Uveitis Specialists Harnessing Disruptive Technology during the COVID-19 Pandemic and Beyond.

Spurred by the coronavirus disease pandemic and shortage of eye care providers, telemedicine is transforming the way ophthalmologists care for their patients. Video conferencing, ophthalmic imaging, hybrid visits, intraocular inflammation quantification, and portable technology are evolving areas that may allow more uveitis patients to be evaluated via telemedicine. Despite these promising disruptive technologies, there remain significant technological limitations, legal barriers, variable insurance coverage for virtual visits, and lack of clinical trials for uveitis specialists to embrace telemedicine.

Online Ratings for Vascular Interventional Proceduralists Vary by Physician Specialty.

BACKGROUND: Multiple specialties offer vascular interventional care, creating potential competition for referrals and procedures. At the same time, patient/consumer ratings have become more impactful for physicians who perform vascular procedures. We hypothesized that there are differences in online ratings based on specialty. METHODS: We used official program lists from the Association for Graduate Medical Education to identify institutions with training programs in integrated vascular surgery (VS), integrated interventional radiology (IR), and interventional cardiology (IC). Faculty providers were identified in each specialty at these institutions. A standardized search was performed to collect online ratings from Vitals.com, Healthgrades.com, and Google.com as well as from online demographics. Between specialty differences were analyzed using chi-squared and analysis of variance tests as appropriate. Multivariable linear regression was used to identify factors associated with review volume and star rating. RESULTS: A total of 1,330 providers (n = 454 VS, n = 451 IR, n = 425 IC) were identified across 47 institutions in 27 states. VS (55.5%-69.4%) and IC (63.8%-71.1%) providers were significantly more likely to have reviews than IR (28.6%-48.8%) providers across all online platforms (P < 0.001 for all websites). Across all platforms, IC providers were rated significantly higher than VS and IR providers. Multivariable regression showed that provider specialty and additional time in practice were associated with higher review volume. In addition to specialty, review volume was associated with star rating as those physicians with more reviews tended to have a higher rating. CONCLUSIONS: On average, vascular surgeons have more reviews and are more highly rated than interventional radiologists but tend to have fewer reviews and lower ratings than interventional cardiologists. VS providers may benefit from encouraging patients to file online reviews, especially in competitive markets.

Changes in IR from 2007 to 2017 in China.

In this article, the updated status of interventional radiology (IR) in China is reported and compared vs that a decade ago based on a poll carried out in 2017 in Jiangsu Province, where the economy and overall health level are among the best of the 31 provinces in China. All 98 polled centers responded, and 56 IR departments (57%) had become independent departments separate from the radiology department; 74 (76%) had inpatient wards. In 2017, there were 538 interventional radiologists performing IR procedures in Jiangsu Province, with a total of 69,277 procedures performed, with interventional oncologic procedures accounting for the largest proportion (58%).

Trends in Percutaneous Embolization Procedures by Radiologists and Other Specialists.

PURPOSE: To evaluate utilization trends in percutaneous embolization among radiologists and nonradiologist providers. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The nationwide Medicare Part B fee-for-service databases for 2005-2016 were used to evaluate percutaneous embolization codes. Six codes describing embolization procedures were reviewed. Physician providers were grouped as radiologists, vascular surgeons, cardiologists, nephrologists, other surgeons, and all others. RESULTS: The total volume of Medicare percutaneous embolization procedures increased from 20,262 in 2005 to 45,478 in 2016 (+125%). Radiologists performed 13,872 procedures in 2005 (68% of total volume) and 33,254 in 2016 (73% of total volume), a 140% increase in volume. While other specialists also increased the number of cases performed from 2005 to 2016, radiologists strongly predominated, performing 87% of arterial and 30% of venous procedures in 2016, more than any other single specialty. In 2014 and 2015, a sharp increase in venous embolization cases performed by nonradiologists preceded a sharp decrease in 2016, likely the result of complicated billing codes for venous procedures. Radiologists maintained a steady upward trend in the number of cases they performed during those years. CONCLUSIONS: The volume of percutaneous embolization procedures performed in the Medicare population increased from 2005 to 2016, reflecting a trend toward minimally invasive intervention. In 2016, radiologists performed nearly 10 times more arterial embolization procedures than the second highest specialty and more venous embolization procedures than any other single specialty.

