The State of Artificial Intelligence in Pediatric Surgery: A Systematic Review

BACKGROUND

Artificial intelligence (AI) has been recently shown to improve clinical workflows and outcomes - yet its potential in pediatric surgery remains largely unexplored. This systematic review details the use of AI in pediatric surgery.

METHODS

Nine medical databases were searched from inception until January 2023, identifying articles focused on AI in pediatric surgery. Two authors reviewed full texts of eligible articles. Studies were included if they were original investigations on the development, validation, or clinical application of AI models for pediatric health conditions primarily managed surgically. Studies were excluded if they were not peer-reviewed, were review articles, editorials, commentaries, or case reports, did not focus on pediatric surgical conditions, or did not employ at least one AI model. Extracted data included study characteristics, clinical specialty, AI method and algorithm type, AI model (algorithm) role and performance metrics, key results, interpretability, validation, and risk of bias using PROBAST and QUADAS-2.

RESULTS

Authors screened 8178 articles and included 112. Half of the studies (50%) reported predictive models (for adverse events [25%], surgical outcomes [16%] and survival [9%]), followed by diagnostic (29%) and decision support models (21%). Neural networks (44%) and ensemble learners (36%) were the most commonly used AI methods across application domains. The main pediatric surgical subspecialties represented across all models were general surgery (31%) and neurosurgery (25%). Forty-four percent of models were interpretable, and 6% were both interpretable and externally validated. Forty percent of models had a high risk of bias, and concerns over applicability were identified in 7%.

CONCLUSIONS

While AI has wide potential clinical applications in pediatric surgery, very few published AI algorithms were externally validated, interpretable, and unbiased. Future research needs to focus on developing AI models which are prospectively validated and ultimately integrated into clinical workflows.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

2A.

Overcoming Barriers: Sex Disparity in Surgeon Ergonomics

BACKGROUND

Musculoskeletal discomfort is widely experienced by surgeons across multiple surgical specialties. Developing technologies and new minimally invasive techniques add further complexity and ergonomic stressors. These stressors differentially affect male and female surgeons, but little is known about the role these sex disparities play in surgical ergonomic stress. We reviewed existing literature to better understand how ergonomic stress varies between male and female surgeons.

STUDY DESIGN

A literature search was performed via PubMed including but not limited to the following topics: ergonomics, surgeons, female surgeons, women surgeons, pregnancy, and operating room. A review of available quantitative data was performed.

RESULTS

Female surgeons endure more pronounced ergonomic discomfort than their male counterparts, with added ergonomic stress associated with pregnancy.

CONCLUSIONS

A 4-fold method is proposed to overcome ergonomic barriers, including (1) improved education on prevention and treatment of ergonomic injury for active surgeons and trainees, (2) increased departmental and institutional support for ergonomic solutions for surgeons, (3) partnerships with industry to study innovative ergonomic solutions, and (4) additional research on the nature of surgical ergonomic challenges and the differential effects of surgical ergonomics on female surgeons.

ChatGPT: What Every Pediatric Surgeon Should Know About Its Potential Uses and Pitfalls

ChatGPT - currently the most popular generative artificial intelligence system - has been revolutionizing the world and healthcare since its release in November 2022. ChatGPT is a conversational chatbot that uses machine learning algorithms to enhance its replies based on user interactions and is a part of a broader effort to develop natural language processing that can assist people in their daily lives by understanding and responding to human language in a useful and engaging way. Thus far, many potential applications within healthcare have been described, despite its relatively recent release. This manuscript offers the pediatric surgical community a primer on this new technology and discusses some initial observations about its potential uses and pitfalls. Moreover, it introduces the perspectives of medical journals and surgical societies regarding the use of this artificial intelligence chatbot. As ChatGPT and other large language models continue to evolve, it is the responsibility of the pediatric surgery community to stay abreast of these changes and play an active role in safely incorporating them into our field for the benefit of our patients. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: V.

