Assessing statistical literacy in medical students and doctors: a single-centre, cross-sectional survey in South Korea

Objective
Healthcare professionals must possess statistical literacy to provide evidence-based care and engage patients in decision-making. However, there have been concerns about healthcare professionals’ inadequate understanding of health statistics. As an initial step in addressing the issue, we assessed the statistical literacy of medical students and doctors in South Korea by evaluating their comprehension of four statistical concepts: (a) single-event probability, (b) relative risk reduction, (c) positive predictive value and (d) 5-year survival rate.

Design
Cross-sectional survey study.

Setting
The survey was conducted from October 2018 to January 2019 in one medical school and its affiliated teaching hospital in Seoul, South Korea.

Participants
303 medical students from all six grades and 291 doctors from various specialties.

Primary and secondary outcome measures
The primary outcome measure was the correct answer rate for each question. The secondary outcome measure was the mean number of correct answers across the four statistical literacy questions, calculated for each individual.

Results
The correct answer rates for basic numeracy questions were close to 100%. Regarding statistical literacy, 95.5% and 83.2% of the participants accurately understood single-event probability and relative risk reduction, respectively. However, only 49.3% and 49.2% of the participants accurately understood the positive predictive value and 5-year survival rate, respectively. The correct answer rates for the question about the 5-year survival rate differed significantly between students (40.9%) and doctors (57.7%) (p

Read More

Racial Disparities in Long-Term Outcomes After Endovascular Aortic Aneurysm Repair in Black and White Medicare Beneficiaries

Circulation, Ahead of Print. BACKGROUND:Despite reported racial disparities between Black and White adults in short-term outcomes after abdominal aortic aneurysmal intervention, there is a paucity of literature aimed at understanding long-term disparities. The present study aims to characterize racial disparities in long-term outcomes, perioperative outcomes, and health care use after endovascular aortic aneurysm repair.METHODS:We conducted a retrospective cohort study from 2011 to 2019 with outcome assessment through 2020. Using a 100% sample of national Medicare data, we identified beneficiaries ≥66 years of age who underwent intact infrarenal endovascular aortic aneurysm repair. The primary outcome was a composite of endovascular or open aortic reintervention, late aneurysm rupture, and all-cause mortality. Secondary outcomes included other reinterventions, perioperative outcomes, and annual rates of health care use.RESULTS:A cohort of 107 636 Black (3.9%) and White (96.1%) beneficiaries was identified. The cumulative incidence of the primary outcome was 72.9% (95% CI, 71.8%–73.9%) in White patients versus 80.0% (95% CI, 76.4–83.0) in Black patients (P

Read More

Association between emergency department to intensive care units time and in-hospital mortality: an analysis of the MIMIC-IV database

Objectives
The association between the duration from the emergency department (ED) to the intensive care units (ICUs) and in-hospital mortality among patients admitted directly to the ICUs from the ED remains controversial. This study aimed to use data from the Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care-IV database to explore the relationship between the ED to ICUs time and patient outcomes.

Design
Retrospective observational study.

Setting
Admissions to the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center intensive care from 2008 to 2019.

Participants
A total of 15 246 adult patients were identified as admitted directly from the ED to the ICUs during their first hospitalisation. After excluding those without recorded ED registration times and those with a hospital-to-ICU admission interval exceeding 6 hours (n=2432), the final analysis cohort comprised 12 703 patients.

Primary and secondary outcome measures
The primary outcome was in-hospital all-cause mortality. Secondary outcomes included 28-day all-cause mortality and length of stay in ICU and hospital.

Results
The median ED to ICUs time was 3.98 hours. Longer ED to ICUs times were associated with lower in-hospital mortality, decreasing from 17.6% in the shortest to 12.2% in the longest interval group, and shorter ICU stays. After propensity score weighting, adjusted logistic regression models confirmed the inverse association between longer ED to ICUs time and in-hospital mortality (OR: 0.75, 95% CI: 0.69 to 0.82, p

Read More

European Registry of Hereditary Pancreatic Diseases (EUROPAC): protocol for primary and secondary screening in individuals with inherited pancreatic disease syndromes for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma and complications of other pancreatic diseases

Introduction
Pancreatic cancer is a devastating disease and one of the top causes of cancer death worldwide. Over 30% of cases are potentially avoidable, and while screening for this disease should be possible, the current methods, without risk stratification to detect high-risk groups, are unlikely to detect these individuals. A tailored screening pathway could be applied to individuals with a germline genetic cause of pancreatic cancer, which may account for around 10% of cases.

Methods and analysis
EUROPAC, although having international reach, is described here in relation to the UK only. This national prospective observational study has run for several decades but was modified into the current trial in 2019, which aims to recruit and screen 10 000 individuals with either familial pancreatic cancer or hereditary pancreatitis (HP). Applicants are assessed for eligibility by generating an individual pedigree and by attributing a family risk score (FR). Individual risk is assessed according to age. Individuals over 40 with an FR >30 are offered baseline imaging and then three yearly triplets of annual endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) and an MRI (in the third year). Those with an FR >60 are offered both EUS and MRI yearly. HP patients are screened by CT and/or MRI dependent on risk stratification using the presence of diabetes, smoking or alcohol consumption. Low-risk (absence of these factors) patients have a CT every 2 years, and high-risk (one or more of the above factors) patients have alternate yearly screening with CT, then MRI. Biospecimens are collected at pragmatic intervals with first sampling at registration to support future biomarker development to detect pancreatic cancer early. Detection of early-stage pancreatic cancer and actionable lesions will be evaluated.

Ethics and dissemination
The EUROPAC study has been reviewed and approved by the Yorkshire and Humber Research Ethics Committee (Ref 19/YH/0250). Study results will be disseminated through national and international symposium presentations and published in peer-reviewed, open-access journals. All participants provided informed consent prior to entering the study.

