Examination of theses on peripheral vascular surgery

Abstract

Objectives: In this document analysis , medical specialty theses published in the field of cardiovascular surgery on peripheral vascular diseases in Türkiye were evaluated.

Materials and methods: The study group of the research consisted of theses made in Türkiye between 1981 and 2021 and indexed in the database of the Council of Higher Education National Thesis Center. The theses obtained in the category of specialization in medicine and in the Cardiovascular Surgery Department with the keyword "peripheral" were transferred to Excel forms created by the researcher. The name of the author of each thesis, the year of the thesis defense, the title of the thesis, the name of the thesis supervisor, the name and type of the institution where the thesis was conducted, the sample size of the thesis, the type of the study, and the data collection tools were evaluated.

Results: As a result of the research, 32 theses were reached. The first thesis was published in 1981. The highest number of these were published between 2010 and 2019. The authors of 25 (78.12%) of the theses were male researchers. 93.75% of them were carried out at state universities. Of the 21 thesis managers, 65.62% were professors. The highest number of theses were published by Dicle University (n=3) and Atatürk University (n=3). There was only one thesis, and that was animal experimentation. In one study, a questionnaire was used as a data collection tool. In 30 of them, patient registration information was data collection tools. Sample sizes ranged from 11 to 1,136. The mean sample size was 162. The control group had only two dissertations. An ankle-brachial index measurement was used in four theses. Clinical features were compared in seven, surgical techniques in four, radiological methods, and drug efficacy in three theses.

Conclusion: Prospective studies were included in 53.12% of these. This rate is below the expected level for thesis studies. It may be more beneficial to include more experimental studies, studies with a control group, and larger sample sizes in terms of understanding the pathophysiology and management of this disease.

Cite this article as: Şahin S. Examination of theses on peripheral vascular surgery. D J Med Sci 2022;8(3):97-101.

This study, which used document analysis, does not require ethical approval since it is not a human or animal study. The study was conducted in accordance with the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki.

Data Sharing Statement:
The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

The authors declared no conflicts of interest with respect to the authorship and/ or publication of this article.

The authors received no financial support for the research and/or authorship of this article.