Family Practice News articles from May 2006

Family Practice News archives from May 2006

TransforMED aims to revive practice.(Practice Trends)(a demonstration project by American Academy of Family Physicians)
May 1, 2006... Washington -- The American Academy of Family Physicians is launching a demonstration project that it hopes will breathe new life into the specialty by showing how individual practices can be reorganized to get more mileage out of what they...

Two questions tweak Framingham CVD assessment: some patients shift to high-risk category.(News)
May 1, 2006... Atlanta -- Asking patients two brief questions about self-reported peripheral artery disease, as a supplement to the standard Framingham cardiovascular disease risk assessment, results in reclassification of a substantial proportion of patients...

CMS announces 4.6% physician pay cut for 2007.(Practice Trends)
May 1, 2006... In a not unexpected, but definitely unwelcome move, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has announced that it will cut physician pay by 4.6% for 2007. The federal health program said the scheduled decrease in physician fees is...

Top diagnoses by family physicians in 2005.(VITAL SIGNS)
May 1, 2006... Top Diagnoses by Family Physicians in 2005 Hypertension 9.4% Chronic sinusiti 4.6% Acute upper respiratory infectiol 4.3% Bronchitis 3.3% Diabetes mellitus ...

Corrections.(News)(Correction notice)
May 1, 2006... In the story "Cough Guidelines Stress Diagnosing the Cause" (Feb. 1, 2006, p. 6), the sentence regarding vaccination against pertussis should have said, "Regular vaccination with the new Tdap series should be administered routinely to adults as...

Lens solution pulled in wake of fungal infections.(News)
May 1, 2006... Federal, state, and local health officials are investigating at least 109 cases of Fusarium keratitis in which the use of a contact lens solution may have played a role. Bausch & Lomb, which had stopped shipment of the product, ReNu with...

EHR system certification coming this summer.(electronic health records)(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... Philadelphia -- Physicians purchasing an electronic health record will be able to consult a list of certified products as early as this summer, according to Dr. Mark Leavitt, chair of the Certification Commission for Healthcare Information...

New swimmer's ear guidelines: use drops first.(News)
May 1, 2006... The American Academy of Otolaryngology's first-ever guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of acute otitis externa--commonly known as swimmer's ear--include a recommendation to treat pain and to use antimicrobial drops, rather than oral...

PDE-5 inhibitors may relieve lower urinary tract symptoms.(News)
May 1, 2006... Paris -- Phosphodieterase-5 inhibitors may have a role in the relief of lower urinary tract symptoms, according to two studies presented at the annual congress of the European Association of Urology. In the first study, Dr. Kevin T. McVary,...

New criteria to detect ovarian cancer unveiled.(News)
May 1, 2006... Palm Springs, Calif. -- The best predictor for ovarian malignancy in a postmenopausal woman with an initial abnormal screen is a CA 125 level greater than or equal to 65 U/mL, Dr. Edward E. Partridge said at the annual meeting of the Society of...

Panel: after advice, honor patient's request for C-section.(News)(Discussion)
May 1, 2006... Washington -- Any decision between cesarean delivery by maternal request or trial of labor ultimately lies with the woman, once the potential risks and benefits associated with C-section have been discussed, concluded an independent panel of...

The obesity disparity: a Latino physician's view.(Editorial)
May 1, 2006... Ever wonder why it is that so many people are obese in this country? As the epidemic grows, it is clear that there are many factors that affect it, not the least of which are our exercise and eating habits. While the epidemic involves all...

The perils of pay for performance.(Guest Editorial)(Editorial)
May 1, 2006... The concept of quality improvement in medical practice is laudable, but the "pay for performance" method--in which physicians are financially rewarded for reaching certain goals set by panels of "experts" is particularly offensive to our...

Diabetes registry not a solution.(Letters)(Letter to the editor)
May 1, 2006... Dr. Lynn Silver and others have decided that collecting patients' data on diabetes and then sending them letters will help control diabetes, and they maintain that "the potential benefit in light of the epidemic condition outweighs any risk to...

Drug reps: salespeople, not educators.(Letters)(Letter to the editor)
May 1, 2006... Dr. Jerold J. Kreisman makes several misleading arguments in support of the pharmaceutical companies' relationship with physicians ("Defending the Drug Man,'" Guest Editorial, Feb. 1, 2006, p. 13). First is his assertion--unsupported by...

