Here are what the editors at HealthDay consider to be the most important developments in Urology for April 2008. This roundup includes the latest research news from journal articles, as well as the FDA approvals and regulatory changes that are the most likely to affect clinical practice.
Physicians Lack Feedback on Accuracy of Diagnoses
TUESDAY, April 29 (HealthDay News) -- Clinical diagnosis is a largely open-loop system in which there is no systematic way for clinicians to obtain feedback on the outcome of their diagnoses, according to an article published in a supplement to the May issue of The American Journal of Medicine.
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Palliative Care Can Improve Patient Care Most, Poll Finds
MONDAY, April 28 (HealthDay News) -- In an international poll conducted by BMJ to determine which area of health care would enable doctors to make the greatest difference to patients, palliative care for non-malignant disease received the most votes, the BMJ Group announced at the International Forum on Quality and Safety in Health Care in Paris this week.
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Prostate Cancer Mortality Higher in U.K. Than U.S.
FRIDAY, April 18 (HealthDay News) -- There was a dramatic decline in prostate cancer mortality in the United States from 1994 to 2004, which coincided with a significant increase in uptake of prostate-specific antigen testing and which was not mirrored in the United Kingdom, according to a report published online April 17 in The Lancet Oncology.
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Longer Androgen Deprivation Beneficial in Prostate Cancer
THURSDAY, April 17 (HealthDay News) -- Long-term androgen-deprivation therapy significantly improves many outcomes in locally advanced prostate cancer, except survival, although survival is also improved in patients with more aggressive cancers, according to a report published online April 14 in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.
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Low-Fat Diet Reduces Progression to Prostate Cancer
THURSDAY, April 17 (HealthDay News) -- Reducing dietary fat can slow the transition from prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia to invasive prostate cancer in mice genetically prone to developing the disease, according to a report in the April 15 issue of Cancer Research.
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Individualized Health Care Budgets Improve Care
FRIDAY, April 11 (HealthDay News) -- The U.K.'s National Health Service (NHS) should allow patients individual control of their health care budgets, an approach that has been shown in pilot studies to improve outcomes and patient satisfaction in a cost-effective manner, according to an analysis published April 12 in BMJ.
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Consider Health Literacy Level When Writing for Patients
THURSDAY, April 10 (HealthDay News) -- Giving patients clearly written educational materials that convey key messages without resorting to jargon is an important part of engaging patient compliance with treatment and can contribute to health literacy, according to an article published in the April issue of Chest.
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Cyst Growth Slowed in Model of Polycystic Kidney Disease
WEDNESDAY, April 9 (HealthDay News) -- Drugs that block a chloride transport channel in the kidney, cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) protein, result in slowed expansion of cysts in a mouse model of polycystic kidney disease, suggesting that CFTR inhibitors could be used to reduce cyst growth in humans affected by polycystic kidney disease, according to research first published online April 2 in the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.
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Doctors Vote on the Ways to Make Biggest Difference
WEDNESDAY, April 9 (HealthDay News) -- The BMJ has begun accepting votes on which areas of health care allow doctors to make the biggest difference to patient care, with a shortlist of six areas each being championed by eminent doctors and researchers. The winning topic will gain special coverage in the BMJ and the BMJ Group's 24 other specialist journals and online education products.
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Switch in Castration Method with Insurance Change
WEDNESDAY, April 9 (HealthDay News) -- Reductions in U.S. Medicare reimbursement for medical castration, used to treat prostate cancer by androgen deprivation, in 2003 resulted in a switch from medical to surgical castration, according to an article published online Apr. 7 in Cancer.
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Presence of Varicocele May Be Hereditary
FRIDAY, April 4 (HealthDay News) -- Varicocele, the most common correctable cause of male infertility, may be a hereditary condition as it is more prevalent among first-degree relatives, particularly brothers, of men with known varicocele, researchers report in the April issue of Urology.
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Obesity Reduces Prostate-Specific Antigen Levels
THURSDAY, April 3 (HealthDay News) -- Increasing body mass is associated with a modest reduction in prostate-specific antigen (PSA) concentrations among men without prostate cancer, according to a review published in the April issue of Urology.
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Adverse Effects of Shock Waves for Kidney Stones Studied
WEDNESDAY, April 2 (HealthDay News) -- Shock wave lithotripsy treatment of renal or ureteral stones does not appear to increase the rate of new-onset hypertension or diabetes mellitus, according to research published in the April issue of Urology.
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