Editor's Note The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued its final rule for the 2025 calendar year, updating payment systems and quality reporting requirements across healthcare settings, JD Supra November 19 reports. Effective January 1, 2025, the rule outlines significant changes to Medicare payments and conditions for participation…

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Editor's Note Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1s) could reduce total knee arthroplasty (TKA) complications for non-diabetic patients with obesity, according to a November 13 Helio report on research presented at the American Association of Hip and Knee Surgeons Annual Meeting. In addition to reduced odds of 90-day medical complications, the…

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Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) represents a transformative approach in modern surgical care, emphasizing evidence-based, multidisciplinary protocols to optimize patient recovery. Spanning decades, ERAS has grown from a novel concept into a global standard for perioperative care, with benefits that include shorter hospital stays, fewer complications, and reduced healthcare costs.…

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Editor's Note More than 200,000 unnecessary back surgeries were performed on older adults from 2019 to 2021, costing Medicare approximately $2 billion and exposing patients to avoidable risks, according to a November 14 analysis from the Lown Institute. The evaluation focused on spinal fusion, laminectomy, and vertebroplasty procedures, which are…

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Editor's Note A recent study by RIVANNA® Medical, a leader in medical imaging technology, highlights a rising interest in anesthesiologist careers across the US, showing a 46% increase in online job search activity from August 2020 to August 2024, Rivanna Medical reported in October 2024. The study analyzed search trends…

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Editor's Note The American Joint Replacement Registry (AJRR), managed by the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS), crossed a major threshold, now encompassing over 4 million recorded hip and knee arthroplasty procedures, a November 7 AAOS press release reports. The data, spanning a decade (2012–2023) from 1,447 healthcare institutions nationwide,…

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Editor's Note As joint replacement (JR) procedures increasingly move from the hospital setting to ambulatory surgical centers (ASCs), selecting the right candidates for these outpatient procedures becomes crucial. To support this transition, study authors Madhav Chowdhry, MD, and Edward J. McPherson, MD, developed a comprehensive, evidence-based checklist called Checklist Outpatient-Joint…

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Editor's Note A new global clinical trial indicates targeting higher blood pressure during non-cardiac surgeries is no better than current standard approach in preventing acute kidney injury, according to a November 5 report from London Health Sciences Centre. With 300 million non-cardiac surgeries performed worldwide every year, risk of kidney…

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Editor's Note Joint guidance from key US medical associations advises that most patients on GLP-1 weight-loss medications, such as semaglutide (Ozempic, Wegovy) and tirzepatide (Mounjaro), may safely continue these drugs before surgery, HealthDay News reported October 31. Concerns had emerged about potential risks associated with these medications due to their…

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Editor's Note Music-based interventions administered preoperatively, intraoperatively, and postoperatively can significantly reduce postoperative opioid use and improve mood in patients undergoing same-day surgeries, according to research published October 15 in the Journal of Clinical Medicine. The single-center, prospective, randomized controlled trial evaluated 75 patients aged 18 to 80 who received…

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