Editor's Note This study by researchers at Steris, Mentor, Ohio, finds that flushing flexible endoscope channels with reduced concentrations of alcohol may prevent microbial outgrowth while reducing drying time. Among the findings: Flushing endoscope channels with isopropyl alcohol (70%-30% concentration) prevented Pseudomonas aeruginosa outgrowth during storage. A 70% alcohol concentration…

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Cincinnati Children’s Hosptial Medical Center in Cincinnati, Ohio, was ranked the nation’s top hospital by US News & World Report in its 2023-2024 Honor Roll of Best Children’s Hospitals. Best Children’s Hospital Honor Roll: Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio Boston Children’s Hospital, Massachusetts Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, Texas…

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Editor's Note Because of recent studies, the evolving nature of COVID-19, and widespread vaccination, the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) and Anesthesia Patient Safety Foundation (APSF) on June 20 released a joint statement providing updated recommendations for the timing of elective surgery and anesthesia after COVID-19 infection. The recommendations include:…

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Editor's Note This study from Baptist Health-Fort Smith, Arkansas, finds that the low-energy consumption ventilation system specified for in US operating rooms produces different zones of sterile protection from airborne microbe carrying particles (MCP) during total joint arthroplasties. The predominant source of MCPs are from personnel in the OR—an average…

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Takeaways Rural hospital purchases by larger health systems should improve access to surgical treatment in remote areas, but some acquisitions have resulted in decreased care quality and reduced access to services, as shown by recent examples. Despite challenges, rural hospital acquisitions can lead to expanded services, enhanced perioperative support, and…

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Median Arcuate Ligament Syndrome (MALS) presents a challenge to anesthesiologists and surgeons alike in the OR. Clinicians often do not know how to identify and treat this condition, and it can go undetected for years. “I think the reason many anesthesiologists, even pain specialists, aren’t well versed or aware of MALS…

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With healthcare costs continuing to rise, hospitals, payers, and patients are looking for different venues for care and ways to cut costs while maintaining quality and safety. As more surgical procedures are safely performed in outpatient settings, more ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) are being built or restructured. Partnerships between hospitals…

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Editor's Note This study by researchers at Beth-Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, finds that generative artificial intelligence (AI)-powered Chat-GPT 4 is a promising potential adjunct to human cognition in diagnosing complex cases. Evaluating 70 complex and challenging patient cases in the New England Journal of Medicine’s clinicopathologic conferences (CPC), the…

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Editor's Note A multidisciplinary cardiovascular intensive care unit (CVICU) team at Vanderbilt University Hospital in Nashville, Tennessee, recently conducted a bedside surgery simulation of a resternotomy to develop a new protocol for the lifesaving procedure, according to the June 15 VUMC Reporter. When a cardiac surgical patient starts bleeding postoperatively…

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Editor's Note This study led by researchers at Stanford University School of Medicine, Palo Alto, California, examines annual pediatric surgical site infection (SSI) rates among 287 US hospitals between 2015 and 2018. Overall, 27,433 surgical procedures were included in this study. The average annual SSI rates were highest for colon surgery…

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