JAAPA-Journal of the American Academy of Physicians Assistants articles from June 2004

JAAPA-Journal of the American Academy of Physicians Assistants archives from June 2004

Corrections.(Correction Notice)
June 1, 2004... The formula for body mass index on page 35 of "Weight reduction surgery--past and Present" (JAAPA, April 2004) is misstated. The correct calculation is weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared. An alternative formula is weight in...

Louisiana makes it 48!(From the AAPA: news of current interest)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... After years of building ties with leaders in the medical community and aggressively educating elected officials, the Louisiana Academy of PAs has enthusiastically announced that a bill allowing physicians to delegate prescribing authority to...

AAPA-endorsed malpractice insurance plan to see rate increases.(From the AAPA: news of current interest)(American Academy of Physician Assistants )(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... The professional liability insurance program endorsed by the AAPA has been around almost as long as the PA profession itself. The AAPA's current insurer is Granite State Insurance Company, a member of the American International Group (AIG). The...

AAPA general election results.(From the AAPA: news of current interest)(American Academy of Physician Assistants )(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... The election polls in the AAPA's general election for the 2004-2005 AAPA Board of Directors closed April 30. The vote tally prepared by Survey and Ballot Systems, Eden Prairie, Minn, has been confirmed and accepted by the AAPA Elections...

New evidence-based, online CME opportunity for PAs.(From the AAPA: news of current interest)(Physician Assistants)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... In keeping with the Academy's focus on evidence-based medicine and efforts to provide expanding CME for PAs, the AAPA has developed an interactive Web-based program on the topic of postherpetic neuralgia. In the United States, 500,000 to 1...

Creating a teaching moment: patient education for kids.(Editorial)
June 1, 2004... Teachers often speak of the teaching moment, a fleeting experience when, almost magically, students become motivated enough to take responsibility for their own learning. (1) During this moment, the material or the teacher somehow provides an...

More to worry about: childhood hypertension.(Journal club: the bottom line on new research)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Sorof JM, Lai D, Turner J, et al. Overweight, ethnicity, and the prevalence of hypertension in school-aged children. Pediatrics. 2004; 113(3 pt 1):475-482. * Once relatively rare, primary (essential) hypertension in children has become...

The case for aggressive lipid lowering after ACS.(Journal club: the bottom line on new research)(acute coronary syndrome)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Cannon CP, Braunwald E, McCabe CH, et al. Intensive versus moderate lipid lowering with statins after acute coronary syndromes. N Engl J Med. 2004;350:1495-1504. * The authors compared intensive and moderate lowering of lipids after acute...

The future role of HDL cholesterol?(Journal club: the bottom line on new research)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Gotto AM Jr, Brinton EA. Assessing low levels of high density lipoprotein cholesterol as a risk factor in coronary heart disease: a working group report and update. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2004;43:717-724. * This report discusses high-density...

Virtual colonoscopy--not yet ready for prime time.(Journal club: the bottom line on new research)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Cotton PB, Durkalski VL, Pineau BC, et al. Computed tomographic colonography (virtual colonoscopy): a multicenter comparison with standard colonoscopy for detection of colorectal neoplasia. JAMA. 2004;291;1713-1719. * Computed tomographic...

New guidelines for children with acute otitis media.(Journal club: the bottom line on new research)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Diagnosis and management of acute otitis media. American Academy of Pediatrics Subcommittee on Management of Acute Otitis Media. Pediatrics. 2004;113:1451-1465. * This evidence-based clinical practice guideline, focused on the appropriate...

A practical, case-based approach to health care ethics--and the case of Mr. T.(PAQ--PA quandaries: ethics in everyday practice)
June 1, 2004... What is bioethics, and why is JAAPA launching a department on the subject? Bioethics is simply truth telling and advocating for your patients, even when you don't agree with their choices. Ethical decisions rarely involve options that are...

