Articles
Weight-Loss Surgery Results No Better at 'Best' Hospitals
February 27, 2013 9:26 am | by Kristina Fiore | CommentsFor Medicare patients, having bariatric surgery at a designated "center of excellence" did not offer better outcomes, researchers found. In a retrospective study, there were no differences in any complications between centers that had the designation and those that did not.
Study Raises Questions About Robotic Surgery For Hysterectomy
February 26, 2013 9:28 am | by Roni Caryn Rabin | CommentsThe cost of robotic surgery for hysterectomy is rarely mentioned. But last week, a new study that evaluated outcomes in more than a quarter of a million American women raised a number of critical questions.
FDA OKs New Silicone Gel Breast Implant
February 25, 2013 9:27 am | CommentsThe FDA has approved a new silicone gel breast implant for augmentation and reconstruction of women's breast tissue. The Natrelle 410 Highly Cohesive Anatomically Shaped Silicone-Gel Filled Breast Implant is indicated for women ages 22 and older for augmentation, and for women of any age in reconstruction, the agency said.
Malpractice: Laser Surgery Lawsuits Surge
February 22, 2013 9:37 am | by Nancy Walsh | CommentsLawsuits relating to injury from laser surgery are on the rise, and physicians have been held liable even if they were not personally operating the device, a retrospective study found. Over a 25-year period, 174 cases of cutaneous injury were reported following procedures such as hair removal and facial rejuvenation.
Use Of Robots For Hysterectomy Soars, But With Little Benefit
February 20, 2013 8:59 am | by Charles Bankhead | CommentsRobotically assisted hysterectomy increased dramatically from 2007 to 2010, despite higher cost and similar complication rates compared with laparoscopic procedures, a review of data from more than 400 hospitals showed. Robotically assisted procedures accounted for 0.5% of hysterectomies in 2007 and almost 10% of procedures in 2010.
CABG Plus Valve Replacement Tied to Added Risk
February 19, 2013 9:45 am | by Todd Neale | CommentsDoing aortic valve replacement and coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) at the same time led to worse outcomes than valve replacement alone, but the difference was attributed to patient characteristics, researchers found.
ICD Leads: Thinner May Not Be Better
February 15, 2013 2:55 pm | by Chris Kaiser | CommentsThe failure and subsequent recall of two popular brands of implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) leads may have more to do with size than mechanics, Italian researchers suggested.
Researchers Bring Sense Of Infrared Sight To Rats
February 14, 2013 1:46 pm | by Gene Ostrovsky | CommentsExtra-sensory systems for the blind have the potential to replace eyes with another sense, and some have been built that essentially turn video into sound or tactile sensation. Now researchers at Duke University Medical Center are reporting in Nature Communications that they were able to create a system that combines an infrared camera and a brain implant to let rats sense infrared light, which they otherwise don’t perceive.
Positioning And The Surgical Robot
February 13, 2013 1:30 pm | by Dan Allen, Founding Partner, Medicus Surgical and Nursing CE Portal | CommentsHere's how to deal with the special requirements of the surgical robotics experience.
Take A Deep Breath
February 13, 2013 12:08 pm | by Jill Trasamar, Marketing and Product Manager, Megadyne | CommentsWhen it comes to limiting surgical smoke exposure, the risks are very real and the lack of action we're taking is quite disconcerting.
Keep Cool In The OR
February 13, 2013 11:52 am | by Mike Schmidt, Editor, Surgical Products | Coolshirt Systems | CommentsSurgeons demand cost-effective, high-performance results from their cooling vests. So what factors need to be considered when buying a new vest for the OR?
Embracing An Integrated OR
February 13, 2013 11:42 am | by Mike Schmidt, Editor, Surgical Products | CommentsA strong desire to dramatically improve OR efficiency led one South Carolina hospital to purchase and implement a real-time process management solution.
Challenging Cases: Umbilical Hernia With Colon Cancer
February 13, 2013 11:20 am | by Dr. Gregory Dumanian, M.D. and Jennifer E. Cheesborough, Northwestern University | CommentsA 76-year-old man's case posed a number of significant challenges for one surgery team.
Higher Hospital Readmissions Aren't Linked To Fewer Deaths
February 13, 2013 9:24 am | by Jordan Rau | CommentsA study published Tuesday finds that there's no major link between hospitals with high readmissions and those with low mortality rates. The findings come as Medicare ramps up financial penalties for hospitals with higher readmission rates in an effort to improve quality and contain costs.
How Much Does Surgery Cost? Good Luck Finding Out
February 12, 2013 9:27 am | by Steve James | CommentsResearchers at the University of Iowa set out to see if they could learn, and then compare, the price of a common procedure -- hip replacement -- at hospitals across the United States. Of those they surveyed, only 16 percent could immediately provide a complete price, including the doctor's fees and hospital costs, for the procedure. And 47 percent of the hospitals came up with a figure only after health care providers were separately contacted.
