Internal Medicine News articles from December 2008

Internal Medicine News archives from December 2008

Statin curbs events in elevated CRP.(News)(C-reactive protein)
December 1, 2008... NEW ORLEANS -- Rosuvastatin reduced the risk of major cardiovascular events in healthy persons with elevated levels of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein but normal LDL cholesterol levels in an international study of nearly 18,000 patients....

Chronic kidney disease: statins not renoprotective: cardiovascular event rate may be reduced.(News)
December 1, 2008... PHILADELPHIA -- The use of statin drugs did not significantly delay the decline in renal function in patients with chronic kidney disease in two recent studies, although some benefits were seen in the prevention of cardiovascular events in...

NIH consensus statement surveys hepatitis B care.(News)(National Institutes of Health)
December 1, 2008... A new National Institutes of Health consensus statement on the management of patients with hepatitis B offers only general recommendations and emphasizes that more research is needed to substantiate the effect of therapy on development of...

Fielding questions about Alzheimer's.
December 1, 2008... A diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease presents a stark reality for patients and their families. The words unleash a flood of questions. Patients may feel we are handing them a death sentence. And while the outlook is certainly not bright, a...

Pain relievers.(Opinion)(Cartoon)
December 1, 2008... "We don't have a treadmill, so the stress test here is waiting two hours to see a doctor."

Uninsured buy luxuries, not health care.(LETTERS)(Letter to the editor)
December 1, 2008... I must respectfully disagree with Dr. Steffie Woolhandler and her opposition to consumer-directed health care ("Do High-Deductible Plans Coupled With HSAs Promote Underinsurance?" Point/Counterpoint, July 1, 2008, p. 14). She attempts to...

Collections of physician writers.(LETTERS)(Letter to the editor)
December 1, 2008... I read your article on Dr. Daniel C. Bryant with great interest ("Revering the Work of Physician Writers," Sept. 15, 2008, p. 42). My father, Benjamin Bernard Weinstein, M.D., established three collections of works by physician writers at...

Tai chi may be beneficial in knee osteoarthritis.(Rheumatology)
December 1, 2008... SAN FRANCISCO -- The gentle martial art tai chi significantly improved pain and physical function in a randomized, controlled trial in 40 patients with knee osteoarthritis. Participants were randomly selected to attend hour-long classes...

TNF blockers don't increase cancer risk in patients with history of malignancy.(Rheumatology)(tumor necrosis factor)
December 1, 2008... SAN FRANCISCO -- Use of a tumor necrosis factor blocker docs not increase the risk of most cancers in patients with rheumatoid arthritis and a history of malignancy, judging from the findings of a large registry cohort study. The one...

NSAID response can be predicted at 2 weeks.(Rheumatology)(Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory agents)(Brief article)
December 1, 2008... PARIS -- The overwhelming majority of osteoarthritis patients who will respond favorably to a given COX-2 selective NSAID will do so within the first 2 weeks, a pooled analysis of two placebo-controlled clinical trials has shown. Thus, the...

New antidepressant effective in fibromyalgia.(Rheumatology)
December 1, 2008... CHICAGO -- Milnacipran, the first in a new class of dual norepinephrine and serotonin reuptake inhibitors, significantly improved the multiple core symptoms of fibromyalgia regardless of severity of baseline depressive symptoms in a...

Patients with fibromyalgia respond to tailored psychotherapy.(Rheumatology)
December 1, 2008... PARIS -- Success rates for nonpharmacologic therapy in patients with fi bromyalgia are climbing to previously unattainable levels by tailoring psychotherapy in accord with patient characteristics. It is best to intervene before the physical...

Smoking cessation reduces disease burden in RA.(Rheumatology)(rheumatoid arthritis)(Clinical report)
December 1, 2008... SAN FRANCISCO -- Preliminary research suggests that rheumatoid arthritis patients who quit smoking may experience fewer swollen and tender joints and improved C-reactive protein levels, among other measures of improved disease activity,...

Lupus clinical trials education resource.(Rheumatology)(www.lupus.org/clinicaltrials)(The Lupus Foundation of America's Center for Clinical Trials Education )(Brief article)
December 1, 2008... The Lupus Foundation of America's Center for Clinical Trials Education is a resource to learn about and join lupus clinical trials. The Center's Web site has extensive information about clinical trials and participation in them, as well as...

Factors predict remission with DMARD use.(Rheumatology)(Disease-modifying antirheumatic drug)(Brief article)
December 1, 2008... PARIS -- Factors that predict which rheumatoid arthritis patients will achieve and maintain remission after taking disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs include low body mass index, low erythrocyte sedimentation rate levels, and absence of...

