Rethinking drug-induced comas in ICU
With implications for patients in New Jersey and across the nation, on Oct. 2, The New England Journal of Medicine reported that a third of patients who stay in an intensive-care unit at a hospital suffer cognitive losses that can last for up to a year. Vanderbilt University released the study, and further indications show […]
Escalators may pose hazards
New Jersey residents might not give much thought to getting on an escalator. However, people are sometimes hurt or killed while using them. The design of escalators hasn’t changed much since it was patented 121 years ago. Clothing and body parts can become stuck in escalators. One man was strangled when the hood of his […]
Hospital-acquired infections are cost $10 billion a year
A new estimate of the cost of infections developed in New Jersey and other states’ hospitals was lower than earlier studies showed, but it was still pegged at a level of $10 billion per year. Whether the infections were caused by medical errors or by other factors, the new figure is an improvement on the […]
Veteran alleges he was wrongly told he had HIV
In a case with implications in New Jersey and across the nation, a 43-year-old man is taking legal action against a medical facility after he was allegedly and incorrectly told that he had HIV in 2004. The U.S. veteran, who lives in Kentucky, has undergone extensive treatment to fight the illness, has battled suicidal thoughts […]
Study finds that many current medical procedures are ineffective
New Jersey patients may be shocked to hear that a recent study from a researcher at National Institutes of Health found that many medical procedures were ineffective. If these medical practices were indeed in error, they may be considered to be medical malpractice. The research team examined over 1,300 articles that were published in the […]
Month, day, time affects medical outcomes
Part of ancient medicine involved astrology and included specific directives about when not to perform surgeries on certain parts of the body. The lunar cycle was integral in determining when to schedule operations. While the timing of an operation might not seem as relevant today, some studies have shown that timing can affect the outcome […]
Autoimmune response may be behind neural degeneration
New York residents who have sustained a brain injury and neuroscience aficionados alike may be interested in findings recently published by the Cleveland Clinic and University of Rochester Medical Center that may yield new treatment options as well as a shift in thinking regarding brain injuries. The prevalent thinking up until now has held that […]
Four injured in Annsville snow plow accident
A recent collision involving a snow plow truck and a car in Annsville resulted in injuries to four residents. The truck accident took place on the evening of Feb. 20 on Route 69 when the snow plow truck, driven by an employee of Oneida County, was struck by a car driven by a 61-year-old woman. […]
How to avoid illness and injury in the hospital
Here in New Jersey, when someone goes into the hospital for a non-life threatening issue, it is common to expect the patient to get better, not get sicker. From time to time, however, patients develop serious infections while in the hospital or even suffer an injury due to a treatment mistake. In some cases, there […]
Surgical errors may cause serious complications
People in New Jersey go to doctors for help. However, one study shows that surgical mistakes made by physicians can end up causing even further complications for patients. Researchers at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine conducted a study and found that surgical instruments are left inside patients about 39 times per week. In addition, […]