Family Practice News articles from January 2002

Family Practice News archives from January 2002

Contraceptive ring will debut in 2002. (Widely Available By Summer).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... A noteworthy addition to the existing array of birth control products will be arriving this year. NuvaRing, a new intravaginal ring that provides a steady release of etonogestrel and ethinyl estradiol, is being hailed by contraception...

New journal will publish FP-based research findings: The annals of family medicine will carry no advertising other than classifieds. (Launch Planned for Late 2002).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... A bold new publishing venture is set to fill what many family physicians see as a void in the realm of clinical research journals. Five family medicine organizations have announced a plan to publish a new journal called the Annals of Family...

Low vitamin K linked to coronary calcification risk: Nutritional intervention might be possible. (Elderly Asymptomatic Men).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... ANAHEIM, CALIF. -- Poor vitamin K status is associated with increased risk of severe coronary artery calcification in elderly asymptomatic men, Richard J. Wood, Ph.D., reported at the annual scientific sessions of the American Heart...

Meeting burning needs. (The Heart of Family Practice).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... I dropped the phone. "Cotta go," I shouted. "Red Alert! Hospital's mobilizing." Ambulances arrived in showers of gravel. I jumped in the back of the first and stared in horror at the incinerated shape lying immobile, its hands raised in a...

The whole patient. (The Heart of Family Practice).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... The medical director was shouting at me: "Why did you order this x-ray? Do you want to ruin his life? Just prescribe his regular Tylenol with Codeine No. 3 again," he insisted. "But the hand was never x-rayed to see how many bullets are...

Pro & Con: Is supracervical hysterectomy a reasonable option for most women?(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... YES The amount of scientific data supporting this opinion are relatively limited. There is an inherent bias toward doing a total hysterectomy because of historical concerns about the development of cervical cancer. If you want to answer...

Letters.(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Rural by Choice, Not by Nature The system used by Jefferson Medical College is exactly the kind of medical student profiling that caused me to go through an urban medical school and residency on the way to rural medicine. There is nothing...

Correction.(To: "FP Charts Path of New Med School" in November 15, 2001 issue, p 1)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... An article on the new Florida State University College of Medicine in Tallahassee ("FP Charts Path of New Med School," Nov. 15, 2001, p. 1) included an incorrect figure for the college's start-up budget. The correct figure is $15.8 million.

Clarification.(To: "Rosiglitazone + Amylose-Free Diet = Weight Loss" in November 15, 2001 issue, p 10)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... A description of a dietary intervention for nondiabetic hyperinsulinemic obese patients ("Rosiglitazone + Amylose-Free Diet = Weight Loss," Nov. 15, 2001, p. 10) omitted some details about carbohydrate-rich foods that are permitted in the...

Drug update: Influenza. (RX).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Antiviral treatment for influenza generally works as a complement to immunization, not as a substitute, for most patients. People at high risk of serious complications from influenza who have not been vaccinated have the highest priority...

Warn patients about bad herbal advice on web. (Misinformation is Common).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... ATLANTA -- The Internet has a staggering amount of information on herbal therapy for cancer--and much of it is problematic. In many cases, Web sites that offer such information make unsubstantiated health claims and neglect to advise people...

Vitamin C: Urinary oxalate goes up, urinary pH unchanged. (Small Study).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... ANAHEIM, CALIF. -- Vitamin C increases urinary oxalate but does not alter urinary pH, Dr. Olivier Traxer reported at the annual meeting of the American Urological Association. Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) has long been implicated as a risk...

Milk thistle for liver disease. (Alternative Medicine).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... * The effectiveness of milk thistle in liver disease has not been established, according to an evidence report by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. * Small clinical trials and long clinical experience in Europe suggest that...

Drop in oxygen saturation suggests pneumonia Dx. (Fingertip Pulse Oximetry Useful).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... SAN FRANCISCO -- A greater than 3% decline from baseline in oxygen saturation value was a highly reliable indicator for differentiating pneumonia from other infectious illnesses among acutely ill elderly men in a veterans' nursing home. ...

