Fat-burning bacteria help in gastric surgery
According to a new study from Harvard University, bacteria living in the stomach change after weight-loss surgery and may help in reducing weight. Researchers gave a group of mice gastric-bypass surgery. When the gut bacteria from the mice that received surgery were transferred into mice that hadn’t undergone the procedure, results showed that they, too, lost weight.
Brain mapping technique preserves function post brain tumor surgery
Using an imaging technique known as diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), neurosurgeons can visualize pathways in the brain to help them adapt brain tumor surgeries, which allows them to preserve language, visual, and motor functions after cancerous tissue removal. Researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania have reviewed studies that show that DTI can improve accuracy as well as significantly extend survival.
New procedure facilitates hip replacement
The number of Americans receiving hip replacements has more than doubled over the past two decades to over 300,000 a year. While surgeons generally enter the joint from the rear, having to cut muscle and cartilage, a new procedure allows surgeons to enter from the front by simply stretching the muscles aside. This leads to minimized pain and recovery time. Regardless of the benefits, surgeons remain hesitant to try this approach, as only 20% of them prefer it.
Robotic surgery linked to temporary nerve damage
One in fifteen patients that undergo prostate, kidney, or bladder surgeries develop nerve injuries, according to researchers from the University of Virginia School of Medicine. When patients are positioned in steep angles for these procedures, it leads to unnecessary sliding, which is where the injuries are sustained. Researchers reviewed 334 records from 334 robot-assisted urology procedures between 2010 and 2011 and found 22 patients woke with a positioning injury.
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Preparing for your patient’s liver resection
By Phyllis A. Tarallo, DNP, DCC and Janice Smolowitz, DNP, EdD, DCC Earn 2.3 Contact Hours
Restoring function for children with brachial plexus birth palsy
By Melissa Miller, MSN, RN, Allison Allgier, OTR/L, and Emily Louden, MPHEarn 2.1 Contact Hours
Taking the heat out of malignant hyperthermia
By Lenora Woolsey, MSN, RN, CNOR
Meeting regulatory requirements for tissue tracking
By Mary C. Catalano, BS, CASC