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Nearly all groups of patients with spinal stenosis do better with surgery

Nearly all groups of patients with spinal stenosis—but not smokers—do better with surgery than with nonsurgical treatment, reports a study in the October 1 issue of Spine.

10 Oct 2012

NACA could prevent or cure cataracts, macular degeneration and other eye conditions

Researchers at Missouri University of Science and Technology are working with an antioxidant that could prevent or cure cataracts, macular degeneration and other degenerative eye disorders.

10 Oct 2012

Early communication strategies improve end of liver transplant patients’ lives

A multidisciplinary communication intervention involving physicians and family members of liver transplant patients treated in surgical intensive care units can improve end-of-life care, show study results.

9 Oct 2012

Surgical intervention can help fetuses with congenital malformations

Fetuses with congenital malformations can be helped by surgical intervention while still in the womb. The potential of intrauterine surgery to improve their chances of survival is described by Anke Diemert and her co-authors in the latest issue of Deutsches Ärzteblatt International.

9 Oct 2012

Coffee consumption activates bowel motility after elective colonic surgery

Patients who drank coffee, rather than water, after bowel surgery to remove a part of their colon experienced a quicker return to bowel movements and tolerance of solid food.

9 Oct 2012

Women more likely to develop UTI after pelvic-floor surgery

Women who have a positive urine culture test on the day of surgery for a pelvic-floor disorder are more likely to have a urinary tract infection (UTI) in the first six weeks after the procedure.

9 Oct 2012

Myocutaneous flap shows promise in pediatric Achilles tendon repair

A free partial latissimus dorsi myocutaneous flap can be used for the treatment of severe contracture of the Achilles tendon and posterior ankle in children, and achieves satisfactory form and function, the results of a case series indicate.

8 Oct 2012

New neuroprotective agent for stroke patients potentially found

Scientists have shown that a drug called NA-1 results in fewer brain lesions in patients who have undergone surgery to repair a brain aneurysm, compared to placebo, and appears to be safe to use, according to an Article published Online First in The Lancet Neurology.

8 Oct 2012

NovaSom launches full-service testing program for pre-operative diagnosis of OSA

NovaSom, Inc., the leader in home sleep testing and cost-saving solutions for Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) management, today announces the launch of AccuSom Safe Recovery.

8 Oct 2012

New device may restore voice in patients with laryngeal cancer

Patients who have lost their voice box through disease such as throat cancer may be able to speak immediately after a procedure to create a small opening at the throat.

8 Oct 2012

Patient navigation services can reduce dangerous delays in identification of breast cancer

Today researchers from The George Washington University published a study showing that breast cancer patients can reduce potentially dangerous delays in the identification of breast cancer with the assistance of patient navigation services.

8 Oct 2012

Digital Assent releases redesigned PatientPad 2 for iPad platform

Digital Assent, a fast-growing healthcare media and marketing company headquartered in Atlanta, today announced the official release of PatientPad 2.

6 Oct 2012

Improved battlefield transport and triage improves survival of severely wounded soldiers

Wounded soldiers who sustained chest injuries in Operation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan) and Operation Iraqi Freedom (Iraq) had higher mortality rates than soldiers in Korea and Vietnam, according to a military trauma study presented at the 2012 American College of Surgeons Annual Clinical Congress.

6 Oct 2012

Government investment in eye examinations may boost the economy

Governments could add thousands of millions of dollars to the global economy simply by investing in eye examinations and the provision of glasses for some 703 million people who need them, according to a study published this month in the Bulletin of the World Health Organization.

6 Oct 2012

Research roundup: Limited savings found from ACOs; Examining men's health racial disparities

A Simulation Shows Limited Savings From Meeting Quality Targets Under The Medicare Shared Savings Program -- The health law rewards accountable care organizations (ACOs), groups of health care providers working together to save money and increase quality. Those providers then share in the savings.

6 Oct 2012

Progress toward preventing initial and recurrent episodes of C. diff infection

Surgeons are making progress toward preventing initial and recurrent episodes of clostridium difficile colitis (C. difficile or C. diff), a vicious bacterial infection that is estimated to affect about 336,000 people each year, typically patients on antibiotics.

6 Oct 2012

Hip resurfacing unsuitable for women

Metal-on-metal resurfacing for osteoarthritis should be used only in men with a large femoral head, UK researchers believe.

5 Oct 2012

I COUGH program reduces likelihood of respiratory complications in surgical patients

Respiratory complications—including pneumonia and ventilator dependency—are among the most common complications that occur after operations. But a simple and inexpensive postoperative pulmonary care program known as "I COUGH" reduces the likelihood of those life-threatening and costly complications, researchers from Boston University Medical Center reported today at the 2012 American College of Surgeons (ACS) Annual Clinical Congress.

5 Oct 2012

GW professor to develop blood test for early detection of breast cancer

Today, patients with precancerous lesions, or early-stage breast cancer are usually diagnosed after a mammography screening. This method of detection can lead to false-positives and overtreatment, since mammography cannot determine whether pre-cancerous cells will actually turn into breast cancer. This may all change after Sidney Fu, M.D., professor of medicine at the George Washington School of Medicine and Health Sciences (SMHS), completes his study of early breast cancer detection using novel small RNA (microRNA or miRNA) biomarkers.

5 Oct 2012

Botox injections effectively treat urinary urgency incontinence in women

Botox- (onabotulinum toxin-A) injections to the bladder are as effective as medication for treating urinary urgency incontinence in women, but the injection is twice as likely to completely resolve symptoms. These findings were published in the latest issue of The New England Journal of Medicine by a National Institutes of Health clinical trials network including Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine (SSOM).

5 Oct 2012