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Biomedical subjects

Ralph G DePalma

Publications and source records attributed to Ralph G DePalma.

9 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

National Surgical Quality Improvement Program analysis of bariatric operations: modifiable risk factors contribute to bariatric surgical adverse outcomes.

BACKGROUND: The increase in obesity coupled with greater acceptance of the field of bariatric surgery has resulted in a substantial rise in the number of weight-loss operations. Because obese individuals are at high risk for surgical complications, concern about the safety of bariatric procedures exists. Earlier investigations of the clinical features associated with surgical complications have produced conflicting results. We sought to identify risk factors for surgical complications in a large, nationally representative population of US veterans. STUDY DESIGN: We analyzed data on bariatric procedures performed at 12 Veterans' Affairs medical centers approved to perform weight-loss operations between 1998 and 2004. Detailed pre-, intra-, and postoperative information and longterm mortality data were prospectively collected using the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program methodology. We used multivariable logistic regression to identify clinical features associated with postoperative complications. RESULTS: Among 575 bariatric patients assessed between 1998 and 2004, 74% were men with a mean age of 51 years. Thirty-day mortality was 1.4%. Overall complication rate was 19.7%. Of those with complications, one-half were of considerable clinical importance, as they were associated with prolonged length of stay. Clinical features that were predictive of adverse events in our multivariable analyses were superobesity, weight>350 pounds, and smoking. A more than 20 pack-year history of smoking was also associated with difficulty in weaning from a ventilator postoperatively. CONCLUSIONS: We identified smoking and superobesity as preoperative risk factors associated with postoperative complications. Future studies should examine the effect of preoperative weight loss and smoking cessation on bariatric procedure outcomes.

Bariatric Surgery↗
PubMed2006

Surgical quality programs in the Veterans Health Administration.

This review describes the development, implementation, and current status of programs that promote and maintain surgical quality performance within the Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration (VHA). It also considers evolving initiatives to improve surgical outcomes and enhance patient safety. The VHA is a nationwide health care system operated and funded by the federal government. It consists of 154 federal hospitals and 875 clinics staffed by 16,000 nurses, 33,000 other health care professionals, 15,000 doctors, and 25,000 university-affiliated faculty physicians. The VHA trains 90,000 health care professionals, and additionally its activities are supported by 140,000 dedicated volunteers. More than 1000 surgeons in all specialties serve in its facilities. Since these programs began more than 19 years ago, there has been a steady decrease in both risk-adjusted and actual mortality rates tracked annually.

General Surgery↗
PubMed2005

Blast injuries.

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Barotrauma↗
PubMed2005

Surgical resident supervision in the operating room and outcomes of care in Veterans Affairs hospitals.

BACKGROUND: There has been concern that a reduced level of surgical resident supervision in the operating room (OR) is correlated with worse patient outcomes. Until September 2004, Veterans' Affairs (VA) hospitals entered in the surgical record level 3 supervision on every surgical case when the attending physician was available but not physically present in the OR or the OR suite. In this study, we assessed the impact of level 3 on risk-adjusted morbidity and mortality in the VA system. METHODS: Surgical cases entered into the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program database between 1998 and 2004, from 99 VA teaching facilities, were included in a logistic regression analysis for each year. Level 3 versus all other levels of supervision were forced into the model, and patient characteristics then were selected stepwise to arrive at a final model. Confidence limits for the odds ratios were calculated by profile likelihood. RESULTS: A total of 610,660 cases were available for analysis. Thirty-day mortality and morbidity rates were reported in 14,441 (2.36%) and 63,079 (10.33%) cases, respectively. Level 3 supervision decreased from 8.72% in 1998 to 2.69% in 2004. In the logistic regression analysis, the odds ratios for mortality for level 3 ranged from .72 to 1.03. Only in the year 2000 were the odds ratio for mortality statistically significant at the .05 level (odds ratio, .72; 95% confidence interval, .594-.858). For morbidity, the odds ratios for level 3 supervision ranged from .66 to 1.01, and all odds ratios except for the year 2004 were statistically significant. CONCLUSIONS: Between 1998 and 2004, the level of resident supervision in the OR did not affect clinical outcomes adversely for surgical patients in the VA teaching hospitals.

