Surgery/Specialties
FDA: Class I recall of Imperative Care ZOOM 71 Reperfusion Catheter
Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on October 6 identified the recall by Imperative Care Inc of its ZOOM 71 Reperfusion Catheter as Class I, the most serious. The ZOOM 71 Reperfusion Catheter is used to remove blood clots from a patient’s brain within 8 hours of an…
Impact of WHO Surgical Safety Checklist relative to its design, intended use
Editor's Note This study led by researchers at the NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, California, finds that the World Health Organization (WHO) Surgical Safety Checklist is positively impacting the things it was explicitly designed to address. The analysis included 36 articles and 20 systematic reviews. A thematic analysis revealed…
Back table UV light decreases environmental contamination
Editor's Note In this study, researchers from Colorado Joint Replacement, Denver, find that a back table ultraviolet light (UV) decreases environmental contamination near the operative field, which may lead to a decrease in joint infections. Either a back table germicidal UV light-emitting diode or a sham device was used during…
Changes in hospital-acquired conditions, mortality after HACRP
Editor's Note In this study, researchers from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, find that hospital-acquired conditions (HACs) targeted by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Hospital-Acquired Condition Reduction Program (HACRP) declined after the program was announced, but 30-day mortality was unchanged. The analysis included 8,857,877 Medicare beneficiaries…
Effect of interruptions in Medicare patient treatment during COVID-19 on physicians, practices
Editor's Note This study from the University of Minnesota School of Public Health, Minneapolis, and Harvard Medical School, Boston, finds that practice interruptions in the treatment of Medicare patients spiked in April 2020, and interruption-without-return rates were larger for older physicians. In this analysis of 547,849 physicians billing Medicare: Practice…
Survey: Orthopedic patients more satisfied with telehealth visits than surgeons
Editor's Note In this study presented at the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons Annual Meeting in San Diego, researchers found that orthopedic surgical patients had a higher level of satisfaction with telehealth visits than surgeons, the September 16 Healio Orthopedics Today reports. Of 107 patients and six surgeons surveyed, approximately…
FDA: Class I recall of Medtronic Pipeline Flex Embolization devices
Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), on September 20, identified Medtronic’s recall of its Pipeline Flex Embolization Device and Pipeline Flex Embolization Device with Shield Technology as Class I, the most serious. The devices, which are used to treat brain aneurysms, were recalled because there is a risk…
How might telehealth alter approaches to surgical patient care?
Telehealth services grew exponentially in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. Overall telehealth utilization for office visits and outpatient care was 78 times higher in April 2020 than in February 2020, according to a McKinsey & Company July 2021 report. Since then, telehealth utilization has stabilized at levels that…
Widening of racial, socioeconomic healthcare gap for organ transplant patients during COVID-19
Editor's Note This study led by researchers at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, finds that although COVID-19’s effect on access to liver transplantation has been all-pervasive, minorities have been disproportionately affected—especially those with public insurance. During the initial wave of COVID-19, organ transplantation was classified as a…
Surgical patients find postop virtual visits more convenient without loss of satisfaction
Editor's Note In this study by researchers at Atrium Health Carolinas Medical Center, Charlotte, North Carolina, surgical patients find virtual follow-up care more convenient than traditional in-person appointments without loss of quality or efficiency, which are important components of patient satisfaction. The analysis included 289 patients having laparoscopic appendectomy or…
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