Differences in Volume, Reimbursement, Practice Styles, and Patient Characteristics Between Male and Female Surgeons for Open and Endoscopic Carpal Tunnel Release.

Background: The goal of this study was to evaluate differences in carpal tunnel release volume, reimbursement, practice styles, and patient populations between male and female surgeons from 2013 to 2021.

Materials And Methods: The Medicare Physician & Other Practitioners database was queried from 2013 to 2021. Procedure volume, reimbursement, surgeon information, and patient demographic characteristics were collected for any surgeon who performed at least 10 open carpal tunnel release (OCTR) or endoscopic carpal tunnel release (ECTR) procedures that year.

Endoscopic dilation of small-intestine strictures in Crohn's disease by balloon-assisted enteroscopy: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Balloon-assisted enteroscopy (BAE) (both single- and double-balloon enteroscopy) has garnered attention in the treatment of small intestine strictures in patients with Crohn's disease (CD). This study aimed to evaluate the pooled clinical outcomes of BAE-mediated endoscopic dilation of small intestine strictures in patients with CD.

Methods: We searched multiple databases for articles reporting outcomes following BAE for small intestinal strictures in patients with CD.

Total knee arthroplasty reimbursement is declining overall and at a marginally faster rate amongst female orthopaedic surgeons: A Medicare analysis.

Background: While the prevalence of total knee arthroplasty (TKA) is increasing, reimbursement is declining. The purpose of this study was to determine how surgeon gender influences procedure volume, reimbursement, practice style, and patient demographics for TKAs nationally and regionally between 2013 and 2021.

Methods: The Medicare Physician and Other Practitioners database was queried from 2013 to 2021 for procedure volume, TKA reimbursement, surgeon characteristics, and patient demographics for any surgeon who performed at least ten primary TKAs per year.

Prehabilitative/rehabilitative exercise, nutrition, and psychological support for bladder cancer: A scoping review of randomized clinical trials.

The study of prehabilitation and rehabilitation ([p]rehabilitation) to alleviate the sequelae of bladder cancer and its treatment has generated numerous opportunities to improve the quality of life of bladder cancer survivors. The authors conducted a scoping review of randomized clinical trials (RCTs) to identify knowledge gaps in and research directions for (p)rehabilitative support for those affected by bladder cancer. The authors systematically searched six databases and synthesized key findings from RCTs conducted from January 1, 2004, through March 15, 2022, that enrolled participants with bladder cancer, survivors, or caregivers in outpatient (p)rehabilitative programs (e.

Differences in primary total shoulder arthroplasty volume, reimbursement, practice styles, and patient populations based on surgeon gender: a temporal analysis.

Background: Orthopedic surgery has previously been shown to have a shortage of female physicians and a gender pay gap. However, this has not been thoroughly evaluated in the setting of shoulder surgery. The primary purpose of this study was to evaluate differences in total shoulder arthroplasty (TSA) volume, reimbursement, surgeon billing practices, and patient populations between male and female surgeons from 2013 to 2021.

Regional Differences in Primary Total Knee Arthroplasty Utilization, Physician Reimbursement, and Patient Characteristics.

Background: The primary purpose of this study was to evaluate how utilization, physician reimbursement, and patient populations have changed for primary total knee arthroplasty (TKA) from 2013 to 2021 at both a regional and national level within the Medicare population.

Methods: The Medicare Physician and Other Practitioners database was queried for all episodes of primary TKA between years 2013 and 2021. TKA utilization per 10,000 beneficiaries, inflation-adjusted physician reimbursement per TKA, and patient demographics of each TKA surgeon were extracted each year.

Structural and optical properties of phosphorous doped nanocrystalline silicon deposited using a VHF PECVD process for silicon heterojunction solar cells and optimization of a simple p-n junction cell using SCAP-1D tool.

Initially hydrogenated silicon (Si:H) thin films have been deposited using a plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition technique (PECVD) using silane (SiH) as a precursor gas diluted in an inert gas argon (Ar) environment. Subsequently phosphine gas (PH) was used as the n-type dopant and the deposition was carried out at a fixed substrate temperature of 200 °C. The PH flow rate was varied in the range of 0-1 sccm.

Alcohol-associated liver disease and public health policies.

Alcohol-associated liver disease (ALD) rates have increased substantially in the United States and elsewhere around the globe. These increases are largely the result of increases in alcohol use. While there are many levels at which alcohol use interventions can be implemented in order to reduce alcohol use and its negative health consequences, public policy initiatives have emerged as a powerful way to intervene across a population.

Secondary amyloidosis in inflammatory bowel disease patients: findings from three tertiary medical centers.

Secondary amyloidosis (AA) is a disorder of protein conformation associated with inflammatory disorders. Detailed reports of patients diagnosed with AA and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) are limited. This study reports the cases of eight patients, across three tertiary medical centers, diagnosed with both IBD and AA between 2000 and 2020.

Lower Income and Nonheterosexual Orientation Are Associated With Poor Access to Care in Patients With Knee Osteoarthritis.

