Missing Care: the Initial Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on CKD Care Delivery.

BACKGROUND: Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a common condition with adverse health outcomes addressable by early disease management. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on care utilization for the CKD population is unknown. OBJECTIVE: To examine pandemic CKD care and identify factors associated with a high care deficit. DESIGN: Retrospective observational study PARTICIPANTS: 248,898 insured individuals (95% Medicare Advantage, 5% commercial) with stage G3-G4 CKD in 2018 MAIN MEASURES: Predicted (based on the pre-pandemic period of January 1, 2019-February 28, 2020) to observed per-member monthly face-to-face and telehealth encounters, laboratory testing, and proportion of days covered (PDC) for medications, evaluated during the early (March 1, 2020-June 30, 2020), pre-vaccine (July 1, 2020-December 31, 2020), and late (January 2021-August 2021) periods and overall. KEY RESULTS: In-person encounters fell by 24.1% during the pandemic overall; this was mitigated by a 14.2% increase in telehealth encounters, resulting in a cumulative observed utilization deficit of 10% relative to predicted. These reductions were greatest in the early pandemic period, with a 19.8% cumulative deficit. PDC progressively decreased during the pandemic (range 9-20% overall reduction), with the greatest reductions in hypertension and diabetes medicines. CKD laboratory monitoring was also reduced (range 11.8-43.3%). Individuals of younger age (OR 1.63, 95% CI 1.16, 2.28), with commercial insurance (1.43, 95% CI 1.25, 1.63), residing in the Southern US (OR 1.17, 95% CI 1.14, 1.21), and with stage G4 CKD (OR 1.21, 95% CI 1.17, 1.26) had greater odds of a higher care deficit overall. CONCLUSIONS: The early COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a marked decline of healthcare services for individuals with CKD, with an incomplete recovery during the later pandemic. Increased telehealth use partially compensated for this deficit. The downstream impact of CKD care reduction on health outcomes requires further study, as does evaluation of effective care delivery models for this population.

Temporal Patterns of High-Spend Subgroups Can Inform Service Strategy for Medicare Advantage Enrollees.

BACKGROUND: Most healthcare costs are concentrated in a small proportion of individuals with complex social, medical, behavioral, and clinical needs that are poorly met by a fee-for-service healthcare system. Efforts to reduce cost in the top decile have shown limited effectiveness. Understanding patient subgroups within the top decile is a first step toward designing more effective and targeted interventions. OBJECTIVE: Segment the top decile based on spending and clinical characteristics and examine the temporal movement of individuals in and out of the top decile. DESIGN: Retrospective claims data analysis. PARTICIPANTS: UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage (MA) enrollees (N = 1,504,091) continuously enrolled from 2016 to 2019. MAIN MEASURES: Medical (physician, inpatient, outpatient) and pharmacy claims for services submitted for third-party reimbursement under Medicare Advantage, available as International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-10-CM) and National Drug Codes (NDC) claims. KEY RESULTS: The top decile was segmented into three distinct subgroups characterized by different drivers of cost: (1) Catastrophic: acute events (acute myocardial infarction and hip/pelvic fracture), (2) persistent: medications, and (3) semi-persistent chronic conditions and frailty indicators. These groups show different patterns of spending across time. Each year, 79% of the catastrophic group dropped out of the top decile. In contrast, 68-70% of the persistent group and 36-37% of the semi-persistent group remained in the top decile year over year. These groups also show different 1-year mortality rates, which are highest among semi-persistent members at 17.5-18.5%, compared to 12% and 13-14% for catastrophic and persistent members, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The top decile consists of subgroups with different needs and spending patterns. Interventions to reduce utilization and expenditures may show more effectiveness if they account for the different characteristics and care needs of these subgroups.

Rationale, Methodological Quality, and Reporting of Cluster-Randomized Controlled Trials in Critical Care Medicine: A Systematic Review.

