May 15, 2004

Cryosurgery is an easily performed, highly effective treatment for a broad range of skin conditions.

Depression in elderly patients is widespread and often underdiagnosed or undertreated. Depression should be treated using a biopsychosocial approach, with psychotherapy and antidepressants that are appropriate for geriatric patients.

Hyponatremia is an important electrolyte abnormality with potentially significant rates of morbidity and mortality. Common causes include medications and the syndrome of inappropriate antidiuretic hormone secretion.

Women who took diethylstilbestrol during pregnancy have a slightly increased risk of breast cancer. Their offspring have a higher incidence of structural reproductive tract anomalies and an increased risk for some types of cancer.

Guillain-Barré syndrome is a rapidly progressive polyneuropathy. Treatment consists of supportive care and plasmapheresis or intravenous immunoglobulin.

Sprinkled throughout this issue are articles that, considered together, build a picture of the challenges family physicians face in ensuring their patients’ health. Take note of the Graham Center One-Pager on page 2310 of this issue: “What People Want from Their Family…

NIH Announces New National Diabetes Education Program Resources | Journals Publish Robert Graham Center Research Articles | IOM Releases Report on the Safety of Dietary Supplements | AAFP and Partner Produce a Toolkit for Active Aging | AAFP Submits Testimony Covering Title VII…

Data from a 2000 report prepared for the American Association of Suicidology show that the overall rate of suicide in the United States is 10.7 per 100,000 persons. According to Preventing Suicide, persons who are contemplating suicide can reach a trained crisis line worker 24…

The public wants and is satisfied by care provided within a patient-physician relationship based on understanding, honesty, and trust. If the U.S. health care system is ever to become patient-centered, it must be designed to support these values and sustain, rather than…

Almost one decade after the Institute of Medicine (IOM) defined primary care, only one third of the American public is able to identify any of the medical specialties that provide it, and only 17 percent were able to accurately distinguish primary care physicians from medical…

In June 2004, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Injury Prevention and Control will celebrate its 12th anniversary. The vision of the Injury Center, which was founded in 1992 in response to an Institute of Medicine report, is to apply public…

Atrial fibrillation is the most common type of arrhythmia in adults, with the prevalence increasing from less than 1 percent in persons younger than 60 years to more than 8 percent in those older than 80 years.1 Each year in the United States, there are more than 700,000…

When a downcast, 54-year-old hypertensive, diabetic, hypercho-lesterolemic woman who is new to me complains of episodic “trouble catching my breath,” I of course worry about coronary artery disease. But, my thoughts soon veer off in other directions—first, when she demonstrates…

This statement summarizes the current U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommendation on screening for thyroid disease and the supporting scientific evidence, and updates the 1996 recommendations contained in the Guide to Clinical Preventive Services, Second Edition…

Bupropion (Wellbutrin), nefazodone (Serzone), amitriptyline (Elavil), and moclobemide (Manerix, a reversible inhibitor of monoamine oxidase type A not available in the United States) have been shown to cause less sexual dysfunction than selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors…

During routine office visits, primary care physicians are expected to efficiently and effectively screen their patients for common, important conditions. Routine screening for depression is recommended by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) as long as systems are…

An effective oral contraceptive, ethinyl estradiol/drospirenone can elevate potassium levels when given in combination with other potassium-elevating agents and offers no advantage over traditional oral contraceptives.

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

The recommended Childhood and Adolescent Immunization Schedule for July to December 2004 has been released by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP), and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).

The Joint Panel of the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) and the American College of Physicians (ACP) have developed recommendations for adult patients with first-detected atrial fibrillation.

Obesity and Sedentary Lifestyle Guidelines | FDA Advisory on Antidepressants

Diethylstilbestrol (say: die-eth-el-still-bess-troll), or DES, is a man-made estrogen. Between 1938 and 1971, millions of women in the United States were given DES to keep them from losing their baby or giving birth too early. DES was used in other countries until at least the…

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (or COPD) is a lung disease. It blocks the large and small airways of your lungs. COPD includes two main illnesses, chronic bronchitis and emphysema (say: em-fi-see-ma). There is no cure for COPD.

If you have had a cough for more than three weeks, it may be a chronic cough. When something is called “chronic,” that means that it lasts for a long time. Here are some questions to help you decide if you should call your doctor:

There are tubes in your lungs that air goes through. When the tubes become irritated, you have chronic bronchitis (say: brawn-kie-tiss). Thick mucus forms in these tubes (called bronchial tubes), and the mucus makes it hard to get air into your lungs. Symptoms of chronic…