The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has issued updated evidence-based recommendations for preventing surgical site infections (SSIs). The guidelines cover 14 core areas and are intended for incorporation into existing surgical quality improvement programs for greater patient safety.
The 2017 recommendations, published online today in JAMA Surgery, supersede the CDC's 1999I SSguidelines, which were published before the routine use of evidence-based grading.
A new, non-invasive knee procedure could bring some relief for patients suffering from debilitating chronic pain, for whom surgery is not an option.
The treatment, recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration, is called “cooled radio frequency ablation” and is a less drastic option for people with moderate to severe osteoarthritis pain who are not ready to have knee replacement surgery, or who have health conditions that don’t make them a good candidate for surgery.
Marketed as “Coolief”, the procedure uses radio frequency to target and mute the nerves responsible for sending pain signals from the arthritic knee to the brain. Coolief doesn’t repair arthritis in the knee, but eases the pain, helping patients go back to activities without discomfort and fewer medications.