Waking Up Costs

Excellent resource on screening for von Willebrand Disease

Clark Venable — Sat, 19 Apr 2008 18:57:43 GMT

From the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute: The Diagnosis, Evaluation and Management of von Willebrand Disease [PDF]

ASA: Details on Malignant Hyperthermia

Clark Venable — Sat, 29 Mar 2008 12:24:16 GMT

From our national organization, the American Society of Anesthesiologists, Details on Malignant Hyperthermia which may in part explain the recent tragic death of a high school student.

"In light of the recent tragic death of a Florida teenager from a reported case of malignant hyperthermia, ASA recognizes the importance for patients to know the facts behind the occurrence of this rare genetic disorder...."

Anesthesiology: Adverse Respiratory Events in Children Who Are Obese.

Clark Venable — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 13:51:45 GMT

Incidence and Risk Factors for Perioperative Adverse Respiratory Events in Children Who Are Obese.

"[O]bese children had a higher incidence of difficult mask ventilation, airway obstruction, major oxygen desaturation (>10% of baseline), and overall critical respiratory adverse events. Logistic regression analysis revealed several risk factors for adverse events, including procedures involving the airway, obesity, age younger than 10 yr, and a history of obstructive sleep apnea."

Aetna doing the right thing (at least temporarily)

Clark Venable — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 23:43:30 GMT

Aetna to Still Pay for Colonoscopy Drug

"Bowing to critics who contended it was putting profits before patients, Aetna said Wednesday that it has suspended — at least temporarily — a plan to stop paying for routine use of a powerful anesthetic in a procedure to screen for colon cancer. "

JAMA: Effectiveness and Efficiency of Root Cause Analysis in Medicine

Clark Venable — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 02:08:39 GMT

Effectiveness and Efficiency of Root Cause Analysis in Medicine

"Not all actions aimed to mitigate risk are equal. Some actions, like redesigning a product or process, are strong and have a high probability of reducing harm. Other actions, like reeducation or writing a policy, the 2 most common recommendations in health care RCA, are weak and have a low probability of reducing risk."

(Via JAMA current issue.)