Skin cancer is the most common kind of cancer in the United States, affecting more than 2 million Americans every year. It is estimated that one in five Americans will develop a skin cancer in their lifetime.
There are three main types of skin cancer. Melanoma is the most serious form of skin cancer, which can be fatal if not treated early. While melanoma accounts for a very small percentage …
The best defense against skin cancer is prevention
I was paged by labor and delivery three times during the 10-minute drive from my house. I headed straight from the parking lot to the labor ward expecting a patient of mine to be close to delivery. I was wrong.
The chief resident and attending obstetrician were waiting. They looked tired and worried.
A woman had arrived on Friday with ruptured membranes. She was 21 weeks along in her pregnancy, and now …
I don’t like that you do abortions, but if you didn’t, I would probably be dead
In the wake of sudden deaths in a young athletes, the question arises – as it does after each of these tragic events – whether all young athletes should be screened for occult heart disease before participating in sports. It appears, for instance, that 16-year-old Wes Leonard had an underlying heart condition which likely could have been identified with a simple echocardiogram.
The question is controversial, and accordingly, even the …
Should young athletes be screened for heart disease?
by Rachel Henrickson
Everyone wants to feel like they are making a difference.
This is why, in my opinion, international medical mission trips are what every med student dreams of upon completing his or her first year of medical school. With one year of basic sciences and numerous standardized patient encounters under our belt, we are already eager to utilize our skills with “real …
Experiencing Dengue fever and lessons to prevent it during travel
Test your medicine knowledge with the MKSAP challenge, in partnership with the American College of Physicians.
A 69-year-old woman is evaluated for a 5-day history of pain and swelling in the right knee that developed after a prolonged period of gardening in her backyard. Her pain worsens when she walks and is relieved with rest. She has no morning stiffness.
On physical examination, …
MKSAP: 69-year-old woman with pain and swelling in the knee
It’s been another challenging week for journalists covering various screening stories.
First the new analysis of Swedish mammography studies: Some familiar flaws surfaced in some stories.
Then came the followup analysis of the National Lung Screening Trial – first reported last fall.
This week various headlines announced:
Analyzing the reporting of lung cancer CT screening
by Diana E. Lee
Sports journalists recently discussed discussing Dwyane Wade’s migraines and his decision to try wearing goggles to deal with light sensitivity.
News outlets like ESPN proved once again they know how to treat migraine disease as a serious, burdensome medical issue in reporting on Wade’s health situation. But somehow at the eleventh hour the story got way more complicated and the NBA revealed they don’t …
Dwyane Wade and the NBA’s insensitivity to his migraines
To do nothing is sometimes a good remedy.
-Hippocrates
Edna Frost is 88 years old, a slender, slow-talking woman with a dry sense of humor and a blood pressure that’s all over the place. At best, she runs ten points higher than any of her previous doctors wanted to put up with. At worst, she flirts with systolics over 200, but that doesn’t seem to be a common occurrence.
Edna has been my …
Sometimes the treatment is worse than the disease
It was early Saturday morning, I was making my plans for the day, crossing-off a few items that seemed unreasonable with others that had been accomplished. As I moved toward the kitchen, a voice from the living room bellowed “the coffee is ready.”
Turning my head I could see bright rays of sunshine making a visible path through the open front door. My morning greeting followed …
One of the problems with understanding the natural history of autism is the lack of well-designed outcome studies in the disorder. Outcome studies tend to be expensive and grant agencies commonly do not fund studies longer than a few years. However, given the increased interest and funding in autism, I suspect there will be more research in this area.
An example of how outcome studies help in understanding the natural …
How autism affects social interaction
I am sitting here wringing my hands that so much has been made of some studies reported recently at a major radiology conference which suggest that the impact of the breast cancer screening guidelines released by the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) in November 2009 has either been good or bad on doctor and patient …
ACS: The breast cancer screening debate continues
Test your medicine knowledge with the MKSAP challenge, in partnership with the American College of Physicians.
A 75-year-old man with type 2 diabetes mellitus is evaluated in the emergency department for a draining chronic ulcer on the left foot, erythema, and fever. Drainage initially began 3 weeks ago. Current medications include metformin and glyburide.
On physical examination, he is not ill appearing. Temperature …
MKSAP: 75-year-old man with a draining chronic ulcer on the foot
In sleep disorders, obstructive sleep apnea is the most common condition that’s seen, but a significant number of people with obstructive sleep apnea will also have central sleep apnea.
Central sleep apnea is thought to be a condition that’s associated with a number of different neurologic problems, as well as heart or kidney failure. During the night, people with central sleep apnea stop breathing when signals in the brain that …
Differences between obstructive and central sleep apnea
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What is an EKG?
EKG stands for electrocardiogram. It should probably and sometimes is abbreviated ECG, but EKG seems to have stuck as more popular.
Scientists have known for over 120 years that the heart gives off electrical currents when it beats, but it was the Dutch scientist Willem Einthoven in the early 20th century who discovered the nature of this phenomenon and who developed the electrocardiogram as a tool to …
Test your medicine knowledge with the MKSAP challenge, in partnership with the American College of Physicians.
A 61-year-old man is evaluated in the office for a 6-month history of progressive weakness of the lower extremities. He says he has difficulty rising from a seated position and walking up stairs and also has episodes of dry eyes, dry mouth, and erectile dysfunction. The …
MKSAP: 61-year-old man with progressive weakness
How and when do new medical technologies become the standard of care?
A recent study showed that the use of CT scans in hospital emergency departments rose sixteen percent between 1995 and 2007.
Looks a bit like a medieval torture doughnut.
The only thing that surprises me about this is that it’s not more.
Way more.
I remember the first time I actually ordered a CT scan on a patient all by myself, in …
Before getting a CT scan, ask your doctor if its really needed
At some point, the novelty of a new baby wears off.
Waking up at two in the morning loses some of its appeal. Parents often tell me that their baby does not sleep well. I tell them how they can get their child to sleep through the night in just three nights. I explain that learning to sleep is a training process, either …
How a pediatrician advises parents on sleep training their children
There are many more individuals with end stage kidney failure, heart failure, chronic lung disease, or liver failure who would benefit from a transplanted kidney, heart, lung or liver than are available. Similarly, there are many people with unstable, difficult to control diabetes that could benefit from a ready source of pancreatic insulin-producing islet cells.
Today the only option for more organs available for transplant …
Can xenotransplantation help with the organ shortage?
This past Presidents’ Day, I thought it would be a good idea to talk briefly about the role that smallpox played in the life of our first president and it’s important role in the American Revolution. For those who would like to learn about this in greater detail, I would highly recommend the book, Pox Americana: The Great Smallpox Epidemic of 1775-82, written by Elizabeth A. Fenn.
In 1751, when George …
A history of smallpox in America
The USDA has recently released it’s new concept, the food plate, to replace the iconic food pyramid it introduced in 1992 (and modified in 2005).
At its release, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack criticized the food pyramid for being “too complex to serve as a quick and easy guide for American families” – I completely agree, and have always felt this way. The food pyramid was the …
More healthy eating tips to add to the USDA food plate
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