January 1, 2016

Patients with obesity who meet selection criteria for bariatric surgery commonly undergo one of three procedures. Laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy, Roux-en-Y gastric bypass, and laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding each result in greater weight loss for patients than…

Acute pelvic pain has a broad differential diagnosis that can be narrowed using the patient's age and pregnancy status. In nonpregnant women, common causes include idiopathic pain, pelvic inflammatory disease, and acute appendicitis, among others. In pregnant women, it is…

Primary care physicians often treat patients who manifest symptoms for which there is no biologic cause. Patients with somatic symptom disorder may be subjected to unnecessary testing and procedures, so appropriate diagnosis is essential. Management strategies include…

Survey: One in Three Family Physicians Is Pursuing Value-Based Payment | AMA Aims to Combat Antibiotic Resistance | Heads Up: CMS Contractor May Call in 2016 | AAFP Urges Streamlining of MU Program

Chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is an important public health issue. It is estimated that 1% of the noninstitutionalized U.S. population has chronic HCV infection, corresponding to 2.7 million persons.1 This figure is likely low because of undersampling of populations…

Of the estimated 2.7 million persons in the United States with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection in 2010,1 fewer than 200,000 were successfully diagnosed and treated, with success defined as a sustained viral response (SVR) or clearance of HCV at least three months…

Therapist-supported online CBT is more effective than no treatment and as effective as face-to-face CBT for reducing overall anxiety as well as symptoms, and improving quality of life in adults with anxiety disorders.

Nurse home visits for pregnant adolescents seem to improve resource utilization and prenatal clinic visit show rates.

Family physicians are well positioned to counsel and support patients making lifestyle changes before and after bariatric surgery.

A woman with a long history of cocaine use presented to the emergency department with leg ulcers and ecchymoses on her ears.

The authors of this guideline give a more nuanced and less aggressive approach to lipid lowering than other groups. For the primary prevention of CVD, check blood pressure and lipids (nonfasting is fine) to calculate the 10-year CVD risk. If greater than 12%, treat; if 12% or…

A five-component approach to changing patients' beliefs and behaviors surrounding sleep is effective, at least in the short term, in getting persons to fall asleep and stay asleep, although total sleep time is not increased.

This consensus communication focuses on new data that support introducing peanuts early in infants, and it aims to assist with decisions about introduction; it can be used for guidance while formal guidelines are being developed.

Weight loss surgery (also called bariatric or metabolic surgery) makes the stomach smaller and changes the hormones that signal hunger. The three most common surgeries are gastric banding, sleeve gastrectomy, and Roux-en-Y (ROO-en-Y) gastric bypass. The goal of these surgeries…