Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 6, 2026

Reverse Total Shoulder Arthroplasty
Published on: July 5, 2011
Provider Board Certification Status and Practice Patterns in Total Knee Arthroplasty
Peter M Fleischut1, Jonathan M Eskreis-Winkler, Licia K Gaber-Baylis
1P.M. Fleischut is associate professor of anesthesiology, Weill Cornell Medical College, and attending anesthesiologist, New York-Presbyterian Hospital, New York, New York. J.M. Eskreis-Winkler is research assistant, Division of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, Department of Public Health, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, New York. L.K. Gaber-Baylis is senior SAS programmer, Department of Anesthesiology, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, New York. G.P. Giambrone is staff associate, Department of Anesthesiology, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, New York. X. Wu is research biostatistician, Department of Healthcare Policy and Research, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, New York. X. Sun is research biostatistician, Department of Healthcare Policy and Research, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, New York. C.A. Lien is professor of anesthesiology, Weill Cornell Medical College, and attending anesthesiologist, New York-Presbyterian Hospital, New York, New York. S.L. Faggiani is quality and patient safety administrator, Department of Anesthesiology, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, New York. R.P. Dutton is clinical associate, University of Chicago, and executive director, Anesthesia Quality Institute, American Society of Anesthesiologists, Park Ridge, Illinois. S.G. Memtsoudis is attending anesthesiologist and senior scientist, Department of Anesthesiology, Hospital for Special Surgery, and clinical professor of anesthesiology and public health, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, New York.
Board-certified anesthesiologists administered neuraxial/regional anesthesia more often than non-board-certified anesthesiologists for total knee arthroplasty. Practice patterns differed significantly between the two groups, warranting further investigation into these disparities.
Area of Science:
- Anesthesiology
- Orthopedic Surgery
- Health Services Research
Background:
- Board certification's impact on clinical care quality is debated.
- Studies show improved patient outcomes with neuraxial/regional anesthesia over general anesthesia for total knee arthroplasty (TKA).
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if board-certified (BC) and non-board-certified (nBC) anesthesiologists exhibit different anesthesia practice patterns for TKA.
- To explore associations between anesthesiologist board certification status and anesthesia choices for TKA.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of anesthetic records from the National Anesthesia Clinical Outcomes Registry (2010-2013).
- Identification of TKA cases using established coding systems.
- Comparison of practice patterns, patient demographics, and hospital settings between BC and nBC anesthesiologists.
Main Results:
- BC anesthesiologists administered care to 81.7% of 97,508 TKA patients.
- BC anesthesiologists used neuraxial/regional anesthesia more frequently (41.4%) than nBC anesthesiologists (21.2%).
- Significant differences (P < .001) were observed in anesthesia administration between BC and nBC practitioners.
Conclusions:
- Anesthesia practice patterns for TKA differ significantly between board-certified and non-board-certified anesthesiologists.
- The overall utilization of regional/neuraxial anesthesia for TKA remains low.
- Further research is needed to understand the reasons behind these observed practice disparities.
