Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is a genetic disorder. It affects the nerves that control muscles. This can lead to weakness and even death. But there is hope. Early treatment makes a big difference. Newborn screening (NBS) is a key player in this fight. It helps spot SMA early. This allows for quick treatment. The results are impressive. Infants who get early treatmen...
Bone cancer in the thigh can be tough to treat. One option is rotationplasty. This is where the lower leg is turned around and attached to the thigh. It's not a new idea. It was first done in 1974. It's a big change for the body. But it has some pluses. It lasts longer than other treatments. And it doesn't cause phantom pain like amputations can. But wha...
In Brazil, doctors are using a cool procedure called catheter ablation to fix a heart condition called atrial fibrillation (AF). This method has come a long way, but there isn't much information on how well it works in the long term, especially in places where money isn't easy to come by. The Southern Brazilian Registry of Atrial Fibrillation (SBR-AF Registry) is try...
The Covid-19 pandemic threw a wrench into the works of cancer surgery, including procedures for pancreatic cancer. Healthcare resources were shifted, and cancer treatment pathways had to be redrawn. This disruption had the potential to severely impact fast-growing cancers like pancreatic adenocarcinoma. But what about the long-term outcomes? Did the delays in surgery...
Ever broken your ankle? Yeah, it’s pretty common, especially for the malleolar fracture type. Problem is, this fracture can lead to nasty ankle osteoarthritis years down the line. But guess what? No one really knows what makes for a good recovery after surgery. So, this study took a hard look at the ten-year results in patients who had osteosynthesis surgery to fix t...
Have you heard of a condition called cervical ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament (C-OPLL)? It’s a tricky neck problem where a ligament in the spine turns into bone. One way doctors treat this is with a surgery called anterior controllable antedisplacement and fusion (ACAF). But what happens years after the surgery? That’s what a recent study tried to...