Here are what the editors at HealthDay consider to be the most important developments in Orthopedics for April 2018. This roundup includes the latest research news from journal articles, as well as the FDA approvals and regulatory changes that are the most likely to affect clinical practice.
THURSDAY, April 26, 2018 -- A new clinic satisfaction tool improves communication and provides real-time feedback, according to a study published online April 14 in Neurosurgery.
FRIDAY, April 27, 2018 -- There is a high risk of postoperative mortality among patients undergoing lower-limb amputation, according to a study published online April 5 in Diabetes Care.
THURSDAY, April 26, 2017 -- The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and local agencies are holding the 15th National Prescription Drug Take Back Day across the country this Saturday, April 28.
WEDNESDAY, April 25, 2018 -- U.S. hospitals will have to post their standard prices online and make it easier for patients to access their electronic medical records, Medicare officials said Tuesday.
MONDAY, April 23, 2018 -- Patients prefer physicians who engage in face-to-face (F2F) clinic visits, rather than those using an examination room computer (ERC), according to a research letter published online April 19 in JAMA Oncology.
FRIDAY, April 20, 2018 -- Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical Inc.'s Crysvita (burosumab-twza) has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat adults and children ages 1 year and older with x-linked hypophosphatemia (XLH).
FRIDAY, April 20, 2018 -- Males and females have similar knee positions at the time of non-contact anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) rupture, according to a study published online April 18 in the American Journal of Sports Medicine.
FRIDAY, April 20, 2018 -- For patients undergoing hip fracture fixation, general anesthesia (GA) is associated with increased 90-day mortality compared with spinal anesthesia (SA), according to a study presented at the 2018 World Congress on Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, held from April 19 to 21 in New York City.
TUESDAY, April 17, 2018 -- The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) concludes that exercise interventions may be beneficial for preventing falls in older adults; however, the evidence is insufficient to weigh the benefits and harms of vitamin D, calcium, and combined supplementation. These findings form the basis of two recommendation statements published April 17 in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
TUESDAY, April 17, 2018 -- For individuals with chronic spinal pain, pain neuroscience education combined with cognition-targeted motor control training seems more effective than current best-evidence physical therapy, according to a study published online April 16 in JAMA Neurology.
MONDAY, April 16, 2018 -- In a position paper published online April 17 in the Annals of Internal Medicine, recommendations are provided aimed at addressing gender equity in physician compensation and career advancement opportunities.
MONDAY, April 16, 2018 -- The estimated annual cost of drug-related morbidity and mortality resulting from nonoptimized medication therapy is more than half a trillion dollars in the United States, according to a study published online March 26 in the Annals of Pharmacotherapy.
THURSDAY, April 12, 2018 -- The burden of prior authorization (PA) has increased over the past five years, and 92 percent of physicians report associated delays in access to care, according to the results of a survey published by the American Medical Association (AMA).
TUESDAY, April 10, 2018 -- Changes can be implemented to help reduce physician frustration with electronic health records (EHRs), according to an article published in Medical Economics.
TUESDAY, April 10, 2018 -- There are considerable differences in the burden of disease at the state level, according to a study published in the April 10 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
TUESDAY, April 10, 2018 -- Scoliosis surgery in patients with cerebral palsy (CP) leads to a significant improvement in health-related quality of life (HRQoL), which is maintained five years following surgery, according to a study published in the April 4 issue of The Journal of Bone & Joint Surgery.
TUESDAY, April 10, 2018 -- Whole body computed tomography (WBCT) is not associated with reduced mortality compared with a selective CT approach among children with blunt trauma, according to a study published online April 9 in JAMA Pediatrics.
FRIDAY, April 6, 2018 -- New interns' intense and changing schedules take a toll on sleep, activity, and mood, according to a study published online March 14 in the Journal of General Internal Medicine.
THURSDAY, April 5, 2018 -- The Affordable Care Act's Marketplaces covered a disproportionate share of non-elderly adults with high health care risks in the 2014 to 2015 time period, according to a study published in the April issue of Health Affairs.
THURSDAY, April 5, 2018 -- Online physician reviews do not reflect patient satisfaction surveys (PSSs), according to a study published in the April issue of the Mayo Clinic Proceedings.
WEDNESDAY, April 4, 2018 -- There is considerable variation in the quality of free-text patient directions (Sig) in electronic prescriptions (e-prescriptions), according to a study published online April 2 in the Journal of Managed Care & Specialty Pharmacy.
MONDAY, April 2, 2018 -- In the surgical correction of pediatric scoliosis, black race is independently associated with increased estimated blood loss, increased rate of blood transfusion, and increased amount of blood transfused, according to a study published online March 9 in Pediatric Anesthesia.
MONDAY, April 2, 2018 -- Preoperative chronic opioid use is associated with poor outcomes and continued dependence after posterior lumbar fusion, according to a study published online March 20 in Spine.