Skin & Allergy News articles from January 2004

Skin & Allergy News archives from January 2004

Treatment promise, practice realities: psoriasis biologics.
January 1, 2004... CHICAGO -- If you think that biologic therapies for psoriasis might be right for your patients, ask yourself whether they're right for your practice, Dr. Kenneth Gordon said at a dermatology conference sponsored by the Skin Disease...

Restylane earns FDA okay; panel backs Hylaform: but panelists raise avian allergy issue and doubts about superiority to Zyplast: hyaluronic acid.(Food and Drug Administration )
January 1, 2004... GAITHERSBURG, MD. -- Two much-anticipated dermal fillers based on hyaluronic acid earned recommendations of approval from a Food and Drug Administration advisory panel--and for one of the products, FDA approval quickly followed the panel's...

Medicare reform includes 2-year fee schedule fix: medicare drug law blocks 4.5% cut in 2004: permanent solution still needed.
January 1, 2004... WASHINGTON -- Physicians have 2 more years to lobby for a permanent legislative fix to Medicare's flawed reimbursement formula. The historic $400 billion Medicare overhaul/prescription drug bill (H.R. 1) blocked a projected 4.5% cut to...

Fumaric acid tx shows promise in psoriasis: International market sought.
January 1, 2004... BARCELONA, SPAIN -- Fumaric acid ester therapy, viewed by German dermatologists through decades of use as highly effective and safe in moderate to severe psoriasis, may finally become available elsewhere in Europe and in the United States. ...

Nephrogenic fibrosing dermopathy clues sought: hunt for a cause.
January 1, 2004... LAS VEGAS -- Like detectives hot on the trail of a killer, researchers are scouring the medical histories, laboratory tests, and dermatopathology slides of patients with nephrogenic fibrosing dermopathy for clues as to the cause of the...

Hylaform earns panel's backing, with conditions: dermal filler.
January 1, 2004... GAITHERSBURG, MD. -- In a 6-3 vote, the Food and Drug Administration's General and Plastic Surgery Devices Panel recommended FDA approval of the dermal filler Hylaform for "correction of soft-tissue contour deficiencies," such as wrinkles and...

Cell phones, ECG leads may transmit infections: Israeli Hospital bans staff cellular use.(hospital cross infection caused by contamination of electrocardiograph wires)
January 1, 2004... CHICAGO -- Cell phones and reusable ECG leads have come under scrutiny as reservoirs for multidrug-resistant bacterial pathogens that may potentially play an important role in serious nosocomial infections in hospitalized patients. New...

Alcohol-based hand gels cut disease transmission at home: study of 208 families.
January 1, 2004... SAN DIEGO -- Use of alcohol-based hand gels appears more effective at preventing secondary respiratory illness transmission in the home, compared with more traditional methods such as washing hands with warm water and soap, Dr. Grace M. Lee...

Age, gender affect incidence of atopic dermatitis: previously unappreciated.(News)
January 1, 2004... BARCELONA, SPAIN -- Recent evidence suggests gender and age interact to influence the incidence of atopic dermatitis in ways not previously appreciated, Dr. Anne Braae Olesen said at the 12th Congress of the European Academy of Dermatology and...

Consider off-label uses for existing derm drugs: anecdotal reports.(News)
January 1, 2004... LAS VEGAS -- Some of the most exciting news in dermatologic therapy involves the off-label use of existing products, Dr. Stephen Stone said at the Fall Clinical Dermatology Conference. He described his own clinical experiences and some...

Instructions.(Under My Skin)
January 1, 2004... My associate Kate gave Chris a prescription for a medicated wash and asked him to use it twice a day. Chris looked annoyed. "Hold on," he said. "You didn't tell me how to use it." This flummoxed Kate. "You... wash with it," she...

Simplifying the payment system.(Guest Editorial)
January 1, 2004... The administrative complexity of the current payment system is a lose--lose proposition for all of its participants. It's costly, duplicative, and it needs to be simplified. Multiple credentialing, multiple clinical guidelines, multiple...

Talk back online.(Opinion)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... Will the new procedural dermatology fellowship programs divide the specialty into medical and surgical dermatology? (December 2003, p. 8) No 67% Yes 33% To Talk Back, visit www.eskinandallergynews.com Note:...