Background: Social determinants of health are implicated in the experience of knee osteoarthritis, a key component of which is access to care and healthcare utilization. The objective of this study was to describe difficulties in access to care and healthcare utilization in the United States knee osteoarthritis population.

Methods: The publicly available All of Us Database was utilized to conduct a retrospective cohort study.

Differences in Reimbursements, Procedural Volumes, and Patient Characteristics Based on Surgeon Gender in Total Hip Arthroplasty.

Background: Prior studies have suggested there may be differences in reimbursement and practice patterns by gender. The purpose of this study was to comprehensively evaluate differences in reimbursement, procedural volume, and patient characteristics in total hip arthroplasty (THA) between men and women surgeons from 2013 to 2021.

Methods: The Medicare Physician and Other Practitioners database from 2013 to 2021 was queried.

Regional variation from 2013 to 2021 in primary total shoulder arthroplasty utilization, reimbursement, and patient populations.

Background: Total shoulder arthroplasty (TSA), encompassing both anatomical and reverse TSA, has increased in popularity worldwide. The purpose of this study was to assess how TSA utilization, reimbursement, surgeon practices, and patient populations have evolved within the Medicare population from 2013 to 2021 at a national and regional level.

Methods: The Medicare Physician and Other Practitioners dataset was queried for all episodes of primary TSA (CPT-23472), both anatomic and reverse, between years 2013 and 2021.

Regional differences in reimbursement, volume, and patient characteristics exist for rotator cuff repairs: a temporal analysis from 2013 to 2021.

Background: Prior studies have demonstrated declining reimbursement and changing procedural utilization across multiple orthopedic subspecialties, yet a comprehensive examination of this has not been performed for rotator cuff repair (RCR), particularly at a geographic level. The purpose of this study was to evaluate changes in reimbursement, utilization, and patient populations for open and arthroscopic RCRs from 2013 to 2021 at a national and regional level.

Methods: The Medicare Physician and Other Practitioners database from years 2013 to 2021 were queried to extract all episodes of open chronic RCR, open acute RCR, and arthroscopic RCR.

A Rapid Review on the Management of Constipation for Hospice and Palliative Care Patients.

Constipation is a distressing symptom that has a high prevalence in patients receiving hospice and palliative care services, particularly in cases of opioid use. A thorough assessment, root cause analysis, monitoring, and prophylactic approach are essential for symptom management and quality of life. This rapid review assessed studies published between 2018 and 2023 to identify strategies implemented by health care professionals to prevent and/or mitigate this distressing symptom.

Geographical Differences in Surgeon Reimbursement, Volume, and Patient Characteristics in Primary Total Hip Arthroplasty.

Background: The purpose of this study was to evaluate changes in regional and national variations in reimbursement to arthroplasty surgeons, procedural volumes, and patient populations for total hip arthroplasty (THA) from 2013 to 2021.

Methods: The Medicare Physician and Other Practitioners database was queried for all billing episodes of primary THA for each year between 2013 and 2021. Inflation-adjusted surgeon reimbursement, procedural volume, physician address, and patient characteristics were extracted for each year.

Low-Income, Poor Physical Health, Poor Mental Health, and Other Social Risk Factors Are Associated With Decreased Access to Care in Patients With Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.

Background: Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS) is associated with a significant personal and societal burden. Evaluating access to care can identify barriers, limitations, and disparities in the delivery of healthcare services in this population. The purpose of this study was to evaluate access to overall healthcare and healthcare utilization among patients with CTS.

Conservation energetics of beluga whales: using resting and swimming metabolism to understand threats to an endangered population.

The balance between energetic costs and acquisition in free-ranging species is essential for survival, and provides important insights regarding the physiological impact of anthropogenic disturbances on wild animals. For marine mammals such as beluga whales (Delphinapterus leucas), the first step in modeling this bioenergetic balance requires an examination of resting and active metabolic demands. Here, we used open-flow respirometry to measure oxygen consumption during surface rest and submerged swimming by trained beluga whales, and compared these measurements with those of a commonly studied odontocete, the Atlantic bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus).

Novel lambdapapillomavirus in northern sea otters Enhydra lutris kenyoni, associated with oral hyperplastic nodules.

A novel papillomavirus (PV) associated with hyperplastic nodules scattered over the muco-cutaneous border of the oral cavity of a dead, wild, subadult northern sea otter Enhydra lutris kenyoni (NSO) in 2004 in Homer, Alaska, USA, was genetically characterized. Primers for the amplification of 2 large overlapping DNA fragments that contained the complete genome of the NSO PV were designed. Sanger methodology generated sequences from which new specific primers were designed for the primer-walking approach.

Meniscectomy Reimbursement and Utilization Are Declining at Different Rates Across the United States.

Purpose: To evaluate how arthroscopic meniscectomy utilization, reimbursement, physician billing practices, and patient populations have changed within the Medicare population from 2013 to 2021 at a national level and regional level.

Methods: The Medicare Physician & Other Practitioners database was queried for all episodes of 2-compartment and single-compartment arthroscopic meniscectomy between 2013 and 2021. Utilization per 10,000 beneficiaries and average inflation-adjusted reimbursement were assessed.