patients Archives - Mediarabe

Surgical protocol reduces opioid use for breast reconstruction patients

October 14, 2020

Breast cancer surgeries can be quite painful, so a team at Houston Methodist West Hospital has worked to develop pain management protocols that help some patients while reducing the use of narcotics.

Dr. Candy Arentz, a breast surgical oncologist, and Dr. Warren Ellsworth, a plastic surgeon, have been using an enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) protocol with non-narcotic medications and nerve blocks to lessen pain and the need for narcotics in reconstructive surgeries.

On HoustonChronicle.com: Sweet Paris Crêperie & Café set to open Sugar Land Town Square store

A DIEP flap reconstruction uses tissue and fat from the abdomen and other areas to reconstruct the breast after a lumpectomy or a mastectomy. Ellsworth said the reconstruction can be beneficial because it can look more natural than implants and can last the rest of a patient’s life. But it can be more painful because of the extra incisions. He recognizes that

MD Anderson’s hurricane checklist for breast cancer patients

October 14, 2020

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Many Houston-area residents experienced at preparing for hurricane season have likely already stocked their home with basic supplies such as extra batteries, a first-aid kit, rain gear and a 7-day supply of non-perishable food and water among other essentials needed to weather a severe storm and its aftermath. But breast cancer patients should be aware to also have additional supplies on hand, especially as Texas continues to face new challenges created by the COVID-19 pandemic, making it more important than ever to plan ahead.

In this file image, a GOES-16 GeoColor satellite image taken Saturday, Sept. 19, 2020, and provided by NOAA, shows Tropical Storm Beta, center, in the Gulf of Mexico. A hurricane watch is in effect Saturday for coastal Texas as Tropical Storm Beta gains strength. A storm surge watch and a tropical storm watch are also in effect for the area during an exceptionally

Protein Predicts Risk of AKI in COVID-19 Patients

October 13, 2020

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Editor’s note: Find the latest COVID-19 news and guidance in Medscape’s Coronavirus Resource Center.

Admission levels of a specific protein predict the development of acute kidney injury (AKI) as well as the need for dialysis in patients hospitalized for COVID-19, new research shows.

“This protein, soluble urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (suPAR) is produced by immune cells, and in an earlier study we saw that patients with critical illness who had high levels of this protein had a very high risk of AKI,” senior author Salim Hayek, MD, assistant professor of cardiology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, explained to Medscape Medical News.

“So when we started seeing how frequent AKI was in COVID-19, with reports of focal segmental glomerulosclerosis-like pathology, it was natural to think about looking at this protein and now…in patients with COVID-19, we see people with dramatically high suPAR levels with significant kidney injury,” he added.

The

Boston’s Kraft Center for Community Health Mobile Opioid Outreach Winnebago Reaches 10,000 Patients | News

October 13, 2020

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BOSTON, Oct. 13, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — To help combat the rise of opioid addiction, Winnebago Industries Specialty Vehicles collaborated with The Kraft Center for Community Health to help build a mobile medical clinic, Community Care in Reach, to better serve at-risk individuals in Boston. Since its deployment in January 2018, Community Care in Reach has made around 10,000 contacts and had nearly 1,400 total patient encounters. Seventy-five percent of Community Care in Reach’s clinical encounters represent follow-up visits by patients. The team has also distributed almost 3,000 overdose-reversing naloxone kits to individuals coping with opioid addiction.

Community Care in Reach was built by Winnebago Industries Specialty Vehicles using their Class C 423S Ford Transit-based platform with personalized modifications. The mobile health unit features a small waiting area, a patient exam room with all the medical equipment necessary to enable the vehicle and staff to act as

Boston’s Kraft Center for Community Health Mobile Opioid Outreach Winnebago Reaches 10,000 Patients

October 13, 2020

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Community Care in Reach was built by Winnebago Industries Specialty Vehicles using their Class C 423S Ford Transit-based platform with personalized modifications. The mobile health unit features a small waiting area, a patient exam room with all the medical equipment necessary to enable the vehicle and staff to act as a licensed satellite clinic. Health professionals can access medical records and enroll patients in programs, bringing the same sense of formality, organization, and process as a hospital.

“Through mobile outreach, these caregivers can engage people in their environment, provide basic services and help patients begin treatment for their opioid addictions in a trusting environment,” said Ashis Bhattacharya, Vice President – Business Development, Advanced Technology, and Specialty Vehicles at Winnebago Industries. “The results they’ve reported in the last two years speak volumes, and we are looking forward to following their results in the coming years.”

