Scheduling a prime daytime slot to undergo an orthopedic procedure may lower your risk of an unplanned follow-up surgery later on, a new study published in The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery has found.
Includes comments by surgeon William Ricci, chief of WUSTL medical school's Orthopaedic Trauma Service.

References:

1. Sept. 7, 2009 — Let Orthopedic Surgery Wait Until Morning When Possible in the U.S. News & World Report online

and 8 others.

A study published in the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery found after-hours orthopaedic surgeries risk a slightly higher rate of necessary follow-up surgeries. WUSTL orthopaedic surgron and lead author William Ricci comments.

References:

1. Sept. 2, 2009 — After-hours bone surgery slightly riskier in the United Press International

and 3 others.

Steve Jobs, who has been on medical leave from Apple Inc. since January to treat an undisclosed medical condition, received a controversial liver transplant in Tennessee about two months ago. The chief executive has been recovering well and is expected to return to work on schedule later this month, though he may work part-time initially. WUSTL pancreatic and gastrointestinal surgery professor William Hawkins and surgery professor William Chapman both comment.

References:

1. June 20, 2009 — Jobs Had Liver Transplant in the The Wall Street Journal

Doctors are testing a new kind of obesity surgery without any cuts through the abdomen, snaking a tube down the throat to snap staples into the stomach. The experimental, scar-free procedure creates a narrow passage that slows the food as it moves from the upper stomach into the lower stomach, helping patients feel full more quickly and eat less. The first U.S. procedure was done at WUSTL. WUSTL surgery professor Chris Eagon comments.

References:

1. June 2, 2009 — No scars: New obesity surgery goes through mouth in the Associated Press

and 52 others.

Top medical experts offer tips on how you can learn to control pain. Includes comments by WUSTL orthopaedic surgeon Matthew Matava.

References:

1. May 24, 2009 — Ouch! How not to be a slave to pain in the MSNBC

A drug already sold for other prostate problems significantly cut the chances of prostate cancer being found in men with an increased risk of the disease, doctors reported Monday. The U.S. study was led by WUSTL urologic surgeon Gerald Andriole, who comments.

References:

1. April 27, 2009 — Study: Drug lowers risk of getting prostate cancer in the Associated Press

and 52 others.

An analysis published in the April issue of The American Journal of Sports Medicine indicates that previously injured players may be riskier draft picks than most realize. The study, co-written by medical personnel from two N.F.L. teams, found that certain injury histories among players at certain positions — however healed — probably hamper their ability to play in the N.F.L. WUSTL orthopaedic surgeon and lead author Robert Brophy also serves as an assistant team physician with the St. Louis Rams.

References:

1. April 26, 2009 — Injury Histories Hamper Some N.F.L. Prospects in the The New York Times

According to a new study led by WUSTL psychiatry professor Kenneth Freedland, two non-drug treatments seem to be more effective than usual care for treating depression in patients who've had coronary artery bypass graft surgery.

References:

1. April 6, 2009 — Psychotherapy Can Ease Post-Surgical Depression in the U.S. News & World Report online

and 15 others.

Richard Knox reports on the results of two prostate cancer screening studies that were designed to answer the question: Would men who got regular PSA tests have less risk of dying from prostate cancer? The answer — maybe. The author of the new U.S. study, WUSTL urologic surgery professor Gerald Andriole, comments.

References:

1. March 18, 2009 — No Clear Answer In Studies of Prostate-Cancer Test in the NPR All Things Considered

Science is not shy about ambiguity, never more so than when it comes to medical advice. New research has found seemingly contradictory conclusions of prostate cancer screenings. WUSTL urologic surgery professor Gerald Andriole, who participated in one of the studies, comments.

References:

1. March 19, 2009 — Prostate Exams: When Are They Necessary? in the Time

Some doctors say they're disappointed that experts are offering men relatively little guidance about whether to be screened for prostate cancer and shifting the decision onto men who may have trouble making sense of such complicated research. Lead author of the U.S. study, WUSTL urologic surgery professor Gerald Andriole, comments.

References:

1. March 19, 2009 — Studies cast doubt on leading prostate cancer test in the USA Today

Some genetic traits are easier to defy than others. Others, such as cancer or diabetes, are not so simple to escape. Advice on how you can reduce your risk with proven tips for protecting your health from head to toe. WUSTL surgery professor Ming You, director of the Chemoprevention Program at WUSTL's Siteman Cancer Center, comments on the role heredity plays in asthma, allergies and lung cancer.

References:

1. March 12, 2009 — Control your DNA destiny in the MSNBC.com

WUSTL orthopaedic surgeon Matthew Matava, who is a team physician for the St. Louis Rams and Blues, comments on how to determine which players are injury prone and which ones are more durable.

References:

1. Feb. 21, 2009 — Hard to predict if players will be injury-prone in the Associated Press

and 38 others.

The latest injury to LA Lakers' center Andrew Bynum probably has more to do with bad karma than inherently bad knees, medical experts said Tuesday. Includes comments by WUSTL orthopedic surgeon Matthew Matava, the chief team doctor for the St. Louis Rams.

References:

1. Feb. 4, 2009 — Andrew Bynum's injuries probably just bad luck in the Los Angeles Times

Information obtained from a new application of photoacoustic tomography (PAT) is worth its weight in gold to breast cancer patients. The work of WUSTL biomedical engineering researchers Lihong Wang and Younan Xia, supported by the NIH, can minimize invasive surgical lymph node biopsy procedures to determine if breast cancer has metastasized and reduce the patient's exposure to radioactivity.

References:

1. Jan. 13, 2009 — Novel Technique Changes Lymph Node Biopsy, Reduces Radiaiton Exposure in the ScienceDaily.com

The largest prostate cancer screening program in U.S. history is showing high compliance and consistent results. The authors, led by Dr. Gerald L. Andriole at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Missouri, found that after the third annual follow-up round, compliance with screening had decreased only slightly, to 85%, from 89% at baseline.

References:

1. Jan. 1, 2009 — With annual prostate cancer screening, new cases are less advanced in the Reuters Health Medical News

Advanced donor age, per se, does not adversely affect the transplant recipient or the survival of the organ after liver transplantation, according to a report in the Journal of the American College of Surgeons. WUSTL surgery professor William Chapman and colleagues found there was no significant difference in the number of second transplants performed or signs that another transplant was going to be needed between patients who received organs from younger and older donors.

References:

1. Dec. 30, 2008 — Liver transplants from elderly donors are safe in the Reuters Health

and 6 others.

Weight-loss surgery can help obese women conceive babies more easily through IVF, according to research showing lap bands can partially restore fertility. A WUSTL team reviewed the records of five obese women who underwent bariatric surgery followed by IVF.

References:

1. Nov. 11, 2008 — Gastric band helps big women have babies in the Sydney Morning Herald (Australia)

and 6 others.

The first gene linked to clubfoot has been identified by WUSTL researchers who analyzed the DNA of 35 extended family members of a male infant with clubfoot.

References:

1. Oct. 27, 2008 — Gene Plays Key Role in Clubfoot in the U.S. News & World Report

and 8 others.

A narrow region on chromosome 15 contains genetic variations strongly associated with familial lung cancer, says a study conducted by scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and other institutions in the United States and the United Kingdom.

References:

1. Sept. 9, 2008 — Genetic Region Linked To Five Times Higher Lung Cancer Risk in the ScienceDaily.com

and 11 others.