Background Despite dementia being a leading cause of death and clinical guidelines recommending palliative care, substantial gaps in care quality for this population have previously been shown. This study aimed to investigate and compare the quality of end-of-life (EOL) care provided to individuals with and without dementia in different settings. Methods In this registry-based study, patients registered in the Swedish Register of Palliative Care (SRPC) between 2011 and 2020 were cross-referenced with patients in the Swedish registry for cognitive/dementia disorders (SveDem). For each patient with dementia registered in SveDem (n = 39 712), two controls without dementia matched by year of birth and gender were selected from the SRPC (n = 79 336). Quality indicators in the SRPC were analyzed by group (dementia/controls) and by place of death, separately, using the chi-squared test. Multiple logistic regression analyses were conducted to examine the association between the quality indicators and having a diagnosis of dementia or not, overall and in different settings. Results Individuals with dementia were more likely to have staff or family members present at death, to receive documented decisions to shift to EOL care, have symptom assessments made the final week of life and prescription of injectables. However, they were less likely to express preferences for place of death and to be informed about EOL care transitions, especially in hospitals without specialized palliative care. Conclusions In this study, individuals with dementia received higher quality EOL care in several domains compared with those without dementia. However, they were less likely to have expressed preferences for place of death. These findings highlight the need for early, proactive care planning to align care with patient preferences and avoid potentially non-beneficial actions.

Objectives: Aging is linked to physiological changes, increased vulnerability, and often psychological, cognitive, and social changes that might affect mental health. Our aim was to explore factors that contribute to mental wellbeing in older people with increased risk of hospitalization. Method: This study is a part of a Swedish clinical trial: Secure And Focused primary care for older pEople (SAFE), and included 1169 community-dwelling people aged 75 years or older, with a high risk of hospitalization. An individual self-assessment questionnaire that included questions about health-related quality of life was analyzed. We focused on the health concepts of emotional wellbeing and energy/fatigue in RAND 36 and used multiple logistic regression to analyze associations. Results: The levels of emotional wellbeing were significantly positively associated with the body mass index (BMI), and negatively associated with the frequency of falling, feeling of loneliness, worry about the future, and the level of pain/discomfort (p < 0.05). The levels of energy were also significantly positively associated with activity level and the level of independency in activities of daily living (ADL) (p < 0.05). Conclusion: Our study identifies several areas of concern for the mental health of older people with a high risk of hospitalization, making it possible to work proactively with these problem areas.

Importance Patients with melanoma are selected for sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) based on their risk of a positive SLN. To improve selection, the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) and Melanoma Institute Australia (MIA) developed predictive models, but the utility of these models remains to be tested.Objective To determine the clinical utility of the MIA and MSKCC models.Design, Setting, and Participants This was a population-based comparative effectiveness research study including 10 089 consecutive patients with cutaneous melanoma undergoing SLNB from the Swedish Melanoma Registry from January 2007 to December 2021. Data were analyzed from May to August 2023.Main Outcomes and Measures, The predicted probability of SLN positivity was calculated using the MSKCC model and a limited MIA model (using mitotic rate as absent/present instead of count/mm(2) and excluding the optional variable lymphovascular invasion) for each patient. The operating characteristics of the models were assessed and compared. The clinical utility of each model was assessed using decision curve analysis and compared with a strategy of performing SLNB on all patients.Results Among 10 089 included patients, the median (IQR) age was 64.0 (52.0-73.0) years, and 5340 (52.9%) were male. The median Breslow thickness was 1.8 mm, and 1802 patients (17.9%) had a positive SLN. Both models were well calibrated across the full range of predicted probabilities and had similar external area under the receiver operating characteristic curves (AUC; MSKCC: 70.8%; 95% CI, 69.5-72.1 and limited MIA: 69.7%; 95% CI, 68.4-71.1). At a risk threshold of 5%, decision curve analysis indicated no added net benefit for either model compared to performing SLNB for all patients. At risk thresholds of 10% or higher, both models added net benefit compared to SLNB for all patients. The greatest benefit was observed in patients with T2 melanomas using a threshold of 10%; in that setting, the use of the nomograms led to a net reduction of 8 avoidable SLNBs per 100 patients for the MSKCC nomogram and 7 per 100 patients for the limited MIA nomogram compared to a strategy of SLNB for all.Conclusions and Relevance This study confirmed the statistical performance of both the MSKCC and limited MIA models in a large, nationally representative data set. However, decision curve analysis demonstrated that using the models only improved selection for SLNB compared to biopsy in all patients when a risk threshold of at least 7% was used, with the greatest benefit seen for T2 melanomas at a threshold of 10%. Care should be taken when using these nomograms to guide selection for SLNB at the lowest thresholds.

