follow-up visits every 6 weeks. Non-parametric testing (Wilcoxon signed-rank test) was performed using widely available open-source statistical software ('R'). RESULTS: From February 2017 to November 2018, 17 subjects presented for a screening visit; 15 met eligibility criteria. Subjects that received OBTA reported a statistically significant decrease from the following baseline values compared with placebo 6-week post-treatment compared with placebo: frequency (20 (7 to 17) vs 28 (23 to 28); p=0.038), intensity (5 (3 to 7) vs 7 (5 to 9); p=0.047), and PedMIDAS (Pediatric Migraine Disability Score) (3 (2 to 4) vs 4 (4 to 4); p=0.047). There was no statistically significant difference in the duration (10 (2 to 24) vs 24 (4 to 24); p=0.148) of migraines between the two groups. DISCUSSION: OnabotulinumtoxinA showed a statistically significant decrease in frequency and intensity of migraines compared with placebo. No adverse effects or serious adverse events related to the use of OBTA were reported. In the future, we aim to evaluate the specific nature of migraines, for example, quality/location of pain presented during an initial consult to predict the likelihood of OBTA being a truly effective modality of pain management for pediatric migraineurs. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: NCT03055767.

Postoperative Physician Phone Calls as a Method to Decrease Urgent Care and Emergency Department Returns After Ambulatory General Surgery.

Unplanned returns after ambulatory surgery pose a burden to patients and health care providers alike. We hypothesized that a postoperative phone call by a physician would decrease avoidable returns to urgent care (UC) or the emergency department (ED) in the week after anorectal (AR), laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC), inguinal hernia repair (IHR), and umbilical hernia repair (UHR) operations. A retrospective analysis from 1/2011 to 12/2015 across 14 Kaiser hospitals was conducted to determine baseline UC/ED return rates of patients pre-call. Between 10/2017 and 06/2019, physicians placed phone calls to patients within postoperative days (PODs) 1-4. The cohorts were compared using chi-squared analysis with significance determined at P < .05. In total, 276 patients received a call, with the majority placed on PODs 1-3. There were no statistically significant differences in return rates between the pre- and post-call groups. All of the AR, 50.0% of LC, 66.7% of IHR, and 50.0% of UHR patients returned prior to phone call placement. Our data indicate that a physician phone call does not help in decreasing UC/ED returns. However, it is noteworthy that many of the returns occurred pre-call placement. Future directions should be aimed at placing earlier postoperative phone calls.

Impact of Intraoperative Foley Catheters on Postoperative Urinary Retention after Inguinal Hernia Surgery.

Foley catheters (FCs) are often used during inguinal hernia operations; however, the impact of intraoperative FC use on postoperative urinary retention (POUR) is not well understood. We reviewed unplanned returns to the urgent care or ED for 27,012 inguinal hernia operations across 15 Southern California Kaiser Permanente medical centers over 6.5 years. In total, 239 (0.88%) patients returned to urgent care/ED with POUR [235 (98%) men versus 4 (2%) women]. Overall, POUR increased with age (P < 0.00001). POUR was higher in open repairs using general anesthesia versus local with monitored anesthesia care (0.7% vs 0.3%, P < 0.0001). Of 5,017 laparoscopic operations, 28 per cent had FC use. Although POUR was greater for laparoscopic versus open operations (2.21 vs 0.58%, P < 0.00001), there was no difference in POUR for intraoperative FC versus no FC use in the laparoscopic approach (2.36% vs 2.15%, P = 0.33). For all laparoscopic operations, there was no difference in urinary tract infection within 7 or 30 days when comparing intraoperative FC versus no FC use (P = 0.28). POUR can be minimized by avoiding general anesthesia for open inguinal hernia repairs, but intraoperative FC use does not affect POUR or urinary tract infection rates for laparoscopic inguinal hernia repair.

Unplanned Returns to Care within Seven Days after Anorectal Surgery: Can they be Avoided?

