Editor's Note Researchers claim a stem cell transplant cured type 2 diabetes in a 59-year-old man who previously needed multiple daily insulin injections, the South China Morning Post reported May 27. The Chinese researchers behind the reported breakthrough published details of the case April 30 in the journal Cell Discovery.…

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Editor's Note A recent analysis from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) of over 19 million hospital discharges in the US showed a significant decline in the quality of nonsurgical care for non-COVID-19 patients during the 2020 COVID-19 surges, Healthcare Purchasing News May 28 reports. Specifically, the study…

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Editor's Note Liver resection provides a significant survival benefit over percutaneous radiofrequency ablation (PRFA) or transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) in patients with early multinodular hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), according to findings published May 15 in JAMA Surgery. Thus, liver resection should be considered the first therapeutic option in patients with early multinodular…

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Editor's Note Semaglutide, the active ingredient in Ozempic diabetes treatment and Wegovy weight-loss treatment, outperformed a placebo and demonstrated capacity to reduce risk of death from kidney-related or cardiovascular causes in a recent study of patients with type 2 diabetes and chronic kidney disease spearheaded by manufacturer Novo Nordisk. Published…

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Editor's Note Although robotic-assisted laparoscopic surgery (RLS) and conventional laparoscopic surgery (CLS) offer similar survival outcomes for sigmoid colon cancer, RLS harvests comparatively more lymph nodes, according to a study published May 10 in the Journal of Robotic Surgery. According to a May 15 report on the study in The…

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Takeaways Although women comprise half the population, they were left out of medical research on major causes of death for both women and men—cancer, heart disease, and stroke—until 1990. Using surgical tools designed by men, for men can impact every aspect of a woman surgeon’s work, from learning new procedures…

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Inspecting surgical devices is a time-consuming process. However, diligently checking every instrument prior to sterilization is essential to ensuring safe, proper functioning. As the last people to see devices before they are used for patient care, sterile processing technicians must be thorough. Exterior surfaces should be inspected for flaws such…

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Is working with a healthcare vendor a necessary evil? For leaders in the perioperative space, where vendors abound, it may be tempting to answer “yes.” The relationship between vendors and nurse leaders is a delicate balance between give and take, but sometimes the take seems to outweigh the give. Nonetheless,…

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Over 20 years ago, an article from Johns Hopkins published in The New England Journal of Medicine showed that Staphylococcus aureus decolonization of the nares can decrease risk of surgical site infections (SSI). Since then, nasal decolonization—the application of a topical antimicrobial or antiseptic agent to the nares—has been adopted…

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Editor's Note Contrary to previous findings, less-invasive percutaneous intervention combining fractional flow reserve (FFR)-guided percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) with transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) could be a viable alternative to surgery for patients with severe aortic stenosis (AS) and concomitant obstructive coronary artery disease (CAD). That’s according to the results…

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