Medical: July 2010 Archives

Laparoscopic gastric banding is a common surgical treatment for morbid obesity and the most critical factor in the success of the operation lies in the hands of the surgeon – who needs the proficiency and skill to insert slender, handheld tools into the body of the patient. A team of interdisciplinary researchers, led by engineering expert Professor Suvranu De, associate professor in the Department of Mechanical, Aerospace, and Nuclear Engineering at Rensselaer, has recently won a US $2.3M federal grant to develop a touch-sensitive virtual reality simulator that will realistically replicate how performing a gastric band operation feels – making it ideal for developing and teaching fundamental surgical skills and for assessing physicians wanting to be certified as a laparoscopic surgeon.

De said that physicians who performed less than 100 laparoscopic procedures had more complication rates when compared to experienced surgeons.  Being proficient at using remote control tools to perform minimally invasive laparoscopic procedures is critical in successfully performing laparoscopic surgery. This new testing and training system that uses haptic technology – or touch feedback – will allow surgeons to practice and refine the surgical skills needed to perform a laparoscopic procedure in their own virtual operating theater.

Read more:  gizmag.com.

The Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court recently ruled that in workers' compensation cases, an expert's opinion could be held valid even if the expert did not personally examine a specific injury the worker suffered. In Stancell v. Workers' Compensation Appeal Board, the court affirmed a benefits termination petition after the employer's medical expert testified regarding the employee's ability to return to work.

The court's holding suggests that as long as testifying physicians have sufficient, credible information regarding a worker's recovery, findings on a specific injury (especially when multiple injuries are the basis for benefits) may not be necessary to support the physician's opinion.

Read more: 24-7pressrelease.com.

The defense brought their first medical expert to the stand on Tuesday in the trial of Paul Hill.  Hill is the Sioux City man charged with child endangerment resulting in the death of his 4-month-old daughter Tryniti Hill.  The defense called forensic neuropathology expert Dr. Jan who described the differences in the several hemorrhages found by medical examiners in Tryniti's brain during her autopsy.

When a hemorrhage occurs in the brain, Leestma says, "scavenger cells" take over to try and clean it up.  Leetsma says its difficult to say how long each have been there.  "Those cells can be present for years or longer they seem to get trapped there and that's the end," says Dr. Jan Leestma, forensic neuropathology consultant.  Leestma also says many people both adults and children, don't know they have hemorrhages right away.

For more, see ktv.com.