Here are 11 articles on medical research study findings from the week of April 6.
1. One study revealed methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus becomes even more resistant to being killed by a person's immune system when it is exposed to cigarette smoke.
2. A U.S. Veterans Administration-funded study found that using continuous ultraviolet-C disinfection robots is more effective in killing pathogens than pulsed xenon devices.
3. Researchers discovered the ward in which a catheter insertion takes place is one of many risk factors for catheter-associated urinary tract infections.
4. A case study demonstrated how, when clinicians and patients experience a language barrier, errors in care and medication prescription can ensue.
5. Analysis from California hospitals revealed a decrease in the number of injury cases and an increase in the number of emergency department visits for medical conditions in The Golden State.
6. Findings from one study indicated that using large financial incentives to improve quality may not significantly drive improvement among primary care providers, but payment reform may help decrease variation in quality performance among physicians.
7. Results of a survey showed many healthcare providers are reluctant to prescribe a pre-exposure prophylaxis prevention plan to patients who are at substantial ongoing risk for HIV.
8. Recent controlled trials found 86 percent of patients taking a placebo for acute bacterial sinusitis got better in one to two weeks, compared with 91 percent of those taking antibiotics, meaning waiting out sinus infections may be nearly as effective as antibiotics.
9. Scientists have discovered a compound in Lake Michigan that proved effective in fighting drug-resistant tuberculosis.
10. Researchers analyzed surgeon performance to find that, when surgeons have larger case volumes and more years of experience, their patients' outcomes improve.
11. Medicare patients with melanoma frequently experience considerable delays in surgery, despite the risks of putting off excision, according to new research.