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Blocking off splenic artery helps liver transplant patients with small-for-size syndrome

Blocking off the splenic artery, either through surgical ligation or radiological coiling, helped six out of seven patients suffering from small-for-size syndrome after a partial liver transplant.

3 Feb 2009

Risk of malpractice lawsuits in breast imaging overestimate by radiologists

Radiologists who work in breast imaging tend to overestimate their actual risk of medical malpractice lawsuits, according to a study performed at the University of Washington School of Public Health and Community Medicine in Seattle, WA.

2 Feb 2009

Surgeons remove healthy kidney through donor's vagina

In what is believed to be a first-ever procedure, surgeons at Johns Hopkins have successfully removed a healthy donor kidney through a small incision in the back of the donor's vagina.

2 Feb 2009

Lung transplants: Doing more is better and safer

Transplant surgeons at Johns Hopkins have evidence that hospitals performing at least 20 lung transplant procedures a year, on average, have the best overall patient survival rates and lowest number of deaths from the complex surgery.

29 Jan 2009

Study shows no standardized approach to epidural steroid injections for back pain

Today at the American Academy of Pain Medicine's 25th Annual Meeting, researchers from University of California at San Diego report that no standardized practices exist for administering an epidural steroid injection for back pain. Researchers looked at many factors including: which steroids were given, the amount of steroid used, and whether or not a local anesthetic was mixed with the steroid.

29 Jan 2009

Three new nomograms predict successful kidney transplant outcomes

Kidney transplants are the best available therapy for end stage renal disease.

23 Jan 2009

Mild brain stimulation may enhance motor skills in traumatic brain injury, stroke

People who received a mild electrical current to a motor control area of the brain were significantly better able to learn and perform a complex motor task than those in control groups.

19 Jan 2009

Transarterial chemoembolization as liver cancer treatment

Using tiny chemotherapy-soaked beads to choke off and kill cancerous liver tumors is becoming more successful, according to research being presented at the 21st annual International Symposium on Endovascular Therapy (ISET).

19 Jan 2009

Morbidly obese patients face high risk for complications after colectomy

New research published in the January issue of the Journal of the American College of Surgeons shows that morbidly obese patients are at higher risk than normal weight patients for complications after colectomy ¨C surgical removal of all or part of the colon ¨C for the treatment of cancer.

15 Jan 2009

Simple surgical checklist during major operations lowers deaths and complications

A collection of hospitals in eight cities around the globe has successfully demonstrated that the use of a simple surgical checklist during major operations can lower the incidence of deaths and complications by more than one third.

15 Jan 2009

Electrical stimulation of the brain offers hope for Parkinson's sufferers

Electrical stimulation of the brain -- a treatment in which a pacemaker-like device sends pulses to electrodes implanted in the brain -- is riskier than drug therapy but may hold significant benefits for those with Parkinson's disease who no longer respond well to medication alone.

14 Jan 2009

Photoacoustic tomography changes lymph node biopsy, reduces radiaiton exposure

Information obtained from a new application of photoacoustic tomography (PAT) is worth its weight in gold to breast cancer patients.

13 Jan 2009

Colonoscopy quality critical factor to thorough exam and best colon cancer detection

Publication of a meta-analysis by Wilkins et al. on colonoscopy screening for colorectal cancer performed by primary care physicians raises several important issues regarding the quality of the exam, the safety of patients and the effectiveness of detecting colorectal cancer and pre-cancerous changes in the colon.

13 Jan 2009

Epidurals and spinal anesthetics safer than previously reported

The largest ever prospective study [1,2] into the major complications [3] of epidurals and spinal anaesthetics published in the British Journal of Anaesthesia today (Monday 12 January 2009) concludes that previous studies have over-estimated the risks of severe complications of these procedures.

12 Jan 2009

New method for implanting aortic heart valves

An innovative approach for implanting a new aortic heart valve without open-heart surgery is being offered to patients at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center.

7 Jan 2009

Health-care providers and patients differ on views of knee replacement

Total knee replacement (TKR) is a common treatment for osteoarthritis, a disease affecting more than 20 million Americans.

7 Jan 2009

A new state-of-the-art approach to brain and spine surgery

A medical revolution emerges when technology blends with smart care.

7 Jan 2009

Strong urologic surgeons perform cutting-edge minimally invasive surgery

Urologists at the University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC) are advancing the frontiers of minimally invasive surgery as they begin to introduce single-port access (SPA) surgery to the Rochester region.

7 Jan 2009

MR arthrography is more accurate than MR in diagnosing shoulder tears

MR arthrography of the shoulder allows physicians to better identify tears and provides patients with an accurate diagnosis to determine whether or not surgery is needed, according to a study performed at Neuroskeletal Imaging in Merritt Island, Florida.

6 Jan 2009

Deep brain stimulation helps advanced Parkinson's disease patients

Patients with advanced Parkinson disease (PD) who received deep brain stimulation treatment had more improvement in movement skills and quality of life after six months than patients who received other medical therapy, but also had a higher risk of a serious adverse events, according to a study in the January 7 issue of JAMA.

6 Jan 2009