The good, bad and the ugly of the Acute Venous Thrombosis: Thrombus Removal with Adjunctive Catheter-Directed Thrombolysis trial from the viewpoint of clinicians.

OBJECTIVE: Acute deep venous thrombosis (DVT) can be complicated by post-thrombotic syndrome, which is associated with significant morbidity and healthcare costs. The Acute Venous Thrombosis: Thrombus Removal with Adjunctive Catheter-Directed Thrombolysis (ATTRACT) was the largest and most controversial randomized controlled trial evaluating the use of pharmacomechanical catheter-directed thrombolysis (CDT) for the prevention of post-thrombotic syndrome after acute DVT. This study aimed to evaluate clinicians' opinion on the ATTRACT trial and its impact on clinical practice. METHODS: An online survey consisting of 10 core multiple choice items and a maximum of five follow-up open-ended questions was delivered to vascular surgeons, interventional radiologists, hematologists, and interventional cardiologists affiliated with 10 international societies between April 23 and July 1, 2019. Clinicians' views on the main limitations of the ATTRACT trial, its impact on patient selection for thrombolysis and the need for a new trial were evaluated. RESULTS: Out of 15,650 contacted clinicians, 451 (3%) completed the survey, with 74% vascular surgeons, 24% interventional radiologists, 2% hematologists, and 0.2% interventional cardiologists. The majority of respondents (79%) were aware of the results of the ATTRACT trial before completing the survey and routinely performed pharmacomechanical CDT (PCDT) in their centers (70%). Only 20% of clinicians considered ATTRACT to be a well-designed and well-performed trial. The inclusion of femoropopliteal DVT was reported as the main limitation of the trial by 55% of respondents. Despite half of the participating clinicians reporting no change in their clinical practice, equal number of clinicians (14%) were encouraged and discouraged from treating iliofemoral DVT. More than one-half of the respondents thought that the use of PCDT would be defensible in a court of law despite the increased risk of bleeding reported in the study. Nearly two-thirds of participating clinicians recommended performing a trial limited to iliofemoral DVT, with a follow-up period of 5 years, quality of life as the primary outcome measure, and standardization of thrombolysis protocol across the trial sites. CONCLUSIONS: ATTRACT failed to provide the long-awaited indisputable evidence on the use of PCDT. Surveyed clinicians were aware of the limitations of this trial and the need for further evidence on the subject.

Recent Trends in Clinical Setting and Provider Specialty for Endovascular Peripheral Artery Disease Interventions for the Medicare Population.

PURPOSE: To describe national trends in peripheral endovascular interventions by physician specialty, anatomic segment of disease, and clinical location of service. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Current Procedural Terminology codes were used to identify claims for peripheral vascular interventions (PVIs) in 2011-2017 Physician Supplier Procedure Summary master files, which contain 100% Part B Medicare billing. Market share was defined as enrollment-adjusted proportion of billed PVI services for each specialty. Annual volume of billed services was additionally evaluated by clinical location (inpatient, outpatient, office-based laboratories) and anatomic segment of disease (iliac, femoral/popliteal, infrapopliteal). RESULTS: Aggregate PVI claims increased 31.3%, from 227,091 in 2011 to 298,127 in 2017. Annual market share remained relatively stable for all specialties: surgery, 48.3%-49.6%; cardiology, 37.2%-35.1%; radiology, 12.8%-13.3%. Accounting for Medicare enrollment, the volume of iliac interventions decreased by 18% over the study period, while femoral/popliteal interventions increased modestly (+7.5%) and infrapopliteal interventions increased (+46%). The greatest proportional increase in infrapopliteal claims occurred among radiologists (surgeons +40.4%, cardiologists +32.1%, radiologists +106.6%). Adjusting for enrollment, claims from office-based laboratories increased substantially (+305.7%), while hospital-based billing decreased (inpatient -25.7%, outpatient -12.9%). Office-based laboratory utilization increased dramatically with all specialties (surgery +331.8%, cardiology +256.0%, radiology +475.7%). CONCLUSIONS: Utilization of PVIs continues to increase, while specialty market shares have stabilized since 2011, leaving surgeons and cardiologists as the major providers of endovascular peripheral artery disease care. The greatest relative increases are occurring in infrapopliteal interventions and office-based laboratory procedures, where radiologist involvement has increased dramatically.

Workforce Issues in Pediatric Ophthalmology.

