Hospital Medicine

Results from the UMPIRE study show that use of fixed-dose combination cardiovascular drugs improve medication adherence and improve blood pressure and cholesterol levels in patients.

Results from the OPERA trial presented at AHA 2012 show that short-term use of fish oil supplements does not decrease post-operative atrial fibrillation.

Men age 50 and older who take multivitamins every day gain no added protection against heart attacks, stroke, or cardiovascular death.

A new experimental device may be able to use converted energy from a patient's heart to generate enough electricity to fully power a pacemaker.

Study results presented at AHA 2012 indicate that revascularization using CABG in diabetic patients with multivessel disease provides better clinical outcomes than PCI and is more cost effective in the long run.

Results from a sub-study of the Trial to Assess Chelation Therapy (TACT) that focused on quality of life issues in patients who had previously suffered a heart attack and were treated with chelation therapy reveal no improvements in these patients' quality of life.

Randomized controlled trials remain the gold standard, but a researcher at Kidney Week 2012 says that new approaches and study designs are needed that reflect real-world drug use and account for confounding variables.

Patients with end-stage renal disease who live in the Midwest begin dialysis at an earlier stage than patients who live in other regions of the US.

Results from the TEMPO trial presented at Kidney Week 2012 show that treatment with tolvaptan slowed the increase in total kidney volume and the decline in kidney function in patients with Autosomal Dominant Polycystic Kidney Disease (ADPKD).

Increasing numbers of people are on kidney transplant waiting lists. However, the number of potential living donors may shrink as more Americans qualify as pre-diabetic, making them less than ideal donor candidates.

Experts at Kidney Week 2012 discuss several treatment options for hyponatremia, including fluid restriction, loop diuretics, and the use of selective vasopressin V2-receptor antagonists.

A diet rich in highly alkaline fruits and vegetables helps reduce a marker of kidney injury and preserve kidney function in patients with chronic kidney disease.

The powerful immunosuppressive drugs used to prevent allograft rejection are associated with severe side effects. A "mixed chimerism" strategy in which patients undergo simultaneous bone marrow and kidney transplant from the same donor may improve transplant survival and reduce the need for these drugs.

Use of peritoneal dialysis in patients with end-stage renal disease is declining due to lack of physician training and awareness, financial disincentives, and other factors. However, with proper patient and provider education, it is possible to grow a successful peritoneal dialysis program.

Study results reported at Kidney Week 2012 reveal that patients with early-stage CKD fare better in the public health system, which also appears to produce fewer racial and ethnic health disparities in care delivered to this population.

Physicians often do not follow treatment guidelines for health care-acquired pneumonia, resulting in nearly two-thirds of patients receiving antibiotics that conflict with established guidelines.

Specific spectrum of UV light can effectively kill drug-resistant VRE, c. diff, and other sources of serious hospital-associated infections.

However, researchers at IDWeek 2012 said that although the drug showed a biological and a clinical effect during a phase III study, it did not meet the primary efficacy outcome.

Intestinal microbiota transplant is a viable option for patients with C. diff infection who have not responded to conventional treatment.

Study results presented at IDWeek 2012 in San Diego show that the EMR use by hospitals does not curb high rates of medication errors involving the complex antiretroviral regimens used in HIV treatment.

Study results presented at IDWeek 2012 show that requiring flu vaccination for all employees at a large health care facility resulted in a significant drop in the employee absence rate during flu season.

Public health experts at IDWeek 2012 provided updates on new case reports, the CDC's efforts to contain the outbreak of fungal meningitis, information on assessing asymptomatic patients, and more.

Investigators at more than one dozen sites will enroll hundreds of neurologically injured patients to study the effects of low serum sodium concentrations prior to therapy.

Hyponatremia is frequently seen in patients with hepatic impairment and portal hypertension, and is associated with wide range of severe complications and comorbidities. Pharmacologic treatment with vasopressin receptor antagonists offer management options beyond standard therapy.

In this video about hyponatremia, Dr. Paul Kattupalli reviews some of the important things healthcare professionals need to remember when treating patients with hyponatremia.

Tolvaptan, a vasopression V2 receptor antagonist used to increase low levels of sodium in the blood, could be a cost effective way of managing patients who have hyponatremia.

Hyponatremia is associated with longer hospital stays and higher mortality among cancer patients who exhibit the condition.

Cloud-based EMR systems may provide a less expensive alternative to those practices wishing to implement such a system.

Hypotonic fluids, such as .25% saline or .45% saline, have been used since the 1950's as maintenance fluids in a hospital setting However, for several years, there has been increasing evidence that delivering these fluids can lead to hyponatremia.

More effective management of rheumatoid arthritis with medication may be contributing to a decline in the need for joint surgery in patients with the condition, Mayo Clinic researchers have found.