Class of antihypertensive unimportant if it works.(Cardiovascular Medicine)
May 1, 2006... Snowmass, Colo. -- Oft-heard claims that some antihypertensive agents possess blood pressure-independent cardioprotective effects don't hold up to scrutiny, Dr. Robert A. Vogel said at a conference sponsored by the Society for Cardiovascular...

Studies bring new focus to hormone therapy: a novel progestin with antialdosterone effects is being developed to help treat postmenopausal symptoms.(Cardiovascular Medicine)
May 1, 2006... Atlanta -- A new hormone therapy for postmenopausal symptoms also has a significant antihypertensive effect; the popular [beta]-blocker carvedilol comes in a once-daily formulation; and an analysis of more than 600 representative patients with...

Gender may factor into ICD efficacy.(Cardiovascular Medicine)(implantable cardioverter defibrillator therapy)
May 1, 2006... Atlanta -- Women may not derive a significant mortality benefit from implantable cardioverter defibrillator therapy, Nickole N. Henyan, Pharm.D, said at the annual meeting of the American College of Cardiology. She presented a metaanalysis...

Acupuncture therapy cuts mild hypertension, but not for long.(Cardiovascular Medicine)(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... Dallas -- Acupuncture proved effective and safe for the treatment of mild to moderate hypertension in a randomized, single-blind German clinical trial. This form of therapy may have appeal for a segment of the population that dislikes...

Statins improve renal function in heart patients.(Cardiovascular Medicine)
May 1, 2006... Atlanta -- Intensive atorvastatin therapy in patients with stable coronary heart disease resulted in impressive improvement in kidney function over the course of 5 years in a post hoc analysis of the landmark Treating to New Targets trial, Dr....

Lipid-lowering drug benefits similar for diabetics.(Cardiovascular Medicine)(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... Lipid-lowering agents, particularly statins, significantly reduce cardiovascular risk in people with diabetes, to the extent that these patients may benefit from the drugs even more than nondiabetics do, according to Dr. Joao Costa of the...

MI presents as chest pain in 44% of renal patients.(Cardiovascular Medicined)(myocardial infarction)(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... People with kidney disease have a somewhat different symptom profile when they present with acute myocardial infarction than those without kidney disease, reported Dr. Jonathan Sosnov of Tufts New England Medical Center, Boston, and his...

SSRIs cut depression scores in heart failure.(Cardiovascular Medicine)(selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor)
May 1, 2006... Atlanta -- Treatment with an antidepressant drug relieved the mild to moderate depression that often occurs in patients with heart failure in a controlled study with 26 patients. But the reduction of depression symptoms using a selective...

Post-myocardial infarction depression severity stabilizes after 6 months.(Cardiovascular Medicine)
May 1, 2006... Denver -- Depression that occurred in adults after acute myocardial infarction decreased in severity during the first 6 months after the cardiac event, but then stabilized over the next several years, Kenneth E. Freedland, Ph.D., reported in a...

Ultrafiltration bests loop diuretics in acute HF: the FDA-approved device allows fluid to be extracted from a patient's blood at a controlled rate.(Cardiovascular Medicine)
May 1, 2006... Atlanta -- Peripheral ultrafiltration trounced aggressive intravenous diuretics--the long-standard, yet previously unchallenged, therapy for acute decompensated heart failure--in a major randomized trial presented at the annual meeting of the...

Investigational renin blocker may reduce end-organ damage.(Cardiovascular Medicine)
May 1, 2006... Atlanta -- Treatment with aliskiren, a drug from a new class of antihypertensire agents, led to safe and effective blood pressure lowering in a phase III study with 672 patients. "Aliskiren has the potential to be an important new treatment...

Screening identifies kids at type 2 diabetes risk: despite the program, only 8% of children with BMIs in the 85th-95th percentile were referred for lab tests.(Metabolic Disorders)
May 1, 2006... Reno, Nev. -- A novel screening program developed by researchers in North Carolina was able to identify children at risk for type 2 diabetes or prediabetes, and to facilitate lifestyle interventions, Dr. Elizabeth C. Tilson said at the annual...