A Social Media Blueprint - Understanding What Makes the Optimal Social Media Account for Paediatric Surgical Families

BACKGROUND

Social media is one of the most common sources of information for parents seeking information on their child's health. The purpose of this study was to better understand the social media habits of parents of paediatric surgery patients through surveys and focus groups.

METHODS

An online survey was distributed to parents visiting paediatric surgery clinics at a tertiary care hospital. Surveys were distributed via QR code and social media. Two virtual focus groups were conducted with parents of paediatric patients. Descriptive statistics were used for survey analysis and focus group transcripts were thematically analyzed.

RESULTS

A total of 107 respondents completed the online survey. Median age of respondents was 36 (interquartile range: 32-41). 81.3% of the respondents were female. Facebook was the preferred social media platform (47.2%), followed by Instagram (41.5%) then other platforms (4.7%). Respondents indicated that their preferred length of video was 30 s (41.2%). When asked which type of video content they prefer, participants indicated animated video as most popular (66.0%) followed by a physician speaking (60.0%), and slides with voiceover (45.0%). The focus groups revealed themes of: (1) functionality and content; (2) branding, aesthetic and legitimacy; (3) unmasking of physicians; (4) peer and community support.

CONCLUSION

Creating a successful social media account for parents must take into consideration their social media habits. A Facebook account that features brief videos may be most likely to engage parents. Additionally, physicians need to establish credibility and legitimacy of their content to attract their target audience.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

III.

The National Resident Matching Program: An Outdated Business Model Due for Reform

INTRODUCTION

This study aims to examine the trends across the entire NRMP application cycles from 2007-2008 to 2022-2023, specifically exploring trends across competitive surgical specialties to assess the efficacy of the existing NRMP business model and provide evidence-based recommendations to better address the current needs of both applicants and programs.

METHODS

A cross-sectional study exploring the trends in the mean number of applicants and mean number of total ranked positions per applicant across surgical, the top 5 most competitive surgical specialties, and non-surgical specialties from 2007-2008 to the 2022-2023 match cycles utilizing data from the NRMP database.

RESULTS

Over the studied 16 match cycles, the mean number of applicants to surgical specialties has increased by 47.99% and the mean number of total ranked positions per applicant has increased by 88.07%. For the top 5 most competitive specialties, the mean number of applicants has increased by 57.66% and the mean number of total ranked positions per applicant has increased by 83.33%.

CONCLUSION

Trends across the 16 most recent NRMP cycles show evidence of increased congestion in the match system, the burden of which is primarily placed on applicants. Our findings support the need for drastic reform in the NRMP to relieve this burden, and we discuss practical solutions to allow the NRMP to better meet the needs of applicants and residency programs alike.

The Canadian Pediatric Surgery Workforce: A 10-year Prospective Assessment

BACKGROUND

The Canadian Association of Paediatric Surgeons launched a 10-year prospective assessment of the Canadian pediatric surgery workforce and training environment, beginning in 2013. The results of the first 5 years (2013-2017) were previously published. Here, we present the results of the last 5 years (2018-2022), and the cumulative results of the past decade.

METHODS

With IRB approval, a web-based survey was sent to all pediatric surgery division chiefs in Canada each year (2013-2022). The survey gathered workforce data on pediatric surgery practices, as well as data regarding fellowship graduates from Canadian training programs.

RESULTS

Complete responses were received from all 18 divisions (100% response rate). Over the decade studied, the number of pediatric surgeons and full-time equivalent positions increased from 73 to 81, and 65 to 82, respectively. Thirty positions were vacated (15 retirement, 6 new Canadian practice, 8 leaving Canada, 1 other), and 38 were filled (20 new Canadian fellowship graduates, 8 Canadian surgeons moving from other sites in Canada, 10 surgeons coming from outside Canada). Seventy-five fellows completed training eligible for North American certification, including 34 Canadians, 31 Americans, and 10 non-North American foreign nationals (9 of whom left North America after training). The proportion of Canadian graduates who desired, but could not find, a Canadian position improved from 44% in the first 5 years to 20% in the second 5 years.

