Perioperative Supplemental Oxygen for the Prevention of Surgical Site Infection After Cesarean Section: A Systematic Review of Existing Literature.

Initial systematic reviews demonstrated the reduction of surgical site infection (SSI) following perioperative oxygen supplementation. SSI among colorectal surgeries was reduced by more than 50% with high-flow oxygen. However, recent randomized trials are coming up with conflicting results.

Distress: Characterizing What Causes the Thermometer to Shift in Patients with Newly Diagnosed Breast Cancer Attending a Multidisciplinary Clinic.

Background: A diagnosis of breast cancer (BC) can result in multifactorial stress. If not addressed, distress can have a negative impact on outcomes. The experience of patients with newly diagnosed BC has not been sufficiently investigated.

Risk and Economic Burden of Peristomal Skin Complications Following Ostomy Surgery.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the incidence and economic burden of peristomal skin complications (PSCs) following ostomy surgery.

Design: Retrospective cohort study based on electronic health records and administrative data stores at a large US integrated healthcare system.

Subjects And Settings: The sample comprised 168 patients who underwent colostomy (ICD-9-CM 46.

Three-Dimensional Bioabsorbable Tissue Marker Placement is Associated with Decreased Tumor Bed Volume Among Patients Receiving Radiation Therapy for Breast Cancer.

Purpose: BioZorb (Focal Therapeutics, Aliso Viejo, CA) is an implantable 3-dimensional bioabsorbable marker used for tumor bed volume (TBV) identification during postoperative radiation therapy (RT) planning. We aimed to calculate and compare RT TBVs between two cohorts managed with and without the device.

Methods And Materials: Data from patients with breast cancer who were treated at Rhode Island Hosptial, Providence RI between May 1, 2015 and April 30, 2016 were retrospectively reviewed and grouped based on 3-dimensional bioabsorbable marker placement.

Clinical and Economic Burden of Peristomal Skin Complications in Patients With Recent Ostomies.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to estimate the risk and economic burden of peristomal skin complications (PSCs) in a large integrated healthcare system in the Midwestern United States.

Design: Retrospective cohort study.

Subjects And Setting: The sample comprised 128 patients; 40% (n = 51) underwent colostomy, 50% (n = 64) underwent ileostomy, and 10% (n = 13) underwent urostomy.

Can dialysis patients be accurately identified using healthcare claims data?

Background: While health insurance claims data are often used to estimate the costs of renal replacement therapy in patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD), the accuracy of methods used to identify patients receiving dialysis - especially peritoneal dialysis (PD) and hemodialysis (HD) - in these data is unknown.

Methods: The study population consisted of all persons aged 18 - 63 years in a large US integrated health plan with ESRD and dialysis-related billing codes (i.e.

A prospective study of prognostic factors for recurrence in early oral tongue cancer.

Background: Tongue cancer is one of the common cancers in head and neck region. Cervical node metastasis is the strongest poor prognostic factor. Other prognostic factors were also said to be of significance.

Adherence and persistence with non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor-based antiretroviral regimens.

Objective: The objective of this study was to examine adherence and persistency in HIV patients initiating first-line combination antiretroviral therapy (cART) with a non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NNRTI)-based regimen.

Methods: Using US health insurance records, the authors identified all persons aged ≥ 18 years with HIV, who began NNRTI-based cART between 1 January 2003 and 30 September 2009. They examined adherence using proportion of days covered (PDC), and non-persistency based on evidence of discontinuation, switching or augmentation.

Cost-effectiveness of adjunctive therapy with atypical antipsychotics for acute treatment of major depressive disorder.

Background: While the clinical utility of atypical antipsychotics has been established in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) who are refractory to antidepressant therapy, their cost-effectiveness is unknown.

Objective: To examine the cost-effectiveness of aripiprazole, quetiapine, and olanzapine/fluoxetine in adults with MDD who are refractory to antidepressant therapy.

Methods: Using techniques of decision analysis, we estimated expected outcomes and costs over 6 weeks in adults with MDD receiving (1) aripiprazole 2-20 mg/day and antidepressant therapy; (2) quetiapine 150 mg/day or 300 mg/day and antidepressant therapy; (3) the fixed-dose combination of olanzapine 6, 12, or 18 mg/day with fluoxetine 50 mg/day; or (4) antidepressant therapy alone.

Clinical and economic outcomes in patients with community-acquired Staphylococcus aureus pneumonia.

