Clinical elegance refers to:

• The pursuit of technically refined, visually impressive, or intellectually satisfying medical interventions.
• A style of clinical practice or surgical performance that emphasizes aesthetic precision, procedural finesse, and minimal disruption—often independent of whether these qualities improve patient outcomes.

In critical writing, clinical elegance may be used ironically or pejoratively, highlighting the disconnect between surgical beauty and clinical utility.

“The resection was clinically elegant — but the patient never woke up.”

It warns against:

• Prioritizing elegance over effectiveness
• Valuing innovation over evidence
• Confusing minimalism with minimal harm

• Outcomes are not reported
• Only intraoperative images or tools are shown
• Words like “precision,” “refined,” or “atraumatic” replace hard data

Synonyms (critical tone): surgical vanity, aesthetic neurosurgery, decorative medicine.

Opposite: Evidence-based pragmatism.