No abstract

The Flow Coupler is a sensitive method to confirm patency of a microsurgical anastomosis. However, there is a high false positive rate in both the intraoperative and postoperative settings resulting in frequent intraoperative maneuvers to amend the cause of signal loss. Additionally, the Flow Coupler resulted in significantly more vascular thrombotic events when compared to the non-flow Coupler.

Purpose:The incidence and cost of nonmelanoma skin cancers are skyrocketing. Five million cases cost $8.1 billion in 2011. The average cost of treatment per patient increased from $1000 in 2006 to $1600 in 2011. We present a study of the economics and costs of skin cancer management in Medicare patients.Methods:We studied data released by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services in 2014. Treatment modalities for the management of skin cancer were reviewed, and costs of treatment were quantified for a sample of 880,000 providers.Results:Review of Medicare payment records related to the management of skin cancer yielded data from over 880,000 health care providers who received $77 billion in Medicare payments in 2012. From 1992 to 2009, the rate of Mohs micrographic surgery (MMS) has increased by 700%, and these procedures typically have Medicare payments 120% to 370% more than surgical excision, even when including pathology fees. From 1992 to 2009, MMS increased by 700%, whereas surgical excisions increased by only 20%. In 2009, 1800 providers billed Medicare for MMS; in 2012, that number increased to 3209. On average, 1 in 4 cases of skin cancer is treated with MMS.Conclusion:Mohs excision is more expensive than surgical excision in an office setting. Procedures requiring the operating room are much more expensive than office procedures. In an era of high deductible health plans, patients’ financial burden is much less with simple excisions of skin cancers done in a clinic when compared with Mohs surgery or operative interventions.

This journal requires that authors assign a level of evidence to each article. For a full description of these Evidence-Based Medicine ratings, please refer to the Table of Contents or the online Instructions to Authors www.springer.com/00266.

Knowledge of the GON depth (eg, mean of 20 mm where it emerges from the semispinalis muscle) may improve accuracy of procedural treatments for migraines. When performing bilateral interventions, nerve position may differ between sides, particularly with respect to lateral distance from midline. Differences in this study compared with previous anatomic studies may reflect the use of live subjects in a prone position compared with cadaver specimens.