Sinusitis treatment. (Clinical Capsules).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... There is no clinical benefit to prescribing second-line antibiotics for acute uncomplicated sinusitis, according to results of a study by Dr. Jay F. Piccirillo of Washington University, St. Louis, and his colleagues. Nearly 60% of the...

Flu vaccine and race. (Clinical Capsules).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... African Americans are less likely than whites to be vaccinated against influenza, and enrollment in managed care--although associated with higher vaccination rates--does not decrease the racial disparity. A survey of 13,674 Medicare...

Nutrition in the elderly. (Clinical Capsules).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Trace mineral supplementation appears to be a key factor in improving nutritional status, boosting immune response, and preventing infection in older adults. Daily supplementation with 20 mg of elemental zinc and 100 [micro]g of selenium...

ACE inhibitors, angioedema. (Clinical Capsules).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... A careful family history for angioedema should be taken in patients of all ages before initiating ACE inhibitor therapy, as illustrated by the case of a woman who was not diagnosed with hereditary angioedema until the age of 90. Angioedema...

Retinas signal stroke risk. (Clinical Capsules).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Microvascular abnormalities on retinal photography may point to an increased likelihood of stroke in at-risk patients, said Dr. Tien Yin Wong of the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and associates. Abnormalities of retinal...

Breast calcifications linked to increased CHD risk. (Large Kaiser Cohort Study).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... ANAHEIM, CALIF. -- Breast calcifications on mammography are an independent predictor of increased risk for subsequent coronary heart disease, results of a large prospective study suggest. The study included 16,330 women who underwent...

Questions linger over frequency of mammograms. (Biannual Exams?).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... ATLANTA -- Annual mammograms remain the norm despite evidence favoring biannual exams for many women, Dr. Paul S. Frame said at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Family Physicians. Controversy over the optimal frequency of...

Pregnancy right after miscarriage appears Okay. (Rethinking Medical Advice).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... ASHLAND, ORE. -- There appear to be no adverse neonatal outcomes associated with immediate pregnancy following a single spontaneous abortion, according to a study presented at the annual meeting of the Pacific Coast Obstetrical and...

New birth control patch as effective as the pill. (Better Patient Compliance).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... ORLANDO, FLA. -- A birth control patch just approved by the Food and Drug Administration shows similar efficacy to the oral contraceptive pill and better patient compliance, according to several studies sponsored by the patch's manufacturer....

Menopause and sleep apnea. (Clinical Capsules).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... The onset of menopause is linked to sleep-disordered breathing, Andrea Peterson reported at the joint annual meeting of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and the Sleep Research Society in Chicago. In a 12-year study, sleep patterns...

Selenium eases thyroiditis. (Clinical Capsules).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Selenium supplementation lowers autoantibody levels in women with Hashimoto's thyroiditis and reduces disease activity, Dr. Barbara Gasnier reported at the annual meeting of the Endocrine Society. In a randomized, placebo-controlled pilot...

Glucocorticoid vs. bone density. (Clinical Capsules).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Premenopausal women using triamcinolone inhalers experience dose-dependent bone loss, reported Dr. Elliot Israel of the Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, and his colleagues. In a prospective study of 109 women with asthma, 28 were not...

Flexible sigmoidoscopy. (Clinical Capsules).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Flexible sigmoidoscopy findings are poor predictors of proximal colon findings in asymptomatic women. To date, 692 women with an average age of 60 have participated in a trial being conducted at four military hospitals nationwide. Of these,...

PTCA mortality in women. (Clinical Capsules).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Excess mortality in women following percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty appears to be largely noncardiac in nature, reported Dr. Francine K. Welty and her associates at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston. They...

Laser swiftly relieves acute Otitis media symptoms. (Laser-Assisted Myringotomy).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... SAN FRANCISCO -- Acute otitis media symptoms were relieved within hours, and recurrences were reduced by a factor, of 4 in 82 children during the 3 months after undergoing laser-assisted myringotomy in a multicenter clinical trial. Dr....

