National Study Research Articles

Survival outcomes associated with first-line PCV or temozolomide in combination with radiotherapy in IDH-mutant 1p/19q-codeleted grade 3 oligodendroglioma.

2004 Background: Patients with IDH-mutant 1p/19q-codeleted grade 3 oligodendroglioma (O3IDHmt/Codel) benefit from adding alkylating chemotherapy to radiotherapy (RT). However, the optimal chemotherapy regimen between Procarbazine, CCNU, and Vincristine (PCV) and Temozolomide (TMZ) remains unclear given the lack of randomized trial data comparing both regimens. Methods: The objective was to assess the overall (OS) and progression-free (PFS) survival associated with first-line PCV/RT versus TMZ/RT in patients diagnosed with O3IDHmt/Codel. We included patients with histologically-proven O3IDHmt/Codel (according to WHO criteria) from the French national prospective cohort study POLA. All tumours underwent central pathological review. OS and PFS from surgery were estimated using Kaplan-Meier method and Cox regression model. Results: 305 newly-diagnosed O3IDHmt/Codel patients treated with RT and chemotherapy between 2008 and 2022 were included. 67.9% of patients (n=207) were treated with PCV/RT and 32.1% with TMZ/RT (n=98). Median follow-up was 78.4 months (IQR=44.3-102.7). Median OS was not reached (95%CI: NR-NR) and 140 months (95%CI: 110-NR) in the PCV/RT and TMZ/RT groups, respectively (log-rank P<0.0001). On univariable analysis, there was a significant difference in favor of PCV/RT in both 5-year (PCV/RT: 89%, 95%CI: 85-94; TMZ/RT: 75%, 95%CI: 66-84) and 10-year OS (PCV/RT: 72%, 95%CI: 61-85; TMZ/RT: 60%, 95%CI: 49-73), which was confirmed in the multivariable Cox model adjusted for age, type of surgery, gender, ECOG performance status and CDKN2A homozygous deletion (HR 0.53 for PCV/RT, 95%CI: 0.30-0.92, P=0.025). Conclusions: In patients with newly-diagnosed O3IDHmt/Codel from the POLA cohort, first line PCV/RT was associated with better OS outcomes compared to TMZ/RT. Our data suggest that the improved safety profile associated with TMZ comes at the cost of inferior efficacy in this population. Further investigation using prospective randomized studies is warranted.

Factors influencing the mortality risk of heart failure in patients receiving antineoplastic immunotherapy: A national inpatient database study 2016-2020.

e24011 Background: Immunotherapy is increasingly being used for management of solid and lymphoproliferative tumors due to their more desirable side effect profile as compared to traditional cancer therapies. However, these medications are associated with cardiac complications and little is known about the factors influencing the prognosis in these patients. Methods: This is a retrospective analysis of the National Inpatient Database from 2016 to 2020 using the International Classification of Diseases (ICD) 10 codes performed with STATA BE 18.0. Chi square test was used for crude analysis and multivariate logistic regression was performed to assess the risk of inpatient death among cancer patients with heart failure receiving immunotherapy. Results were adjusted for potential confounders like age, gender, race, hypertension, diabetes, coronary artery disease, smoking, and alcohol consumption. Multicollinearity of the model was assessed using Variance Inflation Factor (VIF) post-estimation test. Results: Out of 5166 cancer patients receiving immunotherapy with a mean age of 43.63 土 26.33 years and 41% females, 45 patients had heart failure. Logistic regression showed that heart failure was significantly associated with mortality (LR 𝜒² 38.74, p value < 0.001) on adjusting for potential confounders. Although the effect size was small, increased age (OR 1.025, CI 1.01-1.04) had a significantly higher risk of mortality. Patients belonging to the female gender and white, hispanic, and asian races had a lower risk of mortality while those belonging to the african american race and those with coronary artery disease had a higher mortality risk, although not statistically significant. Diabetes and alcohol consumption had a fourfold and sixfold increased risk of mortality respectively. Hypertension and smoking that are known to increase mortality risk in heart failure patients showed a paradoxically protective effect in this cohort. Conclusions: This study highlights the importance of risk stratification and prognostication among patients with heart failure receiving antineoplastic immunotherapy. Increased age, african american race, diabetes, alcohol consumption, and coronary artery disease have shown an increased mortality risk in these patients. [Table: see text]

