Burnout is not associated with trainee performance on the Vascular Surgery In-Training Exam.

Objective: The Vascular Surgery In-Training Examination (VSITE) is a yearly exam evaluating vascular trainees' knowledge base. Although multiple studies have evaluated variables associated with exam outcomes, few have incorporated training program-specific metrics. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the impact of the learning environment and burnout on VSITE performance.

Edentulism and quality of life in the Salvadoran population: a cross-sectional study.

Introduction: Edentulism is the partial or total loss of teeth, it is irreversible and disabling due to its sequelae in the masticatory, phonetic and aesthetic function that affect the quality of life.

Objective: To establish the impact of edentulism and sociodemographic factors on the quality of life of the Salvadoran population.

Materials And Methods: Secondary cross-sectional analysis of data in 3322 users of the Public Health System of El Salvador, aged 15 to > 60 years.

Reported pain at work is a risk factor for vascular surgery trainee burnout.

Background: Work-related pain is a known risk factor for vascular surgeon burnout. It risks early attrition from our workforce and is a recognized threat to the specialty. Our study aimed to understand whether work-related pain similarly contributed to vascular surgery trainee well-being.

Results of the North American Complex Abdominal Aortic Debranching (NACAAD) Registry.

Background: Hybrid debranching repair of pararenal and thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysms was initially designed as a better alternative to standard open repair, addressing the limitations of endovascular repair involving the visceral aorta. We reviewed the collective outcomes of hybrid debranching repairs using extra-anatomic, open surgical debranching of the renal-mesenteric arteries, followed by endovascular aortic stenting.

Methods: Data from patients who underwent hybrid repair in 14 North American institutions during 10 years were retrospectively reviewed.

Society for Vascular Surgery clinical practice guidelines of thoracic endovascular aortic repair for descending thoracic aortic aneurysms.

Thoracic aortic diseases, including disease of the descending thoracic aorta (DTA), are significant causes of death in the United States. Open repair of the DTA is a physiologically impactful operation with relatively high rates of mortality, paraplegia, and renal failure. Thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR) has revolutionized treatment of the DTA and has largely supplanted open repair because of lower morbidity and mortality.

Premature atherosclerotic peripheral artery disease: An underrecognized and undertreated disorder with a rising global prevalence.

Premature atherosclerotic peripheral artery disease (PAD) of the lower extremities is characterized by disease diagnosis before the age of 50 years. The global prevalence of premature PAD has increased, and the disease is often underdiagnosed given heterogenous patient symptoms. Traditional cardiovascular risk factors like smoking, diabetes, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia as well as non-traditional risk factors like elevated lipoprotein(a), family history of PAD, hypercoagulability, and systemic inflammation are associated with premature PAD.

Perioperative Outcomes for Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Repair Based on Aneurysm Diameter.

Background: Guidelines from the Society for Vascular Surgery recommend elective repair in asymptomatic patients with an abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) only if their diameter is greater than or equal to 5.5 cm, yet smaller ones are routinely repaired. This study aims to evaluate perioperative outcomes based on aneurysm size at the time of repair.

External iliac pseudoaneurysm secondary to medial wall penetration of an acetabular screw: a rare cause of total hip arthroplasty failure 15 years after implantation.

Vascular injury as a result of total hip arthroplasty (THA) represents an uncommon complication. Although these injuries typically present acutely, delayed presentation has been reported. In this case, a 70-year-old female presented with groin pain and medial thigh numbness 15 years after a left THA.

Surveillance Recommendations after Thoracic Endovascular Aortic Repair Should Be Based on Initial Indication for Repair.

Background: Current surveillance recommendations after thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR) include contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CT) scans at 1-, 2-, 6-, and 12-month intervals, with annual scans thereafter. Patient compliance with such schedules remains inconsistent for all etiologies of aortic disease. It remains unclear which boundaries prevent compliance and whether compliance is associated with improved aorta-specific outcomes.

Controversies and evidence for cardiovascular disease in the diverse Hispanic population.

Objective: Hispanics account for approximately 17% of the U.S.

Population: They are one of the fastest growing racial/ethnic groups, second only to Asians.

Nicotine Dependence and Willingness to Quit Smoking in Vascular Surgery Patients.

Background: Smoking rates have declined; however, it remains the primary modifiable risk factor for vascular disease. While vascular surgeons often advise patients to quit, few provide assistance. We sought to understand patients' interest in quitting and determine factors that influence this willingness to quit.

Mynx Vascular Closure Device in Arterial Endovascular Procedures.

