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Extradural brain stimulation safe and effective for patients with Parkinson's

Electrical stimulation using extradural electrodes—placed underneath the skull but not implanted in the brain—is a safe approach with meaningful benefits for patients with Parkinson's disease, reports the October issue of Neurosurgery, official journal of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons.

17 Oct 2012

EMR before radiofrequency ablation safe and effective for patients with nodular Barrett's esophagus

A new study shows that endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) before radiofrequency ablation (RFA) is a safe and effective treatment option for patients with nodular Barrett's esophagus (BE) and advanced neoplasia.

17 Oct 2012

High nurse workloads may affect postsurgical outcomes of older minorities

Older black patients are three times more likely than older white patients to suffer poorer outcomes after surgery, including death, when cared for by nurses with higher workloads, reports research from the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing.

17 Oct 2012

UK HealthCare's Gill Heart Institute cardiologists perform TAVR procedures

Interventional cardiologists at UK HealthCare's Gill Heart Institute have successfully performed the facility's first two transcatheter aortic valve replacements.

17 Oct 2012

iLarynx app effective at simulating fiberoptic bronchoscopy

A study presented during the ANESTHESIOLOGY 2012 annual meeting has shown that an iPhone application called iLarynx was so effective at simulating fiberoptic bronchoscopy that when app-trained students eventually used a real bronchoscope on a manikin, they completed the procedure in less than half the time than students exposed only to anatomy photos.

17 Oct 2012

Transvaginal ultrasound effective in treating early-stage endometrial cancer

A common birth control device is effective in treating early-stage endometrial cancer in morbidly obese and high-risk surgery patients, said Georgia Health Sciences University Cancer Center researchers, and could lead to a cost-effective treatment for all women with this cancer type.

17 Oct 2012

Simulation training can vastly improve trainee surgeons' skills prior to live procedures

In a paper published today in Archives of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery entitled "Criterion-Based Training to Improve Surgical Performance," researchers at Montefiore Medical Center have demonstrated that current requirements for surgical proficiency, including the performance of a fixed number of surgeries, insufficiently assesses surgical capabilities and does not take into consideration individual learning differences.

16 Oct 2012

Language, ethnicity play a role in postoperative behavioral change among chidlren

A study presented at the ANESTHESIOLOGY 2012 annual meeting found children's negative behavioral change after surgery differs among Spanish- and English-speaking White and Hispanic families.

16 Oct 2012

Transcranial magnetic stimulation can benefit patients with depression, debilitating tinnitus

Three patients who have suffered periodic major depression throughout their adult lives told an audience attending a Loyola Grand Rounds presentation how their lives have been transformed by a new magnetic therapy.

16 Oct 2012

New radiation therapy can reduce risk of neurocognitive adverse effects in children

Children who undergo brain radiation therapy run a significant risk of suffering from permanent neurocognitive adverse effects. These adverse effects are due to the fact that the radiation often encounters healthy tissue. This reduces the formation of new cells, particularly in the hippocampus - the part of the brain involved in memory and learning.

16 Oct 2012

Animal research shows promise in treating AD, brain damage and heart problems resulting from SCIs

New animal studies provide additional support for investigating stem cell treatments for Parkinson's disease, head trauma, and dangerous heart problems that accompany spinal cord injury, according to research findings released today.

16 Oct 2012

Drug-eluting balloon procedure can effectively treat peripheral artery disease

Use of balloon angioplasty and placement of stents to widen clogged arteries have become standard medical procedure. Further advancing this treatment, drug-eluting devices are now delivering medication directly to the site where it can be most effective. While this technique has met with success in coronary arteries, its use in peripheral arteries is still under study.

16 Oct 2012

Fit elderly NSCLC patients should be considered for salvage targeted therapy

Until there are more validated biomarkers to direct treatment decisions, many physicians use patient age to decide what therapy to give their patients. Literature data report that older patients often go undertreated because of concerns for limited tolerance to toxic therapies.

16 Oct 2012

Embryonic neuron transplants could effectively treat brain diseases

The unexpected survival of embryonic neurons transplanted into the brains of newborn mice in a series of experiments at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) raises hope for the possibility of using neuronal transplantation to treat diseases like Alzheimer's, epilepsy, Huntington's, Parkinson's and schizophrenia.

15 Oct 2012

Language disparities impact Hispanic women during labor

A study presented at the ANESTHESIOLOGY 2012 annual meeting found the role of women's primary language impacts whether or not they receive an epidural for pain relief during labor.

15 Oct 2012

Few physicians recommend active surveillance for low-risk prostate cancer

Few physicians recommend active surveillance for low-risk prostate cancer rather than pursuing surgery or radiation, according to a Mayo Clinic study being presented at the North Central Section of the American Urological Association's annual meeting Oct. 10-13 in Chicago.

15 Oct 2012

Study evaluates international data on kidney transplantation

Kidney transplants performed in Europe are considerably more successful in the long run than those performed in the United States.

15 Oct 2012

Wal-Mart expanding program for no-cost employee surgeries

Wal-Mart announced this week that it will expand a program that ends out-of-pocket procedure and travel costs for employees seeking some heart and spine surgeries if they go to hospitals across the country that have agreements with the retailer.

15 Oct 2012

Elekta Synergy system with Agility 160-leaf MLC now available at Radboud

The first of three newly acquired Elekta Synergy treatment systems equipped with Agility 160-leaf multi-leaf collimator (MLC) is now up and running clinically at Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Center - making the clinic the first in the Netherlands to use Agility.

From Elekta 15 Oct 2012

Duke researchers develop new 3-D tool for heart surgery

A team of researchers from Duke University speaking at the ANESTHESIOLOGY 2012 annual meeting revealed the development of a new 3-D tool that enables trainees in transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) to have real-time instruction in obtaining and interpreting high-quality images of the heart and major vessels - and it's all just a finger swipe away on your Apple iPad.

15 Oct 2012