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L. D. Britt, MD, MPH, FACS, FCCM; Frederic J. Cole, MD, FACS

Arch Surg. 1998;133:1177-1181.

"Alternative" surgery in the trauma discipline essentially means nonoperative or a selective approach to the injured victim. Such an approach is a critical part of the trauma management options. However, it is unlikely that the term "alternative surgery" will be liberally used to depict this growing trend of nonoperative, selective, and minimally invasive trauma management because of its less than favorable connotations and biases with respect to alternative medicine. Although there are still clear indications for emergency operative intervention, the nonoperative or selective approach in both penetrating and blunt trauma is the state of the art.

From the Department of Surgery, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk.