Cleveland-A Mayo Clinic study published earlier this year raised more than a few eyebrows when its authors concluded that treatment of renal stones with shockwave lithotripsy appears to heighten the risk of diabetes mellitus and hypertension. More recently, researchers from Northwestern University reported a similar finding in patients with pancreatic stones-that SWL used in these patients may be associated with an increased risk of diabetes.
Cleveland-A staged approach to endoscopic lithotripsy may be a reasonable treatment option in patients with large renal stones who are not ideal candidates for the gold standard of percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL), researchers at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center reported. Their technique, known as staged retrograde endoscopic lithotripsy (SREL), has a slightly lower success rate than PCNL does, but it is less invasive and associated with fewer complications.
Cleveland-With the growing acceptance of flexible ureteroscopy at academic centers, this endoscopic technique as a treatment for renal stones has made fewer inroads into the practices of community urologists, data from a large U.S. inpatient database indicate. The reasons for the procedure's apparent lack of popularity in the community, at least in the inpatient setting, are unclear.
Cleveland-The size and volume of upper-urinary-tract calculi do not necessarily predict outcomes of ureteroscopic lithotripsy, but stones of larger size and volume require significantly more time and effort to clear, according to a group of urologists from St. Paul, MN.
Cleveland-Dean G. Assimos, MD, professor of urology at the Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC, asked a simple question here at the World Congress of Endourology: "Is the Internet a reliable source of information for dietary recommendations for stone formers?"
Cleveland-Urologists at Emory University, Atlanta, may or may not have slain an urban myth, but at the very least, the team has given it a sound kick. Cola in moderation does not change urine chemistries significantly, and therefore does not appear to raise the risk of forming stones, the team concluded after comparing cola to deionized water in a randomized, prospective pilot study.
Cleveland-A Harvard Medical School study published last year in JAMA (2005; 293:455-62) established a link between obesity and kidney stone formation. Now researchers at the University of Minnesota have taken the next step with a study showing that obese men and women have at least one, if not more, urine abnormalities that increase their risk of stone formation.
Cleveland-There is a commonly held view that obese patients tend to present greater surgical challenges and have more complications after percutaneous nephrolithotomy. Researchers from Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York have challenged that belief.
Cleveland-Intravenous ketorolac tromethamine is safe and appears to be effective at alleviating pain following percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PNL) procedures in properly selected patients, according to a study from the Methodist Hospital Institute for Kidney Stone Disease and Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis.
Boston-A study investigating a treatment sample of men diagnosed with sexual compulsivity suggests that prescription and non-prescription use of phosphodiesterase type-5 inhibitors is common in that population. This finding should alert physicians who prescribe medications for erectile dysfunction to maintain an index of patients with a suspected sexual compulsivity problem and to be attentive to clues of potential drug misuse, according to the researchers.
Ann Arbor, MI-Results of a study from the University of Michigan here provide further evidence that the incidence of kidney cancer and the rate of surgical treatment are both on the rise. However, those trends are primarily accounted for by the identification and management of small, presumably curable renal masses (?4 cm). Meanwhile, mortality rates in kidney cancer patients have also been increasing, driven by worsening outcomes of patients with the largest tumors (>7 cm).
Washington-Trichloroethylene (TCE) is a chlorinated hydrocarbon once commonly used as a degreasing agent in industrial settings. The nonflammable, colorless fluid may also be found as an ingredient in adhesives, paint removers, typewriter correction fluids, and spot removers. Although a clear-cut link between TCE and cancer has yet to be established, the chemical is the subject of a recent report calling for research on how it causes cancer and other adverse health effects.
San Diego, CA-Exposure to ultraviolet B (UVB) irradiation through natural sunlight and dietary intake of fatty fish are independent predictors of renal cancer risk, according to the findings of two recently published studies.
Cleveland-Two studies from the University of Minnesota and one from the University of Tennessee presented at the World Congress of Endourology tackled three important questions raised by the use of nephrostomy tubes: Which configuration best minimizes pain? How small can the tube be and remain effective? When can a nephrostomy tube be abandoned altogether?
The return and quality of sexual function is a major concern for men undergoing radical prostatectomy. New research on the etiology of post-prostatectomy erectile dysfunction is shaping new rehabilitation strategies for prostatectomy patients, according to John P. Mulhall, MD, who discusses current and future rehabilitation strategies and his own approach to post-prostatectomy ED in this exclusive interview.
New York-Urology practices that have not started performing office-based surgery (OBS) are missing significant advantages in scheduling, convenience, and compensation.
Boston-Gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) agonist therapy for locoregional prostate cancer is associated with significantly increased risks of diabetes as well as cardiovascular disease morbidity and mortality, according to the results of a population-based, observational cohort study.
Miami-Expression of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) in radical prostatectomy specimens is an independent predictor of prostate cancer recurrence, according to a study reported by researchers from the University of Miami's Miller School of Medicine.
The tubeless PNL approach provided the greatest comfort for the patient.
It is not enough to maintain control over the profitability of your practice. In order to gain control, you need to know the cost of each procedure you perform in the office, the reimbursement from each of your payers, and the profit margin for each service you offer your patients.
Indevus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has submitted a new drug application to the FDA seeking approval for a once-daily formulation of trospium chloride (Sanctura XR) to treat patients with overactive bladder.
Researchers at Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, are hoping a new gene therapy that takes a gene called RTVP-1 directly into the prostate tumor will prove effective in preventing recurrence of the disease.
Treatment with the investigational agent toremifene citrate (Acapodene) decreased the incidence of prostate cancer by 1 year in patients with high-grade prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia, according to a study published recently in the Journal of Urology (2006; 176:965-71).
Patients with BPH who were treated with the investigational drug NX-1207 showed a total pooled mean improvement of 9.35 points in the primary outcome endpoint of AUA Symptom Score values at 3 months, researchers from Nymox Pharmaceutical Corp. reported.
Phase III of the double-blind, randomized Satraplatin and Prednisone Against Refractory Cancer (SPARC) trial has shown a 40% reduction in the risk of disease progression in patients who received satraplatin plus prednisone.
Patients with locally advanced prostate cancer who are treated with a combination of radiotherapy and hormone therapy gain as much as 12% longer progression-free survival compared with those given radiotherapy alone, Italian research suggests.
Physicians should consider the impact of a patient's body mass index, regardless of race, when interpreting prostate cancer screening test results, according to the authors of a study to be published in Cancer.
Innsbruck, Austria-Stem-cell repair of the body is an exciting prospect and a dream for medicine's future. But in Austria, the future is now.
Irvine, CA-The Cryocare CN2 System from Endocare, Inc. has received 510K clearance from the FDA. The device uses the freezing capability of nitrogen at the point between gas and liquid-"critical nitrogen"-to destroy cancerous tissue quicker and more cost-effectively than argon can, according to the manufacturer. The speed and precision of this new technology can expedite procedures, Endocare says, because it is easy to use and it delivers a colder, more powerful ice ball at the end of the probes.
Irvine, CA-The Cryocare CN2 System from Endocare, Inc. has received 510K clearance from the FDA. The device uses the freezing capability of nitrogen at the point between gas and liquid-"critical nitrogen"-to destroy cancerous tissue quicker and more cost-effectively than argon can, according to the manufacturer. The speed and precision of this new technology can expedite procedures, Endocare says, because it is easy to use and it delivers a colder, more powerful ice ball at the end of the probes.