Individual and joint exposure to PM2.5 constituents and incident risk of metabolic syndrome: A national cohort study

Cohort evidence linking fine particulate matter (PM2.5) constituents to metabolic syndrome (MetS) was extensively scarce. A nationwide MetS-free cohort of 3658 participants aged 45 and above, followed up from 2011 to 2015, were enrolled from 125 cities across China's mainland. Cox proportional hazards models and quantile-based g-computation were adopted to investigate individual and joint effects of exposure to PM2.5 constituents with MetS and its components. Monte Carlo simulations (n = 1000) were utilized to generate quasi-concentration-response (C-R) curve of joint exposure. A total of 633 MetS events occurred during 14,766.5 person-years follow-up (median 4.1 years). An estimated excess risk of 33 %−51 % in MetS incidence was linked to per interquartile range (IQR) increase in individual exposure to PM2.5 constituents. For an IQR-equivalent increase in joint exposure, we estimated a hazard ratio of 1.45 (95 % confidence internal: 1.23−1.69) for MetS, 1.49 (1.31−1.69) for central obesity, 1.19 (1.06−1.34) for high BP, 1.57 (1.34−1.84) for low HDL-C, 1.31 (1.14−1.51) for high TG, and 1.23 (1.02−1.48) for elevated FBG, respectively. Approximately linear or J-shaped C-R curves were consistently observed in individual and joint associations of PM2.5 constituents with MetS and its components. Joint-exposure analyses provided consistent evidence for the greatest contribution of SO42− in triggering PM2.5-associated risks of overall MetS and its components. Stratified analysis suggested higher PM2.5-related MetS risks among older participants and urban residents. These findings added longitudual population-based evidence for increased incident risks of MetS and its components associated with long-term exposures to PM2.5 constituents in middle-aged and older adults.

Inflammatory biomarkers and frailty transitions in older adults with cancer: Findings from a national cohort study.

e13772 Background: Approximately 67% of cancer survivors were aged 65 or older in the U.S.; they face a heightened risk of frailty, as both cancer and anti-cancer treatment impose additional stressors on the older adults’ physiological reserves. Inflammatory biomarkers such as serum C-reactive protein (CRP) and Interleukin-6 (IL-6) levels were associated with frailty. However, the role of inflammatory biomarkers on the transitions of frailty states remains unclear. This study aimed to describe transitions between frailty states and death and quantify the predictive effect of inflammatory biomarkers on transitions. Methods: We used data from the National Health and Aging Trends Study (NHATS) from 2017 to 2022. A total of 1,219 older cancer survivors (>67 years) were included. Frailty was assessed annually using the Fried Frailty Phenotype (exhaustion, low physical activity, shrinking, low walking speed, and weakness) to categorize participants as “non-frail,” “pre-frail,” and “frail.” Inflammatory biomarkers were obtained via dried blood spots at baseline (2017). Plasma-equivalent values of CRP and IL-6 were used. Covariates included sex, age category, race, education level, marital status, obesity, and number of comorbidities. We defined four states that included three frailty states (non-frail, pre-frail, and frail) and an absorbing state of death. The multi-state Markov models were performed to capture possible transitions between frailty states and examine the effect of CRP and IL-6 on the five main transitions between states (non-frail to pre-frail, pre-frail to non-frail, pre-frail to frail, frail to pre-frail, frail to death). Results: At baseline, 25.27% were non-frail, 52.34% were pre-frail, and 22.40% were frail. During the follow-up time of 5 years, 1,396 transitions were observed, with 950 (68.05%) progressions (or to death) and 446 (31.95%) reversals. For participants who were non-frail, they were highly likely to develop pre-frailty (transition intensity=0.63). For participants with pre-frailty, progression to frailty was a little more likely than recovery to non-frailty (0.25 vs 0.21). Once entering the frail state, the likelihood of death outweighed that of recovery (0.30 vs 0.28). A higher level of CRP or IL-6 was associated with frailty progression (non-frail to pre-frail and frail to death), while a lower level of CRP or IL-6 was associated with recovery of frailty (pre-frail to non-frail and frail to pre-frail). Conclusions: This study is the first to investigate the longitudinal relationship between inflammatory biomarkers and frailty transitions in older cancer survivors using a nationally representative survey dataset. Our findings outlined potential transitions between frailty states and death, highlighting the role of elevated serum CRP and IL-6 levels on the increased risk of frailty progression and reduced risk of frailty recovery over 5 years.

