Faculty Bibliography

BACKGROUND:Nondiagnostic cytology for thyroid nodules, consistent with The Bethesda System for Reporting Thyroid Cytopathology category I (B1) poses a management dilemma for clinicians. The objective of this study was to define the malignancy risk of nodules with B1 cytology using American College of Radiology Thyroid Imaging Reporting & Data System (TI-RADS) and to assess whether TI-RADS can help guide the decision to perform a repeat biopsy of these nodules. MATERIALS AND METHODS:This retrospective cohort study evaluated 139 B1 nodules that had a definitive diagnosis on repeat biopsy or surgical excision. Sonographic features were evaluated and classified according to TI-RADS. TI-RADS category and total points were compared to the final diagnosis to determine the malignancy risk of B1 thyroid nodules. RESULTS:Of the 139 nodules, 11 (7.9%) were malignant. The malignancy risk of nodules assigned TI-RADS category 1 and 2 were both 0%, TI-RADS 3 was 2.9%, whereas TI-RADS 4 and 5 were 5.9% and 46.2%, respectively. The optimal cutoff for TI-RADS points predicting malignancy was 5 points. CONCLUSION:B1 thyroid nodules in TI-RADS categories 1-3 may not require repeat biopsy given low malignancy risk. However, B1 nodules in TI-RADS categories 4 and 5 have a higher malignancy risk and thus should undergo repeat biopsy.

PURPOSE/UNASSIGNED:We report long-term follow-up on participants in the QUILT-3.032 study in BCG-unresponsive non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) carcinoma in situ (CIS) +/- papillary disease utilizing nogapendekin alfa inbakicept (NAI) approved by the FDA (ANKTIVA) in combination with BCG. MATERIALS AND METHODS/UNASSIGNED:Participants received 400 mcg NAI in combination with 50 mg BCG via intravesical instillation weekly for six weeks, with optional re-induction if complete response (CR) was not achieved at month 3. Primary endpoints were CR rate at any time; secondary endpoints were duration of CR (DOR), progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), disease-specific survival (DSS), and time to cystectomy. RESULTS/UNASSIGNED:The CR rate (n=100) was 71% (95% CI, 61.1, 79.6) with a median DOR of 26.6 months (range, 0.03-53.62). The cystectomy-free rate (CFR) in the 71 responders at 24- and 36-months was 90.3% (95% CI 79.7, 95.6) and 84.2% (95% CI 69.6, 92.1), respectively. DSS was 100% (95% CI 100.0, 100.0) at 12-months, and 98.2% (95% CI 88.2, 99.8) at 36-months. Treatment-related adverse events (TRAE) were largely grade 1 to 2 (61%), with 3% grade 3 and no grade 4 or 5 TRAE observed with this biological combination. CONCLUSIONS/UNASSIGNED:The CR rate and durability of responses that surpass 53 months reveal the efficacy of NAI in combination with BCG for treating BCG-unresponsive NMIBC with CIS +/- Ta/T1 disease. The high CFR of 84% and DSS of 98% at 36-months suggest that NAI plus BCG is a safe and efficacious option for NMIBC with CIS +/- Ta/T1 disease.

BACKGROUND/UNASSIGNED:Retained foreign bodies (RFB), or those left behind following spine surgery, are considered "Never Events (NE < 1/1000: they should never happen)," or "Near Never Events (NNE < 1/100; they should nearly never happen)", but are not just "Adverse Events (AE >/= 1/100)." The vast majority of NE/NNE are due to cotton sponges, cottonoids, or residual cotton strands (i.e., collectively called Textilomas or Gossypibomas). However, RFB additionally included; fractured needles, guidewires, fractured screws/implants/drains, and/or broken instruments (i.e., scalpels). Notably, the spine surgeon of record, as captain of the ship, is primarily liable for RFB and is central to ensuing medicolegal suits. However, secondarily liable are the adjunctive surgical/medical personnel, (i.e., physicians, Physician Assistants, Nurses, Nurse Practitioners, Physical Therapists, Occupational Therapists), and others who are independent or work full-time for hospitals. METHODS/UNASSIGNED:Patients with RFB may present with acute, subacute, or chronic/delayed pain and suffering. Additional complaints include; lost wages, sustained physical disability and/or injury attributed to these objects. Most RFB are diagnosed on plain X-rays, followed by MR and/or CT studies. RESULTS/UNASSIGNED:RBS's may include; retained drain fragments, broken needles, fractured guidewires, broken scalpel blades, fractured screws, and/or instruments. Retrieval procedures warrant a wide variety of different techniques, some of which fail. Notably, RFB's largely occur due to the performance of; emergent procedures, doing an unfamiliar operation, encountering anatomical variants, or operating on patients with elevated body mass indexes (BMI). Additionally these include; surgeons' failure to order and/or radiologists' failure to correctly read intraoperative X-rays/fluoroscopic images, and/or nurses' failures to correctly perform end of surgery counts. CONCLUSION/UNASSIGNED:RFBs, or foreign bodies left behind following spine surgery, are considered "Never Events (< 1/1000)" or "Near Never Events (< 1/100)," and are not just "Adverse Events (> 1/100)". When they do occur, the operating surgeon bears primary responsibility, but the nursing/adjunctive staff and hospital are also liable.

