Global vascular thought leaders document shift toward individualising patient care in surgical bypass

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Gore is making available an educational compendium of presentations and discussions from the inaugural Gore-sponsored Surgical Bypass Summit to promote knowledge sharing around this topic. The content is now available at www.surgicalbypass.com. The event co-chairs, Richard Neville and Russell Samson, along with a global group of vascular surgeons, are leading an effort to revisit treatment paradigms for the continual improvement of patient care, an initiative which was at the front of mind at the 2015 Society for Vascular Surgery Annual Meeting (17–20 June, Chicago, USA).

Surgical bypass constitutes 15–30% of limb ischaemia procedures. Current consensus in the vascular community is that most patients suffering from severe tissue loss and critical limb ischaemia may be best treated primarily by bypass. Yet, approximately 30–50% of these patients will not have an autogenous saphenous vein that can serve as a quality conduit. 

An international delegation of fifteen vascular surgeons convened to form the inaugural Surgical Bypass Summit. The group challenged historic beliefs about surgical bypass and whether there needs to be a change in the current treatment paradigm. The summit attendees agreed that their current patient care algorithm may warrant reconsideration. Gore believes that making available the compendium of presentations and discussions from the event will further foster education around this important conversation and will allow vascular surgeons from around the world to share in the knowledge gained during the summit.

“The mission of the summit was to reach a consensus on how bypass will best serve patients and the type of bypass to be performed given the changing data and technology,” said Richard Neville, professor of surgery and chief of vascular surgery at the George Washington University Hospital in Washington, DC, USA. “Now, we can bring the lessons learned to the broader community in an effort to shift treatment decisions to the individual patient.” 

“There is a definitive role for surgical bypass in the treatment of peripheral artery disease and atherosclerosis. But how it is performed needs to be addressed on an individual basis where both the physician and patients are involved in the decision making process,” said Russell Samson, clinical professor of surgery at Florida State University Medical School and Vascular Surgeon at Sarasota Vascular Specialists in Sarasota, USA. “The community as a whole needs to take part in these critical conversations and it is our hope that other surgeons will join in this movement.”

The website includes video recordings of the presentations and roundtable discussions, which focus on the clinical scenarios, treatment algorithms, healthcare economic value of durable solutions, and current technologies associated with using bypass as a form of revascularisation. The various polls available on the site allow visitors to take part in the conversation by voting on some of the fundamental questions that arose during the summit and comparing answers with responses from the leading vascular surgeons who participated in the event. 

“Stimulating peer-to-peer collaboration through learning opportunities is critical to help fulfil the promise of successful patient outcomes,” said James Fazio, business leader for the Gore Peripheral Vascular Team. “The Surgical Bypass Summit and online resource provide a catalyst for vascular surgeons to have an open and honest conversation about current standards of care and how together, we can effect change.”