Don't be discouraged.(Letters)(Letter to the Editor)
January 1, 2004... First and foremost, I am not as interested in producing "pioneers" in the world of dermatology as I am in producing a field of highly competent individuals ("Women Seek Derm Surgery Mentors," September 2003, p. 1). If a dermatologic...

The firing letter.(Letters)(Letter to the Editor)
January 1, 2004... My solution to the rude and costly problem of patients who don't keep appointments is to fire them from my practice ("That's No-Show Biz," Under My Skin, October 2003, p. 10). This is how it works: Each DNKA (Did Not Keep Appointment) is...

Rethink cosmetic device review.(Guest Editorial)
January 1, 2004... It seems that every month a "medical breakthrough" is in the news, touting a new product to make aging baby boomers young again. Last year, the news focused on Artecoll, Restylane, and Hylaform, three products developed as a solution to the...

Artes medical Inc., developer of Artecoll, responds.(Opinion)(response to article by Dr. Zuckerman, Skin and Allergy News)
January 1, 2004... The standard set by Congress for the Food and Drug Administration to use in approving new medical devices, and for FDA advisory panels to use to make recommendation for their approval, is that a new device must demonstrate reasonable and...

Should physicians get paid for quality improvement?(Pro & Con)
January 1, 2004... YES At HealthPartners we've been supplying medical groups with comparative performance data for 11 years, but it's only been since 1997, when we introduced bonuses tied to quality, that we've seen rapid improvement. As the associate...

Should PBMs work with physicians to develop formularies?(Pro & Con)(pharmacy benefit managers)
January 1, 2004... YES The job of managing the pharmacy benefit is an essential element of the overall health care management equation. Left unmanaged, plan sponsors' costs would rise at faster rates, with the ultimate result of reduced benefits and higher...

Avoid office surgery regulations.(Guest Editorial)
January 1, 2004... Every dermatologist Does some sort of surgery. Yet the future of outpatient surgery could be very weak. I think that in the very near future we will have laws that regulate the type and amount of surgery that we do. The demographics of our...

Suspect textile contact dermatitis? Think blue: synthetic dyes are the big culprits.(Clinical Rounds)
January 1, 2004... BARCELONA, SPAIN -- In cases of suspected contact dermatitis to textiles, think blue--as in Disperse Blue. Disperse Blue is a family of widely utilized clothing dyes that constituted the most frequent causes of allergic dermatitis due to...

Oxidized terpenes: common fragrance allergens: large European patch test study.(Clinical Rounds)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... BARCELONA, SPAIN -- Oxidized terpenes are common cutaneous fragrance allergens, Dr. Mihaly Matura reported at the 12th Congress of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology. The operative word here is "oxidized." Terpenes such as...

Styling techniques damage African American hair; hair dryers and flat irons.(Clinical Rounds)
January 1, 2004... CHICAGO -- African American women who frequently dry their hair with blow dryers or flatten it with hot irons are significantly more likely to have damaged hair than women who use other styling techniques, an electron microscopy study revealed....

Microsporum infection not caught by stain: Fontana positive.(Clinical Rounds)
January 1, 2004... CHICAGO -- A Fontana-Masson--positive case of Microsporum canis infection means that the stain should no longer be exclusively relied upon to distinguish dematiaceous fungi from other fungal organisms, Dr. Sasha Kramer reported in a poster...

Beware of alopecia impostors in women: if in doubt, biopsy.(Clinical Rounds)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... NEW YORK -- Beware of conditions that masquerade as androgenetic alopecia when considering hair transplantation for women with hair loss, Dr. Ivan S. Cohen said at the annual meeting of the International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery. ...

Would your patients buy drugs at a substantially lower price from a foreign country?(Data Watch)
January 1, 2004... Would Your Patients Buy Drugs at a Substantially Lower Price From a Foreign Country? September Yes No Not Sure 2003 48% 26% 26% November Yes No Not Sure 2002 40% 29% 31% ...

Featured app: documents to go.(Digital Assistance)
January 1, 2004... Originally released by Data Viz in 1999, Documents To Go has been updated and expanded over the years (current version is 6.0). Its capabilities cannot be understated. Fundamentally, Documents To Go facilitates conversion and...

Accessorize: PDA keyboards.(Digital Assistance)(personal digital assistants)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... Data entry on handheld computers is challenging for many. For those of you who are continually frustrated by slender styli and small writing screens, PDA keyboards offer an effective alternative for text entry. These hardware enhancements...