Background: Vascular closure devices have been used to achieve hemostasis of percutaneous access sites following endovascular procedures, with reported decreased time for arterial control as well as decreased time to ambulation. We sought to determine rates and risk factors of postoperative bleeding complications and failures using these devices from a single institution experienced in the use of vascular closure devices.

Methods: All patients undergoing arterial endovascular procedures with percutaneous access between March 2010 and October 2015 at a single institution were identified and analyzed (n = 894).

Contemporary Characteristics and Outcomes of Young Patients (Under 50 Years) Undergoing Open Carotid Artery Surgery.

Background: Stroke is the second leading cause of death worldwide, with 10% of neurologic events occurring in adults aged 18-49 years. The incidence in this age group has risen over the last 2 decades (while falling in the aged), despite improved diagnostic capacity and greater ability to treat it medically and surgically. We are unaware of any modern data regarding the risk factors and outcomes after carotid artery surgery in this demographic.

Risk of Acute Kidney Injury after Percutaneous Pharmacomechanical Thrombectomy Using AngioJet in Venous and Arterial Thrombosis.

Background: Percutaneous mechanical thrombectomy is commonly used to treat acute thrombotic syndromes. AngioJet (AJ) forcibly sprays fibrinolytics to fragment and aspirate thrombus. It is known to cause hemolysis and gross hematuria, yet potential consequences to renal function after AJ remain unstudied.

Delayed management of Grade III blunt aortic injury: Series from a Level I trauma center.

Background: Blunt aortic injuries (BAIs) are traditionally treated as surgical emergencies, with the majority of repairs performed in an urgent fashion within 24 hours, irrespective of the grade of aortic injury. These patients are often underresuscitated and often have multiple other trauma issues that need to be addressed. This study reviews a single center's experience comparing urgent (<24 hours) thoracic endovascular aneurysm repair (TEVAR) versus delayed (>24 hours) TEVAR for Grade III BAI.

Management of noninfected prosthetic aortic bypass failures using femoral vein.

Objective: The use of femoral-popliteal vein as a conduit to treat infected aortoiliac pathologies has been described extensively and is referred to as the neoaortoiliac system procedure. We examined our center's outcomes after using deep vein as a conduit for the salvage of failed aortofemoral prosthetic bypasses in patients without infection.

Methods: Procedures using femoral vein as conduit at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences between January 2005 and July 2013 were retrospectively reviewed (n = 110).

Successful treatment of a mycotic multifocal thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysm as a late sequelae of intravesical bacillus Calmette-Guerin therapy: case report and literature review.

Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) is a live, attenuated strain of Mycobacterium bovis commonly used for the treatment of superficial bladder carcinoma. Intravesical BCG is well tolerated despite side effects that range from hematuria to sepsis syndrome. A very rare complication is vascular infection developing a mycotic BCG aneurysm, especially in the thoracoabdominal aorta (TAAA).

Contemporary outcomes with percutaneous vascular interventions for peripheral critical limb ischemia in those with and without poly-vascular disease.

Given the very ill nature of patients with critical limb ischemia (CLI), the use of percutaneous vascular interventions (PVIs) for limb salvage may or may not be efficacious; in particular, for those with polyvascular arterial disease. Herein, we reviewed large, multi-institutional outcomes of PVI in polyvascular and peripheral arterial disease (PAD) patients with CLI. An 18-hospital consortium collected prospective data on patients undergoing endovascular interventions for PAD with 6-month follow-up from January 2008 to December 2011.

Clathrin complexes with the inhibitor kappa B kinase signalosome: imaging the interactome.

Many receptors involved with innate immunity activate the inhibitor kappa B kinase signalosome (IKK). The active complex appears to be assembled from the two kinase units, IKKα and IKKβ with the regulatory protein NEMO. Because we previously found that RNA silencing of clathrin heavy chains (CHC), in transformed human lung pneumocytes (A549), decreased TNFα-induced signaling and phosphorylation of inhibitor kappa B (IκB), we hypothesized that CHC forms cytoplasmic complexes with members of the IKK signalosome.

Rifampin soaking dacron-based endografts for implantation in infected aortic aneurysms--new application of a time-tested principle.

Infections involving the aorta are associated with high rates of morbidity and mortality, and their management is complex. Saturating Dacron grafts in rifampin (60 mg/mL) inhibits the growth of organisms commonly found to be involved in both primary aortic infections and aortoenteric fistulas. Open repair and replacement of the aorta with rifampin-soaked Dacron grafts is frequently used in clinical practice and is considered a viable option for open repair with a low recurrence of infection; however, the morbidity and mortality of the procedure is significant.