Clinical
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Study: Minimally invasive surgery could lower healthcare costs by hundreds of millions a year
A new analysis of surgical outcomes nationwide concludes that more use of minimally invasive surgery for certain common procedures can dramatically reduce postoperative complications and shave hundreds of millions of dollars off the nation’s healthcare bill.
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One year after surgery, preoperative program to quit smoking still shows benefits
Patients receiving a brief intervention to help them quit smoking before surgery are more likely to be nonsmokers at one-year follow-up, reports a study in Anesthesia & Analgesia.
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Can you offer total hips and knees in 23 hours? Yes!
Start posting patients for hip replacements and send them home in less than 24 hours directly from your surgery center. No 72-hour-stay facility is needed.
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FDA Greenlights Biosimilars
In one of the most important decisions of the past 5 years, the FDA has given the greenlight to the first biosimilar drug with the approval of Sandoz’s filgrastim-sndz, a copy of Amgen’s multibillion dollar drug filgrastim (Neupogen). Biosimilars are drugs that are derived from living organisms and thus cannot be exact copies of the original compounds. They are different from generics in this respect. But the FDA has agreed to approve biologic copies that are “highly similar to another, already FDA-approved biologic (known as the reference product).”
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Might Long-term Dual Antiplatelet Therapy Be Better? Not
Risk reduction provided by dual antiplatelet therapy (DAT) in the short-term interval (3-12 months) after coronary stenting is well established, and published guidelines provide consistent advice about appropriate duration of such therapy.
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Dual Add-on Therapy for Type 2 Diabetes When Metformin is Not Enough
The current (2015) American Diabetes Association guidance for progression of treatment when A1c goals are not attained with metformin implies stepwise initiation of additional monotherapies.
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Chronobiology and Insulin Glargine
The “indication” labeling for insulin glargine (Lantus) simply says, “Administer subcutaneously once daily at any time of day, but at the same time every day.”
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Bipolar Disorder is Associated with New-onset CVD
Although perhaps not widely recognized, bipolar disorder (BPD) is associated with an excessive risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Not only is CVD more prevalent, but it occurs as much as a decade earlier than comparators without BPD.
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The Ongoing Search for Biomarkers that Provide Early Identification of Cognitive Impairment
Messenger RNA (mRNA) markers are used for identification of a variety of pathologic processes, most recently including malignant melanoma.
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Reducing Drug-induced Xerostomia with Sorbet
Xerostomia, or dry mouth, is common in senior citizens, partially because of disorders that are directly associated with xerostomia (e.g., Sjogren syndrome, HIV, hepatitis C, diabetes) and, additionally, because numerous pharmacologic treatments seniors receive produce “drying” effects: anticholinergics (e.g., antimuscarinic OAB drugs, tricyclic antidepressants), sympathomimetics (e.g., milnacipran, atomoxetine), or diuretics.