Longitudinal Assessment

Overview

The American Osteopathic Board of Surgery (AOBS) has transitioned from the high-stakes written recertification exam previously required every 10 years to a longitudinal assessment model for primary certification held in General Surgery and Surgical Critical Care. The AOBS longitudinal assessment aligns with the three-year Osteopathic Continuous Certification (OCC) cycle to fulfill the Component 3 requirement. Our goal is to provide flexible, effective learning opportunities for our Diplomates and promote current knowledge of optimal surgical practice.

Process & Structure

The AOBS Longitudinal Assessment will be administered using the following process and structure:

• The assessment will be open book, with the ability to save your progress and return at your convenience.
• The assessment will be accessed via an online remote platform, which will be available 24/7 from the convenience of your home or office.
• Assessment questions will be untimed, and can be completed during one or multiple sittings during the assessment cycle.
• Diplomates can make three attempts to pass the assessment during the assessment cycle.
• Immediate scoring will be conducted upon final completion of the assessment.

Frequently Asked Questions – General Surgery and Surgical Critical Care

Learn more about the AOBS Longitudinal Assessment process by reviewing our list of Frequently Asked Questions. It is important to note that these FAQs are relevant to the 2022-2024 cycle, including access to the assessment on the NBOME CATALYST platform for the original assessment and access to AOA’s Learning Management System for remediation attempts. Beginning in 2025, General Surgery and Surgical Critical Care assessments will move to an annual requirement, with 15 questions. Please continue to watch our website as these FAQs related to 2025 are still in development.

Frequently Asked Questions – Specialties

Learn more about the AOBS Longitudinal Assessment process by reviewing our list of Frequently Asked Questions.

General Surgery Readings

The following General Surgery Readings are provided as a preparation tool for the Longitudinal Assessment.