Trial registration number
ISRCTN62546421

Read More

Patient-reported factors associated with emergency department referrals from a co-located out-of-hours walk-in clinic in Germany: a cross-sectional observational study

Objectives
The aim of this study was to identify patient-reported factors associated with the likelihood of emergency department (ED) referral following treatment at a co-located out-of-hours (OOH) walk-in clinic.

Design
Monocentric cross-sectional observational study.

Setting
An OOH walk-in clinic co-located with the ED of the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Germany. The study period was from November 2019 to February 2020.

Participants
A total of 3708 patients attended the walk-in clinic during the study period, with 2574 patients (69.4%) participating in the study.

Main outcome measures
We used logistic regression analysis to calculate adjusted OR (aORs) for patient-reported factors influencing ED referral. The factors examined included reasons for encounter (RFEs), medical history and treatment urgency, categorised according to the International Classification of Primary Care, second edition. Secondary outcomes include descriptive measures of RFE distribution within the study cohort.

Results
The mean age of participants was 40 years (±15.8), and 54.5% were women. The ED referral rate was 15.2% (n=392). Patient-reported factors that increased the likelihood of ED referral included trauma (aOR 2.61; 95% CI: 1.24 to 5.50), eye symptoms (aOR 2.67; 95% CI: 1.48 to 4.83), abdominal pain (aOR 2.51; 95% CI: 1.74 to 3.64), history of type 2 diabetes (aOR 2.24; 95% CI: 1.18 to 4.25), neurological symptoms (aOR 2.18; 95% CI: 1.24 to 3.84) and higher self-perceived urgency (aOR 1.46; 95% CI: 1.12 to 1.89). Factors that decreased the likelihood of ED referral included respiratory symptoms (aOR 0.58; 95% CI: 0.36 to 0.93), neck/back symptoms (aOR 0.52; 95% CI: 0.31 to 0.88), urinary tract symptoms (aOR 0.18; 95% CI: 0.06 to 0.57) and a duration of the health problem >4 days (aOR 0.72; 95% CI: 0.55 to 0.95).

Conclusions
10 patient-reported factors of ED referrals were identified. Collecting this information during patient registration may enhance resource utilisation and streamline patient flow between walk-in clinic and adjacent ED. These findings could support the development of triage tools for patients in OOH care.

Read More

Standalone Middle Meningeal Artery Embolization Versus Conservative Management for Nontraumatic Subdural Hematoma

Stroke, Ahead of Print. BACKGROUND:Recent randomized control trials have demonstrated the efficacy and safety of middle meningeal artery embolization (MMAE) as an adjunct to conventional management for patients with nonacute subdural hematoma (SDH); however, a large majority of trial participants received surgical evacuation as part of the standard of care. Thus, the efficacy and safety of standalone MMAE compared with conservative management (CM) for patients with nonsurgical SDH are unclear.METHODS:This was a retrospective cohort study of the 2019 to 2021 Nationwide Readmissions Database in the United States. Patients with nonsurgical nontraumatic SDH were identified, and MMAE patients were matched with similar CM patients using propensity score matching calculated from demographics, comorbidities, and initial hospitalization outcomes. Patients were followed up to 300 days. The primary end point was composite surgical rescue or death, and secondary end points included surgical rescue and all-cause mortality by 180 days.RESULTS:24 465 patients with nonsurgical nontraumatic SDH were identified; 2228 (9.1%) underwent MMAE. After propensity score matching, 6675 patients remained in the CM group and 2217 in the MMAE group. At 180 days, MMAE patients had a significantly lower risk of surgery or death compared with CM (8.2% versus 10.9%; relative risk, 0.75 [95% CI, 0.59–0.96];P=0.022) and lower risk of death (1.1% versus 3.0%; relative risk, 0.38 [95% CI, 0.17–0.86];P=0.020). Rates of surgical rescue among MMAE and CM patients at 180 days were similar (7.1% versus 8.4%; relative risk, 0.85 [95% CI, 0.63–1.14];P=0.27). Time-to-event analyses for the entire 300-day study follow-up period confirmed that while MMAE was associated with a lower cumulative risk of all-cause mortality (hazard ratio, 0.55 [95% CI, 0.35–0.87];P=0.010), it was not associated with a different risk of surgical rescue (hazard ratio, 1.00 [95% CI, 0.76–1.31];P=1.00).CONCLUSIONS:Standalone MMAE may be beneficial for patients with nonsurgical nontraumatic SDH by reducing the long-term risk of all-cause mortality.

Read More

Association between endometrial echo on transfer day and pregnancy outcomes in thawed embryo transfer: a retrospective cohort study across different preparation protocols

Objective
This study aimed to investigate the relationship between endometrial echo and pregnancy outcome in patients undergoing thawed embryo transfer and explore the effect of different endometrial preparation schemes on endometrial echo.

Methods
A retrospective analysis was conducted on data from 2910 patients who underwent freeze-thaw embryo transfer (FET)-assisted pregnancy in the reproductive medicine centre of our hospital from January 2019 to March 2024. Based on the endometrial echo on the transplantation day, the patients were divided into two groups: the endometrial echo uniform group and the endometrial echo uneven group. Based on the endometrial preparation protocol, they were divided into the natural cycle (NC) group, hormone replacement cycle (HRT) group, and downregulated combined HRT (GnRHa+HRT) group. The general data, pregnancy outcome and endometrial echo of those undergoing different endometrial preparation protocols were compared.

Results
The clinical pregnancy rate in the homogeneous endometrial echo group was significantly higher than that in the non-homogeneous endometrial echo group. The equalisation rate of endometrial echo in the NC group and GnRHa+HRT group was significantly higher than that in the HRT group (p

Read More