Lower-Extremity Vascular Ulcers: Assessment and Approaches to Management.

Healing of skin wounds of the lower extremities can be complicated by concomitant vascular disease. Dysfunction of the arterial, venous, and/or lymphatic systems can compromise the healing of skin ulcers of the legs, creating a burden for patients from painful, draining wounds and placing patients at risk for infection, amputation, and even death. Insights into vascular pathophysiology and an understanding of the processes of wound healing permit an evidence-based approach to patients with vascular leg ulcers.

Relative value unit-based compensation incentivization in an academic vascular practice improves productivity with no early adverse impact on quality.

Objective: Given the increased pressure from governmental programs to restructure reimbursements to reflect quality metrics achieved by physicians, review of current reimbursement schemes is necessary to ensure sustainability of the physician's performance while maintaining and ultimately improving patient outcomes. This study reviewed the impact of reimbursement incentives on evidence-based care outcomes within a vascular surgical program at an academic tertiary care center.

Methods: Data for patients with a confirmed 30-day follow-up for the vascular surgery subset of our institution's National Surgical Quality Improvement Program submission for the years 2013 and 2014 were reviewed.

Open abdominal aortic aneurysm repair is still necessary in an era of advanced endovascular repair.

Objective: Recent advances in endovascular aneurysm repair have overcome substantial anatomic barriers associated with short and challenging necks. With greater range to treat more difficult anatomy from an endovascular approach, one would assume the need of open surgical repair (OSR) would be diminished. The purpose of our study was to determine the need for OSR for abdominal aortic aneurysms, in a tertiary academic setting, with a moderate volume (10-15 cases/year) of fenestrated endografting being performed.

Modified eversion carotid endarterectomy.

Background: Eversion carotid endarterectomy is a well-described technique for carotid endarterectomy (CEA). The advantage of this technique is a completely autogenous repair. We describe a modification of eversion endarterectomy (MEE) that expeditiously extracts the plaque through a linear incision over the common carotid artery and the proximal bulbous internal carotid artery (ICA) only, allowing primary closure.

Violations of behavioral practices revealed in closed claims reviews.

Objective: Closed claims against general surgeons were reviewed, seeking insights into the effects of surgeons' deficient behavioral practices on outcomes. Research and educational strategies based on findings may reduce errors and improve care.

Summary Background Data: Adverse events occur in 2.

The American College of Surgeons' closed claims study: new insights for improving care.

Background: All physicians must be vigilant in the pursuit of safe care for patients. While problems in care are identified, education that provides an understanding of these problems and guidelines for improvement can enhance patient safety. Our objective was to determine problematic aspects of surgical care, including care provided by surgeons before, during, after, and instead of surgery, that negatively affect patient safety.

Care of critically ill surgical patients using the 80-hour Accreditation Council of Graduate Medical Education work-week guidelines: a survey of current strategies.

As a result of the recently mandated work-hour restrictions, it has become more difficult to provide 24-hour intensive care unit (ICU) in-house coverage by the general surgical residents. To assess the current state of providing appropriate continuous care to surgical critical care patients during the era of resident work-hour constraints, a national survey was conducted by the Association of Program Directors of Surgery. The results revealed that 37 per cent of programs surveyed have residents other than general surgery housestaff providing cross-coverage and writing orders for surgical ICU patients.

Blunt handlebar injury of the common femoral artery: a case report.

Bicycle handlebar-related blunt trauma to the femoral vessels with resulting arterial injury has been described previously. However, significant injury to the ileofemoral tree with underlying arterial occlusive disease in the face of handlebar-related trauma has not been reported. We present the case of an all-terrain vehicle accident with isolated injury to the common femoral artery in a patient with underlying atherosclerotic disease.

Nicotine induces mononuclear leukocyte adhesion and expression of adhesion molecules, VCAM and ICAM, in endothelial cells in vitro.

The pathology of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) has been characterized as an inflammatory response to vessel injury. The initial steps of this response involve mononuclear leukocyte (MNL) attachment and infiltration into the vessel wall. Leukocyte adhesion is potentiated by expression of cellular adhesion molecules.

A case of warfarin skin necrosis despite enoxaparin anticoagulation in a patient with protein S deficiency.

Warfarin-induced skin necrosis is a rare complication associated with the use of oral anticoagulants. Most patients develop this at the initiation of therapy, often while still receiving intravenous unfractionated heparin (UFH). Recently, low-molecular-weight heparins (LMWHs) have gained wider use, providing an option for outpatient treatment of deep-vein thrombosis.