Author Topic: Should age of surgeon be considered?  (Read 3673 times)

arcteryx

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Should age of surgeon be considered?
« on: February 15, 2006, 12:47:24 am »
I'm wondering if anybody thinks the age of their neurosurgeon should be taken into account? Of course, you want somebody with MANY years of experience. But should you also be concerned if they are too old or too senior? I believe Spetzler is 61 years old and I imagine Brackmann is around the same age. Does hand-eye coordination start to deteriorate at some point? I've also heard that with very senior staff (ex: Spetzler & Brackmann) that their junior staff does 90% of the work (prep, opening, closing, etc.), while they just arrive to do the microsurgery. In fact, they are probably running 2 or 3 surgeries at once and just rotate around once the tumor is exposed. (Yes, I realize that the last 10% is the most important/delicate piece, but mistakes can be made during other sections of the operation being performed by residents, especially with drilling, brain retraction, etc.)

Any thoughts?
« Last Edit: February 15, 2006, 12:52:25 am by arcteryx »

DSki

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Re: Should age of surgeon be considered?
« Reply #1 on: February 15, 2006, 07:34:23 am »
Would you want someone to judge your work abilities by determining your age? I believe they call that discrimination!


Kathleen_Mc

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Re: Should age of surgeon be considered?
« Reply #2 on: February 15, 2006, 08:46:15 am »
I would think any surgeon with an ounce of ethetics would not be operating if he was "too old", he would likely drop down to assistant or teacher or something like that to keep working (if he must) rather than risk damage to his rep. or lawsuit. Kathleen
1st AN surgery @ age 23, 16 hours
Loss of 7-10th nerves
mulitple "plastic" repairs to compensate for effects of 7th nerve loss
tumor regrowth, monitored for a few years then surgically removed @ age 38 (of my choice, not medically necessary yet)

Jeff

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Re: Should age of surgeon be considered?
« Reply #3 on: February 15, 2006, 09:32:47 am »
Hi,

I have had surgerieswperformed by Dr. Spetzler at Barrow and Doctors Hitselberger (who I believe is older than Dr. Brackmann) and Friedman at House.  My brother had surgery performed by Dr. Brackmann and Dr. Hitselberger just last week. Dr. Brackmann and the othr neurotologists at House do not perform the tumor removal. Either Dr. Hitselberger or Dr. Schwartz does that. However, they do perform very important duties.

At any rate, I would go to either Dr. that you mention without reservation. In fact, when I need my other AN removed (I've NF2), I will go to House. I am hoping that Dr. Hitselberger is still working when I need him.

I believe that these doctors will not perform surgery if they are not able to do it to their very high standards.

Just my impressions.....

Jeff
NF2
multiple AN surgeries
last surgery June 08

okiesandy

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Re: Should age of surgeon be considered?
« Reply #4 on: February 15, 2006, 09:35:51 am »
Hi,

Dr. Brackmann was born in 1937. He says he will hang it up when he is too old. Heitzelberger is older than Dr. B. We are still hearing good out comes from this team.

I went to a young one for my first doctor. He had only done 20 to 30 AN surgeries. I think if I had chosen surgery it would be Dr. B and Dr. H.  Age or not age. I am older and I can still see and my hands are very steady. I am better in a lot of ways than when I was 40.


Sandy
Cyberknife 1/2006
Clinton Medbery III & Mary K. Gumerlock
St Anthony's Hospital
Oklahoma City, OK
Name of Tumor: Ivan (may he rest in peace)

JHager

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Re: Should age of surgeon be considered?
« Reply #5 on: February 15, 2006, 11:52:14 am »
Howdy!

My father is a surgeon, and is also 61.  Although he doesn't do neurosurgery, he has people's lives in his hands on a daily basis - hands I trust with my own children.

He is self-aware enough to know when it will be time to quit - and it won't be after a mistake, it'll be before.

Trust the skill of these men and women, and don't doubt them for their age!

Josh
3.5 cm right AN.  Surgery 11/7/05, modified translab.  As recovered as I'd ever hoped to be.

Lisa Peele

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Re: Should age of surgeon be considered?
« Reply #6 on: February 15, 2006, 01:37:29 pm »
On Hitselberger (House Ear Clinic) specifically...Although there are other talented neurosurgeons out there, it will be a sad day when he chooses to retire!  He is a world-class surgeon and a wonderful person who is still able to perform "miracles" on a daily basis.  He was able to separate my 4+ cm tumor from my brainstem without an ounce of damage. 

The local neurosurgeon I first met with (who is very experienced and respected) told me she felt bad about performing this type of surgery on me because she knew that it could change me forever.  There were so many nerves, so close together, that any one of them could be damaged in the course of the surgery, she said--leaving me with facial paralysis, swallowing difficulties, balance issues, etc.--in addition to guaranteed deafness.  We wouldn't know how embedded the tumor was until she got in there, she explained.  From the MRI, it looked like there was an area that was surrounded by cerebral-spinal fluid, which was a good sign that one section may be easier to remove.  The part that was impacting (and severely displacing my brainstem), however, could present some problems.  She estimated I would be in surgery 8-18 hours and could expect a 5-day to 2-week hospital stay.  She wanted me to talk to two former patients about their experiences so I would know what to expect.  One was a younger woman about my age who had a very long recovery which included physical therapy.  The other was a preacher who scared the children in his congregation since he could no longer smile on both sides of his mouth. 

After our meeting, I went home to prepare for the biggest hurdle in my life so far, and my husband (without me knowing) hit the phones and the computer searching for other options.  He felt strongly that there had to be specialists who would have a greater chance of getting the tumor out with minimal damage.

He quickly found that House was one of the most respected treatment centers for ANs.   Considering the size of my tumor, my age and absence of symptoms, he was convinced that traveling for treatment was the best option.  Drs. Friedman and Hitselberger reviewed my MRI films and expressed confidence that they would be able to do the surgery and get me back to my “normal life�. 

The surgery, start to finish, was 3 ½ hours.  I had no complications, spent 1 day in ICU and 3 more days in a regular room before being discharged.  I am in awe of what my docs were able to do for me…especially Hitselberger.  He made it seem like no big deal, but I know my situation before surgery was actually quite grave. 

I have some hearing loss on my affected side, and my eye gets dry sometimes.  I have no other side effects from the surgery. 

My parents were concerned when they looked at Hitselberger’s bio and saw his age.  My husband (who is in medical supply sales) was thrilled with his level of experience.  I didn’t even consider his age—I just wanted the best surgeons to be in the operating room with me, regardless of race, sex or age.

Hitselberger will retire when he knows it’s time.  For now, we’re still lucky enough to have him in action…
Lisa Peele, 38
Dublin, OH
4.3 cm X 3.3 cm (right)
Translab.
House Ear Clinic (Friedman and Hitselberger)
June 14, 2004

Boppie

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Re: Should age of surgeon be considered?
« Reply #7 on: February 15, 2006, 08:18:02 pm »
I believe, age has little to do with it.  It's in the experienced perfect steadiness of the hands and eyes, and strength of the back and neck to withstand the intense work arena. 

arcteryx

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Re: Should age of surgeon be considered?
« Reply #8 on: February 15, 2006, 08:55:35 pm »
Lisa: wow, you have a great story and a great outcome.  You've given me some confidence in this very scary time.

You wrote that you now have "some hearing loss on my affected side" but I noticed that you had a "translab" procedure.  I thought it was 100% guaranteed hearing loss with the translab approach.  Am I misunderstanding something?