A small report in the press prompted examination of a much neglected topic. The report read ‘Heart Centre at University Hospital no longer carries out transplants’, and referred to the University Hospital Frankfurt, one of the 22 Heart Centres that perform these transplantations.
The Medtronic CoreValve Evolut R System received its CE Mark of approval this August to treat aortic stenosis in patients with an intermediate risk for undergoing conventional surgery for a valve replacement. This is a controversial indication for transcatheter aortic valve implantations (TAVI) – one that has been eagerly sought by some clinicians but resisted by others. Younger patients will…
An innovative cardiac monitoring system that delivers continuous resynchronisation to patients, has shown a 35% risk reduction of hospitalisation for heart failure (HF) patients. The finding comes from the RESPOND-CRT (cardiac resynchronisation therapy) clinical trial, which was designed to investigate the clinical efficacy and safety of device-based optimisation using the SonR cardiac…
Greater sensitivity and versatility of devices, as well as more patient-friendly implantation options, were issues outlined at the CardioStim 2016 EHRA Europace world congress on cardiac electrophysiology, held in Nice, France.
In the fast-evolving field of left atrial appendage closure a new study has delivered data that could benefit thousands of patients at risk of stroke. Led by Professor Martin Bergmann, head of Interventional Cardiology at Cardiologicum Hamburg in Germany, the EWOLUTION study was conducted to evaluate the Watchman Left Atrial Appendage (LAA) closure device from manufacturer Boston Scientific.
Cold plasma looks like the glow from the “Star Wars” blue light saber but this beam of energy, made of electrons that change polarity at micro-second or nanosecond speeds, could help bones heal faster, according to researcher from the Thomas Jefferson University.
Men with very high-risk prostate cancer, who are treated at hospitals with a high proportion of administered radical local treatment (radiotherapy or prostatectomy), only have half of the mortality risk of men who are treated at hospitals with the lowest proportion. This is according to a new study conducted by researchers at Umeå University in Sweden.
Given mounting financial pressure, a hospital needs greater efficiency in medical service structures. Staff and materials for operating theatres (OTs) account for about a third of the overall expenditure. Working closely with all other hospital departments, OT efficiency can affect a hospital’s overall efficiency and costs.
Defined processes and competencies are essential in the operating room along with the allocation of staff. Yet the OR-Barometer 2015 that is published every other year by the Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences, reveals that only 47 percent of the surveyed nursing staff in the fields of surgery and anesthesiology are satisfied with the level of organization in operating rooms. In this…
Joshua Bederson, MD, Professor and System Chair for the Department of Neurosurgery at Mount Sinai Health System, is the first neurosurgeon to use CaptiView – a microscope image injection system from Leica Microsystems that overlays critical virtual reality imaging directly onto the brain when viewed through the eyepiece, known as the ocular, during surgery.
Dr Jean Nehme, a London-based trainee plastic surgeon, reflects on his own training – a decade spent attending lectures, revising textbooks, passing examinations − but did he actually practise a surgical operation?
Poor communication systems at nursing homes can lead to serious injury for residents who are not tended to in a timely manner. A new smartwatch app being developed at Binghamton University could help certified nursing assistants (CNAs) respond to alerts more quickly and help prevent falls.
SCHILLER is looking forward to ESC Congress 2016. Come and visit us at booth E4-O200 and explore our latest innovations!
Rectal cancer surgery - using a Da Vinci robot and conducted by Tas Qureshi, Consultant Surgeon and robotic lead at Poole Hospital NHS Foundation Trust - was beamed live from his operating theatre by satellite to an international conference of specialist doctors, student doctors and to a worldwide audience via multimedia platforms with live audio and twitter feedback.
600,000 robot-assisted surgical interventions were performed in 2015 worldwide, most of them urological procedures, particularly radical prostatectomies.
Embracing robotic technology in the realms of microsurgery will have significant benefits for patients, clinicians and hospitals. Leading hand and peripheral nerve specialist Professor Philippe Liverneaux believes using robots will not only enhance patient outcomes and improve cosmetic appearance but also bring significant cost benefits to health systems.
Many breast tumors grow in response to female hormones, especially estrogen. Drugs that reduce estrogen levels in the body often are effective in reducing tumor size and preventing recurrence of the cancer. But some tumors become resistant to these therapies and continue to grow and spread.
When two Spanish oncologists launched the first independent Spanish oncology forum this May in Madrid, European Hospital’s correspondent spoke with Dr Javier Cortés, co-organiser of the event, to find out more about its expected impact in their field.
A debate has flared up across the United Kingdom over which genre of music should be played in the operating theatre during surgery. Amid claims that loud music can be distracting to some surgical personnel, questions have also been posed as to who should choose the music – the head surgeon or nurse? How loud it should be played, or should music is permissible in the operating theatre (OT) at…
The hybrid operating room is one of the most innovative developments in the surgical sector. The combination of interventional and minimally invasive surgical procedures is exciting for many clinical disciplines. The room design, intraoperative imaging techniques as well as interdisciplinary collaboration play a pivotal role in this.
Robot-assisted surgery still meets with considerable skepticism even though Intuitive Surgical’s Da Vinci system has been around for more than a decade. However, few surgeons and researchers are seeking ways to expand the surgical toolbox. Not so the members of the working group ‘Surgical technology and training’ at the General, Visceral and Transplantation Surgery Department, University…
Intelligent robots supervised by surgeons could help remove human error from the operating room. Dr. Peter C. Kim, Vice President and Associate Surgeon-in-Chief at Sheikh Zayed Institute for Pediatric Surgical Innovation at Children's National Health System (CNSH) in Washington, D.C., and his colleagues designed and programmed “Smart Tissue Autonomous Robot”, or simply STAR, to successfully…
‘An autonomously working robot in the operating theatre will continue to be a vision of the future for a long time to come,’ according to Professor Uwe Spetzger, Clinical Director and Neurosurgery Specialist at Karlsruhe City Hospital. At the same time, he is calling for political support for the development and promotion of these innovative technologies and asking funding bodies to rethink…
3-D print technology is expanding to cardiology surgery and interventional procedures. Research is scarce in Europe but a group of Spain-based cardiologists are currently developing 3-D print models to assess their value in the heart.