Surf this site: www.pdaMD.com.(Digital Assistance)(personal digital assistants)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... PDA Web sites are varied and numerous. There are proprietary sites for device manufacturers, software clearing houses, even handheld portals at academic medical centers and society Web sites. One site definitely worth checking out is...

Infection risk rising in liver transplant patients: age and CMV seropositivity.(Clinical Rounds)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... CHICAGO -- The proportion of liver transplant recipients at risk for potentially serious primary cytomegalovirus infection has more than doubled since 1989, Dr. Nina Singh said at the annual Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and...

Drug update: anemia.(Clinical Rounds)(synthetic form of erythropoietin for anemia)
January 1, 2004... Anemia is gaining recognition as a serious condition that's worth treating early. It occurs secondarily to many illnesses, particularly kidney disease but also cardiovascular disease and diabetes. Anemia also occurs as a result of treating...

Study offers new insights into psoriasis epidemiology: inducing events differ.(Clinical Rounds)
January 1, 2004... BARCELONA, SPAIN -- Arthropathy appears to be far more common in new-onset psoriasis than previously appreciated, Dr. Mona Stahle Backdahl said at the 12th Congress of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology. Among the first...

Tips for treating lesbian and gay patients: expert opinion.(Clinical Rounds)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... NEW ORLEANS -- Treating lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender patients can be awkward for many physicians, but by keeping a few things in mind, it doesn't have to be, said Dr. Judith Chamberlain, University of New England, Biddeford, Maine....

Recognition of pediatric psoriasis / dermatitis overlap is improving; diaper area harder to diagnose.(Clinical Rounds)
January 1, 2004... CHICAGO -- Once upon a time, dermatologists were taught that psoriasis and atopic dermatitis were two ends of a spectrum of skin lesions in children. It's become clearer that approximately 5% of pediatric patients with skin lesions that...

Mayo chronicles calciphylaxis in 64 patients: new working theory.(Clinical Rounds)
January 1, 2004... LAS VEGAS -- The median survival among 64 patients treated at the Mayo Clinic for calciphylaxis was just 2.4 months, illustrating the devastating course of the disease that has been called the cutaneous equivalent of a myocardial infarction....

Magnetic resonance imaging assesses tissue inflammation: monitoring myositis, rheumatoid arthritis.(Clinical Rounds)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... TORONTO -- Diffusion-weighted imaging, a method of magnetic resonance imaging based on the movement of water within cells and tissues, noninvasively assessed 14 patients with dermatomyositis of polymyositis, Jane H. Park, Ph.D., said at the...

Teens with acne cite shame, embarrassment about skin; survey results.(Clinical Rounds)
January 1, 2004... BARCELONA, SPAIN -- Thirty-nine percent of British teenagers with acne say they've avoided going to school because of embarrassment over their skin condition, Dr. William Cunliffe said at a satellite symposium held in conjunction with the 12th...

Choose calcineurin inhibitors over steroids for AD: use emollients continuously.(Dermatologic Therapy)(Atopic dermatitis)
January 1, 2004... MONTREAL -- Topical calcineurin inhibitors should be first-line, long-term therapy, along with emollients, for all patients with chronic atopic dermatitis--even children, according to two specialists. Although the standard of care for...

IVIG therapy tops ten treatment option list: second-line TX for pemphigus.(Dermatologic Therapy)(intravenous immunoglobulin )
January 1, 2004... MONTREAL -- Dermatologists should consider using intravenous immunoglobulin as first-line therapy in the treatment of toxic epidermal necrolysis and as second-line therapy for pemphigus vulgaris, according to a Canadian specialist. "The...

Set expectations when treating chronic urticaria: 'physician switching' common.(Dermatologic Therapy)
January 1, 2004... NEW YORK -- Establishing realistic expectations is all-important in treating a patient with chronic urticaria, said a group of presenters at a conference on cutaneous immune disease. "The most important aspect of treating chronic urticaria...

New therapies may deliver palliation in advanced melanoma: local hyperthermia, brachytherapy.(Dermatologic Therapy)
January 1, 2004... BARCELONA, SPAIN -- With development of markedly life-prolonging therapy in patients with advanced melanoma proving an elusive goal to date, some investigators have shifted their attention to novel palliative therapies aimed at better...

Foot ulcers healed with nerve growth factor: nursing home residents.(Dermatologic Therapy)
January 1, 2004... Daily topical applications of nerve growth factor show promise in treating pressure ulcers of the foot, Dr. Francesco Landi and associates reported. In their study, uninfected pressure ulcers treated with nerve growth factor healed faster and...

