North Oaks Medical Center’s
Trauma Medical Director
Juan C. Duchesne, MD, FACS, FCCP, FCCM, participated in a study published in the February 2016 issue of
The Journal of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery. The study’s findings are outlined in the article, “Multicenter
Evaluation of Temporary Intravascular Shunt Use in Vascular Trauma.”
Dr. Duchesne, who is certified by the American Board of Surgery in General
Surgery and Surgical Critical Care, is among the sixteen physicians who
contributed research to what’s being called the largest civilian
analysis of commercially fabricated or improvised shunts and their use
in trauma patients undergoing damage control surgery as treatment for
their injuries. Shunts are catheter tubes used to carry blood through
the veins and arteries of the injured area to prevent further bone, tissue
or organ damage and promote healing.
“The benefits of shunting to save the arms and legs of trauma victims
were clearly demonstrated by the study,” asserts Duchesne. “We
proved that the trauma community can confidently use shunts in patients
with multiple vascular and orthopedic injuries to control damage caused
by the trauma, as well as preserve limbs and improve overall outcomes.”
The Journal of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery, for which Dr. Duchesne serves
on the editorial board, is published 12 times per year by Lippincott Williams
& Wilkins in two volumes beginning in January and July. It is sponsored
by the American Association for the Surgery of Trauma. Content focuses
specifically on traumatic injuries with articles covering everything from
the nature of injury and the effects of new drug therapies to recommendations
for more effective surgical approaches and the latest laboratory findings.
As medical director of North Oaks Medical Center’s
Trauma Program, Dr. Duchesne is championing the hospital’s efforts to become an
American College of Surgeons-verified Level II Trauma Center. The hospital
now offers trauma surgeons in-house at all times to care for victims suddenly
stricken by serious traumatic injury.
In addition, Dr. Duchesne serves on the Regional Commission of the
Louisiana Emergency Response Network (LERN) for Region 9. He represents hospitals with greater than 100 beds
on the Commission.
LERN is an agency of state government created by the Louisiana Legislature
to develop and maintain a statewide system of care coordination for patients
suddenly stricken by serious traumatic injury or time-sensitive illness,
such as heart attack or stroke. North Oaks is one of nearly 100 entities
statewide that participates in LERN. When a pre-hospital provider (like
an emergency responder) or a hospital determines a patient has certain
trauma needs, the network matches the patient to the hospital resources
available in the region.
Dr. Duchesne completed an internship and residency through Louisiana State
University Health Sciences Center in New Orleans, where he also fulfilled
a fellowship in Critical Care Surgery and Trauma.