Results for search "Surgery: Misc.".
16 Oct
Researchers say Black and Hispanic patients face a higher risk of death after surgery due to ongoing racial and ethnic disparities.
Black, Hispanic and low-income kids are less likely to receive surgery that can treat their drug-resistant epilepsy, a new study finds.
Researchers discovered that children on anti-seizure drugs who received vagus nerve stimulation were 35% more likely to be alive after 10 years, and those who also had cranial surgery were 83% more likely to be alive.
But White children were much mo...
Surgery coming up? Mimicking the high-altitude breathing of mountaineers might make your procedure safer, a tiny study suggests.
It's a form of what surgeons call "prehabilitation:" Making a patient's body a bit fitter beforehand to withstand the risks and rigors of surgery.
Investigators found that exposing patients to reduced oxygen levels ("hypoxia") for a week spurred a rise in ...
Squats and lunges aren’t the most fun exercises, but a new study says they’ll help save your knees.
Folks with strong quads building up their thighs appear to be less likely to require a total knee replacement, according to a presentation scheduled for Monday at a meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) in Chicago.
Stronger muscles are generally associated wi...
Robert Fleetwood, 73, needed joint replacements in both knees, both to relieve his arthritis pain and to continue competing in athletic activities.
And thanks to medical advances, Fleetwood was able to go home the same he had each knee replaced, in procedures spaced several months apart.
A knee replacement "changes your perspective on life. It makes you feel so much more alive and d...
An Arkansas man maimed by a massive electrical shock to his face has successfully received the world’s first whole-eye and partial face transplant.
In a 21-hour surgery performed in May, a NYU Langone Health surgical team transplanted an entire left eye and the portion of a face from a single donor onto Aaron James, a 46-year-old military veteran from Arkansas who survived a work-relate...
“Davey” Bauer hovered on the precipice of death, his lungs damaged by vaping and congested by antibiotic-resistant pneumonia.
Doctors saved his life with a jury-rigged artificial lung, a prompt double-lung transplant… and a set of DD breast implants.
Doctors at Northwestern Medicine crafted an artificial lung to keep Bauer, 34, alive after removing lungs so heavily infected th...
Getting a certain number of steps each day can help people improve their fitness, but new research shows it also can pay off in the operating room.
The odds of complications within 90 days after hospital discharge were reduced by half if a patient was getting more than 7,500 steps a day before their procedure, the study found.
These postoperative complications typically occur after ...
Millions of people undergo joint replacement surgery every year. To prevent infection, doctors often give them a second antibiotic -- but new research suggests this can backfire.
Adding a second antibiotic at the time of hip and knee replacement surgery may actually increase infections, researchers in Australia found.
“Given the number of joint replacements performed in Austr...
High-risk surgeries are more deadly for Black and Hispanic Americans than for their white counterparts, new research reveals.
The study, of more than 1 million procedures performed in U.S. hospitals between 2000 and 2020, found that Black patients were 42% more likely than white patients to die within 30 days of surgery. That risk was 21% higher among Hispanic patients.
Had those di...
Treating shoulder pain with steroid shots or removal of cartilage buildup yields the same result as no treatment at all, a Norwegian research team reports.
They said their findings call into question treatment guidelines for calcific tendinopathy, a painful condition in the shoulder's rotator cuff tendons.
Researchers said the common invasive procedure, known as ult...
A majority of people who have a minimally invasive heart valve replacement procedure are not getting the recommended cardiac rehab after their surgeries, researchers say.
A new study finds that just under 31% of patients who have transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) are receiving this service within 90 days of the procedure.
This could be explained by TAVR patients being ...
Breast cancer patients who undergo a mastectomy can probably benefit from a shorter course of more intense radiation therapy, a new study indicates.
Hypofractionated radiation therapy — which provides a higher dose each session over three weeks — provides the same protection against breast cancer recurrence and post-surgical complications as a standard course of lower-dose radiation o...
A popular type of off-road vehicle known as a “side-by-side” has been linked to high rates of severe hand injuries, according to a new study.
Side-by-sides are utility terrain vehicles (UTVs) designed to carry more than one passenger and heavy loads. All-terrain vehicles (ATVs) are usually made for one driver going off-road.
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A second human patient has received a genetically altered pig heart as he battles the ravages of end-stage heart disease.
The 58-year-old man, Lawrence Faucette, received the pig organ at the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore.
The medical team was the same one that performed the first pig transplant with another patient in January 2022.
“We are once again o...
When someone has surgery, pain may be top of mind.
An expert in managing post-op pain offers three tips for keeping it under control, safely.
“Pain can inhibit recovery, but good pain control can be an accelerator of a patient's recovery,” said Dr. Jonah Stulberg, a member of...
Vasectomies are becoming more common in the United States, with rates surging by more than one-quarter during the past decade, a recent study reveals.
The U.S. vasectomy rate increased by 26% between 2014 and 2021, according to an analysis of commercial health claims data.
“All areas in the United States except the Northeast showed increased vasectomy rates,” said senior researc...
