Articles
Evaluation of the quality of phantom limb pain information on YouTube
Introduction Pain after amputation is an almost universal symptom in amputee patients with 95% reporting amputation-related pain.1 Of these, phantom limb pain (PLP) is the most prevalent at 80%.1 Increasing numbers of patients are undergoing amputations; an estimated prevalence rate in the UK is 26.3 per 100,000.2 PLP significantly reduces quality of life3 and has…
Read MoreBlue toe syndrome
Introduction Blue toe syndrome (BTS) is not an uncommon referral, with vascular services often being the first port of call from primary care or the emergency department setting. It is a condition which is often overlooked, misdiagnosed or falsely labelled in the wider medical setting. Nevertheless, it warrants a thorough history, examination and assessment due…
Read MoreHow do vascular surgery trainees optimise simulation-based learning? A qualitative study
Introduction Vascular surgery has significantly evolved since the turn of the 20th century with a much wider repertoire of increasingly complex procedures expected of the modern surgeon, thus leading to increasing specialisation. Traditionally, vascular surgery was a sub-speciality within general surgery but it has now evolved into its own distinct speciality. In tandem, operative exposure…
Read MoreUnderstanding variation in the management of AAA in the UK: composition and function of multidisciplinary team meetings and information resources provided to patients
Introduction There is marked national1,2 and international3 variation in abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) repair practice and, more specifically, in the proportion of patients undergoing open surgical repair (OSR), endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR) or no repair (conservative management). In 2022, the UK National Vascular Registry (NVR) reported that 59% of 2,744 patients undergoing repair of infrarenal…
Read MoreSafety and efficacy of tranexamic acid in major non-cardiac vascular surgery: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Introduction Tranexamic acid (TXA) is a synthetic lysine analogue that inhibits the conversion of plasminogen to plasmin, thereby inhibiting fibrinolysis.1 Large pragmatic randomised controlled trials (RCTs) have demonstrated that TXA is associated with a reduction in mortality in patients with major traumatic haemorrhage,2 postpartum haemorrhage3 and mild to moderate traumatic brain injury4; reduced transfusion requirements…
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