Changes in systemic cancer therapy in Australia during the Delta and Omicron waves of the COVID-19 pandemic (2021-2022): a controlled interrupted time series analysis.

Australian lockdowns in response to the initial coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak in 2020 were associated with small and transient changes in the use of systemic cancer therapy. We aimed to investigate the impacts of the longer and more restrictive lockdowns in the Australian states of New South Wales (NSW) and Victoria during both the Delta subvariant lockdowns in mid-2021 and the Omicron subvariant outbreak in late 2021/early 2022. Population-based, controlled interrupted time series analysis. We conducted a national observational study using de-identified records of government-subsidised cancer medicines dispensed to a random 10% sample of Australians between July 2018 and July 2022. We used controlled interrupted time series analysis to investigate changes in the dispensing, initiation and discontinuation of all cancer medicines dispensed to residents of NSW and Victoria, using the rest of Australia as a control series. We used quasi-Poisson regression to model weekly counts and estimate incidence rate ratios (IRRs) for the effect of (each) the Delta phase lockdown and the Omicron outbreak on our systemic cancer therapy outcomes. Between July 2018 and July 2022, cancer medicines were dispensed 592 141 times to 33 198 people in NSW and Victoria. Overall, there were no changes to the rates of dispensing, initiation or discontinuation of antineoplastics during the Delta phase lockdowns. In both states during the Omicron outbreak, there were significant decreases in the dispensing of antineoplastics (NSW IRR 0.89; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.84, 0.93. Victoria IRR 0.92; 95% CI 0.88, 0.96) and in the initiation of endocrine therapy (NSW IRR 0.85; 95% CI 0.74, 0.99. Victoria IRR 0.78; 95% CI 0.65, 0.94), and no changes in the discontinuation of any systemic cancer therapy. The 2021 lockdowns and 2021/2022 Omicron outbreaks in NSW and Victoria had significant impacts on the dispensing, initiation and discontinuation of systemic cancer therapies, however, the overall effects were minimal. The impacts of lockdowns were less significant than the Omicron outbreaks, suggesting COVID-19 infection, health system capacity, and patient and community concerns were important factors for treatment changes.

A Roadmap to Cultivating a Culture of Belonging for Learners in Physical Therapy Education

Abstract A sense of belonging guides learners toward connections, acceptance, and a sense of being valued and, ultimately, academic success. However, a recent national study revealed that learners from racially and ethnically minoritized group expressed less satisfaction with their Doctor of Physical Therapy education and less agreement that their programs fostered psychological well-being. This roadmap for belonging is specifically designed for learners of color but can be generalized to all students considering the intersectionality of historically dominant and nondominant sociocultural identities. Essential steps include an assessment of who is in the classroom, identifying resources to support students, and creating accountability and sustainability metrics. By following this belonging roadmap, physical therapy educators can work toward cultivating a greater sense of belonging for learners in academic spaces.