The fate of pediatric ophthalmology may be in jeopardy. For the past 20 years, there has been declining interest in the field compared to other subspecialties in ophthalmology, as fellowship positions and jobs remain unfilled. Of those fellows who do match in pediatric ophthalmology and strabismus, many are international medical graduates who often return to their native countries to practice, further diminishing the supply of pediatric ophthalmologists in the United States. In previous surveys, resident graduates have expressed disinterest in the field, reluctance to work with children, inadequate reimbursements, and insufficient interactions with faculty as reasons not to pursue this subspecialty. Millions of people throughout the United States do not have access to pediatric ophthalmologists, highlighting the issue of unequal distribution. As more pediatric ophthalmologists retire, there is concern that there will not be enough providers to meet the demands of this subspecialty. Although many of these factors deterring residents from entering this field have been resolved, the major issue of financial reimbursements has not been adequately addressed. [J Pediatr Ophthalmol Strabismus. 2020;57(1):9-11.].

Trends in the delivery of elective general paediatric surgery.

INTRODUCTION: There has been regular dialogue regarding the importance of developing clinical networks to compensate for the steady decline in general paediatric surgery performed by adult surgeons. Despite this dialogue, there are no contemporary published data to quantify the issue. This report documents patterns in delivery of general paediatric surgery in England and shows what is being performed where and by whom. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Using the Surgical Workload Outcome Database, we compared hospital-level data between 2009 and 2017. Inclusion criteria were children under 18 years admitted to NHS hospitals in England for elective general paediatric surgery. Data were analysed with an online statistical package performing paired t-tests. RESULTS: There was no real change in the overall number of elective general paediatric surgical marker cases, but the type mix has changed. The number of marker cases performed by adult surgeons fell by 34% (4699 vs 3090 p < 0.05). The number of marker cases performed by specialist paediatric surgeons increased by 21% (8184 vs 9862 p < 0.05). This increase in workload occurred in both tertiary (21% increase) and peripheral (18% increase) centres. When analysing data by operation type it was apparent that 78% of the increased workload was attributable to an increase in orchidopexy rate. CONCLUSION: Best practice is to treat children close to home by staff with the right skills. This study shows significant shifts in the general paediatric surgical workload. It is important to monitor these trends for successful succession planning as well as configuration of services.

Status of Cardiac Surgical Intensive Care Medicine in Germany in 2018: A Report on Behalf of the German Society for Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery.

BACKGROUND: This report summarizes the results of a voluntary survey designed to assess the current situation of cardiac surgical intensive care medicine in Germany in 2018. METHODS: A standardized questionnaire concerning detailed information about structural characteristics of cardiac surgical intensive care units (ICUs) was sent to all German departments performing cardiac surgery. RESULTS: Response rate was 93% (n = 75/81). Compared with previous surveys since 1998, the median number of intensive care beds for patients after cardiac surgery increased from 15 in 2013 to 16 in 2018. The proportion of cardiac surgical ICUs decreased to 51% with a simultaneous increase of interdisciplinary ICUs. The proportion of cardiac surgeons acting as director of an ICU increased to 43%. The physicians' teams were mostly interdisciplinary (57%). More than half of the directors were board-certified intensivists (62%) with a peak of 100% in ICUs run by cardiac surgeons. Human resources development in the ICU showed similar trends with an increase of physicians and nurses. More than half of all ICUs (61%) and the vast majority of cardiac surgical ICUs (82%) offer an accredited training program for intensive care medicine. CONCLUSION: The results of this survey corroborate once again that intensive care medicine represents a substantial and important part of cardiac surgery. However, efforts are necessary to keep this attitude alive for the future.

Managing Peripheral Artery Disease in Diabetic Patients: A Questionnaire Survey from Vascular Centers of the Mediterranean Federation for the Advancing of Vascular Surgery (MeFAVS).

