Medical student and resident perceptions when working together in resident continuity clinics.

BACKGROUND: Resident continuity clinics (RCCs), where residents see patients largely independently, is a common requirement for residency programs in the USA. Students often participate in these clinics but it is unknown how this effects resident learning or student satisfaction. OBJECTIVE: This study aims to describe effects on the learning environment when students and residents work together in an RCC. DESIGN: Separate surveys were administered to residents and students working at St. Joseph Mercy Hospital (SJMH) in Ann Arbor, Michigan, from 2016-2018. RESULTS: Response rates were 79/116 (68.1%) for students and 21/24 (87.5%) for residents. A one-sample Wilcoxon signed rank test was used to test whether most five-level Likert-type scale responses were 'agree' or 'strongly agree.' Of medical students, 88.6% enjoyed working with residents (p < 0.001) with 60.8% indicating residents were effective teachers (p < 0.001). The majority of residents (85.7%) were neutral, agreed, or strongly agreed that they enjoyed working with students (p < 0.001). However, 61.9% of residents believed they were too busy to be effective teachers (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Both residents and students positively viewed their interactions in RCCs. Although most students felt residents were effective teachers, most residents worried about their ability to balance clinical care and teaching responsibilities.

Opioid Prescribing Patterns, Patient Use, and Postoperative Pain After Hysterectomy for Benign Indications.

OBJECTIVE: To quantify physician prescribing patterns and patient opioid use in the 2 weeks after hysterectomy at an academic institution and to determine whether patient factors predict postsurgical opioid use and pain recovery. METHODS: We conducted a prospective quality initiative study by recruiting all English-speaking patients undergoing hysterectomy for benign, nonobstetric indications at a university hospital between August 2015 and December 2015, excluding those with major medical morbidities or substance abuse. Before hysterectomy, patients completed the Fibromyalgia Survey, a validated measure of centralized pain. After hysterectomy, opioid use (converted to oral morphine equivalents) and pain scores (0-10 numeric rating scale) were collected by a daily diary and a structured telephone interview 14 days after surgery. Primary outcomes were total opioid prescribed and consumed in the 2 weeks after hysterectomy. Secondary outcomes included daily opioid use and daily pain severity for 14 days after hysterectomy. RESULTS: Of 103 eligible patients, 102 (99%) agreed to participate, including 44 (43.1%) laparoscopic, 42 (41.2%) vaginal, and 16 (15.7%) abdominal hysterectomies. Telephone surveys were completed on 89 (87%) participants; diaries were returned from 60 (59%) participants. Diary nonresponders had different baseline characteristics than nonresponders. Median amount of opioid prescribed was 200 oral morphine equivalents (interquartile range 150-250). Patients reported using approximately half of the opioids prescribed with a median excess of 110 morphine equivalents (interquartile range 40-150). The best fit model of total opioid consumption identified preoperative Fibromyalgia Survey Score, overall body pain, preoperative opioid use, prior endometriosis, abdominal hysterectomy (compared with laparoscopic), and uterine weight as significant predictors. Highest tertile of Fibromyalgia Survey Score was associated with greater daily opioid consumption (13.9 [95% CI 3.0-24.8] greater oral morphine equivalents at baseline, P=.02). CONCLUSION: Gynecologists at a large academic medical center prescribe twice the amount of opioids than the average patient uses after hysterectomy. A personalized approach to prescribing opioids for postoperative pain should be considered.

Patients' Knowledge and Perceptions of Morcellation.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Morcellation has received increased media and professional attention, but it remains unclear how much the average patient knows about this topic. We sought to evaluate patients' knowledge of morcellation, assess their perceptions of the risks and benefits, and determine how these perceptions affect their decision regarding the route of surgery. METHODS: Anonymous paper surveys were administered to 500 patients attending gynecologic appointments at the University of Michigan. Survey questions gathered demographic information and assessed knowledge of various surgical approaches for hysterectomy and myomectomy. Questions regarding patients' knowledge of morcellation explored various types of morcellation and the risks and benefits of this procedure. RESULTS: Of the 500 surveys administered, 396 patients answered at least 1 survey question resulting in a response rate of 79.2%. The mean ± SD age of respondents was 47.0 ± 14.1 years, 80.8% were white, and 83.1% had completed some college. Only 8.3% of patients reported that they had ever heard of morcellation. Even among women who were actively considering a hysterectomy or myomectomy (n = 33) or those who had undergone a hysterectomy or myomectomy (n = 98), only 12.1 and 7.1%, respectively, had heard of morcellation. Of those who had heard of morcellation (n = 32), only 9.4% correctly identified the definition in a multiple-choice question. Only 4.0% of women would choose an abdominal approach to avoid morcellation. CONCLUSIONS: Patients have very little knowledge about morcellation and most patients have never heard of the procedure. Very few patients would refuse morcellation and opt for an abdominal surgery instead.