Think linezolid, wound coverage for MRSA, VRE: effective therapy.(Dermatologic Therapy)(methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus)(vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus infection)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... SAN DIEGO -- Linezolid is an effective antibiotic for the treatment of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus infections when used in conjunction with wound coverage techniques, Dr. Kevin Broder...

'Tid-nits' from practical ped dermatology studies: lice, mosquitoes, warts.(Dermatologic Therapy)
January 1, 2004... COLUMBUS, OHIO -- Recent studies in pediatric dermatology may help physicians to quit scratching their heads about what to do about head lice, mosquito bites, and warts, Dr. Lisa N. Gelles pointed out at the annual meeting of the Ohio...

Ultrapotent steroids okay for some ped psoriasis: combine with topical keratolytics.(Dermatologic Therapy)
January 1, 2004... CHICAGO -- Ultrapotent steroids combined with keratolytics can be a good topical treatment for thicker psoriasis plaques in children, especially those on the elbows and knees, Dr. Amy S. Paller said at a dermatology conference sponsored by the...

Help alleviate the emotional toll of pediatric psoriasis: education is crucial.(Dermatologic Therapy)
January 1, 2004... CHICAGO -- Pay extra attention to the emotional toll that psoriasis takes if your patient is a child or teenager, Dr. Amy S. Paller said at a dermatology conference sponsored by the Skin Disease Education Foundation. This highly visible...

Dearth of data comparing biologics for psoriasis: no head-to-head studies.(Dermatologic Therapy)
January 1, 2004... CHICAGO -- The lack of head-to-head comparisons of biologic treatments for psoriasis, combined with methodologic differences among individual studies and a paucity of long-term data, make it difficult to say that one biologic therapy is better...

Long-term data for efalizumab look good so far for psoriasis improvement: 21 months of use safe, effective.(Dermatologic Therapy)
January 1, 2004... CHICAGO -- The effectiveness of the newly approved psoriasis drug efalizumab continued to improve over time in the longest-term data available so far, Dr. Jeffrey Sobell reported. After 21 months of use in an ongoing 36-month, open-label...

Try cyclophosphamide in refractory dermatomyositis with GI vasculitis: pediatric case.(Dermatologic Therapy)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... MONTREAL -- Cyclophosphamide successfully treated a case of pedatric refractory dermatomyositis with a rare complication of gastrointestinal vasculitis, and this therapy should be considered in the treatment of pediatric refractory...

Alitretinoin works for refractory hand dermatitis: impressive efficacy in randomized trial.(Dermatologic Therapy)
January 1, 2004... BARCELONA, SPAIN -- The oral retinoid alitretinoin is "a very promising drug" for treatment of chronic hand dermatitis refractory to topical corticosteroids and emollients, Dr. Thomas Ruzicka said at the 12th Congress of the European Academy of...

Clarithromycin effective in pityriasis rosea: high TX response rate.(Dermatologic Therapy)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... BARCELONA, SPAIN -- Clarithromycin is effective therapy in patients with pityriasis rosea, Dr. Anthony Karpouzis said at the 12th Congress of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology. This finding is consistent with a bacterial...

The sun as an immunosuppressant: why sun-induced skin lesions make excellent targets for immune response modifiers.(Dermatologic Therapy)
January 1, 2004... Medical science has long recognized that exposure to solar radiation in the ultraviolet (UV) range, especially UVA and UVB, results in suppression of the skin's immune function. (1) This is generally a good thing--failure of this mechanism can...

Cialis: (tadalafil, Eli Lilly).(New & Approved)
January 1, 2004... A phosphodiesterase type 5 (PDE-5) in. hibitor for erectile dysfunction (ED), the third oral ED therapy approved. Viagra (sildenafil), approved in 1998, and Levitra (vardenafil), approved in August, also are PDE-5 inhibitors. * Recommended...

Namenda: (memantine, Forest Laboratories).(New & Approved)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... An N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist for moderate to severe Alzheimer's disease, the first drug approved for advanced stages of the disease. * Recommended Dosage: 10 mg twice daily. * Special Considerations: The most...

Cosmeceutical critique: pomegranate.(Dermatologic Therapy)
January 1, 2004... The pomegranate plant (Punica granatum) has been cultivated for thousands of years and was one of the first known medicines, used by the ancient Egyptians and Greeks to treat various ailments. Now growing in many areas around the world, the...

