{"title":"What is a tibial pilon fracture and how should they be acutely managed? A survey of consultant British Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society members and non-members.","authors":"D S Hill, J R Davis","doi":"10.1308/rcsann.2023.0049","DOIUrl":"10.1308/rcsann.2023.0049","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>Controversy exists around which distal tibial fractures are pilon fractures. We evaluated views to define a pilon fracture and support the development of standards of care.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Views regarding the characteristics of a pilon fracture and acute soft tissue management were determined through a questionnaire. This was trialled, approved by the British Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society and distributed to its members. This was also distributed nationally as part of the ENFORCE study.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>In total, 282 consultants from 27 units responded, of whom 24% (69/282) were foot and ankle specialists. Some 58% (163/282) agreed that a pilon fracture is primarily a soft tissue injury, 81% (228/282) that pilon fractures occur though high-energy transfer, 81% (228/282) that pilon fractures are sustained through an axial compression mechanism and 93% (265/282) that they are a potentially limb-threatening injury. Overall, 83% (234/282) agreed that in a length-unstable pilon fracture it is not possible to maintain the talus near anatomically under the tibial plafond without rigid fixation to control length - with 87% (246/282) agreeing that the acute first-line management should be a spanning external fixator. Opinions were that the time frame between diagnosis and intervention should be: less than 6h (63%; 154/246), 6-12h (31%; 77/246) and 12-24h (6%; 15/246).</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Consensus supports defining a pilon fracture as a potentially limb-threatening high-energy axial compression injury, and a spanning external fixator as the first-line management of a length-unstable injury less than 12h from diagnosis.</p>","PeriodicalId":8088,"journal":{"name":"Annals of the Royal College of Surgeons of England","volume":" ","pages":"411-416"},"PeriodicalIF":1.1,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12208732/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"71420124","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
O Edginton, M George, C Bandara, M Johnston, A Rao, M Howse, D Ridgway, P Goldsmith
{"title":"Renal transplantation in older adults: retrospective cohort study to examine the impact of the new 2019 kidney offering scheme on older adult transplant recipients.","authors":"O Edginton, M George, C Bandara, M Johnston, A Rao, M Howse, D Ridgway, P Goldsmith","doi":"10.1308/rcsann.2024.0062","DOIUrl":"10.1308/rcsann.2024.0062","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>In 2019, a new kidney offering scheme was launched in the United Kingdom, aiming to better match estimated patient survival and graft life expectancy. The scheme's impact on older patients undergoing kidney transplantation (KT) is unknown. This study aims to compare the outcomes of older adult KT recipients before and after introduction of the 2019 scheme.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A retrospective observational cohort study of older adults who underwent KT was undertaken. Group 1 were transplanted between 1 September 2017 and 31 August 2019 (2006 allocation scheme) and group 2 between 1 September 2019 and 31 August 2021 (2019 offering scheme). An older adult was any person ≥60 years old at the time of KT. Univariable binary logistic regression analysis was performed to determine odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI).</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>There were 107 older adult deceased donor KT recipients, 62 from group 1 and 45 from group 2. Median age at transplantation was 68 (interquartile range [IQR] 62-71) and 67 (IQR 64-73) years, respectively. Univariable analysis showed that re-intervention (OR 6.486, 95% CI 1.306-32.216, <i>p</i> = 0.022) and critical care admission (OR 5.619, 95% CI 1.448-21.812, <i>p</i> = 0.013) were significantly more likely in group 2. Group 2 recipients were significantly more likely to have a level 4 human leucocyte antigen (HLA) mismatch (OR 4.667, 95% CI 1.640-13.275, <i>p</i> = 0.004) and to have undergone previous KT (OR 4.691, 95% CI 1.385-15.893, <i>p</i> = 0.013).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>The introduction of the 2019 offering scheme was associated with re-intervention and critical care admission for older KT recipients. We also observed less-favourable HLA matches but more KT in difficult-to-match groups.