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IIb or not IIb?
I must admit that Shakespeare was not one of my favorite subjects at school. However, his words have relevance to some of my thoughts about vascular surgical issues. In a previous editorial I adopted his words to describe how, with…
Crawford Forum: Are procedures overused?
BOSTON – This year’s F. Stanley Crawford Critical Issues Forum, titled “Appropriate Use of Vascular Surgery Procedures: Do We Have a Problem?,” was a response to the question of whether vascular surgeons are performing too many procedures and if enough…
Just do it?
The typical American world view has always extolled the virtues of positive thinking. From the pilgrim fathers to the Western settlers, we pursued goals that were considered insurmountable. In the modern era, Ronald Reagan inspired us by stating that “Nothing…
What would Charles Darwin say about collaborating with and training other specialties?
Vascular surgery has evolved from a limited subspecialty of general and thoracic surgery into a complex and well-defined specialty. The introduction of endovascular treatments and their adoption and embrace by vascular surgeons has made our specialty exciting and attractive. However,…
Residents, postop complications linked
BOSTON – Resident participation in emergency general surgery cases was independently associated with a host of complications – pulmonary embolism, surgical site infections, and unplanned reoperation in a secondary analysis of the American College of Surgeons prospective National Surgical Quality…
COMMENTARY: How and why to perform research as a trainee
“Why do I need to do research if I’m going into private practice anyway?” I have heard this question multiple times throughout my career as a resident, fellow, and attending thoracic surgeon. The truth is, there are multiple reasons, any…
‘Walk out the snot’
Balloon embolectomy revolutionized the treatment of acute thromboembolism involving peripheral arteries. However, an often overlooked method that actually may be more beneficial is to “walk out the snot.” This may sound somewhat disgusting but as can be seen from the…
What happened to 5-year outcomes?
I recently returned from Professor Roger Greenhalgh’s excellent Charing Cross meeting in London. A plethora of exciting new developments was presented to almost 4,000 attendees from all over the world. As impressive as these presentations may have been, I became…
The USPSTF says ‘Don’t do it’
The United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recently issued a draft document recommending against screening for carotid artery disease in asymptomatic patients. The draft implies that ultrasonography in the general population, where carotid artery stenosis prevalence is low, yields…
The ACA, the private practice of vascular surgery, and SVS: A call to action
As I view the implementation of the Patient Protection and Accountable Care Act (ACA), I am concerned that this bureaucratic, administrative, directive-driven apparatus will have a disproportionately negative impact on the largest constituency in the Society for Vascular Surgery, the…