A new study published in Spine examines whether the surgical first assistant's level of training matters in scoliosis outcomes.
The single-center retrospective study includes 200 patients that either had junior orthopedic residents or orthopedic fellows assisting. The researchers found adolescent idiopathic scoliosis patients had similar operating times, estimated blood loss, complications, length of stay and reoperation rates among both groups.
However, among patients with neuromuscular scoliosis, the fellow group had shorter operating times and greater percent correction at the initial and two-year follow-up.
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