[H.sub.2][0.sub.2] cream effective for molluscum: in 12 patients.(Dermatologic Therapy)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... BARCELONA, SPAIN -- Hydrogen peroxide cream appears to be an excellent treatment for molluscum contagiosum, Dr. Andrea Bigardi reported at 12th Congress of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology. She reported on 12...

Pulsed dye laser improves rosacea symptoms: cooling allows use of higher fluences.(Dermatologic Surgery)
January 1, 2004... NEW ORLEANS -- Pulsed dye laser treatment resulted in significant improvement in symptoms and quality of life in rosacea patients in a recent study. Of 16 patients with erythematotelangiectatic rosacea who were treated with the Vbeam laser...

Single nonablative pulsed dye laser session improved acne vulgaris: 12-week benefit.(Dermatologic Surgery)
January 1, 2004... BARCELONA, SPAIN -- A single session of nonablative pulsed dye laser therapy for acne vulgaris brought marked clinical improvement lasting more than 12 weeks in a double-blind, randomized, controlled trial, Dr. Anthony Chu said. This is an...

Low-level laser therapy may help to prevent hair loss; approved in Canada.(Dermatologic Surgery)
January 1, 2004... NEW YORK -- Low-level laser therapy may represent a new option for the prevention of hair loss, Dr. Martin G. Unger said at the annual meeting of the International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery. Use of the HairMax LaserComb, which is...

More volume leads to more diffusion of Botox: fewer injections.(Dermatologic Surgery)
January 1, 2004... NEW ORLEANS -- Diluting botulinim toxin led to greater diffusion and a larger affected area without compromising the degree or duration of action in a recent study. Ten patients were treated on one side of the forehead with 5 U of...

Radiance appears to be safe, effective as facial tissue filler; longer follow-up needed.(Dermatologic Surgery)
January 1, 2004... NEW ORLEANS -- Calcium hydroxyapatite continues to prove sale and effective as a facial tissue filler, according to study results presented at the joint annual meeting of the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery and the American College of...

Try smaller volumes for lip augmentation with radiance; early results.(Dermatologic Surgery)
January 1, 2004... SAN DIEGO -- Injectable calcium hydroxyapatite holds promise for long-lasting soft tissue augmentation, "although the results are still early," Dr. Miles Graivier said at the annual meeting of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. The...

One cryosurgery cycle shows histologic BCC cure; study of 11 patients.(Dermatologic Surgery)
January 1, 2004... BARCELONA, SPAIN -- A single freeze-thaw cryosurgery cycle provides definitive histologic cure of well-defined noduloulcerative basal cell carcinomas, Dr. Keyvan Nouri reported at the 12th Congress of the European Academy of Dermatology and...

Level of complexity guides approach to small congenital nevi in children; two questions.(Dermatologic Surgery)
January 1, 2004... CHICAGO -- Two questions can help physicians decide whether to resect small congenital nevi on infants and children, Dr. Lawrence F. Eichenfield said at a dermatology conference sponsored by the Skin Disease Education Foundation. Is the...

Silicone corrected HIV-related facial lipoatrophy: use strict microdroplet technique.(Dermatologic Surgery)
January 1, 2004... NEW ORLEANS -- Injectable liquid silicone appears to be a safe, effective, and durable treatment for facial lipoatrophy in patients with HIV, Dr. Derek Jones reported at the joint annual meeting of the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery...

Study: diluting dysport with lidocaine is no help: no gain in pain control.(Dermatologic Surgery)
January 1, 2004... SAN FRANCISCO -- Diluting botulinum toxin type A with lidocaine rather than normal saline did not improve pain control in treating three neurologic problems in a randomized, controlled study of 28 patients, Dr. Virgilio Gerald H. Evidente said....

Botox in the pectoralis minor muscle delivers a (breast) lift: in eight patients.(Dermatologic Surgery)
January 1, 2004... MONTREAL -- Botox injections in the pectoralis minor muscle can give new life to a sagging breast, according to Canadian dermatologist Dr. Kevin Smith, who has tried the bust booster on eight patients to date. The effect of the Botox...

Evaluate new practice opportunities carefully: ask the right questions.(Practice Trends)
January 1, 2004... NEW ORLEANS -- Physicians looking to join a new practice can save themselves a lot of trouble by asking the right questions, Connie Henderson-Damon said at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Family Physicians. Take call...

