Trends in Racial Disparities in Pancreatic Cancer Surgery

Objectives: We tested three hypotheses: (1) blacks with pancreatic cancer are recommended surgical resection less often than whites; (2) when recommended surgical resection, blacks refuse surgery more often than whites; and lastly, (3) racial differences in refusal of surgical resection have decreased over time. Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted on patients with potentially resectable, nonmetastatic pancreatic adenocarcinoma of the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results registry from 1988 to 2009. Univariate and multivariable logistic regression analyses were performed to assess whether differences in the proportion of whites versus blacks refusing surgery among patients recommended for resection changed over time. Results: A total of 35,944 patients were included; most were white (87.6%). After adjusting for covariates including tumor stage, pancreatic cancer resection was less often recommended to and performed in blacks compared with whites (adjusted odds ratio (aOR) 0.88, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.82-0.95; aOR 0.83, 95% CI 0.76-0.91, respectively). Blacks also underwent surgical resection less often when surgery was recommended (aOR 0.73, 95% CI 0.64-0.85). Racial disparities in surgery recommendation and its performance did not decrease from 1988 to 2009. In multivariable adjusted analyses, blacks refused surgery more often when it was recommended (aOR in 1988 4.75, 95% CI 2.51-9.01); this disparity decreased over time (aOR 0.93 per year, 95% CI 0.89-0.97). Conclusions: Although racial disparities in pancreatic cancer surgery refusal have diminished over the past two decades, significant disparities in the recommendation and performance of surgery persist. It is likely that both provider- and patient-level factors have a substantial impact on surgery recommendation and its acceptance. The identification of such factors is critical to design a framework for eliminating disparities in cancer-directed surgery for pancreatic cance

The utility of 6-minute walk distance in predicting waitlist mortality for lung transplant candidates.

BACKGROUND The lung allocation score (LAS) has led to improved organ allocation for transplant candidates. At present, the 6-minute walk distance (6MWD) is treated as a binary categorical variable of whether or not a candidate can walk more than 150 feet in 6 minutes. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that 6MWD is presently under-utilized with respect to discriminatory power, and that, as a continuous variable, could better prognosticate risk of waitlist mortality. METHODS A retrospective cohort analysis was performed using the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network/United Network for Organ Sharing (OPTN/UNOS) transplant database. Candidates listed for isolated lung transplant between May 2005 and December 2011 were included. The population was stratified by 6MWD quartiles and unadjusted survival rates were estimated. Multivariable Cox proportional hazards modeling was used to assess the effect of 6MWD on risk of death. The Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients (SRTR) Waitlist Risk Model was used to adjust for confounders. The optimal 6MWD for discriminative accuracy in predicting waitlist mortality was assessed by receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curves. RESULTS Analysis was performed on 12,298 recipients. Recipients were segregated into quartiles by distance walked. Waitlist mortality decreased as 6MWD increased. In the multivariable model, significant variables included 6MWD, male gender, non-white ethnicity and restrictive lung diseases. ROC curves discriminated 6-month mortality was best at 655 feet. CONCLUSIONS The 6MWD is a significant predictor of waitlist mortality. A cut-off of 150 feet sub-optimally identifies candidates with increased risk of mortality. A cut-off between 550 and 655 feet is more optimal if 6MWD is to be treated as a dichotomous variable. Utilization of the LAS as a continuous variable could further enhance predictive capabilities

Left Ventricular Assist Device Outflow Cannula Obstruction: Importance of Multimodality Imaging

One of the dreaded complications of left ventricular assist device implantation is mechanical obstruction of the device secondary to pump thrombosis or mechanical outflow cannula obstruction. We describe a case of outflow cannula obstruction caused by kinking and twisting of the outflow graft after surgical manipulation of the pump. (Level of Difficulty: Beginner.)

The Application of Comorbidity Indices to Predict Early Postoperative Outcomes After Laparoscopic Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass: A Nationwide Comparative Analysis of Over 70,000 Cases

BACKGROUND: Patients undergoing laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (LRYGB) often have substantial comorbidities, which must be taken into account to appropriately assess expected postoperative outcomes. The Charlson/Deyo and Elixhauser indices are widely used comorbidity measures, both of which also have revised algorithms based on enhanced ICD-9-CM coding. It is currently unclear which of the existing comorbidity measures best predicts early postoperative outcomes following LRYGB. METHODS: Using the Nationwide Inpatient Sample, patients 18 years or older undergoing LRYGB for obesity between 2001 and 2008 were identified. Comorbidities were assessed according to the original and enhanced Charlson/Deyo and Elixhauser indices. Using multivariate logistic regression, the following early postoperative outcomes were assessed: overall postoperative complications, length of hospital stay, and conversion to open surgery. Model performance for the four comorbidity indices was assessed and compared using C-statistics and the Akaike's information criterion (AIC). RESULTS: A total of 70,287 patients were included. Mean age was 43.1 years (SD, 10.8), 81.6 % were female and 60.3 % were White. Both the original and enhanced Elixhauser indices modestly outperformed the Charlson/Deyo in predicting the surgical outcomes. All four models had similar C-statistics, but the original Elixhauser index was associated with the smallest AIC for all of the surgical outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: The original Elixhauser index is the best predictor of early postoperative outcomes in our cohort of patients undergoing LRYGB. However, differences between the Charlson/Deyo and Elixhauser indices are modest, and each of these indices provides clinically relevant insight for predicting early postoperative outcomes in this high-risk patient population

