Should Interventional Cardiologists Super-Subspecialize?: Moving From Patient Selection to Operator Selection

Neal S Kleiman; Frederick G P Welt; Alexander G Truesdell; Matthew Sherwood; Sabeeda Kadavath; Pinak B Shah; Lloyd W Klein; Shea Hogan; Clifford Kavinsky; Tanveer Rab; Interventional Section Leadership Council, American College of Cardiology

doi:10.1016/j.jcin.2020.10.029

Should Interventional Cardiologists Super-Subspecialize?: Moving From Patient Selection to Operator Selection

JACC Cardiovasc Interv. 2021 Jan 11;14(1):97-100. doi: 10.1016/j.jcin.2020.10.029.

Affiliations

¹ Houston Methodist DeBakey Heart and Vascular Center, Houston, Texas, USA. Electronic address: nkleiman@houstonmethodist.org.
² University of Utah Health, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA.
³ Virginia Heart, Falls Church, Virginia, USA.
⁴ Inova Heart and Vascular Institute, Falls Church, Virginia, USA.
⁵ University of Vermont Medical Center, Burlington, Vermont, USA.
⁶ Brigham and Womens Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
⁷ University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, California, USA.
⁸ Denver Health and University of Colorado, Denver, Colorado, USA.
⁹ Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois, USA.
¹⁰ Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia, USA.

PMID: 33413871
DOI: 10.1016/j.jcin.2020.10.029

Abstract

The field of interventional cardiology has expanded rapidly. As a result, four evolving areas have evolved - peripheral vascular interventions, structural heart interventions, adult congenital heart intervention, and chronic total occlusion. The complexity of these procedures and the number of devices available has grown rapidly. In addition, the professional and public expectations of procedural success and of minimizing case-avoidance have also grown. Specific issues include volume-outcome relationships, maintaining currency and proficiency, accessibility to specialized procedures, and the need to maintain a fundamental level of expertise in acute coronary interventions.

Keywords: adult congenial heart; chronic total occlusion; peripheral vascular intervention; structural heart.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

Adult
Cardiac Surgical Procedures*
Cardiologists*
Humans
Patient Selection
Treatment Outcome