For pediatricians, staying informed about current trends in adolescent substance use is necessary to provide comprehensive care and effective guidance to young patients and their families. According to a presentation by Brittany K. Badal, M.D., adolescent medicine physician with Norton Children’s Medical Group, the landscape of substance use among teens is dynamic, influenced by societal…
Chronic pelvic pain (CPP) is a complex and often debilitating condition that affects a significant portion of the female population. It is commonly defined as pain perceived to originate from the pelvic region that has been present for longer than six months. This differs from acute pelvic pain, which usually has a clearly identifiable cause…
Robot-assisted sacroiliac joint (SIJ) fusion surgery can, in about 1% of cases, injure the superior gluteal artery (SGA), but preoperative imaging, precise robot-assisted screw insertion and soft tissue protection can mitigate risks, according to a recently published study in the Journal of Neurosurgery: Case Lessons. The study describes the case of an 80-year-old man who…
Safer controlled substance prescribing begins with a thorough patient workup, an appropriate diagnosis and a comprehensive treatment plan, according to Kelly C. Cooper, M.D., an addiction medicine specialist with Norton Behavioral Medicine. “We just tend to go for the pills first. And it’s not just as providers, it’s patients as well,” Dr. Cooper said during…
Legislation signed in December 2022 affects Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)-registered practitioners and requires a one-time, eight-hour training on the treatment and management of patients with opioid or other substance use disorders. MATE Act compliance training Complete your training online Start today at PCSS Highlights of new DEA training requirement: The eight hours of training can…
Using an anesthesia block such as erector spinae plane block in some pediatric cardiac surgeries has allowed us to quicken patient recovery, shorten stays in the cardiac intensive care unit (CICU) and extubate sooner. By blocking the afferent neuronal impulses in surgeries involving a midline sternotomy, erector spinae plane blocks reduce the body’s sensation of…
Even though I’m a neurosurgeon specializing in spine, I spend a lot of time talking to my patients about issues other than their backs. Rarely do I see back pain in isolation. Before they undergo spinal surgery, patients who are obese or who have osteoporosis or have poorly controlled diabetes all have risks we need…
When he spent time shadowing physicians in Eastern Kentucky, where he grew up, Jeffrey D. Howard, M.D., MBA, MPH, was struck by a rural doctor’s ability to take care of any case that came through the door. One of these “Docs,” as their patients called them, performed a carotid endarterectomy on his wife’s uncle, managed…
Sickle cell disease (SCD) in pregnancy raises the risk to mother and baby as well as complications of SCD, but working closely with the patient’s hematologist and a maternal-fetal medicine specialist improves the chances of an uneventful pregnancy and delivery. Early prenatal care and regular monitoring throughout the pregnancy are especially important for SCD patients….
The Congress of Neurological Surgeons Systematic Review and Evidence-Based Guidelines for Perioperative Spine: Preoperative Osteoporosis Assessment recently was published in Neurosurgery. To develop these recommendations, the authors performed systematic review of the literature using national databases for studies relevant to preoperative diagnostic studies that predict increased risk of osteoporosis-related postoperative complications and whether the preoperative…
New evidence-based guidelines covering five key perioperative spine assessments were issued recently by the Congress of Neurological Surgeons. The guidelines, published in the medical journal Neurosurgery, provide insight on the following: Preoperative osteoporosis assessment Preoperative nutritional assessment Preoperative pulmonary evaluation and optimization Preoperative opioid evaluation Preoperative surgical risk assessment A team of eight physicians from…
Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) protocols have the potential to hasten recovery from lumbar fusion surgery for degenerative spine conditions, with reduced in-hospital opioid consumption and improved postoperative pain scores, according to a study published recently in Global Spine Journal. ERAS, which includes preoperative counseling, nutritional and medical optimization, standardized pain management and anesthesia, and…