Dr Fauci plans to step down in December
Editor's Note On Monday, August 22, Dr Anthony Fauci announced he will step down as director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) at the National Institutes of Health and as chief medical adviser to President Joe Biden in December 2022. "While I am moving on from…
Variation in uptake of COVID-19 boosters by fully vaccinated adults
Editor's Note In this study, researchers at NYC Health + Hospitals, New York City, evaluate how uptake of COVID-19 booster doses among fully vaccinated US adults varied by geographic location, occupation, and sociodemographic characteristics. Receipt of a booster was defined as taking two or more doses of COVID-19 vaccines with…
FDA: Class I recall of Medtronic Cobalt/Crome ICDs, CRT-Ds
Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on August 19 identified the recall by Medtronic of its Cobalt XT, Cobalt, and Crome Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillators (ICDs) and Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy Defibrillators (CRT-Ds) as Class I, the most serious. The devices are being recalled because of reports of short circuit-protection…
CDC plans to overhaul structure, recover reputation
Editor's Note On Wednesday, August 18, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Rochelle Walensky shared planned changes with CDC leadership and staff to “transform” the agency and its culture, with the goal of "improving how the agency shares information, develops public health guidance, and communicates with the American…
AHA releases statement outlining symptoms of heart disease
Editor's Note The American Heart Association (AHA) released a statement outlining symptoms of common cardiovascular diseases (CVD), including acute coronary syndromes, heart failure, valvular disorders, stroke, rhythm disorders, and peripheral vascular disease, Medscape August 18 reports. Symptoms often overlap and may vary over time and by sex. Corrine Y. Jurgens, PhD,…
Surgical volume changes during COVID-19
Editor's Note This study from Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, finds a severe decline in surgical procedure volumes across specialties during the peak of COVID-19, and after the peak and vaccine release periods, the overall volume did not fully recover. Of 129,956 surgical procedures analyzed during four…
ISMP publishes new perioperative medication safety guidelines
Editor's Note The Institute for Safe Medication Practices (ISMP) on August 11 announced the publication of its first set of safe practice guidelines to support perioperative medication safety in hospitals, ambulatory surgery centers, and other procedural locations. The new guidelines: Address best practices related to labeling and storage of perioperative…
Study: More than half unaware of Omicron infection status
Editor's Note This study led by researchers at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, finds that more than half of adults with recent Omicron infection analyzed were unaware of their infectious status. Of 210 adult employees or patients at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center with serological evidence of recent Omicron variant infection: 92…
The Joint Commission: New Accelerate PI Dashboard Reports available
Editor's Note The Joint Commission on August 17 announced that refreshed Accelerate PI Dashboard Reports are now available for inpatient rehabilitation facilities (IRF), inpatient psychiatric facilities (IPF), and long-term acute care hospitals (LTCH) to provide data on a select subset of quality measures. The IPF reports contain data through the…
Timing of major surgery after COVID-19 affects postop mortality
Editor's Note This study led by researchers at State University of New York Downstate Health Sciences University, Brooklyn, finds that patients having major surgical procedures within 8 weeks of a COVID-19 infection have a substantially higher postoperative 90-day mortality, regardless of symptoms. Analyzing data on 938 COVID-19 positive patient cases…
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- Study: Post-laparotomy incisional negative pressure wound therapy fails to reduce infection risk
- FDA announces multiple Class 1 recalls
- Study: ERAS protocol reduces opioid use after cardiac surgery
- Study: Prehabilitation reduces surgical complications, speeds recovery
- Commentary: Studies show how surgeon decisions follow the money
- Proposed HIPAA updates would improve cybersecurity, increase costs for healthcare providers
- Study: EMR data can enhance hand hygiene compliance, infection prevention
- Study: Machine learning model improves perioperative pain assessment
- Call for improved suicide risk screening in ASCs aims to strengthen safety protocols
- Study: Perioperative pregabalin reduces risk of kidney decline compared to gabapentin