OtoLAM may be limited by low long-term success rate. (Quick Results Useful in Some Cases).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... DENVER -- OtoScan laser-assisted myringotomy has a much lower long-term patency rate than conventional cold-steel procedures for middle ear disease, Dr. Alexa S. Lessow reported at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Otolaryngology....

When does an ear infection point to an immune deficiency? (Judgment Call).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... MAUI, HAWAII -- Lots of children get lots of ear infections. When should you suspect an immune deficiency? How many ear infections are too many? The Immune Deficiency Foundation suggests that more than eight separate ear infections in 1...

Varivax is effective, despite rise in breakthroughs. (Asthma, Eczema Raise Vaccine Failure Risk).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... ATLANTA -- The varicella vaccine is proving to be highly effective, although breakthrough disease comprises an increasing proportion of the cases that do occur, Dr. Jane Seward reported at a meeting of the Centers for Disease Control and...

HBV vaccine benefits infants of carrier mothers. (Study of 522 Children).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Administration of the hepatitis B vaccine with hepatitis B immune globulin provides immediate and lasting protection to infants born to hepatitis B surface antigen carrier mothers, reported Dr. Alfonso Mele of the Istituto Superiore di Sanita,...

Take heed of 'incident to' rules in medicare. (Whose Provider Number is it, Anyway?).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... WASHINGTON -- "Incident to" billing of Medicare for services performed by nonphysicians has become more complicated with the increase in degreed professionals performing tasks in the doctor's office, Alice Gosfield warned at a meeting sponsored...

Clinical tools flourish on handheld computers. (Technology Update).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... ATLANTA -- A myriad of medical software for handheld computers can help you organize, schedule, code, calculate, dose, and track, speakers said at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Family Physicians. Many popular programs can be...

National lab test policy. (Policy & Practice).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... New national Medicare coverage policies for key lab tests should ease the regulatory burden on physicians. The policies, which cover 23 clinical laboratory tests, will replace policies developed by local Medicare carriers. Physicians have...

Insurance monopoly. (Policy & Practice).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... A few large companies dominate the health insurance market--much to the disadvantage of physicians and patients, according to a American Medical Association study Researchers examined market concentration and health insurer market share in 46...

Paying for liver trans plants. (Policy & Practice).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... HIV-positive patients in need of a liver transplant may want to move to Massachusetts. In the first legal ruling of its kind, the state's Medicaid agency ordered a Medicaid provider to pay for a liver transplant for an HIV-positive patient with...

Misinforming medicare beneficiaries. (Policy & Practice).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... A study shows that 80% of Medicare HMOs misinform callers about new "lock-in" rules that let Medicare beneficiaries switch health plans just once between January and June 2002, the nonprofit Medicare Rights Center says. On two occasions, 20...

Medicare fee schedule update. (Policy & Practice).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... A bill under review by the Senate Finance Committee would decrease the physician pay cut included in the 2002 Medicare fee schedule. The Medicare Physician Payment Fairness Act of 2001 (S. 1660) would set the 2002 conversion factor at 0.9% less...

Limiting the loophole. (Policy & Practice).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... The CMS has issued a proposal to limit a costly Medicaid "loophole." An earlier regulation let states make overall payments to hospitals not owned or operated by state government, at levels up to 150% of the estimated amount paid under Medicare...

Chiropractors as PCPs? (Policy & Practice).(primary care physicians)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Medical groups are speaking out against legislation that would let patients choose a chiropractor as their primary care provider in veterans' hospitals. More than a dozen medical groups sent a letter opposing such a provision in H.R. 2792, the...

Demand for FPs may rebound in year ahead. (Career Tracks).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... The demand for family physicians is at an 8- to 10-year low but is expected to pick back up in late 2002 or early 2003, predicts Mark Smith, executive vice president of Merritt, Hawkins & Associates, an Irving, Tex.--based physician recruiting...

Good dog. bad owner. (Indications).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... You no doubt watch out for patients who feign illness to get drugs--but what if the "patient" isn't human? Dr. Herbert LeBourgeois III of Tulane University, New Orleans, reported several cases in which pet owners sought drugs from veterinarians...