United we stand, and succeed: executive vice president/CEO's report to the 2004 House of Delegates.(American Academy of Physician Assistants)
June 1, 2004... What is the AAPA? As stated so clearly and so well in our mission statement, the AAPA is a membership organization focused on patients and PAs: The mission of AAPA is to promote quality, cost-effective and accessible health...

Live, from Las Vegas! It's state-of-the-art medicine: AAPA's annual conference highlights state-of-the-art sessions.(American Academy of Physician Assistants )(Cover Story)
June 1, 2004... The AAPA's 32nd Annual Physician Assistant Conference in Las Vegas, held June 1-6, 2004, offered a new educational opportunity for PAs in all specialties, with the additional benefit that these valuable CME opportunities were captured live and...

Looking through the heparin window: managing the patient using chronic warfarin therapy who needs surgery requires risk stratification for thrombosis, taking into account the guidelines for perioperative management of chronic anticoagulation: perioperative anticoagulation.(Perioperative Risk)
June 1, 2004... KEY POINTS in this article * The risk that a thromboembolic event will occur if anticoagulation therapy is withheld must be weighed against the risk of bleeding in patients who are using chronic warfarin therapy and are undergoing surgery....

Pinning down the cause of a chronic cough: postnasal drip syndrome, asthma, and gastroesophageal reflux disease can produce a chronic cough. Identifying the exact etiology may be a diagnostic challenge.(Diagnostics)
June 1, 2004... KEY POINTS in this article * The three most common causes of chronic cough in nonsmokers are postnasal drip syndrome, asthma, and gastroesophageal reflux disease. * A systematic approach to the evaluation of cough can minimize the...

Post-test.(CME)
June 1, 2004... EXPIRATION DATE JUNE 2005 Please take this CME Post-test online at www.aapa.org. Hartsell ZC, Will KK. Looking through the heparin window: perioperative anticoagulation. JAAPA. 2004; 17(6):21-25. Ritz HJ. Pinning down the cause of...

Two ulcerative, necrotic lesions--and a history of HIV infection.(Dermatology digest: a derm photo quiz)
June 1, 2004... A 35-year-old HIV-infected man presented to the dermatology clinic with two ulcerative and necrotic skin lesions on the middle back that he had noticed 4 days earlier (see Figure 1). The left lesion measured 4x4 cm and the right measured 2x2...

Useful signs and symptoms to evaluate vaginal complaints.(Poems: patient-oriented evidence that matters)
June 1, 2004... Clinical question How useful are the history, physical examination, and routine office-based laboratory studies in the diagnosis of vaginitis? Bottom line In the diagnosis of vaginitis, useful symptoms include information about odor and...

Statins also prevent strokes in high-risk patients.(Poems: patient-oriented evidence that matters)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Clinical question Does lipid lowering with statins prevent stroke? Bottom line In a select group of compliant, high-risk patients, simvastatin (Zocor) slightly reduced the rate of stroke, except in those patients with known cerebrovascular...

3 days of Cipro adequate for UTI in healthy older women.(Poems: patient-oriented evidence that matters)(urinary tract infection)
June 1, 2004... Clinical question Is 3 days of ciprofloxacin as effective as 7 to 10 days of the same drug for older women with urinary tract infection? Bottom line This reasonably large study found that 3 days of ciprofloxacin (Cipro) twice daily is as...

CME calendar.(Calendar)
June 1, 2004... FLORIDA July 27-31 29th Annual Convention & Exhibition. Where: Destin/Fort Walton Beach. Provider: Georgia Association of PAs. Information: www.gapa.net. August 4-8 FAPA Annual Summer Symposium. Where: Marco Island. Provider: Florida...

Case of the month: diagnostic challenges from your case files.
June 1, 2004... Patrick E. Scanlon, PA-C; David Schifter, MD, FACC; Terrence J. Sacchi, MD, FACC; Joseph A. Puma, DO, FACC CASE Mrs. G. is a 57-year-old woman who presented to a cardiologist with several months of generalized edema, fatigue, and...