Surgical mentoring: a critical skill.

Surgeons routinely share medical knowledge, surgical techniques, and medical judgment with junior colleagues in their everyday practice. Most information is transferred by chance encounters, i.e.

Shock wave therapy for acute and chronic soft tissue wounds: a feasibility study.

Background: Nonhealing wounds are a major, functionally-limiting medical problem impairing quality of life for millions of people each year. Various studies report complete wound epithelialization of 48 to 56% over 30 to 65 d with different treatment modalities including ultrasound, topical rPDGF-BB, and composite acellular matrix. This is in contrast to comparison control patients treated with standard wound care, demonstrating complete epithelialization rates of 25 to 39%.

Responding to challenges in modern combat casualty care: innovative use of advanced regional anesthesia.

Background: The war in Iraq has resulted in a high incidence of severe extremity injury requiring multiple surgical procedures and extensive rehabilitation. We describe the use of advanced regional anesthesia to meet this significant medical challenge.

Methods: From March 2003 to December 2004, 4,100 casualties have been evacuated to Walter Reed Army Medical Center (WRAMC).

The effect of changing gamma count threshold on sentinel lymph node accuracy.

Purpose: Sentinel lymph node (SLN) biopsy has been increasingly accepted in many centers as an alternative to axillary lymph node dissection in the nodal staging of breast cancer. The goal of SLN biopsy is to accurately stage the axilla while minimizing postoperative morbidity. Theoretically, the continuing search for SLNs disrupts additional lymphatics and impacts on operative time.