Prometric Exam for Vascular Surgeons: Specialist Vascular Surgery Licence for DHA, MOHAP, DOH, SCFHS & QCHP — the 12-Area Blueprint, 65% Pass Mark, Endovascular and Dialysis-Access Privileges, MCh and FCPS Recognition and Salaries (2026)

The Gulf's diabetes rates produce a large volume of limb-threatening ischaemia and diabetic foot disease, its dialysis population needs access surgery on an industrial scale, and aortic and carotid work follows an ageing population. Vascular surgeons are in short supply in every Gulf state. For holders of an MCh, DNB or DrNB in vascular surgery, FCPS vascular surgery, FRCS (Vasc), Arab Board or equivalent, this is the route.

The exam

• Specialist Vascular Surgery (VAS5291): 150 single-best-answer questions, 3 hours, pass mark 65% — 98 correct answers
• References: Rutherford's Vascular Surgery, Current Therapy in Vascular Surgery, the Society for Vascular Surgery practice guidelines and named landmark trials

Guidelines and trials on the official list are unusual and revealing: the paper asks for the guideline threshold and the trial-backed answer, not textbook opinion.

Vascular surgery is a superspecialty: check your title

Regulators license vascular surgery on a dedicated qualification: MCh or DNB/DrNB vascular surgery after MS surgery, FCPS vascular surgery, Arab Board, FRCS (Vasc) with a CCT, North American vascular boards. An MS in general surgery with vascular experience is licensed as a general surgeon (GEN5341) and may hold limited vascular privileges within that licence; a cardiothoracic qualification is assessed for its own title. See the recognition guide, the exemptions guide, and run the eligibility check first.

The twelve blueprint areas

1. Basic vascular knowledge — vascular anatomy and variants, haemodynamics, atherosclerosis biology, anticoagulant and antiplatelet pharmacology, graft materials and failure modes
2. Vascular imaging — duplex criteria for carotid and lower-limb stenosis, ankle–brachial and toe pressures, CT and MR angiography, catheter angiography, contrast and radiation safety
3. Aneurysmal disease — abdominal aortic aneurysm surveillance and repair thresholds, EVAR vs open repair and the anatomical requirements, endoleak classification and management, thoracic and thoracoabdominal aneurysms, popliteal and visceral aneurysms, ruptured aneurysm pathways
4. Atherosclerotic disease and ischaemia — claudication management, chronic limb-threatening ischaemia staging, revascularisation choice (endovascular vs bypass) by anatomy, the diabetic foot, amputation level selection, aortoiliac disease
5. Visceral and renovascular disease — acute and chronic mesenteric ischaemia, renal artery stenosis and when intervention helps, median arcuate ligament syndrome
6. Neurovascular disease — carotid stenosis thresholds for endarterectomy and stenting, timing after stroke, vertebral disease, carotid body tumours
7. Venous and lymphatic disease — deep vein thrombosis and thrombolysis indications, chronic venous insufficiency classification, varicose vein ablation options, venous ulcers, May–Thurner and iliac vein stenting, lymphoedema
8. Vasculitis and connective tissue disease — Takayasu and giant cell arteritis, Buerger's disease, Marfan and Ehlers–Danlos aortic implications, fibromuscular dysplasia
9. AV fistula and access — access planning and sequence, maturation problems, steal syndrome, aneurysmal fistulas, central venous stenosis, catheter complications — a heavily weighted area for Gulf practice
10. Vascular emergencies — acute limb ischaemia classification and management, aortic dissection classification and the medical-vs-intervention decision, vascular trauma hard and soft signs, compartment syndrome, ruptured aneurysm
11. Patient safety — perioperative cardiac risk, contrast nephropathy prevention, radiation protection, wrong-site prevention
12. Professionalism and ethics

What repeats

• Thresholds. Aneurysm diameter for repair, carotid stenosis percentages by symptom status, ABI cut-offs, duplex velocity criteria.
• Endoleak types and which need treatment.
• Acute limb ischaemia grading — viable, threatened, irreversible — and the action for each.
• Aortic dissection — Stanford classification, complicated vs uncomplicated type B, and the trial evidence for endovascular repair.
• Dialysis access — order of preference, timing before dialysis, the failing fistula, steal syndrome management.
• Diabetic foot — infection grading, osteomyelitis diagnosis, revascularise-then-debride sequencing.
• Vascular trauma — hard signs mandate exploration; the role of CT angiography for soft signs.
• Venous thromboembolism — anticoagulant choice and duration, catheter-directed lysis criteria, IVC filter indications.

Privileges

Open aortic surgery, EVAR and TEVAR, peripheral endovascular intervention, carotid surgery and stenting, venous intervention and access surgery are each privileged separately on a signed logbook with numbers as primary operator over the last two to three years. Endovascular privileges require documented training and radiation-safety certification. Surgeons from open-surgery-dominant training programmes should expect employers to ask specifically about their endovascular numbers — the Gulf private sector is heavily endovascular. Interventional radiologists and cardiologists compete for peripheral intervention privileges in many hospitals.

Process

1. Portal registration and title selection (Sheryan, Mumaris+ or the relevant portal).
2. DataFlow verification of the primary degree, the surgery qualification, the vascular qualification, registration and experience (guide, fees).
3. Eligibility, booking (lead times), exam — Prometric for most authorities, Pearson VUE for DOH.
4. Offer, credentialing and privileging, activation.

Salaries

Specialist vascular surgeons in the UAE typically earn AED 42,000–65,000 a month and Consultants AED 65,000–120,000; endovascular-capable surgeons in private groups often add a share of procedural revenue. Saudi packages run SAR 36,000–60,000 for Specialists with housing, and dialysis-access surgeons are recruited continuously; Qatar is comparable. Compare in the salary calculator and register in the talent pool.

Eight-week plan

1. Week 1: basics, imaging, pharmacology.
2. Week 2: aneurysmal disease and dissection.
3. Week 3: chronic and acute limb ischaemia, the diabetic foot.
4. Week 4: carotid, visceral and renovascular disease.
5. Week 5: venous and lymphatic disease.
6. Week 6: dialysis access and vascular trauma.
7. Week 7: vasculitis, ethics, patient safety, guideline review.
8. Week 8: two timed mocks from the Specialist Vascular Surgery question bank.

Frequently asked questions

What is the pass mark for the Prometric vascular surgery exam?

65%. The Specialist Vascular Surgery paper has 150 single-best-answer questions in three hours, so 98 correct answers are needed.

Can a general surgeon perform vascular surgery in the Gulf?

A general surgeon may hold limited vascular privileges within the general surgery licence, but the Vascular Surgery title requires a dedicated qualification such as MCh, DNB, FCPS or FRCS (Vasc).

Which vascular skills are most in demand in the UAE and Saudi Arabia?

Dialysis access surgery, diabetic-foot revascularisation and endovascular intervention, followed by aortic and carotid work at tertiary centres.

Are endovascular procedures covered by the vascular surgery licence?

The licence allows practice; each hospital privileges endovascular work separately on documented training, case numbers and radiation-safety certification.