OB/GYN Clinical Alert articles from April 2002

OB/GYN Clinical Alert archives from April 2002

Postmenopausal hormone therapy and the risk of breast cancer.
April 1, 2002... ABSTRACT & COMMENTARY CHEN AND COLLEAGUES FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON in Seattle conducted a case-control study of primary invasive breast cancer and postmenopausal hormone therapy. In this study, 705 cases were matched with 692...

Empiric vaginal metronidazole in the management of the ASCUS Pap smear.
April 1, 2002... ABSTRACT & COMMENTARY Synopsis: Empiric vaginal metronidazole should not be used in the management of patients with ASCUS Pap smears. Source: Connor JP, et al. Obstet Gynecol. 2002;99:183-187. THE PURPOSE OF THIS STUDY WAS TO...

Findings in female offspring of women exposed in utero to diethylstilbestrol.
April 1, 2002... ABSTRACT & COMMENTARY Synopsis: Not one of 28 third-generation DES-exposed women had lower genital tract changes. Source: Kaufman RH, Adam E. Obstet Gynecol. 2002; 99:197-200. IN 1974, THE NATIONAL CANCER INSTITUTE FUNDED A large...

Intraperitoneal chemotherapy for ovarian carcinoma.
April 1, 2002... ABSTRACT & COMMENTARY Synopsis: Although prolonged survival was observed in selected patients receiving IP platinum-based therapy, it is not possible to determine the contribution of IP therapy to survival in this study. Source:...

MORE data, MORE questions. (Special Feature).
April 1, 2002... I REMEMBER WHEN I USED TO EAGERLY TURN BACK THE cover of JAMA in anticipation of that week's medical findings. I still have the anticipation, but the sense of potential enlightenment has been replaced by a more utilitarian goal, that of making...

Reader questions.(Letter to the Editor)
April 1, 2002... Question: Dear Editor, In a recent edition of OB/GYN Clinical Alert, Dr. Noller stated that there is no longer any indication for the use of 5-FU in the lower genital tract. In 1999 we published a randomized controlled trial of the use of 5-FU...

GlaxoSmithKline withdrawals Lymerix: Company 'cuts losses' on controversial Lyme disease vaccine.
April 1, 2002... Citing poor sales, GlaxoSmithKline has announced that it is withdrawing Lymerix, the Lyme disease vaccine, from the market. The vaccine was the first, and only, Lyme disease vaccine on the market. Lymerix generated $40 million in sales in 1999,...

Reduction in the incidence of type 2 diabetes with lifestyle intervention or Metformin.
April 1, 2002... Source: Knowler WC, et al. N Engl J Med. 2002;346:393-403. PERSONS WHO ARE AT HIGH RISK FOR developing type 2 diabetes (DM2) include persons with elevated fasting and 2-hour postprandial glucose levels (ie, above normal but not qualifying...

Eradication of Helicobacter pylori and risk of peptic ulcers in patients starting long-term treatment with NSAIDs.
April 1, 2002... Source: Chan FK, et al. Lancet. 2002;359:9-13. THERE ARE A VARIETY OF PATIENT groups that require long-term therapy with NSAIDs, such as arthritis sufferers. That traditional NSAIDs can produce an increased risk of significant GI bleeding...

Physiotherapy for patients with mobility problems more than 1 year after stroke: A randomized controlled trial.
April 1, 2002... Source: Green J, et al. Lancet. 2002;359:199-203. FOR STROKE VICTIMS WHO SUFFER A subsequent decrement in mobility (ie, falls, difficulty in walking, problems getting out of a chair), consequences of such disability are potentially...

BV antibodies and risk of MS.(Epstein-Barr virus; multiple sclerosis)
April 1, 2002... Source: Ascherio A, et al. JAMA. 2001;286:3083-3088. CURRENT THEORIES DOMINANTLY support an autoimmune etiologic basis for multiple sclerosis (MS). An epidemiologic phenomenon peculiar to Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is its pattern of...

Coronary magnetic resonance angiography for the detection of coronary stenoses.
April 1, 2002... Source: Kim WY, et al. N Engl J Med. 2001;345:1863-1869. CORONARY ANGIOGRAPHY (CANG) IS the current gold standard for diagnosis of clinically significant coronary artery disease (CAD), which is generally designated as greater than 50%...

Vitamin A intake and hip fractures among postmenopausal women.
April 1, 2002... Source: Feskanich D, et al. JAMA. 2002;287:47-54. VITAMIN A AND ITS ANALOGUES (VitA) have been shown to produce changes in bone metabolism and structure that would logically increase risk of fracture. In animals, retinoic acid decreases...

Get expert advice to your most-challenging Ob-Gyn questions. (Coding Q & A).(Letter to the Editor)
April 1, 2002... Omental Biopsy Question: Can I code separately for an omental biopsy when a bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy (BSO) is performed? The physician used an abdominal app roach for the BSO, and then excised apiece of the omentum for biopsy. ...