*Updated as of Feb. 9, 2022

• Article 1: NIH-NHLBI ARDS Network
• Article 2: Incisional Hernia Post Laparotomy-Incidence and Risk Factors
• Article 3: Clinical Practice Guidelines for Clostridium difficile Infection in adults and children
• Article 4: Treatment of bleeding complications in patients on anticoagulant therapy
• Article 5: Pre-operative nutrition and the elective surgical patient: why, how and what?
• Article 6: Outcome of the patients with chronic mesh infection following open inguinal hernia repair
• Article 7: Guidelines for treatment of umbilical and epigastric hernias from the European Hernia Society and Americas Hernia Society
• Article 8: Guidelines for treatment of umbilical and epigastric hernias from the European Hernia Society and Americas Hernia Society
• Article 9: Effects of tranexamic acid on death, disability, vascular occlusive events and other morbidities in patients with acute traumatic brain injury (CRASH-3)
• Article 10: 2018 WSES/SIS-E consensus conference: recommendations for the management of skin and soft-tissue infections
• Article 11: Assessment of Clinical Criteria for Sepsis For the Third International Consensus Definitions for Sepsis and Septic Shock (Sepsis-3)
• Article 12: Phase 2 study of pembrolizumab in patients with advanced rare cancers
• Article 13: Measuring Processes of Care in Palliative Surgery A Novel Approach Using Natural Language Processing
• Article 14: Surviving Sepsis Campaign: International Guidelines for Management of Sepsis and Septic Shock: 2016
• Article 15: A multicenter, prospective, controlled clinical trial of surgical stabilization of rib fractures in patients with severe, nonflail fracture patterns
• Article 16: International guidelines for groin hernia management
• Article 17: Neoadjuvant Radiotherapy is Associated with R0 Resection and Improved Survival for Patients with Extremity Soft Tissue Sarcoma Undergoing Surgery: A National Cancer Database Analysis
• Article 18: Memory T cells: strategies for optimizing tumor immunotherapy
• Article 19: The management of hiatal hernia: an update on diagnosis and treatment
• Article 20: Acute scaphoid fractures: guidelines for diagnosis and treatment
• Article 21: Cricothyroidotomy – The emergency surgical airway
• Article 22: 2018 WSES/SIS-E consensus conference: recommendations for the management of skin and soft-tissue infections
• Article 23: Appropriate Use of Emergency Department Thoracotomy: Implications for the Thoracic Surgeon
• Article 24: https://www.herniasurgeryjournal.org/article.asp?issn=2589-8736;year=2018;volume=1;issue=2;spage=42;epage=49;aulast=Arnold
• Article 25: CT Imaging and Interventional Radiology in Solid Organ Injury
• Article 26: CT Imaging of Large Bowel Wall Thickening
• Article 27: Imaging of Traumatic Intracranial Hemorrhage
• Article 28: https://www.jcasonline.com/article.asp?issn=0974-2077;year=2014;volume=7;issue=1;spage=3;epage=13;aulast=Garg
• Article 29: CRASH-2 (Clinical Randomisation of an Antifibrinolytic in Significant Haemorrhage) intracranial bleeding study: the effect of tranexamic acid in traumatic brain injury – a nested randomised, placebo-controlled trial
• Article 30: Management of Postoperative Pain: A Clinical Practice Guideline From the American Pain Society, the American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, and the American Society of Anesthesiologists’ Committee on Regional Anesthesia, Executive Committee, and Administrative Council
• Article 31: The Surgical Infection Society Revised Guidelines on the Management of Intra-Abdominal Infection
• Article 32: Anti-TNF Therapy in Crohn’s Disease
• Article 33: The Obesity-Related Gut Bacterial and Viral Dysbiosis Can Impact the Risk of Colon Cancer Development
• Article 34: Recommended vaccinations for asplenic and hyposplenic adult patients
• Article 35: Final Trial Report of Sentinel-Node Biopsy versus Nodal Observation in Melanoma
• Article 36: Trial of Short-Course Antimicrobial Therapy for Intraabdominal Infection List of authors.
• Article 37: Severe Sepsis and Septic Shock List of authors.
• Article 38: Guidelines for Laparoscopic Ventral Hernia Repair
• Article 39: Guidelines for the Management of Hiatal Hernia
• Article 40: Imaging Protocols for Trauma Patients: Trauma Series, Extended Focused Assessment With Sonography for Trauma, and Selective and Whole-body Computed Tomography
• Article 41: Cranio-Cervical Trauma Eidemiology, Classification, Diagnosis And Management
• Article 42: Recommended vaccinations for asplenic and hyposplenic adult patients
• Article 43: Laparoscopic splenectomy: Current concepts
• Article 44: Bacterial Species and Load Increase During Negative Pressure Wound Therapy:  A Prospective Cohort Study
• Article 45: Profile and Antibiotic Susceptibility of Bacterial Pathogens Associated With Diabetic Foot Ulcers From a Rural Area

Surgical Critical Care Readings

The following Surgical Critical Care Readings are provided as a preparation tool for the Longitudinal Assessment.

• Article 1: Acute Kidney Injury After Burn: A Cohort Study From the Parkland Burn Intensive Care Unit
• Article 2:Pictures Do Influence the Decision to Transfer: Outcomes of a Telemedicine Program Serving an Eight-State Rural Population
• Article 3: Treatment of bleeding complications in patients on anticoagulant therapy
• Article 4: Early application of continuous high-volume haemofiltration can reduce sepsis and improve the prognosis of patients with severe burns
• Article 5: Metabolic support in the critically ill: a consensus of 1
• Article 6: Effect of high-dose vitamin C therapy on severe burn patients: a nationwide cohort study
• Article 7: Emergency Reversal of Anticoagulation
• Article 8: Emergency Reversal of Anticoagulation
• Article 9: Effect of Low-Dose Supplementation of Arginine Vasopressin on Need for Blood Product Transfusions in Patients With Trauma and Hemorrhagic Shock
• Article 10: The Surviving Sepsis Campaign Bundle: 2018 Update
• Article 11: Metabolic aspects of muscle wasting during critical illness
• Article 12: A multicenter, prospective, controlled clinical trial of surgical stabilization of rib fractures in patients with severe, nonflail fracture patterns (Chest Wall Injury Society NONFLAIL)
• Article 13: Decreased total iron binding capacity upon intensive care unit admission predicts red blood cell transfusion in critically ill patients
• Article 14: Reversal agents for oral anticoagulant-associated major or life-threatening bleeding
• Article 15: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11739-019-02177-2
• Article 16: Anticoagulation Reversal