Are open abdominal procedures a thing of the past? An analysis of graduating general surgery residents' case logs from 2000 to 2011.

Introduction: Since the introduction of laparoscopic surgery for cholecystectomy in 1989, the growth of minimally invasive surgery (MIS) has increased significantly in the United States. There is a growing concern that the pendulum has now shifted too far toward MIS and that current general surgery residents' exposure to open abdominal procedures is lacking.

Objective: We sought to analyze trends in open vs MIS intra-abdominal procedures performed by residents graduating from US general surgery residency programs over the past twelve years.

Effect of the 80-hour work week on resident operative experience in general surgery.

Background: The goal of this study was to determine the effect of the 80-hour work week on resident operative experience.

Methods: General surgery resident operative experience was evaluated during a 4-year period and divided into 2 groups: before (group A [July 1, 2001, to June 30, 2003]) and after (group B July 1, 2003, to June 30, 2005]) implementation of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education duty hour guidelines.

Results: There was a significant decrease in mean total and primary surgeon cases in group B for postgraduate year (PGY) levels 1, 2, and 4 (P < or = .