Influencing Factors of Intention and Behavior of Patient Delay in Elderly Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia: a Descriptive Qualitative Study

Background: Most elderly patients with BPH have experienced patient delay. Based on the TPB, the aim of this study was to describe the influencing factors of BPH patients' intention and behavior of patient delay and to provide a reference for the development of a patient delay intention scale and personalized intervention.Methods: This descriptive qualitative study was carried out 4 months in 2021 in China. The participants were 20 patients with BPH ages 60 to 82 years old who experienced patient delay and were selected through purposive sampling method. The study was performed in a large general hospital and a community hospital. The data were collected via face-to-face semi-structured interviews.Results: The following themes were relevant to BPH patients with intention and behavior of patient delay: “Insufficient cognition of symptoms (low symptom alertness, symptom benign attribution)”, “Experience coping instead of going to a doctor”, “Negative attitude toward seeking medical care (Underestimation of the consequences of delayed medical treatment, Negative evaluation of early medical treatment)”, “The influence of others on decision-making for seeking medical care(People who approve or disapprove of going to a doctor, Do or do not follow the opinions of others)”, “Obstacles to seeking medical care(Factors from the patient, Factors from medical institutions)”Conclusion: The delay was longer in rural areas than in urban areas. BPH patients' intention and behavior of patient delay are the result of a combination of many factors. Therefore, it is recommended to develop a scale to evaluate the patient delay intention for BPH, and provide personalized interventions based on the scale to improve patient delay in elderly BPH patients

Delay in Diagnosis of Cervical Cancer in Afghanistan: A Pilot Cross-Sectional Survey

Objectives: The present study aimed to investigate the potential delays in healthcare seeking and diagnosis of women with cervical cancer (CC) in Afghanistan.Methods: Clinical records of three hospitals in Kabul were searched for CC cases, and the women identified were interviewed by a trained physician using a semi-structured questionnaire. The main outcomes were the prevalence of potential delays over 90 days (1) from symptoms onset to healthcare seeking (patient delay), and (2) from first healthcare visit to CC diagnosis (healthcare delay). Information was also collected on: type and stage of CC, diagnostic test utilized, familiarity for CC, signs and symptoms, treatment type, and potential reasons for delaying healthcare seeking.Results: 31 women with CC were identified, however only 11 continued their treatment in the study hospitals or were reachable by telephone, and accepted the interview. The mean age was 51 ± 14 years, and only 18.2% had a previous history of seeking medical care. Patient delay was seen in 90.9% of the women (95% CI: 58.7–99.8), with a median of 304 ± 183 days. Instead, healthcare delay was found in 45.4% (95% CI: 16.7–76.6), with a median of 61 ± 152 days. The main reasons for patient delays were unawareness of the seriousness of the symptoms (70.0%) and unwillingness to consult a healthcare professional (30.0%). None of the women ever underwent cervical screening or heard of the HPV vaccination.Conclusions: Given the global effort to provide quality health care to all CC patients, Afghanistan needs interventions to reduce the delays in the diagnosis of this cancer, for instance by improving all women's awareness of gynecological signs and symptoms.

Delayed diagnosis of active pulmonary tuberculosis - potential risk factors for patient and healthcare delays in Portugal

Background Early diagnosis and treatment of pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) is essential for an effective control of the tuberculosis (TB) epidemic. Delayed diagnosis and treatment of TB increases the chance of complications and mortality for the patients, and enhances TB transmission in the population. Therefore, the aim of this study was to characterize patient, healthcare and total delay in diagnosing PTB and assess the effect of clinical and sociodemographic factors on the time until first contact with healthcare or reaching a PTB diagnosis. Methods Retrospective cohort study that included active PTB patients notified in the National Tuberculosis Surveillance System (SVIG-TB), between 2008 and 2017. Descriptive statistics, Kaplan-Meier estimates, logrank test and Cox proportional hazards model were used to characterize patient, healthcare and total delay and estimate the effect of clinical and sociodemographic variables on these delays. Significance level was set at 0.05. Results Median patient, healthcare and total delays was 37 days (Interquartile range (IQR): 19–71), 8 days (IQR: 1–32) and 62 days (IQR: 38–102), respectively. The median patient delay showed a constant increase, from 33 days in 2008 to 44 days in 2017. The median total delay presented a similar trend, increasing from 59 days in 2008 to 70 days in 2017. Healthcare delay remained constant during the study period. More than half of the PTB cases (82.9%) had a delay > 1 month between symptom onset and diagnosis. In the final Cox model, alcohol abuse, unemployment and being from a high TB incidence country were factors significantly associated with longer patient delay, while being female, having more than 45 years, oncologic and respiratory diseases were associated with longer healthcare delay. Being female, having more than 45 years and being from a high TB incidence country were associated with longer total delay. Conclusions Patient delay and total delay have increased in recent years. Older patients, patients with alcohol problems, other comorbidities, unemployed or from countries with high TB incidence would benefit from the development of specific public health strategies that could help reduce the delay in TB diagnosis observed in our study. This study emphasizes the need to promote awareness of TB in the general population and among the healthcare community, especially at ambulatory care level, in order to reduce the gap between beginning of symptoms and TB diagnosis.

