Editor's Note Bariatric surgery delivers greater weight loss and lower long-term costs than GLP-1 medications, Ambulatory Surgery Center News September 18 reports. A new JAMA Surgery study of more than 30,000 patients found that surgical patients lost nearly three times as much weight as those on medication while generating meaningful…
Editor's Note Older adults with a body mass index (BMI) in the overweight range had significantly lower odds of death after major elective surgery compared with those in the normal BMI category, an August 26 study published by JAMA Network reports. The cohort study followed 414 adults aged 65 years…
Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued four medical device recalls and early alerts between September 23 and 30, covering Automated Impella Controllers, Olympus ViziShot 2 FLEX (19G) endoscopic aspiration needles, 3M Ranger blood and irrigation fluid warming systems, and BD Alaris infusion pump sets. The notices…
With the explosion of GLP-1–based therapies for type 2 diabetes and weight loss, perioperative nursing teams, especially in the preoperative and postanesthesia care areas, need to be fluent in recognizing these medications. Some patients may arrive on these agents—or even novel oral GLP-1s—and the physiologic effects, especially delayed gastric emptying,…
Editor's Note Culture change in healthcare does not come from quick fixes or sweeping overhauls but from steady, intentional leadership, said transformational consultant Priscilla Myers on a September 10 article published by the Healthy Workforce Institute and authored by speaker, author, and consultant Renee Thompson DNP, RN, FAAN. Myers shared…
Editor's Note The Perioperative Nutrition Screen (PONS) identifies patients at greater risk of complications following pancreatic cancer surgery, according to a retrospective analysis published August 27 by Research Square. The study found that patients flagged for nutrition risk by PONS experienced longer hospital stays, higher complication rates, and were more…
Editor's Note NDM-producing carbapenem-resistant Enterobacterales are climbing fast and straining treatment choices, according to a September 23 release from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and published in the Annals of Internal Medicine. The agency warns NDM-CRE infections rose more than 460% in the US from 2019 to…
Editor's Note Medical and scientific groups across the US and abroad swiftly pushed back against President Donald Trump’s September 22 announcement that acetaminophen use in pregnancy may cause autism, with experts warning the claims are unsupported and potentially harmful. Trump, joined by HHS Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr, also suggested…
Editor's Note Surgery and advanced implantable devices can give patients with drug-resistant epilepsy a far greater chance of seizure freedom than medication alone, UCSF News September 25 reports. While about 30 anti-seizure medications exist, one-third of patients do not achieve seizure control, and fewer than one in five seek care…
Editor's Note Remote perioperative monitoring (RPM) accelerates recovery and reduces complications following major cancer surgery, according to a randomized trial published on August 28 by npj Digital Medicine and co-authored by researchers at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. The study enrolled 293 patients undergoing major abdominal or…