Regional frequency variation of revascularization procedures for carotid stenosis in Germany: Secondary data analysis of DRG data from 2012 to 2014.

BACKGROUND: For Germany, regional variation of procedure rates of carotid endarterectomy (CEA) and carotid artery stenting (CAS) performed for carotid stenosis have so far not been analyzed at a national level. The aim of this study was to assess small area estimates of procedure rates among German regions, and to identify regional characteristics, which are associated with the regional frequency of procedures. METHODS: German diagnosis-related groups (DRG) statistics (2012-2014) were analyzed. Inclusion and exclusion criteria for procedural codes were set according to German quality assurance measures in combination with the diagnosis of carotid stenosis (I65.2). Rates of CEA and CAS were indirectly standardized for sex and age. RESULTS: In total, 88,182 procedures were performed (73,042 CEA; 15,367 CAS). The overall procedure rate varied between 13.2 per 100,000 (Augsburg) and 89.2 per 100,000 (Wilhelmshaven). Spatial analysis revealed that regional distribution was significantly clustered. CONCLUSION: The rates of CEA, and especially of CAS showed high regional variation. The spatial distribution was significantly clustered. In addition to the regional prevalence of diabetes mellitus, smoking and obesity, socioeconomic factors, such as income and debts were correlated with the overall frequency of CEA and CAS. No significant association was found between indicators of health infrastructure (e. g. density of hospital beds, vascular surgeons and angiologists) and the overall procedure rate.

[Operative treatment of diabetics with vascular complications : Secondary data analysis of diagnosis-related groups statistics from 2005 to 2014 in Germany]. / Operative Versorgung von Diabetikern mit vaskulären Komplikationen : Sekundärdatenanalyse der DRG-Statistik von 2005 bis 2014 in Deutschland.

BACKGROUND: In Germany approximately 40,000 amputations per year are performed on patients with diabetes mellitus, often with accompanying vascular complications. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to present the various degrees of severity of the vascular complications and the temporal changes of the treatment options in diabetics with vascular complications in Germany. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The microdata of the diagnosis-related groups (DRG) statistics of the Federal Statistical Office were analyzed over the period from 2005 to 2014. All cases were included in which the main or secondary diagnosis of diabetes mellitus with concurrent vascular complications (diabetic angiopathy and peripheral arterial disease) was encrypted. RESULTS: The median age of the 1,811,422 cases was 73 years and 62% were male. While the total number of amputations remained stable over time, there was a 41% reduction in knee-preserving and a 31% reduction in non-knee preserving major amputations with an 18% increase in minor amputations. Revascularization increased by 33% from 36 procedures in 2005 to 48 procedures per 100,000 inhabitants. The increase in revascularization was evident in the area of endovascular therapy alone where there was an increase of 78%. CONCLUSION: Due to the significant increase in endovascular revascularization measures, there was a significant increase in the proportion of diabetes patients with vascular pathologies in whom revascularization was carried out. As a result, improved limb preservation was achieved despite equally high amputation rates due to increasing minor amputation rates.

[Assessment of generic and disease-specific health-related quality of life instruments in peripheral arterial disease]. / Die Erfassung der allgemeinen und gesundheitsbezogenen Lebensqualität bei Patienten mit peripherer arterieller Verschlusskrankheit--eine Ubersicht.

As chronic diseases are continuously increasing in our aging society, the description and improvement of quality of medical care needs critical examination of the multidimensional subject of "quality of life". Health-related quality of life is currently used as an outcome-criterion in modern medicine. As there is no generally accepted definition of quality of life, various components of the state of health and the patient's behaviour are recorded by questionnaires. The level of subjective well- being is determined by several dimensions such as physical constitution of the patient, state of mind, functional competency in everyday life and the form of interpersonal relationships. Based on these principles various instruments for measuring quality of life are developed. The assessment of the subjective quality of life reflects the increased acceptance of the patient's view. In addition to the common generic instruments such as SF-36, FLZ(M), MLDL, EQ-5D, WHOQOL-100, NHP, SIP, also disease-specific instruments e.g. for peripheral arterial disease are currently used (PAVK-86, CLAU-S, VASCUQOL, SIP(IC), and WIQ). At the moment SF-36 is the best established questionnaire as generic QOL instrument. FLZ(M) takes the individual weighting of items into account, by correlating the importance and the contentment for life. For evaluating the effectivity of medical outcome and the success of therapeutic treatment for patients with vascular disease, the VASCUQOL instrument seems to be the best choice. Simultaneous application of a generic instrument and disease-specific questionnaires displays as well the subjective quality of health as the individual impairment of the patient in a good way. As a consequence using both instruments is superior to the exclusive use of a generic questionnaire.

[Current status of vascular surgery : in vascular medicine and general surgery]. / Status quo der Gefässchirurgie : Wo steht diese innerhalb der Gefässmedizin und innerhalb Chirurgie?

BACKGROUND: The proportion of arterial and venous diseases is increasing due to shifts in population. Therapy is based on conventional vascular surgery and conservative endovascular methods. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Based on data from the Federal German Statistics Office and the Federal Chamber of Physicians, information was gathered on primary vascular diseases, active special vascular groups, surgical qualifications, and surgical clinics. Additionally, the status of vascular surgery at university clinics and non-university clinics with more than 900 beds was assessed. RESULTS: In 2004, 413,763 patients with primary vascular disease were treated in 1,846 German general hospitals. More than 70% of these patients were handled in vascular surgical or general surgical clinics, and operations were performed in 50% of cases. There exist independent vascular surgical departments in 213 hospitals. Thirty-three university clinics at 38 locations showed a total of six independent vascular surgery clinics (16%) and seven partially independent sections (18%). Vascular surgery is done within cardiac surgical departments in ten clinics and in general surgery department in 15 clinics. In contrast, there are independent vascular surgical departments in 39% and 53% of non-university clinics with more than 900 and 600-899 beds respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Vascular surgery has been established in hospitals as an independent speciality. This development must continue in general surgical and university clinics.