Surgeon-Specific Factors Have a Larger Impact on Decision-Making for the Management of Proximal Humerus Fractures than Patient-Specific Factors: A Prospective Cohort Study

BACKGROUND

There is significant variability both in how proximal humerus fractures (PHFs) are treated and the ensuing patient outcomes. The purpose of this study was to investigate which surgeon- and patient-specific factors contribute to decision-making in the treatment of adult PHFs. We hypothesized that orthopedic sub-specialty training creates inherent bias and plays an important role in management algorithms for PHFs.

METHODS

We performed a prospective cohort investigation in two groups of surgeons - traumatologists (N=25) and shoulder & elbow/sports surgeons (SES) (N=26) - and asked them to provide treatment recommendations for 30 distinct clinical cases with standardized radiographic and clinical data. This is a population-based sample of surgeons who take trauma call and treat PHFs with different sub-specializations and practice settings including academic, hospital-employed, and private. Surgeons characterized based on subspecialty (trauma vs. SES), experience level (>10 vs. ≤10-years), and employment type (hospital- vs. non-hospital-employed). Chi-square analyses, logistic mixed-effects modeling, and relative importance analysis were used to evaluate the data.

RESULTS

Of the patient-specific factors, we found that the management of PHFs is largely dependent on initial radiographs obtained. Traumatologists were more likely to offer open reduction internal fixation (ORIF) and less likely to offer arthroplasty: 69% ORIF (traumatologists) versus 51% ORIF (SES, p<0.001), 8% arthroplasty (traumatologists) versus 17% (SES, p<0.001). Traumatologists were less likely to change from operative (either ORIF or arthroplasty) to non-operative management compared to SES surgeons when presented with additional patient demographic data. Surgeon-specific factors contributed to more than one-half of the variability in decision-making of PHF management while patient-specific factors contributed to about one-third of the variability in decision-making.

CONCLUSIONS

As physicians strive to advance the treatment for PHFs and optimize patient outcomes, our findings highlight the complex overlap between surgeon-, fracture-, and patient-specific factors in the final decision-making process.

Laparoscopic cholecystectomy conversion rates two decades later

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

Now nearly 2 decades into the laparoscopic era, nationwide laparoscopic cholecystectomy conversion rates remain around 5% to 10%. We analyzed patient- and surgeon-specific factors that may impact the decision to convert to open.

METHODS

We retrospectively analyzed 2205 LCs performed at a large tertiary community hospital over a 52 month period (May 2004 through October 2008).

RESULTS

The overall conversion rate was 4.9%. The most common reason for conversion was adhesions, and the majority of these patients had prior abdominal surgery. Males and patients >50 years old had a significantly higher likelihood of open conversion. The conversion rate of high-volume surgeons (≥100 total cases) in comparison to low-volume surgeons (40 to 99 total cases) was significantly lower. Conversion rates were lower among surgeons with fellowship training and those who completed residency training after 1990. Interestingly, the percentage of conversions due to technical difficulty was lower among those with fellowship training but higher among those who completed training after 1990.

CONCLUSION

Conversion occurred in ∼5% of all laparoscopic cholecystectomies. Males, patients >50 years old, and cases performed by low-volume surgeons had a higher likelihood of conversion. Other surgeon-specific factors did not have a significant impact on conversion rate.