This book provides a practical guide to decision making within the realm of trauma surgery. Each chapter covers the ideal approach, rather than customary care, for the treatment of the chosen difficult decision or controversy. A broad range of topics are covered with particular attention given to resuscitation, wound management, thoracic and abdominal trauma, antimicrobial management, transplant considerations, vascular trauma, traumatic brain injury, pediatric trauma and ethics. Difficult Decisions in Trauma Surgery aims to help improve the treatment of trauma patients and is relevant to surgical trainees and practicing surgeons, and as well as medical professionals working within trauma medicine.

This text provides a comprehensive and state-of-the-art overview of the major issues specific to the surgical decision-making process. These include patient’s anatomy and pathophysiology as well as the magnitude of the injury at hand, the surgeon's own physiologic and mental status, training and experience, and many other factors such as creativity, leadership skills, and overall "biochemistry" of the environment. The text reviews theoretical as well as objective information that surgeons use to make intraoperative decisions in situations, often with very limited data; decisions that will decide between a patient's living or dying, such as in trauma surgery and other complex surgeries. How surgeons choose one technical approach over another in these situations is covered. This book fills a critical need for resource materials on these topics and includes both theoretical as well as practical presentations of many typical patients seen in operating rooms around the world. Surgical Decision Making: Beyond the Evidence Based Surgery is written by academic and clinical practicing surgeons that face intraoperative decision situations on a daily basis and therefore provides a unique and valuable resource in the field for surgeons currently in training and for those already in clinical or research practice.

This revised and expanded new edition reviews surgical decision-making in complex surgical procedures, including making difficult decisions, continuous awareness of the patient’s physiologic status, the biochemical profile, endpoint resuscitation and the surgeon's own physiologic status. Other specific surgical decisions are discussed, such as when to operate and when not to operate, re-operations and operations in specific conditions and age groups. This new edition addresses these and other elements that are important for the intraoperative and perioperative decision-making process, including basic questions that have not been answered appropriately in the literature. Many of us make decisions based on current evidence, but much of it based on “a gut feeling” or “intuition” or the “gray hair effect,” among other techniques. In this book, the anatomy of such decisions is explored from a theoretical standpoint as well as objective data that we as surgeons use to make surgical decisions. Nowhere else is the matter of how we make a decision -- often with a very limited amount of data, decisions that will decide between someone living or dying -- more prevalent than in trauma surgery and other complex surgeries, including the unplanned return to the operating room. Our collective firsthand experience as surgeons points to a combination of factors contributing to our perioperative and intraoperative decision-making process, including education, clinical know-how, mentoring, and the creativity and excellence that come with long practice and strict discipline. The second edition of Surgical Decision-Making: Evidence and Beyond provides a unique and valuable resource in the field for surgeons currently in training and for those already in clinical academic or community surgery practice.

The complexity of decision making in thoracic surgery is growing exponentially. As new technology is introduced, physicians from nonsurgical specialties offer alternative and competing therapies for what was once the exclusive province of the thoracic surgeon. In addition, there is increasing knowledge regarding the efficacy of traditional thoracic surgical therapies. How to select among these varied and complex approaches is becoming increasingly difficult. The first two editions of this book have found wide acceptance among practicing surgeons, trainees, and educators. Chapters from them are regularly cited by the Thoracic Surgery Directors Association as valuable resources for their weekly curriculum exercises. As in the first two editions, chapters adhere to a specific format (updated for the third edition). This approach provides uniformity to the presentations, making it possible to identify useful material at a glance.

Trauma surgery has increasingly become a specialized field inspired by different principles and philosophy. A good trauma surgeon is a surgeon who knows how to perform abdominal vascular, thoracic, urologic, gynecologic, and orthopaedic procedures and is able to repair multiple traumatic injuries in the best sequence possible. In this first volume, practical, up-to-date guidance is provided on the optimal critical care and ICU management of trauma patients. In addition, individual chapters focus on specific injuries in orthopaedic trauma (and especially spinal trauma) and neurotrauma, with the aim of providing a fresh view of the surgical approach and practical suggestions for improving the skills of treating surgeons. Educational issues and the organization of a trauma center are also covered. The volume will be a handy pocket guide for trainee surgeons and any surgeon, physician, or nurse who treats trauma patients. It will be particularly relevant for emergency department physicians, critical care and ICU doctors, orthopaedic surgeons, neurosurgeons, and professionals responsible for trauma care and decision making, programs of trauma education, or organization of a trauma center. Also available: Trauma Surgery Vol. 2: Thoracic and Abdominal Trauma

This book is part of a series covering surgical specialties. The volumes are multi-authored, containing brief chapters, each of which are devoted to one or two specific questions or decisions within that specialty that are difficult or controversial. The volumes are intended as a current and timely reference source for practicing surgeons, surgeons in training, and educators that describe the recommended ideal approach, rather than customary care, in selected clinical situations.

This book looks at specific vascular surgery questions that have arisen and where careful analysis is given according to the level of supporting evidence available. As new technology is introduced to treat the cardiovascular system, alternative therapies begin to challenge and also complement traditional vascular surgery. All chapters contain the PICO table to summarise specific characteristics relative to the questions posed in each chapter. Difficult Decisions in Vascular Surgery- An Evidence-Based Approach is a current and timely reference source for practicing surgeons, surgeons in training, and educators, that describes the recommended ideal approach, rather than customary care, in selected clinical situations.