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Minimally invasive esophagectomy is a safe alternative to the open technique. Patients undergoing MIE may benefit from shorter hospital stay, and lower respiratory complications and total morbidity compared with open esophagectomy. Multicenter, prospective large randomized controlled trials are required to confirm these findings in order to base practice on sound clinical evidence.

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Objectives To describe how learning curves are measured and what procedural variables are used to establish a ‘learning curve’ (LC). To assess whether LCs are a valuable measure of competency. Patients and Methods A review of the surgical literature pertaining to LCs was conducted using the Medline and OVID databases. Results Variables should be fully defined and when possible, patient‐specific variables should be used. Trainee's prior experience and level of supervision should be quantified; the case mix and complexity should ideally be constant. Logistic regression may be used to control for confounding variables. Ideally, a learning plateau should reach a predefined/expert‐derived competency level, which should be fully defined. When the group splitting method is used, smaller cohorts should be used in order to narrow the range of the LC. Simulation technology and competence‐based objective assessments may be used in training and assessment in LC studies. Conclusions Measuring the surgical LC has potential benefits for patient safety and surgical education. However, standardisation in the methods and variables used to measure LCs is required. Confounding variables, such as participant's prior experience, case mix, difficulty of procedures and level of supervision, should be controlled. Competency and expert performance should be fully defined.

Fournier's gangrene is a urological emergency with a high mortality rate despite advances in the medical and surgical fields. The aggressive nature of the infection advocates the need for early recognition allowing immediate surgical intervention. The opposing results of available research as well as the lack of high quality evidence surrounding emergent therapies prevents their routine use in the management of Fournier's gangrene. The absence of a specific care pathway may hinder efficient management of Fournier's gangrene, thus based on current guidelines a management pathway is suggested.

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