OBJECTIVE: Compared with individual-patient randomized controlled trials, cluster randomized controlled trials have unique methodological and ethical considerations. We evaluated the rationale, methodological quality, and reporting of cluster randomized controlled trials in critical care studies. DATA SOURCES: Systematic searches of Medline, Embase, and Cochrane Central Register were performed. STUDY SELECTION: We included all cluster randomized controlled trials conducted in adult, pediatric, or neonatal critical care units from January 2005 to September 2019. DATA EXTRACTION: Two reviewers independently screened citations, reviewed full texts, protocols, and supplements of potentially eligible studies, abstracted data, and assessed methodology of included studies. DATA SYNTHESIS: From 1,902 citations, 59 cluster randomized controlled trials met criteria. Most focused on quality improvement (24, 41%), antimicrobial therapy (9, 15%), or infection control (9, 15%) interventions. Designs included parallel-group (25, 42%), crossover (21, 36%), and stepped-wedge (13, 22%). Concealment of allocation was reported in 21 studies (36%). Thirteen studies (22%) reported at least one method of blinding. The median total sample size was 1,660 patients (interquartile range, 813-4,295); the median number of clusters was 12 (interquartile range, 5-24); and the median patients per cluster was 141 (interquartile range, 54-452). Sample size calculations were reported in 90% of trials, but only 54% met Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials guidance for sample size reporting. Twenty-seven of the studies (46%) identified a fixed number of available clusters prior to trial commencement, and only nine (15%) prespecified both the number of clusters and patients required to detect the expected effect size. Overall, 36 trials (68%) achieved the total prespecified sample size. When analyzing data, 44 studies (75%) appropriately adjusted for clustering when analyzing the primary outcome. Only 12 (20%) reported an intracluster coefficient (median 0.047 [interquartile range, 0.01-0.13]). CONCLUSIONS: Cluster randomized controlled trials in critical care typically involve a small and fixed number of relatively large clusters. The reporting of key methodological aspects of these trials is often inadequate.

Benchmarks of Duration and Magnitude of Opioid Consumption After Total Hip and Knee Arthroplasty: A Database Analysis of 69,368 Patients.

BACKGROUND: Opioid prescribing after orthopedic surgeries varies widely, and there is little consensus establishing proper standards of care. This retrospective cohort study examines opioid prescribing trends following total hip (THA) and knee (TKA) arthroplasty and evaluates preoperative opioid use as a predictor of duration and magnitude of postoperative opioid use. METHODS: Patients who underwent THA or TKA in a nationwide insurance database were stratified by preoperative opioid use. Naive, sporadic, and chronic users were defined as 0, 1, or 2+ prescriptions filled 6 months before surgery. Patients were excluded for readmission or subsequent surgery. Duration of opioid use was defined as time between the procedure and the last opioid prescription record, and magnitude of opioid use was defined as quantity of pills filled by 30 days postop. RESULTS: Naive patients were less likely than chronic users to fill any opioid prescription after surgery (THA: 61.5% naive vs 90.4% chronic, TKA: 72.0% naive vs 95.9% chronic), and they obtained fewer pills (THA: 73 pills naive vs 126 pills chronic, TKA: 86 pills naive vs 126 pills chronic, 5-mg oxycodone equivalent). Between 10% (THA) and 13% (TKA) of naive and between 47% (THA) and 62% (TKA) of chronic users continued opioid use at 1 year postop. CONCLUSION: Chronic users obtain more opioids postoperatively and continue filling prescriptions for longer than naive patients. This work benchmarks norms regarding opioid use and furthermore these data highlight the powerful effect of opioid exposure during surgery as 10%-13% of naive patients continued opioids at 1 year postop.

Standardized practice design with electronic support mechanisms for surgical process improvement: reducing mechanical ventilation time.

BACKGROUND: Hospital surgical care is complex and subject to unwarranted variation. OBJECTIVE: As part of a multiyear effort, we sought to reduce variability in intraoperative care and management of mechanical ventilation in cardiac surgery. We identified a patient population whose care could be standardized and implemented a protocol-based practice model reinforced by electronic mechanisms. METHODS: In a large cardiac surgery practice, we built a standardized practice model between 2009 and 2011. We compared mechanical ventilation time before (2008) and after (2012) implementation. To ensure groups were comparable, propensity analysis matched patients from the 2 operative years. RESULTS: In 2012, more than 50% of all cardiac surgical patients were managed with our standardized care model; of those, 769 were one-to-one matched with patients undergoing surgery in 2008. Patients had a mix of coronary artery bypass grafting, valve surgery, and combined procedures. Our practice model reduced median mechanical ventilation duration from 9.3 to 6.3 hours (2008 and 2012) (P < 0.001) and intensive care unit length of stay from 26.3 to 22.5 hours (P < 0.001). Reintubation and intensive care unit readmission were unchanged. Variability in ventilation time was also reduced. CONCLUSIONS: We demonstrate that in more than 50% of all cardiac surgical patients, a standardized practice model can be used to achieve better results. Clinical outcomes are improved and unwarranted variability is reduced. Success is driven by clear patient identification and well-defined protocols that are clearly communicated both by electronic tools and by empowerment of bedside providers to advance care when clinical criteria are met.

