Open Access

Resource and cost constraints in hospitals demand thorough planning of operating room schedules. Ideally, exact start times and durations are known in advance for each case. However, aside from the first case’s start, most factors are hard to predict. While the role of the start of the first case for optimal room utilization has been shown before, data for to-follow cases are lacking. The present study therefore aimed to analyze all elective surgery cases of a university hospital within 1 year in search of visible patterns. A total of 14,014 cases scheduled on 254 regular working days at a university hospital between September 2015 and August 2016 underwent screening. After eliminating 112 emergencies during regular working hours, 13,547 elective daytime cases were analyzed, out of which 4,346 ranked first, 3,723 second, and 5,478 third or higher in the daily schedule. Also, 36% of cases changed start times from the day before to 7:00 a.m., with half of these (52%) resulting in a delay of more than 15 min. After 7:00 a.m., 87% of cases started more than 10 min off schedule, with 26% being early and 74% late. Timeliness was 15 ± 72 min (mean ± SD) for first, 21 ± 84 min for second, and 25 ± 93 min for all to-follow cases, compared to preoperative day planning, and 21 ± 45, 23 ± 61, and 19 ± 74 min compared to 7:00 a.m. status. Start time deviations were also related to procedure duration, with cases of 61–90 min duration being most reliable (deviation 9.8 ± 67 min compared to 7:00 a.m.), regardless of order. In consequence, cases following after 61–90 min long cases had the shortest deviations of incision time from schedule (16 ± 66 min). Taken together, start times for elective surgery cases deviate substantially from schedule, with first and second cases falling into the highest mean deviation category. Second cases had the largest deviations from scheduled times compared to first and all to-follow cases. While planned vs. actual start times differ among specialties, cases of 61–90 min duration had the most reliable start times, with neither shorter nor longer cases seeming to improve timeliness of start times.

Importance: A pharmacological approach to pain control after cesarean delivery is often insufficient on its own. Acupuncture is a promising method for mitigating postoperative pain and reducing postoperative opioid requirements. Objective: To evaluate the efficacy and effectiveness of acupuncture as an adjunctive therapy for pain control after cesarean delivery, compared with a placebo intervention and standard care alone. Design, Setting, and Participants: This single-center, placebo-controlled, patient- and assessor-blinded randomized clinical trial was conducted from January 13, 2015, to June 27, 2018, at a tertiary university hospital in Greifswald, Germany. Participants were women who were scheduled for elective cesarean delivery under spinal anesthesia and were randomized to either the acupuncture group (n = 60) or placebo group (n = 60). Another 60 consecutive patients who met the eligibility criteria and received the standard postoperative analgesia were selected to form a nonrandomized standard care group. The intention-to-treat analysis was performed from August 19, 2019, to September 13, 2019. Interventions: In addition to standard pain treatment, each patient in the acupuncture group received auricular and body acupuncture with indwelling intradermal needles, whereas patients in the placebo group were treated with nonpenetrating placebo needles. Main Outcomes and Measures: The primary outcome was pain intensity on movement, which was measured using an 11-item verbal rating scale. Secondary outcomes were analgesia-related adverse effects, analgesics consumption, time to mobilization and Foley catheter removal, quality of patient blinding to randomization, and patient satisfaction with treatment of pain. Results: A total of 180 female patients (mean [SD] age, 31 [5] years) were included in the intention-to-treat analysis. The mean pain intensity on movement in the acupuncture group on the first postoperative day was lower than in the placebo group (4.7 [1.8] vs 6.0 [2.0] points; Cohen d, 0.73; 95% CI, 0.31-1.01; P = .001) and the standard care group (6.3 [1.3] points; Cohen d, 1.01; 95% CI, 0.63-1.40; P < .001). On the first postoperative day, 59 patients (98%) in the acupuncture group were fully mobilized vs 49 patients (83%) in the placebo group (relative risk [RR], 1.18; 95% CI, 1.06-1.33; P = .01) and 35 patients (58%) in the standard care group (RR, 1.69; 95% CI, 1.36-2.09; P < .001). The Foley catheter was removed in a total of 57 patients (93%) from the acupuncture group vs 43 patients (72%) from the placebo group (RR, 1.33; 95% CI, 1.12-1.57; P = .003) and 42 patients (70%) from the standard care group (RR, 1.37; 95% CI, 1.14-1.62; P = .002). Other parameters were comparable across the 3 study groups. Conclusions and Relevance: Results of this trial showed that acupuncture was safe and effective in reducing pain and accelerating mobilization of patients after cesarean delivery. With consideration for personnel and time expenditures, acupuncture can be recommended as routine, supplemental therapy for pain control in patients after elective cesarean delivery.

