Over 20% of patients with cirrhosis are nonadherent with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) surveillance recommendations; however, few studies have evaluated the impact of patient-level factors on surveillance receipt. We characterized the association between HCC surveillance receipt and patient knowledge, attitudes, and perceived barriers in a racially diverse and socioeconomically disadvantaged cohort of patients with cirrhosis. Patients with cirrhosis followed at a large urban hospital were invited to complete a survey about HCC surveillance between August 2014 and December 2015. Multivariable logistic regression was performed to identify factors associated with HCC surveillance receipt during the 12-month period preceding and 6-month period after survey administration. We achieved a response rate of 71.8% (n = 541 of 753). Patients demonstrated high levels of HCC-related knowledge (summary score, 77.7%); however, 48.6% believed that eating a healthy diet precluded the need for HCC surveillance, and 34.0% believed that HCC surveillance was not necessary if they had a normal physical exam and/or lacked clinical symptoms. Patients expressed worry about developing and dying from HCC, but nearly half (49.9%) of patients reported barriers to receiving HCC surveillance, including difficulty with the scheduling process (30.5%), costs of surveillance testing (25.3%), and transportation difficulties (17.3%). HCC surveillance receipt was significantly higher in patients who knew cirrhosis is a risk factor for developing HCC (odds ratio [OR], 3.09; 95% confidence ADDRESS CORRESPONDENCE AND REPRINT REQUESTS TO: Amit G. Singal, M.D., M.S., Division of Digestive and Liver Diseases, UT Southwestern Medical Center, 5959 Harry Hines Boulevard, POB 1, Suite 420, amit.singal@utsouthwestern.edu,. * These authors contributed equally to this work and are co-first authors.Potential conflict of interest: Dr. Singal consults for and is on the speakers' bureau for Bayer. Dr. Yopp is on the speakers' bureau for Bayer and received grants from Novartis and Peregrine.Author names in bold designate shared co-first Although provider recommendation is reported to be a strong predictor for HCC surveillance, (9) patient-level factors may also play an important role in surveillance underuse. In prospective cohort studies, nearly 1 in 5 patients were nonadherent with provider recommendations for HCC surveillance. (10,11) The cancer-screening literature has applied theoretical models of behavior change and demonstrated that patients' poor knowledge, negative attitudes, or perceived barriers to cancer screening may be associated with lower screening rates. (12,13) However, most studies evaluating HCC surveillance correlates have primarily focused on patient sociodemographic and clinical characteristics. (7,14) The effect of theory-based, patient-reported psychosocial factors on HCC surveillance completion has not been quantified. A better understanding of patient knowledge, attitudes, and barriers, particularly among low-income minorities, i...

Purpose of Review Anemia is a very common complication in the post-operative period. Post-operative anemia is associated with poor outcomes including but not limited to infections, increased length of stay, circulatory overload, and mortality. The strategy of patient blood management focuses on three pillars that include the detection and treatment of pre-operative anemia; reduction of peri-operative blood loss; and harnessing and optimizing the patient-specific physiological reserve of anemia. Recent Findings Multiple studies in surgical patients have been conducted to study various methods of management of post-operative anemia. Recent advances in surgical techniques have also been studied to minimize blood loss. There is a widespread consensus on the use of intravenous iron in hospitalized post-operative patients after major surgery. Summary We discuss the most common causes of post-operative anemia and management focusing on measures to reduce blood loss and measures to increase red blood cell (RBC) mass. In this brief review, we present updates from the most relevant articles in the past 5 years and include updates from the 2018 international consensus statement on the management of post-operative anemia after major surgical procedures.

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