Excesivo rastreo de osteoporosis en mujeres menores de 65 años: estudio de corte transversal

Overuse of osteoporosis screening in women at low risk of fracture may lead to overdiagnosis, inappropriate treatment and medicalization. The objective of this work was to estimate the proportion of women aged 45 to 64 enrolled in a private health insurance plan in Buenos Aires undergoing hip dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) in 2011 without meeting osteoporosis screening criteria. In this cross-sectional study, 4310 women of this age range that had undergone a hip DXA were identified. A randomly selected sub-group of 401 women was then assessed for the presence of risk factors for osteoporosis and complete data were retrieved for 178 women. Appropriate screening was defined by two criteria: 1) having a 10-year fracture risk higher than that of a 65-year old woman (estimated using the FRAX® tool); 2) having at least one risk factor for fracture. It was found that 86.5% of the women who underwent hip DXA did not exceed the minimum 10-year fracture risk threshold required for screening; 5.8% of them had osteoporosis and 61.0% osteopenia. According to the second criterion, 49.4% had no risk factors, 3.4% of these women had osteoporosis and 62.5% osteopenia. The results show that at least half the women screened did not meet osteoporosis screening criteria.El rastreo de osteoporosis en mujeres con bajo riesgo de fractura (sobreuso) puede conducir a sobrediagnóstico, tratamiento inapropiado y medicalización. El objetivo de este trabajo fue determinar la proporción de mujeres de 45 a 64 años afiliadas a un plan de medicina prepaga de Buenos Aires, Argentina, que realizaron al menos una densitometría ósea de cadera durante 2011 y no cumplían criterios para el rastreo. Se realizó un estudio observacional de corte transversal. Se identificaron 4.310 mujeres de este rango etario que se realizaron una densitometría ósea, entre las que se seleccionó una muestra aleatorizada de 401 mujeres y se obtuvieron datos completos para 178 mujeres. Para determinar si el rastreo era apropiado se utilizaron dos criterios: 1) tener un riesgo de fractura a 10 años mayor que una mujer de 65 años (regla FRAX®); 2) presentar al menos un factor de riesgo de fractura. Un 86,5% de las densitometrías óseas fueron realizadas en mujeres cuyo riesgo estimado por FRAX® no superaba el umbral mínimo recomendado, constatándose osteoporosis en el 5,8% y osteopenia en el 61,0%. En relación con el segundo criterio, el 49,4% no presentaba siquiera un factor de riesgo, documentándose osteoporosis en el 3,4%, y osteopenia en el 62,5%. Los resultados muestran que al menos la mitad de las mujeres no cumplía con los criterios de rastreo.

Sobreuso de mamografía para rastreo en un hospital académico de Buenos Aires

INTRODUCCIÓN: El rastreo de cáncer de mama en la población general asintomática no está recomendado en mujeres menores de 40 años y es controvertido en las de 40 a 49 años. El uso inadecuado de mamografía con fines de rastreo (sobreuso) y su consecuencia, el sobrediagnóstico, pueden conducir a tratamientos agresivos.OBJETIVO: Reportar la proporción de mamografías inapropiadamente realizadas en mujeres menores de 50 años afiliadas a un plan de salud de un proveedor de medicina prepaga.MÉTODOS: Se efectuó un estudio observacional de corte transversal. Se identificó a las mujeres de 18-39 y de 40-49 años afiliadas al plan de salud del Hospital Italiano de Buenos Aires que se habían realizado al menos una mamografía en 2012. Se revisaron las historias clínicas de 200 pacientes en cada grupo de edad para determinar si la mamografía había sido solicitada para rastreo de cáncer de mama. RESULTADOS: Durante 2012, 1533 mujeres de 18-39 años se realizaron una mamografía. En 96 de las 200 historias revisadas, esta prueba había sido solicitada con fines de rastreo (48%; IC 95%: 40,9-55,2%). Entre las mujeres de 40-49 años, 4432 tenían una mamografía efectuada ese año. Se revisaron 199 historias clínicas; en 105 casos, el estudio había sido solicitado con fines de rastreo (52,8%; IC 95%: 45,6-59,9%). No se realizó ningún diagnóstico de cáncer de mama como consecuencia de esta estrategia de rastreo.CONCLUSIONES: La alta proporción de sobreuso de mamografía para rastreo es especialmente preocupante entre las mujeres más jóvenes y revela la dificultad que los médicos pueden tener para adoptar las guías de práctica clínica más actualizadas.INTRODUCTION: Breast cancer screening in the general asymptomatic population is not recommended in women younger than 40 years old, and it is controversial among women aged 40 to 49 years. Overuse of screening mammography and its consequence, overdiagnosis, can lead to aggressive treatments. OBJECTIVE: To report the proportion of mammograms that were performed for breast cancer screening among women younger than 50 years old enrolled in a private Health Insurance Plan in Buenos Aires, Argentina. METHODS: A cross-sectional observational study was performed. Among women aged 18 to 39 and 40 to 49 years old enrolled in a private health plan (Hospital Italiano de Buenos Aires), those with a mammogram conducted in 2012 were identified. Of them, 200 in each age group were randomly selected. Their medical charts were reviewed to determine if the mammography had been performed for breast cancer screening purposes. RESULTS: During 2012, 1533 women aged 18 to 39 years old had a mammogram conducted. Of them, 200 charts were reviewed, 96 of which were determined to have a screening mammography (overuse proportion: 48%; 95% CI: 40.9-55.2%). Among women aged 40 to 49, 4 432 had a mammography performed during 2012. The charts of 199 of these women were reviewed. The mammogram had been conducted for screening purposes in 105 cases (overuse proportion: 52.8%; 95% CI: 45.6-59.9%). There was no diagnosis of breast cancer as a result of these screening mammograms. CONCLUSIONS: This high overuse of screening mammography is particularly concerning among the younger women and highlights the difficulty physicians may have to adopt the most updated guidelines.Fil: Salgado, Maria Victoria. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Hospital Italiano; ArgentinaFil: Kopitowski, Karin Silvana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Hospital Italiano; ArgentinaFil: Barani, Mariela. Hospital Italiano; ArgentinaFil: Vietto, Valeria. Hospital Italiano; ArgentinaFil: Terrasa, Sergio Adrian. Hospital Italiano; Argentin