With rates up to 50 per cent, unanticipated returns after anorectal surgery remain a major issue. A retrospective analysis was performed on 5929 anorectal operations from January 2011 to December 2015 across 14 Kaiser Permanente Southern California medical centers. Data were gathered on the cause, frequency and timing of unplanned returns to the ED and urgent care. Of all patients, 246 (4%) returned with a nonavoidable diagnosis and 243 (4%) returned with one of four avoidable diagnoses: pain, constipation, urinary retention, and nausea/vomiting. Seventy four per cent of avoidable diagnoses returns occurred within the first four postoperative days, with 48 per cent between days 2 and 4. In patients older than 50 years of age, males showed higher urinary retention (P = 0.001), whereas females had higher constipation (P < 0.001). Contrarily, pain was higher for both males (P = 0.02) and females (P < 0.001) less than 50 years old. In a separate subanalysis on anesthesia type, both constipation (P = 0.03) and urinary retention (P = 0.01) showed double the return rate in the general versus local/monitored anesthesia care group, whereas pain (P = 0.15) and nausea/vomiting (P = 0.20) showed no differences. Half of returns fall into a category that is potentially avoidable with preemptive interventions.

An Analysis of Early Postoperative Returns after Inguinal Hernia Surgery.

Although inguinal herniorrhaphy is low risk, patients still return to the urgent care or ED. We performed a retrospective study on 19,296 inguinal hernia operations across 14 Southern California Kaiser Permanente medical centers over five years. Unplanned returns within the first postoperative week were evaluated focusing on four potentially avoidable diagnoses (AD): pain, constipation, urinary retention, and nausea/vomiting. Overall, 1370 (7%) patients returned to the urgent care/emergency department, of which 537 (39%) had an AD. There was no difference in total returns (7.1 vs 7.4%, P = 0.33) or AD returns [2.8 vs 2.6%, (P = 0.44)] for males vs females. Of the 537 total AD returns, there were 205 (38%) patients with pain, 191 (36%) with urinary retention, 112 (21%) with constipation, and 29 (5%) with nausea/vomiting. Most AD returns (78%) occurred within the first three postoperative days. Pain was greater in open operations [44 vs 26%, (P < 0.05)], and urinary retention was greater in the laparoscopic group [27 vs 55%, (P < 0.05)]. The overall rate of return was higher for laparoscopic compared with open unilateral operations [8 vs 6%, (P < 0.05)], but similar between approaches for bilateral operations [11 vs 10%, (P = 0.32)].

Ceruminous gland carcinomas: a clinicopathologic and immunophenotypic study of 17 cases.

BACKGROUND: Ceruminal gland carcinomas are rare neoplasms confined to the skin lining the cartilaginous part of the external auditory canal. DESIGN: Retrospective. RESULTS: The patients included 11 men and 6 women, aged 33-82 years (mean, 59.5 years). Patients presented clinically with a mass of the outer half of the external auditory canal (n = 14), hearing changes (n = 5), drainage (n = 4), or paralysis of the facial nerve (n = 3). The polypoid masses ranged in size from 0.5 to 3 cm in greatest dimension (mean, 1.8 cm). Histologically, the tumors demonstrated a solid to cystic pattern, composed of an infiltrating glandular to cribriform arrangement of epithelial cells. Histologic features included a dual cell population (although not the dominant histology), increased cellularity, moderate to severe nuclear pleomorphism, irregular nucleoli, increased mitotic figures (mean, 3/10 HPF), including atypical forms, and tumor necrosis (n = 2). Tumors were divided into three types of adenocarcinoma based on pattern of growth and cell type (ceruminous, NOS [n = 12], adenoid cystic [n = 4], mucoepidermoid [n = 1]). CK7 and CD117 highlighted the luminal cells, while S1-00 protein showed a predilection for the basal cells of ceruminous and adenoid cystic carcinomas. Metastatic adenocarcinoma or direct extension from salivary gland neoplasms are the principle differential considerations. Surgical resection was used in all patients with radiation used in four patients. Eleven patients were alive or had died of unrelated causes without evidence of disease (mean, 11.2 years); six patients had died with disease (mean, 4.9 years), all of whom had developed local recurrence. CONCLUSION: Ceruminous-type carcinomas, with the exception of ceruminous mucoepidermoid carcinoma, all demonstrated a dual cell population of basal myoepithelial-type cells and luminal apocrine cells. The specific histologic sub-type does not influence the long-term patient outcome.