scholarly journals Golf habits among physicians and surgeons: observational cohort study

BMJ ◽  
2018 ◽  
pp. k4859 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gal Koplewitz ◽  
Daniel M Blumenthal ◽  
Nate Gross ◽  
Tanner Hicks ◽  
Anupam B Jena

AbstractObjectivesTo examine patterns of golfing among physicians: the proportion who regularly play golf, differences in golf practices across specialties, the specialties with the best golfers, and differences in golf practices between male and female physicians.DesignObservational study.SettingComprehensive database of US physicians linked to the US Golfing Association amateur golfer database.Participants41 692 US physicians who actively logged their golf rounds in the US Golfing Association database as of 1 August 2018.Main outcome measuresProportion of physicians who play golf, golf performance (measured using golf handicap index), and golf frequency (number of games played in previous six months).ResultsAmong 1 029 088 physicians, 41 692 (4.1%) actively logged golf scores in the US Golfing Association amateur golfer database. Men accounted for 89.5% of physician golfers, and among male physicians overall, 5.5% (37 309/683 297) played golf compared with 1.3% (4383/345 489) among female physicians. Rates of golfing varied substantially across physician specialties. The highest proportions of physician golfers were in orthopedic surgery (8.8%), urology (8.1%), plastic surgery (7.5%), and otolaryngology (7.1%), whereas the lowest proportions were in internal medicine and infectious disease (<3.0%). Physicians in thoracic surgery, vascular surgery, and orthopedic surgery were the best golfers, with about 15% better golf performance than specialists in endocrinology, dermatology, and oncology.ConclusionsGolfing is common among US male physicians, particularly those in the surgical subspecialties. The association between golfing and patient outcomes, costs of care, and physician wellbeing remain unknown.

Author(s):  
Dmitri Guz ◽  
Shira Buchritz ◽  
Alina Guz ◽  
Alon Ikan ◽  
Tania Babich ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Sepsis is associated with excessive release of catecholamines, which causes tachycardia and is correlated with poor clinical outcome. β-Blockers (BBs) may blunt this effect on heart rate (HR). The objective of this study is to assess whether long-term BB therapy is associated with better clinical outcomes in patients with sepsis admitted to internal medicine wards. Methods We performed a single-center, observational cohort study. We included adult patients who were hospitalized in medicine departments due to sepsis. A propensity score model for BB therapy was used to match patients. The primary outcome was the 30-day all-cause mortality rate. A multivariate analysis was performed to identify risk factors for an adverse outcome. Patients were stratified according to absolute tachycardia (HR ≥100/min) or relative tachycardia at presentation (tachycardia index above the third quartile, with tachycardia index defined as the ratio of HR to temperature). Results A total of 1186 patients fulfilled the inclusion criteria. In the propensity-matched cohort patients given BB treatment were younger (median age [interquartile range], 74 [62–82] vs 81 [68–87] years; P ≤ .001). BB treatment was associated with reduction in 30-day mortality rates for patients with absolute tachycardia (odds ratio, 0.406; 95% confidence interval, .177–.932). Final model with interaction variable of BB treatment with HR was associated with short-term survival (odds ratio, 0.38; 95% confidence interval, .148–.976). Selective BB therapy had a stronger protective effect than nonselective BB therapy. Conclusions Long-term BB therapy was associated with decreased mortality rate in patients hospitalized with sepsis in internal medicine wards exhibiting absolute and relative tachycardia.


Antibiotics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 1521
Author(s):  
Josi A. Boeijen ◽  
Alike W. van der Velden ◽  
Saskia Hullegie ◽  
Tamara N. Platteel ◽  
Dorien L. M. Zwart ◽  
...  

Presentation and antibiotic prescribing for common infectious disease episodes decreased substantially during the first COVID-19 pandemic wave in Dutch general practice. We set out to determine the course of these variables during the first pandemic year. We conducted a retrospective observational cohort study using routine health care data from the Julius General Practitioners’ Network. All patients registered in the pre-pandemic year (n = 425,129) and/or during the first pandemic year (n = 432,122) were included. Relative risks for the number of infectious disease episodes (respiratory tract/ear, urinary tract, gastrointestinal, and skin), in total and those treated with antibiotics, and proportions of episodes treated with antibiotics (prescription rates) were calculated. Compared to the pre-pandemic year, primary care presentation for common infections remained lower during the full first pandemic year (RR, 0.77; CI, 0.76–0.78), mainly attributed to a sustained decline in respiratory tract/ear and gastrointestinal infection episodes. Presentation for urinary tract and skin infection episodes declined during the first wave, but returned to pre-pandemic levels during the second and start of the third wave. Antibiotic prescription rates were lower during the full first pandemic year (24%) as compared to the pre-pandemic year (28%), mainly attributed to a 10% lower prescription rate for respiratory tract/ear infections; the latter was not accompanied by an increase in complications. The decline in primary care presentation for common infections during the full first COVID-19 pandemic year, together with lower prescription rates for respiratory tract/ear infections, resulted in a substantial reduction in antibiotic prescribing in Dutch primary care.