BACKGROUND: The Mediterranean Federation for the Advancing of Vascular Surgery (MeFAVS) was founded on October 1, 2018, to enhance cooperation among vascular professionals within Mediterranean countries. Due to its prominent social and economic impact on national health systems, diabetic arteriopathy has been selected as the very first topic to be investigated by the federation. METHODS: MeFAVS members were asked to reply to a questionnaire on the management of diabetic ischemic foot. Results were collected and analyzed statistically. The questionnaire consisted of 15 multiple choice answers regarding diabetic foot (DF) diagnosis and treatment. The questionnaire was submitted to 21 centers on April 20, 2019. RESULTS: Response rate was 62%. The survey revealed that vascular surgeons, diabetologists, and wound care nurses made-up the core of the diabetic teams present in 76.9%, 69.3%, and 92.3% of the centers, respectively. Diabetic teams were most often led by vascular surgeons (53.8%) and diabetologists (42.2%), but only in 7.9% of cases by nurses. Duplex ultrasonography and computed tomographic angiography were the most commonly available tools used to assess diabetic peripheral arterial disease (PAD). Surgical wound care was undertaken by vascular surgeons in the majority of cases, and only in 46.2% of the cases to orthopedic or plastic surgeons, while nonsurgical wound care was handled by specialized nurses (76.6%) and diabetologists (53.8%). First-line revascularization was preferred over conservative treatment (61.5% vs 53.8%) and endovascular strategy (45.3%) over open (33.7%) or hybrid (21.0%) surgery. Vascular surgeons and interventional radiologists were found to be the most common performers of endovascular revascularization (92.3% and 53.8%, respectively). Amputations had an overall rate of 16.6% (range 4-30%) and a mean reintervention rate of 22.5%, and were usually performed by vascular surgeons for both minor and major interventions (84.6%) followed by orthopedic surgeons (15.4% minor and 30.8% major). The availability of a DF clinic (84.6%) and endovascular (53.8%) and open surgery (46.2%) capabilities were considered fundamental to reduce amputation rates. CONCLUSIONS: Especially since the introduction and spreading of new endovascular techniques for the treatment of DF, it is a common consensus amongst vascular surgeons that a standardized approach to the discipline is necessary in order to improve outcomes such as amputation-free survival and mortality and it is with this perspective and purpose that transnational cooperation amongst vascular professionals and residents in training are aiming for greater proficiency in endovascular and open surgery.

Global cardiac surgery: Access to cardiac surgical care around the world.

OBJECTIVE: Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death worldwide, responsible for 17.5 million deaths every year, of which 80% occur in low- and middle-income countries. Some 75% of the world does not have access to cardiac surgery when needed because of lack of infrastructure, human resources, and financial coverage. This study aims to map access to cardiac surgery around the world. METHODS: A scoping review was done on access to cardiac surgery for an undifferentiated population. Workforce data were collected from the Cardiothoracic Surgery Network database and used to calculate numbers and ratios of adult and pediatric cardiac surgeons to population. RESULTS: A total of 12,180 adult cardiac surgeons and 3858 pediatric cardiac surgeons were listed in the Cardiothoracic Surgery Network in August 2017, equaling 1.64 (0-181.82) adult cardiac surgeons and 0.52 (0-25.97) pediatric cardiac surgeons per million population globally. Large disparities existed between regions, ranging from 0.12 adult cardiac surgeons and 0.08 pediatric cardiac surgeons per million population (sub-Saharan Africa) to 11.12 adult cardiac surgeons and 2.08 pediatric cardiac surgeons (North America). Low-income countries possessed 0.04 adult cardiac surgeons and 0.03 pediatric cardiac surgeons per million population, compared with 7.15 adult cardiac surgeons and 1.67 pediatric cardiac surgeons in high-income countries. CONCLUSIONS: This study maps the current global state of access to cardiac surgery. Disparities exist between and within world regions, with a positive correlation between a nation's economic status and access to cardiac surgery. Low early mortality rates in low-resource settings suggest the possibility of high-quality cardiac surgery in low- and middle-income countries. There is the need to increase human and physical resources, while focusing on safety, quality, and efficiency to improve access to cardiac surgery for the 4.5 billion people without.

Reporting Practices and Resource Utilization in the Era of Intraductal Carcinoma of the Prostate: A Survey of Genitourinary Subspecialists.