Duration and outcome of orthotic treatment in children with clubfoot – a four-year follow-up national register study of Swedish children born between 2015 and 2017

BackgroundThe Ponseti method for treating clubfoot consists of initial treatment with serial casting accompanied by achillotenotomy if needed, followed by the maintenance phase including treatment with a foot abduction orthosis (FAO) for at least four years. This study aimed to examine the duration, course, and outcome of orthotic treatment in children with clubfoot.Methods321 children with clubfoot, born between 2015 and 2017, registered in the Swedish Pediatric Orthopedic Quality Register (SPOQ), were included in this prospective cohort study. Data on deformity characteristics and orthotic treatment were extracted. For children with bilateral clubfoot, one foot was included in the analysis.ResultsOf the 288 children with isolated clubfoot, 274 children (95.5%) were prescribed an FAO, and 100 children (35%) changed orthosis type before 4 years of age. Of the 33 children with non-isolated clubfoot, 25 children (76%) were prescribed an FAO, and 21 children (64%) changed orthosis type before 4 years of age. 220 children with isolated clubfoot (76%), and 28 children with non-isolated clubfoot (84%) continued orthotic treatment until 4 years of age or longer. Among children with isolated clubfoot, children ending orthotic treatment before 4 years of age (n = 63) had lower Pirani scores at birth compared to children ending orthotic treatment at/after 4 years of age (n = 219) (p = 0.01). It was more common to change orthosis type among children ending orthotic treatment before 4 years of age (p = 0.031).ConclusionsThe majority of children with clubfoot in Sweden are treated with an FAO during the maintenance phase. The proportion of children changing orthosis type was significantly greater and the Pirani score at diagnosis was lower significantly among children ending orthotic treatment before 4 years of age. Long-term follow-up studies are warranted to fully understand how to optimize, and individualize, orthotic treatment with respect to foot involvement and severity of deformity.Level of evidenceII.

Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on neurodevelopmental outcomes of premature infants: a retrospective national cohort study

ObjectiveTo compare the neurodevelopmental outcomes of preterm infants before and during the COVID-19 pandemic.DesignPremature infants born in 2018 were assigned to the pre-pandemic group, while those born in 2019 were...

Antidepressant drugs and risk of developing glioma: a national registry-based case control study and a meta-analysis.

The aim of the present study was to investigate if use of antidepressants is related to the risk of developing lower (WHO grade 2-3) and higher grade (WHO grade 4) glioma. A registry-based case-control study was performed using 1283 glioma cases and 6400 age-, sex- and geographically matched controls, diagnosed in Sweden 2009-2013. Conditional logistic regression was used to analyze whether Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs) or non-SSRIs were associated with the risk of developing lower- or higher-grade glioma in the study population. Our results show that use of antidepressant medication was not associated with the risk of developing glioma. We also performed a meta-analysis in which the dataset from the present study was combined with results from two previous epidemiological studies to answer the same questions. The meta-analysis showed a modest risk reduction of developing glioma in relation to antidepressant treatment (OR 0.90 [95% CI 0.83-0.97]), when all glioma subgroups and all forms of antidepressant medications were combined. In conclusion, it remains possible that antidepressants may have common monoaminergic mechanism(s) that reduce the risk of developing glioma.

Using Data to Sustain and Measure Student Success Initiatives

This is a follow-up to an earlier case study [Faudree, J. 2021. Courage by experiment, rescue by data. PRIMUS. 31(3–5): 483–491.] describing one Math Department's attempt to improve pass rates in Calculus I by implementing the recommendations from national studies of successful calculus programs [Bressoud, D. and C. Rasmussen. 2015. Seven characteristics of successful calculus programs. Notices of the American Mathematical Society. 62(2): 144–146; Rasmussen, C., J. Ellis, and D. Zazkis. 2014. Lessons learned from case studies of successful calculus programs at five doctoral degree granting institutions. In Proceedings of the 17th Annual Conference on Research in Undergraduate Mathematics Education, pp. 999–1005. Denver, CO.]. This article, along with the earlier one, provide concrete, detailed strategies for promoting departmental change. We describe how the collection and analysis of baseline data has formed the backbone of a sustained, department-driven effort to improve outcomes for undergraduate students and one that weathered the pandemic. For context, our public university is the major research institution of the state, but it is also open-admissions, small (7500 undergraduates) and physically isolated. The effort described here started in 2016 with few resources: no faculty with expertise in mathematics education at the post-secondary level, no support from administration, and no external funding.