Sonographic diagnosis of partial versus complete molar pregnancy: A reappraisal.

PURPOSE: To assess the prospective sonographic diagnosis of molar pregnancy and compare sonographic features of complete versus partial molar pregnancy. METHODS: This institutional review board--approved retrospective chart review conducted between 2001 and 2011 identified 70 women with a histopathologic diagnosis of molar pregnancy and with available sonograms. Clinical data, images, and reports were reviewed, and features enumerated by radiologists blinded to the final diagnosis. RESULTS: Mean age of patients was 30.5 ± 7.0 (SD) years (range, 16-49 years) with a mean gravidity of 3.2 ± 2.3 (SD) (range 1-11). Mean gestational age was 74.0 ± 19.1 day (range 39-138) and serum ß-human chorionic gonadotropin was 131 ± 156 mIU/ml (range 447-662,000). Pathologic results showed 48 partial and 22 complete molar pregnancies. Sonographically, partial moles more commonly showed a yolk sac (56.3% versus 0%, p < 0.0001), fetal pole (62.5% versus 4.6%, p < 0.0001), fine septa within the sac (25.0% versus 4.6%, p = 0.05), and normal (31.3% versus 0%, p = 0.002) or minimally cystic placenta (27.1% versus 4.6%, p = 0.49), while complete moles had larger gestational sacs (612 versus 44 mm, p = 0.005), were more often avascular on color Doppler imaging (45.5% versus 18.8%, p = 0.02), had more often abnormal tissue in the uterus (82.6% versus 20.8%, p < 0.0001) and placental masses (86.9% versus 16.7%, p < 0.0001), and were more often diagnosed prospectively (86.4% versus 41.7%, p = 0.0005). CONCLUSIONS: Complete molar pregnancy is associated with marked cystic changes and mass formation and is often diagnosed sonographically. Partial molar pregnancy often presents with minor cystic changes of the placenta and remains underdiagnosed sonographically. However, correct prospective diagnosis was made more frequently in this study than in older reports, perhaps due to improved spatial resolution of sonographic equipment. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Clin Ultrasound 45:72-78, 2017.

Risk Factors and Outcomes for Conversion to Laparotomy of Laparoscopic Hysterectomy in Benign Gynecology.

OBJECTIVE: To estimate the incidence and factors for conversion to laparotomy in women scheduled for laparoscopic hysterectomy for benign gynecologic indications and to examine the effect of conversion on patient outcomes. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study of a Michigan multicenter prospective database was abstracted from January 1, 2013, through July 2, 2014. Participants were collected from an all-payer quality and safety database maintained by the Michigan Surgical Quality Collaborative. Women with a preoperative indication of cancer or obstetric indications were excluded. A logistic regression model was used to calculate odds of conversion using patient preoperative and intraoperative attributes. RESULTS: During the study period, 6,992 women underwent an attempted laparoscopic hysterectomy with 3.93% (n=275) converted to laparotomy. After adjusting for socioeconomic differences, hysterectomy indication, and intraoperative factors, there were decreased odds of conversion to laparotomy with use of robotic-assisted laparoscopy compared with traditional laparoscopy (adjusted odds ratio [OR] 0.14, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.07-0.25) with a predicted risk of conversion of 0.8% compared with 5.4% (P<.001). High-volume surgeons were less likely to convert to laparotomy compared with low- and medium-volume surgeons (adjusted OR 0.66, 95% CI 0.47-0.92) with a predicted risk of conversion of 1.4% compared with 2.25% (P=.015). Conversion was associated with moderate or severe adhesive disease and increasing specimen weight. Conversion was associated with increased rates of surgical site infection, blood transfusion, severe sepsis, and reoperation. CONCLUSION: This analysis demonstrates that conversion to laparotomy is associated with increased odds of postoperative morbidity, and robotic assistance and surgeon volume are strongly associated with decreased odds of conversion.

Prevalence of Endometriosis During Abdominal or Laparoscopic Hysterectomy for Chronic Pelvic Pain.