CONCLUSIONS

The Canadian pediatric surgery workforce has experienced a modest increase over a decade. A mismatch still exists between Canadian pediatric surgery graduates and attending staff positions, but the situation has improved during the last 5 years.

TYPE OF STUDY

Survey.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 5

Study protocol for the Intraoperative Complications Assessment and Reporting with Universal Standards (ICARUS) global cross-specialty surveys and consensus

Annually, about 300 million surgeries lead to significant intraoperative adverse events (iAEs), impacting patients and surgeons. Their full extent is underestimated due to flawed assessment and reporting methods. Inconsistent adoption of new grading systems and a lack of standardization, along with litigation concerns, contribute to underreporting. Only half of relevant journals provide guidelines on reporting these events, with a lack of standards in surgical literature. To address these issues, the Intraoperative Complications Assessment and Reporting with Universal Standard (ICARUS) Global Surgical Collaboration was established in 2022. The initiative involves conducting global surveys and a Delphi consensus to understand the barriers for poor reporting of iAEs, validate shared criteria for reporting, define iAEs according to surgical procedures, evaluate the existing grading systems' reliability, and identify strategies for enhancing the collection, reporting, and management of iAEs. Invitation to participate are extended to all the surgical specialties, interventional cardiology, interventional radiology, OR Staffs and anesthesiology. This effort represents an essential step towards improved patient safety and the well-being of healthcare professionals in the surgical field.

A new classification for surgical NEC during exploratory laparotomy: introduction and reproducibility assessment

PURPOSE

Variability in necrosis patterns and operative techniques in surgical necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) necessitates a standardized classification system for consistent assessment and comparison. This study introduces a novel intraoperative reporting system for surgical NEC, focusing on reliability and reproducibility.

METHODS

Analyzing surgical NEC cases from January 2018 to June 2023 at two tertiary neonatal and pediatric surgery units, a new classification system incorporating anatomical details and intestinal involvement extent was developed. Its reproducibility was quantified using kappa coefficients (κ) for interobserver and intraobserver reliability, assessed by four specialists. Furthermore, following surgery, the occurrence of mortality and enteric autonomy were evaluated on the basis of surgical decision-making of the novel intraoperative classification system for surgical NEC.

RESULTS

In total, 95 patients with surgical NEC were included in this analysis. The mean κ value of the intra-observer reliability was 0.889 (range, 0.790-0.941) for the new classification, indicating excellent agreement and the inter-observer reliability was 0.806 (range, 0.718-0.883), indicating substantial agreement.

CONCLUSION

The introduced classification system for surgical NEC shows high reliability, deepening the understanding of NEC's intraoperative exploration aspects. It promises to indicate operative strategies, enhance prognosis prediction, and substantially facilitate scholarly communication in pediatric surgery. Importantly, it explores the potential for a standardized report and may represent a step forward in classifying surgical NEC, if pediatric surgeons are open to change.

Gender trends in match rate to surgical specialties in Canada: A retrospective study from 2003-2022

BACKGROUND

In Canada, there is a recognized underrepresentation of women in the field of surgery. However, the extent to which this trend applies across various surgical specialties is not well delineated. The aim of this study is to identify existing disparities and trends over time to inform the need for future interventions to make the match process more equitable for applicants.

METHODS

Data regarding surgical specialty applicants was extracted from the Canadian Resident Matching Service (CaRMS)'s 2003 to 2022 reports.

