• Articles

    Infantile Colic: Recognition and Treatment

    JEREMY D. JOHNSON, KATHERINE COCKER, ELISABETH CHANG

    Colic is a diagnosis of exclusion after a detailed history and physical examination have ruled out concerning causes. Parental support and reassurance are key components of the management of colic. Treatment options for breastfed infants include the probiotic Lactobacillus...

    Pharmacogenetics: Using Genetic Information to Guide Drug Therapy

    KU-LANG CHANG, KRISTIN WEITZEL, SIEGFRIED SCHMIDT

    Clinical pharmacogenetics, the use of genetic data to guide drug therapy decisions, is increasingly being used for medications commonly prescribed by family physicians. Two common gene-drug pairs are cytochrome P450 2D6 and opioids, and CYP2C19 and clopidogrel. When...

    Diagnosing Common Benign Skin Tumors

    JAMES C. HIGGINS, MICHAEL H. MAHER, MARK S. DOUGLAS

    Most lesions can be diagnosed on the basis of history and clinical examination. Some common benign skin tumors that are amenable to office procedures include acrochordons, sebaceous hyperplasia, lipomas, keratoacanthomas, pyogenic granulomas, dermatofibromas, epidermal...

    Common Questions About Pneumonia in Nursing Home Residents

    CATHERINE CASEY, MELISSA J. FULLERTON, NICHOLAS SOMERVILLE

    Identifying candidates for diagnostic testing and treatment depends on a patient's overall prognosis and goals of care. This article reviews the evidence on preventing, diagnosing, and treating pneumonia in this population. Recommendations address the timing, duration, and...

    AAFP News Now: AFP Edition

    AAFP News: AFP Edition

    Survey Finds Insurance, New Health Care Models Are Physicians' Greatest Worries | Physicians Report Declining Satisfaction with Electronic Health Records | CMS Aims to Reduce Costs in Medicare Advantage Plans | AAFP Paper Offers Family Medicine Approach to Poverty

    Editorials

    Pharmacogenetic Testing—An Unfulfilled Promise

    DOUG E. CAMPOS-OUTCALT

    Family physicians should not naively accept a new technology because it is the latest trend. We need to assess the clinical utility of potential applications of genetic information, adopting them when they improve patient-oriented outcomes and avoiding them when they simply...

    Close-ups

    A Family Physician Confronts Parkinson Disease

    THAD WILKINS

    Education about promising physical therapies and treatments that may be on the horizon can be a source of encouragement for physicians and patients alike when facing a diagnosis of Parkinson disease.

    Cochrane for Clinicians

    Calcium Supplementation for Preventing Hypertensive Disorders in Pregnancy

    JAIME D. STRINGER

    High-dose calcium supplementation (i.e., at least 1,000 mg per day) during pregnancy reduces the risk of developing hypertension and preeclampsia. The most significant risk reduction occurs in women at risk of hypertensive disorders and those with low-calcium diets.

    Point-of-Care C-Reactive Protein Testing to Help Guide Treatment of Acute Respiratory Infections

    IRBERT L. VEGA

    Point-of-care C-reactive protein (CRP) testing used as an adjunct to a physician's clinical examination can modestly reduce antibiotic use. Measurement of CRP to guide antibiotic prescription does not appear to affect the duration of illness or recovery, although one study...

    Medicine by the Numbers

    Probiotics for the Prevention of Upper Respiratory Tract Infections

    PAUL CRAWFORD, ERIK CLAUSON

    Study Population: Healthy children and adults from six countries at average risk of upper respiratory tract infection (URTI)

    FPIN's Clinical Inquiries

    Risk of Gout with the Use of Thiazide Diuretics

    JEFFREY FREUND, CONNIE KRAUS

    Thiazide diuretics may be used in most patients with hypertension who have only minimally increased risk of gout.

    Photo Quiz

    10-Year History of Pitted Nails

    VIKRAM RAJ JÖRGEN BUTANI

    A man presented with a 10-year history of itchy, scaly, brittle fingernails that were pitted but not painful. His toenails were unaffected. He also had patches of dry, scaly skin on his scalp, low back, and genitals.

    POEMs

    Focused Extracorporeal Shock Wave Therapy Better Than Placebo to Relieve Pain in Patients with Chronic Plantar Fasciitis

    HENRY C. BARRY

    In this study, unlike others, patients with chronic plantar fasciitis treated with extra-corporeal shock wave therapy had greater pain relief than those treated with placebo.

    Physician Assessment of COPD Does Not Match Spirometry Results

    ALLEN F. SHAUGHNESSY

    High-Risk Subgroups Have Little, if Any, Net Benefit from Antibiotics for Acute LRTI

    MARK H. EBELL

    Patients with acute LRTI and green sputum or cardiopulmonary comorbidities experience a slightly greater benefit with amoxicillin treatment. That outcome must be balanced against the harms of antibiotics on the individual and population level.

    Acetaminophen (Paracetamol) Minimally Effective for Back Pain and Osteoarthritis

    ALLEN F. SHAUGHNESSY

    Although acetaminophen was hoped to be a safer alternative to nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and opioids for the treatment of common musculoskeletal problems, on average it provides only minimal pain relief and improvement in function for patients with low back pain or...

    Practice Guidelines

    Reducing Obstetric Hemorrhage: Recommendations from the National Partnership for Maternal Safety

    JENNIFER WILKES

    A consensus bundle, with recommendations for reducing and managing obstetric hemorrhage and improving overall maternal care, has been published by the National Partnership for Maternal Safety.

    ACOG Releases Recommendations on Screening for Perinatal Depression

    JENNIFER WILKES

    The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) has released recommendations on screening women for perinatal depression, with the purpose of increasing awareness of depression and lessening the effects it has on pregnant and post-partum women and their families.

    Letters to the Editor

    Acupuncture for Treatment of Chronic Low Back Pain

    BRIAN FRANK

    Corrections

    Correction



    Disclosure

    All editors in a position to control content for this activity, AFP journal, are required to disclose any relevant financial relationships. View disclosures.


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