Here are what the editors at HealthDay consider to be the most important developments in Surgery for March 2016. This roundup includes the latest research news from journal articles, as well as the FDA approvals and regulatory changes that are the most likely to affect clinical practice.
FDA Allows Use of Investigational Zika Test for Blood Donations
THURSDAY, March 31, 2016 (HealthDay News) — An experimental test to check blood donations for the Zika virus has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
Reactivation of HSV Described in Patient After Cataract Surgery
THURSDAY, March 31, 2016 (HealthDay News) — In a letter to the editor published online March 24 in Clinical & Experimental Ophthalmology, a case of reactivation of herpes simplex virus (HSV) uveitis is described in a patient with unexplained persistent elevated intraocular pressure (IOP) following intraocular surgery.
Full Text (subscription or payment may be required)
Johns Hopkins Announces HIV-to-HIV Organ Transplants
THURSDAY, March 31, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Groundbreaking liver and kidney transplants from an HIV-positive donor to HIV-positive recipients were announced Wednesday by surgeons at Johns Hopkins University.
Non-Surgical Management of Rectal Cancer Increasing
THURSDAY, March 31, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Use of nonoperative management (NOM) of rectal cancer is increasing, but primarily in disadvantaged patients, according to a study published online March 28 in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.
Antipsychotics Not Effective for Delirium in Hospitalized Patients
TUESDAY, March 29, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Antipsychotic medications do not appear to be effective for preventing or treating delirium in adult medical or surgical inpatients, according to a review published online March 23 in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.
Mortality Low for Laparoscopic Surgery in Severe GERD
TUESDAY, March 29, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Mortality and reoperation rates are very low among working-age patients with severe gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) undergoing primary laparoscopic fundoplication, according to a study published online March 21 in the British Journal of Surgery.
How Can We Fix the Wage Gap Among Female Physicians?
MONDAY, March 28, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Women doctors can address the gender wage disparity by understanding the reasons why they earn less, according to a report published in Medical Economics.
Many Doctors Prescribe Opioids for Longer Than CDC Advises
FRIDAY, March 25, 2016 (HealthDay News) — When doctors in the United States prescribe opioids for their patients, 99 percent of them hand out prescriptions that exceed the federally recommended three-day dosage limit, new research suggests.
Surgeons With >25 Cases a Year Optimal for Thyroid Removal
FRIDAY, March 25, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Patients who have their thyroidectomy performed by a surgeon who does more than 25 such procedures a year tend to have fewer complications, according to a study published online March 8 in the Annals of Surgery.
Full Text (subscription or payment may be required)
FDA Wants Generic Opioids to Be Abuse-Deterrent
FRIDAY, March 25, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Continuing their push to combat the nation’s epidemic of opioid abuse, U.S. officials on Thursday urged generic drug makers to take steps to redesign drugs such as hydrocodone and oxycodone to make them harder to abuse.
Boston Children’s Hospital Unveils Novel ACL Repair Method
FRIDAY, March 25, 2016 (HealthDay News) — A new method of repairing anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tears shows promise, according to a new study.
Esophageal Rupture Described After Drinking PEG Solution
THURSDAY, March 24, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Esophageal rupture can occur in association with colonoscopy preparation, according to a letter to the editor published in the March issue of the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.
Financial Compensation May Encourage Kidney Donation
THURSDAY, March 24, 2016 (HealthDay News) — If offered $50,000, nearly three out of five Americans would donate a kidney, according to survey results published online March 23 in JAMA Surgery.
Protocolized Handover Process Sustainable for Reducing Errors
THURSDAY, March 24, 2016 (HealthDay News) — A protocolized handover process correlates with a sustained reduction in the number of errors for children being transferred to the intensive care unit (ICU) after cardiac surgery, according to a study published online March 21 in Pediatric Anesthesia.
FDA Orders Enhanced Warning Labels on Opioid Pain Medications
TUESDAY, March 22, 2016 (HealthDay News) — The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has announced that immediate-release opioid pain medications will get new boxed warnings about the dangers of misuse.