Modest Improvement in Overall Survival for Patients With Metastatic Pancreatic Cancer

OBJECTIVES: Patients with pancreatic adenocarcinoma often present with distant metastatic disease. We aimed to assess whether improvements in survival of clinical trials translated to a population-based level. METHODS: The US Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results registry was queried. Adult patients with distant metastatic adenocarcinoma of the pancreas were included from 1988 to 2008. Overall survival was analyzed using Kaplan-Meier curves as well as multivariable-adjusted Cox proportional hazards models. RESULTS: In total, 32,452 patients were included. Mean age was 67.6 (SD: 11.7) years, and 15,341 (47.3%) were female. Median overall survival was 3 months (95% confidence interval [CI], 3-3 months), which increased from 2 (CI, 2-2) months in 1988 to 3 (CI, 3-4) months in 2008. After adjustment for multiple covariates, the hazard ratio (HR) decreased by 0.977 per year (CI, 0.975-0.980). In multivariable-adjusted survival analyses, tumor location in the pancreatic body/tail (HR, 1.10), male sex (HR, 1.09), increasing age (HR, 1.016), African American ethnicity (HR, 1.16), nonmarried civil status (HR, 1.18), and absence of radiotherapy (HR, 1.41) were associated with worse survival (P < 0.001 for all predictors). CONCLUSIONS: The improvement in overall survival over the past 2 decades among patients with metastatic pancreatic adenocarcinoma is modest and disappointing. More effective therapeutic strategies for advanced disease are desperately needed

Medication Nonadherence After Lung Transplantation in Adult Recipients.

BACKGROUND Our objective was to identify potential avenues for resource allocation and patient advocacy to improve outcomes by evaluating the association between recipient sociodemographic and patient characteristics and medication nonadherence after lung transplantation. METHODS States US adult, lung-only transplantations per the United Network for Organ Sharing database were analyzed from October 1996 through December 2006, based on the period during which nonadherence information was recorded. Generalized linear models were used to determine the association of demographic, disease, and transplantation center characteristics with early nonadherence (defined as within the first year after transplantation) as well as late nonadherence (years 2 to 4 after transplantation). Outcomes comparing adherent and nonadherent patients were also evaluated. RESULTS Patients (n = 7,284) were included for analysis. Early and late nonadherence rates were 3.1% and 10.6%, respectively. Factors associated with early nonadherence were Medicaid insurance compared with private insurance (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] 2.45, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.16 to 5.15), and black race (AOR 2.38, 95% CI: 1.08 to 5.25). Medicaid insurance and black race were also associated with late nonadherence (AOR 2.38, 95% CI: 1.51 to 3.73 and OR 1.73, 95% CI: 1.04 to 2.89, respectively), as were age 18 to 20 years (AOR 3.41, 95% CI: 1.29 to 8.99) and grade school or lower education (AOR 1.88, 95% CI: 1.05 to 3.35). Early and late nonadherence were both associated with significantly shorter unadjusted survival (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS Identifying patients at risk of nonadherence may enable resource allocation and patient advocacy to improve outcomes

Antegrade versus retrograde cerebral perfusion for hemiarch replacement with deep hypothermic circulatory arrest: does it matter? A propensity-matched analysis

The choice of cerebral perfusion strategy for aortic arch surgery has been debated, and the superiority of antegrade (ACP) or retrograde (RCP) cerebral perfusion has not been shown. We examined the early and late outcomes for ACP versus RCP in proximal (hemi-) arch replacement using deep hypothermic circulatory arrest (DHCA). A retrospective analysis of a prospectively maintained database was performed for all patients undergoing elective and nonelective hemiarch replacement at a single referral institution from June 2005 to February 2013. Total arch cases were excluded to limit the analysis to shorter DHCA times and a more uniform patient population for whom clinical equipoise regarding ACP versus RCP exists. A total of 440 procedures were identified, with 360 (82%) using ACP and 80 (18%) using RCP. The endpoints included 30-day/in-hospital and late outcomes. A propensity score with 1:1 matching of 40 pre- and intraoperative variables was used to adjust for differences between the 2 groups. All 80 RCP patients were propensity matched to a cohort of 80 similar ACP patients. The pre- and intraoperative characteristics were not significantly different between the 2 groups after matching. No differences were found in 30-day/in-hospital mortality or morbidity outcomes. The only significant difference between the 2 groups was a shorter mean operative time in the RCP cohort (P = .01). No significant differences were noted in late survival (P = .90). In proximal arch operations using DHCA, equivalent early and late outcomes can be achieved with RCP and ACP, although the mean operative time is significantly less with RCP, likely owing to avoidance of axillary cannulation. Questions remain regarding comparative outcomes with straight DHCA and lesser degrees of hypothermia