Development of a computerized vascular registry for large-scale use.

On the basis of the experiences of the Upstate New York Vascular Society and the Society for Clinical Vascular Surgery (total membership 526), a computerized vascular registry has been developed to collate and handle data from this multitude. After several developments a standard encoding vehicle has been arrived at, and data are entered on light-sensitive cards and processed electronically. This system has been in place for 2 years and has already revealed several trends about the practice of vascular surgery on a large-scale and/or community basis. Of importance among these are the differences in vascular surgical reconstructive success compared with the published individual reports as well as an examination of the trends in vascular surgical practice and the standards of proficiency required. The problems of inertia, resentment, and inaccurate data entry have also been addressed, and steps have been taken to overcome these as well as to ensure security of individual data. It is expected that use of such systems will eventually provide us with a much clearer picture of the overall practice and standards in vascular surgery that apply throughout the nation.