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Neurosurgeon Dr. Kurt Yaeger, from Mt. Sinai Hospital in New York, New York, shares insight to being a healthcare worker on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic and provides an overview of his recent publication in World Neurosurgery, Patterns of Health Care Costs Due to External Ventricular Drain Infections.


Additional Information about this study can be found below.


Background: External ventricular drain (EVD) infections are a significant cause of morbidity among neurosurgical patients and have been correlated with increased length of hospital stay and longer requirements for intensive care. To date, no studies have examined the financial impact of EVD infections.


Methods: Patients who underwent EVD placement between December 2010 and January 2016 were included in the study. Clinical records were retrospectively reviewed and health care cost data were obtained from the hospital's finance department. Clinical information included patient demographics, details from the hospital course, and outcomes. Total costs, direct/indirect, and fixed/variable costs were analyzed for every patient.


Results: Over the 5-year study period, 246 EVDs were placed in 243 patients with an overall infection rate of 9.9% (N = 24). The median EVD duration for infected versus noninfected patients was 19 and 9 days, respectively (P Conclusions: EVD infection has a substantial effect on clinical morbidity and healthcare costs. These results demonstrate the imperative need to improve EVD infection prevention, particularly in the setting of a value-based health care system.

IRRAflow was selected as the 2019 winner of CONNECT's Most Innovative New Product award in the medical device category. CONNECT, a premier nonprofit helping entrepreneurs with innovative startups in the technology and life sciences sectors, has been celebrating innovation leaders in the broader San Diego area for the last thirty-two-years.



IRRAflow, the company's initial commercial product, has a unique mechanism of action that addresses the complications associated with the current methods of managing intracranial fluid by using a dual-lumen catheter that combines automated irrigation, controlled drainage, and continuous ICP monitoring, all into one system.

Dr. Behnam Rezai Jahromi is currently a resident at Helsinki University Hospital in Helsinki, Finland, where he joined the world-renown neurosurgery department while attending high school. Dr. Rezai Jahromi has published more than 70 peer-review articles, has written 20 book chapters, and is running several intranational clinical studies regarding cerebrovascular disorders.  


In this episode, Dr. Rezai Jahromi discusses his clinical experience with treating patients suffering from ventriculitis and shares how new innovative technology called IRRAflow, provides a needed change to therapeutically treating this disease.


In this informative episode, Dr. Rezai Jahromi discusses:


How ventriculitis affects the ventricles of the brain

Current standard of care for treating ventriculitis and the associated issues with these treatments

Benefits of using IRRAflow to remove bacterial mass and deliver antibiotics within the ventricles

Ventriculitis patient clinical success story

Key takeaways for neurosurgeons treating patients suffering from ventriculitis

How IRRAflow will continue to shape treatment approaches in the future


 

Neurointensivist Dr. Farrukh Chaudhry, FAAN, FNCS, from Community Health System in Muster, IN, discusses his clinical experience with treating patients suffering from intraventricular hemorrhages (IVH).


In this educational episode, Dr. Chaudhry covers:


- Two main methods used to treat IVHs


- Common complications associated with the current methods


- The CLEAR-III IVH Trial and treating IVH with tPA


- Length of hospital stay for patients with IVH


- The benefits of utilizing IRRAflow and tPA to therapeutically treat IVH

IRRAS is a global medical care company focused on delivering innovative medical solutions to improve the lives of critically ill patients. IRRAS designs, develops, and commercializes neurocritical care products that transform patient outcomes and decrease the overall cost of care by addressing complications associated with current treatment methodologies.


IRRAS markets and sells its comprehensive, innovative IRRAflow and Hummingbird ICP Monitoring product lines to hospitals worldwide through its direct sales organization in the United States and select European countries as well as an international network of distribution partners.  

Dr. Sumeet Vadera, Associate Professor of Neurological Surgery at UC Irvine Health, discusses his experience using new technology to treat a patient suffering from a Chronic Subdural Hematoma.