Does resident participation in spine surgery make a difference?
A new study published in Spine examines how residents participating in single-level anterior cervical discectomy and fusion affect patient outcomes.
The researchers examined the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program database retrospectively and included patients who underwent ACDF from 2006 to 2013. There were 3,265 patients included in the study overall with 1,003 pairs of well-matched non-resident and resident pairs.
The researchers found:
1. Resident involvement wasn't associated with increased risks for complications, according to a multivariate analysis.
2. The overall complications, medical complications and surgical complications weren't affected by resident participation. Mortality and cardiac arrest were similar between both groups.
3. The resident participation in cases didn't have a significant impact on deep venous thrombosis or total length of stay at the hospital.
4. The resident participation was associated with longer operative times, which means the patients were under anesthesia longer and there were more resources used in the operating room overall.
5. Researchers suggested surgeons develop strategies to improve residents' technical proficiency before they enter the operating room to enhance patient safety.