| 1. |
- Chu, Jacqueline J., et al.
(author)
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Remote Symptom Monitoring with Clinical Alerts Following Mastectomy: Do Early Symptoms Predict 30-Day Surgical Complications
- 2024
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In: ANNALS OF SURGICAL ONCOLOGY. - 1068-9265 .- 1534-4681.
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Background. Electronic patient-reported outcome measures (ePROMs) for real-time remote symptom monitoring facilitate early recognition of postoperative complications. We sought to determine whether remote, electronic, patient-reported symptom-monitoring with Recovery Tracker predicts 30-day readmission or reoperation in outpatient mastectomy patients. Methods. We conducted a retrospective review of breast cancer patients who underwent outpatient (< 24-h stay) mastectomy with or without reconstruction from April 2017 to January 2022 and who received the Recovery Tracker on Days 1-10 postoperatively. Of 5,130 patients, 3,888 met the inclusion criteria (2,880 mastectomy with immediate reconstruction and 1,008 mastectomy only). We focused on symptoms concerning for surgical complications and assessed if symptoms reaching prespecified alert levels-prompting a nursing call-predicted risk of 30-day readmission or reoperation. Results. Daily Recovery Tracker response rates ranged from 45% to 70%. Overall, 1,461 of 3,888 patients (38%) triggered at least one alert. Most red (urgent) alerts were triggered by pain and fever; most yellow (less urgent) alerts were triggered by wound redness and pain severity. The 30-day readmission and reoperation rates were low at 3.8% and 2.4%, respectively. There was no statistically significant association between symptom alerts and 30-day reoperation or readmission, and a clinically relevant increase in risk can be excluded (odds ratio 1.08; 95% confidence interval 0.8-1.46; p = 0.6). Conclusions. Breast cancer patients undergoing mastectomy with or without reconstruction in the ambulatory setting have a low burden of concerning symptoms, even in the first few days after surgery. Patients can be reassured that symptoms that do present resolve quickly thereafter.
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| 2. |
- Fearon, Nkechi J., et al.
(author)
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Reducing opioid prescribing after ambulatory breast reconstruction surgery
- 2023
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In: JOURNAL OF SURGICAL ONCOLOGY. - 0022-4790 .- 1096-9098. ; 128:8, s. 1235-1242
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- BackgroundThe lack of evidence-based guidelines for postoperative opioid prescriptions following breast reconstruction contributes to a wide variation in prescribing practices and increases potential for misuse and abuse.MethodsBetween August and December 2019, women who underwent outpatient breast reconstruction were surveyed 7-10 days before (n = 97) and after (n = 101) implementing a standardized opioid prescription reduction initiative. We compared postoperative opioid use, pain control, and refills in both groups. Patient reported outcomes were compared using the BREAST-Q physical wellbeing of the chest domain and a novel symptom Recovery Tracker.ResultsBefore changes in prescriptions, patients were prescribed a median of 30 pills and consumed three pills (interquartile range [IQR: 1,9]). After standardization, patients were prescribed eight pills and consumed three pills (IQR: 1,6). There was no evidence of a difference in the proportion of patients experiencing moderate to very severe pain on the Recovery Tracker or in the early BREAST-Q physical wellbeing of the chest scores (p = 0.8 and 0.3, respectively).ConclusionStandardizing and reducing opioid prescriptions for patients undergoing reconstructive breast surgery is feasible and can significantly decrease the number of excess pills prescribed. The was no adverse impact on early physical wellbeing, although larger studies are needed to obtain further data.
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| 3. |
- Gardenier, Jason C., et al.
(author)
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Diphtheria toxin-mediated ablation of lymphatic endothelial cells results in progressive lymphedema
- 2016
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In: JCI INSIGHT. - : American Society for Clinical Investigation. - 2379-3708. ; 1:15
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Development of novel treatments for lymphedema has been limited by the fact that the pathophysiology of this disease is poorly understood. It remains unknown, for example, why limb swelling resulting from surgical injury resolves initially, but recurs in some cases months or years later. Finding answers for these basic questions has been hampered by the lack of adequate animal models. In the current study, we used Cre-lox mice that expressed the human diphtheria toxin receptor (DTR) driven by a lymphatic-specific promoter in order to noninvasively ablate the lymphatic system of the hind limb. Animals treated in this manner developed lymphedema that was indistinguishable from clinical lymphedema temporally, radiographically, and histologically. Using this model and clinical biopsy specimens, we show that the initial resolution of edema after injury is dependent on the formation of collateral capillary lymphatics and that this process is regulated by M2-polarized macrophages. In addition, we show that despite these initial improvements in lymphatic function, persistent accumulation of CD4(+) cells inhibits lymphangiogenesis and promotes sclerosis of collecting lymphatics, resulting in late onset of edema and fibrosis. Our findings therefore provide strong evidence that inflammatory changes after lymphatic injury play a key role in the pathophysiology of lymphedema.
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| 4. |
- Huang, Jung-Ju, et al.
(author)
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Lymph Node Transplantation Decreases Swelling and Restores Immune Responses in a Transgenic Model of Lymphedema
- 2016
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In: PLOS ONE. - : Public Library of Science (PLoS). - 1932-6203. ; 11:12
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Introduction Secondary lymphedema is a common complication of cancer treatment and recent studies have demonstrated that lymph node transplantation (LNT) can decrease swelling, as well as the incidence of infections. However, although these results are exciting, the mechanisms by which LNT improves these pathologic findings of lymphedema remain unknown. Using a transgenic mouse model of lymphedema, this study sought to analyze the effect of LNT on lymphatic regeneration and T cell-mediated immune responses. Methods We used a mouse model in which the expression of the human diphtheria toxin receptor is driven by the FLT4 promoter to enable the local ablation of the lymphatic system through subdermal hindlimb diphtheria toxin injections. Popliteal lymph node dissection was subsequently performed after a two-week recovery period, followed by either orthotopic LNT or sham surgery after an additional two weeks. Hindlimb swelling, lymphatic vessel regeneration, immune cell trafficking, and T cell-mediated immune responses were analyzed 10 weeks later. Results LNT resulted in a marked decrease in hindlimb swelling, fibroadipose tissue deposition, and decreased accumulation of perilymphatic inflammatory cells, as compared to controls. In addition, LNT induced a marked lymphangiogenic response in both capillary and collecting lymphatic vessels. Interestingly, the resultant regenerated lymphatics were abnormal in appearance on lymphangiography, but LNT also led to a notable increase in dendritic cell trafficking from the periphery to the inguinal lymph nodes and improved adaptive immune responses. Conclusions LNT decreases pathological changes of lymphedema and was shown to potently induce lymphangiogenesis. Lymphatic vessels induced by LNT were abnormal in appearance, but were functional and able to transport antigen-presenting cells. Animals treated with LNT have an increased ability to mount T cell-mediated immune responses when sensitized to antigens in the affected hindlimb.
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