Latest Articles
- Medication-assisted treatment of opiate dependence is gaining favor
Recovering addicts are more likely to avoid returning to the use of opiates if they participate in a program that includes taking maintenance doses of methadone or buprenorphine.
- Should healthy people take calcium and vitamin D to prevent fractures? What the US Preventive Services Task Force and others say
The USPSTF recently threw cold water on the use of these supplements, but the findings need to be put in context.
- Managing severe acute pancreatitis
Progress in managing this disease has been disappointing, but clinicians are learning to recognize it and treat it supportively better than in the past.
- Guidelines or a plea for help?
The US Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recently published a guideline on the use of calcium and vitamin D supplements to prevent fractures in adults. I agree with two-thirds of their recommendations.
- Which patients may benefit from coronary artery calcification scoring?
Although no randomized trial has yet shown that the test improves outcomes, it is best used in asymptomatic patients at intermediate risk.
Evaluation and management of premature ventricular complexesThe diagnostic evaluation should include an assessment for structural heart disease and ambulatory Holter monitoring.
- Does coronary artery calcification scoring still have a role in practice?
Despite more than 2 decades of use and data from hundreds of thousands of patients, the test remains poorly understood.
- Stiff, numb hands
A 45-year-old woman presents to the emergency room with cramps and paresthesias in her hands and feet. What is going on?
- A young woman with enlarged lymph nodes
A previously healthy 25-year-old woman presents with a “lump in the neck.” How should she be assessed?
Recognizing and managing hereditary angioedemaRecognizing this rare but life-threatening disease is crucial, especially now that drugs are available to prevent and treat acute attacks.