2020 ◽  
Vol 79 (Suppl 1) ◽  
pp. 860.1-861
Author(s):  
Y. Hotta ◽  
Y. Nasu ◽  
K. Nishida ◽  
M. Matsuhashi ◽  
M. Watanabe ◽  
...  

Background:In Japan, Methotrexate (MTX) has been approved in 1999, the first biologic DMARD (bDAMRD) in 2003, and the Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitors have been used since 2013. Although it is expected that the recent advancement of drug therapy would contribute the decrease in the incidence of orthopaedic surgeries by preventing structural damages1, 2), we are still facing a considerable number of patients who require surgical interventions3).Objectives:To investigate the recent trends of patient’s background who underwent the orthopaedic surgery for rheumatoid arthritis, number of orthopaedic intervention, and the type of the surgery.Methods:We reviewed the records of 1569 patients with RA who underwent orthopedic surgeries between 2004 and 2019 in our institution. The mean age of patients was 62.8 (22-88) years-old with disease duration of 20.9 (0.5-64) years. Data of these patients such as age, disease duration, medication (Glucocorticoid; GC, MTX, b/tsDMARD), type of surgeries (total joint replacement; TJR, hand surgery, foot surgery, spine surgery, and others), and preoperative serum CRP level were collected. We analyzed the annual change of these demographic and clinical data. Then, we compared them between CRP negative (<1.5g/l) and CRP positive group. Cochran-Armitage trend test,χ square test, or unpaired T-test was performed for statistical analysis. P <0.05 was considered significant.Results:Among all cases, 426 cases (27.2%) were treated with b/tsDMARDs at the time of operation. MTX and GC were used in 937 cases (59.7%) and 1015 cases (64.7%), respectively. The mean age and disease duration of RA showed an increasing trend, although the CRP level was dramatically decreased during the study period. While the rate of MTX use has not changed significantly (p=0.102), the number of cases treated by b/ts DMARD increased significantly to 46.7% (p<0.001). In contrast, the rate of GC use dicreased significantly (p<0.001). Although the annual number of surgeries have not changed, the proportion of cases who performed TJR decreased dramatically (59.6% in 2011, 29.5% in 2019), and the surgeries for hand and foot increased significantly (p<0.001) (Fig 1). The annual mean preoperative CRP level also decreased from 18.8±1.95 to 4.89±0.81 (Fig 2). Compared to CRP positive group (n=1,113), the patients in CRP negative group (n=446) showed significantly younger age(p<0.001), shorter disease duration (p=0.031), lower late of GC use, and a higher rate of b/tsDAMRD use. The proportion of patients who underwent TJR was significantly higher in CRP positive group (p<0.001).Conclusion:Along with the increasing use of b/tsDMARD, the preoperative disease control of RA, as well as the type of demanded surgeries have dramatically changed.References:[1] Yamanaka H, Tanaka E, Nakajima A, et al. A large observational cohort study of rheumatoid arthritis, IORRA: Providing context for today’s treatment options.Mod Rheumatol2020;30:1-6.[2] Matsumoto T, Nishino J, Izawa N, et al. Trends in Treatment, Outcomes, and Incidence of Orthopedic Surgery in Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis: An Observational Cohort Study Using the Japanese National Database of Rheumatic Diseases.J Rheumatol2017;44:1575-82.[3] Momohara S, Tanaka S, Nakamura H, et al. Recent trends in orthopedic surgery performed in Japan for rheumatoid arthritis.Mod Rheumatol2011;21:337-42.Disclosure of Interests:Yoshifumi Hotta: None declared, Yoshihisa Nasu: None declared, Keiichiro Nishida Grant/research support from: K. Nishida has received scholarship donation from CHUGAI PHARMACEUTICAL Co., Eisai Co., Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma and AbbVie GK., Speakers bureau: K. Nishida has received speaking fees from CHUGAI PHARMACEUTICAL Co., Eli Lilly, Janssen Pharmaceutical K.K., Eisai Co. and AYUMI Pharmaceutical Corporation., Minami Matsuhashi: None declared, Masahito Watanabe: None declared, Ryuichi Nakahara: None declared, Toshifumi Ozaki: None declared


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