PGIM CSE Surgical Specialties case studies
PGIM CSE Surgical Specialties · Put your knowledge to work in context.
The PGIM Certificate of Specialist Expertise (CSE) in Surgical Specialties is a professional credential for surgeons who want to demonstrate advanced, integrated knowledge across the surgical disciplines. It is not a licence to practise and does not confer specialist registration; it is a knowledge-based certification that sits alongside, not in place of, national board certification. The PGIM CSE Surgical Specialties case studies are 5 cases and about 4,507 words.
1Acute cholecystitis in a patient four months after a drug-eluting coronary stent
Mr B, 71, presents at 02:00 with three days of right upper quadrant pain, fever of 38.7 °C, heart rate 112, blood pressure 128/74, respiratory rate 20 and SpO2 96% on air. White cell count is 17.4 × 10⁹/L, CRP 232 mg/L, bilirubin 34 µmol/L, ALP 210 U/L, ALT 58 U/L, creatinine 138 µmol/L against a baseline of 95, eGFR 44.
919 words, about 5 min2Resectable pancreatic head cancer presenting with grade III cholangitis
Mrs D, 64, presents with a three-week history of painless jaundice, dark urine, pale stools and 6 kg of weight loss. Bilirubin 312 µmol/L, ALP 480 U/L, ALT 90 U/L, CA19-9 840 U/mL, haemoglobin 104 g/L, albumin 31 g/L.
908 words, about 5 min3Acute limb ischaemia in a patient with a popliteal aneurysm and undiagnosed atrial fibrillation
Mr E, 70, is referred at 06:30 with sudden severe left calf and foot pain that woke him at 20:30 the previous evening, so about 10 hours old. The leg is pale to mid-calf and cold below the knee; light touch is reduced over the first web space, but ankle dorsiflexion and toe movement are intact.
910 words, about 5 min4Bilious vomiting in a five-week-old at a district general hospital
A 5-week-old term boy is brought to a district general hospital at 21:00 with three episodes of bilious vomiting in six hours. He fed normally until mid-afternoon and passed a normal stool today.
876 words, about 4 min5A missing swab and a consultant who says not to document
You are the surgical resident on call. At 07:30 on the first day after an uncomplicated laparoscopic cholecystectomy, the scrub nurse tells you that the Ray-Tec swab packet opened for the previous evening's list contained ten swabs but only nine were counted out at the final count; the theatre record documents a correct count.
894 words, about 4 min