Comparison of Delay in Tuberculosis Diagnosis Between Migrants and Local Residents in an Eastern County of China: An Analysis of the Electronic Data Between 2015 and 2019

Introduction: China continues to rank among one of the countries with the highest number of tuberculosis (TB) cases globally. Migrants are a particularly at-risk subgroup for TB and pose a challenge for case management in contemporary China. The early diagnosis and treatment of patients with TB are pivotal for effective TB control. This study investigates the delay in the TB diagnosis of migrants as compared with residents, to provide an evidence base for improved case detection and the better management of migrant patients with TB.Materials and Methods: The data was collected from the Tuberculosis Information Management System (TBIMS) (2015–2019) in an eastern county of China. The total diagnostic delay, consisting of patient delay and health system delay, is defined as the interval between the onset of TB symptoms and the confirmation of TB diagnosis in the designated TB hospital. The comparison of the delay in the TB diagnosis between migrants and residents was conducted using a Mann-Whitney U-test and chi-square test. The difference in the delay curves between these two groups was examined using a log-rank test.Results: Of 2,487 patients with TB, 539 (22%) were migrants. The migrants tended to be younger, presented with less severe conditions, received an initial diagnosis at prefectural and above-level hospitals. Compared with the local patients with TB, the migrant patients with TB had a longer median total diagnostic delay (30 vs. 9, P = 0.000) and a higher proportion of patients with this delay >28 days (52 vs. 13%, P = 0.000). Similarly, the migrant patients with TB also had a longer median patient delay (13 vs. 9, P = 0.000) and a higher proportion of patients with this delay >14 days (47 vs. 30%, P = 0.000), longer median health system delay (9 vs. 0, P = 0.000), and a higher proportion of patients with this delay >14 days (42 vs. 0.5%, P = 0.000) than the local patients with TB. The survival curves of delay showed that the longer the time interval was, the more likely the migrant patients with TB were to be diagnosed (P < 0.05).Conclusions: Diagnosis is significantly delayed among migrant patients with TB. Our study highlights the importance of early screening and diagnosis for TB especially among migrants, to improve access and ensure better management for all patients with TB.

Acute Mesenteric Ischemia in a COVID-19 Patient: Delay in Referral and Recommendation for Surgery

Coronavirus (COVID-19) is more common with symptoms such as fever, dry cough, and shortness of breath. However, it may be associated with COVID-19-induced gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms including acute mesenteric ischemia (AMI). These conditions make the diagnosis of AMI challenging. Timely referral with correct diagnosis and attention to the uncommon symptoms of COVID-19 can play an important role in the management and treatment of AMI in COVID-19 patients. We present a patient with AMI due to thrombotic complications of COVID-19, who referred to the hospital too late and ignored the recommendation for abdominal surgery.

Indirect effects of COVID-19 Pandemic in ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction: insights from a multicentric national survey

Objective Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic may have indirect consequences in ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) outcomes due to difficulties in healthcare access, but also due to reperfusion delays. The objective of this study was to evaluate the performance indicators in STEMI during the early phase of the lockdown following the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods The “patient delay” and the “system delay” were evaluated in 312 patients with suspected STEMI, in the period of the first State of Emergency in Portugal, through a survey called “Moment COVID” implemented within 18th March to 2 May 2020, in 18 national centers of Interventional Cardiology where PPCI is carried out 24/7. These patients were compared with a historical cohort of 267 patients from the 5th year after integration of SFL Initiative in Portugal (Moment 2015) in which the same survey was applied. Patients with late presentation of STEMI (>12 hours of symptoms onset) were excluded from this analysis. Results In “Moment COVID” there was a trend towards a longer “patient delay” (incremental median 20 min; p=0.059) and a significant longer system-delay (incremental median 17 min; p=0.033) compared to the historical cohort of “Moment 2015”. Consequently, times to revascularization tended to be longer (incremental median 26 min; p=0.074). Indeed, in “Moment COVID” patients were less compliant with the times recommended by the European guidelines: door-to-balloon time <60 min was achieved in 47.6% of patients compared to 57.0% (p=0.052) in “Moment 2015” and system-delay <90 min in 13.9% compared to 21.8% (p=0.033). Conclusion These results from a multicentric national analysis demonstrated a trend to longer time from symptom onset to request healthcare system assistance and a significantly longer time from first medical contact to revascularization among patients with STEMI during COVID-19 pandemic. This delay for treatment could negatively impact the STEMI prognosis at the long-term. FUNDunding Acknowledgement Type of funding sources: None.

