Interventional Spine, Inc. announced the completion of another successful surgery with the unique PERPOS Percutaneous Cervical System for the treatment of neck pain. To the Company’s knowledge, the PERPOS Percutaneous Cervical System is the only product that can stabilize the posterior cervical spine with a truly percutaneous procedure. The company believes that its percutaneous approach to the cervical spine will minimize intra and post-operative patient morbidity and provide cost efficiencies to hospitals and surgeons alike.

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Sepsis and septic shock appear to be more common than heart attacks or pulmonary blood clots among patients having general surgery, and the death rate for patients with septic shock is approximately 34 percent within 30 days of operation, according to a report in the July issue of Archives of Surgery. In recent years, attention has been focused on prevention of venous thromboembolism, myocardial infarction (heart attack) and surgical site infections.

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A new study by Aussie scientists has shown that women who go for a hysterectomy or removal of ovaries via keyhole surgery are half as likely to suffer complications than those that opt for open abdominal surgery. The results of the new study hope to provide women with a quicker and less traumatic recovery from uterine cancer treatment. The trial assessed 759 patients who were enrolled through 20 gynecological cancer centres worldwide.

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The researchers at Rush University Medical Center found that 78 percent of athletes suffering from hip labral tear caused by internal ball and socket joint damage to the hip were able to return to their sport within an average of a little more than nine months following the surgery. Hip arthroscopy is a less invasive outpatient procedure compared to traditional open hip surgery.

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Smokers who refrain from using tobacco during the six-week period following emergency surgery for an acute fracture heal more quickly than patients who continue to smoke during the healing process, according to a study published in the June 2010 issue of The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery (JBJS). The study was conducted at three hospitals in Stockholm. Patients included in the program were offered one or two in-person meetings.

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Covidien has received clearance from the FDA to market a medical device, called the Mallinckrodt TaperGuard Evac endotracheal tube, created to reduce the risk of postsurgical complications caused by the aspiration of fluids into the lungs. Although complications from pulmonary aspiration are rare, the consequences can be severe, Covidien said.

The FDA is reconsidering the approval of ReGen Biologics Inc’s knee device after an investigation showed that unprecedented industry and Congressional involvement influenced the agency’s decision. Joshua Sharfstein, the agency’s principal deputy commissioner, said, however, that patients who have had Menaflex implanted in their knee need not panic and noted that the device is still on the market. ReGen Chief Executive Gerald Bisbee said in a statement that the report didn’t evaluate the scientific evidence about the device. The company said the product is safe and helps knee-surgery patients recover more quickly.

A study published in the June 2009 issue of the Archives of Surgery depicted that laparoscopy-assisted surgery for early gastric cancer resulted in a 98.8% three-year overall survival rate in patients with early gastric cancer. Laparoscopic gastrectomy is a minimally invasive surgical procedure, in contrast with the total removal of the lymph nodes in traditional treatment. In Laparoscopic gastrectomy, a surgeon removes the stomach through a lighted tube, eliminating the need for large surgical incisions and possibly reducing the risk of infection, healing complications, pain and blood loss.

Angiotech Pharmaceuticals is halting enrollment in clinical trials for Vascular Wrap, which is being evaluated in patients undergoing surgery for hemodialysis access, pending a safety review. The company has been conducting the study in the U.S. and Europe on two groups, one which received the wrap in combination with a graft and one which received the graft alone. After reviewing a summary of interim adverse events, a data safety monitoring board has informed the company that one of the two study groups had a greater incidence of implant site infection.

Dr Shane Grey of the Garvan Institute for Medical Research and Professor John Dalton of the Institute for the Biotechnology of Infectious Diseases are working towards copying the parasites’ tactic of making the body accept transplanted tissues or organs. Parasites work by deviating the immune system so that it is unable to come up with an effective response.