Use of service and treatment adequacy in medical students and residents suffering from depression in France: A nationwide study

Depression was already a public health issue before the Covid-19 pandemic. Use of service and treatment adequacy in medical students was poorly known. A 2021 French national study found the prevalence of 12-month major depressive disorder (MDD) was 25 % in medical school students and residents (MSSR). The main objective of our study was to measure the prevalence of service use and adequate treatment (therapy and/or recommended pharmacotherapy) and their associated factors. A national online survey was conducted in 2021. The Composite International Diagnostic Interview Short-Form questionnaire was used to assess MDD; 12-months service use and pharmacotherapy were assessed. Univariate and multivariate logistic regressions were performed between students' demographic characteristics, use of services, and treatment adequacy. Among included MSSR who experienced MDD in the last 12 months, only 32 % received adequate treatment, including 20 % with recommended pharmacotherapy. Being more advanced in medical studies and being treated both by a general practitioner and a psychiatrist were associated with receiving recommended pharmacotherapy. To our knowledge, our study is the largest to assess use of service and treatment adequacy in MSSR. Given the low percentage of depressed students receiving recommended treatment, it seems important to develop new interventions to better detect and treat MDD in MSSR.

Sex-Specific Differences in the Progression of Huntington’s Disease Symptoms – A National Study in China

Introduction: Huntington’s disease (HD) is a rare, inherited neurodegenerative disorder. Despite extensive research on symptom progression and sex differences in Western populations, little is known about these aspects within the Chinese context. The objective of this study was to investigate the temporal trends of symptoms in individuals with HD in China. Methods: A nationwide cross-sectional study was conducted in Chinese individuals diagnosed with HD. Symptom progression over time, encompassing physical, psychiatric, and cognitive symptoms, was self-reported. We calculated the proportions of individuals who currently had each symptom by disease duration, and tested corresponding temporal trends by linear regression analyses. Results: A total of 269 individuals diagnosed with HD were included. Specific symptoms were found to progress more significantly in males compared to females over time, including psychotic symptoms (p = 0.007), urinary incontinence (p = 0.013), reduced concentration (p = 0.005), font alteration (p = 0.029), atypical facial expression (p = 0.037), and suicidal ideation (p = 0.047). In terms of cognitive and psychiatric symptoms, no significant temporal trends were identified in females, while males demonstrated significant increasing trends, with reduced concentration (p = 0.005) and psychotic symptoms (p = 0.007) standing out. Conclusions: This study emphasizes the existence of sex-specific symptom progression in HD within the Chinese population, underscoring the importance of considering sex in clinical practice. Further research should investigate the mechanisms behind these differences and explore tailored treatment options.

Sustainability of the Public–Benefit Preschool Education Service System in China: Evidence from a National Study

ABSTRACT Research Findings: This study aimed to evaluate the sustainability of the public benefit preschool education service system (PPESS) in China from the perspective of preschool education administrators, principals, and teachers using a newly developed and validated instrument, the Public-benefit Preschool Education Service System Rating Scale (PPESS-RS). Altogether, 349 administrators, 255 principals, and 1,118 teachers from the PPESS were randomly surveyed nationwide. First, analysis of the psychometric properties revealed that PPESS-RS is a reliable and valid scale with five constructs: Policymaking, investment, kindergarten supply, kindergarten management, and caring for the vulnerable. Second, empirical evidence shows that the sustainability of the PPESS is positively evaluated by stakeholders, especially in kindergarten management and policymaking. However, problems persist in terms of investment, kindergarten supply, and caring for the vulnerable. Third, analysis of variance revealed significant differences among geographical regions, urbanicity, and kindergarten types. Practice and Policy: The findings demonstrate that the central and local governments in China need to increase financial investment and improve the investment structure in preschool education, and educational authorities should increase their support for kindergartens in disadvantaged areas to address the disparities in preschool education between urban and rural areas and among different types of kindergartens.

