Mary T Hawn

..Mesh infection results in significant morbidity and challenges for subsequent abdominal wall reconstruction. The risk factors that lead to mesh explantation are not well known...

..To determine the impact of the obesity epidemic on workload for general surgeons...

..Mesh repair reduces recurrence rates but lacks standardization of technique. We investigated long-term outcomes of elective IHR, focusing on technical predictors of recurrence...

..Nationwide quality improvement initiatives have focused on improving the proportion of patients who receive timely prophylactic antibiotics...

..We performed a multi-institutional study to understand how variation in surgical technique influences outcomes...

..This study aimed to assess the attributable risk and potential benefit of smoking cessation on surgical outcomes...

..The objective of this study was to evaluate whether the Surgical Care Improvement Project (SCIP) improved surgical site infection (SSI) rates using national data at the patient level for both SCIP adherence and SSI occurrence...

..Enterotomy or unplanned bowel resection (EBR) may occur during elective incisional hernia repair (IHR) and significantly affects surgical outcomes and hospital resource use...

..There are little data on whether these measures reduce VTE rates. This study proposed to examine associations between SCIP-VTE adherence and VTE rates...

..Currently, the administration of oral antibiotics is controversial and considered ineffective without mechanical bowel preparation...

..The possible negative effects of smoking on postoperative outcomes have not been well studied in cancer patients...

..We examined the effect of repair type and technique on the difficulty and complications of subsequent surgery...

..Incisional hernia repair (IHR) with mesh has been associated with decreased hernia recurrence. We analyzed variation in mesh use for IHR...

..The high failure rate of hernia repairs among same site concomitant procedures should be taken into account during the surgical decision-making process...

..These data suggest that technical outcomes for emergent repairs approach those of elective operations...

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..Error avoidance skills may not be retained as well as speed and efficiency skills...

..We compared outcomes in patients with and without multiple preoperative endoscopic interventions...

..We performed an analysis of patients undergoing major surgical operations to determine if SIP-1 was associated with surgical site infection (SSI) rates in Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) hospitals...

..CONCLUSION: Permanent mesh placement was not associated with postoperative wound infection. Smoking was the only modifiable risk factor and preoperative smoking cessation may improve surgical outcomes in VHR...

..This study demonstrates there is a greater use of general surgery services, particularly cholecystectomy and mastectomy, in obese patients than predicted by the prevalence of obesity in the population...

..Adverse postoperative events are concentrated among patients identifiable preoperatively as high risk. Preoperative risk assessment could allow for efficient interventions targeted to high-risk patients...

..Pre-ES serum bilirubin is useful in identifying patients who may not have a successful laparoscopic approach at cholecystectomy...

..We examined agreement, predictors of agreement, and relative accuracy of patient survey and MCA for assessment of outcomes of incisional hernia repair (IHR)...

..Virtual reality (VR) simulators and Web-based instructional videos are valuable supplemental training resources in surgical programs, but it is unclear how to optimally integrate them into minimally invasive surgical training...

..This study was undertaken to examine the effect of cirrhosis on elective and emergent umbilical herniorrhapy outcomes...

..This study evaluated elective surgical case cancellation (CC) rates, reasons for these cancellations, and identified areas for improvement within the Veterans Health Administration (VA) system...

..However, the construct of these reports varies widely among surgeons and is rarely formally taught and not tested formally during surgical training or board certification...

..Post-operative leaks cause significant morbidity and impair functional outcome. This study assesses the efficacy of intra-operative leak testing on post-operative leak rate...

..For patients older than 65 years of age, further evaluation prior to cholecystectomy may be necessary to exclude pancreatic cancer, especially patients with jaundice, weight loss, and steatorrhea...

..Using decision analysis, we explored the economic implications of cholecystectomy versus expectant management following ERC-S in elderly patients with CBDS...

..The goals of this article are to describe the history of hernia repair and how innovations in surgical technique, prosthetics, and technology have shaped current practice...

..Incidence rates of unplanned intubation did not change significantly after MET deployment, suggesting that other strategies are needed to prevent this rare but highly morbid and mortal event...

..05). Significant improvement was seen in QOL (P < .01). CONCLUSION: This study supports the utility of LC by showing not only a significant reduction of GI symptoms but also marked improvement in patients' general QOL...

..05). CONCLUSIONS: The IRB process for a multisite observational study is expensive in both time and money. A VA national IRB for multisite studies would significantly decrease the financial and temporal burden for observational studies...

..003 and P = .009, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: The effectiveness of inguinal herniorrhaphy should be measured by the rate of recurrence and neuralgia. Postoperative neuralgias have a deleterious effect on all patient-reported outcomes...

..When patients with drug-eluting stents (DES) present for surgery, current guidelines recommend delaying elective surgeries until 1 year of dual antiplatelet therapy has been completed...

..To evaluate perioperative mortality after tracheostomy in intensive care unit (ICU) patients undergoing routine tracheostomy over a 10-month period...

..However, the cost of such training in terms of trainee and instructor time may vary depending upon whether an independent or proctored approach is employed...

..The objective is to investigate the effect of race, insurance, socioeconomic status, and perceived health on the preference for ED use...

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..The aim of this study was to determine the success of the nonoperative management of persistent duodenal fistulae (DF) with percutaneous transhepatic duodenal diversion (PTDD)...

..Serum LA level > 2.0 mmol/L at time of diagnosis is associated with a greater than 80 per cent mortality. Surgical consultation is necessary to determine which patients need urgent surgical intervention...