New studies on the impact of diet, smoking, and water and alcoholconsumption on urologic health were featured at a press briefingyesterday moderated by Mark Moyad, MD, of the University ofMichigan, Ann Arbor. The news was generally good for alcohol and ahigh-fat, low-carbohydrate diet, but bad for vegetable oil and eventap water.
NBA Hall of Famer Earl "The Pearl" Monroe meets Manhattan urologistRobert Salant, MD, at the Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticalsbooth yesterday. Monroe is a spokesman for the company's BPHproduct, tamsulosin (Flomax). Known for his free-flowing finesse onthe court, Monroe was a four-time All-Star and was named to the NBA50th Anniversary All-Time Team. He is currently a sportscommentator.
AUA has established the Department of Reimbursement and RegulatoryAffairs to more effectively target resources and advocacy effortsfor its members. Nancy K. Edwards, currently AUA reimbursementsystems project manager, will become its director.
Results of an analysis based on approximately 52,000 patient-yearsof observation demonstrate that the incidence of nonarteriticanterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION) among men receivingsildenafil citrate (Viagra) is no higher than that occurring amongmen in the general population, Rachel E. Sobel, MPH, of Pfizer,reported yesterday.
Alendronate (Fosamax), a bisphosphonate commonly used to treatosteoporosis in postmenopausal women, has been shown to halt andreverse bone loss associated with androgen deprivation therapy inmen with prostate cancer.
Rainer Engel, MD, curator of AUA's William P. Didusch Center for Urologic History, explains "what's behind the fig leaf" to visitors to AUA's history exhibit. The theme for the exhibit this year is sexuality through history. The display, which includes an all-red "adults-only section," will be moved to the museum as a permanent exhibit after the meeting ends.
Intravesical administration of liposomal ajulemic acid (IP-751)produces a positive response in laboratory animals and may beuseful in patients with painful bladder syndrome or interstitialcystitis, say investigators from the University of Pittsburgh.IP-751 is an analog of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)-11-oic acid,which in turn is a metabolite of THC, the main psychotropic elementof cannabis.
Autologous adipose stem cells lend themselves well to theengineering of bladder smooth muscle and may eventually make theuse of gastrointestinal tissue for this purpose obsolete, say theauthors of an animal study from UCLA. The group reports that it hasshown, for the first time, that adipose stem cells can bedifferentiated into functional smooth muscle.
The debate over the most appropriate surgical approach to placementof an artificial urinary sphincter (AUS) may be coming to aresolution. In the largest retrospective trial reported to date,Gerard Henry, MD, of Regional Urology in Shreveport, LA, found thatthe traditional perineal approach offers significantly betterurinary control than the newer penoscrotal insertion.
Obesity does not appear to independently predict long-term prostatecancer survival after primary treatment of the disease, accordingto two new studies.
Complications resulting from sling surgery for stress urinaryincontinence may happen far more frequently than is reported in theliterature, data from UCLA suggest.
Young men with PSA velocities greater than 0.5 ng/mL/year are atsignificantly greater risk for prostate cancer, researchersreported here yesterday. This suggests that the traditional PSAvelocity threshold of a 0.75 ng/mL/year to distinguish prostatecancer from benign conditions is too high and would miss asubstantial proportion of prostate cancers among men younger than60 years.
Monica Liebert, PhD, recently resigned from her post as director ofthe AUA Office of Research. Dr. Liebert, who served AUA in thiscapacity since 2001, has accepted a research position at theUniversity of Michigan, Ann Arbor.
As all practicing urologists know, shrinking reimbursement forurologic services has become the norm. But current market forcesactually favor the specialty, and urologists can take control oftheir financial future - as long as they are willing to takea handful of forward-thinking steps.
If you stop at Boston Scientific Corp.'s BPH booth at this week'sAUA annual meeting, you won't get a pen. But you could help make achild's wish come true. For every physician who stops at thecompany's booth, Boston Scientific will make a $25 donation to theMake-A-Wish Foundation, up to $25,000.
A study from the New England Research Institutes (NERI) inWatertown, MA, shows that lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) canhave as great an impact on a man?s mental and physical quality oflife as do diseases considered by many to be more severe.
Researchers from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor havedeveloped and validated a new questionnaire to assesshealth-related quality of life outcomes among patients treated forbladder cancer, it was reported here yesterday.
Urologists continue to perform substantial numbers of majorsurgical procedures despite having predominantly office-basedpractices, according to data on recent candidates for certificationand recertification by the American Board of Urology.
Chronic prostatic inflammation may increase the chance that a manwill develop prostate cancer, suggesting that men with inflammationon biopsy may need to be followed more closely and perhaps evenre-biopsied more aggressively, even if there is no evidence ofcancer.
"It's an exciting year, with a lot of good presentations andinteresting panel discussions," J. Brantley Thrasher, MD, chair ofAUA's Public Media Committee, told members of the media at abriefing here yesterday, and to illustrate his point, he guidedthem on a whirlwind summary of the highlights of the 101st AUAannual meeting.
Welcome to the first of five special daily issues of Urology TimesE-news Daily Meeting Report, devoted to coverage of the 2006 AUAannual meeting in Atlanta. Over the next five days, the editors of Urology Times will bringyou a quick recap of news and information from urology's biggestevent, as it occurs.
Outsourcing may help meet the needs of non-recurring professional services.
There is a story of a little boy who goes to the dentist and asks,"Do I really have to floss?" The dentist replies, "Only the teethyou want to keep!"
When doctors get together to discuss practice problems, sooner orlater, someone will tell a horror story about a trusted employeewho stole money. Could that happen in your practice? Beforeinsisting it couldn't, ask yourself how much you really know aboutthe backgrounds of those who handle your office payments, payroll,and finances. How carefully did you investigate their credit andcriminal records or their employment and personal references?
White Plains, NY-ProStream with ETP+ is a new prostate MRIproduct from CAD Sciences that delivers simultaneous high temporaland high spatial resolution of the prostate in dynamiccontrast-enriched series. The device uses a series of proprietarysoftware algorithms-not an endorectal coil-to calculatetissue permeability and extracellular volume fraction and creates ahybrid image series from acquired data, ensuring high spatialresolution and signal-to-noise. Imaging workflow is streamlinedbecause technicians do not need to position the endorectal coil,and the cost of disposable coils is eliminated.
A second phase III trial of Bioniche Life Science's proprietary mycobacterial cell wall-DNA complex (MCC [Urocidin]) has been given the green light by FDA. The double-blind study will randomize approximately 630 patients at sites in North America and Europe comparing the agent to bacillus Calmette-Guerin as first-line therapy in superficial bladder cancer at high risk of recurrence or progression.
Paris-Botulinum toxin A (Botox) proves to be a safe,effective treatment modality in combating overactive bladdersymptoms in patients with idiopathic detrusor overactivity, Britishresearchers reported at the European Association of Urology annualcongress here.
Clearwater Beach, FL-Treating incontinence in children withsystemic medications should be considered a last resort, andalthough several products are available for treatment ofincontinence in adults, there have been few studies in children.
Brisbane, Australia-A diverse array of difficult stone cases discussed at the Urological Society of Australasia meeting here made two points very clear. First, no single treatment strategy will be appropriate for every case. Second, treatment approach should be decided upon only after comprehensively reviewing multiple factors, including the patient's age, weight, general health, and comorbidities in addition to stone size, number, and location.
Clearwater Beach, FL-Pelvic floor therapy-teachingchildren to control their bladders through various exercises thatinclude biofeedback techniques-has come of age, and PatrickH. McKenna, MD, has the statistics to prove its success.
