Editor's Note In this single institution study, the most common reasons for unplanned return to the OR (uROR) were infection and hemorrhage. However, the researchers found that a large number of cases were incorrectly classified as uROR, when they were instead planned reoperations without adequate documentation. Using uROR as reported…

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Editor's Note Thirty-day data from the 225-patient LUCY (Evaluation of FemaLes who are Underrepresented Candidates for Abdominal Aortic AneurYsm Repair) Study showed that at least 28% more women became eligible for  minimally invasive endovascular abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) repair when using Endologix’s (Irvine, California) Ovation abdominal stent graft system, according…

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Editor's Note Managing appendicitis with antibiotics on an outpatient basis shows promise as a safe, effective, lower-cost alternative to surgery, this study finds. Of 30 patients involved in the trial, 15 were randomized to antibiotics and 14 to appendectomy. A total of 14 patients in the antibiotic group were discharged from…

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Editor's Note A team of University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) biologists have found that combinations of three different antibiotics can overcome a bacteria’s resistance, even when none of the three on its own or two together is effective, the February 7 UCLA Newsroom reports. The biologists created a mathematical…

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Editor's Note A University of Alberta engineering professor and colleagues have invented a surgical mask that traps and kills viruses by applying a salt formulation to the mask’s filter fibers, the January 5 ScienceDaily reports. When an aerosol droplet carrying a virus contacts the treated fibers, the droplet absorbs the…

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Editor's Note Pretreating red blood cells (RBCs) with nitric oxide may reduce the risk of pulmonary hypertension, a dangerous side effect of transfusions, finds this study. The Food and Drug Administration allows transfusion of RBCs that have been stored for 42 days. However, recent studies suggest that transfusion of RBCs…

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Editor's Note This study from the UK is the first to link antibiotic resistance with exposure to the disinfectant chlorhexidine. In five of six strains of Klebsiella pneumoniae exposed to chlorhexidine-containing disinfectants in the laboratory, adaptation to chlorhexidine led to resistance to the last resort antibiotic colistin. The risk of…

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Editor's Note This study from the University of Colorado Hospital, Centennial, found that the five primary high touch surfaces in the OR (in order) are: anesthesia computer mouse OR bed nurse computer mouse OR door anesthesia cart. The study also demonstrated that low touch areas were less contaminated than high…

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Editor's Note Harvard researchers have created the first 3-D printed heart-on-a-chip capable of collecting data on how reliably a heart is beating, and how a heart responds to drugs and toxins, the October 25 Gizmodo reports. The 3-D printed organ is made of synthetic material designed to mimic the structure…

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Editor's Note In a study on mice, Johns Hopkins researchers have shown that a coating made with antibiotic-releasing nanofibers can prevent bacterial infections after total joint surgery. After 14 days, mice that received implants without the antibiotic coating all had bacteria in infected tissue around the joint, and 80% had…

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