Excesivo rastreo de osteoporosis en mujeres menores de 65 años: estudio de corte transversal

Overuse of osteoporosis screening in women at low risk of fracture may lead to overdiagnosis, inappropriate treatment and medicalization. The objective of this work was to estimate the proportion of women aged 45 to 64 enrolled in a private health insurance plan in Buenos Aires undergoing hip dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) in 2011 without meeting osteoporosis screening criteria. In this cross-sectional study, 4310 women of this age range that had undergone a hip DXA were identified. A randomly selected subgroup of 401 women was then assessed for the presence of risk factors for osteoporosis and complete data were retrieved for 178 women. Appropriate screening was defined by two criteria: 1) having a 10-year fracture risk higher than that of a 65-year old woman (estimated using the FRAX® tool); 2) having at least one risk factor for fracture. It was found that 86.5% of the women who underwent hip DXA did not exceed the minimum 10-year fracture risk threshold required for screening; 5.8% of them had osteoporosis and 61.0% osteopenia. According to the second criterion, 49.4% had no risk factors, 3.4% of these women had osteoporosis and 62.5% osteopenia. The results show that at least half the women screened did not meet osteoporosis screening criteria.El rastreo de osteoporosis en mujeres con bajo riesgo de fractura (sobreuso) puede conducir a sobrediagnóstico, tratamiento inapropiado y medicalización. El objetivo de este trabajo fue determinar la proporción de mujeres de 45 a 64 años afiliadas a un plan de medicina prepaga de Buenos Aires, Argentina, que realizaron al menos una densitometría ósea de cadera durante 2011 y no cumplían criterios para el rastreo. Se realizó un estudio observacional de corte transversal. Se identificaron 4.310 mujeres de este rango etario que se realizaron una densitometría ósea, entre las que se seleccionó una muestra aleatorizada de 401 mujeres y se obtuvieron datos completos para 178 mujeres. Para determinar si el rastreo era apropiado se utilizaron dos criterios: 1) tener un riesgo de fractura a 10 años mayor que una mujer de 65 años (regla FRAX®); 2) presentar al menos un factor de riesgo de fractura. Un 86,5% de las densitometrías óseas fueron realizadas en mujeres cuyo riesgo estimado por FRAX® no superaba el umbral mínimo recomendado, constatándose osteoporosis en el 5,8% y osteopenia en el 61,0%. En relación con el segundo criterio, el 49,4% no presentaba siquiera un factor de riesgo, documentándose osteoporosis en el 3,4%, y osteopenia en el 62,5%. Los resultados muestran que al menos la mitad de las mujeres no cumplía con los criterios de rastreo

Excessive osteoporosis screening in women under 65 years: a cross-sectional study