Patient education self-management during surgical recovery: combining mobile (iPad) and a content management system.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this investigation was to assess whether a new electronic health (e-health) platform, combining mobile computing and a content management system, could effectively deliver modular and "just-in-time" education to older patients following cardiac surgery. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Patients were provided with iPad(®) (Apple(®), Cupertino, CA) tablets that delivered educational modules as part of a daily "to do" list in a plan of care. The tablet communicated wirelessly to a dashboard where data were aggregated and displayed for providers. RESULTS: A surgical population of 149 patients with a mean age of 68 years utilized 5,267 of 6,295 (84%) of education modules delivered over a 5.3-day hospitalization. Increased age was not associated with decreased use. CONCLUSIONS: We demonstrate that age, hospitalization, and major surgery are not significant barriers to effective patient education if content is highly consumable and relevant to patients' daily care experience. We also show that mobile technology, even if unfamiliar to many older patients, makes this possible. The combination of mobile computing with a content management system allows for dynamic, modular, personalized, and "just-in-time" education in a highly consumable format. This approach presents a means by which patients may become informed participants in new healthcare models.

Radial nerve myofibroma: a rare benign tumor with perineural infiltration. Illustrative case.

BACKGROUND: Myofibromas are benign mesenchymal tumors, classically presenting in infants and young children in the head and neck region. Perineural involvement, especially in peripheral nerves within the upper extremity, is extremely rare in myofibromas. OBSERVATIONS: The authors present the case of a 16-year-old male with a 4-month history of an enlarging forearm mass and rapidly progressive dense motor weakness in wrist, finger, and thumb extension. Preoperative imaging and fine needle biopsy confirmed the diagnosis of a benign isolated myofibroma. Given the dense paralysis, operative management was indicated, and intraoperative exploration showed extensive involvement of tumor within the radial nerve. The infiltrated nerve segment was excised along with the tumor, and the resulting 5-cm nerve gap was reconstructed using autologous cabled grafts. LESSONS: Perineural pseudoinvasion can be an extremely rare and atypical feature of nonmalignancies, resulting in dense motor weakness. Extensive nerve involvement may still necessitate nerve resection and reconstruction, despite the benign etiology of the lesion.

CKD and Rapid Kidney Function Decline During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Rationale & Objective: The direct and indirect effects of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on kidney function in the chronic kidney disease (CKD) population are not well understood. Study Design: Cohort study. Setting & Participants: Retrospective study of kidney function trajectories using deidentified administrative claims and laboratory data for Medicare Advantage and commercially insured enrollees with CKD stages G3-4 between 2018 and 2021. Predictors: COVID-19 infection. Outcome: Rapid kidney function decline defined as annual estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) decline of ≥40%. Analytical Approach: Propensity score matching was used to identify individuals without COVID-19 infection matched 1:1 to a COVID-19 infected cohort and indexed on the date of diagnosing COVID-19 infection, age, sex, race or ethnicity, and Charlson comorbidity index score. Outpatient kidney function was compared during the prepandemic period (January 1, 2018, to February 29, 2020) with the pandemic period (March 1, 2020, to August 31, 2021). Two creatinine measurements, after the infection date and ≥60 days apart, were required to reduce correlation with acute infection. Results: Of 97,203 enrollees with CKD G3-4, 9% experienced a COVID-19 infection. Characteristics of 8,901 propensity matched enrollees include mean age 74 years, 58% women, 67% White, and 63% CKD G3a, 28% CKD G3b, and 9% CKD G4. Median overall annual eGFR change was -2.65 ml/min/1.73m2, with 76% of the cohort experiencing worsened eGFR in the pandemic period. Rapid kidney function decline was observed in 1.9% and 2.0% of enrollees in the prepandemic and pandemic periods, respectively. Rapid kidney function decline was observed in 2.5% of those with COVID-19 infection and 1.5% of those without COVID-19 infection (P < 0.05). Factors associated with increased odds of rapid kidney function decline during pandemic included Asian race, higher Charlson comorbidity index, advancing CKD stage, prepandemic rapid kidney function decline, and COVID-19 infection. Limitations: Retrospective study design with potential bias. Conclusions: COVID-19 infection increased odds of rapid kidney function decline during the pandemic. The downstream impact of pandemic-related eGFR decline on health outcomes, such as kidney failure or mortality, requires further study. Plain-Language Summary: We used a cohort of insured individuals with moderate-to-severe chronic kidney disease (CKD) to compare the rates of rapid kidney function decline in prepandemic and pandemic periods and to evaluate the impact of the coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) on kidney function decline. We found that overall rates of rapid kidney function decline did not change during the prepandemic and pandemic periods but were significantly higher in both periods among individuals with a COVID-19 infection. As CKD severity increased, rates of both rapid kidney function decline and COVID-19 increased. Advancing CKD, higher comorbid condition, Asian race, prepandemic rapid kidney function decline, and COVID-19 were all associated with higher odds of rapid kidney function decline in the pandemic. These findings suggest close monitoring is warranted for individuals with CKD and COVID-19.

