C-ArmsUSA

Jury Declares Scapels "Lethal Weapons"

2012-02-22T14:46:00.002-05:00

A Texas court rejected the appeals of a mother who was sentenced to 15 years in prison for "medical child abuse" that included subjecting her oldest son to 2 invasive - and unnecessary - surgeries by the time he was 6 years old.

Short History of Medicine

2012-02-17T10:23:00.000-05:00

2000 B.C.E.
- "Here, eat this root."

1000 B.C.E.
- "That root is heathen, say this prayer."

1850 A.D.
- "That prayer is superstition, drink this potion."

1940 A.D.
- "That potion is snake oil, swallow this pill."

1985 A.D. - "That pill is ineffective, take this antibiotic."

2000 A.D.
- "That antibiotic is artificial. Here, eat this root."

Patient Awarded $650,000. But Guess Who the Patient Was?

2012-02-17T10:18:00.000-05:00

Judge rules principal investigator of a new spine device failed to follow his own recommendations.

A spine surgeon who was spearheading the development of a new artificial disc decided to use it to help a colleague with back pain. When he inserted the device, the patient's original pain went away but now he had pain in a new area. The patient sued, and the judge in the case ruled the surgeon had failed to follow his own recommendations for inserting the disc. The patient was awarded $650,000 plus legal costs.

Read full story on Outpatient Surgery

Improving The Functional Capacity And Quality Of Life Of Elderly People By Power Training

2012-02-13T11:02:00.000-05:00

Twelve weeks of training geared towards improving muscular power in older people are highly effective for improving their functional capacity and quality of life, as shown by the studies carried out by the "Biomechanics and Physiology of Movement" research group at the Public University of Navarre led by Professor Mikel Izquierdo-Redin.

The results of these pieces of research . . . READ ON MEDICAL NEWS TODAY

14 Hospitals Pay $12M to Settle Medicare Fraud Charges Surrounding Spinal Surgery Billing

2012-02-09T17:45:00.000-05:00

Fourteen hospitals in 7 states have agreed to pay the federal government $12 million to settle charges of fraudulent Medicare billing for a type of spinal surgery.

According to the U.S. Department of Justice, the following hospitals will share in the restitution for the latest round of settlements on this issue:

See the full list and story in Outpatient Surgery

Too Slow, or Just Conscientious?

2012-02-08T11:05:00.001-05:00

An orthopedic surgeon was removed from a Florida hospital's call list because of concerns that he was too slow and inefficient. Insisting he was just being conscientious, he refused remedial help and sued the hospital. After 13 years of litigation, a federal appeals court recently rejected his lawsuit.
In 1996, physicians at Orlando Regional Healthcare System, now Orlando Health, told Raymond Pierson, MD, he took too long on surgeries, scheduled cases at inappropriate times, labeled routine cases as urgent and waited too long to dictate operative notes. The hospital removed him from its call list and reported him to the National Practitioner Data Bank, but it never took away his privileges during many years of internal investigations in addition to the litigation.

[Read Full Story on Outpatient Surgery]

Stryker v. Storz - Jury to Decide Who Controls OR Controls

2012-01-31T15:27:00.000-05:00

Karl Storz Endoscopy believes it should be the sole producer of integrated OR control systems. Stryker Corporation disagrees. A jury will settle the dispute next month.

Read the full story on Outpatient Surgery

Hospital Must Pay $7.9 mil in Lawsuit

2012-01-31T15:22:00.003-05:00

A Florida hospital must pay $7.9 million for failing to properly monitor and treat a patient who fell into a coma after being given high doses of pain medication.

Read full story on Outpatient Surgery

Who's to Blame for IV Start That Caused Patient's Nerve Injury?

2012-01-26T10:48:00.000-05:00

Technicality spares hospital and nurse who inserted the needle.

An IV needle may have caused the nerve injuries to a patient's wrist, but neither the nurse who inserted the IV nor the hospital she worked at are liable for the damage, according to a Texas appeals court.

The patient alleged that an initial IV start caused nerve injuries she sustained to her wrist. A doctor's expert report supported that claim, but his failure to define an appropriate standard of care or specifically implicate any of the individuals named in the suit led to its eventual dismissal.

[Read full story on OUTPATIENT SURGERY]

Surgeons Defamed by Disgruntled Patient Win $12 Million Verdict

2012-01-16T11:34:00.000-05:00

Patient to pay damages for disparaging doctors online and in public meetings.

A cosmetic surgery patient has been ordered by an Arizona court to pay $12 million for defaming 2 local surgeons in public meetings and in online forums, including her own website, according to court records. Those complaints, according to the surgeons' attorney, included accusations that the Scottsdale, Ariz.-based doctors were responsible for her serious skin infection, had altered her medical notes and weren't board certified physicians.

[read the full article on Outpatient Surgery]

Stenting For Stroke Prevention Becoming Safer In High-Risk Patients

2012-01-13T10:24:00.000-05:00

Placing a stent in a key artery in the neck is safer than ever in patients ineligible for the standard surgical treatment of carotid artery disease, according to a new study published online in the Journal of Vascular Surgery.