Are you experienced?. (Indications).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... The late Jimi Hendrix was known for playing complicated guitar licks while high as a kite. A new study shows that marijuana smoking has little impact on complex cognitive performance--in experienced users. Eight female and 10 male subjects...

Sleep on mars. (Indications).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a "Martian's disease," said Dr. Nancy A. Collop of University of Mississippi, Jackson. She was referring to John Gray's book "Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus" (New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1992)...

Addressing male health. (Indications).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Back to Mars. Men in El Paso, Tex., have the biggest waistlines; men in Minneapolis have the healthiest hearts; men in Kansas City, Mo., are the most fit; and men in Baltimore have the highest rates of sexually transmitted disease, according to...

Feeding rear. (Indications).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Despite economic downturns resulting from the events of Sept. 11, the chips aren't down--snack chips, that is. According to Information Resources Inc., which monitors supermarket spending, comfort food sales rose from Sept. 9 to Oct. 7. Sales...

New melanoma staging criteria coming this spring. (More Reflective of Current Practice).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... NEWPORT BEACH, CALIF. - New criteria for staging melanoma will drop Clark's level as a prognostic factor for all but thin melanomas, Dr. Merrick I. Ross said at a symposium on dermatologic surgery sponsored by the American Society for Mobs...

Derm diagnosis.(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Sherry Boschert A 50-year-old man presented with a 15-year history of this strikingly linear, slightly scaly, pruritic rash. A Vietnam veteran, the patient was convinced the rash was due to Agent. Orange exposure. What's your...

Less renal disease at 140/85 mm Hg. (Tighter BP Control No Better).(Brief Article)
January 15, 2002... ANAHEIM, CALIF. - Lowering blood pressure to 140/85mm Hg in patients with mild to moderate hypertensive renal disease slows renal disease progression as effectively as far more aggressive blood pressure lowering, according to the results of the...

St. Paul departure is sign of ailing insurance market: Physicians concerned about situation as malpractice premiums continue to rise. (Company Insures 42,000 Physicians).(Brief Article)
January 15, 2002... St. Paul Companies' exit from the medical malpractice insurance market dramatically demonstrates the need for federal tort reform legislation, some observers say. The insurance firm's decision will end coverage for 42,000 physicians, 745...

Anastrozole looks useful for early Breast Cancer: Recurrence rate lower than with Tamoxifen. (ATAC Study of 9,386 Women).(Brief Article)
January 15, 2002... SAN ANTONIO -- The aromatase inhibitor anastrozole is markedly more effective and better tolerated than tamoxifen for adjunctive therapy in postmenopausal women with earlystage breast cancer. Those were the major findings of the largest...

Medicare coverage extended to foot exams for Diabetics. (With Peripheral Neuropathy).(Brief Article)
January 15, 2002... Medicare will begin to cover semiannual podiatric foot exams for diabetes patients, as long as their referring physicians have established a diagnosis of peripheral neuropathy with loss of protective sensation. Under the decision, foot...

Just a few drinks raise risk of Atrial Fibrillation. (Physicians Health Study).(Brief Article)
January 15, 2002... ANAHEIM, CALIF. - Light to moderate alcohol consumption is linked to an increased risk of atrial fibrillation, based on data from the Physicians' Health Study. Alcohol consumption habits were recorded at baseline in 1982 for 22,071...

Letrozole Beats Tamoxifen for Hormone-Sensitive Breast Ca. (Advanced Postmenopausal Disease).(Brief Article)
January 15, 2002... SAN ANTONIO -- The aromatase inhibitor letrozole is superior to tamoxifen as first-line therapy in hormone-sensitive advanced breast cancer, Dr. Martine J. Piccart said at the annual breast cancer symposium sponsored by the San Antonio Cancer...

Tamoxifen cuts rate of benign Breast Disease in Landmark Trial. (Younger Women Benefit Most).(Brief Article)
January 15, 2002... SAN ANTONIO -- Tamoxifen markedly reduces the incidence of most forms of benign breast disease, Dr. Elizabeth Tan-Chiu reported at the annual breast cancer symposium sponsored by the San Antonio Cancer Institute. She presented data from a...