Malt-induced premature yeast flocculation: current perspectives.

Premature yeast flocculation (PYF) is a sporadic problem for the malting and brewing industries which can have significant financial and logistical implications. The condition is characterised by abnormally heavy (and sometimes early) flocculation of yeast during brewery fermentations. The resulting low suspended yeast cell counts towards the end of the fermentation can result in flavour defects and incomplete attenuation (fermentation of sugars to alcohol). Despite several decades of research into the phenomenon, its precise nature and mechanisms have not been fully elucidated. In part this is because the term PYF has become a 'catch-all' syndrome which can have multiple origins. Furthermore, there are complex interactions in the malting and brewing processes which together mean that the PYF status of a malt sample is hard to predict at a generic level. Whether or not PYF is observed depends not only on barley quality, but on process factors in the maltings and to a substantial extent on the brewing yeast strain concerned. This article highlights the significance of PYF, and reviews current knowledge relating to the origins of this complex phenomenon.

A data-based foundation for managing hypertension services.

OBJECTIVES: To understand primary care visits and medication utilization among older patients with hypertension to gauge opportunity for service redesign. STUDY DESIGN: Data came from 1,880,331 Medicare Advantage members with hypertension who had a primary care visit and a pharmacy claim for an antihypertensive, antidiabetic, or antilipemic medication. To determine activities associated with a primary care visit, we analyzed 43,258,454 medical claims, 245 procedure codes, and medication management associated with those visits. Models for predicting both hypertension visits and medication management were evaluated and applied. METHODS: Logistic regression was used to identify which features were predictive of a medication change or a provider visit. RESULTS: Almost 40% of visits were consultation only, not associated with a procedure, and 26.5% of individuals had no medication change in a year. For prescription changes, 75% were a return to a previously prescribed medication or a medication discontinuation. Twenty percent of the population accounted for 47.9% of visits. Type 2 diabetes and a prior medication change were the strongest predictors of a medication change. A previous medication change was also the strongest predictor of a subsequent provider visit. CONCLUSIONS: Our analysis suggests that a significant portion of care-consultation-only visits-may be relatively low value. Further, much of medication management may not require an office-based visit. Finally, utilization behavior of patients with hypertension and predictive models are likely to allow informed provisioning of new service models to specific population segments.

Contribution of the elevated thrombosis risk of males to the excess male mortality observed in COVID-19: an observational study.

BACKGROUND: The mortality rate of COVID-19 is elevated in males compared with females. OBJECTIVE: Determine the extent that the elevated thrombotic risk in males relative to females contributes to excess COVID-19 mortality in males. DESIGN: Observational study. SETTING: Data sourced from electronic medical records from over 200 US hospital systems. PARTICIPANTS: 60 877 patients aged 18 years and older hospitalised with COVID-19. EXPOSURE: Exposure variable: biological sex; key variable of interest: thrombosis. PRIMARY OUTCOME MEASURES: Primary outcome was COVID-19 mortality. We measured: (1) mortality rate of males relative to females, (2) rate of thrombotic diagnoses occurring during hospitalisation for COVID-19 in both sexes and (3) mortality rate when evidence of thrombosis was present. RESULTS: The COVID-19 mortality rate of males was 29.9% higher than that of females. Males had a 35.8% higher rate of receiving a thrombotic diagnosis compared with females. The mortality rate of all patients with a thrombotic diagnosis was 40.0%-over twice that of patients with COVID-19 without a thrombotic diagnosis (adjusted OR 2.50 (2.37 to 2.64), p<0.001). When defining thrombosis as either a documented thrombotic diagnosis or a D-dimer level ≥3.0 µg/mL, 16.4% of the excess mortality in male patients could be explained by increased thrombotic risk. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest the higher COVID-19 mortality rate in males may be significantly accounted for by the elevated risk of thrombosis among males. Understanding the mechanisms that underlie increased male thrombotic risk may allow for the advancement of effective anticoagulation strategies that reduce COVID-19 mortality in males.