Make research useful to policy makers: keep it short.(Practice Trends)
January 1, 2004... WASHINGTON -- By spending extra time making health research information useful for policy makers, researchers can increase the likelihood of better policy and more funding, Richard Sorian said at an international conference sponsored by the...

Ask patients if they skip doses due to drug costs: bringing down noncompliance.(Practice Trends)
January 1, 2004... One way to improve drug adherence is to ask patients if they have skipped or cut down on their prescribed medications because of cost, said Dr. Ethan A. Halm of the department of health policy at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York. ...

How to run on time.(Managing Your Dermatology Practice)
January 1, 2004... A distinguished looking gentleman wearing a very expensive suit glared at me as I entered his exam room. "You doctors," he growled, "are the only ones who can get away with keeping rich people waiting." Rich or poor, nobody likes to wait,...

Burnout prevention requires setting new priorities; symptoms of overload.(Practice Trends)
January 1, 2004... NEW ORLEANS -- Physicians concerned about burning out need to think differently about their lives and careers, Dr. Richard Swenson said at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Family Physicians. Technologic progress is a major...

Read anthem-WellPoint contracts carefully: if merger is approved.(Practice Trends)
January 1, 2004... Physicians who have contracts with Anthem's or WellPoint Health Networks' Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans should check their contracts carefully now that the two plans have decided to merge, according to Bill DeMarco, a Rockford, Ill., health...

Top dermatologic surgery procedures, 2003.(Data Watch)
January 1, 2004... Top Dermatologic Surgery Procedures, 2003 Skin Cancer Treatments 1,610,141 Laser & Light Procedures * 920,325 Botulinum Toxin 458,253 Resurfacing 422,611 Vein Treatments 331,979 ...

For-profit blues plans are tougher negotiators than nonprofit counterparts.(Practice Trends)
January 1, 2004... If past experience is any guide, physicians may experience tougher payment negotiations as the number of for-profit Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans increases, according to several experts. "Conversions [from nonprofit to for profit] seem...

Greater disclosure coming with 2005 match day; more contract details.(Practice Trends)
January 1, 2004... WASHINGTON -- Residency programs participating in the 2005 match will have to disclose the program-specific contracts that applicants would have to sign if they accept a match, Robert Beran, Ph.D., said at the annual meeting of the Association...

Malpractice crisis: patients being pushed to ER; affection office care.(Practice Trends)
January 1, 2004... Physicians in some states are responding to the malpractice crisis by sending their patients to emergency rooms and hospitals rather than treating them in the office, according to a study from the Center for Studying Health System Change. ...

PAs have growing role in physicians' offices: national survey findings.(Practice Trends)
January 1, 2004... More physician assistants are working in solo and group medical practices, continuing a trend toward greater collaboration with physicians in the office setting. Nearly 43% of physician assistants (PAs) work in a physician's office, up...

Mandatory reporting.(Policy & Practice)
January 1, 2004... Cosmetic surgery could be safer if states required physicians to report all adverse events and medical complications, a new study by the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) says (Dermatol. Surg. 29[11]:1093-99, 2003). The news comes in the...

Skin care confusion.(Policy & Practice)
January 1, 2004... Most women--fully 94%--are confused by the array of antiaging treatments available, a survey by the AAD says. Women report that they are most confused about the difference between over-the-counter topical treatments and those that require a...

Aids treatment plan.(Policy & Practice)
January 1, 2004... The World Health Organization and the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV / AIDS have a plan to treat a total of 3 million AIDS patients in developing countries with antiretroviral drugs by the end of 2005. The two groups plan to focus on...

Rising, debt.(Policy & Practice)
January 1, 2004... It's getting more expensive to become a doctor. The Association of American Medical Colleges reports that the average educational debt of medical school graduates of the class of 2003--including pre-med borrowing--was $109,457. up 5.4% from...

Expansion on improper claims.(Policy & Practice)
January 1, 2004... The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services is casting a wider net in its review of improper claims: in 2003, the improper payments rate was estimated at 5.8% or $11.6 billion, about the same as last year. Until 2003, the survey was based on...

Hike in the uninsured.(Policy & Practice)
January 1, 2004... Eighty-five million Americans had no health insurance at some point between 1996 and 1999, more than double the number of uninsured at any one point or in any 1 year during this period, a report from the Commonwealth Fund says (Health Affairs...