BACKGROUND:Heart failure accounts for more than one million US hospitalizations annually, with 30-day all-cause readmission approaching 25% and triggering CMS Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program penalties. The 2022 ACC/AHA/HFSA guideline and the 2023 ESC focused update elevated SGLT2 inhibitors to Class I therapy for heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) [1, 2]. The DAPA ACT HF-TIMI 68 prespecified meta-analysis demonstrated reductions in cardiovascular death or worsening heart failure (HR 0.71) and all-cause mortality (HR 0.57). Real-world prescribing patterns and 30-day readmission outcomes in the post-guideline US era are not well characterized. The relative contribution of clinical stability variables versus co-prescribed guideline-directed medical therapy (GDMT) to confounding has not been directly quantified in this setting. METHODS:We conducted a retrospective cohort study at four NYU Langone Health hospitals from January 2023 to January 2026. Adults with a primary heart failure discharge diagnosis were included. The prespecified primary analysis was in the HFrEF subgroup (LVEF ≤ 40%). The primary outcome was 30-day all-cause readmission. Stabilized inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW) was the primary adjustment, with overlap weighting (ATO) as sensitivity analysis. Hierarchical logistic regression decomposed the confounding contribution of clinical stability parameters relative to GDMT. The E-value assessed robustness to unmeasured confounding. RESULTS:Among 438 patients, 122 (27.9%) received in-hospital SGLT2 inhibitor initiation. The HFrEF rate was 41.6%, a sixfold increase from 6.6% reported in INSIGHT-HF (2020-2021). Patients with prior heart failure hospitalization received SGLT2 inhibitors at 11.4% versus 29.7% in those without (p < 0.001). In HFrEF (n = 221), 30-day readmission was 12.1% versus 31.8% (crude OR 0.29, 95% CI 0.14-0.61). The primary IPTW estimate was OR 0.34 (95% CI 0.13-0.91, p = 0.032). Sensitivity analyses were directionally consistent. Clinical stability parameters contributed only 9.3% confounding attenuation; GDMT was the dominant confounder. CONCLUSIONS:In a contemporary US post-guideline cohort, in-hospital SGLT2 inhibitor initiation reached 41.6% in HFrEF but remained low in patients with recent heart failure hospitalization. In-hospital SGLT2 inhibitor initiation was associated with lower 30-day all-cause readmission, though initiation was strongly bundled with discharge GDMT optimization and cannot be distinguished from a GDMT optimization effect with this study design. These findings should be considered hypothesis-generating. Because short-term safety events and post-discharge persistence were not systematically captured, these findings should not be interpreted as establishing the benefit-risk profile of inpatient SGLT2 inhibitor initiation. The prescribing gap in high-risk patients is an actionable quality-improvement target.

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVE:To determine the association between labral width as measured on preoperative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and patient-reported outcomes, achievement of clinically significant thresholds, and reoperation rates in hip arthroscopy for femoroacetabular impingement syndrome (FAIS) at minimum 10-year follow-up. METHODS:A retrospective review of a prospectively gathered database of hip arthroscopy patients from August 2012 to June 2014 was conducted. Inclusion criteria were patients ≥18 years with clinically and radiographically confirmed FAIS and labral tearing who underwent primary hip arthroscopy with labral repair or debridement and had ≥10 years of follow-up. MRI labral width measurements were performed by 2 blinded musculoskeletal radiologists at standardized clockface locations using a validated technique. Outcomes were assessed using the modified Harris Hip Score (mHHS) and Non-Arthritic Hip Score (NAHS). Patients were classified as hypoplastic if they had a labral width below the mean on 2 or more views. Outcomes and reoperation rates were compared between groups using independent samples t-tests for continuous variables and chi-square tests for categorical variables. RESULTS:were included, with a mean follow-up of 11.30 ± 0.47 years. Patients were categorized into hypoplastic (n = 42) and nonhypoplastic (n = 41) groups. There was no significant difference between hypoplastic and nonhypoplastic groups with respect to age, sex, smoking status, or intraoperative procedures. Additionally, there were no significant intergroup differences in mHHS or NAHS improvement at 5 or 10 years postoperatively. Both groups showed high achievement of the mHHS minimal clinically important difference threshold at 10-year follow-up with no significant difference (nonhypoplastic: 90.3% vs hypoplastic: 85.2%, P = .549). There was also no difference achievement of the patient acceptable symptom state (nonhypoplastic: 64.5% vs. hypoplastic: 70.4%, P = .636). However, the hypoplastic group had a significantly higher rate of revision arthroscopy (28.6% vs 9.8%, P = .030) and conversion to total hip arthroplasty (21.4% vs 4.9%, P = .026) when compared with the nonhypoplastic group. CONCLUSIONS:Hypoplastic labral width on preoperative MRI was associated with an increased risk of revision hip arthroscopy and conversion to total hip arthroplasty at 10 year follow-up in patients with FAIS. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE/METHODS:Level III, retrospective comparative case series.

