Gina Gagua

In addition to confirming previously identified risk factors for cardiovascular complications after total joint replacement (TJR) surgery, researchers have shown that bilateral and revision operations are associated with increased risk.

"Revision joint replacement and bilateral surgery are much more prolonged operations than primary unilateral joint replacement," Dr. Jeffrey N. Katz, from Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, said in a statement. "These findings suggest an increased risk with more prolonged surgery."

In patients undergoing liver resection for hepatocellular carcinoma related to hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection, viral load at the time of surgery is predictive of hepatoma recurrence, according to Chinese researchers.

Elevated free plasma DNA is a reliable indicator of recurrent esophageal cancer, more so than carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), and is able to detect recurrent disease in most patients before clinical evidence emerges. These findings come from a study by researchers at the University of Southern California, published in the July issue of the Journal of the American College of Surgeons.

Laparoscopic surgeons who play video games requiring spatial skills and dexterity are faster and less prone to error when performing advanced surgical procedures, researchers reported on Sunday at the Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association in Boston.

A new review by three renowned experts in cardiology suggests that efforts to treat elevated cholesterol levels are not exploiting the full potential of cholesterol-lowering strategies, and current approaches to treatment are simply doing "too little, too late. [1]" The evidence, say these experts, is strong enough to support even more aggressive use of lipid-lowering therapies and to intervene at earlier stages in the development of atherosclerosis.

Polyalkylimide implants (PAI) used as dermal fillers can infrequently result in delayed and recurrent chronic inflammatory and granulomatous reactions, according to the results of a study published in the May issue of the Archives of Dermatology.