Once considered a primary option for kidney stone treatment, shock wave lithotripsy appears to be losing traction. Many urologists say its outcomes aren’t as reliable as those from ureteroscopy. But others say it remains an option that works well with proper patient selection and technique and offers what ureteroscopy doesn’t: a noninvasive option.
Telemedicine may provide the answer to costly consultations. According to data from a recent study, remote video visits demonstrated equivalent efficiency and satisfaction when compared with traditional office visits for men with surgically treated prostate cancer.
Overactive bladder (OAB) and falls often carry a substantial burden for patients and society as a whole, and new research suggests that treatment of OAB may lower fall risk. Learn more
Results from a recently published set of coordinated trials indicate that raising testosterone concentrations offers moderate benefits in sexual function and some benefit on mood and depressive symptoms.
Urology Times SUO internship program member Katie Murray, DO, reports on a study evaluating the differences in urine cytology and UroVysion FISH testing results among clinically meaningful patient subgroups.
Urology Times SUO internship program member William Parker, MD, discusses a retrospective review of more than 100 patients at Columbia University Medical Center in New York.
Four PCa studies presented at the 2015 AUA annual meeting in New Orleans shed some light, with researchers emphasizing the need to optimize screening and to improve treatment selection in older men.
The VA Choice program wasn’t designed to bring VA patients to community physicians; rather, it was designed to turn community physicians into VA doctors. And that does not work, says Henry Rosevear, MD. Dr. Rosevear shares his experience with the VA Choice program and shares what he sees as its limitations and what needs to change.
A 2016 study of certificate of need laws showed at least 20 states restrict the technology used for MRI, CT, and PET scans. Many states are now weighing proposals to reform the process by which health facility projects are reviewed, writes the AACU's Ross E. Weber.
“Both physicians and patients should take into account remaining life expectancy before adopting screening pathways,” a study author says.
The investigational modality was compared with surgical pathology in men undergoing radical prostatectomy.
"This article describes the surgical steps in this new technique and our promising preliminary results," writes Reynaldo Gomez, MD.
Urology Times SUO internship program member Brandon Manley, MD, reports on an SUO presentation highlighting several interesting findings on advanced prostate cancer with variant histology.
Researchers hypothesized that during a time of resource scarcity, the incidence of PSA-detected prostate cancer would decrease and the use of noncurative management strategies would increase, reports Urology Times SUO internship program member Ryan Hutchinson, MD.
Richard “Buz” Cooper, MD, an outspoken figure on health care work force shortages, dies at 79.
At the AUA, there is a list of 10 top priorities on which association lobbyists hope to gain traction.
No one can predict with any great certainty the financial outlook for 2016, especially with the national elections looming in November. Nevertheless, certain money management strategies make sense every year.
Two-thirds of patients attending a urology clinic for the management of urolithiasis failed to meet physical activity guidelines. In addition, patients with recent symptomatic urolithiasis were significantly more likely to be current smokers than those without recent symptomatic urolithiasis, according to a recent study.
Analyses of overall survival rates among subgroups of men who received radium-223 dichloride (Ra 223; Xofigo) as part of an expanded access program suggest factors that may have prognostic significance, including effects of prior and concomitant treatments.
"With better education and research, our stone patients can decrease their disease risk and improve their overall health sooner rather than later," writes Stephen Y. Nakada, MD.
In this article, Robert A. Dowling, MD, addresses common questions and answers on patient access to protected health information-recently released by the government-to help your office manage this common task in a compliant fashion.
In this interview, Dr. Wong describes difficult stones, discusses the skills and training required to treat them, and outlines the role of different treatment modalities.
Dawn Collins, JD, also writes about a lawsuit in which a patient sued over an alleged failure to diagnose Fournier's gangrene.
Practices should discuss meaningful use with their EHR vendor and determine if they are a certified vendor (CEHRT). Start with focusing on these six specific areas to respond to software changes.
According to the AUA, CMS began applying penalties in 2015 for the 2013 reporting period for providers who did not attest or failed to achieve meaningful use. While the law allows for a hardship exemption for the 2015 reporting period/2017 adjustment year, it offers no protection for 2016/2018.
The federal government’s aggressive timeline for full Stage 3 implementation of meaningful use in 2018 seemed to derail on Jan. 11 when Acting CMS Administrator Andy Slavitt declared that the program would come to an end this year. Now that the news has settled, urologists are among those who think meaningful use is very much alive, but evolving, and urologists and other physicians should not change EHR course, just yet.
There are several very detailed steps that we will combine into 11 separate functions that have to be performed in a prompt and accurate fashion in order to submit a clean claim and be paid in a timely fashion.
When Dr. Painter started practice during the early 1970s in a small town in western Colorado, the entire billing and collections process was much simpler.
Despite ureteroscopy's high success results, there is still a role for shock wave lithotripsy in treating stones, urologists say.
