MDNN: Egg Allergy Restrictions, New Vision Loss Gene Therapy, Uber Cuts into Ambulance Volume, Doximity Reports Physician Job Growth

Hi, I’m Matt Hoffman, and this is MD Magazine News Network - it’s clinical news for connected physicians.

An updated practice parameter issued by the Joint Task Force on Practice Parameters stressed that individuals with an egg allergy should receive the yearly flu shot, and that no special precautions are required. The studies that evaluated 4,315 egg allergic patients, including 655 patients with a severe allergy, showed that those with the allergy were no more likely than others to react to a flu shot. While previous parameters stated that those with the allergy could safely receive the vaccine at a specialist’s office, followed by a specific waiting period, new parameters state such precautions are not warranted.

The FDA approved a new gene therapy for adults and children with an inherited form of vision loss. Voretigene neparvovec-rzyl, which will be marketed as Luxturna in the US, was approved to treat confirmed biallelic RPE65 mutation-associated retinal dystrophy, a condition which can potentially cause complete blindness in certain patients. The new treatment from Sparks Therapeutics is the first directly-administered gene therapy approved in the US to target a disease caused by mutations in a specific gene.

According to a new study, patients are frequently opting for an Uber ride to the emergency department instead of an ambulance. In the time following Uber’s entry to nearly 800 city-state groups in 2013 and 2014, researchers found an average decrease of 7% in those areas’ ambulatory activity and volume. Researchers theorized patients are considering ambulance costs and emergency department waiting times when choosing Uber. The growing trend would lend to credence to improved ambulatory response times for dire medical emergencies.

A report on workforce trends in the medical community has been released by Doximity, the US’s largest medical social network, which includes about 70% of the nation’s physicians. The data, culled from 12,000 physician jobs posted on the site in 2016 and 2017, revealed information regarding physician demand, compensation, and implications for specialization in metropolitan areas—most notably Boston, Massachusetts, which saw a 72% increase in physician job growth, and the field of geriatrics, which saw an increase in jobs of 164%. With an aging population and a major physician shortage expected by 2030, this data could aid in finding which markets are the most in need.

For these stories and more, visit us at mdmag.com. I’m Matt Hoffman for MDNN, thank for you watching, and Happy Holidays.