The field of surgery has long been dominated by men, and still is today.
But two new studies show that if patients want safe, effective long-term results, picking a female surgeon might be key.
In one study involving more than 1 million Canadian surgical patients whose outcomes were followed for a year, “those treated by a female surgeon were less likely to experience death, hospi...
If you are in your 90s, is hip replacement surgery too dangerous for you?
That depends, new research shows: While elderly patients have more complications and higher death rates after such a procedure, the surgery can be “appropriately considered."
That's because the risks for total hip replacement depend not just on patients' age, but also on their overall health and fitness.
After a heart attack, elderly adults have better odds for improved health and survival if all major heart vessels are cleared, not just the one that caused the heart attack.
Because these patients often have other medical conditions and may be frail, doctors frequently opt to open only the "culprit" blood vessel and leave other partially blocked vessels alone.
But new research...
The number of Americans undergoing gender-affirming surgery is on the rise, new research reveals, almost tripling between 2016 and 2019 alone.
During that period, more than 48,000 patients -- about half of them between 19 and 30 years of age -- underwent some form of gender-affirming (GAS) surgery, researchers found.
About 4,500 of those procedures were performed in 2016. By 2019, t...
Many women with early breast cancer undergo breast-conserving surgery along with radiation to kill any errant cancer cells, but some may be able to safely skip radiation, new research suggests.
“If the tumors are low-risk, as defined in part by being caught early/small and in part by having favorable molecular features, the risk of recurrence is minimal even if you skip out on what has ...
Most people with appendicitis who are given antibiotics — instead of having their appendix removed — fare well over the long haul, new research indicates.
The conclusion follows roughly two decades spent tracking patient outcomes in Sweden.
The study found that among those initially treated solely with antibiotics, rather than surgery, less than half ended up experiencing anothe...
Microplastics appear to be everywhere, including within the tissues of the human heart.
A new Chinese report describes doctors finding microplastics in heart tissue both before and after heart surgery. The researchers also noted there is evidence suggesting that microplastics may have been unexpectedly introduced during the heart procedures.
The researchers, who included
For people who are transmasculine or nonbinary, getting a gender-affirming mastectomy can be life-changing.
Now, a new study finds there are high levels of satisfaction and low levels of regret for patients years after the procedure is performed.
Researchers from the University of Michigan found an overwhelmingly positive response after the surgery. The median satisfaction score wa...
Dennis Deer woke from surgery in utter disbelief that he was breathing normally.
He'd been on supplemental oxygen for two years, and “I didn't know what it was like not to have something on my face,” said Deer, 51, a Chicago-area politician and psychologist.
“I immediately said, 'Where is my oxygen?' And my wife said to me, ‘Well, you don't need the oxygen anymore,'" Deer re...
Diagnosis of congenital heart defects while a baby is still in the womb offers opportunities for earlier corrective surgery. And that can mean better outcomes for an infant's neurodevelopmental and physical health, new research shows.
“For infants with critical disease especially, getting surge...
Malignant bowel blockages are common in patients who have advanced abdominal tumors, especially cancers of the ovaries or colon, and a new clinical trial suggests surgery should be offered to them sooner rather than later.
“We knew enrolling patients in the hospital with this acute issue and advanced cancer would be difficult, but the questions are of great importance to clinicians, pat...
Hip replacement surgery is safe for HIV patients, a new study shows.
Some surgeons are reluctant to perform total hip replacement surgery on patients with HIV or AIDS, because of concerns about complications, including higher risk of infection, need for repeated surgery and longer hospital stay.
"Patients living with HIV are at a higher risk for orthopedic-related diseases such as o...
The diabetes drug metformin might also benefit older patients after an injury or illness, a small study suggests.
Researchers found that metformin -- a drug that has been around for more than a half-century to regulate blood sugar -- may have a different ability: It can target senescent cells that affect muscle function. These "zombie-like" cells release chemicals linked with inflammation...
Scientists have developed an artificial intelligence (AI) tool capable of deciphering a brain tumor's genetic code in real time, during surgery — an advance they say could speed diagnosis and personalize patients' treatment.
The researchers trained the AI tool to recognize the different genetic features of gliomas, a group of tumors that constitute the most common form of brain cancer a...
Using marijuana regularly might increase the risk for complications during and after surgery, and doctors should address this when planning operations, a new study suggests.
People with a cannabis use disorder are 20% more likely to have serious complications, such as stroke or blood clots, after a major operation than patients who aren't dependent on marijuana, researchers say.
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When frail patients go into cardiac arrest and need cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) during surgery, they're more likely to die than those who are stronger, a new study shows.
Researchers from Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston studied the impact of frailty on survival in these cases where previously frailty was not considered as a factor.
“CPR should not be considered fut...
The trendy weight-loss drug Ozempic could be dangerous for a patient undergoing anesthesia for an operation, according to a new warning from the American Society of Anesthesiologists.
Semaglutide (Ozempic, Wegovy) and other drugs of their class known as GLP-1 receptor agonists cause digestion to slow down, which decreases hunger and reduces how much people eat.
