More articles from From the Editor
- Back to the basics on pressure and fat
Sometimes we may be too smart about the nuances of clinical science and get distracted from our goal of improving patient outcomes.
- ECT: Bad reputation, but often effective
It may come as a surprise that psychiarists still use electroconvulsive therapy. Books and movies have not portrayed it in a flattering light.
- The art and evidence of medical practice
A message from the Spine Patient Outcomes Research Trial (SPORT) could be that the artful judgment of a seasoned clinician, with patient input, may actually be a valid way to make decisions.
- Zoster is more than ‘just’ a viral infection
For some viruses, such as varicella-zoster virus, striking and confusing clinical manifestations can appear long after the initial infection.
- A defense of apple pie
Vaccination against pneumococcal pneumonia is widely accepted, although we underuse it, and data to support its efficacy are scarce.
- Old drug, new data, continued vigilance
Colchicine, an old and familiar drug for gout, has found another use in preventing and treating pericarditis. But familiarity should not dampen vigilance.
- Who would have thought?
Fifteen years ago, universal screening for human immunodeficiency virus would have been met with cries of discrimination and therapeutic nihilism, but not in 2007. Who would have thought?
- Recognizing a common disease hiding in plain sight
Clinicians often fail to diagnose celiac disease promptly. They don’t realize how common it is, and they don’t recognize its many manifestations other than diarrhea.