May 4th, 2021 - NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - In patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in remission taking conventional synthetic disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (csDMARDs), cutting the drug dose in half could lead to more disease flares, according to a randomized controlled trial. Sustained remission is now achievable for RA patients receiving csDMARDs, but how to best manage patients in clinical remiss...

May 2nd, 2021 - Hypnotherapy may be an effective way to reduce opioid use in postsurgical settings, new research shows. In a study of patients undergoing total knee arthroplasty (TKA), those undergoing hypnosis before surgery used fewer opioids postoperatively than their counterparts who did not undergo psychosis, even though pain, length of hospital stay, and complications were similar between the two patient...

Apr 29th, 2021 - Low-dose naltrexone (LDN) may be effective in the treatment of refractory chronic pain, early research suggests. Preliminary data from a retrospective chart review of patients with chronic pain showed those who received LDN experienced significant improvement in both pain and disability. Dr Kaivalya Deshpande "Naltrexone has been studied especially in the setting of opioid and alcohol abuse, bu...

Apr 29th, 2021 - Transcranial direct-current stimulation (tDCS), performed at home but supervised remotely, is feasible and effective in managing osteoarthritis (OA) pain in older adults, new research shows. In a small, open-label study of 20 patients with knee OA, 2 weeks of at-home treatment with tDCS significantly reduced pain scores by more than 50%. In addition, the treatment was well tolerated. Dr Hyochol...

Apr 29th, 2021 - ZURICH (Reuters) - Denmark's top health official said on Thursday "the only ethical, correct decision" for some countries facing COVID-19 crises is to continue giving AstraZeneca's vaccine, though his nation halted use over very rare clotting concerns. Soren Brostrom, speaking at a Danish Health Authority-sponsored scientific conference over the clotting, was responding to a question over wheth...

Apr 29th, 2021 - The pain-relieving effects of cannabidiol (CBD) may be linked to its influence on affective processes, new research shows. In a pilot study, investigators from the University of Syracuse, Syracuse, New York, found that patient expectectatons regarding analgesia appear to be integral to CBD's purported ability to modulate pain outcomes. "Our initial findings show that both the pharmacological ac...

Apr 28th, 2021 - Intranasal (IN) ketamine may be a safe and effective alternative to intravenous opioids for acute pain in adult patients, new research suggests. In a systematic literature review of 15 studies that included 2218 adult patients, IN ketamine was associated with improved pain scores. Dr Anne Hermon "While covering the acute pain service, myself and my co-author, Dr Nadkarni [Anisha Nadkarni, MD] n...

Apr 28th, 2021 - Although the healing properties of cannabis have been touted for millennia, research into its potential neuropsychiatric applications truly began to take off in the 1990s following the discovery of the cannabinoid system in the brain. This led to speculation that cannabis could play a therapeutic role in regulating dopamine, serotonin, and other neurotransmitters and offer a new means of treati...

Apr 27th, 2021 - Editor's note: Find the latest COVID-19 news and guidance in Medscape's Coronavirus Resource Center. Covid survivors are at risk from a separate epidemic of opioid addiction, given the high rate of painkillers being prescribed to these patients, health experts say. A new study in Nature found alarmingly high rates of opioid use among covid survivors with lingering symptoms at Veterans Health Ad...

Apr 25th, 2021 - (Reuters Health) - Although there's no direct evidence to suggest that corticosteroid injection before or after an adenovirus vector-based COVID-19 vaccine decreases vaccine efficacy, clinicians may still want to time elective corticosteroid injections at least two weeks before or after receipt of this vaccine, according to a group of doctors writing on behalf of the Spine Intervention Society....

Apr 25th, 2021 - TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Florida doctors would be banned from performing abortions if they know, or should have known, the woman was ending her pregnancy because of a test or diagnosis that the fetus will be born with a disability, under a bill passed by the House on Friday. Doctors who do end a pregnancy based solely on a physical or mental disability would be guilty of a third degree felony p...

Apr 23rd, 2021 - For pain related to skin disorders, dermatologists should generally consider management as their direct responsibility without referrals, according to an expert who outlined his strategies at the American Academy of Dermatology Virtual Meeting Experience. The exceptions relate primarily to patients with issues complicating pain control, such as those with psychosocial problems exacerbating the ...

Apr 22nd, 2021 - Introduction I recently became aware of a case where a medical intern correctly performed a procedure but on the wrong patient. Intended for the patient in room 501, the patient in room 510 received it. Whoops! Unfortunately, medical errors due to mistaken identity are not rare. A Perfect Storm How did it happen? The medical error triggered an administrative inquiry, required by law in many sta...

Apr 22nd, 2021 - Joel Pellot, MD, had never set up a GoFundMe campaign until this week. But when he learned that the neurosurgery residency program at the University of Puerto Rico was losing its accreditation, he knew that his fellow residents would need financial help to relocate to another program. Pellot, who is finishing his sixth year of the 7-year residency program, is safe. He will graduate in June 2022...

Apr 22nd, 2021 - General anesthesia should be an option for patients at the end of life as a means of easing the physical and mental distress that can burden some people, say experts in anesthesia and ethics. They present a strong ethical and technical case for making general anesthesia widely available and supporting its use by practice guidelines in the United Kingdom. In an article published online April 20 ...

Apr 21st, 2021 - MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Transgender youth, parents and advocates on Tuesday urged the Alabama House of Representatives, as well as the state's governor, to reject legislation that would ban the use of puberty-blockers or hormones to treat transgender minors. Arkansas earlier this month became the first state to approve such legislation. Alabama could be the second if House members approve the S...

Apr 20th, 2021 - Takeaway In patients with knee and hip osteoarthritis (OA), glucosamine and chondroitin demonstrated marginal small yet significant structural and symptomatic effects, in addition to favourable safety. Strontium showed therapeutic benefit in terms of structure modification and vitamin D improved symptoms. Doxycycline demonstrated a promising efficacy ranking, but has a poor safety profile. Why ...

Apr 20th, 2021 - Millions Paid to Resolve Multiple Claims Involving "Unproven" Knee Surgery In what's believed to be one of the largest public payouts in recent years, the University of Missouri, in Columbia, will hand over $16.2 million to settle a series of lawsuits against two physician employees who pioneered an innovative but flawed knee surgery procedure, according to a report first published by Kaiser He...

Apr 19th, 2021 - With medical visits picking up again among patients vaccinated against covid-19, health providers are starting to see the consequences of a year of pandemic-delayed preventive and emergency care as they find more advanced cancer and rotting and damaged teeth, among other ailments. Dr. Brian Rah, chair of the cardiology department at Montana's Billings Clinic, was confused in the early days of t...

Apr 18th, 2021 - Editor's note: Find the latest COVID-19 news and guidance in Medscape's Coronavirus Resource Center. Physician compensation plummeted in the opening weeks of the COVID-19 pandemic in March and April 2020, but earnings had rebounded for many physicians by the end of the year, according to the Medscape Physician Compensation Report 2021: The Recovery Begins. Almost 18,000 physicians in more than ...