Characterising incident opioid use among incident users of prescription sedative hypnotics: A national cohort study

ObjectiveTo evaluate co-prescribing of sedatives hypnotics and opioids.DesignRetrospective study evaluating the association of patient characteristics and comorbidities with coprescribing.Setting and participantsUsing the national Merative MarketScan Database between 2005 and 2018,...

Identifying the top 10 priorities of adolescents with a physical disability regarding participation in physical activity: A Delphi study.

To establish consensus among adolescents with a physical disability regarding their priorities for enhancing participation in physical activity and help inform the design of future interventions for participation in physical activity. We conducted a national multi-round Delphi study involving adolescents with a physical disability aged 13 to 17 years. Round 1 of the initial survey consisted of open-ended questions. Free-text responses were then analysed thematically, creating items categorized according to the family of participation-related constructs (fPRC). In round 2, participants rated the perceived importance of these items using a 5-point Likert scale. The top 10 priorities were constructed from the highest-ranked items. One hundred and sixteen participants (mean age = 14 years 7 months, range = 13-17 years; 66 males; 58 with cerebral palsy; 43 wheelchair users) completed round 1; 108 items were included in round 2. Fifty-eight items were rated as either 'important' or 'really important' by 70% of participants. The top 10 priorities were rated as important or really important by 82% to 94% of participants with a mean Likert score of 4.40 (range = 4.25-4.63). Seven of the top 10 priorities were related to the environmental context of the fPRC. The other three were related to involvement and the related concept of preference. The priorities identified will help inform future physical activity interventions for adolescents with a physical disability.

The threat of artificial intelligence to elections worldwide: A review of the 2024 landscape

One area that might experience an immense transformation owing to the adoption of AI is the electoral system. Artificial intelligence (AI) holds tremendous potential for enhancing polls, campaign methods, and voter registration, but it also presents substantial challenges to the integrity of elections around the globe. This article discusses the political scene of 2024 and AI's role, balancing the pros and cons of AI deployment. Case studies of nations that have implemented AI for voting purposes are presented in the article, along with an analysis of the merits and disadvantages of these systems. The article goes on to warn of the perils of AI in elections and provides solutions to these concerns. It is of the most significant necessity to secure both the security and legitimacy of voting procedures, as the employment of artificial intelligence in elections is popular. This paper asks politicians, election authorities, and people in general to handle the challenges brought by AI in elections.

Mapping 15-year depressive symptom transitions in late life: population-based cohort study.

The longitudinal course of late-life depression remains under-studied. To describe transitions along the depression continuum in old age and to identify factors associated with specific transition patterns. We analysed 15-year longitudinal data on 2745 dementia-free persons aged 60+ from the population-based Swedish National Study on Aging and Care in Kungsholmen. Depression (minor and major) was diagnosed according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, Text Revision; subsyndromal depression (SSD) was operationalised as the presence of ≥2 symptoms without depression. Multistate survival models were used to map depression transitions, including death, and to examine the association of psychosocial (social network, connection and support), lifestyle (smoking, alcohol consumption and physical activity) and clinical (somatic disease count) factors with transition patterns. Over the follow-up, 19.1% had ≥1 transitions across depressive states, while 6.5% had ≥2. Each additional somatic disease was associated with a higher hazard of progression from no depression (No Dep) to SSD (hazard ratio 1.09; 1.07-1.10) and depression (Dep) (hazard ratio 1.06; 1.04-1.08), but also with a lower recovery (HRSSD-No Dep 0.95; 0.93-0.97 [where 'HR' refers to 'hazard ratio']; HRDep-No Dep 0.96; 0.93-0.99). Physical activity was associated with an increased hazard of recovery to no depression from SSD (hazard ratio 1.49; 1.28-1.73) and depression (hazard ratio 1.20; 1.00-1.44), while a richer social network was associated with both higher recovery from (HRSSD-No Dep 1.44; 1.26-1.66; HRDep-No Dep 1.51; 1.34-1.71) and lower progression hazards to a worse depressive state (HRNo Dep-SSD 0.81; 0.70-0.94; HRNo Dep-Dep 0.58; 0.46-0.73; HRSSD-Dep 0.66; 0.44-0.98). Older people may present with heterogeneous depressive trajectories. Targeting the accumulation of somatic diseases and enhancing social interactions may be appropriate for both depression prevention and burden reduction, while promoting physical activity may primarily benefit recovery from depressive disorders.