</p>","PeriodicalId":8088,"journal":{"name":"Annals of the Royal College of Surgeons of England","volume":" ","pages":"403-410"},"PeriodicalIF":1.1,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12208742/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142387484","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Dislocation of the hip after normal sonographic screening examination: a case report and literature review.","authors":"A Rehm, R Clegg, P Linardatou Novak, R Shehata","doi":"10.1308/rcsann.2023.0107","DOIUrl":"10.1308/rcsann.2023.0107","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":8088,"journal":{"name":"Annals of the Royal College of Surgeons of England","volume":" ","pages":"451-452"},"PeriodicalIF":1.1,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12208731/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140038611","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Assessing the readability and quality of online written information on epistaxis.","authors":"Z R Almansoor, R Abrar, H Raja","doi":"10.1308/rcsann.2024.0053","DOIUrl":"10.1308/rcsann.2024.0053","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>The objective of this study was to assess the readability and quality of online written information on epistaxis.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>The terms 'epistaxis' and 'nosebleed' were entered into Google. The first six webpages generated for each search term were screened. Readability was assessed using the Flesch-Kincaid Reading Ease Score (FRES), Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (FKGL), Simple Measure of Gobbledygook (SMOG) Index and Gunning Fog Index (GFOG). Quality was assessed using the DISCERN instrument. Spearman's correlation between quality and readability was calculated.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>A total of 37 websites met the inclusion criteria. The mean and 95% confidence intervals for FRES, FKGL, SMOG and GFOG were 58.9 (55.3-62.5), 9.65 (8.74-10.6), 9.18 (8.57-9.8) and 12.5 (11.5-13.5), respectively. The DISCERN score was 34.3 (32.0-36.5). Weak negative correlation was noted between DISCERN and FRES (<i>r<sub>s</sub></i> = -0.15, <i>p</i> = 0.36).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Online information on epistaxis is generally of poor quality and low readability.</p>","PeriodicalId":8088,"journal":{"name":"Annals of the Royal College of Surgeons of England","volume":" ","pages":"429-433"},"PeriodicalIF":1.1,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12208736/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142456670","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Performance of large language models at the MRCS Part A: a tool for medical education?","authors":"A Yiu, K Lam","doi":"10.1308/rcsann.2023.0085","DOIUrl":"10.1308/rcsann.2023.0085","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>The Intercollegiate Membership of the Royal College of Surgeons examination (MRCS) Part A assesses generic surgical sciences and applied knowledge using 300 multiple-choice Single Best Answer items. Large Language Models (LLMs) are trained on vast amounts of text to generate natural language outputs, and applications in healthcare and medical education are rising.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Two LLMs, ChatGPT (OpenAI) and Bard (Google AI), were tested using 300 questions from a popular MRCS Part A question bank without/with need for justification (NJ/J). LLM outputs were scored according to accuracy, concordance and insight.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>ChatGPT achieved 85.7%/84.3% accuracy for NJ/J encodings. Bard achieved 64%/64.3% accuracy for NJ/J encodings. ChatGPT and Bard displayed high levels of concordance for NJ (95.3%; 81.7%) and J (93.7%; 79.7%) encodings, respectively. ChatGPT and Bard provided an insightful statement in >98% and >86% outputs, respectively.</p><p><strong>Discussion: </strong>This study demonstrates that ChatGPT achieves passing-level accuracy at MRCS Part A, and both LLMs achieve high concordance and provide insightful responses to test questions. Instances of clinically inappropriate or inaccurate decision-making, incomplete appreciation of nuanced clinical scenarios and utilisation of out-of-date guidance was, however, noted. LLMs are accessible and time-efficient tools, access vast clinical knowledge, and may reduce the emphasis on factual recall in medical education and assessment.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>ChatGPT achieves passing-level accuracy for MRCS Part A with concordant and insightful outputs. Future applications of LLMs in healthcare must be cautious of hallucinations and incorrect reasoning but have the potential to develop AI-supported clinicians.</p>","PeriodicalId":8088,"journal":{"name":"Annals of the Royal College of Surgeons of England","volume":" ","pages":"434-440"},"PeriodicalIF":1.1,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12208737/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"138457470","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Vascular access surgery training in the United Kingdom is currently perceived (by trainees) to be inadequate.","authors":"T Richards, I Ahmed, R Harvey, K El Sakka","doi":"10.1308/rcsann.2023.0110","DOIUrl":"10.1308/rcsann.2023.0110","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>Vascular access surgery (VAS) involves the creation and maintenance of arteriovenous access to facilitate haemodialysis. The prevalence of haemodialysis is rising despite increases in kidney transplants on a yearly basis. There is currently only one access surgery fellowship accredited by the Royal College of Surgeons of England. We aimed to establish the experience and perceived competence in access surgery of senior vascular surgery trainees.