Expertise of Surgeons Publishing Novel Techniques in the Journal of Wrist Surgery.

Introduction  Recent efforts to standardize reporting of surgeon experience in novel technique publications have recommended reporting of Tang level of expertise (LOE). Question/Purpose  The aim of this study was to document trends in LOE reporting for novel technique articles published in the Journal of Wrist Surgery and evaluate whether author experience affects novel research outcomes. Methods  A total of 261 articles published from 2018 to 2020 were reviewed. Articles describing novel surgical techniques were included and examined for Tang LOE. Author variables were collected online. Results  Eight percent (21/261) of articles discussed novel surgical techniques and one reported LOE. Nearly half (47.6%) of articles did not conduct statistical analysis. Four (19.0%) reported insignificant statistical results and 7 (33.3%) reported significant findings. All significant statistical findings were positive. Number of prior related publications by the senior author did not affect new technique result significance ( p  = 0.34). Discussion  From 2018 to 2020, only one article documented LOE. Authors' variables, including number of prior related publications, were not correlated with significant results in their new publications. This may suggest that an author's established experience in a novel technique, quantified by prior publications on the topic, does not make one more likely to achieve significantly better or worse outcomes in their reviewed Journal of Wrist Surgery study. Conclusions  Tang LOE is an important way for readers to classify expertise and should be reported, and potentially modified to better define contributing variables. Thieme. All rights reserved.