Experiences of Stealthing and the Sociodemographic Profiles of Women Victims in Brazil: A National Study

Experiences of Stealthing and the Sociodemographic Profiles of Women Victims in Brazil: A National Study

How to choose between single-use and reusable medical materials for sustainable nursing: Methodological lessons learned from a national study.

To demonstrate and reflect upon the methodological lessons by which healthcare organizations can address questions of environmental sustainability related to single-use healthcare materials. A cross-sectional multi-centre study in hospitals was performed, followed by an exploratory analysis of the sustainability of commonly used healthcare materials. A hospital survey was conducted to collect the procurement data for single-use medical materials. Based on consumption and cost, five single-use medical materials with sustainable alternatives were selected using different reuse strategies. Single-use and reusable materials were assessed through an exploratory literature review and document study based on four parameters: environmental sustainability, safety, cost and efficiency. A pragmatic method emerged from this study, providing healthcare facilities with tools to select environmentally sustainable alternatives to replace single-use options. First, an inventory of single-use medical materials consumed was collected. Next, single-use materials were prioritized for further study based on criteria such as cost, volume of the material, feasibility and input of stakeholders. We then analysed the prioritized single-use materials and their alternatives based on life cycle assessments or available information on their different life stages. Finally, we assessed safety, costs and efficiency related to the process following the use of the medical material. This pragmatic method can guide healthcare institutions in making the most sustainable choices of medical materials and achieving sustainability goals within their institutions and nationwide. Patient care involves a large consumption of single-use medical materials with considerable environmental impact. A pragmatic method was developed to guide healthcare institutions in making the most sustainable choices regarding the use of single-use healthcare materials. Healthcare institutions, ideally represented by a green team including nurses and other relevant professionals, can use this method to reduce the use of single-use medical materials, thereby yielding positive outcomes for the entire population. No patient or public contribution.

Current treatment of pT1 rectal cancers in Denmark: Aretrospective national cohort study.

Organ preservation strategies for patients with rectal cancer are increasingly common. In appropriately selected patients, local excision (LE) of pT1 cancers can reduce morbidity without compromising cancer-related outcomes. However, determining the need for completion surgery after LE can be challenging, and it is unknown if prior LE compromises subsequent total mesorectal excision (TME). The aim of this study is to describe the current management of patients with pT1 rectal cancers. This is a retrospective national cohort study of the Danish Colorectal Cancer Group database, including patients with newly diagnosed pT1 cancers between 2016 and 2020. Patients were stratified according to treatment into LE alone, completion TME after LE or upfront TME. The treatment and outcomes of these groups were compared. A total of 1056 patients were included. Initial LE was performed in 715 patients (67.7%), of whom 194 underwent completion TME (27.1%). The remaining 341 patients underwent upfront TME (32.3%). Patients undergoing LE alone were more likely to be male with low rectal cancers and greater comorbidity. No differences in specimen quality or perioperative outcomes were noted between patients undergoing completion or upfront TME. Eighty-five patients (15.9%) had lymph node metastases (LNM). Pathological risk factors poorly discriminated between patients with and without LNM, with similar rates seen in patients with zero (14.1%), one (12.0%) or two (14.4%) risk factors. LE is a key component of the treatment of pT1 rectal cancer and does not appear to affect the outcomes of completion TME. Patient selection for completion TME remains a major challenge, with current stratification methods appearing to be inadequate.