Early use of insulin trumps oral agents alone for treating type 2 diabetic teens.(Metabolic Disorders)
May 1, 2006... Boston -- The use of insulin early in the management of adolescent type 2 diabetes mellitus may provide substantially improved glycemic control compared with the use of oral hypoglycemic agents alone, Dr. Aneesh K. Tosh said at the annual...

Type 2 diagnosis predicts depression in diabetics.(Metabolic Disorders)
May 1, 2006... Denver -- Depression was nearly twice as common among adults who had been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, compared with adults who had either normal or impaired fasting plasma glucose levels and those with undiagnosed diabetes, Miriam J. Knol...

Caveats key to use of bisphosphonates in Paget's.(Metabolic Disorders)
May 1, 2006... Fort Lauderdale, Fla. -- Bisphosphonate therapy has dramatically improved the lives of patients with Paget's disease, but it's important to keep in mind the caveats when prescribing them, Dr. Kenneth W. Lyles said at a meeting sponsored by the...

Negative pressure speeds diabetic foot ulcer healing.(Metabolic Disorders)
May 1, 2006... San Francisco -- Negative-pressure vacuum therapy appears to speed healing and increase the likelihood of complete closure of nonhealing diabetic foot ulcers, Dr. David G. Armstrong said at the annual meeting of the American Academy of...

Postop PTH test unnecessary when calcium is normal.(Metabolic Disorders)(parathyroid hormone)
May 1, 2006... Louisville, Ky. -- Patients who have undergone surgery for primary hyperparathyroidism do not benefit from routine measures of parathyroid hormone unless they have elevated calcium levels, according to a review presented by Dr. Tina Wei-Fang...

EBRT controls local thyroid ca.(Metabolic Disorders)(external beam radiotherapy)(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... High-dose external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) was effective in controlling locally advanced, differentiated thyroid cancer in a retrospective study. Dr. Kenyon M. Meadows and his associates at the University of Florida, Gainesville reviewed...

NICU is ideal setting for giving parents flu vaccine.(Infectious Diseases)(neonatal intensive care unit)
May 1, 2006... Old Greenwich, Conn. -- The neonatal intensive care unit is an ideal setting for delivering the trivalent influenza vaccine to parents of high-risk infants, Dr. Shetal Shah said at a meeting of the Eastern Society for Pediatric Research. ...

Multidrug resistance stalls TB drop.(Infectious Diseases)
May 1, 2006... Tuberculosis cases reached an all-time low in the United States in 2005, but progress toward elimination of the disease has slowed, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Moreover, the number of multidrug-resistant...

Norovirus surfaces in prepackaged deli meats.(Infectious Diseases)
May 1, 2006... Atlanta -- Just when you thought that prepackaged deli meat was safe, a gastroenteritis outbreak among river rafters in Colorado was traced to norovirus in prepackaged chicken and beef, Dr. Ezra J. Barzilay said at the International Conference...

Raspberries implicated in norovirus outbreaks.(Infectious Diseases)
May 1, 2006... Atlanta -- As summer approaches, it may be wise to be wary of berries. Five norovirus outbreaks affecting several hundred people in Denmark in 2005 were traced to a single batch of contaminated frozen raspberries, Dr. Gerhard Falkenhorst...

Most Salmonella cases in U.S. are isolated events.(Infectious Diseases)(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... Atlanta -- About 80% of Salmonella cases in the United States in 2004 and 2005 were domestically acquired isolated incidents, Dina Hoefer reported in a poster presented at the International Conference on Emerging Infectious Diseases. By...

Two tests diagnose 90% of immunodeficiencies.(Infectious Diseases)
May 1, 2006... Keystone, Colo. -- Two screening lab tests--a CBC and quantitative immunoglobulins--are sufficient to diagnose more than 90% of all patients with primary immune deficiencies, Dr. Erwin W Gelfand said at a meeting sponsored by the National...

Iowa mumps outbreak spreads to nearby states.(Infectious Diseases)
May 1, 2006... More than 1,000 cases of mumps in nine states have been confirmed in the nation's largest mumps outbreak in decades, announced Dr. Julie Gerberding, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta. The outbreak of...

Pro baseball champions skin safety, cancer screens.(Skin Disorders)(Play Smart When It Comes to the Sun)
May 1, 2006... Kapalua, Hawaii -- Since 1999, almost 13,000 Major League Baseball (MLB) players, coaches, staff, and family members have been screened for skin cancer under a program with the trademarked name of "Play Smart When It Comes to the Sun." ...