Background: While the clinical and economic consequences of S. aureus pneumonia in healthcare settings have been well documented, much less is known about community-acquired S. aureus pneumonia (CAP).

Cost-effectiveness of zoledronic acid plus endocrine therapy in premenopausal women with hormone-responsive early breast cancer.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to estimate the cost-effectiveness of adding zoledronic acid 4 mg intravenously every 6 months to endocrine therapy in premenopausal women with hormone receptor-positive early breast cancer from a US health care system perspective.

Materials And Methods: A Markov model was developed to predict disease progression, mortality, and costs of breast cancer care for premenopausal women with hormone receptor-positive early breast cancer receiving up to 3 years of (1) endocrine therapy (goserelin plus tamoxifen or anastrozole); or (2) endocrine therapy plus zoledronic acid. Model parameters were obtained from ABCSG-12 (Austrian Breast and Colorectal Cancer Study Group Trial-12) and the literature.

Clinical and economic outcomes for patients with health care-associated Staphylococcus aureus pneumonia.

While the increasing importance of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) as a pathogen in health care-associated S. aureus pneumonia has been documented widely, information on the clinical and economic consequences of such infections is limited. We retrospectively identified all patients admitted to a large U.

Cost-effectiveness of tacrolimus ointment versus pimecrolimus cream in adults with atopic dermatitis.

Background: Tacrolimus 0.1% and pimecrolimus 1.0% are used for short-term and noncontinuous treatment of atopic dermatitis (AD) in patients unresponsive to conventional therapies.

Trends in US hospital admissions for skin and soft tissue infections.

Using data from the 2000-2004 US Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project National Inpatient Sample, we found that total hospital admissions for skin and soft tissue infections increased by 29% during 2000-2004; admissions for pneumonia were largely unchanged. These results are consistent with recent reported increases in community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infections.

Cost effectiveness of breast cancer screening with contrast-enhanced MRI in high-risk women.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to estimate the cost effectiveness of breast cancer screening with contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), with and without adjunctive x-ray mammography (XM), compared with XM alone in high-risk women.

Materials And Methods: A model was developed to depict the consequences of screening with MRI and/or XM for cohorts of 10,000 women with BRCA1/2 mutations and women with other high-risk characteristics, respectively. The model predicted the number of women correctly and incorrectly diagnosed with each strategy and lifetime consequences in terms of additional care, patient utilities, life expectancy, and quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs).

Clinical characteristics of women presenting with skin-only recurrence of breast cancer.

Background: Locoregional failure after breast cancer treatment is usually heralded as a significant risk factor for systemic recurrence. However, locoregional recurrence may have different presentations, some of which may represent a more benign course. An example of this is the phenomenon of isolated chest wall recurrence (CWR).

Valsartan versus lisinopril or extended-release metoprolol in preventing cardiovascular and renal events in patients with hypertension.

Purpose: The objective of this study was to compare cardiovascular and renal events in patients with hypertension receiving the angiotensin II-receptor blocker valsartan versus those receiving the angiotensin-converting-enzyme lisinopril or the beta-blocker metoprolol succinate in an extended-release formulation.

Methods: A retrospective study was conducted using a health insurance claims database spanning the period from January 1997 through December 2003 and representing approximately 40 million members enrolled in over 70 health plans across the United States. Study subjects included all persons in the database with two or more outpatient prescriptions for valsartan, lisinopril, or extended-release metoprolol and two or more prior claims with a diagnosis of hypertension.

Cost-effectiveness of memantine in moderate-to-severe Alzheimer's disease patients receiving donepezil.

Objective: The efficacy and safety of memantine in patients with moderate-to-severe Alzheimer's disease (AD) receiving stable doses of donepezil were recently demonstrated in a phase III trial. The cost-effectiveness of such therapy is unknown.

Research Design And Methods: A microsimulation model was developed to depict AD progression over time and associated clinical and economic outcomes.

Role of ultrasound-guided axillary fine-needle aspiration in the management of invasive breast cancer.

Background: Previous studies from Women & Infants' Hospital have reported the accuracy of ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration biopsy examination of axillary lymph nodes (USFNAB) for locally advanced breast cancer. The aim of this article is to report our further experience with USFNAB in staging the axilla and determining its affect on management decisions.

Methods: We performed a retrospective review of prospectively collected data between January 1998 and June 2005.