RESULTS

A total of 9,488 applicants ranked surgical specialties as their first choice from 2003-2022. Increases in the proportion of women applicants comparing periods 2003-2007 to 2018-2022 were significant for cardiac surgery (22% to 43%, p = 0.03), general surgery (46% to 60%, p<0.001), orthopedic surgery (23% to 35%, p<0.001), urology (23% to 38%, p<0.001), and all aggregated surgical specialties ('all surgery') (45% to 55%, p<0.001). An increase in the proportion of women applicants who matched over the same periods was observed for general surgery (+47% to 60%, p<0.001), orthopedic surgery (24% to 35%, p<0.01), urology (21% to 34%, p<0.001), and all surgery (46% to 54%, p<0.001). From 2003-2022, a lower match rate for women compared to men was observed for otolaryngology (0.60 v 0.69, p = 0.008), urology (0.61 v 0.72, p = 0.003), and all surgery (0.71 v 0.73, p = 0.038), while higher match rates were observed for ophthalmology (0.65 v 0.58, p = 0.04). No statistically significant differences in match rate were observed from 2018-2022.

CONCLUSIONS

While the proportion of women applicants to surgical specialties in Canada has been increasing, women remain underrepresented in several surgical specialties. This underrepresentation cannot be solely attributed to fewer women applying to these specialties, as women experience lower success rates when matching to specific surgical specialties. Further research is essential to identify and address the underlying causes of these disparities.

Understanding the relevance of surgical specialties in undergraduate medical education: Insights of graduates

BACKGROUND

The relevance of training medical students in surgical specialty services has been a matter of debate in contexts where the health care system focuses on primary health care. Some educators argue that medical students should be trained in primary care settings. Other educators assert that rotating in highly complex hospitals strengthens the competencies of future general practitioners. Nonetheless, little attention has been paid to the added value that rotations in surgical specialties have brought to newly graduated doctors' lives. In this study, we explored the perceptions of a group of graduates by focusing on the relevant experiences they had during their surgical specialty rotations in undergraduate medical training and how this training influenced their personal and professional life.

METHODS

We conducted a qualitative study using a convenience sampling strategy to recruit a total of seven junior doctors. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews in 2022. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the data until code saturation was reached.

RESULTS

The recurring themes were (1) perception of rotations, (2) valuable learning for medical practice and (3) defining their professional future. Participants felt that their experiences in surgical specialty rotations were beneficial, as they gained confidence to perform professionally and decide on future employment and strengthened their research and primary healthcare competencies.

CONCLUSION

Although training in primary healthcare centres is crucial in undergraduate medical education, these results suggest that including rotations in surgical specialties may be valuable in enhancing the future careers of junior doctors.

Development Methodology, Availability, and Implementation of Core Outcome Sets in Pediatric Surgery

Core outcome sets (COSs) provide a mechanism to guide researchers and clinicians when deciding which outcomes to report in research related to a specific clinical condition or intervention. The intention behind creating a COS for a specific condition is to improve the reporting of important and meaningful outcomes, thus enhancing the relevance of research. Additionally, a COS helps facilitate comparison of outcomes between different clinical studies and reduces research waste. In this paper, we discuss the availability of COSs in the field of pediatric general surgery. We provide an overview of the methodologies used to develop a COS, including common pitfalls, and finally, we discuss COS uptake and implementation. An understanding of all these aspects is important for researchers considering developing a new COS and for those reading research where a COS has been developed or used within a study. Failure to adequately appreciate the nuances of COS development, in particular, risks fundamental flaws that may jeopardize COS validity and subsequently hinder COS uptake and implementation.

Assessing the Readability of Clinical Trial Consent Forms for Surgical Specialties

INTRODUCTION

To evaluate the readability of surgical clinical trial consent forms and compare readability across surgical specialties.

METHODS

We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of surgical clinical trial consent forms available on ClinicalTrials.gov to quantitatively evaluate readability, word count, and length variations among different specialties. The analysis was performed between November 2022 and January 2023. A total of 386 surgical clinical trial consent forms across 14 surgical specialties were included.

