Today’s Top Story
CMS holds claims in anticipation of SGR legislation.
HealthLeaders Media reports that the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has until April 15 to process claims made after a 21 percent cut to Medicare physician reimbursement under the Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) formula went into effect on April 1. Under current law, electronic claims are not paid sooner than 14 calendar days after the date of receipt. The U.S. Senate reconvenes April 13, so senators will have 2 days to pass legislation previously approved by the House or Representatives, or failing that, for Congress to initiate and pass a patch to SGR to prevent the cut from being reflected in physicians’ pay. Read more…
Other News
Study looks at factors for improved outcomes after ACL reconstruction.
A study published in the April 1 issue of The Journal of Bone & Joint Surgery examines predictors of health-related quality of life after anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction. The research team reviewed data on 1,411 patients who underwent unilateral ACL reconstruction and were enrolled in a prospective multicenter cohort. At 6-year follow-up, they found that significant predictors of a higher SF-36 Physical Component Summary (PCS) score were: higher baseline PCS score, younger age, lower baseline body mass index, having >50 percent of the lateral meniscus excised, or having no treatment done on a lateral meniscal tear. Significant predictors of a lower PCS score were: shorter follow-up time since surgery, revision ACL reconstruction, smoking at baseline, fewer years of education, and chondromalacia of the lateral tibial plateau. Overall, lower education and smoking were significant predictors of lower PCS and Mental Component Summary scores. Read the abstract…
Study: Poor coping skills linked to poorer short-term outcomes for patients with surgically treated hand fracture.
According to findings published online in the journal Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research, ineffective pain-coping strategies may be linked with poorer short-term functional outcome for patients with surgically treated hand fractures. The authors conducted a prospective study of 93 patients with surgically treated fracture of the hand. At 3-month follow-up, they found that catastrophic thinking and anxiety were associated with decreased grip strength, decreased total active range of motion, and increased disability. At 6 months, they noted that poor coping skills did not have a significant effect on outcome. Read the abstract…
Study: Counseling intervention may help improve rehabilitation engagement and outcomes for spine surgery patients.
Data published online in the journal Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation suggest that patient participation in a brief, motivational, interviewing–based health behavior change counseling intervention may help improve outcomes for patients who undergo spine surgery. The researchers conducted a prospective clinical trial of 122 consecutive patients at a single center who underwent surgery for degenerative lumbar spinal stenosis. They found that patients in the intervention group (n = 63) had significantly higher rehabilitation engagement, higher physical therapy and home exercise program attendance, and better functional outcomes at 3 and 6 months, compared to patients in the control cohort (n = 59). Read more…
Read the abstract…
Washington.
A Seattle-based health system has posted online estimated prices for its 100 most common outpatient surgical procedures, including 10 orthopaedic procedures. In addition, the system states that it plans to provide individuals a written estimate of out-of-pocket expenses for scheduled or planned inpatient and outpatient medical procedures. Read more…
View the price list (PDF)…
AAOS Annual Meeting education continues with on-demand symposia webcasts.
AAOS Annual Meeting symposia explore some of the hottest topics in orthopaedics, presented by some of the top experts in their field. Eleven symposia webcasts from the AAOS Annual Meeting in Las Vegas are now available to view online and on-demand. The webcasts will be available for viewing through June 30, 2015, and are free to AAOS members. Register to view the webcasts…
Read the April issue of AAOS Now on your tablet!
The April edition of AAOS Now magazine is now available for electronic devices capable of reading files in ePub format, including the iPhone and iPad, Android devices, and desktop computers (unfortunately, Amazon Kindle does not currently accept ePub files). To download and view the ePub version of AAOS Now, visit the link below and log in using your AAOS username and password. If you have comments or questions about the ePub version of AAOS Now, please email Peter Pollack, electronic content specialist, at ppollack@aaos.org.
Download and read AAOS Now in ePub format…(member login required)
Call for volunteers: ACR Appropriateness Criteria Expert Panels on Musculoskeletal and Neurological Imaging.
AAOS seeks to nominate members to the American College of Radiology Appropriateness Criteria Expert Panels on Musculoskeletal and Neurological Imaging. The representatives will work with the panels to develop and update topics for select musculoskeletal, neurological, and pediatric conditions. Applicants for this position must be active fellows, candidate members, candidate members osteopathic, candidate member applicants for fellowship, or candidate member applicants for fellowship osteopathic with experience in evidence-based guidelines. In addition, all applicants must provide the following: an online AAOS CAP application, a current curriculum vitae, a 100-word biosketch, and a letter of interest highlighting his or her expertise in the subject area and a statement that he or she is able to participate in full capacity. All supporting materials must be submitted by April 5, 2015 at 11:59 p.m. CT, to Kyle Shah at shah@aaos.org.
Learn more and submit your application…(member login required)
