Performance of EUS-FNA for mediastinal lymphadenopathy: impact on patient management and costs in low-volume EUS centers

BACKGROUND: Endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration (EUS-FNA) of mediastinal lymphadenopathy has been shown to be a valuable diagnostic tool in high-volume EUS centers (≥ 50 mediastinal EUS-FNA/endoscopist/year). Our goal was to assess the diagnostic accuracy of EUS-FNA and its impact on clinical management and costs in low-volume EUS centers ( <50 mediastinal EUS-FNA/endoscopist/year). METHODS: Consecutive patients referred to two Dutch endoscopy centers in the period 2002-2008 for EUS-FNA of mediastinal lymphadenopathy were reviewed. The gold standard for a cytological diagnosis was histological confirmation or clinical follow-up of more than 6 months with repeat imaging. The impact of EUS-FNA on clinical management was subdivided into a positive impact by providing (1) adequate cytology that influenced the decision to perform surgery or (2) a diagnosis of a benign inflammatory disorder, and a negative impact which was subdivided into (1) false-negative or inconclusive cytology or (2) an adequate cytological diagnosis that did not influence patient management. Costs of an alternative diagnostic work-up without EUS-FNA, as established by an expert panel, were compared to costs of the actual work-up. RESULTS: In total, 213 patients (71% male, median age= 61 years, range = 23-88 years) underwent EUS-FNA. Sensitivity, specificity, and negative and positive predictive values were 89%, 100%, 80%, and 100%, respectively. EUS-FNA had a positive impact on clinical management in 84% of cases by either influencing the decision to perform surgery (49%) or excluding malignant lymphadenopathy (35%), and a negative impact in 7% of cases because of inadequate (3%) or false-negative (4%) cytology. In 9% of cases, EUS-FNA was performed without an established indication. Two nonfatal perforations occurred (0.9%). Total cost reduction was €100,593, with a mean cost reduction of €472 (SD = €607) per patient. CONCLUSIONS: Mediastinal EUS-FNA can be performed in low-volume EUS centers without compromising diagnostic accuracy. Moreover, EUS-FNA plays an important role in the management of patients with mediastinal lymphadenopathy and reduces total diagnostic cost

High lifetime risk of cancer in primary sclerosing cholangitis

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) patients are at risk for developing cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) and colorectal carcinoma (CRC). Our aim was to assess the risk of malignancies and their influence on survival. METHODS: Data from PSC patients diagnosed between 1980 and 2006 in two university hospitals were retrieved. The Kaplan-Meier method and a time-dependent Cox regression model were used to calculate risks of malignancies and their influence on survival. RESULTS: Two hundred and eleven patients were included, 143 (68%) were male and 126 (60%) had inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Median transplantation-free survival was 14 years. The risk of CCA after 10 and 20 years was 9% and 9%, respectively. In patients with concomitant IBD the 10-year and 20-year risks for CRC were 14% and 31%, which was significantly higher than for patients without IBD (2% and 2% (P=0.008)). CCA, cholangitis, and age at entry were independent risk factors for the combined endpoint death or liver transplantation. Risk factors for the endpoint death were CCA, CRC, age, and symptomatic presentation. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with PSC and IBD have a high long-term risk of developing CRC and this risk is about threefold higher than the risk for CCA. Both malignancies are associated with decreased surviva

Decreasing the dispatch time of medical reports sent from hospital to primary care with Lean Six Sigma

Timely communication is important to ensure high-quality health care. To facilitate this, the Gastro Intestinal Oncology Center Amsterdam (GIOCA) stipulated to dispatch medical reports on the day of the patient's visit. However, with the increasing number of patients, administrative processes at GIOCA were under pressure, and this standard was not met for the majority of patients. The aim and objective of this study was to dispatch 90% of medical reports on the day of the patient's visit by improving the logistic process. To assess the main causes for a prolonged dispatch time and to design improvements actions, the roadmap offered by Lean Six Sigma (LSS) was used, consisting of five phases: Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve and Control (DMAIC roadmap). Initially, 12.3% of the reports were dispatched on the day of the patient's visit. Three causes for a prolonged dispatch time were identified: (1) determining which doctors involved with treatment would compose the report; (2) the reports composed by a senior resident had to be reviewed by a medical specialist; and (3) a medical specialist had to authorize the administration to dispatch the reports. To circumvent these causes, a digital form was implemented in the electronic medical record that could be completed during the multidisciplinary team meeting. After implementation, 90.6% of the reports were dispatched on the day of the visit. The dispatch time of reports sent from hospital to primary care can be significantly reduced using Lean Six Sigma, improving the communication between hospital and primary car

Is there a Benefit of Multidisciplinary Cancer Team Meetings for Patients with Gastrointestinal Malignancies?

Multidisciplinary cancer team meetings are intended to optimize the diagnosis of a patient with a malignancy. The aim of this study was to assess the number of correct diagnoses formulated by the multidisciplinary team (MDT) and whether MDT decisions were implemented. In a prospective study, data of consecutive patients discussed at gastrointestinal oncology MDT meetings were studied, and MDT diagnoses were validated with pathology or follow-up. Factors of influence on the correct diagnosis were identified by use of a Poisson regression model. Electronic patient records were used to assess whether MDT decisions were implemented, and reasons to deviate from these decisions were hand-searched within these records. In 74 MDT meetings, 551 patients were discussed a total of 691 times. The MDTs formulated a correct diagnosis for 515/551 patients (93.4 %), and for 120/551 (21.8 %) patients the MDT changed the referral diagnosis. Of the MDT diagnoses, 451/515 (87.6 %) were validated with pathology. Patients presented to the MDT by their treating physician were 20 % more likely to receive a correct diagnosis [relative risk (RR) 1.2, 95 % confidence interval (CI) 1.1-1.5], while the number of patients discussed or the duration of the meeting had no influence on this (RR 1.0, 95 % CI 0.99-1.0; RR 1.0, 95 % CI 0.9-1.1; resp.). MDT decisions were implemented in 94.4 % of cases. Deviations of MDT decisions occurred when a patient's wishes or physical condition were not taken into account. MDTs rectify 20 % of the referral diagnoses. The presence of the treating physician is the most important factor to ensure a correct diagnosis and adherence to the treatment pla