RESULTS

The main outcomes were language complexity (measured using Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level), number of words (measured as word count), time to read (measured at reading speeds of 240 per min), and readability (measured by Flesch Reading Ease Score, Gunning Frog Index, Simple Measures of Gobbledygook Index, FORCAST, and Automated Readability Index). The surgical consent forms were a mean (standard deviation) of 2626 (1668) words long, with a mean of 12:53 min to read at 240 words per min. None of the surgical specialties had an average readability level of sixth grade or lower across all six indices, and only 16 out of 386 (4%) clinical trials met the recommended reading level. Furthermore, there was no significant difference in reading grade level between surgical specialties based on the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level and Flesch Reading Ease indices.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings suggest that current surgical clinical trial consent documents are too long and complex, exceeding the recommended sixth-grade reading level. Ensuring readable clinical trial consent forms is not only ethically responsible but also crucial for protecting patients' rights and well-being by facilitating informed decision-making.

James Warden and the Global Alliance Partnership: A Pediatric Surgery Giant and His Enduring PAPS Landmark

The discipline of pediatric surgery has honored many of the early giants through programs that bear their names. One of those programs is the M. James Warden Global Alliance Partnership, a landmark program celebrated at each annual meeting of the Pacific Association of Pediatric Surgeons since 1989. This article describes James Warden and his legacy as a surgeon and humanitarian and provides an update on the past, present, and future of the Global Alliance Partnership that bears his name. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 5.

The queen bee phenomenon in Canadian surgical subspecialties: An evaluation of gender biases in the resident training environment

BACKGROUND

The queen bee phenomenon (QBP) describes the behavioural response that occurs when women achieve success in a male-dominated environment, and in this position of authority, treat their female subordinates more critically. It has been demonstrated in business, academia, the military, and police force. The goal of this study was to determine whether the QBP occurs in surgical specialties. We hypothesized that female surgeons, fellows, and senior surgical residents would be more critical in their assessment of junior female residents than their male counterparts.

METHODS

A scenario-based survey was distributed via email to all Canadian surgical programs between February and March 2021. Scenarios were designed to assess either female or male learners. Centers distributed surveys to attending surgeons, surgical fellows, resident physicians, and affiliate surgeons. Respondents average Likert score for female-based and male-based questions were calculated. Subgroup analyses were performed based on gender, age, seniority, and surgical specialty.

RESULTS

716 survey responses were collected, with 387 respondents identifying as male (54%) and 321 identifying as female (45%). 385 attending surgeons (54%), 66 fellows (9%), and 263 residents (37%) responded. The mean Likert scores for female respondents assessing female learners was significantly lower than male learners (p = 0·008, CI = 95%). During subgroup analysis, some specialties demonstrated significant scoring differences.

DISCUSSION

The QBP was shown to be present among surgical specialties. Female respondents assessed female learners more critically than their male counterparts.

CONCLUSION

These findings highlight the importance of tackling organizational biases to create more equitable educational and work environment in surgery.

Myocardial protection in paediatric cardiac surgery: building an evidence-based strategy

Cardioplegia is fundamental to the surgical repair of congenital heart defects by protecting the heart against ischaemia/reperfusion injury, characterised by low cardiac output and troponin release in the early postoperative period. The immature myocardium exhibits structural, physiological and metabolic differences from the adult heart, with a greater sensitivity to calcium overload-mediated injury during reperfusion. Del Nido cardioplegia was designed specifically to protect the immature heart, is widely used in North America and may provide better myocardial protection in children; however, it has not been commercially available in the UK, where most centres use St Thomas' blood cardioplegia. There are no phase 3 clinical trials in children to support one solution over another and this lack of evidence, combined with variations in practice, suggests the presence of clinical equipoise. The best cardioplegia solution for use in children, and the impact of age and other clinical factors remain unknown. In this Hunterian lecture, I propose an evidence-based strategy to improve myocardial protection during cardiac surgery in children through: (1) conducting multicentre clinical trials of established techniques; (2) improving our knowledge of ischaemia/reperfusion injury in the setting of cardioplegic arrest; (3) applying this to drive innovation, moving beyond current cardioplegia solutions; (4) empowering personalised medicine, through combining clinical and genomic data, including ethnic diversity; and (5) understanding the impact of cardioplegic arrest on the late outcomes that matter to patients and their families.