A budget impact analysis estimates the short-term difference between the cost of the current treatment strategy and a new treatment strategy, in this case to implement population screening for atrial fibrillation (AF). The aim of this study is to estimate the financial impact of implementing population-based AF-screening of 75-year-olds compared with the current setting of no screening from a healthcare payer perspective in eight European countries. The net budget impact of AF-screening was estimated in country-specific settings for Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Serbia, Spain, and Sweden. Country-specific parameters were used to allow for variations in healthcare systems and to reflect the healthcare sector in the country of interest. Similar results can be seen in all countries AF-screening incurs savings of stroke-related costs since AF treatment reduces the number of strokes. However, the increased number of detected AF and higher drug acquisition will increase the drug costs as well as the costs of physician- and control visits. The net budget impact per invited varied from 10 in Ireland to 122 in the Netherlands. The results showed the increased costs of implementing AF-screening were mainly driven by increased drug costs and screening costs. In conclusion, across Europe, though the initial cost of screening and more frequent use of oral anti-coagulants will increase the healthcare payers' costs, introducing population screening for AF will result in savings of stroke-related costs.

Aims Previous studies on the cost-effectiveness of screening for atrial fibrillation (AF) are based on assumptions of long-term clinical effects. The STROKESTOP study, which randomised 27 975 persons aged 75/76 years into a screening invitation group and a control group, has a median follow-up time of 6.9 years. The aim of this study was to estimate the cost-effectiveness of population-based screening for AF using clinical outcomes. Methods and results The analysis is based on a Markov cohort model. The prevalence of AF, the use of oral anticoagulation, clinical event data, and all-cause mortality were taken from the STROKESTOP study. The cost for clinical events, age-specific utilities, utility decrement due to stroke, and stroke death was taken from the literature. Uncertainty in the model was considered in a probabilistic sensitivity analysis. Per 1000 individuals invited to the screening, there were 77 gained life years and 65 gained quality-adjusted life years. The incremental cost was euro1.77 million lower in the screening invitation group. Gained quality-adjusted life years to a lower cost means that the screening strategy was dominant. The result from 10 000 Monte Carlo simulations showed that the AF screening strategy was cost-effective in 99.2% and cost-saving in 92.7% of the simulations. In the base-case scenario, screening of 1000 individuals resulted in 10.6 [95% confidence interval (CI): -22.5 to 1.4] fewer strokes (8.4 ischaemic and 2.2 haemorrhagic strokes), 1.0 (95% CI: -1.9 to 4.1) more cases of systemic embolism, and 2.9 (95% CI: -18.2 to 13.1) fewer bleedings associated with hospitalization. Conclusion Based on the STROKESTOP study, this analysis shows that a broad AF screening strategy in an elderly population is cost-effective. Efforts should be made to increase screening participation.

Background

Laparoscopic distal pancreatectomy is being implemented worldwide. The aim of this study was to perform a cost-effectiveness analysis from a health care perspective.

Methods

This cost-effectiveness analysis was based on the randomized controlled trial LAPOP, where 60 patients were randomized to open or laparoscopic distal pancreatectomy. For the follow-up of two years, resource use from a health care perspective was recorded, and health-related quality of life was assessed using the EQ-5D-5L. The per-patient mean cost and quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) were compared using nonparametric bootstrapping.

Results

Fifty-six patients were included in the analysis. The mean health care costs were lower, €3863 (95% CI: -€8020 to €385), for the laparoscopic group. Postoperative quality of life improved with laparoscopic resection and resulted in a gain in QALYs of 0.08 (95% CI: −0.09 to 0.25). The laparoscopic group had lower costs and improved QALYs in 79% of bootstrap samples. With a cost-per-QALY threshold of €50 000, 95.4% of the bootstrap samples were in favour of laparoscopic resection.

Conclusion

Laparoscopic distal pancreatectomy is associated with numerically lower health care costs and improvements in QALYs compared with the open approach. The results support the ongoing transition from open to laparoscopic distal pancreatectomies.

Introduction The ischaemic pain of acute compartment syndrome (ACS) can be difficult to discriminate from the pain linked to an associated fracture. Lacking objective measures, the decision to perform fasciotomy is based on clinical findings and performed at a low level of suspicion. Biomarkers of muscle cell damage may help to identify and monitor patients at risk, similar to current routines for patients with acute myocardial infarction. This study will test the hypothesis that biomarkers of muscle cell damage can predict ACS in patients with tibial fractures. Methods and analysis Patients aged 15-65 years who have suffered a tibial fracture will be included. Plasma (P)-myoglobin and P-creatine phosphokinase will be analysed at 6-hourly intervals after admission to the hospital (for 48 hours) and-if applicable-after surgical fixation or fasciotomy (for 24 hours). In addition, if ACS is suspected at any other point in time, blood samples will be collected at 6-hourly intervals. An independent expert panel will assess the study data and will classify those patients who had undergone fasciotomy into those with ACS and those without ACS. All primary comparisons will be perforated between fracture patients with and without ACS. The area under the receiver operator characteristics curves will be used to identify the success of the biomarkers in discriminating between fracture patients who develop ACS and those who do not. Logistic regression analyses will be used to assess the discriminative abilities of the biomarkers to predict ACS corrected for prespecified covariates. Ethics and dissemination The study has been approved by the Regional Ethical Review Boards in Linkoping (2017/514-31) and Helsinki/Uusimaa (HUS/2500/2000). The BioFACTS study will be reported in accordance with the Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology recommendations.

