Abstract
The purpose of this study was to define the relationship between the surgeon's operative experience and specialty and the postoperative morbidity and mortality of carotid endarterectomy. All patients undergoing carotid endarterectomy (code ICD-9CM 38.12) in Connecticut between October 1985 and September 1991 were retrospectively identified. A total of 3997 carotid endarterectomies were performed by 226 surgeons in four specialties: general, cardiac, vascular, and neurosurgery. Individual surgeon volume ranged from fewer than one per year to 27.5 per year (mean 2.9 carotid endarterectomies per year). Outcome was measured as a combined stroke and/or death percentage. The average combined stroke and/or death rate for the entire group was 4.9%. The combined stroke and/or death percentage was influenced significantly by the surgeon's annual volume. Surgeons who performed one or fewer carotid endarterectomies (43% of total surgeons) were 2.5 times more likely (p<0.002) to have a poor postoperative outcome than those who performed 10 or more per year (9.3% of total surgeons). Overall there was a statistically significant correlation between a surgeon's annual volume and outcome, particularly for general surgeons.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
North American Symptomatic Carotid Endarterectomy Trial Collaborators. Beneficial effect of carotid endarterectomy in symptomatic patients with high-grade carotid stenosis. N Engl J Med 1991;325:445–453.
Easton JD, Sherman DG. Stroke and mortality rate in carotid endarterectomy: 228 consecutive operations. Stroke 1977;8:565–568.
Brott T, Thalinger K. The practice of carotid endarterectomy in a large metropolitan area. Stroke 1984;15:950–955.
Laffel GL, Barrett AI, Finklestein S, et al. The relationship between experience and outcome in heart transplantation. N Engl J Med 1992;327:1220–1225.
Veith FJ, Goldsmith J, Leather RP, et al. The need for quality assurance in vascular surgery. J Vasc Surg 1991;13:523–526.
Richardson JD, Main KA. Carotid endarterectomy in the elderly population: A statewide experience. J Vasc Surg 1989;9:65–73.
Friedmann P, Garb JL, Berman J, et al. Carotid endarterectomy clinical results in a community-based teaching hospital. Stroke 1988;19:1323–1327.
Slavish LG, Nicholas GG, Gee W. Review of a community hospital experience with carotid endarterectomy. Stroke 1984;15:956–959.
Kempczinski RF, Brott TG, Labutta RJ. The influence of surgical specialty and caseload on the results of carotid endarterectomy. J Vasc Surg 1986;3:911–916.
Luft HS, Bunker JP, Enthoran AC. Should operations be regionalized: The empirical relations between surgical volume and mortality. N Engl J Med 1979;301:1364–1369.
Rubin JR, Pitluk HC, King TA, et al. Carotid endarterectomy in a metropolitan community: The early results after 8,535 operations. J Vasc Surg 1988;7:256–260.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
About this article
Cite this article
Ruby, S.T., Robinson, D., Lynch, J.T. et al. Outcome analysis of carotid endarterectomy in Connecticut: The impact of volume and specialty. Annals of Vascular Surgery 10, 22–26 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02002337
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02002337