Conflict of interest disclosure by US cardiothoracic surgeons

BACKGROUND

Surgeon-industry collaboration is a key driver of advancement in surgical technology and practice. Disclosures of financial relationships between investigators and industries are important to ensure transparent and critical evaluation of literature.

METHODS

All American cardiothoracic (CT) surgeons who published in three major CT surgery journals in 2019 were identified. Whether these surgeons disclosed any conflicts of interest was recorded and compared to actual payments received within 5 years of publication as reported by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services data.

RESULTS

In the study period, there were 1079 unique manuscripts involving 885 American CT surgeons as authors, which combined for 2719 author instances. Of these, 96.2% of authors (851 of 885) received payments from companies. The authors who received payments produced 2651 author instances (97.4%). Financial disclosure was reported in only 11.4% (301 of 2651) of these instances. In total, 851 surgeons received more than $187 million over 5 years, with the highest-paid surgeon receiving an average of over $5.9 million per year. The largest individual payments were from "Associated Research Funding," with over $115 million being paid to 277 surgeons over 5 years. The top paying company issued over $96.5 million to American CT surgeons over 5 years.

CONCLUSIONS

Nearly all the reviewed publications in three top CT surgery journals were by surgeons who received payments from companies, but very few of these payments were recorded as potential conflicts of interest. A more consistent and robust policy of COI disclosure is needed to reduce perceptions of bias.

Patterns and Disparities in Telehealth Usage During the COVID-19 Pandemic Across Surgical Specialties

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated telehealth usage. This study aims to understand the impact of sociodemographic factors on telehealth usage during COVID-19 among surgical specialties. Methods: Our data contain surgical outpatient visits at an academic center from five periods between 2019 and 2020. A difference-in-differences regression model was used to examine the effect of exposure variables on virtual visit proportions between prepandemic and postpandemic time periods. Results: Compared with white patients, non-Medicare beneficiaries, and English-proficient patients, the rate of uptake in telehealth visits from prepandemic to postpandemic periods was lower for black patients, Medicare beneficiaries, and non-English-speaking patients, respectively. Surgical subspecialties saw varied usage of telehealth. A strong preference for phone visits by black patients, Medicare beneficiaries, and non-English-speaking patients existed. Conclusion: Phone visits are an important resource for marginalized communities. Understanding disparities in telemedicine usage may inform policy that could alleviate inequities in health care access.

Pediatric Emergency Surgery Course in Uganda: Long-Term Follow-Up and Insights From Further Dissemination

INTRODUCTION

Approximately 170 pediatric surgeons are needed for the 24 million children in Uganda. There are only seven. Consequently, general surgeons manage many pediatric surgical conditions. In response, stakeholders created the Pediatric Emergency Surgery Course (PESC) for rural providers, given three times in 2018-2019. We sought to understand the course's long-term impact, current pediatric surgery needs, and determine measures for improvement.

METHODS

In October 2021, we distributed the same test given in 2018-2019. Student's t-test was used to compare former participants' scores to previous scores. The course was delivered again in May 2022 to new participants. We performed a quantitative needs assessment and also conducted a focus group with these participants. Finally, we interviewed Surgeon in Chiefs at previous sites.

RESULTS

Twenty three of the prior 45 course participants re-took the PESC course assessment. Alumni scored on average 71.9% ± 18% correct. This was higher from prior precourse test scores of 55.4% ± 22.4%, and almost identical to the 2018-2019 postcourse scores 71.9% ± 14%. Fifteen course participants completed the needs assessment. Participants had low confidence managing pediatric surgical disease (median Likert scale ≤ 3.0), 12 of 15 participants endorsed lack of equipment, and eight of 15 desired more educational resources. Qualitative feedback was positive: participants valued the pragmatic lessons and networking with in-country specialists. Further training was suggested, and Chiefs noted the need for more trained staff like anesthesiologists.

CONCLUSIONS

Participants favorably reviewed PESC and retained knowledge over three years later. Given participants' interest in more training, further investment in locally derived educational efforts must be prioritized.