Endogenous Endophthalmitis ID’d After Breast Implant Surgery
TUESDAY, March 22, 2016 (HealthDay News) — In a case report published online March 17 in JAMA Ophthalmology, bilateral endogenous endophthalmitis with chorioretinal involvement due to Candida albicans a few hours after breast augmentation surgery has been documented.
Full Text (subscription or payment may be required)
AANA: Men Should Avoid Erectile Dysfunction Meds Prior to Surgery
MONDAY, March 21, 2016 (HealthDay News) — The American Association of Nurse Anesthetists (AANA) is recommending that men avoid erectile dysfunction medications before surgery.
FDA: Most Powdered Medical Gloves Should Be Banned in U.S.
MONDAY, March 21, 2016 (HealthDay News) — The U.S. Food and Drug Administration wants to ban most powdered medical gloves, saying they pose serious health risks to patients and health care providers alike.
Physicians Respond to New CDC Opioid Guidelines
MONDAY, March 21, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Physicians have responded to the new U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s clinical guidelines for prescribing opioids, according to a report published by the American Medical Association (AMA).
Case Before Supreme Court May Expose Doctors to Large Fines
FRIDAY, March 18, 2016 (HealthDay News) — A case before a state supreme court could potentially expose physicians to large fines based on a legal technicality relating to what they should have known, rather than what they knew, according to the American Medical Association (AMA).
Ten-Fold Variation in Cost of CABG Across Hospitals
THURSDAY, March 17, 2016 (HealthDay News) — The price of coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) varies widely across U.S. hospitals, according to a study published in the April 1 issue of The American Journal of Cardiology.
Significant Changes in Liver Blood Flow With Prone Positioning
THURSDAY, March 17, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Prone positioning is associated with significant changes in hepatocellular function and cardiac output in healthy volunteers, according to research published online March 7 in Anaesthesia.
Spending on Prescription Meds Up About 5 Percent in 2015
THURSDAY, March 17, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Spending on prescription medications for insured Americans increased about 5 percent in 2015, with the increase half of that seen in 2014, the Associated Press reported.
Patient-Controlled Analgesia Non-Inferior After C-Section
WEDNESDAY, March 16, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Early patient-controlled oral analgesia is non-inferior to standard parenteral analgesia for pain management after elective cesarean section, according to a study published online March 2 in Anaesthesia.
Disruptive Patients Distract Docs, May Receive Compromised Care
WEDNESDAY, March 16, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Disruptive patients may get worse care from physicians, according to a study published online March 7 in BMJ Quality & Safety. The findings aren’t definitive because the researchers tested how physicians responded in fictional vignettes, instead of real-life encounters. Still, the results suggest that such patients distract physicians from doing their jobs.
Abstract 1
Full Text (subscription or payment may be required)
Abstract 2
Full Text (subscription or payment may be required)
Editorial (subscription or payment may be required)
CDC Issues New Prescription Guidelines for Opioids
TUESDAY, March 15, 2016 (HealthDay News) — A new advisory, from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, stresses that doctors — especially primary care physicians — should try to avoid prescription of opioids whenever possible. Two research letters published online March 15 in the Journal of the American Medical Association highlight the scope of the opioid issue.
Influenza Vaccine Safe for Patients in Hospital for Surgery
TUESDAY, March 15, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Surgery patients don’t have an increased risk for complications if they receive an influenza vaccine while in the hospital, according to a study published online March 15 in the Annals of Internal Medicine.
Full Text (subscription or payment may be required)
Mayo Clinic Has Established Model to Help Battle Burnout
TUESDAY, March 15, 2016 (HealthDay News) — In an effort to reduce burnout among physicians, the Mayo Clinic is initiating a model to raise camaraderie and increase collaboration, according to a report published by the American Medical Association (AMA).
Guidance Offered for Negotiating Higher Rates From Payers
MONDAY, March 14, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Negotiations to increase payment from insurance companies can be extremely difficult, although it is possible to get a payment increase, according to a report published in Medical Economics.
Preventive Mastectomies Triple for U.S. Women Over Past Decade
MONDAY, March 14, 2016 (HealthDay News) — The number of U.S. breast cancer patients choosing to have a healthy breast removed has tripled in the past decade, even though this aggressive measure offers no significant survival benefits for women with cancer in one breast, according to a study published online March 8 in the Annals of Surgery.