Cognitive and functional predictors and sequelae of postoperative delirium in elderly patients undergoing elective joint arthroplasty.

BACKGROUND: Postoperative delirium (POD) is common in the elderly and associated with adverse outcomes. The cognitive and functional sequelae of POD in elective surgical patients are not known. We sought to determine whether (1) lower scores on sensitive neurocognitive tests are an independent risk factor for POD in elderly surgical patients, and (2) POD predicts cognitive and functional decline 3 months postoperatively. METHODS: We conducted a prospective, cohort study on patients ≥65 years old undergoing total hip or knee arthroplasty. Participants underwent preoperative neurocognitive and functional testing. POD was diagnosed using the Confusion Assessment Method. Patients who developed POD and matched controls underwent repeat neurocognitive and functional testing 3 months after surgery. RESULTS: Four hundred eighteen patients met entry criteria, and 42 (10%) developed POD. There were no differences in baseline Mini-Mental State Examination scores, alcohol abuse, depression, and verbal intelligence between groups. Independent predictors of POD included age, history of psychiatric illness, decreased functional status, and decreased verbal memory. For all tests, changes from before to 3 months after surgery were similar between those patients with POD and matched controls. CONCLUSIONS: Subtly reduced preoperative neurocognitive and functional status predict POD. However, in the small group that developed POD, there was no evidence of cognitive and functional decline 3 months after surgery. POD is associated with decreased preoperative cognitive reserve but, in elderly elective surgical patients, may be without adverse cognitive or functional sequelae 3 months postoperatively.

Slow-transit constipation with concurrent upper gastrointestinal dysmotility and its response to transcutaneous electrical stimulation.

PURPOSE: Transcutaneous electrical stimulation (TES) speeds up colonic transit in children with slow-transit constipation (STC). This study examined if concurrent upper gastrointestinal dysmotility (UGD) affected response to TES. METHODS: Radio-nuclear transit studies (NTS) were performed before and after TES treatment of STC as part of a larger randomised controlled trial. UGD was defined as delayed gastric emptying and/or slow small bowel transit. Improvement was defined as increase of ≥1 Geometric Centre (median radiotracer position at each time [small bowel = 1, toilet = 6]). RESULTS: Forty-six subjects completed the trial, 34 had NTS after stimulation (21 M, 8-17 years, mean 11.3 years; symptoms >9 years). Active stimulation increased transit in >50% versus only 25% with sham (p = 0.04). Seventeen children also had UGD. In children with STC and either normal upper GI motility (NUGM) and UGD, NTS improved slightly after 1 month (57 vs. 60%; p = 0.9) and more after 2 months (88 vs. 40%; p = 0.07). However, mean transit rate significantly increased with NUGM, but not UGD (5.0 ± 0.2: 3.6 ± 0.6, p < 0.01). CONCLUSION: Transcutaneous electrical stimulation was beneficial for STC, with response weakly associated with UGD. As measured by NTS, STC children with NUGM responded slightly more, but with significantly greater increased transit compared to those with UGD. Higher numbers are needed to determine if the difference is important.

Medication management for complex patients in primary care: application of a remote, asynchronous clinical pharmacist model.

