This research will focus on the differences of the postoperative outcome for carotid surgery patients treated by either male or female surgeons. Since 2012, in Germany, the surgical treatment of carotid stenosis has an established quality assurance, making the thematic especially suitable for testing the surgical results of either male or female surgeons.

Data about physician gender having impact on the treatment quality of a patient first appeared in 1999, the publication being about patients with breast cancer. This discussion was resumed in 2016 when Y. Tsugawa et. al showed that female doctors have, in comparison to male doctors, better treatment results. Primary outcomes for the study were mortality and readmissions, which were lower if the treatment has been done by a female doctor. Until today, there are only a few reports about the role of physician gender, especially that of surgeons, in the treatment quality. Studies like the ones from Blohm et. al and Wallis et. al show that female surgeons have a better outcome and a lower mortality, 30 days after the surgery. Wallis et. al also showed that the correlation between male surgeons and female patients have the worst results].

None of the studies that were written until today focussed on carotid surgery. Since 2012, in Germany, the surgical treatment of carotid stenosis has an established quality assurance, with specific documentation and a standard surgical course of action. This is why we consider that this surgery is especially suitable for comparison of results, depending on surgeon genders.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Age above 18 years
• All the patients that had a carotid revascularisation between jan. 2012 and dec. 2023.

Exclusion Criteria:

- No quality assurance

The impact of surgeons' gender on the postoperative outcomes. The impact of surgeons' team gender on the postoperative outcome. The connection between patients' gender and surgeons' gender regarding postoperative outcome.

A retrospective data collection will be conducted for all the patients, that between jan. 2012 and dec. 2023, were operated because of a carotid stenosis in the University Clinic for Vascular and Endovascular Surgery in Augsburg. This stenosis may have been symptomatic or asymptomatic. The surgery must respect the latest quality assurance for that period.

anonymous study design