Overuse of osteoporosis screening in women at low risk of fracture may lead to overdiagnosis, inappropriate treatment and medicalization. The objective of this work was to estimate the proportion of women aged 45 to 64 enrolled in a private health insurance plan in Buenos Aires undergoing hip dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) in 2011 without meeting osteoporosis screening criteria. In this cross-sectional study, 4310 women of this age range that had undergone a hip DXA were identified. A randomly selected sub-group of 401 women was then assessed for the presence of risk factors for osteoporosis and complete data were retrieved for 178 women. Appropriate screening was defined by two criteria: 1) having a 10-year fracture risk higher than that of a 65-year old woman (estimated using the FRAX® tool); 2) having at least one risk factor for fracture. It was found that 86.5% of the women who underwent hip DXA did not exceed the minimum 10-year fracture risk threshold required for screening; 5.8% of them had osteoporosis and 61.0% osteopenia. According to the second criterion, 49.4% had no risk factors, 3.4% of these women had osteoporosis and 62.5% osteopenia. The results show that at least half the women screened did not meet osteoporosis screening criteria

Developing a breast cancer screening decision aid in Spanish for average-risk women: a mixed methods study

Introduction We aimed to develop a decision aid to support shared-decision making between physicians and women with average breast cancer risk when deciding whether to participate in breast cancer screening. Methods We included women at average risk of breast cancer and physicians involved in supporting the decision of breast cancer screening from an Academic Hospital in Buenos Aires, Argentina. We followed the International Patient Decision Aid Standards to develop our decision aid. Guided by a steering group and a multidisciplinary consultancy group including a patient advocate, we reviewed the evidence about breast cancer screening and previous decision aids, explored the patients' information needs on this topic from the patients' and physicians' perspective using semi-structured interviews, and we alpha-tested the prototype to determine its usability, comprehensibility and applicability. Results We developed the first prototype of a web-based decision aid to use during the clinical encounter with women aged 40 to 69 with average breast cancer risk. After a meeting with our consultancy group, we developed a second prototype that underwent alpha-testing. Physicians and patients agreed that the tool was clear, useful and applicable during a clinical encounter. We refined our final prototype according to their feedback. Conclusion We developed the first decision aid in our region and language on this topic, developed with end-users' input and informed by the best available evidence. We expect this decision aid to help women and physicians make shared decisions during the clinical encounter when talking about breast cancer screening

Análisis cuantitativo y cualitativo de de cáncer de mama difundidas las campañas argentinas de prevención mediante imágenes fijas en redes sociales durante Otubre del 2019

Objectives. To quantitatively document the degree of compliance of institutional messages broadcast on social networks with the recommendations of the National Cancer Institute (INC) in Argentina during October 2019, in the context of breast cancer prevention campaigns, and to qualitatively analyze the pictorial and textual elements that make up their dissemination pieces. Materials and methods. Quantitative and qualitative analysis of 171 dissemination pieces issued during October 2019 by 54 institutions, based on the evaluation of their compliance with INC recommendations, the description of the main discordant recommendations (quantitative analysis) and the qualitative analysis of 30 pieces. Results. None of the issued messages mentioned potential screening harms. Only the messages of the National Ministry of Health complied completely with the INC recommendations, while the remaining ones recommended mammograms at younger ages or at shorter intervals. Breast self-examination was the most frequent recommendation among those who didn’t comply. The images of female bodies linked to common stereotypes of sex and beauty, and paternalistic discourses appealing to fear and guilt were predominant. Conclusions. The messages broadcasted in the analyzed diffusion pieces did not comply with the INC recommendations, despite the fact that the latter are supported by scientific evidence. On the other hand, the messages reinforce sex and beauty stereotypes, guilt and the medical-hegemonic model.Objetivos. Documentar cuantitativamente el grado de concordancia con las recomendaciones del Instituto Nacional del Cáncer (INC) de los mensajes institucionales emitidos en redes sociales de Argentina durante octubre de 2019, en el contexto de las campañas de prevención del cáncer mamario, y analizar cualitativamente los elementos icónicos y textuales que conforman sus piezas de difusión. Materiales y métodos. Análisis cuantitativo y cualitativo de 171 piezas de difusión emitidas durante octubre de 2019 por 54 instituciones, a partir de la evaluación de su concordancia con las recomendaciones del INC, la descripción de las principales recomendaciones discordantes (análisis cuantitativo) y el análisis cualitativo de 30 piezas. Resultados. Ninguno de los mensajes emitidos mencionó potenciales daños del tamizaje. Solamente los del Ministerio de Salud de la Nación fueron totalmente concordantes con las recomendaciones del INC, mientras que los restantes recomendaban realizar mamografías a edades más tempranas o a intervalos más breves. El autoexamen mamario fue la recomendación más frecuente entre las discordantes. Predominaron las imágenes de cuerpos femeninos vinculadas con los estereotipos predominantes de género y belleza, y los discursos paternalistas que apelan al miedo y a la culpa. Conclusiones. Los mensajes emitidos en las piezas de difusión analizadas no fueron concordantes con las recomendaciones del INC, a pesar de que estas últimas están respaldadas por evidencia científica. Por otro lado, los mensajes refuerzan los estereotipos de género y belleza, la culpa y el modelo médico-hegemónico.Fil: Gürtler, Sofía Victoria. Hospital Italiano; ArgentinaFil: Rodríguez Tablado, Manuel. Hospital Italiano; ArgentinaFil: Weisbrot, Mariela Alejandra. Universidad Nacional de Lanús; ArgentinaFil: Ruiz Yanzi, María Victoria. Hospital Italiano; ArgentinaFil: Kopitowski, Karin Silvana. Hospital Italiano; ArgentinaFil: Terrasa, Sergio Adrian. Hospital Italiano; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentin

