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A Survey to Assess Agreement Between Pelvic Surgeons on the Outcome of Examination Under Anesthesia for Lateral
John J Carney1, Ailene Nguyen, Ram Kiran Alluri
1Department of Orthopaedics, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA.
Objectives:
To assess agreement among pelvic surgeons regarding the interpretation of examination under anesthesia (EUA), the methodology by which EUA should be performed, and the definition of a positive examination.
Design:
Survey.
Patients/Participants:
Ten patients who presented to our Level 1 trauma center with a pelvic ring injury were selected as clinical vignettes. Vignettes were distributed to 15 experienced pelvic surgeons.
Intervention:
Examination under anesthesia.
Main Outcome Measurements:
Agreement regarding pelvic fracture stability (defined as >80% similar responses), need for surgical fixation, definition of an unstable EUA, and method of performing EUA.
Results:
There was agreement that a pelvic fracture was stable or unstable in 8 (80%) of 10 cases. There was agreement that fixation was required or not required in 6 (60.0%) of 10 cases. Seven (46.7%) surgeons endorsed performing a full 15-part EUA, whereas the other 8 (53.3%) used an abbreviated or alternative method. Eight (53.3%) surgeons provided a definition of what constitutes a positive EUA, whereas the remaining 7 did not endorse adhering to a strict definition.
Conclusions:
Pelvic surgeons generally agree on what constitutes a positive or negative EUA but not necessarily the implications of a positive or negative examination. There is no clear consensus among surgeons regarding the method of performing EUA nor regarding the definition of a positive EUA.
Level Of Evidence:
Prognostic Level IV. See Instructions for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.