Pediatric autoimmune hemolytic anemia (AIHA) is a heterogeneous disease with significant morbidity due to the underlying condition and its treatment. Evidence-based guidelines for evaluation and management are lacking. Data from 399 patients with AIHA followed at 15 pediatric centers were collected to identify factors associated with secondary diagnoses, recurrent/chronic course, therapeutic efficacy, and mortality. Most had AIHA associated with secondary diagnoses including Evans syndrome (37%, 142/385), other autoimmunity (22%, 86/392), and inborn errors of immunity (IEI, 18%, 68/379). Of 305 patients tested, 82% had abnormal functional immune results. Genetic testing for an IEI was sent in 31% (109/348) with pathogenic findings identified in 32% of those tested. Patients with IEI or other autoimmunity more frequently had abnormal immunoglobulin and complement testing. Prevalence of IEI was not different between those presenting with or without infection. The median number of treatments for the first AIHA episode was 2 (range: 0-17). Of those with warm AIHA, 31% received steroid-sparing therapy during the first episode. Patients with recurrent AIHA (42%) had a higher rate of abnormal immune tests (OR=2.29, p=0.012), Evans syndrome (OR= 4.85; p<0.001), IEI (OR=3.88, p<0.001), and other autoimmune disorders (OR=3.29; p<0.001). With median follow up of 4.9 years (range: 0-19.4 years), 72/257 (28%) with warm AIHA continued to have active disease on treatment. Of the 399 patients, 10 died, all of whom had secondary diagnoses. Expansive immune evaluation, monitoring, and targeted treatments directed at immune diagnoses are needed for pediatric AIHA, highlighting the need for evidence-based pediatric AIHA guidelines.

OBJECTIVES/OBJECTIVE:To assess efficacy and adverse outcomes of misoprostol 200mcg versus 400mcg every three hours buccal or vaginal for medication abortion (MAb) from 24-27 weeks' gestation. STUDY DESIGN/METHODS:This retrospective cohort study included MAbs from 24 0/7-27 0/7 weeks' gestation at Bellevue Hospital from 7/2022-6/2025. All patients received digoxin 2mg intraamniotic injection and mifepristone 200mg oral followed at 24-48hrs by misoprostol 200mcg or 400mcg every three hours buccal or vaginal based on hospital policy at time of admission. The primary outcome was time from first misoprostol dose to placental expulsion. Secondary outcomes were procedural complications. Primary statistical analysis was performed with Fisher's exact and Wilcox rank-sum tests. RESULTS:Of 55 patients, 27 (49%) received 200mcg doses of misoprostol and 28 (51%) received 400mcg doses of misoprostol. Median time to expulsion was 13hrs in the 200mcg group versus 9.5hrs in the 400mcg group (p=0.144). More patients in the 200mcg group versus the 400mcg group had blood loss ≥500mL (11.1% vs 0%, p=0.11) and retained placenta at four hours (3.7% vs 0%, p=0.49). No patients in either group had uterine rupture. CONCLUSIONS:Misoprostol 200mcg versus 400mcg every three hours buccal or vaginal for MAb from 24-27 weeks' gestation had overall similar outcomes. Although this single site retrospective study is underpowered to significantly differentiate between the two regimens, we observe that 200mcg dosing may be associated with higher risk of complications. Larger studies are needed to clarify optimal misoprostol dosing for 24-27 week MAb. IMPLICATIONS/CONCLUSIONS:For medication abortion from 24-27 weeks' gestation, serial doses of misoprostol 200mcg versus 400mcg every three hours have similar rates of complications, though there is a signal that 200mcg dosing may be associated with longer time to expulsion, higher blood loss, and more incidences of retained placenta.