[READ ARTICLE ON MNT]

Low Back Pain - Practitioners Recommend Time Off Despite Guidelines

2011-12-21T11:49:00.005-05:00

Even though guidelines for clinical management of patients with low back pain (LBP) encourage health care practitioners to advise patients to remain active and return to work, most practitioners feel that work factors can cause or aggravate LBP and often recommend a 'short break from work' to allow healing.

Read lead author Professor Tamar Pincus, PhD explanation on MNT: Click here

Joint Commission Issues Alert on Healthcare Worker Fatigue

2011-12-15T11:03:00.003-05:00

A tired, run-down surgical team is a potentially unsafe one, and many studies have linked healthcare worker fatigue to adverse events. The Joint Commission has issued a Sentinel Event Alert on the impact of healthcare worker fatigue and is providing recommendations to mitigate the associated risks to patient safety.

The Joint Commission notes that fatigue resulting from an inadequate amount of sleep or insufficient quality of sleep over an extended period can lead to problems among staff members such as lapses in attention, inability to focus, reduced motivation, confusion, impaired communication and slowed or faulty information processing and judgment.

The Sentinel Event Alert suggests taking a number of actions to help decrease the risks of fatigue that result from extended work hours, and in turn protect patients from preventable adverse outcomes.

Read some suggestions to manage fatigue related issues here on Outpatent Surgery

Lower Back Pain - MRI Does Not Improve Outcomes For Epidural Steroid Injection Candidates

2011-12-14T11:39:00.001-05:00

According to an investigation published Online First by the Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) prior to administration of epidural steroid injections (ESI), does not seem to improve outcomes for individuals with chronic lower back pain or for those with conditions like sciatica, and only has a small effect on the physician's decision making.

In the report the researchers explain:

"Lower back pain is the number one cause of disability in the world, and one of the top three reasons people seek medical attention.

Despite several studies demonstrating that advanced radiologic testing does not improve outcomes in patients with lower back pain, with or without radicular symptoms [nerve irritation, characterized, for example, by pain radiating down the back of the leg], the use of MRI in this context continues to soar.

The lack of unequivocal guidelines on the use of MRI before ESI is somewhat unexpected, considering that ESI is the most frequently performed procedure in pain clinics throughout the United States."

A multi-center randomized study was conducted by Steven P. Cohen, M.D., from Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore and his team. A total of 132 patients, primarily women (57%) with an average age of 52, were enrolled to participate in the study.

Research Results can be read on MNT (click here)

Norian XR - 3 die in spine study

2011-12-09T10:22:00.001-05:00

"(they showed a) disregard for the safety of others ... and for the sanctity of human life."

Four former executives of Synthes Inc. have been sentenced to prison for carrying out human medical trials illegally in which three participants lost their lives. US prosecutors had been seeking 1-year prison sentences for "human experimentation". The four defendants were accused of testing a kind of bone cement, Norian XR, in patients with spine fractures illegally - they had not sought FDA approval for the trial.

Read full article here on MNT

Taking Antibiotics For Viral Infections Can Do More Harm Than Good, CDC

2011-12-08T14:30:00.001-05:00

Did you know that taking antibiotics when you or your child has a virus may do more harm than good? According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, where children are concerned, antibiotics are the most common cause of emergency department visits for adverse drug events. This is one of several messages the CDC has been putting out this week as part of a worldwide push to raise awareness about antibiotic resistance, and how inappropriate use of these bacteria-fighting drugs is fuelling the problem.

Full article can be read on MNT

"Let me teach you about curing chronic pain," said the fruit fly.

2011-12-08T14:22:00.001-05:00

How Fruit Flies Can Teach Us About Curing Chronic Pain And Halting Mosquito-Borne Diseases

Studies of a protein that fruit flies use to sense heat and chemicals may someday provide solutions to human pain and the control of disease-spreading mosquitoes.

In the current issue of the journal Nature, biologist Paul Garrity of the National Center for Behavioral Genomics at Brandeis University and his team, spearheaded by KyeongJin Kang and Vince Panzano in the Garrity lab, report how fruit flies distinguish the warmth of a summer day from the pungency of wasabi by using TRPA1, a protein whose human relative is critical for contolling pain and inflammation.

Read full story on MNT

Surgical Drug Shortage May Threaten Patient Safety

2011-12-06T11:14:00.001-05:00

An ongoing shortage of several critical anesthesia medications could have serious effects on patient care and safety, according to an article in the December issue of the journal Anesthesia & Analgesia.

Read full article on Outpatient Surgery

Dangers Of Staggered Overdose Of Acetaminophen

2011-12-03T17:14:00.001-05:00

Repeatedly taking marginally too much paracetamol (acetaminophen, Tylenol) over time can cause a dangerous overdose that is hard to detect and can lead to death, because patients usually don't report an overdose when they visit the hospital, rather that they feel unwell. Clinicians need to be able to detect these cases rapidly so that they can provide prompt and effective treatment, as these patients are in greater danger compared with those who have taken a single overdose.