Objectives To estimate the cost-effectiveness of a pragmatic trial of comprehensive geriatric assessment adapted to primary care, compared with care as usual. Design Within-trial cost-effectiveness study of a prospective controlled multicenter trial. Setting and Participants Nineteen primary care practices in Sweden. The original trial included 1304 individuals aged ≥75 years at high risk of hospitalization selected using a prediction model. From the original trial, 369 individuals participated in the cost-effectiveness analysis, 185 in the intervention group and 184 in the control group. Mean age was 83.9 years and 57% of the participants were men. Methods We obtained health care costs from administrative registries. Community costs and health-related quality of life data were obtained from a questionnaire sent to participants. Health-related quality of life was measured using EQ-5D-3L and quality-adjusted life years were calculated. We analyzed all outcomes according to intention to treat, and adjusted them to age, gender, and risk score (risk of hospitalization in the next 12 months). The primary outcome was the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio associated with the intervention at follow-up after 24 months. Results The difference in total cost (incremental cost) between intervention and control groups was USD −11,275 (95% CI −407 to −22,142). The incremental effect in quality-adjusted life years was −0.05 (95% CI −0.17 to 0.08). In the cost-effectiveness plane that illustrates the uncertainty of the analysis, 77.9 of the observations were within the south-east quadrant, implying lower cost and greater effect in the intervention group. Conclusions and Implications The results suggests that a primary care comprehensive geriatric assessment intervention delivered to older adults at high risk of hospitalization is cost-effective at follow-up after 24 months. The use of a prediction model to select participants and an intervention with a low cost is promising but requires further study.

Background: The Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) is sensitive to cognitive impairment; however, it is also sensitive to demographic and socio-cultural factors. This necessitates reliable sub-population norms, but these are often lacking for older adults. Objective: To present demographically adjusted regression-based MoCA norms for cognitively healthy Swedish older adults. Methods: A pseudo-random sample of community-dwelling 80- to 94-year-olds, stratified by age and gender, was invited to the study. Initial telephone interviews and medical records searches (n = 218) were conducted to screen for cognitive impairment. N= 181 eligible participants were administered a protocol including the Swedish version of the MoCA and assessments of global cognition (Mini-Mental State Examination, MMSE) and depression (Patient Health Questionnaire-9, PHQ-9). Individuals scoring in the range of possible cognitive impairment on the MMSE or more than mild depression on the PHQ-9 were excluded (n = 23); three discontinued the test-session. Results: Norms were derived from the remaining n = 158. They were evenly distributed by gender, on average 85 years old, and with a mean education of 11 years. MoCA scores were independently influenced by age and education, together explaining 17.2% of the total variance. Higher age and lower education were associated with lower performance and 46% performed below the original cut-off (< 26/30). Conclusion: The negative impact of increasing age on MoCA performance continues linearly into the nineties in normal aging. Demographic factors should be considered when interpreting MoCA performance and a tool for computing demographically corrected standard scores is provided.

Introduction Shortening the time from stroke onset to treatment increases the effectiveness of endovascular stroke therapies. Aim This study aimed to predict the modified Rankin Scale score at 90 days post-stroke (mRS-90d score) in patients with acute ischaemic stroke (AIS) with respect to four types of treatment: conservative therapy (CVT), intravenous thrombolysis only (IVT), mechanical thrombectomy only (MT) and pretreatment with IVT before MT (IVT+MT). Patients and methods This nationwide observational study included 124 484 confirmed cases of acute stroke in Sweden over 6 years (2012-2017). The associations between onset-to-treatment time (OTT), patient age and hospital admission National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score with the five-levelled mRS-90d score were retrospectively studied. A generalised linear model (GLM) was fitted to predict the mRS-90d scores for each patient group. Results The fitted GLM for CVT patients is a function of age and NIHSS score. For IVT, MT and IVT+MT patients, GLMs additionally employed OTT variables. By reducing the mean OTTs by 15 min, the number needed-to-treat (NNT) for one patient to make a favourable one-step shift in the mRS was 30 for IVT, 48 for MT and 21 for IVT+MT. Discussion and conclusion This study demonstrates linear associations of mRS-90d score with OTT for IVT, MT and IVT+MT, and shows in absolute effects measures that OTT reductions for IVT and/or MT produces substantial health gains for patients with AIS. Even moderate OTT reductions led to sharp drops in the NNT.