Health systems around the country

COVID On The Rise In UK As More Patients In Hospitals Than In March

October 12, 2020

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KEY POINTS

England’s emergency nightingale hospitals will be used again in the north of the country to provide extra capacity for local health services amid a steep rise in COVID-19 infections, The Guardian reported
Jonathan Van Tam, England’s deputy chief medical officer, argued that infection rates are rising fast in northern England due to the fact that the COVID infection rate never dropped as far as it did in the south during the summer
Prime Minister Boris Johnson implemented new COVID-19 restrictions for specific England regions, where infection rates are spiking

COVID-19 admissions are rising in the U.K., with a growing number of elderly people needing urgent treatment. According to the Guardian, England’s emergency Nightingale hospitals will be used again in the north of the country to provide extra capacity for local health services amid a steep rise in infections.

Stephen Powis, national medical director of NHS England, said that

Baystate Health sees increase in COVID-19 patients admitted as infection rate rises statewide

October 11, 2020

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SPRINGFIELD – The number of patients being treated for COVID-19 at Baystate Health hospitals has increased this week, as cases statewide and in the region continue to climb.

Officials reported 15 people confirmed to be infected with the coronavirus are being treated in one of the Baystate medical centers. None of the patients are serious enough to be in the critical care unit. One week ago, there were eight patients admitted who tested positive for COVID-19, officials said.

On Sept. 27 a dozen people were admitted to Baystate Health hospitals with COVID-19.

The number of cases statewide has been increasing this month. There are currently 40 communities listed in the high-risk category which have had an average of at least eight daily cases per 100,000 population in the past two weeks. Included on the list are Springfield, Holyoke, Worcester, Boston and Sunderland, according to the Massachusetts Department of Public Health.

Largest single-day spike after jurisdictions report 2,558 new patients

October 11, 2020

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On Friday, Oct. 9, jurisdictions around Canada reported 2,558 new cases of COVID-19, along with 31 fatalities and 2,016 recently recovered patients.

Alberta and Quebec combined to withdraw three deaths from previous dates. However, the nationwide updates have increased Canada’s active case count by 514, leaving 19,008 currently infected patients around the country.

The 2,558 new cases that were announced on Friday marks the largest single-day spike Canada has recorded throughout the pandemic. It surpasses the 2,437 cases that were announced on Thursday.

The latest modelling data was presented Friday by Canada’s Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Theresa Tam. If people don’t start to limit their contacts, we could be seeing up to 5,000 cases a day by late October to early November.

“We’re at a tipping point in this pandemic,” said Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Friday morning while reflecting on the rise in cases nationwide.

Ontario started the

Lilly’s Rheumatoid Arthritis Drug, Combined With Remdesivir, Benefits Covid-19 Patients Who Need Oxygen

October 9, 2020

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This week, Eli Lilly and Company announced additional findings indicating that its rheumatoid arthritis drug, baricitinib, may improve the health of severe Covid-19 patients when used in combination with Gilead Science’s antiviral drug remdesivir.

Outcomes of the study, which the company had reported preliminary data from in September, suggest that the two drugs in combination reduce hospitalization stays by one day compared to the use of remdesivir alone. The data also indicates that the drug combination increases chances of severe Covid-19 patients surviving by about 35%. That increase was more pronounced in those patients who required supplemental oxygen.

“We’re obviously extraordinarily pleased that it has an impact on the mortality rate,” says Ilya Yuffa, president of Lilly Biosciences.

The findings come from a large study called the Adaptive Covid-19 Treatment Trial (ACTT-2), which is sponsored by the National Institutes of Health. The full data and study writeup will be

Nurse who traveled to treat COVID-19 patients donates her kidney to toddler

October 9, 2020

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Taylor Pikkarainen, a traveling nurse, spent over two months this spring on assignment in New Jersey helping to save the lives of patients with COVID-19.

Pikkarainen, 27, then returned to her home state of Minnesota to save the life of a young boy by donating her kidney.

“It just feels really great that he’s healthy and happy,” Pikkarainen told “Good Morning America” of Bodie, who will turn 2 in December. “It’s amazing and I’m very, very grateful.”

PHOTO: Taylor Pikkarainen, 27, poses with Bodie Hall, 20 months, to whom she donated a kidney. — Taylor Pikkarainen, 27, poses with Bodie Hall, 20 months, to whom she donated a kidney.

Taylor Pikkarainen, 27, poses with Bodie Hall, 20 months, to whom she donated a kidney.

Pikkarainen found out about Bodie’s need for a kidney earlier this year through her sister-in-law, who is a close friend of Bodie’s mom, Gloria Hall.

Bodie was born with congenital nephrotic syndrome, a life-threatening condition that causes your body to discharge too much