http://medicalxpress.com/ en-us Medical Xpress internet news portal provides the latest news on Health and Medicine. (HealthDay)—In obese patients, there has been a significant increase in the use of laparoscopic ventral hernia repairs (VHRs), which are associated with a lower complication rate and shorter median length of hospital stay compared with open surgeries, according to research published online June 12 in JAMA Surgery. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-06-laparoscopies-ventral-hernia-obese-patients.html Surgery Thu, 13 Jun 2013 15:50:01 EST news290354645 New research suggesting that elective hernia surgery offers value-for-money and improved quality of life for patients has been published by the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine. The new analysis is based on patients' own assessments of their health-related quality of life together with costs reported by hospitals. The research also indicates that keyhole surgery may offer more health benefit and value for money than open surgery for hernia operations. Recently it has been suggested that the NHS could save money by reducing access to hernia repair surgery. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-hernia-surgery-money.html Surgery Wed, 29 May 2013 10:44:33 EST news289043052 Robot-assisted surgery to remove kidney cancers has seen a rapid increase in use, and has both replaced and proven safer than laparoscopic procedures for the same purpose, according to a study by the Vattikuti Urology Institute at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-robot-assisted-kidney-cancer-surgery-benefits.html Cancer Tue, 07 May 2013 18:30:01 EST news287161422 The volume of cases performed at an institution each year has a direct effect on the outcome of surgical procedures, and should always be considered when looking at the benefits of a technique, according to a team of researchers at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-hospital-surgical-volume-procedures.html Cancer Sun, 05 May 2013 16:32:13 EST news286990327 Stenting reopens completely blocked bowel arteries, preventing damage and even death from a condition that causes individuals severe pain and leads to excessive weight loss, notes research being presented at the Society of Interventional Radiology's 38th Annual Scientific Meeting in New Orleans, La. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-04-stenting-blocked-bowel-arteries.html Cardiology Sun, 14 Apr 2013 10:00:03 EST news285143087 (Medical Xpress)—For many years it has been thought that acid reflux and a related condition called Barrett's Oesophagus were acquired conditions, via diet, smoking and other lifestyle activities. However, recent family and twin studies have shown that those with Barrett's Oesophagus may have their genes to thank for their predisposition to this condition. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-04-acid-reflux-genes.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Wed, 03 Apr 2013 06:24:37 EST news284189061 Shared decision-making between patients and physicians about health care decisions has previously been presented as superior to an approach that emphasizes physicians taking a leading role in directing key aspects of a patient's care. But now, a new study by researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, calls into question the efficacy of shared decision-making as a tool for eliciting a patient's genuine preference for care. The results of the study will be presented this week at the 2013 American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons Annual Meeting in Chicago. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-03-efficacy-unintentional-effects-patientphysician-decision-making.html Surgery Mon, 25 Mar 2013 09:47:37 EST news283423650 A new endoscopic surgical procedure has been shown to be safer and to result in better outcomes than the current standard medical treatment for patients who suffer strokes as a result of brain hemorrhages, UCLA neurosurgeons have announced. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-02-brain-hemorrhage-patients.html Surgery Tue, 12 Feb 2013 07:32:31 EST news279876703 (HealthDay)—Regardless of surgical complexity, most patients undergoing robotic partial nephrectomy (RPN) can be discharged in one day, according to a study published in the February issue of Urology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-02-hospital-night-robotic-partial-nephrectomy.html Surgery Thu, 07 Feb 2013 13:50:01 EST news279464916 Urologists at Henry Ford Hospital have developed a new technique that could make minimally invasive robotic partial nephrectomy procedures the norm, rather than the exception for kidney cancer patients. The technique spares the kidney, eliminates long hospital stays and provides better outcomes by giving the surgeon more time to perform the procedure. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-12-technique-minimally-invasive-robotic-kidney.html Surgery Thu, 13 Dec 2012 13:43:09 EST news274628582 Patients who drank coffee, rather than water, after bowel surgery to remove a part of their colon experienced a quicker return to bowel movements and tolerance of solid food. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-10-coffee-bowel-function-colon-surgery.html Surgery Tue, 09 Oct 2012 11:40:23 EST news269001614 (Medical Xpress)—Robotic surgery though the mouth is a safe and effective way to remove tumors of the throat and voice box, according to a study by head and neck cancer surgeons at the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute (OSUCCC – James). http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-09-robotic-surgery-mouth-safe-tumors.html Cancer Wed, 26 Sep 2012 10:17:48 EST news267873213 A new study raises a cautionary note about the increasing use of a minimally invasive procedure to repair ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysms, according to vascular surgeon Dr. Jae Sung Cho of Loyola University Medical Center. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-08-technique-ruptured-abdominal-aortic-aneurysms.html Surgery Mon, 27 Aug 2012 17:21:54 EST news265306908 Collagenase extracted from Clostridium histolyticum (trade name: Xiapex) was approved in the beginning of 2011 for the treatment of people with Dupuytren's contracture. In an early benefit assessment pursuant to the "Act on the Reform of the Market for Medicinal Products" (AMNOG), the German Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG) examined whether collagenase offers an added benefit in comparison with conventional regimens. However, such an added benefit cannot be inferred from the dossier, as the drug manufacturer presented either no data or unsuitable data. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-07-collagenase-dupuytren-contracture-added-benefit.