LifeNet, Sentara assist in 3rd-ever heart transplant between HIV-positive patients
The third heart transplant in the U.S. between HIV-positive patients started in Hampton Roads.
Listen how here:
Virginia Department of Health continues Long COVID study
The latest study on the lingering effects of COVID-19 will focus on Southwest Virginia residents after an initial analysis on those from Central Virginia last fall.
Long COVID is diagnosed when symptoms persist for months or longer after a person’s initial viral infection.
Little is known about the condition, but the first study found some similarities among people experiencing the phenomenon: many were not up to date on their vaccinations, high blood pressure was common and most had a moderate or severe initial COVID-19 infection.
Read more from our media partner the Virginia Mercury
Sentara cuts climate pollution from greenhouse gas used for anesthesia
Sentara hospitals throughout Virginia and North Carolina have largely phased out the anesthetic gas called desflurane.
Since it came out in the 1990s, it’s been popular because of its molecular stability and ability to get patients to quickly go under and wake back up.
But a lot of it is also vented outside of the hospital, said Dr. Holly Mason, an anesthesiologist at Sentara’s Martha Jefferson Hospital in Charlottesville.
Desflurane is the most potent greenhouse gas among inhaled anesthetics, according to the American Society of Anesthesiologists. It can trap heat in the atmosphere at a rate more than 2,000 times greater than carbon dioxide.
Sentara’s move away from desflurane means providers use more intravenous anesthetics and regional anesthesia, like numbing agents.
New study finds women are at a higher genetic risk for PTSD than men
Researchers at VCU Health partnered with a group in Sweden to look at the role genetics plays in post-traumatic stress disorder.
The study looked at data from nearly 800,000 twins and siblings of the opposite sex.
Here’s Adrienne McGibbon from partner station VPM with more:
Virginia lawmakers looking at how to help free clinics
A bipartisan cohort of lawmakers has been touring the state in recent months to hear from people who work in and use free health clinics.
They’ll compile legislative proposals by the end of the year that the General Assembly could take up in the 2025 session.
Many under- or uninsured people around Virginia rely on the 70 free clinics in the state and that number has grown in recent years, according to the Virginia Association of Free and Charitable Clinics. Meanwhile, state funding has remained stagnant since 2016.
According to the Association, operating costs are up 170% from 2016 to 2023 and usage was also up 28% in fiscal year 2023 from 2022.
Read more from the Virginia Mercury
Hampton Roads hospitals listed among top in the state
Sentara Norfolk General, Sentara Leigh, Sentara Virginia Beach General and Chesapeake Regional Medical Center were all ranked in the top 15 best hospitals in the state by U.S. News & World Report.
Norfolk General was ranked 3rd in the state; Sentara Leigh 9th; Virginia Beach General 11th and Chesapeake Regional 14th.
Inova Fairfax Hospital in Falls Church was ranked No. 1 in the state.