Primary care cuts use of calcineurin inhibitors.(Skin Disorders)(treatments used by pediatric dermatologists evaluated)
May 1, 2006... Koloa, Hawaii -- The Food and Drug Administration's black box warnings issued earlier this year for the topical calcineurin inhibitors have had a major impact on prescribing by primary care physicians but very little effect on how pediatric...

Derm dx.(Skin Disorders)(idiopathic hypereosinophilia syndrome)
May 1, 2006... A 42-year-old woman presented with a 2-month history of disseminated, intensely pruritic erythematous papules that had initially appeared on her trunk. The lesions were round and up to 0.5 cm in diameter. She had been treated with topical and...

Pediatric facial eruptions flag inadequate nutrition: the typical rash associated with poor diet doesn't itch and may not respond to topical steroids.(Skin Disorders)
May 1, 2006... Park City, UTAH -- Physicians should consider nutritional deficiencies when diagnosing facial eruptions in infants and children, according to Dr. Beth Drolet. One of the more perplexing cases she described at a clinical dermatology seminar...

Recognize, aggressively treat cutaneous evidence of lupus.(lupus erythematosus)
May 1, 2006... Stowe, VT. -- Skin involvement is one of the most frequent manifestations of lupus erythematosus, yet the cutaneous signs of the disease are not always recognized, Dr. Victoria P. Werth said at a dermatology conference sponsored by the...

Girls more vulnerable to risk of major depression.(Mental Health)
May 1, 2006... Miami Beach -- Studies increasingly suggest that adolescent girls are particularly vulnerable to many of the risk factors for major depression, and that depression in this population manifests in several unique ways. For example, depressed...

Escitalopram eases depression in adolescents.(Mental Health)(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... Escitalopram failed to significantly improve the symptoms of depression in children aged 6-11 years, but it did appear to improve symptoms in children aged 12-17 years, wrote Dr. Karen Dineen Wagner of the University of Texas, Galveston, and...

New patch may broaden use of ADHD therapy.(Mental Health)(transdermal methylphenidate patch)
May 1, 2006... The Food and Drug Administration's approval of a transdermal methylphenidate patch for the treatment of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder in children could broaden use of the drug for patients who need it. "Some patients may have...

Screen for problem gambling, refer for treatment.(Mental Health)
May 1, 2006... Sparks, Nev. -- Pathological gambling is a serious and increasingly prevalent addiction, Denise F. Quirk said at the annual meeting of the American College of Preventive Medicine. During the last decade, restrictions on gambling have eased...

Hospitalized patients often more open to alcohol-problem help.(Mental Health)
May 1, 2006... San Francisco -- Hospitalization may provide a unique opportunity to offer counseling to patients with alcohol problems. "As a result of an acute medical event, many patients have a high motivation to change their drinking behavior," Jennis...

Evidence grows stronger for inflammation-depression link.(Mental Health)
May 1, 2006... San Juan, P.R. -- Growing evidence points to an association between inflammation and depression, according to a presentation at the annual meeting of the American College of Psychiatrists. For example, depressed patients have elevated...

Genetic assay predicts breast cancer recurrence.(Women's Health)(Oncotype DX)
May 1, 2006... San Antonio -- A commercially available genetic assay has proved to be a potent predictor of the risk of local and regional recurrence of breast cancer, Dr. Terry Mamounas reported at a breast cancer symposium sponsored by the Cancer Therapy...

Imaging advances improve cancer detection, staging.(Women's Health)(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... Pasadena, Calif. -- Imaging for gynecologic cancer has been greatly improved with techniques combining structural and anatomic data from ultrasound, MRI, and CT with metabolic clues shown by PET scans, Dr. Robin Farias-Eisner said at a meeting...

Immediate contraception ups continuance rates.(Women's Health)
May 1, 2006... Boston -- The immediate initiation of depot medroxyprogesterone acetate to adolescent and young adult women seeking the contraceptive injection resulted in higher continuation rates and substantially diminished unintended pregnancy rates at 6...

Maternal vitamin D affects children's asthma risk.(Women's Health)
May 1, 2006... Miami Beach -- High maternal vitamin D intake in pregnancy may help protect children from asthma and wheezing illnesses during early childhood, results of a large, prospective study suggest. In multivariate analyses, every 100-IU increase...