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A short questionnaire (SurveyMonkey) was used to survey all senior (ST6-ST8) vascular surgery trainees in Health Education England (HEE) vascular surgery training programmes. The short survey asked trainees to report their: (1) training grade; (2) training deanery; (3) experience of access surgery; and (4) whether senior trainees thought they would be able to independently undertake primary access surgery post-completion of training (post Certificate of Completion of Training). The survey was circulated via HEE deaneries and the vascular surgery trainees' society: the Rouleaux Club.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Twenty-eight senior (ST6-ST8) vascular surgery trainees responded to the survey: 29.6% were ST6 level, 33.3% were ST7 and 37.1% were ST8. Deanery respondence was evenly spread, although London was overrepresented (37.1%). In total, 28.6% had been involved in fewer than 10 cases, 35.7% in 10-25 cases, and 35.7% in more than 25 cases. Almost 54% of senior vascular surgery trainees believed they would not be able to undertake independent access surgery once they had completed training.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Competence in access surgery is an increasing requirement of a consultant vascular surgeon. More formalised training is required to adequately train the next generation of vascular surgeons.</p>","PeriodicalId":8088,"journal":{"name":"Annals of the Royal College of Surgeons of England","volume":" ","pages":"441-443"},"PeriodicalIF":1.1,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12208733/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140334482","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Tje Hubbard, X Liu, M Sulieman, P Drew, I Brown, R English, I Abbas, K Potiszil, M Barta, N Jackson, P King
{"title":"Evaluating a novel patient pathway to manage symptomatic breast referrals (the blue flag clinic): a longitudinal observational study.","authors":"Tje Hubbard, X Liu, M Sulieman, P Drew, I Brown, R English, I Abbas, K Potiszil, M Barta, N Jackson, P King","doi":"10.1308/rcsann.2023.0028","DOIUrl":"10.1308/rcsann.2023.0028","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>A novel referral pathway for exhibited breast symptom (EBS) referrals to manage increasing referrals of urgent suspected cancer (USC) was implemented in our trust. We report on the safety and effect on compliance with the 2-week-wait rule (2WW).</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A single-centre longitudinal observational study included all patients referred to a UK breast unit during 13 May 2019 to 27 March 2020 (period 1) and 8 February 2021 to 31 January 2022 (period 2). USC referrals were assessed in a one-stop clinic (red flag clinic [RFC]); EBS referrals were assessed in a new clinic in which clinical evaluation was performed and imaging occurred subsequently (blue flag clinic [BFC]). Patients were followed up to determine the symptomatic interval cancer rate.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>There were 9,695 referrals; 1,655 referrals (17%) were assessed in the BFC after 63 exclusions. Some 95.9% of patients had a benign clinical examination (P1/P2), 80.1% had imaging (mammogram or ultrasound) and 4% had a tissue biopsy. In total, 16/1,655 (0.97%) BFC patients and 510/7,977 (8.2%) RFC patients were diagnosed with breast cancer (breast cancer detection rate). Some 1,631 patients (with 1,639 referrals) were discharged and followed up for a median of 17 months (interquartile range 12-32) with one subsequent cancer diagnosis (symptomatic interval cancer rate, 0.06%). Implementation of the BFC pathway increased 3-month average trust performance of USC referrals with 2WW standard from 8.5% to 98.7% (period 1) and from 30% to 66% (period 2).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>The BFC pathway for EBS patients is safe and implementation led to improvement against the 2WW target for USC referrals, ensuring resources are prioritised to patients with the highest likelihood of breast cancer.</p>","PeriodicalId":8088,"journal":{"name":"Annals of the Royal College of Surgeons of England","volume":" ","pages":"397-402"},"PeriodicalIF":1.1,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12208734/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10242630","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"A modified guidewire reinsertion technique following inadvertent wire removal during dynamic hip screw fixation surgery.","authors":"M Wanderi, H Tanner, H A Al Hussainy","doi":"10.1308/rcsann.2024.0043","DOIUrl":"10.1308/rcsann.2024.0043","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":8088,"journal":{"name":"Annals of the Royal College of Surgeons of England","volume":" ","pages":"444-445"},"PeriodicalIF":1.1,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12208735/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143771121","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
