Surgery News and Research

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Removal of tonsils and adenoids improves sleep and behavior in children with breathing disorders

Children diagnosed with sleep-disordered breathing appear to sleep better and have improved behavior following removal of their tonsils and adenoids, according to a report in the October issue of Archives of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery.

16 Oct 2007

Risk of death following bariatric surgery

Approximately 1 percent of Pennsylvania residents who underwent bariatric surgery between 1995 and 2004 died within one year of the surgery and nearly 6 percent died within five years, according to a report in the October issue of Archives of Surgery, a theme issue on bariatric surgery.

16 Oct 2007

Surgical treatment of morbid obesity increases likelihood of patients returning to work

Obese Medicaid patients who undergo Roux-en-Y gastric bypass surgery may be more likely to return to work than obese Medicaid patients who do not undergo the surgery, according to a report in the October issue of Archives of Surgery, a theme issue on bariatric surgery.

16 Oct 2007

Nutritional deficiencies after gastric bypass surgery

Two studies by a group of researchers at Washington Hospital Center highlight potential postoperative nutritional deficiencies among patients who undergo gastric bypass surgery to treat obesity.

16 Oct 2007

Counting during anesthetic injection lessens pain

Patients who counted aloud during the injection of an intravenous anesthetic experienced and recalled less pain, according to new research by anesthesiologists in Japan.

16 Oct 2007

Knee buckling common in older adults

Knee buckling which is a sudden "giving way" of the knee is not an uncommon event particularly for older people.

16 Oct 2007

Mortality rates 71 percent lower at top-rated hospitals

Patients have on average a 71 percent lower chance of dying at the nation's top-rated hospitals compared with the lowest-rated hospitals across 18 procedures and conditions analyzed in the tenth annual HealthGrades Hospital Quality in America Study, issued today by HealthGrades, the healthcare ratings company.

16 Oct 2007

Sharp declines in hospital death rates in 2004

Sharp declines in the hospital death rates of patients from heart attack and five other leading conditions meant that an estimated 136,000 who would have died had they been hospitalized a decade earlier survived their stays in 2004, according to the latest News and Numbers from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

16 Oct 2007

GERD can masquerade as persistent cough or even severe chest pain

Many people may not realize that symptoms such as chronic cough or chest pain can be caused by acid reflux into the esophagus, because they do not experience classic heartburn symptoms or acid regurgitation.

16 Oct 2007

Gastric bypass surgery may cause post-op nutrient deficiencies

Two studies by a group of researchers at Washington Hospital Center highlight potential postoperative nutritional deficiencies among patients who undergo gastric bypass surgery to treat obesity.

16 Oct 2007

Research needed to overcome bariatric surgery objections

Bariatric surgery has become more acceptable, but additional research is needed to demonstrate to insurance companies and the public that it is the best long-term treatment for obesity, according to an editorial in the October issue of Archives of Surgery.

16 Oct 2007

Chemists turn carbon monoxide into potential cardiovascular therapy

During Carbon Monoxide Awareness week, EPSRC highlights how researchers are harnessing the gas for beneficial use.Despite its deadly reputation, the gas carbon monoxide (CO) could actually save lives and boost health in future as a result of leading-edge UK research.

16 Oct 2007

Capsule endoscopy finds undiagnosed Crohn's disease

A small capsule that takes "snapshots" of the small intestine as it moves through the digestive tract helped doctors spot cases of Crohn's disease that had gone undiagnosed for up to 15 years, according to researchers at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center.

16 Oct 2007

Health-care costs of NSAIDs injury

Patients underreported their use of common but potentially dangerous over-the-counter pain medications known as NSAIDs, according to research presented at the Annual Scientific Meeting of the American College of Gastroenterology.

16 Oct 2007

20% of bariatric surgery candidates not psychologically cleared for surgery

A new study by Rhode Island Hospital and Brown University researchers reported that 18 percent of 500 candidates for bariatric surgery did not receive the initial psychiatric clearance for the surgery.

16 Oct 2007

New near-infrared contrast agent reveals bone and breast-cancer-related microcalcifications

Mammography continues to be the method of choice for the early detection of breast cancer. However, because this technique is not as selective or specific as one would wish, and does not deliver reliable results for every level of tissue density, alternatives are being sought.

15 Oct 2007