AMA calls for unity on medicare, other issues. (Interim Meeting).(Brief Article)
January 15, 2002... SAN FRANCISCO - Leaders of the American Medical Association urged the House of Delegates at its interim meeting to set aside differences and unite on Medicare reform and other legislative issues important to physicians. "When medicine is...

The HIPAA burden. (AMA Briefs).(Brief Article)
January 15, 2002... The AMA will study federal privacy regulations pertaining to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act and propose that the government delay further implementation of the regulations if they are found too burdensome. The...

E&M coding. (AMA Briefs).(Brief Article)
January 15, 2002... Efforts to collapse the number of evaluation and management (E&M) codes from the current five down to three must be stopped, the delegates said. Some insurers have begun using a blended schedule that generally considers level-four and -five...

Physician prescribing data. (AMA Briefs).(Brief Article)
January 15, 2002... Debate continued to rage in the House over the AMA's sale of its master file on physicians, which includes Drug Enforcement Administration numbers. Pharmaceutical sales representatives can profile a physician's prescribing habits by matching...

Flu vaccine. (AMA Briefs).(Brief Article)
January 15, 2002... Last year's influenza vaccine was delivered in somewhat better time and in more sufficient quantity than year 2000's, the delegates were told. Manufacturers agreed to work harder to bypass distributors and sell vaccine directly to physicians,...

SCHIP expansion. (AMA Briefs).(Brief Article)
January 15, 2002... Efforts should be made to get more children and pregnant women enrolled in State Children's Health Initiative Programs (SCHIP) before such programs are expanded to include uninsured adults, the delegates said. Many states currently have SCHIP...

Smallpox bioterrorism. (AMA Briefs).(Brief Article)
January 15, 2002... The House declined to call for mass vaccination of the U.S. population against smallpox as a protection against possible bioterrorism. It expressed support instead for following the lead of government agencies that are better equipped to judge...

Prenatal HIV testing. (AMA Briefs).(Brief Article)
January 15, 2002... Mandatory testing of pregnant women for HIV would not be good policy, but physicians should continue to offer HIV testing to all pregnant women, according to a report adopted by the House. Mandatory testing could discourage some women from...

Paying for organs. (AMA Briefs).(Brief Article)
January 15, 2002... The House of Delegates voted to delay a decision on whether it should support studies of the impact of payments on the organ donation rate. The AMA ethics panel issued a report saying that concerns about the pernicious and beneficial effects of...

Rapid weight gain in infancy predicts obesity. (Innate Metabolic Predisposition?).(Brief Article)
January 15, 2002... ANAHEIM, CALIF. -- Rapid weight gain during the first 4 months of life is an independent and robust predictor of obesity by age 7, suggesting that adult obesity and its attendant cardiovascular risk may be rooted in an innate metabolic...

Letters.(Brief Article)
January 15, 2002... Osteoporosis Tx Not New A recent article reported Dr. Peter Gillberg's use of human growth hormone to treat adult idiopathic osteoporosis ("Hormones Studied to Promote Bone Formation," Nov. 1, 2001, p. 19). This approach is hardly...

Correction.(To: "New Vaccines for Rotavirus Are Under Investigation" in December 15, 2001 issue, p 20)(Correction Notice)
January 15, 2002... In the article "New Vaccines for Rotavirus Are Under Investigation" (Dec. 15, 2001, p. 20), the risk of vaccine-associated poliomyelitis should have been reported as 1 in 720,000.

Crisis of meaning. (Guest Editorial).(Brief Article)(Editorial)
January 15, 2002... The need to maintain physician commitment is one of the most urgent issues facing medical educators and clinical administrators today. Unprecedented numbers of doctors are abandoning practice for administration or taking early retirement. ...

Do third-generation OCs carry a higher risk of venous thrombosis than second-generation OCs? (Pro & Con).(oral contraceptives)(Brief Article)
January 15, 2002... YES We systematically put together all the evidence that is available in our metaanalysis (BMJ 323[7305]:131-37, 2001). From that analysis you can clearly see that there is an excess risk when you use third-generation oral contraceptives,...

