ArticleThe American surgeon2024
Virtual Signaling and Emerging Trends in its Use Across Surgical Specialties.
Article in The American surgeon, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It carries an expression of concern. Cited by 3 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
3 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- The impact of preference signaling on interview and match rate for surgical match in resident education: a meta-analysis.BMC medical education · 2025Pooled it
- More Signals, Fewer Applications: Calibrating Preference Signaling for Residency Application.Journal of graduate medical education · 2026Article
- Program Signaling and Geographic Preferences in the United States Residency Match for Neurosurgery.Cureus · 2024Review
Corrections and comments
- Expression of concern
Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
introductionThis study aims to evaluate program signaling in surgical specialties, analyze its influence on residency applications, and provide recommendations for enhancing its consistency and effectiveness.
methodsThis cross-sectional study analyzed AAMC ERAS data from the 2021 to 2022 and 2023 residency match cycles, focusing on surgical specialties including general surgery, neurological surgery, obstetrics and gynecology, and orthopedic surgery.
resultsA positive correlation existed between the number of signals received and the number of applicants to a program across 4 surgical specialties. 10% of programs in each specialty received between 17% and 28% of all signals. There was a negative correlation between the number of current DO residents at a program and the number of signals received. Amongst surgical specialties, those with more signals per applicant had a more equitable distribution of signals across competitive programs. University programs received the most signals, programs were less likely to receive signals if they had a higher percentage of DO residents, and IMG applicants were less likely to send signals.
conclusionSpecialties with more signals per applicant had a more equitable distribution of signals across competitive programs, and university programs received proportionally more signals than community programs. Further research is required to investigate the disparities in signaling and the impact of signaling on successful matching.
Indexed as
Identifiers
38217418What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.