JAAPA-Journal of the American Academy of Physicians Assistants articles from August 2006

JAAPA-Journal of the American Academy of Physicians Assistants archives from August 2006

122,300 deaths avoided, report states.(American Academy of Physician Assistants, Institute for Healthcare Improvement's 100,000 Lives Campaign)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... The 100,000 Lives Campaign, an effort to prevent 100,000 avoidable deaths over 18 months, released its first figures, showing that an estimated 122,300 avoidable deaths have been prevented so far. The campaign was organized by the Institute for...

AAPA and the Power of Partnering.(American Academy of Physician Assistants)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... This POP isn't a family member, but it could still provide you with good advice. The Power of Partnering (POP) Roundtable was established in 2004 by the Alliance Development Team of Novartis Pharmaceuticals to facilitate the exchange of ideas...

Computer-related errors top self-reported medication incidents.(American Academy of Physician Assistants)
August 1, 2006... A review of records of individual medication error events that involved PAs and that were reported by hospitals and clinics showed that the top cause involved the use of a computer, US Pharmacopeia (USP) told AAPA News. The figures were...

Perspectives on the physician assistant specialty credentialing debate.(physician assistants)(Column)
August 1, 2006... "Mountains Beyond Mountains" Some of you may know the book Mountains Beyond Mountains: The Quest of Dr. Paul Farmer, A Man Who Would Cure the World, by Tracy Kidder. (1) This book recounts the story of how one physician worked on the...

A day in the life: how PAs live and work.(physician assistants)(Column)
August 1, 2006... The PA profession was foreign to me, growing up as I did in the streets of East Los Angeles. In those days I would have never guessed the enormous possibilities in this great career. The profession has given me the knowledge and experience to...

Clinical practice guidelines for managing COPD in a primary care setting.(chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)(Disease/Disorder overview)
August 1, 2006... Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) produces significant morbidity and mortality in countries around the world. Apart from the costs for direct patient care, COPD imposes a further burden on patients in the form of lost wages and the...

Otorrhea--a fresh look at an old symptom: how do you know whether your patient's ear infection is due to a bacterium or a fungus? What are the different methods of treating these painful conditions? What are the complications and sequelae? This comprehensive article has the answers.(Disease/Disorder overview)
August 1, 2006... Otorrhea is a common presenting complaint in the primary care setting. (1) Although most patients with otorrhea will have acute otitis externa (AOE), chronic suppurative otitis media (CSOM), tympanostomy tube otorrhea (TTO), or acute otitis...

Pharmacotherapy for Parkinson's disease: current options, promising future therapies: no current treatments can reverse or halt the progression of PD, but a combination of drugs, surgical procedures, and neuroprotective therapies may provide the key to successful treatment in the future.(Disease/Disorder overview)
August 1, 2006... Parkinson's disease (PD) is the most common neurodegenerative, extrapyramidal movement disease in the United States, affecting approximately 1 in 200 people. (1) Onset, which is usually at age 58 to 60 years, leads ultimately to disability of...

CME post-test.
August 1, 2006... EXPIRATION DATE AUGUST 2007 AAPA members: Please take this CME post-test online at www.aapa.org. Scott PM. Otorrhea--A fresh look at an old symptom. JAAPA. 2006; 19(8):30-37. Moser SS, Besler-Panos W. Pharmacotherapy for Parkinson's...

Predicting UTI in symptomatic postmenopausal women: a review of the literature: evidence-based medicine techniques can help clinicians to accurately predict the presence of UTI in postmenopausal women with atypical symptoms and risk factors.(urinary tract infections)(Disease/Disorder overview)
August 1, 2006... More research is needed into the problem of diagnosing urinary tract infections (UTIs) in various subpopulations, such as postmenopausal women. This review looks at the research that is available and offers clinicians a chance to improve their...

MRI confirms cause of facial numbness.(DIAGNOSTIC IMAGING REVIEW: Interpreting clinical images)(magnetic resonance imaging)(Medical condition overview)
August 1, 2006... CASE The patient is a 34-year-old black female who presents with intermittent right facial numbness. She has no other complaints. She states the numbness has been present "off and on" for 12 months. She has no pain or pruritus. She reports...

Melanoma scare prompts this patient to take a new look at an old lesion.(Disease/Disorder overview)
August 1, 2006... A 58-year-old man presents to the dermatology department with a lesion on his right anterior shoulder. The lesion had been growing slowly but steadily for 20 years and had reached the point where activities such as bathing, dressing, and normal...

Ondansetron is effective for gastroenteritis with vomiting in children.(Patient-oriented evidence that matters)(Clinical report)
August 1, 2006... Clinical question Is ondansetron (Zofran) safe and effective for dehydrated children with gastroenteritis? Bottom line Ondansetron given to children who are mildly to moderately dehydrated because of diarrhea and vomiting improves their...

Naltrexone and behavioral interventions reduce alcohol dependence equally.(Patient-oriented evidence that matters)(Clinical report)
August 1, 2006... Clinical question What interventions are most effective in the treatment of alcohol dependence? Bottom line Naltrexone and specialist-delivered combined behavioral intervention (CBI) are equally effective in the short-term (16-week)...

Outcomes are not improved by early initiation of statins following ACS.(Patient-oriented evidence that matters)(acute coronary syndromes)(Brief article)(Clinical report)
August 1, 2006... Clinical question Does early initiation of statin therapy following the onset of acute coronary syndromes (ACS) reduce the short-term risk of death, recurrent MI, or stroke? Bottom line Initiation of statin therapy within 14 days of the...

CME Calendar.(Calendar)
August 1, 2006... ALASKA October 10-13 All Alaska Medical Conference 2006. Where: Anchorage. Provider: Alaska Academy of PAs. Information: www. akapa.org. CALIFORNIA September 29-October 1 CAPA's Big 30th Anniversary Conference. Where:...

PAs in allergy, asthma, and immunology.(physician assitants)
August 1, 2006... PAs in allergy, asthma, and immunology are actively involved in working with the AAPA's Conference Education Planning Committee to develop the CME program for each year's annual conference. Even though the next conference is 9 months away, the...

PAs in pediatrics.(physician assistants)
August 1, 2006... PAs in pediatrics found approximately 20 CME sessions devoted to topics of interest at the recent annual conference. If you weren't able to attend the conference in San Francisco, you can download the complete annual conference program guide to...

Case of the month: diagnostic challenges from your case files.(pathologic anisocoria)(Disease/Disorder overview)
August 1, 2006... Shane Harper, PA-C, MPAS CASE The patient is a 14-year-old girl who presents to the emergency department (ED) complaining of a "problem with her right eye." Her father noticed that her pupils were different sizes 1 hour prior to...