Patients voice concerns about statin side effects. (Main Deterrent to Compliance).(Brief Article)
January 15, 2002... HALIFAX, N.S. -- Some patients with hypercholesterolemia have a high level of concern about the risks of statin therapy, according to interviews with 30 patients. This concern was intensified by the withdrawal of cerivastatin (Baycol) from...

Real-world statin responses limited by noncompliance. (Too Few 'Eager Beavers').(Brief Article)
January 15, 2002... ANAHEIM, CALIF. -- Real-world clinical experience with statin therapy is often disappointing relative to clinical trial data, Dr. Dennis L. Sprecher said at the annual scientific sessions of the American Heart Association. The explanation...

CMS covers some Ambulatory BP monitoring. (Suspected 'White Coat Hypertension').(Brief Article)
January 15, 2002... The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services now covers the cost of ambulatory blood pressure monitoring for patients with suspected cases of "white coat hypertension." "ABPM (ambulatory blood pressure monitoring)... can provide useful...

Target Isolated Systolic Hypertension in the elderly. ('A High Payoff Exercise').(Brief Article)
January 15, 2002... ATLANTA -- Treating isolated systolic hypertension in the elderly may be the single greatest contribution that family physicians can make to the nation's health, Dr. Lee A. Green said at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Family...

Flu or RSV? (Clinical Capsules).(Brief Article)
January 15, 2002... Respiratory syncytial virus infections accounted for a substantial number of flulike illnesses among patients of all ages presenting to physicians' offices during three successive winters. Of 2,226 swab samples, 480 were identified as...

Flu Vaccine in Asthmatics. (Clinical Capsules).(Brief Article)
January 15, 2002... Administration of inactivated influenza vaccine did not exacerbate asthma in a large study of adults and children. In 1,952 people in the randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study, the exacerbation rate was 28% following influenza...

CFS treatments a mixed fix. (Clinical Capsules).(Brief Article)
January 15, 2002... No single intervention has emerged to successfully manage chronic fatigue syndrome, said Penny Whiting of the University of York (England) and her colleagues. In a systematic review of 44 trials, including 31 different interventions, 41%...

Statin inhibits graft occlusion. (Clinical Capsules).(Brief Article)
January 15, 2002... Coronary artery bypass graft patients whose preoperative lipid levels are brought under control by week 4 of statin therapy show the same low risk of later graft occlusion as those with normal lipid status, reported Dr. Jan T. Christenson of...

Depression raises CHF costs. (Clinical Capsules).(Brief Article)
January 15, 2002... Health care costs for congestive heart failure patients with depression are as much as 29% higher than are those for congestive heart failure (CHF) patients without depression, Dr. Mark Sullivan said at the annual conference of the American...

Ginger for Nausea in Pregnancy: Use caution. (Good Efficacy, Lingering Safety Issues).(Brief Article)
January 15, 2002... STANFORD, CALIF. -- Ginger for nausea and vomiting in pregnancy is an alternative therapy backed by reasonably persuasive evidence of efficacy, but unanswered safety questions dictate that it be used with caution, Dr. W. LeRoy Heinrichs said at...

Accutane. (Drugs, Pregnancy, and Lactation).(Brief Article)
January 15, 2002... Accutane (isotretinoin), a vitamin A derivative, is probably the most teratogenic drug on the market today. The Organization of Teratology Information Services has reported a marked increase in the number of Accutane-exposed pregnancies in the...

Ductoscopy Sharpens Ductal Lavage's Focus. (No Published Data Yet).(Brief Article)
January 15, 2002... SAN ANTONIO -- Mammary ductoscopy may provide the missing link that renders ductal lavage more clinically relevant, Dr. Seema A. Khan said at the annual breast cancer symposium sponsored by the San Antonio Cancer Institute. The finding of...

FDA approves first home test kit for Menopause. (Some Experts Question its Value).(Brief Article)
January 15, 2002... The Food and Drug Administration has approved the first-ever home urine test designed to help women determine if they have approached menopause. But some experts question the value of the test, which is manufactured by Genua 1944 Inc., a...