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Is there an increased risk of medical liabilitylitigation associated with the emerging technology of laparoscopy? RobertMarcovich, MD, assistant professor of urology at the University of TexasHealth Science Center, San Antonio, thinks that may be the case.

Aventis Pasteur offers a comprehensive line of vaccines and biologicals,including desmopressin acetate (DDAVP) tablets, 0.2 mg, a synthetic formof the naturally occurring hormone vasopressin.

American Medical Systems offers the Monarc subfascial hammock for thetreatment of female stress urinary incontinence.

Star Pharmaceuticals Inc., offers a new formulation of its antispasmodicantiseptic, Prosed EC, to relieve the pain, burning, and spasm associatedwith urinary tract infections, cystitis, and diagnostic procedures.

Bard Urological Division introduces PelviLace BioUrethral Support System,a tension-free sling technology combined with a Pelvicol porcine acellularcollagen matrix sling. Natural tissue-to-tissue contact with the host reducespotential for urethral and vaginal abrasion or erosion, according to thecompany.

Welcome to the first of five special daily issues of Urology Times E-newsdevoted to coverage of the AUA annual meeting in San Francisco.

Many of the problems a beginning urologist may faceboil down to one common factor­money or the lack of it. Michael Naslund,MD, of the University of Maryland Medical Center, Baltimore, discussed someof the financial pitfalls residents may face during a seminar held Saturday.

The use of PSA testing by urologists and primary care physiciansis much lower than that suggested by practitioner- and patient-based publishedself-report estimates, according to a study of national clinic-report dataconducted by urologists at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.

Analysis of data from the National Institutes ofHealth Chronic Prostatitis Cohort Study has found that about three-fourthsof men with chronic pelvic pain syndrome always have post-ejaculatory pain,and that these men have more severe prostatitis symptoms overall. In addition,the researchers found no indication that ejaculatory obstruction, occultinfection, or worse inflammation was responsible.

Hand-assisted partial nephrectomy without formalclosure of the collecting system or pre-procedure ureteral stenting is safe,efficacious, and can offer several advantages over pure laparoscopic oropen procedures, according to Stephen E. Strup, MD.

Reduced reimbursement for chemo will cause urologists to make drasticchanges, AUA says

San Antonio--R. Duane Cespedes, MD, and Eric J. Hick, DO, want fellow urologists to know that collagen injection therapy for stress urinary incontinence (SUI) not only works, but works well and offers long-lasting results.

San Francisco--A 3-month delay in definitive treatment of high-risk prostate cancer patients seems to increase the risk of recurrence, according to Judd W. Moul, MD, director of the Center for Prostate Disease Research and professor of surgery,

Boston--The fact that prostate cancer recurrence can be indolent may actually be detrimental to the development of drugs for patients in whom recurrence is life-threatening.

The 'golden gate' to the Golden State has much to offer explorers, sightseers, history buffs?and everyone else

Tissue engineering and regeneration will one day offer cure for incontinence

Look for patient-friendly lithotriptors and a better understanding ofstone formation

Guide to good eating in San Francisco

It is becoming increasingly clear that immunology plays a large role in urinary tract infections and potentially in their cure. One new theory is that bacteria can influence the host's immune response by down-regulating it, suppressing the immune system and preventing the host from responding in a normal way.

Most practicing urologists have little time to closely examine the basicscience behind advances in male infertility, but the lab work that researchersare performing in this subspecialty today is poised to dramatically affectthe way urology is practiced tomorrow.

Ravi Munver, MD, has been appointed to the position of attending urologist at Hackensack (NJ) University Medical Center.

Alpha-tocopherol, a form of vitamin E, protects against the development of bladder cancer, while a second type of vitamin E, gamma-tocopherol, appears to offer no protection, according to research by the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.

Medicare groups in all but one state now cover the NMP22 BladderChek Test for both monitoring and diagnosis of bladder cancer, according to the test's manufacturer, Matritech.

The National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) has issued new prostate cancer screening guidelines with several significant changes.

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This issue of Urology Times includes a number of articles from one ofthe most successful meetings on interstitial cystitis ever held, the NationalInstitute of Diabetes, Digestive, and Kidney Disorders and InterstitialCystitis Association joint symposium "Research Insights into InterstitialCystitis" in Alexandria, VA, last fall.

Fax-to-e-mail and e-mail-to-fax services can save you time and moneywhen traveling

Amounts paid into Health Savings Accounts can be used to reimburse medicalexpenses

Basic science provides a rationale for resiniferatoxin, but clinicaltrial disappoints

Atlanta--Fewer people are dying from prostate and other genitourinarycancers. But ask why that is, and you'll have a difficult time finding aconsensus among epidemiologists, urologists, and others.