Purpose: Drug therapy problems impact about one-third of US adults, and these issues are likely to continue to worsen as the population of aging Americans increases. The objective of this study is to assess the feasibility of a remotely delivered Comprehensive Medication Management (CMM) for primary practice patients who are polypharmatic and at high risk for drug therapy problems.Methods: Using medical and prescription claims data, a list of Medicare Advantage beneficiaries at high risk for drug therapy problems was identified. Participants were enrolled in a 6-month CMM program from February - November 2020. In the program, their existing drug therapy was assessed by a pharmacist, Drug therapy problems were identified and resolved. A Collaborative Practice Agreement allowed the pharmacists to make prescription changes as needed.Results: Eighty-three percent (202) of contacted individuals agreed to participate in the study. All participants were on five medications or more, and 71% were on more than eight. A clinical pharmacist found that 86% of participants had a drug therapy problem according to classification criteria. Seventy-nine percent of all drug therapy problems identified were resolved upon completion of the study.Conclusion: The findings of this study suggest that engagement of a remote clinical pharmacist can contribute to efficient resolution of most drug therapy problems identified in a primary care population. A service model using remote pharmacist services may be an effective means of improving team-based primary care medication management for this population.

Comparing Bleeding and Thrombotic Rates in Spine Surgery: An Analysis of 119 888 Patients.

STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective, database review. OBJECTIVES: Examine the utilization rate of postoperative deep vein thrombosis (DVT) prophylaxis and compare the incidence and severity of bleeding and thrombotic complications in elective spine surgery patients. METHODS: We utilized PearlDiver, a national orthopedics claims database. All patients who underwent elective spine surgery from 2007 to 2017 were included. Patients were stratified by the presence of DVT prophylaxis drug codes, then by comorbidities for postoperative bleeding/thrombosis. The severity of all bleeding and thrombotic complications in each cohort was studied, including the incidence of complications requiring operative washout, diagnosis of pulmonary embolism, intensive care unit admission, and mortality. RESULTS: A total of 119 888 patients were included. The majority of patients (118 720, >99%) were not administered postoperative DVT chemoprophylaxis while a minority of patients (1168) were. The overall rates of bleeding and thrombotic complications within the population not receiving DVT prophylaxis were 1.96% and 2.45%, respectively (P < .001). The incidence of surgical intervention for a wound washout was 0.62% compared with 1.05% for pulmonary embolism (P < .001). Intensive care unit admission rates related to a wound washout procedure or pulmonary embolism also significantly differed (0.07% vs 0.34%, P < .001). There were no observed differences in mortality. When controlling for patient comorbidity, patients with atrial fibrillation, cancer, or a prior history of thrombotic complications experienced the greatest increased risks of postoperative thrombosis. CONCLUSIONS: DVT prophylaxis is not routinely utilized following elective spine procedures. We report that there exist specific populations which may receive benefit from these practices, although further study is necessary to determine optimal prevention strategies for both thrombotic and bleeding complications in spine surgery.

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on nighttime room entries and sleep disruptions for pediatric patients.

OBJECTIVES/BACKGROUND: Sleep is critical to recovery, but inpatient sleep is often disrupted. During the COVID-19 pandemic, social distancing efforts to minimize spread may have improved hospitalized children's sleep by decreasing unnecessary overnight disruptions. This study aimed to describe the impact of these efforts on pediatric inpatient sleep using objective and subjective metrics. METHODS: Sleep disruptions for pediatric inpatients admitted prior to and during the COVID-19 pandemic were compared. Hand hygiene sensors tracking room entries were utilized to measure objective overnight disruptions for 69 nights pre-pandemic and 154 pandemic nights. Caregiver surveys of overnight disruptions, sleep quantity, and caregiver mood were adopted from validated tools: the Karolinska Sleep Log, Potential Hospital Sleep Disruptions and Noises Questionnaire, and Visual Analog Mood Scale. RESULTS: Nighttime room entries initially decreased 36% (95% CI: 30%, 42%, p < 0.001), then returned towards baseline, mirroring the COVID-19 hospital census. However, surveyed caregivers (n_pre = 293, n_post = 154) reported more disrupted sleep (p < 0.001) due to tests (21% vs. 38%), anxiety (23% vs. 41%), and pain (23% vs. 48%). Caregivers also reported children slept 61 fewer minutes (95% CI: -12 min, -110 min, p < 0.001). Caregivers self-reported feeling more sad, weary, and worse overall (p < 0.001 for all). CONCLUSIONS: Despite a decrease in objective room entries during the pandemic, caregivers reported their children were disrupted more and slept less. Caregivers also self-reported worse mood. This highlights the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on subjective experiences of hospitalized children and their caregivers. Future work targeting stress and anxiety could improve pediatric inpatient sleep.

