Monthly Archives: November 2017

Today's Top Story Study: Earlier hip fracture surgery linked to decreased risk of mortality and complication for older patients According to a study published in the Nov. 28 issue of The Journal of the American Medical Association, increased wait time prior to hip fracture surgery may be associated with increased risk of mortality and complication for older patients. The researchers reviewed data on 42,230 hip fracture patients with a mean age of 80.1 years and found that overall [...]

The Fall 2017 issue of "No Bones About It" has been released; click here to see the full version. The issue contains information on: President’s notes: The Importance of WVOS View from K2 WVOS Represented in Haiti...Again WVOS Advocacy Online for 2018 What Topic Will YOU Teach in 2018?  

Today's Top Story Study: Delaying fracture fixation till after abdominal wall closure may increase risk of SSI in trauma patients Data from a study published in the December issue of the Journal of Orthopaedic Trauma ( JOT) suggest that definitive fracture fixation may safely be performed in the presence of an open abdomen. Members of the research team conducted a retrospective, observational, cohort study of 81 adult polytrauma patients with an open abdomen after "damage control" laparotomy and [...]

Today's Top Story Study: Physician-owned hospitals linked to lower costs, fewer complications, and increased patient satisfaction for THA and TKA procedures Data from a study published in the Nov. 15 issue of The Journal of Bone & Joint Surgery suggest that, compared to non-physician-owned hospitals, physician-owned hospitals may be associated with lower mean Medicare costs, fewer complications, and higher patient satisfaction following total hip arthroplasty (THA) and total knee arthroplasty (TKA). The authors reviewed data from the U.S. [...]

Today's Top Story CMS: Improper Medicare FFS payments fell to less than 10 percent of all payments in 2017 The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) states that during 2017, the improper payment rate for Medicare Fee-for-Service (FFS) has fallen to less than 10 percent for the first time since 2013. The agency projects improper payments to have been $36.2 billion, of which the known monetary loss was $11.3 billion. About $1.1 billion were underpayments, and [...]