Full Text (subscription or payment may be required)
Elderly With Advanced CRC Often Get Costly, Unnecessary Tx
FRIDAY, March 11, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Expensive medications are being given far more often to elderly patients with metastatic colorectal cancer, but they offer almost no benefit, according to a study published online Feb. 19 in Medical Care.
Full Text (subscription or payment may be required)
Predictive Model Developed for In-Hospital Mortality in TAVR
THURSDAY, March 10, 2016 (HealthDay News) — A predictive model has been developed and validated for in-hospital mortality among patients undergoing transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR); the findings were published online March 9 in JAMA Cardiology.
Survival Benefit for Kidneys From Incompatible Living Donors
THURSDAY, March 10, 2016 (HealthDay News) — In what researchers are calling a possible “paradigm shift,” a new study shows kidney disease patients may live longer if they receive a transplant from an incompatible living donor rather than wait for a good match. The research was published in the March 10 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
Full Text (subscription or payment may be required)
Editorial (subscription or payment may be required)
Complications Led to Loss of Organ in U.S. Uterus Transplant
WEDNESDAY, March 9, 2016 (HealthDay News) — The first U.S. woman to receive a transplanted uterus has had the implanted organ removed due to an unnamed sudden complication, her doctors at the Cleveland Clinic announced Wednesday.
Physicians’ Contracts Can Affect Patients, Professionalism
WEDNESDAY, March 9, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Problematic clauses in physicians’ contracts can impact patient care and professionalism, according to an Ideas and Opinions piece published online March 8 in the Annals of Internal Medicine.
Full Text (subscription or payment may be required)
Bevacizumab, Triamcinolone Up Outcome After Cataract Surgery
WEDNESDAY, March 9, 2016 (HealthDay News) — For patients undergoing cataract surgery, both bevacizumab and triamcinolone administered at the time of surgery correlate with improvements in visual acuity (VA), but only triamcinolone is associated with sustained improvements in central macular thickness (CMT), according to a study published online Feb. 12 in Clinical & Experimental Ophthalmology.
Neoadjuvant Chemo Response Predicts Sinonasal SCC Outcomes
TUESDAY, March 8, 2016 (HealthDay News) — For patients with sinonasal squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), pathologic response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy is associated with disease progression, according to a study published online March 2 in Head & Neck.
Surgeons Offer Details on First U.S. Uterus Transplant
MONDAY, March 7, 2016 (HealthDay News) — The first American woman to receive a uterus transplant, a 26-year-old identified only as Lindsey, is doing well, Cleveland Clinic doctors reported during a Tuesday news conference.
SCOTUS: States Can’t Force Health Care Data Release
WEDNESDAY, March 2, 2016 (HealthDay News) — The Supreme Court has ruled against state efforts to collect health care data from insurance plans.
Spouse Education Level May Impact Choice for Rural Practice
WEDNESDAY, March 2, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Physicians who are married to a highly-educated spouse are less likely to work in rural underserved areas, according to a study published in the March 1 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Full Text (subscription or payment may be required)
Case of Hepatitis E Transmission Via Plasma Exchange
WEDNESDAY, March 2, 2016 (HealthDay News) — A case of hepatitis E virus (HEV) infection has been reported in a kidney transplant recipient, according to a research letter published online March 1 in the Annals of Internal Medicine.
Full Text (subscription or payment may be required)
Pre-Op Stress Tied to Post-Op Pain, Anxiety in Scoliosis Patients
TUESDAY, March 1, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Attention to preoperative stress in adolescents undergoing scoliosis surgery may reduce levels of postoperative pain as well as anxiety and social and attention problems in the recovery period, according to a study published online Feb. 22 in the Journal of Clinical Nursing.
IVCF Use Up in Older Patients With Pulmonary Embolism
TUESDAY, March 1, 2016 (HealthDay News) — The use of inferior vena caval filters (IVCFs) for pulmonary embolism (PE) increased from 1999 through 2010, according to research published in the March 8 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
Full Text (subscription or payment may be required)
Editorial (subscription or payment may be required)
Copyright © 2016 ScoutNews, LLC. All rights reserved.