Objective Measures of Physical Distancing in the Hospital During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, hospitals published physical-distancing guidance and created dedicated respiratory isolation units (RIUs) for patients with COVID-19. The degree to which such distancing occurred between clinicians and patients is unknown. In this study, heat sensors from an existing hospital hand-hygiene monitoring system objectively tracked room entries as a proxy for physical distancing in both RIUs and general medicine units before and during the pandemic. The RIUs saw a 60.6% reduction in entries per room per day (from 85.7 to 33.8). General medicine units that cared for patients under investigation for COVID-19 and other patients experienced a 14.7% reduction in entries per room per day (from 76.9 to 65.1). While gradual extinction was observed in both units as COVID-19 cases declined, the RIUs had a higher degree of physical distancing. Although the optimal level of physical distancing is unknown, sustaining physical distancing in the hospital may require re-education and real-time monitoring.

Hemofiltration during cardiopulmonary bypass does not decrease the incidence of atrial fibrillation after cardiac surgery.

BACKGROUND: Atrial fibrillation (AF) occurs in 20%-50% of patients after cardiac surgery and is associated with increased morbidity and mortality. Corticosteroids are reported to decrease the incidence of postoperative AF, presumably by attenuating inflammation caused by surgery and cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB). We hypothesized that hemofiltration during CPB, which may attenuate inflammation, might decrease the incidence of AF after cardiac surgery. METHODS: This was a retrospective review of patients previously enrolled in a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial evaluating the effects of perioperative steroid therapy and hemofiltration during CPB on duration of postoperative mechanical ventilation. In that study, 192 patients undergoing cardiac surgery were randomized to 1 of 3 groups: controls (placebo), hemofiltration during CPB, or perioperative steroid therapy. Patient records were reviewed to determine the incidence of new onset AF defined as any electrocardiogram evidence of AF or AF diagnosed by the patients' clinicians. RESULTS: Of the 192 enrolled patients, 3 were excluded for protocol violations and 4 were excluded for history of chronic AF. Data from 185 patients from the original study were available for review. Sixty patients (32%) had new onset AF after cardiac surgery. There was no difference among groups in the incidence of AF (control group, 21%; steroid group, 41%; hemofiltration group, 36%; P = 0.057 among groups). The only risk factor for the development of AF was age (mean age of patients with AF, 65.4 +/- 10.1 yr vs patients without AF, 61.4 +/- 11.5 yr; P = 0.024). When age, procedure type, and presence or absence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease were controlled for in multivariate analysis, the difference among study groups remained nonsignificant (P = 0.108). CONCLUSIONS: Perioperative corticosteroids or the use of hemofiltration during CPB did not decrease the incidence of AF after cardiac surgery. Further studies evaluating the efficacy and safety of perioperative corticosteroids for prevention of postoperative AF are warranted before their routine use can be recommended.

Bioethanol Production from UK Seaweeds: Investigating Variable Pre-treatment and Enzyme Hydrolysis Parameters.

This study describes the method development for bioethanol production from three species of seaweed. Laminaria digitata, Ulva lactuca and for the first time Dilsea carnosa were used as representatives of brown, green and red species of seaweed, respectively. Acid thermo-chemical and entirely aqueous (water) based pre-treatments were evaluated, using a range of sulphuric acid concentrations (0.125-2.5 M) and solids loading contents (5-25 % [w/v]; biomass: reactant) and different reaction times (5-30 min), with the aim of maximising the release of glucose following enzyme hydrolysis. A pre-treatment step for each of the three seaweeds was required and pre-treatment conditions were found to be specific to each seaweed species. Dilsea carnosa and U. lactuca were more suited with an aqueous (water-based) pre-treatment (yielding 125.0 and 360.0 mg of glucose/g of pre-treated seaweed, respectively), yet interestingly non pre-treated D. carnosa yielded 106.4 g g-1 glucose. Laminaria digitata required a dilute acid thermo-chemical pre-treatment in order to liberate maximal glucose yields (218.9 mg glucose/g pre-treated seaweed). Fermentations with S. cerevisiae NCYC2592 of the generated hydrolysates gave ethanol yields of 5.4 g L-1, 7.8 g L-1 and 3.2 g L-1 from D. carnosa, U. lactuca and L. digitata, respectively. This study highlighted that entirely aqueous based pre-treatments are effective for seaweed biomass, yet bioethanol production alone may not make such bio-processes economically viable at large scale.