Increased Use of Scheduled Teleconsultations and Asynchronous Portal Messaging in Primary Care

Introducción: durante la pandemia de COVID-19 hubo un auge sin precedentes de la telemedicina, probablemente por la forzada adopción de tecnología ante las medidas restrictivas. El presente estudio se propuso comparar la interacción y la comunicación entre médicos de cabecera (MC) y pacientes, antes y durante el período de pandemia, en términos de consultas ambulatorias programadas y mensajes del Portal de Salud. Materiales y métodos: corte transversal con muestreo consecutivo de turnos programados y mensajes, ocurridos entre las semanas epidemiológicas (SE) 10 y 23, de 2019 y 2020, respectivamente. Se incluyeron 147 médicos del Servicio de Medicina Familiar y Comunitaria, y una cápita de 73 427 pacientes afiliados al Plan de Salud del Hospital Italiano de Buenos Aires. Se realizó análisis cuantitativo y cualitativo. Resultados: hubo una reducción del 70% de las consultas presenciales (de 76 375 en 2019 a 23 200 en 2020) y un aumento concomitante de teleconsultas (de 255 en la SE13 a 1089 en la SE23). En simultáneo, los mensajes aumentaron sustancialmente (de 28 601 en 2019 a 84 916 en 2020), con un inicio abrupto al comienzo del confinamiento, y una tendencia decreciente a lo largo del tiempo. Antes de la pandemia, el contenido estuvo relacionado con órdenes electrónicas de estudios complementarios, control de resultados, recetas de medicación crónica y/o interconsultas a especialistas, mientras que los dominios más frecuentes durante la pandemia fueron necesidades informativas epidemiológicas, como medidas preventivas para COVID-19, vacuna antineumocócica, vacuna antigripal, casos o sospechas, resultados de hisopados, entre otras. Conclusión: el auge de las tecnologías de la comunicación e información durante la pandemia permitió dar continuidad a los procesos asistenciales en salud pese al distanciamiento físico. Hubo mayor utilización de mensajería por necesidades informativas de los pacientes, y la relación médico-paciente se ha modificado.Introduction: during the COVID-19 pandemic, there was an unprecedented boom in telemedicine, probably due to the forced adoption of technology in the face of restrictive measures. This study aimed to compare the interaction and communication between general practitioners and patients before and during the pandemic based on scheduled outpatient consultations and Health Portal messages. Materials and methods: Cross-sectional study with a consecutive sampling of scheduled appointments and messages, occurring between epidemiological weeks (EW) 10 and 23 of 2019 and 2020, respectively. We included 147 physicians from the Family and Community Medicine Service and a capita of 73427 patients affiliated with the Hospital Italiano de Buenos Aires health plan. We conducted a quantitative and qualitative analysis. Results: there was a 70% reduction in face-to-face consultations (from 76375 in 2019 to 23200 in 2020) and a concomitant increase in teleconsultations (from 255 in EW13 to 1089 in EW23). Concurrently, messages increased substantially (from 28601 in 2019 to 84916 in 2020), with an abrupt onset at the beginning of confinement and a decreasing trend over time. Before the pandemic, the content involved electronic orders for complementary studies, outcome monitoring, chronic medication prescriptions, or expert consultations. The most frequent domains during the pandemic were epidemiological information needs, such as preventive measures for COVID-19, pneumococcal vaccine, influenza vaccine, cases or suspicions, and swab results, among others. Conclusion: the rise of communication and information technologies during the pandemic allowed the continuity of healthcare processes despite the physical distance. There was increased use of messaging for patients' information needs, and the doctor-patient relationship has changed.Fil: Herrera, Ana G.. Hospital Italiano; ArgentinaFil: Piccioli, Sofía. Hospital Italiano. Instituto Universitario. Escuela de Medicina; ArgentinaFil: Ruíz Yanzi, María V.. Hospital Italiano; ArgentinaFil: Luna, Daniel Roberto. Hospital Italiano; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Plazzotta, Fernando. Hospital Italiano; ArgentinaFil: Kopitowski, Karin Silvana. Hospital Italiano; ArgentinaFil: Grande Ratti, Maria Florencvia. Hospital Italiano. Instituto Universitario. Escuela de Medicina; Argentina. Hospital Italiano; Argentin