Intraductal carcinoma of the prostate (IDC-P) has been recently recognized by the World Health Organization classification of prostatic tumors as a distinct entity, most often occurring concurrently with invasive prostatic adenocarcinoma (PCa). Whether documented admixed with PCa or in its rare pure form, numerous studies associate this entity with clinical aggressiveness. Despite increasing clinical experience and requirement of IDC-P documentation in protocols for synoptic reporting, the specifics of its potential contribution to assessment of grade group (GG) and cancer quantitation of PCa in both needle biopsies (NBx) and radical prostatectomy (RP) specimens remain unclear. Moreover, there are no standard guidelines for incorporating basal cell marker immunohistochemistry (IHC) in the diagnosis of IDC-P, either alone or as part of a cocktail with AMACR/racemase. An online survey containing 26 questions regarding diagnosis, reporting practices, and IHC resource utilization, focusing on IDC-P, was undertaken by 42 genitourinary subspecialists from 9 countries. The degree of agreement or disagreement regarding approaches to individual questions was classified as significant majority (>75%), majority (51% to 75%), minority (26% to 50%) and significant minority (≤25%). IDC-P with or without invasive cancer is considered a contraindication for active surveillance by the significant majority (95%) of respondents, although a majority (66%) also agreed that the clinical significance/behavior of IDC-P on NBx or RP with PCa required further study. The majority do not upgrade PCa based on comedonecrosis seen only in the intraductal component in NBx (62%) or RP (69%) specimens. Similarly, recognizable IDC-P with GG1 PCa was not a factor in upgrading in NBx (78%) or RP (71%) specimens. The majority (60%) of respondents include readily recognizable IDC-P in assessment of linear extent of PCa at NBx. A significant majority (78%) would use IHC to confirm or exclude intraductal carcinoma if other biopsies showed no PCa, while 60% would use it to confirm IDC-P with invasive PCa in NBx if it would change the overall GG assignment. Nearly half (48%, a minority) would use IHC to confirm IDC-P for accurate Gleason pattern 4 quantitation. A majority (57%) report the percentage of IDC-P when present, in RP specimens. When obvious Gleason pattern 4 or 5 PCa is present in RP or NBx, IHC is rarely to almost never used to confirm the presence of IDC-P by the significant majority (88% and 90%, respectively). Most genitourinary pathologists consider IDC-P to be an adverse prognostic feature independent of the PCa grade, although recommendations for standardization are needed to guide reporting of IDC-P vis a vis tumor quantitation and final GG assessment. The use of IHC varies widely and is performed for a multitude of indications, although it is used most frequently in scenarios where confirmation of IDC-P would impact the GG assigned. Further study and best practices recommendations are needed to provide guidance with regards to the most appropriate indications for IHC use in scenarios regarding IDC-P.

Outcome of trauma-related emergency laparotomies, in an era of far-reaching specialization.

Background: Far reaching sub-specialization tends to become obligatory for surgeons in most Western countries. It is suggested that exposure of surgeons to emergency laparotomy after trauma is ever declining. Therefore, it can be questioned whether a generalist (i.e., general surgery) with additional differentiation such as the trauma surgeon, will still be needed and can remain sufficiently qualified. This study aimed to evaluate volume trends and outcomes of emergency laparotomies in trauma. Methods: A retrospective cohort study was performed in the University Medical Center Utrecht between January 2008 and January 2018, in which all patients who underwent an emergency laparotomy for trauma were included. Collected data were demographics, trauma-related characteristics, and number of (planned and unplanned) laparotomies with their indications. Primary outcome was in-hospital mortality; secondary outcomes were complications, length of ICU, and overall hospital stay. Results: A total of 268 index emergency laparotomies were evaluated. Total number of patients who presented with an abdominal AIS > 2 remained constant over the past 10 years, as did the percentage of patients that required an emergency laparotomy. Most were polytrauma patients with a mean ISS = 27.5 (SD ± 14.9). The most frequent indication for laparotomy was hemodynamic instability or ongoing blood loss (44%).Unplanned relaparotomies occurred in 21% of the patients, mostly due to relapse of bleeding. Other complications were anastomotic leakage (8.6%), intestinal leakage after bowel contusion (4%). In addition, an incisional hernia was found in 6.3%. Mortality rate was 16.7%, mostly due to neurologic origin (42%). Average length of stay was 16 days with an ICU stay of 5 days. Conclusion: This study shows a persistent number of patients requiring emergency laparotomy after (blunt) abdominal trauma over 10 years in a European trauma center. When performed by a dedicated trauma team, this results in acceptable mortality and complication rates in this severely injured population.

Association of Physician Specialty With Long-Term Implantable Cardioverter-Defibrillator Complication and Reoperations Rates.