Oxytocin may prevent placental retention.(Women's Health)(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... Miami Beach -- Intraumbilical vein injection with oxytocin following cord clamp was effective for preventing placental retention and reducing postpartum blood loss in a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind study presented at the annual...

Bleeding, oral pathogens linked to preterm birth.(Women's Health)
May 1, 2006... Miami Beach -- Unexplained vaginal bleeding and fetal exposure to oral pathogens have been linked individually with spontaneous preterm birth, and new data suggest the presence of both is associated with greater risk than either alone. Of...

Depression doubles with menopause.(Women's Health)(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... Women entering menopause are nearly twice as likely to develop depression as are women the same age who are not yet making the transition to menopause, reported Dr. Lee S. Cohen and his associates in the Harvard Study of Moods and Cycles. ...

Weighing new evidence on SSRI use.(Drugs, Pregnancy, And Lactation)(selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors)
May 1, 2006... Until fairly recently, studies and reviews of global teratovigilance data have been relatively reassuring that SSRIs were particularly safe, especially with regard to their teratogenicity. In fact, there are more reproductive safety data...

More pediatric status asthmaticus ends up in ICU.(Pulmonary Medicine)
May 1, 2006... San Francisco -- The number of hospital admissions for pediatric status asthmaticus seems to be decreasing, but at the same time both the number and the proportion of patients with status asthmaticus who are admitted to the ICU appear to be...

Obesity is stronger asthma risk factor in women.(Obesity)
May 1, 2006... Keystone, Colo. -- Obesity appears to be modestly associated with subsequent development of asthma, particularly in women, Dr. David A. Beuther reported at a meeting sponsored by the National Jewish Medical and Research-Center. His...

Hypertension seen in 31% of obese adolescents.(Obesity)
May 1, 2006... Old Greenwich, Conn. -- Be on the lookout for hypertension among obese children and teenagers. The problem is very common and it starts early, Dr. Mala Puri reported at a meeting of the Eastern Society for Pediatric Research. Dr. Puri and...

Chronic gout.(Drug Update)
May 1, 2006... For the first time since allopurinol [Zyloprim] was introduced in 1964, the medical management of chronic gout may soon include new treatment options. The xanthine oxidase inhibitor febuxostat is expected to be approved by the Food and Drug...

Liver enzyme influences ability to quit smoking.(Clinical Rounds)
May 1, 2006... Bethesda, M D. -- Variations in the activity of the primary enzyme involved in nicotine metabolism may largely explain lower smoking levels and lung cancer rates found in slow metabolizers, Rachel F. Tyndale, Ph.D., said at the annual meeting...

High risk of burns in elderly sparks need for prevention.(Clinical Rounds)
May 1, 2006... Louisville, KY. -- The high rate of serious burns among adults older than 65 years suggests a need for greater patient education and prevention programs for this age group, Dr. Palmer Q. Bessey reported at the annual meeting of the Central...

Exercise regularity, not type, crucial.(Clinical Capsules)(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... Exercise regimens consisting of walking or stretching and toning are equally effective at improving functional fitness in sedentary older adults, James Konopack said at the annual meeting of the Society of Behavioral Medicine. "Improvements in...

Hard hip protectors more effective.(Clinical Capsules)(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... Hard hip protectors that shunt the energy of an impact to surrounding tissues guard against hip fracture better than soft, energy-absorbing protectors, reported Dr. N.M. van Schoor and associates at Vrije University Medical Center, Amsterdam....

Injections help little for arthritic hips.(Clinical Capsules)(intraarticular corticosteroid injections)(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... Intraarticular corticosteroid injections into the hip joints of osteoarthritis patients provide significant temporary pain relief but not long-term relief, according to a new study. It found no significant pain relief with injections of...

IVIG reimbursement woes limit access.(Practice Trends)(intravenous immunoglobulin)
May 1, 2006... Physicians as well as patient and industry representatives say a congressionally imposed reduction in Medicare reimbursement for intravenous immunoglobulin--when combined with several other factors--is having a devastating impact on access to...

Charity health care declines.(Policy & Practice)(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... The decade-long decline in the proportion of physicians providing charity care continued in 2004-2005, according to a study by the Center for Studying Health System Change. The percentage of physicians providing any free or reduced-fee care...