Female↗
PubMed2005

Determinants of long-term survival after major surgery and the adverse effect of postoperative complications.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to identify the determinants of 30-day postoperative mortality and long-term survival after major surgery as exemplified by 8 common operations. SUMMARY BACKGROUND DATA: The National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP) database contains pre-, intra-, and 30-day postoperative data, prospectively collected in a standardized fashion by a dedicated nurse reviewer, on major surgery in the Veterans Administration (VA). The Beneficiary Identification and Records Locator Subsystem (BIRLS) is a VA file that depicts the vital status of U.S. veterans with 87% to 95% accuracy. METHODS: NSQIP data were merged with BIRLS to determine the vital status of 105,951 patients who underwent 8 types of operations performed between 1991 and 1999, providing an average follow up of 8 years. Logistic and Cox regression analyses were performed to identify the predictors of 30-day mortality and long-term survival, respectively. RESULTS: The most important determinant of decreased postoperative survival was the occurrence, within 30 days postoperatively, of any one of 22 types of complications collected in the NSQIP. Independent of preoperative patient risk, the occurrence of a 30-day complication in the total patient group reduced median patient survival by 69%. The adverse effect of a complication on patient survival was also influenced by the operation type and was sustained even when patients who did not survive for 30 days were excluded from the analyses. CONCLUSIONS: The occurrence of a 30-day postoperative complication is more important than preoperative patient risk and intraoperative factors in determining the survival after major surgery in the VA. Quality and process improvement in surgery should be directed toward the prevention of postoperative complications.

Databases as Topic↗
PubMed2003

Cytokine signatures in atherosclerotic claudicants.

BACKGROUND: Iron accumulation and inflammation may affect atherosclerosis. This study intended to define a cytokine signature in atherosclerotic claudicants and to determine whether reduction in serum ferritin by phlebotomy influenced this pattern. METHODS: Ninety-one subjects with peripheral vascular disease (PVD; mean age, 67 years) were recruited from the VA Cooperative Iron and Atherosclerosis Study (FeAST) testing the hypothesis that ferritin reduction to 25 ng/ml may ameliorate atherosclerosis. Cytokines TNF-a, IL-2, IL-6, and IL-10 were analyzed by enzyme amplified sensitivity assay (EASIA). Fasting iron and cholesterol panels, complete blood count, C-reactive protein (CRP), uric acid, fibrinogen, glucose, and hemoglobin A1c levels were also quantified. Values were compared with "healthy" controls (n = 21; mean age, 56 years). After randomization of PVD to phlebotomy (intervention group [IG], n = 44) or control (nonintervention group [NG], n = 47), analyses were compared at 6 and 12 months using t test, Wilcoxon rank sum test, chi-square, and robust MM regression. FINDINGS: Age, glucose, and hemoglobin A1c were higher in PVD compared with healthy controls (P < 0.01), whereas serum iron (P < 0.01) and percentage of transferrin saturation (P < 0.05) were lower. Tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha; P < 0.05), IL-6 (P < 0.01), and CRP (P < 0.05) levels were higher in the PVD group, whereas IL-10 was lower (P < 0.01). At 6 months post phlebotomy, ferritin levels were reduced (P < 0.01), although ferritin levels were reduced less in smokers. IL-6 and fibrinogen, CRP and ferritin levels correlated positively. At 6 and 12 months, subjects with TNF-alpha (n= 15) and IL-6 (n = 10) levels in the upper 25th percentile were reduced by phlebotomy. INTERPRETATION: An inflammatory cytokine signature exists in atherosclerosis. Elevated levels of TNF-alpha and IL-6, reportedly associated with recurrent and future myocardial infarction, were reduced by phlebotomy. The utility of the iron/inflammatory hypotheses will ultimately relate to clinical outcomes obtained prospectively by the FeAST trial.

