NPs No More Likely Than Physicians to Prescribe Inappropriately to Older Adults
Nurse practitioners were no more likely than physicians to inappropriately prescribe medications to older patients, researchers found. In an analysis of Medicare Part D claims, the mean rates of inappropriate prescribing by NPs and primary care doctors were “virtually identical” at adjusted rates of 1.66 and 1.68 per 100 prescriptions, David Studdert, LLB, ScD, of […]
Think You Have COVID? Here’s The Best Way To Test Yourself Now.
agrobacter via Getty Images Data shows we should be testing ourselves for COVID later than we might think. It’s that time of year again. Upper respiratory infections like respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), influenza and COVID are rising — and we’re only just getting started. The signs and symptoms of these infections can be quite similar […]
Bladder-Sparing Neoadjuvant Protocol Gets High Marks for MIBC
More than 40% of patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC) avoided immediate cystectomy after achieving a clinical complete response (cCR) with a chemoimmunotherapy combination, a prospective study showed. Overall, 33 of 76 patients with MIBC achieved a cCR by stringently defined criteria following transurethral resection of bladder tumor (TURBT) and treatment with gemcitabine, cisplatin, and […]
Family Of Henrietta Lacks Settles With Biotech Company Accused Of Profiting From Her Cells
BALTIMORE (AP) — More than 70 years after doctors at Johns Hopkins Hospital took Henrietta Lacks’ cervical cells without her knowledge, a lawyer for her descendants said they have reached a settlement with a biotechnology company they sued in 2021, accusing its leaders of reaping billions of dollars from a racist medical system. Tissue taken […]
Infant Boys Better at Resisting HIV Than Girls?
BRISBANE, Australia — Infant boys appeared more likely than girls to be able to resist in utero vertical transmission of HIV, even when their mothers had less than optimal antiretroviral therapy, a longitudinal study showed. Of 281 mother-child pairs, five babies — all boys — had persistently undetectable HIV viral loads even when they were […]
Near-Zero Risk of HIV Transmission With Low Viral Loads
BRISBANE, Australia – The risk of sexual transmission of HIV with viral loads of less than 1,000 copies per mL was almost zero, according to a meta-analysis and systematic review. In eight studies involving 7,762 serodiscordant couples across 25 countries, there were two cases of possible transmission among patients who had detectable viral loads that […]
This Is One Of The Biggest Warning Signs You May Experience A Stroke
SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY via Getty Images Warning strokes can last for less than a minute but require immediate medical attention. Strokes are a leading cause of death in the U.S., with nearly 800,000 people experiencing one every year. On average, a stroke occurs every 40 seconds in the country. These numbers are jarring and scary, […]
COVID Infection May Impair Semen Quality, Even After Mild Cases
Semen quality remained impaired more than 3 months after a mild COVID-19 infection, according to a small study from Spain involving unvaccinated men. Testing performed a median 100 days after infection among existing patients at one of six reproductive centers showed lower sperm counts, slower motility, and lower overall sperm quality compared with pre-infection tests […]
Xeljanz Edges Humira Just a Bit for Real-World RA Patients, Study Suggests
Tofacitinib (Xeljanz) appeared ever-so-slightly more effective than adalimumab (Humira) for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in a study that used real-world patient data to simulate a randomized head-to-head trial. Leaders of Australia’s OPAL network of rheumatologists reported that, among 699 RA patients starting their first biologic or targeted therapy for the disease, the mean 28-joint Disease Activity […]
Should Hospitals Get Paid More Than Physician Practices for the Same Service?
WASHINGTON — Should hospital outpatient departments (HOPDs) get paid more by Medicare than independent physician practices for providing the same care? Yes, they absolutely should, panelists said at a briefing here Monday sponsored by the American Hospital Association (AHA). Ashley Thompson, senior vice president for public policy analysis and development at the AHA, outlined several […]