People experiencing pain who repeatedly take slightly more paracetamol than they should are in danger of suffering a so-called "staggered overdose". According to Dr. Kenneth Simpson's recent research project published in the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology:
Read full stroy and report results on MNT

?&*%$@#

2011-12-03T17:12:00.001-05:00

Cursing can provide effective, short-term pain relief say researchers, but not if over-used: the effect is much greater for people who do not make a habit of it. Richard Stephens and Claudia Umland from the School of Psychology at the University of Keele in the UK, report findings that shed new light on the use of swearing as a response to pain in the 14 November online issue of The Journal of Pain.

Read full story and report results on MNT

Manufacturer Presses to Add Surgeon to Pain Pump Lawsuit

2011-11-22T11:03:00.001-05:00

I-Flow's tactic: Blame surgeon who used pump that allegedly damaged shoulder cartilage.

Orthopedic surgeons who followed manufacturers' instructions and used infusion pain pumps for arthroscopic surgery could be exposed to malpractice lawsuits if a new legal action filed by one of the manufacturers is allowed to stand in a Kentucky court, lawyers familiar with the case say.

I-Flow, a Kimberly-Clark subsidiary that makes a widely used pain pump, is pressing the court to recognize malpractice charges against Bruce Halladay, MD, an orthopedic surgeon in Edgewood, Ky., for unauthorized use of its product in shoulder surgery after it dropped the controversial instructions.

I-Flow and other manufacturers have been facing hundreds of lawsuits from patients that allege they encouraged physicians' off-label use of their pain pumps, but this is the first time a manufacturer has sought to bring a physician into one of these cases, says Ronald E. Johnson Jr., an attorney for Lucas Frietsch, the patient in the Kentucky case.

Read this story on Outpatient Surgery

Ohio's "I'm Sorry Law" Doesn't Protect Against Admitted Errors

2011-11-21T14:31:00.001-05:00

At least 36 states have enacted laws letting physicians say "I'm sorry" to a patient when something goes wrong, without fear that the statement will be held against them in malpractice litigation. In almost all of these states, however, physicians still need to be careful to what they admit. Statements of sympathy, such as "I'm sorry this happened," tend to be protected, but statements such as "I'm sorry we cut an artery" are most likely not.

READ WHAT HAPPENED ON OUTPATIENT SURGERY

Venom, Pain, and the Brain

2011-11-21T10:16:00.001-05:00

Pain is one of the most important alerts for our brain that we are at risk of injury, causing us to wince, squint, gasp or otherwise pull away to protect ourselves.
Many of the venoms and toxins in the natural world work by triggering normal mechanisms in the human body designed to detect things like temperature, pressure, and other physical and chemical factors in our environment.

All the information the brain receives about sights, smells, textures and tastes comes through molecular detectors. Found at the ends of nerve fibers, these detectors are simply tiny protein channels that can alternatively open or close if they perceive the proper stimulus from a chemical, heat, cold or the pressure of touch.

At the same time, pain often outlives its usefulness as a warning system. In many people with disease or injuries, the pain can become chronic and debilitating. Moreover, not all pain is accurately perceived by the brain. Numerous plants, insects, reptiles and other creatures have evolved the ability to produce toxins or venoms for hunting or to protect themselves against predation. These venoms co-opt the human sensory systems and can trigger severe pain.
Read the full article on MNT to see how snake venom research is offering insights into chronic and acute pain - and provides new research tools that may help pharmaceutical companies design drugs to combat pain.

'Bridging' Stent Patients To Cardiac Surgery

2011-11-16T15:34:00.001-05:00

"Patients with coronary stents require drugs that block platelets that can stick to their stents and cause clots. When these patients require surgery, the oral drugs must be stopped days in advance to wear off and reduce the risk of surgical bleeding; however, this puts them at an increased risk of thrombotic events," said Eric Topol, MD, cardiologist and chief academic officer at Scripps Health and BRIDGE Trial primary investigator. "With nothing available that blocks platelets and then goes away quickly, we are between the rock of thrombosis and the hard place of surgical bleeding."

Read the full story on MNT

Alzheimer's Vaccine Triggers Brain Inflammation When Brain Amyloid Burden Is High

2011-11-15T10:11:00.001-05:00

Patients with Alzheimer's disease who are in the early stages of their illness will likely benefit most from vaccine therapies now being tested in a number of human clinical trials, say researchers from Georgetown University Medical Center (GUMC).

Their study, presented at the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience, Neuroscience 2011, is the first to show that mice with a large brain burden of amyloid protein - representative of many patients now receiving immunization - were much more likely to experience significant brain inflammation. In contrast, mice with less amyloid in their brains did not experience this side effect, and showed a significant benefit from the vaccine.

Read full story on MEDICAL NEWS TODAY