Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on March 8 issued a Safety Alert about the use of balloon angioplasty devices to perform an experimental procedure, called transvascular autonomic modulation (TVAM). TVAM consists of threading a catheter into a patient’s venous system, such as the jugular vein, where a…

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Editor's Note The American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) on March 8 announced it is joining with hospitals and other healthcare groups across the country to celebrate and recognize the work of certified nurses as part of Certified Nurses Day, March 19. Certified Nurses Day is an annual worldwide event…

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Editor's Note As a result of the Food and Drug Administration’s ban on powdered gloves that went into effect January 18, the Joint Commission is now evaluating organizations on the implementation of non-powdered glove use during accreditation surveys, the Joint Commission announced March 7. Instances of noncompliance are being cited…

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Editor's Note Opioid use before major abdominal surgery was independently associated with increased postoperative healthcare utilization and morbidity in this study. Of 2,413 patients analyzed, 502 used opioids preoperatively. After covariate adjustment, opioid users, compared with non-opioid users had: higher costs ($26,604 vs $24,263) longer lengths of stay (5.9 vs…

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Editor's Note To help surgical patients recover faster, Rush University Medical Center in Chicago has started providing them with a computer app that prompts, monitors, and encourages activities that promote healing. The app, called “SeamlessMD,” can be downloaded to a patient’s smartphone, tablet, or computer and is part of Rush’s…

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Editor's Note Opioid overdose is a rare but potentially lethal complication after elective inpatient surgical procedures, and the incidence is increasing, this study finds. Of 11,317,958 patients analyzed, 9,458 (0.1%) had a postoperative opioid overdose, and the frequency doubled during the study period (2001 to 2011) from 0.6 to 1.1…

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Editor's Note For the National Patient Safety Foundation’s Patient Safety Awareness Week, March 12 to 18, certified registered nurse anesthetists (CRNAs) are urging surgical, obstetric, and chronic pain patients to learn about the risks and benefits of pain relief options available to them, including opioid and non-opioid treatments. Partnering with…

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Editor's Note More adults are getting screening tests for colorectal cancer but not for breast or cervical cancers, according to new data from the Centers Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). From 2000 to 2015, the rate of colorectal cancer screening increased from 33% to 62% in men and from 35%…

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Editor's Note Researchers at Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, have developed a tool that helps predict the possibility of survival and independence at discharge for elderly patients with traumatic brain injury. The tool, which accounts for variables such as age, gender, and severity of brain injury, was evaluated in…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced March 3 that they are collaborating on a project designed to adapt, enhance, and disseminate CDC guidelines related to infection prevention in ambulatory healthcare settings. The goal of the initiative, called “ADOPT (Adaptation and Dissemination Outpatient…

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