Publications by authors named "Ben Rhee"

Background: Cosmetic plastic surgery in the United States is underutilized by African American and Hispanic populations compared with their White and Asian counterparts. This study evaluated whether microeconomic spending traits as a representation of financial stability can inform trends in cosmetic procedure volumes by racial group.

Methods: Annual volumes for the top five cosmetic surgical and cosmetic minimally invasive procedures by racial/ethnic group from 2012 to 2020 were collected from the American Society of Plastic Surgeons' annual reports.

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Objective: The association between aggressive resection and improved survival for adult spinal chordoma patients has not been well characterized in the geriatric population. Thus, the present study aimed to elucidate the relationship between gross total resection (GTR) and survival outcomes for patients across different age groups.

Methods: The authors isolated all adult patients diagnosed with spinal chordoma from the 2000-2019 Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database and divided patients into three surgical subgroups: no surgery, subtotal resection (STR), and GTR.

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Although research and innovation is a key within the field of plastic and reconstructive surgery, the impact of team structure, interpersonal dynamics, and/or standardized infrastructure on scholarly output has been infrequently studied. In this work, we present the formation and implementation of a novel plastic surgery research program that aims to unite previously disparate clinical and translational research efforts at our institution to facilitate critical inquiry. From July 2022 to June 2023, our department launched a pilot research program based on three pillars: (1) formalization of a research curriculum (monthly research meetings for agenda setting and discussion for project honing, formal research leadership for meeting facilitation and workflow regulation), (2) development of a centralized database to compile ongoing research (Google Drive repository to house all ongoing research documents, facilitate real-time editing, and provide resources/templates for assisting in the research process), and (3) bolstering of a core research identity built on mentorship and collaboration (more frequent interactions to shift previously siloed faculty-student mentorship into a robust milieu of intercollaboration).

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In 2020, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services issued a historic rule on price transparency that aimed to better inform Americans about their health care costs by requiring hospitals to publicly provide pricing information on their items and services. In this review article, we describe the current gaps in transparency that persist after the implementation of the rule, from incomplete pricing files to noncompliance despite the issuance of monetary penalties by Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Price transparency is vital for hand and upper extremity procedures, given their cost variation and patient desire for more financial discussions with their physicians regarding these procedures.

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Introduction: Upper extremity slings (UESs) are frequently provided for patients with a hand or forearm injury. However, their effect on balance has not been well explored. We sought to characterize the effect of a UES on balance in young adults.

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Background: The hospital price transparency final rule requires hospitals to publish pricing information about provided items and services by means of 2 methods: (1) a comprehensive machine-readable file and (2) a display tool of selected shoppable services. Using machine-readable files on hospital websites, the authors examined trends in pricing transparency and variation in association with community-level socioeconomic factors for 3 common hand surgery procedures among Association of American Medical Colleges-affiliated hospitals.

Methods: Available discount cash prices and payer-specific negotiated prices for CPT codes 64721, 26615, and 25111 were recorded.

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The transconjunctival incision is a common and effective approach for establishing surgical exposure to the orbital floor. When access to the lateral orbit is also required, this incision may be extended by an accompanying lateral canthotomy, which releases the tarsal plates from the conjunctiva. Although this approach broadens surgical access through a simple extension, it is often remarked for unpredictable healing patterns and negative aesthetic sequelae, such as rounding of the lateral canthal angle.

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Unlabelled: Nasal fractures represent the most common fracture in facial trauma. The role of prophylactic antibiotics in these injuries is debated, given low infection rates and demonstrated risks of antibiotics. We studied the isolated effect of prophylactic antibiotics on infection rate in patients with nasal fracture after closed reduction.

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Article Synopsis
  • - The study investigates how marital status affects overall survival in adults with craniopharyngioma by analyzing data from 1539 patients between 2000 and 2019, categorizing them into married, single, divorced/separated, and widowed groups.
  • - Results showed that widowed patients had the lowest survival rates, and marital status was found to significantly impact mortality specifically in middle-aged patients (ages 40-60), while younger and older groups did not show the same trend.
  • - The findings suggest that social and psychological support for single and divorced/separated middle-aged patients could enhance their survival rates, highlighting the importance of considering marital status in treatment planning.
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Background: The American Academy of Dermatology and the Food and Drug Administration recommend consultation with a dermatologist prior to undergoing laser tattoo removal. However, non-health care professionals offer tattoo removal. Understanding the information available on the internet for patients regarding tattoo removal is important given that individuals are increasingly consulting digital sources to make decisions regarding skin care.

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Unlabelled: The advent of acellular dermal matrix (ADM) has revolutionized prosthesis-based breast reconstruction. However, paucity of human cadaveric tissue has resulted in limitation of supply and increased associated costs, prompting concerted effort to identify xenograft alternatives. Although studies have examined the safety of Artia, a porcine-derived ADM, few have evaluated its clinical efficacy as soft tissue reinforcement.

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Sustained, drug-free control of HIV-1 replication is naturally achieved in less than 0.5% of infected individuals (here termed 'elite controllers'), despite the presence of a replication-competent viral reservoir. Inducing such an ability to spontaneously maintain undetectable plasma viraemia is a major objective of HIV-1 cure research, but the characteristics of proviral reservoirs in elite controllers remain to be determined.

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