Surgery

Does arthroscopic partial meniscectomy for symptomatic patients with a meniscal tear and knee osteoarthritis results in better functional outcomes than physical therapy?

Researchers in Denmark evaluated the quality of hospital care delivered to more than 13,500 patients with peptic ulcer bleeding as part of a large-scale quality improvement initiative.

Acknowledging that C-reactive protein (CRP) is a known infection or inflammation indicator, a team of researchers investigated preoperative CRP level's predictive value with regard to postoperative infectious complications after colorectal surgery.

A solid history and physical exam, several quick tests to localize pain, and a management plan that incorporates physical therapy can produce good outcomes without resorting to surgery.

Local anesthetic wound infiltration is associated with postoperative pain scores comparable to those obtained through epidural analgesia.

Patients who undergo open and minimally-invasive colon surgery on Monday have significantly shorter lengths of hospital stay compared to operations performed on any other day of the week.

After examining 24 clinical studies, researchers conclude transverse incisions are less painful for patients - and required significantly less narcotic analgesics - compared to midline incisions.

UCLA researchers determine the model for end-stage liver disease (MELD) scoring system effectively moves patients in the most critical condition to the top of the liver recipient list.

New insurance protections, changes in how AIDS Drug Assistance Program benefits are counted, Medicaid expansion, and other provisions in the law will mean better care for many patients.

Christopher Kaeding, MD, Director of Sports Medicine at Ohio State University's Wexner Medical Center, recently live-streamed surgery as he repaired a 47-year-old woman's anterior cruciate ligament.

A team of investigators have revisited ultrasound as a tool for providing more targeted essential tremor treatment.

Researchers discover patients with cerebral cavernous malformations who receive intensive evaluation pre-surgical evaluation are significantly more likely to be free of seizure postoperatively.

Researchers at Duke University discover that hearts from donors with histories of cardiac arrest can be successfully transplanted, sometimes with excellent outcomes.

Researchers have determined the differences in healthcare resource use and costs between total knee replacement patients with and without muscle atrophy/weakness.

A research team explains the relationship between economic indicators and patients' propensity to undergo cosmetic procedures.

Cardiac surgery teams should be trained to improve communication and teamwork, and hospitals should establish robust quality assurance systems to identify and correct safety hazards.

While neither surgeons nor patients ever want to face post-surgical complications, a new study has revealed that certain types of payments to hospitals reward suboptimal care and penalize quality care.

Surgeons and hospitals are concerned about perioperative risk reduction for obstructive sleep apnea patients.

The delivery of fecal microflora from "normal" stool from healthy donors by jejunal tube or during colonic endoscopy to promote microflora growth in the recipient is becoming more common.

Researchers have identified gene expression patterns and DNA changes that can also be used as tumor markers if present in tumor biopsies.

Although many US hospitals tout quality improvement in surgical outcomes, new research findings released at the national conference of the American College of Surgeons (ACS) National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP) show that taking cancer operation performance into account would deliver a more accurate hospital rating.

The federal government's Partnership for Patients Hospital Engagement Networks (HENs), which work to improve patient care through implementation and dissemination of best practices in clinical quality, have released checklists for 10 areas of patient care.

New research indicates that adenotonsillectomy helps children with sleep apnea sleep better, reduces restlessness and impulsivity, and improves their quality of life

Study shows use of Nissen fundoplication for GERD has fallen, with fewer procedures performed at high-volume centers and more at urban non-teaching hospitals.

Survey reveals explosive growth in the popularity of upper-arm liposuction and brachioplasty among women.

Recent studies reveal more information on the effects of menopausal status and sleep-disordered breathing on bariatric surgery outcomes. Also, the FDA is reviewing a new agent that may help ensure a faster and safer postsurgical recovery for morbidly obese patients.

Study shows that increased noise in the OR can impair communications between members of the operating team, and reducing ambient noise in may increase patient safety and reduce the risk of error.

Though it's common medical knowledge that an ulcer eating a hole through a patient's stomach requires immediate surgical treatment as a result of its life-threatening nature, new findings from a team of Danish researchers urge physicians to beat the clock in performing emergency surgery on perforated peptic ulcers (PPU).

Study finds hyponatremia is an independent predictor of increased mortality, length of hospital stay, and postoperative complications in patients who undergo cardiac surgery.

Transoral incisionless fundoplication (TIF) was shown to be more effective than taking the maximal proton pump inhibitor (PPI) dose in relieving heartburn, regurgitation, and other troublesome symptoms in patients with refractory gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD).