All News

Coalition building and collaboration-with media outlets, patients, and legislators-can positively influence how the practice of urology is perceived by the general public.

Urologist Samuel B. Broaddus, MD, of South Portland, ME, has been named a recipient of the 2010 Surgical Volunteerism Award of the American College of Surgeons and Pfizer, Inc.

An organization that advocates responsible entertainment has launched an initiative to alert parents about broadcast television programs that contain advertisements for erectile dysfunction drugs.

The use of estrogen therapy by postmenopausal women might increase the risk of developing kidney stones, according to findings by researchers from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas.

Insurance status is strongly associated with disease severity among prostate cancer patients, researchers from the American Cancer Society recently reported.

Patients treated with the investigational agent abiraterone acetate plus low-dose prednisone/prednisolone showed a significant improvement in overall survival compared with those treated with prednisone/prednisolone plus placebo, according to results from an interim analysis of a randomized, placebo-controlled phase III study.

The AUA and the American Association of Clinical Urologists were among 65 physician groups that recently united to warn Congress that immediate action is needed to stop the 30% Medicare payment cuts looming at the end of this year to protect seniors' access to health care.

Manoj Monga, MD, has joined the staff of the Glickman Urological & Kidney Institute at Cleveland Clinic as director of the Steven Streem Center for Endourology & Stone Disease.

A new test could reliably detect early increases in PSA levels in men who have undergone prostate cancer surgery.

Ethicon, Inc., recently announced the availability of the Gynecare TVT Exact Continence System, a minimally invasive retropubic sling used in an outpatient setting for the treatment of stress urinary incontinence.

Patients with the most aggressive forms of prostate cancer who had radical prostatectomy procedures had a 10-year cancer-specific survival rate of 92% and an overall survival rate of 77%, researchers from two institutions recently reported.

The AUA has announced its support of H.R. 6389 (the Prostate Act), which, if passed, would require coordination and intensification of prostate cancer research by government departments.

Opposition to federal health reform approved by Congress and President Obama in March 2010 continues to find legal recognition in the states.

Urology Times wanted to learn more about urologists' current use of nonphysician providers and whether these providers' numbers and responsibilities are expanding, especially given growing concerns about a work force shortage in urology.

Novel dual energy multi-detector computed tomography (DECT) image processing software can accurately characterize urinary calculi composition.

Regarding the article, "Group challenges RT self-referral charges" (August 2010): Dr. Kapoor questions real data regarding self-referral concerns in in-office ancillary services (IOAS) arrangements for IMRT. Yet he states that a lot of patients will be adversely affected by legislation without citing any statistical data to back up this statement since it's impossible to measure the effect of something that has yet to occur.

It is easy to have a vast knowledge of coding and billing but at the same time misunderstand or misinterpret the application of a particular rule.

A large number of organizations in the medical community-including the AUA-have launched a campaign to persuade Congress to repeal the Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB), an entity designed by Congress to take politics out of decisions involving changes to federal health programs such as Medicare.

Early results from the first multicenter trial of stereotactic robotic radiosurgery are in, with researchers reporting that toxicity is acceptable and PSA responses are favorable.

Peter Bretan, MD, a urologist in private practice in Novato, CA, is the sole urologist for a company specializing in telemedicine-in this case, the use of robots to connect with computers at great distance from the bedside of the patient.

In the treatment of benign prostatic obstruction, bipolar and monopolar transurethral resection of the prostate yield comparable outcomes at 12 months.

An experimental new device may help clinicians in the surgical treatment of lower pole stones by using ultrasound to move stones through the kidney collecting system.

An investigational metered dose, aerosolized spray containing a mixture of lidocaine and prilocaine (PSD502) is an effective treatment for premature ejaculation in both circumcised and uncircumcised men, although the magnitude of response is relatively greater in uncircumcised men.

A new premature ejaculation therapy is simple to apply, is truly an on-demand therapy that takes effect in less than 5 minutes, prolongs intravaginal ejaculatory latency in the range of five fold, and does not seem to reduce sensitivity.

As the capital markets have improved, more investors have shifted their concern from weathering the financial crisis to anticipating the inflationary effects of rising federal spending and debt.

Authors from two recent studies discuss the risks men face in undergoing biopsy as well as the steps urologists are taking to minimize these risks.

As employers (and individuals) select health insurance plans with higher deductibles that place more financial responsibility on the patient, it's more important than ever that medical practices revamp front office collection procedures and place more responsibility on the front office staff.