Background and objective Political, economic, communicative and cultural borders still limit the accessibility of acute healthcare services for patients so that they frequently have to accept longer distances to travel to the next provider within their own country. In this paper, we analyze the impact of borders and opening of borders on acute medical care in hospitals and on patients in border regions. Methods We develop a conceptual framework model of cross-border healthcare and apply it to the Polish–German border area. The model combines the distance decay effect, a catchment area analysis, economies of scale and the learning curve. Results Borders have a major impact on acute medical care in hospitals and on patients. Setting of new borders will reduce the accessibility of health facilities for patients or require the establishment of new hospitals. Reopening borders might induce a vicious circle leading to the insolvency of a hospital which might result in poorer health for some patients. Conclusion Strong effort should be invested to overcome political and cultural borders to improve the health of the population in border regions. Similarly, increased cross-border acute healthcare must be seen in the context of rural health and the special situation of small rural hospitals in rural peripheral areas.

Background Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest is one of the most frequent causes of death in Europe. Emergency medical services often struggle to reach the patient in time, particularly in rural areas. To improve outcome, early defibrillation is required which significantly increases neurologically intact survival. Consequently, many countries place Automated External Defibrillators (AED) in accessible public locations. However, these stationary devices are frequently not available out of hours or too far away in emergencies. An innovative approach to mustering AED is the use of unmanned aerial systems (UAS), which deliver the device to the scene. Methods This paper evaluates the economic implications of stationary AED versus airborne delivery using scenario-based cost analysis. As an example, we focus on the rural district of Vorpommern-Greifswald in Germany. Formulae are developed to calculate the cost of stationary and airborne AED networks. Scenarios include different catchment areas, delivery times and unit costs. Results UAS-based delivery of AEDs is more cost-efficient than maintaining traditional stationary networks. The results show that equipping cardiac arrest hot spots in the district of Vorpommern-Greifswald with airborne AEDs with a response time < 4 min is an effective method to decrease the time to the first defibrillation The district of Vorpommern-Greifswald would require 45 airborne AEDs resulting in annual costs of at least 1,451,160 €. Conclusion In rural areas, implementing an UAS-based AED system is both more effective and cost-efficient than the conventional stationary solution. When regarding urban areas and hot spots of OHCA, complementing the airborne network with stationary AEDs is advisable.

Advances in spine surgery enable technically safe interventions in older patients with disabling spine disease, yet postoperative delirium (POD) poses a serious risk for postoperative recovery. This study investigates biomarkers of pro-neuroinflammatory states that may help objectively define the pre-operative risk for POD. This study enrolled patients aged ≥60 scheduled for elective spine surgery under general anesthesia. Biomarkers for a pro-neuroinflammatory state included S100 calcium-binding protein β (S100β), brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), Gasdermin D, and the soluble ectodomain of the triggering receptor expressed on myeloid cells 2 (sTREM2). Postoperative changes of Interleukin-6 (IL-6), Interleukin-1β (IL-1β), and C-reactive protein (CRP) were assessed as markers of systemic inflammation preoperatively, intraoperatively, and early postoperatively (up to 48 h). Patients with POD (n = 19, 75.7 ± 5.8 years) had higher pre-operative levels of sTREM2 (128.2 ± 69.4 pg/mL vs. 97.2 ± 52.0 pg/mL, p = 0.049) and Gasdermin D (2.9 ± 1.6 pg/mL vs. 2.1 ± 1.4 pg/mL, p = 0.29) than those without POD (n = 25, 75.6 ± 5.1 years). STREM2 was additionally a predictor for POD (OR = 1.01/(pg/mL) [1.00–1.03], p = 0.05), moderated by IL-6 (Wald-χ2 = 4.06, p = 0.04). Patients with POD additionally showed a significant increase in IL-6, IL-1β, and S100β levels on the first postoperative day. This study identified higher levels of sTREM2 and Gasdermin D as potential markers of a pro-neuroinflammatory state that predisposes to the development of POD. Future studies should confirm these results in a larger cohort and determine their potential as an objective biomarker to inform delirium prevention strategies.