OBJECTIVE: To estimate the prevalence of surgically confirmed endometriosis in women undergoing laparoscopic or abdominal hysterectomy, including those with and without preoperative indications of chronic pelvic pain or endometriosis, and to describe characteristics and operative findings associated with surgically confirmed endometriosis in women undergoing hysterectomy for chronic pelvic pain. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study was performed with 9,622 women who underwent laparoscopic or abdominal hysterectomy for benign indications in the Michigan Surgical Quality Collaborative from January 1, 2013, to July 2, 2014. The prevalence of surgically confirmed endometriosis, determined by review of the operative report and surgical pathology, was calculated for the entire cohort and for subgroups of women with and without chronic pelvic pain or endometriosis. Multivariate logistic regression models were used to identify characteristics associated with surgically confirmed endometriosis at the time of hysterectomy among women with chronic pelvic pain. RESULTS: Of the 9,622 hysterectomies available for analysis during the study period, 15.2% (n=1,465) had endometriosis at the time of hysterectomy. Among the 3,768 women with a preoperative indication of chronic pelvic pain, fewer than one in four had endometriosis (806/3,768 [21.4%]). Even among those with preoperative indication of endometriosis, many women did not actually have endometriosis at the time of hysterectomy (527/1,232 [42.8%]). The rate of unexpected endometriosis in women without a preoperative indication of chronic pelvic pain or endometriosis was 8.0% (434/5,457). Among women with a preoperative indication of chronic pelvic pain (n=3,786), multivariate analysis showed endometriosis was more common in women of younger age, white race, lower body mass index, and those who failed another treatment previously. Among those with pelvic pain, oophorectomy was more commonly performed in women with surgically confirmed endometriosis than those without (47.4% compared with 33.3%, P<.001). CONCLUSION: Fewer than 25% of women undergoing laparoscopic or abdominal hysterectomy for chronic pelvic pain have endometriosis at the time of surgery.

Effects of morcellation of uterine smooth muscle tumor of uncertain malignant potential and endometrial stromal sarcoma: case series and recommendations for clinical practice.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To assess the consequences of inadvertent morcellation of uterine smooth muscle tumors of uncertain malignant potential (STUMPs) or endometrial stromal sarcomas (ESSs) and to investigate the findings of surgical re-exploration procedures including the frequency and nature of disease dissemination. DESIGN: A retrospective chart review from January 1, 1999, to October 31, 2014. Cases were identified by cross-referencing the terms "morcellate" and "morcellation" with the terms "smooth muscle tumor of uncertain malignant potential," "STUMP," "endometrial stromal sarcoma," and "low grade endometrial stromal sarcoma" within the University of Michigan electronic medical record. One additional patient was identified at St. Joseph Mercy Hospital using the pathology database with keywords "uterine sarcoma" (Canadian Task Force classification III). SETTING: University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, and St. Joseph Mercy Hospital, Ann Arbor, MI. PATIENTS: Patients who underwent hysterectomy or myomectomy with morcellation and were subsequently found to have a STUMP or ESS on pathologic review. INTERVENTIONS: None, retrospective chart review. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Eight patients were identified who underwent morcellation and were subsequently found to have a STUMP or ESS. Five patients underwent power morcellation, 2 patients underwent hand morcellation, and 1 patient underwent laparoscopic bivalving. Seven patients had a secondary surgical assessment 6 to 19.2 weeks after their initial procedure. Five patients were found to have benign implants comprised of myometrium or endometrium, 1 patient had widespread malignant implants, and 1 patient had no evidence of peritoneal implants. One patient underwent power morcellation within a specimen bag after supracervical hysterectomy. This patient had evidence of benign implants at the time of her re-exploration procedure. All patients who underwent surgical re-exploration are living. The patient with malignant implants has been maintained on megestrol for more than 8 years without disease recurrence. The remaining patients have no evidence of disease with follow-up ranging from 2.8 to 35.1 months. CONCLUSION: Surgical re-exploration procedures after morcellation of a uterine STUMP or ESS have a high likelihood of detecting peritoneal implants, which can be benign or malignant.

Myxoid leiomyosarcoma of the Bartholin gland.

BACKGROUND: Myxoid leiomyosarcomas originating from the Bartholin gland are exceedingly rare. Only one other case of a Bartholin gland myxoid leiomyosarcoma has been reported. CASE: Our patient presented with a 10 cm mass on her vulva, which was presumed to be a Bartholin gland cyst. Pathology showed a high-grade myxoid leiomyosarcoma with positive margins. She was treated with left radical hemivulvectomy, laparoscopic hysterectomy with bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy, and six cycles of adjuvant chemotherapy. She is now 1 year from completion of therapy and remains disease-free. CONCLUSION: All solid vulvar masses should be thoroughly evaluated with a low threshold for biopsy. Treatment should consist of complete resection. Hormonal manipulation, chemotherapy, and radiation should be considered as potential adjuvant treatment options.