Medscape Family Medicine Headlines

A 65-Year-Old Man With Metabolic Syndrome and Hypertension Who Won't Exercise -- Would Tai Chi Help?

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 12:00:00 EDT

Is it the life force or the exercise?
Medscape Internal Medicine

Challenges in Epilepsy Management: New Evidence for Consideration in Generic Antiepileptic Drug Substitution

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 12:00:00 EDT

What are the perceived and demonstrated issues in generic antiepileptic drug substitution?
Medscape Neurology & Neurosurgery

Allergy to Antipsychotics Often a False Diagnosis

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 08:16:28 EDT

New research shows fewer than 10% of patients with pharmacy records listing an allergy to antipsychotics actually had a true allergy, a finding that suggests drug-treatment options might be needlessly limited by this false assessment.
Medscape Medical News

Why and How to Use the Photographic Atlases of the American Registry of Pathology

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 08:43:16 EDT

William A. Gardner, MD, Executive Director, American Registry of Pathology, Silver Spring, Maryland, describes the importance of visual images to medicine.
The Medscape Journal of Medicine

CMS Introduces Incentives for Electronic Prescribing

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 11:32:00 EDT

In 2009, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services will award incentive payments to successful adopters of e-prescribing systems; CMS held a conference this week to explain how the program will work and address physicians' questions and concerns.
Medscape Medical News

Occasional Memory Loss Associated With Lower Hippocampal Volume

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 12:17:12 EDT

People who forget the odd appointment or can't remember a friend's name may have a loss of brain volume that will elude conventional testing methods.
Medscape Medical News

Political Issues Affect Cancer Care as US Election Looms

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 13:21:00 EDT

Although the current financial crisis has overshadowed healthcare reform, cancer care remains on the radar of both presidential candidates.
Medscape Medical News

Patients with Chiari and Syringomyelia Frequently Misdiagnosed

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 13:56:00 EDT

People can be mistakenly diagnosed with fibromyalgia or chronic fatigue syndrome or told that their chronic headaches and muscle weaknesses are psychosomatic.
Medscape Medical News

Fewer Hospital Days for Daily Home Hemodialysis Patients

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 15:21:56 EDT

The number of hospital days is lower for daily home hemodialysis patients than for peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients, according to a report in the October American Journal of Kidney Diseases.
Reuters Health Information

Obesity May Raise Risk of Progression to Permanent Atrial Fibrillation

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 15:28:54 EDT

New research suggests that obesity not only increases the risk of first atrial fibrillation, it also increases the odds that paroxysmal atrial fibrillation will become permanent.
Reuters Health Information

Rate of Chronic Lung Disease Rising in VLBW Infants as Surfactant Use Declines

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 15:31:01 EDT

The incidence of chronic lung disease among infants weighing less than 1000 g at birth increased between 2001 and 2006, while at the same time, the use of surfactant in this population has fallen off, according to data from a nationwide US registry.
Reuters Health Information

Guideline Tackles Higher Mortality Among Hypertensive Patients With Diabetes

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 16:28:30 EDT

Physicians need to aggressively treat high blood pressure as soon as it develops in patients with diabetes if they are to effectively lower the 7-fold higher mortality rate observed in patients with both conditions, according to a presentation today at a press conference sponsored by the American Society of Hypertension.
Reuters Health Information

Risk of MI Doubled in Patients With Rheumatoid Arthritis

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 16:31:04 EDT

Patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are twice as likely to experience a myocardial infarction (MI) over a 3-year period compared with patients with noninflammatory rheumatic disorders, according to data from the Wichita, Kansas-based National Data Bank for Rheumatic Diseases.
Reuters Health Information

Triple RAAS Blockade May Slow Progression of Kidney Disease

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 16:41:34 EDT

Blockade of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS) with three distinct treatment approaches appears to slow progression of chronic kidney disease, according to a report from Poland. It is published in the September issue of the American Journal of Kidney Diseases.
Reuters Health Information

Sleep Position May Affect Infant Blood Pressure

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 17:00:00 EDT

A longitudinal study shows that an infant's blood pressure may be modified by sleep position, with a decrease in blood pressure in the prone position in those aged 2 to 3 months.
Medscape Medical News

Warfarin Warning: Shortfalls in Anticoagulation for AF Up Risks of ICH and Embolic Stroke

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 17:00:00 EDT

Documentation of the care of patients in a nationwide health plan suggests that less than half of patients with atrial fibrillation are prescribed an anticoagulant.
Medscape Medical News

Talc Use in Genital Area Linked to Increased Risk for Ovarian Cancer

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 17:00:00 EDT

Women should avoid using talc in the genital area, say researchers reporting further evidence supporting an association between such use and an increase in the risk for ovarian cancer.
Medscape Medical News

Overweight, High C-Peptide May Predict Future Mortality From Prostate Cancer

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 17:00:00 EDT

Both excess body weight and a high plasma concentration of C-peptide predispose men with a subsequent diagnosis of prostate cancer to an increased likelihood of dying of this disease.
Medscape Medical News

Mild Glucose Abnormalities in Pregnancy Linked to Postpartum Diabetes Risk

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 17:00:00 EDT

A study shows that any degree of abnormal glucose homeostasis during pregnancy is predictive of glucose intolerance 3 months after delivery.
Reuters Health Information

Texas Has Highest Rate of Uninsured

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 17:04:20 EDT

Forty percent of hispanics in Texas have no health insurance.
WebMD Health News