Background Patients undergoing implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) implantations have high rates of long-term device-related complications and reoperations. Whether physician specialty training is associated with differences in long-term outcomes following ICD implantation is unclear. Methods and Results We linked data from the National Cardiovascular Data Registry ICD Registry with Medicare fee-for-service claims to identify physicians who performed ≥10 index ICDs from 2006 to 2009. We used data from the American Board of Medical Specialties to group the specialty of the implanting physician into mutually exclusive categories: electrophysiologists, interventional cardiologists, general cardiologists, thoracic surgeons, and other specialties. Primary outcomes were long-term device-related complications requiring reoperations or hospitalizations and reoperations for reasons other than complications. We compared the cumulative incidence rates and case-mix adjusted rates of long-term outcomes of index ICD implantations across physician specialties. Our analysis had a median follow-up of 47 months and included 107 966 index ICD implantations. Electrophysiologists had the lowest rates of incident long-term device-related complications (14.1%; interventional cardiologists, 15.3%; general cardiologists, 15.4%; thoracic surgeons, 16.4%; other specialists, 15.2%; P<0.001) and reoperations for reasons other than complications (electrophysiologists, 16.7%; interventional cardiologists, 17.0%; general cardiologists, 18.0%; thoracic surgeons, 18.4%; other specialists, 18.0%; P<0.001). Compared with patients whose ICDs were implanted by electrophysiologists, patients with implantations performed by nonelectrophysiologists were at higher risk of having long-term device-related complications (relative risk for interventional cardiologists: 1.16 [95% CI, 1.08-1.25]; general cardiologists: 1.13 [1.08-1.18]; thoracic surgeons: 1.20 [1.06-1.37]; all P<0.001, but not other specialists: 1.08 [0.99-1.17]; P=0.07). Compared to patients with implantations performed by electrophysiologists, patients with implantations performed by general cardiologists and thoracic surgeons were at higher risk of reoperation for noncomplication causes (relative risk for general cardiologists: 1.10 [1.05-1.15]; thoracic surgeons: 1.16 [1.00-1.33]; both P<0.05). Conclusions Patients with ICD implantations performed by electrophysiologists had the lowest risks of having long-term device-related complications and reoperations for noncomplication causes. Consideration of physician specialty before ICD implantation may represent an opportunity to minimize long-term adverse outcomes.

A review of United States endovenous ablation practice trends from the Medicare Data Utilization and Payment Database.

OBJECTIVE: The growth of endovenous ablation in the United States over the last few years has raised concerns of overuse by many vascular societies and payers. Reasons for such growth are unclear (ie, increased awareness, less invasive procedure, or inappropriate overuse). The Medicare Provider Utilization and Payment database was analyzed to define metrics of current practice trends in Medicare patients by providers. METHODS: The Medicare Provider Utilization and Payment database was queried for endothermal ablation Current Procedural Terminology codes (36475, 36476, 36478, and 36479) from 2012 through 2015. These results were imported into a relational database program. Queries were designed to ascertain the practice trends of all providers, inclusive of all specialties, and the data were exported to a spreadsheet program for analysis. Analysis for ablations per patient was calculated by assessing the number of beneficiaries who underwent at least one ablation by a provider in relation to the total number of ablations performed by that provider. RESULTS: Most saphenous vein ablations were done by vascular surgeons (29%), cardiologists (21%), or general surgeons (14%). The remaining one-third was performed by 33 other provider specialties ranging from nuclear medicine specialists to ophthalmologists. Regional variation was significant with 51% of ablations being performed in the south (Florida, 15.7% and Texas, 11.4%). The Western region had the greatest percentage growth of 62% with the addition of 14,788 cases added between 2012 and 2015. Ablations per patient averaged 1.8 in the aggregate dataset. Over the 4-year period, there was a steady increase seen in the number of patients undergoing ablation, number of ablations performed, number of providers performing ablation, average amount of ablations being performed as well as the number and proportion of providers performing more than ablations per patient. The number of ablations per patient was higher than average in specialties without any formal vascular training. CONCLUSIONS: Endovenous ablation is performed by a wide variety of subspecialists with different levels of formal training for the management of chronic venous disease. This data analysis can help to establish better guidelines and governance over the use of endovenous ablation, but care should be taken to realize this is only an average and many patients will require more than two ablations for appropriate care. As our health care system shifts from a fee-for-service to a value-based system, and taxpayer-funded resources in Medicare patients become less available, it is important that practice trends be scrutinized using data-driven initiatives so that the appropriate physician treats the appropriate patient for the appropriate reasons.