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Thu, 12 Jul 2012 10:15:36 EST news261306915 A study by researchers at Stanford University Medical Center has found that a popular weight-loss operation is safer and reduces hospital bills when done with minimally invasive techniques rather than open surgery, which requires a large abdominal incision. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-06-minimally-invasive-approach-weight-loss-surgery.html Surgery Mon, 18 Jun 2012 16:00:06 EST news259249184 In one of the most comprehensive analyses to date of the cost of robotic-assisted, laparoscopic surgery for prostate cancer, researchers at UPMC found that this now-dominant surgical approach is significantly more costly than standard open surgery, despite little scientific evidence of long-term improved patient outcomes. The results of the study are available online and will appear in the July issue of the journal Urology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-05-robotic-assisted-prostate-cancer-surgery.html Cancer Wed, 23 May 2012 11:52:00 EST news256992713 A study of 7,424 privately insured colon cancer patients found that managed care presence in the market and hospital competition increased the likelihood laparoscopic surgery to treat colon cancer lowered costs, a national team of researchers led by a professor at the George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services reported in the journal Cancer, May 8, 2012. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-05-economic-theory-health.html Cancer Thu, 10 May 2012 12:58:12 EST news255873465 Surgical technique is a factor related to small-bowel obstruction (SBO) and compared with laparoscopic surgery, open surgery appears to be associated with an increased risk of SBO, according to a study published in the April issue of Archives of Surgery. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-04-factors-small-bowel-obstruction-surgery.html Surgery Mon, 16 Apr 2012 16:00:02 EST news253810736 A burst aneurysm (a local area of bulge) in the abdominal aorta—the largest blood vessel in the body -- is a deadly condition. In fact, about half of these patients don't make it to the hospital in time. Those who do more often than not face open surgery to repair the blood vessel. This study finds that a minimally invasive interventional radiology treatment for ruptured aneurysms called endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR) is safer than open surgical repair and is associated with lower mortality rates, say researchers Society of Interventional Radiology's 37th Annual Scientific Meeting in San Francisco, Calif. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-minimally-invasive-treatment-ruptured-aneurysm.html Other Sun, 25 Mar 2012 14:06:12 EST news251903156 (Medical Xpress) -- Image-guided stereotactic radiation therapy is well tolerated and very effective in locally-controlling lung cancer, Methodist Cancer Center researchers report in the April issue of the Journal of Radiation Oncology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-stereotactic-radiotherapy-excellent-local-lung.html Cancer Tue, 20 Mar 2012 09:36:37 EST news251454989 (Medical Xpress) -- Methodist DeBakey Heart & Vascular Center interventional cardiologists have, for the first time, repaired a large coronary artery aneurysm with stent-assisted coil embolization without doing open heart surgery. The successful procedure could mean a new option for patients, especially those who would be at risk undergoing an open chest operation. The work is published in the February issue of Circulation: Cardiovascular Interventions, an American Heart Association journal. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-02-heart-doctors-coronary-aneurysm-surgery.html Surgery Thu, 16 Feb 2012 08:20:02 EST news248600486 Bone tissue is very good at self-healing, but in many situations the natural healing process is not sufficient. In a dissertation at Uppsala University, Sonya Piskounova shows how functional materials that she and her colleagues have developed can form bone tissue in places in the body where there originally was no bone. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-11-smart-materials-bone.html Medical research Fri, 04 Nov 2011 09:50:01 EST news239616360 Arthroscopic treatment of a common hip problem that leads to arthritis is successful in terms of restoring range of motion, according to results from a recent Hospital for Special Surgery study. The study will be presented at the annual meeting of the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine, held July 7-11 in San Diego. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-07-arthroscopic-treatment-common-hip-problem.html Other Sun, 10 Jul 2011 03:53:55 EST news229488825 Researchers at Hospital for Special Surgery have found that in comparison to open surgery, arthroscopic treatment of a common hip problem that leads to arthritis produces similar outcomes in terms of repairing structural problems in most patients. The study will be published in the July 2011 TK issue of the American Journal of Sports Medicine. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-07-arthroscopy-surgery-equally-efficacious-common.html Other Fri, 08 Jul 2011 17:05:14 EST news229363484 Surgery and all its implications can be scary, especially so for pediatric patients and their parents who dread sometimes disfiguring scars. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-07-pediatric-urologist-procedure-scarring-kidney.html Other Fri, 01 Jul 2011 11:31:47 EST news228738689 The risk of developing venous thromboembolism (VTE) may be nearly twice as high for patients undergoing open surgery for colorectal problems, versus those undergoing laparoscopic colorectal (LC) resections, according to a report in the June issue of Archives of Surgery. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-06-colorectal-surgery-blood-clots-higher.html Other Mon, 20 Jun 2011 16:00:36 EST news227793563 (Medical Xpress) -- New research presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Urology Association (AUA) in Washington, DC demonstrates that holmium laser therapy is a safe and durable treatment option for Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH) - an enlargement of the prostate that affects most men as they age. The study, conducted by researchers from the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC), is the longest comprehensive assessment of this technology to date, and researchers suggest it may now safely be considered the new, size independent, gold standard for treatment of BPH. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-05-enlarged-prostate-decade-long-long-term-benefits.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Fri, 20 May 2011 07:40:40 EST news225096008