Aged↗
PubMed2002

Endovascular obliteration of saphenous reflux: a multicenter study.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to assess the differences in clinical outcomes in patients treated with endovenous saphenous vein obliteration with technical outcome of either complete occlusion (CO), near complete occlusion (NCO), defined as < or =5-cm segment of flow in treated vein, or recanalization, defined as >5-cm segment of flow in treated vein. STUDY DESIGN: The study was designed as a prospective registry with follow-up at intervals through 24 months. The subjects were 286 patients from 30 clinical sites with saphenous vein reflux as measured with duplex scanning. A total of 319 limb treatments were performed. Intervention included endovenous catheter obliteration of insufficient saphenous veins with temperature controlled radiofrequency heat, without high ligation of the saphenofemoral junction. The main outcome measures were status of occlusion of treated vein segments, presence of varicose veins and reflux, clinical symptoms scores, physician evaluation of procedure success, and patient satisfaction. RESULTS: At 12 months, 83.6% of treated limbs were classified as CO, 5.6% were categorized as NCO, and 10.8% were recanalized. At 24 months, 85.2% of treated veins were CO, 3.5% were NCO, and 11.3% were recanalized. Varicose veins were present in 95% of limbs before treatment. The presence of varicose veins in limbs with CO was 10.5%, 7.3%, 5.7%, and 8.3% at 1 week, 6 months, 12 months, and 24 months, respectively. The presence of varicose veins in NCO limbs was similar at each interval. Overall, 91.4% of 232 limbs followed to 12 months and 90.1% of 142 limbs at 24 months were free of saphenous vein reflux, regardless of technical outcome. Paresthesia was reported in 3.9% of limbs at 1 year and in 5.6% at 2 years. The pretreatment mean symptom severity score was 2.0. Mean posttreatment symptom scores decreased to 0.07, 0.0, and 0.50 for CO, NCO, and recanalized limbs, respectively, at 6 months. At 12 months, the mean scores were 0.06, 0.0, and 0.32 for CO, NCO, and recanalized limbs, respectively; at 24 months, the scores were at 0.10, 0.40, and 0.63. Patient satisfaction was achieved in 195 of 212 patients (92%) at 1 year and in 121 of 128 (94.5%) at 2 years. CONCLUSION: Endovenous vein obliteration without high ligation dramatically reduces the presence of varicosities and reflux and, when performed with the prescribed pull-back methodology, is comparable with vein stripping at 1 and 2 years. Patient satisfaction with the procedure is high at 2 years, regardless of technical outcome. At 2 years, the closure procedure is a viable alternative to stripping.

Female↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Statins and biomarkers in claudicants with peripheral arterial disease: cross-sectional study.

This exploratory substudy of The Iron (Fe) and Atherosclerosis Study (FeAST) compared baseline inflammatory markers, including cytokines, C-reactive protein (CRP), and ferritin, in subjects with peripheral arterial disease (PAD) taking statins with subjects with PAD who were not taking statins. Inflammatory markers in the serum of 47 subjects with PAD not taking statins and a healthy cohort of 21 medication-free men were compared with 53 PAD subjects taking statins at entry to the FeAST. Healthy subjects demonstrated lower levels of tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-R1, interleukin-6 (IL-6), and CRP. TNF-alpha R1 averaged 2.28 ng/mL versus 3.52 ng/mL, p = .0025; IL-6 averaged 4.24 pg/mL versus 16.61 pg/mL, p = .0008; and CRP averaged 0.58 mg/dL versus 0.92 mg/dL, p = .0192. A higher level of IL-6 was observed in PAD statin takers versus PAD subjects not taking statins: 19.47 pg/mL versus 13.24 pg/mL, p = .0455. As expected, total cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein levels were lower in the statin-treated group, p = .0006 and p = .0001, respectively. No significant differences in inflammatory cytokines were detected for varying doses of simvastatin. Additionally, no significant differences in inflammatory biomedical markers were found in subjects with PAD alone compared with those with concomitant coronary artery disease (CAD). Unexpectedly, serum inflammatory cytokine IL-6 levels were significantly higher in PAD subjects receiving statins. There was no difference in measured inflammatory markers in PAD subjects with concomitant CAD.

Aged↗