Recently added articles from Family Practice News:
Jury out on HT's cognitive benefits.(Clinical Rounds)(hormone therapy)
Sep 01, 2008; Sullivan, Michele G. ... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] CHICAGO -- Hormone therapy might preserve cognition and memory in postmenopausal women, and even attenuate some of the cognitive deficits that occur in Alzheimer's disease, new research suggests. Controversy exists over the possible cognitive ...
Top prescription drugs by U.S. sales in 2007.(VITAL SIGNS)(Table)(Brief article)
Sep 01, 2008 ... <Pre> Top Prescription Drugs by U.S. Sales in 2007 (in billions of dollars) Lipitor (atorvastatin) $8.1 Nexium (esomeprazole) $5.5 Advair Diskus (salmeterol/fluticasone) $4.3 Plavix (clopidogrel) $3.9 Seroquel ...
Medical-legal partnerships take root across U.S.: resolution calls for an AAFP-led initiative.(News)(American Academy of Family Physicians, medical-legal partnership )
Sep 01, 2008; DeMott, Kathryn ... Dr. Colleen Cagno recalls a patient who urgently needed help renewing his public housing. She and a lawyer who works down the hall were able not only to document how his medical condition qualified him for public housing, but also to expedite the process to prevent an eviction ...
Medicare expands list of conditions it will not cover.(News)
Sep 01, 2008; Schneider, Mary Ellen ... Starting Oct. 1, Medicare won't pay for a total of 11 preventable conditions acquired during a hospital stay, up from the current 8 such conditions. Added to the list of noncovered preventable conditions are surgical site infections following certain elective procedures, such as ...
FDA issues conflict-of-interest rules for advisers.(News)(Food and Drug Administration)
Sep 01, 2008; Ault, Alicia ... Experts serving on the Food and Drug Administration's advisory committees are now subject to new rules aimed at ensuring that they do not have conflicts of interest that could bias their decisions. In early August, the FDA issued four final guidance documents and a draft ...
Alert issued on simvastatin-amiodarone interaction.(News)
Sep 01, 2008; Mechcatie, Elizabeth ... Patients on amiodarone and simvastatin should not take more than 20 mg of the statin a day, because of an increased risk of rhabdomyolysis when the two drugs are used together, according to a Food and Drug Administration alert. "This risk is dose-related and increases when a ...
New drugs prominent in rhinitis guidelines.(News)
Sep 01, 2008; Evans, Jeff ... New changes to diagnosis and treatment guidelines for rhinitis emphasize the relative effectiveness of newer medications and treatment combinations for relieving symptoms, especially in determining what drugs are most effective when patients know they will be in symptom-provoking ...
Concerns persist about Byetta and pancreatitis risks.(News)
Sep 01, 2008; Ault, Alicia ... The Food and Drug Administration warned physicians to immediately discontinue use of exenatide (Byetta) if pancreatitis is suspected, saying that it has received reports of six cases of necrotizing or hemorrhagic pancreatitis--including two deaths--since October 2007. At that ...
2009 CMS outpatient pay will be based on quality.(News)(Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services )
Sep 01, 2008; Ault, Alicia ... The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has proposed an overall 3% increase in payments for outpatient hospital care in 2009, almost a full percent below the update for 2008. As expected, reporting on quality of care is being tied to the amount of increase hospitals and other ...
Tips for reducing stress in the office.(Letter to the editor)
Sep 01, 2008; McClure, David ... When Dr. Jay Winner talks about falling our schedules and not leaving time for catching up, I have to ask him real-world questions ("Take the Stress Out of Primary Care," Guest Editorial, July 1, 2008, p. 6): * How many patients to you see in a working day? * Are you ...
One doctor's tips for stress reduction.(Letter to the editor)(Brief article)
Sep 01, 2008; Lindberg, Fred ... I like Dr. Jay Winner's very wise attitude toward stress reduction: that we remain lifetime students in learning how to do these things better, as well as important sources and teachers for our patients and others ("Take the Stress Out of Primary Care," Guest Editorial, July 1, 2008, p ....
Did the AAP's clinical statement on lipid screening get it right? Guidelines outline multilevel approach.(Point/Counterpoint)
Sep 01, 2008; Stettler, Nicolas ... The clinical report by the American Academy of Pediatrics' Committee on Nutrition, "Lipid Screening and Cardiovascular Health in Childhood," represents a multilevel approach for the screening and management of children with risk factors for cardiovascular disease. The clinical report, ...
Did the AAP's clinical statement on lipid screening get it right? Screening and management are unproven.(Point/Counterpoint)(American Academy of Pediatrics)
Sep 01, 2008; Sanghavi, Darshak ... Focusing on cardiac risk factors from a young age is a very worthy goal. In particular, healthy diet, lifestyle, and appropriate weight starting in the toddler years are important. However, I believe that the AAP's clinical report on lipid screening and treatment in children ...
Corrections.(Opinion)(Correction notice)
Sep 01, 2008 ... The article, "New Combo Vaccines Could Complicate Practice" (July 15, 2008, p. 6), should have stated that "Kinrix is a combination of DTaP and inactivated poliovirus antigens that is indicated for the booster dose at age 4-6 years after the child has received a primary series with ...
Pain relievers.(Cartoon)
Sep 01, 2008 ... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] ...
Data back medical therapy for stable angina.(Cardiovascular Medicine)
Sep 01, 2008; Evans, Jeff ... Optimal medical treatment--with or without percutaneous coronary intervention--improved quality of life significantly in most patients with stable angina, according to an analysis of the quality of life of patients in the COURAGE trial. But PCI may be worthwhile in patients with ...
Obesity linked to higher morbidity after coronary bypass.(Cardiovascular Medicine)
Sep 01, 2008; Zoler, Mitchel L. ... TORONTO -- Obesity was linked to an increased risk for postsurgical complications in a study of more than 11,000 patients who underwent coronary bypass surgery. But in this series, obesity did not result in a significantly increased risk for postsurgical mortality, Dr. Mahboob ...
Congenital heart disease prognosis still a mystery: 'no single hemodynamic or electrophysiologic risk factor appears to be sufficiently predictive.'.(Cardiovascular Medicine)
Sep 01, 2008; Zoler, Mitchel L. ... TORONTO -- Experts are looking for the best way to assess the risk for sudden death in adults with congenital heart disease. Adults with congenital heart disease face a threat from sudden cardiac death that is far higher than that of the general population, with a mortality risk ...
Preventing a Tim Russert Event.(Expert Opinion)(heart attack prevention)
Sep 01, 2008; Goldstein, Sidney ... I am sure that many of you have been asked the same question that I have been posed this summer. It typically occurred at a cocktail party, when a 50-something woman, upon learning that I am a cardiologist, sidled up and motioned toward a portly gentleman hovering over a table of ...
Atrial volume, ventricular shape predict mortality.(Cardiovascular Medicine)(Clinical report)
Sep 01, 2008; Zoler, Mitchel L. ... TORONTO -- Increased left-atrial volume and abnormal left-ventricular geometry were each independent predictors of death among elderly patients with preserved systolic heart function in a study with more than 11,000 subjects. The findings suggest a potential role for left-atrial ...