June 1, 2002

Once the diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease has been made, the family physician may be responsible for coordinating periodic assessments of patient function, cognition, comorbid medical conditions, disorders of mood and emotion, and caregiver status.

Corns and calluses result from hyperkeratosis, which is a normal physiologic response of the skin to chronic excessive pressure or friction.

Constipation is frequently defined differently by physicians and patients. The differential diagnosis and diagnostic evaluation of this symptom differ in adults and children.

Patients presenting with low back pain are common in family medicine practices. To effectively treat these patients, family physicians must fully understand the attributes and limitations of the various imaging modalities used to evaluate low back pain.

Heat-related illnesses such as heat exhaustion and heatstroke should be treated promptly because they can lead to significant morbidity and mortality.

By now you've probably noticed that AFP has taken on additional components incorporating an evidence-based approach. We've added several new departments and revised author guidelines to incorporate a structured approach to identifying the evidence behind clinical…

HHS Launches Campaign to Raise Women's Awareness of Diabetes | Guidebook on Infant Care Released for New Parents | Deadline Approaching for AAFP Constituent Chapter Grant Proposals | AAPA Members Present Data on Physician Assistant Work Force | Women of Color Conference Honors…

Are you getting a full eight hours of sleep every night? If you're not, don't keep yourself up worrying about it. A study of over 1.1 million people published in the Archives of General Psychiatry finds that persons who report having insomnia do not seem to have an increased…

In this issue of American Family Physician, Humphreys and colleagues1 review the role of neuroimaging in the evaluation of low back pain. They conclude that “since the majority of patients fully or partially recover within six weeks, imaging studies are generally not…

The man had a gentle smile and visage that belied his advanced age. He had come to the mobile clinic tonight for the relief of nasal congestion and cough and because he could not afford to buy the antihypertensive medication prescribed for him by another physician. JOH listened…

Beneficial interventions include individually prescribed programs of muscle strengthening, balance retraining, tai chi exercise, and home hazard assessment, limiting use of psychotropic medications, and team-approach multiple health and environmental risk factor reduction…

What are the effects of treatments for chronic peripheral arterial disease?

Photo Quiz presents readers with a clinical challenge based on a photograph or other image.

In 2001, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) launched numerous initiatives to assure the availability of medical products for the treatment of injuries that could be caused by terrorists using biologic, chemical, or nuclear agents.

Potential for Medication Errors in Hospitals | Infliximab for the Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis | Evaluation and Management of ‘Incidentalomas’ | Use of Endoscopic Retrograde Cholangiopancreatography | FDA Approves Surgical Device to Treat Farsightedness | CFH/FDA…

The negotiation of boundaries in patient care can be a difficult process in many circumstances. Perhaps the thorniest negotiation is the one alluded to in this case scenario—how does a physician decide if a friend should be accepted as a patient?

Letters to the Editor

People with constipation may not have “regular” bowel movements. They may have hard stools, have pain during bowel movements, or be unable to pass stools at all.

Children with constipation may not have “regular” bowel movements. They may have hard stools or pain during bowel movements, or they may be unable to pass stools at all.

There are three kinds of heat illnesses. They are heat cramps, heat exhaustion, and heatstroke. You might get one if your body gets too hot and you can't get cool. These illnesses can be severe or mild. Heat cramps are a mild form of heat-related illness. Heat exhaustion is a…

The article “Spironolactone in Left-Sided Heart Failure: How Does It Fit In?” (October 15, 2001, page 1393) contained an error in Table 4 on page 1397. In the column titled “Comments on specific drug,” the entry “Increases concentration of digoxin” pertains to telmisartan…