Authors: Christine Hunt, DO, MS; Stuart Grant, MBChB, MMCI ASA Monitor November 2024, Vol. 88, 10. Peripheral nerve stimulation (PNS) is commonly used for chronic pain conditions involving specific nerve distributions or discrete regions of the trunk or limbs when symptoms are refractory to more conservative management (Pain Physician 2021;24:E131-E52). Common applications with level I and II evidence […]

ASA Monitor December 2024, Vol. 88, 28–29. Johns Hopkins Medicine study finds commonly used arm positions can overestimate blood pressure readings A study led by Johns Hopkins Medicine researchers concludes that commonly used ways of positioning the patient’s arm during blood pressure (BP) screenings can substantially overestimate test results and may lead to a misdiagnosis of […]

ASA Monitor December 2024, Vol. 88, 28–29. CMS establishes additional payment for iovera° in outpatient settings Pacira BioSciences, Inc. announced that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued its final Medicare Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System and Medicare Ambulatory Surgical Center (ASC) Payment System rule for 2025, which implements the Non-Opioids Prevent Addiction in […]

Author: Lalitha Sundararaman, MD, FASA ASA Monitor December 2024, Vol. 88, 33–34. Figure: Dosing considerations in the patients with obesity. Obesity has risen to new heights and encompasses 23% of the world’s population. Obesity in adolescents has increased four-fold over the last two decades. The use of GLP-1 receptor agonists has grown exponentially. In addition, there […]

Authors: Shahla Siddiqui, MBBS, MSc, FCCM et al  ASA Monitor December 2024, Vol. 88, 1–5. The conflict between an individual physician’s duty to treat versus their personal issues of conscience and moral integrity has become more complex in recent years (Clinical Ethics: A Practical Approach to Ethical Decisions in Clinical Medicine. 8th edition, 2015). The loss of […]

ASA Monitor December 2024, Vol. 88, 28–29. FDA approves Exact Sciences’ Cologuard Plus test Exact Sciences Corp., a leading provider of cancer screening and diagnostic tests, today announced the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the Cologuard Plus™ test, the company’s next generation multitarget stool DNA test. The Cologuard Plus test is now approved for […]

Author: Robin Hocevar ASA Monitor December 2024, Vol. 88, 32. One surefire way to start a lively conversation among anesthesiologists is to bring up the ideal timeline children should fast before surgery. This clinical controversy was the focus of a point-counterpoint discussion at ANESTHESIOLOGY® 2024. Joelle Karlik, MD, Pediatric Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta-Arthur […]

Author: Kim Sumrak ASA Monitor December 2024, Vol. 88, e9. Infertility affects one in eight couples in the general population and one in four female physicians. Many are unaware of these statistics, even in the medical community. When faced with infertility, there is an enormous emotional, physical, and even financial toll. While there is not a […]

Authors: Sachin “Sunny” Jha, MD, MS, FASA; Robert Carter, III, Colonel (U.S. Army), PhD ASA Monitor December 2024, Vol. 88, e4–e7. In an era marked by evolving biothreats and emerging infectious diseases, the U.S. biodefense apparatus has become a critical component of national security. As key players in the health care system, anesthesiologists have a pivotal role […]

ASA Monitor December 2024, Vol. 88, 26. A 20-year-old man presents to the emergency department with a severe headache. Upon evaluation, he is found to have a large intracranial mass and is scheduled to undergo craniotomy for resection. According to a recent meta-analysis comparing scalp nerve blocks, scalp infiltration, and placebo, which of the following statements […]