After scores of malpractice lawsuits over the course of three decades, a Staten Island plastic surgeon finally had his medical license suspended this month and was deemed "an imminent danger to the health of the people of the state." Legal documents show that Dr. Robert Cattani, whom the Post dubs "the Richmond County ripper," leaves behind a horrifying trail of botched medical procedures. And though he may be prevented from perforating a patient's bowels during a liposuction like he did back in 2007, many of his former patients wonder why it took so long for his practice to be shut down. more ›

If your life is threatened by renal failure, you may receive a kidney transplant thanks to Medicare. Except if you're an illegal immigrant. The Times profiles the struggles of Angel, a waiter with failing kidneys who is "so well liked at the Manhattan restaurant where he had worked for a decade that everyone from the customers to the dishwasher was donating money" to help. His siblings are donor matches, and the government will pay for the $75K/year dialysis but not a $100K transplant. “The ultimate irony is it’s cheaper to put in a transplant than to dialyze someone for the rest of their life," Bellevue medical director Dr. Eric Manheimer says. more ›

Dr. Susana G. Duncan allegedly had herself a helluva weekend at her second home in Columbia County. Duncan, a sports medicine doctor whose primary residence is on Park Avenue here in NYC, first ran afoul of the law on Saturday, when she called police to report that her 2004 Volkswagen had been stolen. But cops quickly closed the file on that one after they located the vehicle on Duncan's property, crashed down a large embankment, NBC New York reports. more ›

Yesterday, a panel of doctors who are charged with reviewing preventative medicine ruled that a blood screening for prostate cancer, the second deadliest cancer, is unnecessary. This is mostly because people don't like to be told they have cancer, especially with the treatment and biopsies that occur after a positive result: 5,000 men died after surgery, and up to 70,000 had "serious consequences" after the biopsy, in addition to the 300,000 who experienced impotence or incontinence from 1985 to 2005. The doctor who developed the test has called it a "public health disaster." But Rudy Giuliani tells the Post that the test saved his life: "I believe it's the reason I'm alive. It's really a mistake to move away from this. It's very dangerous." Well, that settles it! more ›

According to the UK's Telegraph, a "finding" in the British Medical Journal states that cyclists shouldn't be forced to wear helmets, because "they may give up cycling altogether and lose the health benefits of regular exercise." Wow! British Medical Journal? Findings? Excuse us while we shake our luxurious mane in this deliciously dangerous breeze! But what's the science behind this proclamation? A poll of 1,439 people on the BMJ's website "believed that the use of cycle helmets by adults should not be mandatory in the UK." Ah, those internet commenters/poll users: always looking out for our health. more ›

Oh, those crazy doctors, always carrying methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus-infested accessories! A small but vocal group of lawmakers are proposing a bill that would bar doctors and other hospital staffers from wearing neckties in clinical settings, with the hope of reducing germ transmission from the paisley-patterned cloth. But is this really necessary? more ›

You're a doctor who just jumped the curb in your SUV, ramming into several businesses and hitting two pedestrians. Do you, A) offer immediate medical assistance to the bloody people you've just run over? B) Call 911 so EMS can get to the scene as ASAP? Or C) Get your lawyer on the phone STAT? If your name is Pushpa Raj Bhansali and you totaled your SUV in Flatlands yesterday morning, the answer is definitely C, according to "disgusted witnesses" cited in the Post. But a friend of Bhansali insists he did nothing wrong, and the law is on his side. Remember the Hippocratic Oath? So 4th Century BC. more ›

A CBS News producer happened to be on a flight to Laguardia from Atlanta when an 86-year-old fell ill. Luckily, the plane was apparently chock full of doctors and she was saved by a pair of doctors heading to see the Thanksgiving Day Parade! Neurologist Tom Devlin (who was wearing his scrubs) checked out the lady, who apparently had a seizure, heart attack or stroke, during the Wednesday flight. He said she was “Without a pulse, not breathing, completely comatose in her chair... It was clear this was a potential life and death situation," and consulted with his cardiologist wife, Dr. Carol Gruver who then revived the woman. more ›

After a week's deliberation union workers at the twice-bailed out St. Vincent's voted to take a ten percent pay cut while the hospital tries to revive itself. "In today’s difficult economic climate for working families, our members’ vote to accept the wage reduction is a testament to how committed they are to the work they do, their passion in providing quality care and their dedication to the patient community they serve. We salute their courageous sacrifice to keep St. Vincent’s hospital open," the union said. Still, the decrease agreed to by the union is half or less of those handed to non-union employees last week: doctors' salaries were slashed by 20 percent and executive pay rates were scaled back 25 percent. more ›

Even with another $6 million bail-out from the state and lenders, the prognosis for St. Vincent’s is not sunny. This week the hospital—which is $700 million in debt and losing more—laid off over 300 employees including 32 doctors. A 38-year-old technician and air-conditioning engineer who’d worked at the hospital for 18 months, was one of the unlucky set. “They gave me a letter,” he told the NY Times, adding that he felt sorry not only for himself, but because “there’s a lot of history here.” In a statement, the vice-chair of the board of directors, said that those losing their jobs “have done absolutely nothing wrong.” more ›

David Blaine has been upside down since yesterday, and today his medical team will be on hand at Wollman Rink to check in on their patient. There have been some concerns about what being in his position for 60 hours can do to the human body (like blindness!), so stay tuned for what's likely to be a dramatic yet reassuring press conference with the docs. more ›

There are worries that a proposed $50,000 surcharge on all MD's in the state could do irreparable harm to New York's health care community. The state's medical malpractice liability fund is underfunded, and state insurance superintendent Eric Dinallo is looking for ideas. more ›