Cigarette smoking rate stubbed.(Policy & Practice)(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... The number of cigarettes sold in the United States in 2005 dropped just over 4% from 2004, the largest 1-year percentage decrease in sales since 1999, according to figures compiled by the Treasury Department. "We are pleased to see that the...

Paxil class-action suit hits GSK.(Policy & Practice)(Glaxo-SmithKline )(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... Families of adolescents who took paroxetine (Paxil) and attempted suicide have filed suit against Glaxo-SmithKline in federal court, claiming that the drugmaker "defrauded the medical profession, the Paxil patient population, and the general...

Bush whacked in health care poll.(Policy & Practice)(low trust in George W. Bush on healthcare issues)(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... Americans have a low level of trust and confidence in President Bush when it comes to improving the U.S. health care system, a Wall Street Journal Online/Harris Interactive poll found. Only 25% of adults are "confident or very confident" that...

Cancer site targets Asian speakers.(Policy & Practice)(www.aancart.org/apicem)(Asian American Network for Cancer Awareness, Research, and Training)(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... A searchable online database of cancer material in 12 Asian languages is now available. The Asian American Network for Cancer Awareness, Research, and Training Web tool (www.aancart.org/apicem) is designed to help Asians and Pacific Islanders...

Two options to volunteer in case of emergency.(Practice Trends)(Medical Reserve Corps and Emergency System for Advance Registration of Volunteer Health Professionals)(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... Philadelphia -- Two government-affiliated programs provide a way for physicians and other health care professionals to serve as volunteers in the event of a national, regional, or local emergency, Dr. Anand K. Parekh said at the annual meeting...

IT 'gifts' could constitute antikickback violations.(Practice Trends)(health information technology usage )
May 1, 2006... Washington -- Suspension of antikickback laws to encourage adoption of health information technology could compromise physicians' referral patterns, William Vaughan, senior policy analyst for the Consumers Union, testified at a hearing of the...

PDA-based drug dose calculator slashes NICU med errors.(Practice Trends)(personal digital assistant in the neonatal intensive care unit)
May 1, 2006... Old Greenwich, Conn. -- A PDA-based drug dose calculator system brought about a marked reduction in medication errors at a university's neonatal intensive care unit, Dr. M. Kabir Abubakar reported a meeting of the Eastern Society for Pediatric...

N.O.'s care system may grow financially stronger.(Practice Trends)(New Orleans could get renewed hospital system)
May 1, 2006... Downsizing may put New Orleans' two medical schools, Tulane University and Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center, on sounder financial footing than they were before the floods of Hurricane Katrina wiped out much of their...

Hospital mortality reports are not always best measure of quality.(Practice Trends)(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... San Diego -- So-called zeromortality hospitals subsequently experience mortality rates that are similar to or higher than those of other hospitals, Dr. Justin B. Dimick reported at a congress sponsored by the Association for Academic Surgery...

Summer and Salmonella.(Indications)(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... Think of all the great American literature in which summer heat and languor are key elements: "To Kill a Mockingbird," cA Streetcar Named Desire," "The Member of the Wedding," "East of Eden." The list is endless. Summer makes us more sensual,...

Disease, actually.(Indications)(public health research centers on pets)(National Companion Animal Surveillance program )(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... Americans' pets are being used as unwitting tools of human disease surveillance. And we at the Bureau of Indications salute them! The National Companion Animal Surveillance program used the medical records of more than 10 million pets between...

How many academics does it take ...(Indications)(humor-impaired personality disorder)(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... ... to screw in a lightbulb? That's not funny! Among professors, humor equals the null set, according to Joseph J. Palladino, Ph.D., who after 25 years in academia has concluded that academicians are so unable to see the giggles in life that...

The joke's on us.(Indications)(motivational deficiency disorder)(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... The following breaking development came across the news desk here at the Bureau of Indications, forwarded in all seriousness by a colleague who has clearly spent too much time in academia. Extreme laziness now has its own diagnosis as...

Family/emergency residency forged.(Practice Trends)
May 15, 2006... The accrediting boards for family medicine and emergency medicine have issued a set of guidelines for medical schools that want to establish a joint family medicine/emergency medicine residency--guidelines some family physicians see as...