Duration and determinants of delayed tuberculosis diagnosis and treatment in high-burden countries: a mixed-methods systematic review and meta-analysis

Background Thirty countries with the highest tuberculosis (TB) burden bear 87% of the world’s TB cases. Delayed diagnosis and treatment are detrimental to TB prognosis and sustain TB transmission in the community, making TB elimination a great challenge, especially in these countries. Our objective was to elucidate the duration and determinants of delayed diagnosis and treatment of pulmonary TB in high TB-burden countries. Methods We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of quantitative and qualitative studies by searching four databases for literature published between 2008 and 2018 following PRISMA guidelines. We performed a narrative synthesis of the covariates significantly associated with patient, health system, treatment, and total delays. The pooled median duration of delay and effect sizes of covariates were estimated using random-effects meta-analyses. We identified key qualitative themes using thematic analysis. Results This review included 124 articles from 14 low- and lower-middle-income countries (LIC and LMIC) and five upper-middle-income countries (UMIC). The pooled median duration of delays (in days) were—patient delay (LIC/LMIC: 28 (95% CI 20–30); UMIC: 10 (95% CI 10–20), health system delay (LIC/LMIC: 14 (95% CI 2–28); UMIC: 4 (95% CI 2–4), and treatment delay (LIC/LMIC: 14 (95% CI 3–84); UMIC: 0 (95% CI 0–1). There was consistent evidence that being female and rural residence was associated with longer patient delay. Patient delay was also associated with other individual, interpersonal, and community risk factors such as poor TB knowledge, long chains of care-seeking through private/multiple providers, perceived stigma, financial insecurities, and poor access to healthcare. Organizational and policy factors mediated health system and treatment delays. These factors included the lack of resources and complex administrative procedures and systems at the health facilities. We identified data gaps in 11 high-burden countries. Conclusions This review presented the duration of delays and detailed the determinants of delayed TB diagnosis and treatment in high-burden countries. The gaps identified could be addressed through tailored approaches, education, and at a higher level, through health system strengthening and provision of universal health coverage to reduce delays and improve access to TB diagnosis and care. PROSPERO registration: CRD42018107237.

Low socioeconomic position is a risk factor for delay to treatment and mortality of testicular cancer patients in Hungary, a prospective study

Background In Hungary, the mortality rate for testicular germ cell cancer (TGCC) is 0,9/100000 which is significantly higher than the EU average. We prospectively evaluated the effect of socioeconomic position on patient delay and therapy outcomes. Methods Questionnaires on subjective social status (MacArthur Subjective Status Scale), objective socioeconomic position (wealth, education, and housing data), and on patient’s delay were completed by newly diagnosed TGCC patients. Results Patients belonged to a relatively high socioeconomic class, a university degree was double the Hungarian average, Cancer-specific mortality in the highest social quartile was 1.56% while in the lowest social quartile 13.09% (p = 0.02). In terms of patient delay, 57.2% of deceased patients waited more than a year before seeking help, while this number for the surviving patients was 8.0% (p = 0.0000). Longer patient delay was associated with a more advanced stage in non-seminoma but not in seminoma, the correlation coefficient for non-seminoma was 0.321 (p < 0.001). For patient delay, the most important variables were the mother’s and patient’s education levels (r = − 0.21, p = 0.0003, and r = − 0.20, p = 0.0005), respectively. Since the patient delay was correlated with the social quartile and resulted in a more advanced stage in non-seminoma, the lower social quartile resulted in higher mortality in non-seminoma patients (p = 0.005) but not in seminoma patients (p = 0.36) where the patient delay was not associated with a more advanced stage. Conclusions Based on our result, we conclude that to improve survival, we should promote testicular cancer awareness, especially among the most deprived populations, and their health care providers.

Patient delay impact on breast cancer survival at Khartoum Referral Hospital: a retrospective study

Background: Breast cancer can be invasive and advanced at diagnosis causing enormous suffering and premature death. Delay to stage diagnosis and treatment is related to survival evaluation and several factors determine delay. The aim of the study was to examine predictor covariates associated with breast cancer delay and its impact on patient prognosis and survival. Methods: This retrospective cross-sectional hospital-based study was carried out at Khartoum Oncology Hospital. Participants were 411 breast cancer patients diagnosed and treated during the period 2016. Patients’ pathological and socio-demographic data were extracted from their medical files and delay data from telephone questionnaire survey and survival times calculated from follow-up. Fisher exact test, Cox and Logistic regression models were used to examine relationships between demographic, clinical and delay variables and survival outcome. Results: The mean age of the study subjects was 50.07 years old and the majority were ≥45 years. Cancer delay analysis showed that there were different reasons for different types of delay but the majority of participants (86.2%) claimed fear of the disease and treatment and lack of information were real drivers of delay. The study confirmed the majority of participants expressed long delay estimated at 28.3 weeks and patient delay had a significant association with the advanced stage (P-value<0.05). The hazard ratio was four times for risk of dying from cancer for long delay compared to the short one. Conclusion: The results of the study suggest delays at diagnosis and treatment are more common steps leading to advanced stage at diagnosis and poor survival. Early detection of the disease provides tremendous opportunities for early diagnosis, effective treatment and high chances of survival.