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Rapid test to screen blood approved by the FDA

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has given it's approval for the first rapid test to detect bacterial contamination in blood platelets prior to transfusion.

20 Sep 2007

Varian Medical Systems receives FDA clearance for new radiosurgery device

Varian Medical Systems, Inc. has received FDA 510(k) clearance for a new high-definition multileaf collimator (MLC), an ultra-fine beam shaping device for radiosurgery.

18 Sep 2007

Effects of smoking on otologic surgery outcomes

It has long been known that active smoking exerts a negative effect on normal ear functioning and hearing by chronically irritating the Eustachian tube and the lining of the middle ear.

18 Sep 2007

Smoking harms effects of periodontal plastic surgery

A study in the September issue of the Journal of Periodontology (JOP) found that smokers had less desirable long term results following periodontal plastic surgery than non-smokers.

18 Sep 2007

Coblation VS Co2 laser for tonsil ablation in adults

New surgical procedures are being developed that could help to speed healing time and reduce pain for adult patients suffering from chronic tonsillitis.

18 Sep 2007

FDA clears for marketing rapid test to screen for bacterial contamination in blood platelets

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has cleared for marketing the first rapid test to detect bacterial contamination in blood platelets prior to transfusion.

18 Sep 2007

Effects of tonsillectomy on speech spectrum

Although tonsillectomy is therapeutic for chronic tonsillitis, the procedure has the potential to affect speech quality, by altering the resonant characteristics of the vocal tract, and to modify velopharyngeal function (the closing off of the nose from the mouth during speech).

18 Sep 2007

Black men do not have more aggressive prostate cancer

A University of Minnesota study of prostate cancer tumors from Caucasian and African-American men has shown no evidence that the cancer is more aggressive in black men.

18 Sep 2007

Tonsillectomies increasingly performed to treat snoring and sleep disorders

A new Mayo Clinic study indicates tonsillectomies are increasingly being performed to treat airway obstructions evidenced by snoring and sleep disorders as opposed to tonsil infections.

18 Sep 2007

Surgeons remove a woman's gall bladder through her vagina

French surgeons successfully removed a woman's gall bladder through her vagina, according to a report in the September issue of Archives of Surgery, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

18 Sep 2007

Study looks at universal pain screening accuracy

The most commonly used measure for pain screening may only be modestly accurate, according to researchers from the Indiana University School of Medicine and the University of North Carolina.

18 Sep 2007

Head and neck cancer may impair driving ability

A preliminary study suggests that patients with cancer in the head and neck region may have inferior performance in some driving skills compared with individuals without the disease, according to a report in the September issue of Archives of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery.

18 Sep 2007

Rhinoplasty for male-to-female transsexuals

Nasal surgery appears to effectively create feminine facial profiles in patients undergoing male-to-female gender reassignment, according to a report in the September/October issue of Archives of Facial Plastic Surgery.

18 Sep 2007

Hospital comparison web sites can be misleading

A review of six publicly available hospital comparison Web sites suggests that they display inconsistent results and use inappropriate or incomplete standards to measure quality, according to a report in the September issue of Archives of Surgery, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

18 Sep 2007

Review of endoscopic frontal sinus surgery

Endoscopic sinus surgery is performed for patients who have chronic or acute sinusitis that persists for more than six weeks after maximum medical therapy has been tried.

18 Sep 2007

Comparison of dental splints over breathing mask to alleviate snoring

The noisy sounds of snoring occur during sleep when there is an obstruction to the free flow of air through the passages at the back of the mouth and nose. Forty-five percent of adults snore at least occasionally and 25 percent are habitual snorers.

18 Sep 2007

Intracapsular tonsil removal associated with reduced postoperative pain, bleeding

Patients who have a tonsillectomy using an “intracapsular” technique - which removes at least 90 percent of tonsil tissue, but spares the tonsil capsule - appear to have less postoperative heavy bleeding and pain compared with those who undergo traditional tonsil removal surgery, according to a report in the September issue of Archives of Otolaryngology–Head & Neck Surgery

18 Sep 2007