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Patients who undergo radical nephrectomy experience a significantly higher incidence of osteoporosis and fractures when compared with those who undergo partial nephrectomy, according to a recent study.

The American Medical Association and 91 state and specialty medical societies, including the AUA, recently submitted formal comments to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services on the proposed changes to the electronic prescribing penalty program.

In premenopausal women who have repeated urinary tract infections, the antibiotic trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (TMP-SMX [Bactrim, Septra DS]) appears to be more effective than cranberry capsules for preventing recurrent infections, at the risk of contributing to antibiotic resistance, Dutch researchers recently reported.

Hard-to-match kidney transplant candidates who receive a treatment designed to make their bodies more accepting of incompatible organs are twice as likely to survive 8 years after transplant surgery as those who stay on dialysis for years awaiting compatible organs, say researchers from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore.

A bipartisan group of senators whose states are home to imaging equipment manufacturers recently wrote President Obama, urging against any cutbacks in Medicare reimbursements for imaging.

Late-stage advanced prostate cancer tumors appear to be driven by a different hormonal pathway than was previously thought, and now, researchers at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, have narrowed potential drug targets.

Correction

A recent "Hands On" article in Urology Times ("Post-prostate biopsy infection: Incidence and preventive steps," July 2011, pages 40-41) included a Figure that contained an error.

While very few legislatures remain in session after July 1, from late summer into early fall and beyond, so-called interim committees meet with regularity to establish much of the agenda that will be considered the next year.

Five-year follow-up of older patients with renal tumors less than 3 cm shows that minimally invasive surgery with tumor enucleation yields less tumor progression than either percutaneous radiofrequency ablation (PRA) or active surveillance.

he coverage, and subsequent payment, for your PSA test is determined by the contractual agreement with your insurance company. Some insurance companies pay and others do not for procedures and other services with different diagnoses.

An international study analyzing data from almost 30,000 men treated with radical prostatectomy as monotherapy for high-risk prostate cancer provides some evidence that short- to medium-term oncologic outcomes are better for men who undergo robot-assisted laparoscopic RP (RALP) compared with open RP (ORP) and laparoscopic RP (LRP).

Results of a retrospective study documenting a significant risk of fluoroquinolone-resistant Escherichia coli infections after transrectal ultrasound-guided prostate biopsy (TRUSP) prompted a change in the antibiotic prophylaxis protocol for men undergoing this diagnostic procedure at one large institution.

The recurrence rate following thermal ablation of renal cortical tumors is 6%. About half of recurrences can be managed successfully with salvage ablative procedures, but 20% require extirpative surgery.

Urology drugs and devices that are in the pipeline from Amgen, VIVUS, Pfizer, Palatin Technologies, Inc., and IsoRay Inc.

Health literacy is the ability of a patient to read, understand, and use health care information to make decisions and follow instructions for treatment. Many physicians overestimate these abilities in their patients, which can lead to poor communication, poor outcomes, and even allegations of malpractice.