World journal of surgery
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World journal of surgery · Dec 2000
Creation, evaluation, and continuing assurance of excellence of the certified surgical specialist.
A position paper on the subject of certified surgical specialists was published in 1966 under the direction of Professor Charles Wells of Liverpool, England. President John Terblanche of the International Federation of Surgical Colleges brought together leaders in surgical education from four nations (Australia, Japan, South Africa, United States) to update current "state-of-the art" views. ⋯ After careful review of the four presentations, it was clear that surgeons all over the world have made great improvements in the many facets of surgical education. Yet the advances remain spotty, with gaps noted when viewed from an international perspective.
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World journal of surgery · Nov 2000
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical TrialSurgery for Graves' disease: total versus subtotal thyroidectomy-results of a prospective randomized trial.
The effect of surgery on Graves' orbitopathy (GO) is still controversial. Retrospective analyses of many authors (including our own group) demonstrated GO improvement after subtotal thyroid resection in up to 70% of operated patients, so the question arose whether total thyroidectomy could add anything to this pronounced positive effect on GO. We therefore performed a prospective randomized trial on 150 patients with Graves' disease (125 women, 25 men; mean thyroid volume 80.5 ml) comparing three surgical procedures (bilateral subtotal thyroid resection-total remnant < 4 ml; unilateral hemithyroidectomy with contralateral subtotal thyroid resection-remnant < 4 ml; total thyroidectomy) and their effect on postoperative GO changes, postoperative thyroid-stimulating hormone receptor (TSH-R) antibody titers, and postoperative complication rates. ⋯ TSH-R antibody titers showed no differences for the three surgical groups. Postoperative recurrent hyperthyroidism occurred in two patients with subtotal resections, and early postoperative hypoparathyroidism was more frequently detected in patients with total thyroidectomy than in those with subtotal thyroid resection (28% vs. 12%; p < 0.002). In respect to possible postoperative hypoparathyroidism and a lack of difference in postoperative GO changes, we do not advocate total thyroidectomy for patients with Graves' disease and Graves' orbitopathy but prefer radical subtotal thyroid resection with a remnant of less than 4 ml.
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World journal of surgery · Nov 2000
Multicenter StudyMultivariate analysis of risk factors for postoperative complications in benign goiter surgery: prospective multicenter study in Germany.
Risk factors for postoperative complications of benign goiter surgery have not been investigated systematically. To this end, a prospective multicenter study (January 1 through December 31, 1998) was conducted involving 7266 patients with surgery for benign goiter from 45 East German hospitals. High-volume providers (>150 operations per year) performed 69% (5042/7266), intermediate-volume providers 27% (50-150), and low-volume providers 4% (258/7266) of operations. ⋯ Unlike parathyroid gland identification during hypoparathyroidism, RLN identification (RR 1.6) significantly (p = 0.01) reduced permanent RLN palsy rates. The multivariate analyses clearly confirmed the pivotal role of routine RLN identification, independent of the extent of the thyroid resection. These findings might help hospitals with lower operative volumes to identify patients at increased risk whom they might consider for specialist care.
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World journal of surgery · Sep 2000
Review Historical ArticleDébridement of gunshot wounds: semantics and surgery.
Débridement is a well established modality for management of gunshot wounds. The word "débridement" is originally French. It was used for the first time during the eighteenth century in the surgical context and meant "wound incision." For French surgeons, it has retained to this day its original meaning. ⋯ Minimal tissue excision is sufficient and safe in many cases provided careful monitoring of the wound is instituted. Wound incision alone to relieve tension and allow drainage is possible in certain cases. The tug-of-war between excision and incision is outlined herein with reference to the semantic tribulations of the word "débridement" and the implications for patient care.