The U.S. Military Health System is touted as an equal-access medical provider, and scores of studies have demonstrated that few racial inequities exist in the treatment it provides for many conditions.
DoD Grant Supports Innovative Treatment for Orthopedic Conditions
In September, the Department of Defense granted a small Maryland-based company up to $7.4 million to develop a targeted therapeutic that could have a big impact on the care of military personnel and veterans with orthopedic injuries and degenerative diseases.
Oral Cancer Patients Have Higher Risk of Death From Other Causes
Patients with oral cancer have a higher risk of death from noncancer causes compared to their counterparts of the same age and sex, and this risk increases by stage, according to a recent study.
Diabetes Drug Metformin Shows Promise for Reducing Incident Osteoarthritis
Metformin is recommended as first-line therapy for Type 2 diabetes at the VA and elsewhere. Among the benefits, according to the VA PBM, is that the drug, which has been in use for decades, is low-cost and safe to initiate in most patients, even those with moderate renal dysfunction.
Pandemic Brought About Significant Changes in Orthopedic Injuries
Much of the focus during the COVID-19 pandemic has been on the infection itself, as well as persistent symptoms. But many other aspects of healthcare underwent changes of SARS-CoV-2 and the efforts to combat it.
VA Researchers Seek to Understand Factors Linked to Prosthetic Joint Infection
In most head-to-head comparisons, surgical care at the VHA is found to be as good or better than that provided in the community. That’s why a recent study on joint replacement surgery was so surprising.
Veterans Receiving Total Knee Replacements at VA Facilities
Thanks to the MISSION Act, VA is increasing purchasing healthcare for veterans in the communities where they live.
Oral Cavity Cancer Increasing in Military Men Compared to Civilians
Men in the active-duty military population differ somewhat from the United States’ general population in rates of oral cavity and oropharyngeal cancer incidence, according to a recent study.
Biomarkers Identify Better Physical Resilience in Some Patients
DURHAM, NC—Physical resilience can make a different to how patients respond to health stressors, even if they appear to be clinically similar. A study in the Journals of Gerontology Series A pointed out that molecular mechanisms underlying physical resilience often...
TKA Outcomes Linked to Inappropriate Medications Among Veterans
ATLANTA—The American Geriatrics Society (AGS) Beers Criteria is a list of potentially inappropriate medications that are typically best avoided by older adults in most circumstances or under specific situations, such as in certain diseases or conditions. A study in...
Helicopter Pilots Face Greater Risk of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
HONOLULU—Helicopter pilots are burdened with an increased risk of carpal tunnel syndrome, according to a new study. The report in Military Medicine pointed out that the incidence of carpal tunnel syndrome is increased in occupations exposed to repetitive motion, poor...
Surgeon Recognized Need for Better Battlefield Care of Orthopedic Injuries
SAN DIEGO—During his first deployment as part of Operation Desert Storm in 1991, Dana Covey, MD, noticed a gap between the injuries that were occurring on the battlefield and the ones that forward surgical teams were most equipped to handle.