E Ojelade, J Koris, H Begum, M Van-Hove, Twr Briggs, W K Gray
{"title":"Carbon savings associated with changing surgical trends in total knee arthroplasty in England: a retrospective observational study using administrative data.","authors":"E Ojelade, J Koris, H Begum, M Van-Hove, Twr Briggs, W K Gray","doi":"10.1308/rcsann.2024.0035","DOIUrl":"10.1308/rcsann.2024.0035","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Best practice pathways for common surgical procedures, including total knee arthroplasty (TKA), have the potential to improve patient outcomes and reduce carbon emissions. We aimed to estimate the reduction in carbon emissions due to changing trends in the care of patients undergoing TKA in England.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>This was a retrospective analysis of Hospital Episode Statistics data from 1 April 2013 to 31 March 2022 on adults undergoing elective primary TKA in England. The carbon footprint for each patient was calculated using carbon factors for multiple steps in the pathway, including ipsilateral knee arthroscopies in the year preceding the TKA, outpatient attendances, the index TKA, revisions of the TKA performed within 180 days of the index procedure, length of hospital stay and emergency readmissions.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>A total of 648,861 TKA operations were identified. Over the study period, the median length of stay reduced from four to three days, the proportion of patients undergoing ipsilateral knee arthroscopies performed within a year before TKA surgery fell from 5.9% to 0.5% and the number of early revisions and emergency readmissions also fell. The per-patient carbon footprint reduced from 378.8kgCO<sub>2</sub>e to 295.2kgCO<sub>2</sub>e over this time. If all the study patients had the same carbon footprint as the average patient in 2021/2022, 32.4kilotons CO<sub>2</sub>e would have been saved, enough to power 29,509 UK homes for one year.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Practices that were introduced primarily to improve patient outcomes can contribute to a reduction in the carbon footprint.</p>","PeriodicalId":8088,"journal":{"name":"Annals of the Royal College of Surgeons of England","volume":" ","pages":"417-422"},"PeriodicalIF":1.1,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12208730/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142118846","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The use of indocyanine green for colorectal anastomoses: a systematic review and meta-analysis.","authors":"L Borg, M Portelli, L Testa, P Andrejevic","doi":"10.1308/rcsann.2024.0002","DOIUrl":"10.1308/rcsann.2024.0002","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>Anastomotic leak is a relatively common and debilitating complication. Colorectal leak rates vary widely in the literature, ranging from 1% to 20%. In modern surgical practice, there is much emphasis on the use of indocyanine green (ICG). This is a fluorescent dye administered intravenously to locate and predict an adequate line of anastomosis. We sought to analyse the current literature and supporting evidence behind the use of ICG in the context of elective colorectal surgery.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A literature search was conducted for papers published between January 1991 and December 2022 concerning the use of ICG in colorectal surgery. Data on anastomotic leak, overall complication rate, operative time and involvement of artificial intelligence (AI) were compared.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>A total of 24 studies were selected, including 3 randomised controlled trials. There was an anastomotic leak rate of 4.3% in cases with ICG administration compared with 9.5% in the control group (<i>p</i><0.00001). Seven studies mentioned overall complication rates. These were lower in the ICG cohort than in the control group (15.5% vs 24.5%). There was no significant correlation between ICG use and operative time (<i>p</i>=0.78). Five studies looked at AI, with results suggesting that use of AI leads to much better accuracy in ICG metric analysis. However, the current literature is still inconclusive.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>While there is strong evidence behind ICG use in the existing literature, more randomised controlled trials are required for better recommendations. AI in ICG metric interpretation has proved to be difficult owing to interpatient variability. Nevertheless, new data suggest better understanding and standardisation.</p>","PeriodicalId":8088,"journal":{"name":"Annals of the Royal College of Surgeons of England","volume":" ","pages":"390-396"},"PeriodicalIF":1.1,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12208740/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142307006","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}