For Emergency Laparotomy, Major Funding Shortfall And High Death Rates Revealed By Study
Anaesthetists have identified a major shortfall in funding for emergency laparotomies in England and have called for a national database to establish a more accurate picture of outcomes and costs. Figures published in the May issue of Anaesthesia suggest a shortfall of 300 million pounds per year for emergency midline general surgical laparotomies, 32% of the total cost of care. The study also found that emergency laparotomy, which involves a large midline incision in the abdomen, had a high death rate, with 14% of patients dying in hospital and a further 11% dying within 30 days of surgery.
Spinal Surgeries Much More Successful Than Reflected In Public Reported Statistics
The odds that someone undergoing spinal surgery at a particular hospital will have to be readmitted to the same hospital within 30 days is an important measure of the quality of care patients receive. That's because these "hospital readmission rates" often reflect problems like hospital-acquired infections or complications from surgery. Now a new study by doctors in the departments of neurological surgery and orthopedic surgery at the University of California, San Francisco Medical Center suggests there may be problems with how the rates are reported.
Discovery Of New Immune Defence Enzyme
Neutrophil granulocytes comprise important defences for the immune system. When pathogenic bacteria penetrate the body, they are the first on the scene to mobilise other immune cells via signal molecules, thereby containing the risk. To this end, they release serine proteases - enzymes that cut up other proteins to activate signal molecules. Scientists at the Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology in Martinsried have now discovered a new serine protease: neutrophil serine protease 4, or NSP4. This enzyme could provide a new target for the treatment of diseases that involve an overactive immune system, such as rheumatoid arthritis.