Determinants of career development in cardiology – results from a Swiss national survey

BACKGROUND: Despite the rising proportion of female medical students and specialised female doctors in Switzerland, the field of cardiology remains one of the most male-dominated. OBJECTIVES: The goal of this study was to identify determinants of and obstacles to career development for cardiologists with special regard to an academic and interventional career. METHODS: Under the direction of the Swiss working group Women in Cardiology (IG-WIC), an online survey was conducted among Swiss cardiologists and cardiologists in training. RESULTS: 140 participants (43.6% female, 56.4% male; median age 45.0) were included. Women were more often single (27.9% vs 10.1%, p = 0.013) and less likely to have children (52.5% vs 70.9%, p = 0.034). If they had children, they were more likely to provide childcare themselves (37.5% vs 10.7%, p = 0.006) or to have interrupted their work in favour of parenting (40.6% vs 8.9%, p <0.001). A majority of women indicated a negative impact of their gender on their career development (78.7%), and 36.3% reported sexual harassment at their workplace. Women felt less supported in their professional training, especially concerning research activities. As a hindrance for pursuit of a career in academic medicine, both sexes stated lack of compatibility of work and family (44.6%) and the competitive work environment (55.4%) being most important. Women also identified gender-specific disadvantages as one of the main reasons for not choosing an academic or interventional career. CONCLUSIONS: The overall satisfaction among Swiss cardiologists is high regarding training in health care and the working atmosphere. However, women and men plead for better compatibility of work and family and better structured training curricula. Several gender-specific aspects hindering women from advancing in cardiology training should be addressed

Trends in cause-specific mortality among people with type 2 and type 1 diabetes from 2002 to 2019:A Danish population-based study

BackgroundDespite advances in primary and secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease,excess mortality persists within the diabetes population. This study explores thecomponents of this excess mortality and their interaction with sex.MethodsUsing Danish registries (2002-2019), we identified residents aged 18-99 years, theirdiabetes status, and recorded causes of death. Applying Lexis-based methods, wecomputed age-standardized mortality rates (asMRs), mortality relative risks (asMRRs),and log-linear trends for cause-specific mortality.FindingsFrom 2002-2019, 958,278 individuals died in Denmark (T2D: 148,620; T1D: 7,830)during 84.4M person-years. During the study period, overall asMRs declined, driven byreducing cardiovascular mortality, notably in men with T2D. Conversely, cancermortality remained high, making cancer the leading cause of death in individuals withT2D. Individuals with T2D faced an elevated mortality risk from nearly all cancer types,ranging from 9% to 257% compared to their non-diabetic counterparts. Notably,obesity-related cancers exhibited the highest relative risks: liver cancer (Men: asMRR3·58(3·28;3·91); Women: asMRR 2·49(2·14;2·89)), pancreatic cancer (Men: asMRR3·50(3·25;3·77); Women: asMRR 3·57(3·31;3·85)), and kidney cancer (Men: asMRR2·10(1·84;2·40); Women: asMRR 2·31(1·92;2·79)). In men with type 2 diabetes, excessmortality remained stable, except for dementia. In women, diabetes-related excessmortality increased by 6-17% per decade across all causes of death, exceptcardiovascular disease.InterpretationIn the last decade, cancer has emerged as the leading cause of death amongindividuals with T2D in Denmark, emphasizing the need for diabetes managementstrategies incorporating cancer prevention. A sex-specific approach is crucial toaddress persistently higher relative mortality in women with diabetes.FundingSupported by Steno Diabetes Center Aarhus, which is partially funded by anunrestricted donation from the Novo Nordisk Foundation, and by The Danish DiabetesAcademy.<br/

Z-osteotomy in hallux valgus: clinical and radiological outcome after Scarf osteotomy

Correction osteotomies of the first metatarsal are common surgical approaches in treating hallux valgus deformities whereas the Scarf osteotomy has gained popularity. The purpose of this study was to analyze short- and mid-term results in hallux valgus patients who underwent a Scarf osteotomy. The subjective and radiological outcome of 131 Scarf osteotomies (106 hallux valgus patients, mean age: 57.5 years, range: 22–90 years) were retrospectively analyzed. Mean follow-up was 22.4 months (range: 6 months–5 years). Surgical indications were: intermetatarsal angle (IMA) of 12–23°; increased proximal articular angle (PAA>8°), and range of motion of the metatarsophalangeal joint in flexion and extension >40°. Exclusion criteria were severe osteoporosis and/or osteoarthritis. The mean subjective range of motion (ROM) of the great toe post-surgery was 0.8±1.73 points (0: full ROM, 10: total stiffness). The mean subjective cosmetic result was 2.7±2.7 points (0: excellent, 10: poor). The overall post-operative patient satisfaction with the result was high (2.1±2.5 points (0: excellent, 10: poor). The mean hallux valgus angle improvement was 16.6° (pre-operative mean value: 37.5°) which was statistically significant (p<0.01). The IMA improved by an average of 5.96° from a pre-operative mean value of 15.4° (p<0.01). Neither osteonecrosis of the distal fragment nor perioperative fractures were noted during the follow-up. In keeping with our follow-up results, the Scarf osteotomy approach shows potential in the therapy of hallux valgus

Testing psychometric properties of the CFT 1-R for students with special educational needs

Heine J-H, Gebhard M, Schwab S, Neumann P, Gorges J, Wild E. Testing psychometric properties of the CFT 1-R for students with special educational needs. Psychological Test and Assessment Modeling. 2018;60(1):3-27