That food left in the...
Sarah Ferguson has undergone treatment for breast cancer, she announced on her podcast.
The Duchess of York, 63, had a mastectomy after the diagnosis and the surgery was successful, her rep confirmed Sunday, People magazine reported.
"The Duchess is receiving the best medical care and her doctors have told her that the prognosis is good. She is now recuperating with her f...
The future for a child diagnosed with scoliosis, an abnormal curvature of the spine that typically occurs just before puberty, can feel uncertain.
As a parent, you want answers to your questions about scoliosis and how it can affect your child's development. Here's what you need to know.
What is scoliosis?
Scoliosis is an abnormal sideways curvature of the spine. In some cases...
New York-based physical therapist Brittany Garrett, now 33, was sidelined by excruciating hip pain for close to eight years before she got an accurate diagnosis and effective treatment.
She tried physical therapy to improve her flexibility, among other treatments, but nothing seemed to help. The former volleyball player's pain was so intense that it was getting in the way of her career an...
Many doctors have stopped giving opioids for pain, even during surgery, because of the opioid addiction crisis in the United States. But a new study questions the wisdom of this approach.
Restricting the drugs during surgery may do more harm than good, researchers report.
“The opioid crisis is a major motivator for mitigating the risks of opioid usage,” said study co-author
Pope Francis is now “better than before” after his release from a Rome hospital Friday following surgery on June 7 to repair a hernia and remove scarring.
The 86-year-old pope joked that he was “still alive," as he was met by reporters while leaving the Gemelli Polyclinic nine days after surgery to reduce pain and prevent a future intestinal blockage, the Associated Press r...
Many transplant centers routinely practice “list-diving,” when the top candidate among potential organ recipients is skipped in favor of someone further down the list, new research shows.
The top candidate is ranked that way based on an objective algorithm using age, waiting time and other factors, while choosing someone else happens with little oversight or transparency. And that may...
A new transplant method that "reanimates" donor hearts appears safe and effective, a new clinical trial has found — in an advance that could substantially expand the supply of donor hearts available in the United States.
The trial tested an approach that allows doctors to transplant hearts from donors who have succumbed to "circulatory death" — meaning the heart has stopped beating. T...
U.S. health officials are urgently trying to reach people who've recently had medical procedures at clinics in Matamoros, Mexico, because they may be at risk of potentially fatal fungal meningitis.
Those at risk had procedures done under epidural anesthesia between Jan. 1 and May 13 at River Side Surgical Center and Clinica K-3 in Matamoros, Tamaulipas, the U.S. Centers for Disease Contr...
Pope Francis will be hospitalized for several days after a planned surgery to repair a hernia that is causing him “recurrent, painful and worsening” symptoms.
The Vatican
For years, doctors have thought that a more extensive surgery that removes a wider swath of lymph nodes was the best option for certain patients with bladder cancer. Now, a new clinical trial is upending that belief.
Researchers found that the strategy — known as extended lymphadenectomy — was no better than standard surgery at prolonging patients' lives or the amount of time they li...
It may not be necessary for people who have prolapse surgery for pelvic floor disorders to wait to get started exercising again.
A new study challenges standard restrictions, finding that those who resume exercising soon after the procedure do just as well as those who wait several weeks.
“This study is a paradigm shift for urogynecologists — it is practice changing,” said sen...
Some short men really struggle with their lack of height, feeling that they are both literally and figuratively looked down upon by others.
That's why an increasing number of height-challenged men are turning to limb-lengthening surgery -- an expensive, potentially painful, months-long procedure that will add a few extra inches to their frame.
Limb-lengthening procedures have been a...
Minimally invasive surgery works just as well as full-scale open surgery in removing early-stage pancreatic cancers, allowing patients a faster recovery with less infection risk, a new clinical trial has found.
The ability to remove all the cancer and the rate of cancer recurrence was essentially the same between the two groups, said lead researcher
When one of the heart's valves springs a big leak, that can spell big trouble.
The good news: The condition, known as degenerative mitral regurgitation (DMR), is treatable using a minimally invasive intervention known as TEER (transcatheter edge-to-edge repair), a procedure that involves the insertion of a small clip to enable proper valve closure and blood flow.
The better news? A ...
While the U.S. Veterans Affairs health system has been criticized for long appointment wait times and limited access to specialists, the quality of care and access to a range of surgical services is as good as or better than at non-VA health centers on several measures, new research reveals.
“Surgery involves many steps of care,” said lead study author
Here's one more reason to watch your weight: Obesity can increase your odds for serious complications after surgery.
Compared with patients of normal weight, those who are obese are at greater risk for developing blood clots, infections and kidney failure after surgery, a new study reports. Pa...
For the first time, doctors have successfully performed fetal brain surgery to treat a rare blood vessel abnormality that can be fatal to newborns.
Experts said the accomplishment, for a condition known as a vein of Galen malformation (VOGM), is "exciting." But they also cautioned that this is one case, and more research is needed to know whether the prenatal brain procedure is a good str...