
Urologists and other physicians across the country now find themselves in the midst of a high stakes game of "chicken" on Capitol Hill, with their level of compensation for treating Medicare patients at stake.

Urologists and other physicians across the country now find themselves in the midst of a high stakes game of "chicken" on Capitol Hill, with their level of compensation for treating Medicare patients at stake.

Although percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL) comprises only 4% to 6% of all stone surgeries, it behooves the urologist with an interest in stone disease to be facile in this treatment modality in order to offer patients the most appropriate and effective treatment for their stones.

A new AUA standard operating practice document aims to help with robotic surgery credentialing for practicing urologists and those in training.

Whether a coverage arrangement is in place makes all the difference when seeing another urologist's patients.

Results of in vitro studies indicate that E-twenty six (ETS) gene fusions in prostate cancer may be a biomarker of radiation resistance and a potential target for reversing radioresistance through treatment with a poly(ADP-ribose)polymerase 1 (PARP1) inhibitor.

A composite score calculated from a 46-gene RNA signature independently predicts cancer death among men with clinically localized prostate cancer managed by active surveillance.

Hiring a friend is usually not a good idea, because it can cause more problems in your practice than it solves.

Almost half of prostate cancer deaths occur among men with PSA levels in the top 10% when assessed at age 44 to 50 years. This small group could benefit from intense surveillance over the ensuing years, whereas in about half of men, three lifetime PSA tests appear sufficient to capture the risk of prostate cancer metastases or death 10 or more years in advance.

Among men treated with curative radiation therapy and neoadjuvant, adjuvant, or concurrent androgen deprivation therapy (ADT), about one-fourth fail to achieve or maintain true castrate levels of testosterone suppression.

Men with lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) associated with large prostates had significantly greater improvement in functional outcomes when treated with holmium laser enucleation of the prostate (HoLEP) than with photoselective vaporization of the prostate (PVP).

Surveys of patients and their partners have found previous numbers regarding post-op potency to be highly unrealistic, and results of recent studies, such as one from Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, are closer to reality.

Researchers found that stretched penile length following radical prostatectomy for prostate cancer decreased until 36 months post-op, then at this point, the process appears to reach a nadir and reverse itself so that by 48 months, stretched length appeared to be fully restored at 5 years post-op.


An experimental treatment for urinary tract infections has passed its first test in animals, alleviating weeks-long infections in mice in as little as 6 hours, according to a recent study.

Female stress urinary incontinence treatment with single-incision mini-slings yields significantly lower cure rates and higher risk of repeat surgery compared with standard midurethral slings.

If you are serious about going green, get your staff involved. Start with conducting an environment audit of what products you use, how they are discarded, and where there may be unnecessary waste.

Staring down a possible 27% reimbursement cut, questions about the viability of health care reform, increasing demand for their services, and a shrinking work force, it's less than surprising that urologists are anxious about the prospects for their profession.

Urologists generally use the recommendation as the basis of a frank discussion with patients.

Even if they didn't do well in the stock market, many focus on their health and enjoy their work.

Kenneth M. Peters, MD, discusses the various forms of neurostimulation, current research efforts, and potential future uses for this modality.

Urologists and other health care providers now need to consider whether to participate in the federal government's new accountable care organization program, finalized in mid-October as a way to help reduce Medicare costs while improving patient care.

This article reviews the current data on KTP laser vaporization and HoLEP, emphasizing outcomes compared with those of TURP and OP, to determine whether a new gold standard exists for the surgical management of BPH/LUTS.

It's time for organized medicine to realize that our interests are not the same as the pharmaceutical industry's, and while we appreciate all of the advances being made, we as a society cannot afford all of them.

By the end of this article, you should better understand the VA practice model as it relates to the practice of urology.

Findings from a large cohort of men with post-radical prostatectomy incontinence provide some insight on the diagnostic benefit of videourodynamic studies for guiding management decisions.

From a marketable government debt securities standpoint, investors are offered many choices.

High serum levels of certain antioxidants are associated with a lower risk of nephrolithiasis.

Virtually every source of income from patient care to ancillary services is being cut for all specialty physicians, not just urologists.

In men with castration-resistant prostate cancer and symptomatic bone metastases, the investigational radiopharmaceutical radium-223 (Alpharadin) improved overall survival by 30% and time to first skeletal-related event by 39% compared with placebo.

In stress continent women, prophylactic placement of a midurethral sling at the time of vaginal prolapse repair significantly decreases the development of bothersome urinary incontinence, even after allowing for delayed incontinence intervention.