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National Government Services (NGS), a regional Medicare carrier, recently issued a future negative coverage decision on posterior tibial nerve stimulation therapy (Urgent PC, Uroplasty, Inc., Minneapolis) that became effective in four states after Jan. 3, 2011.

Congress passed a bill in December that exempts physicians, nurse practitioners, and non-medical professionals from the Federal Trade Commission?s ?Red Flags Rule,? which helps protect consumers from identity theft.

Centocor Ortho Biotech Inc. has submitted a new drug application to the FDA for the investigational drug abiraterone acetate administered with prednisone for the treatment of metastatic advanced prostate cancer in patients who have received prior chemotherapy containing a taxane.

The FDA has approved a new testosterone gel (Fortesta) for the treatment of hypogonadism.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology recently announced the availability of registration for Medicare and Medicaid electronic health record incentive programs.

The PSA test appears to be more reliable in men taking dutasteride (Avodart), recent study results indicate.

Urologists and other physicians who treat Medicare patients have again escaped a steep reimbursement reduction as President Obama on Dec. 15 signed legislation passed by the lame-duck Congress providing a 12-month reprieve.

Obesity is independently related to better outcomes in patients with metatstatic renal cell carcinoma who are treated with vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF).

For the management of refractory urge incontinence, non-pharmacologic options can be used alone or in combination with anticholinergic medications will be adequate treatment for many patients, but some will need further therapy.

While it is tempting to look only at "the bottom line," the contemporary physician manager/owner needs to have a more thorough understanding of the numbers that contribute to that bottom line and how to use that information to quickly discover problems and solutions.

In determining when and how to use a code, the primary issues to address are the performance definition, bundling, and last but certainly not least, medical necessity.

We no longer need to consider if laparoendoscopic single-site surgery is safe and effective-with the caveat of experienced hands-but we do need to examine in whom the cosmetic advantages of LESS merit the added surgical complexity.

Although most urologists agree the field is shifting toward increasingly minimally invasive approaches, they have mixed feelings about whether the move is totally justified.

There are several areas where urologists feel clinical guidelines would be helpful.

Use of anticoagulants, particularly aspirin, substantially reduces the risk of prostate cancer-specific mortality, analysis of a large prostate cancer database showed.

Improved cosmesis is considered the primary advantage of laparoendoscopic single-site surgery (LESS) compared to other procedures, but patients consider this outcome to be of low importance.

The design of small-diameter stone baskets can affect the stone extraction times of physicians at various skill levels.

Among patients with staghorn calculi, researchers have discovered a shift in the composition of these stones, with metabolic stones becoming more prominent.

Labeling on testosterone products sold in the United States indicates that testosterone supplementation is contraindicated in men with a history of prostate cancer and in those thought to be at risk for the disease. A recent study brings the validity of that warning into question.

A multi-targeted angiogenesis inhibitor more than doubled progression-free survival in patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma.

Results of a retrospective study including a series of post-radical prostatectomy patients with pathology-proven high-risk characteristics provide further insight into the use of testosterone replacement therapy in men with a history of prostate cancer.

Two independent studies exploring how lithotripter ownership might affect urologists' choice of treatment for stone disease seem to provide conflicting results, although neither of the studies directly assessed individual practice patterns for lithotripter utilization.

Researchers say concurrent incontinence and erectile dysfunction can be resolved simultaneously by combining the placement of a male sling and implantable penile prosthesis in a single procedure.

Urology drugs and devices that are in the pipeline from Pfizer Inc., Exelixis Inc., Medivation, Inc., Astellas Pharma Inc., Tengion, Inc., Agensys, Inc., and Nymox Pharmaceutical Corp.

The need for retirement planning doesn't end with the onset of retirement.

Let's look at the simple things urologists can do to ensure the entire staff focuses on being patient-centered and keeping patients happy.

John D. Denstedt, MD, discusses the indications for stents, their potential drawbacks, and research aimed at developing safer, more comfortable stents.

Raj Pruthi, MD, has been promoted to chief of the division of urologic surgery within the department of surgery at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine.

Sexual function significantly improved in hypogonadal men with erectile dysfunction after 6 months of testosterone replacement therapy, according to a recent study.