Candesartan does not prevent microalbuminuria.(Nephrology)
December 1, 2008... PHILADELPHIA -- Nearly 5 years of treatment with the angiotensin type 1 receptor blocker candesartan did not provide statistical benefit in the prevention of microalbuminuria in patients with diabetes, according to a new post hoc analysis. ...

Steroid helps boost survival in IgA nephropathy.(Nephrology)(Immunoglobulin A)
December 1, 2008... PHILADELPHIA -- The addition of prednisone to an angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor was associated with improved renal survival in a long-term prospective study of patients with proteinuric IgA nephropathy. IgA nephropathy, the most...

Thyroid mimetics promising for lipid lowering.(Endocrinology)
December 1, 2008... CHICAGO -- A new generation of oral selective thyroid hormone receptor agonists is showing promise for the treatment of dyslipidemia, obesity, and metabolic syndrome. For one of these agents, 3,5-diiodothyropropionic acid (DITPA), it's a...

Some drugs interfere with thyroxine absorption.(Endocrinology)
December 1, 2008... SAN FRANCISCO -- A few hours' buffer between taking thyroxine and other medications can help ensure optimal absorption of the thyroid hormone, according to several researchers. Many nutritional supplements and commonly prescribed...

Prevalence of thyroid disease associated with race and sex.(Endocrinology)(Survey)(Brief article)
December 1, 2008... CHICAGO -- The prevalence of thyroid cancer and other forms of thyroid disease in the United States is markedly greater among whites and females, according to preliminary data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey for...

Thyroidectomy best approach for micropapillary thyroid cancer.(Endocrinology)
December 1, 2008... CHICAGO -- Patients with multifocal micropapillary thyroid cancer who received less than a near-total thyroidectomy had a threefold higher recurrence rate in a National Thyroid Cancer Treatment Cooperative Study Group investigation. "Our...

New thyroid cancer drug class making waves.(Endocrinology)
December 1, 2008... CHICAGO -- Nothing less than a revolution in the management of refractory thyroid cancer is close at hand in the form of oral small molecule tyrosine kinase inhibitors targeting the vascular endothelial growth factor receptor, according to...

Watch side effects when using TKIs for thyroid cancer.(Endocrinology)(tyrosine kinase inhibitors)
December 1, 2008... CHICAGO -- The use of vascular endothelial growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors to treat patients with refractory thyroid cancer can lead to problematic side effects, according to Dr. Yariv Houvras. The side effects common to...

Cyclosporine benefits seen for interstitial cystitis.(Urology)
December 1, 2008... LAKE BUENA VISTA, FLA. -- Patients with severe, refractory interstitial cystitis may benefit from immunosuppressive therapy with cyclosporine, according to several studies. The cause of interstitial cystitis (IC), also known as painful...

Web tool helps focus decision making in prostate cancer.(Urology)
December 1, 2008... BOSTON -- An investigational Web-based clinical decision-making tool might help physicians guide patients with newly diagnosed locally confined prostate cancer through a bewildering maze of options, reported its chief architect. The free...

Melanoma risk associated with solar elastosis.(Dermatology)
December 1, 2008... SAN FRANCISCO -- Sun exposure was associated with an increased risk for cutaneous melanoma in two studies, but more research is needed to prove a causal relationship, the investigators agreed. The two retrospective studies considered me...

Consider extra vitamin D for sun-safe patients.(Dermatology)
December 1, 2008... SANTA BARBARA, CALIF. -- A "care collision" with vitamin D proponents can be avoided by ensuring that patients receive supplements to compensate for their lack of exposure to ultraviolet light, a California-based dermatologist suggested. ...

Text messages to patients may boost their use of sunscreen.(Dermatology)
December 1, 2008... KYOTO, JAPAN -- Daily cell phone text message reminders to slather on sunscreen doubled the adherence rate in a randomized controlled trial. "Text messaging could be a low-cost, effective model for improving adherence to topical agents in...

Risk factors for tanning dependence identified.(Dermatology)(Survey)
December 1, 2008... Tanning dependence, sometimes called "tanorexia," is common in young adults and can be predicted by certain demographic and behavioral variables, according to a survey of 400 college students. More than a quarter (27%) of survey respondents...

New Alzheimer's susceptibility genes discovered.(Neurology)
December 1, 2008... The first family-based genome-wide association study for Alzheimer's disease has identified four new genes that may significantly affect the risk of developing the disease. The gene with the strongest association lies on chromosome 14, not...

Retinal thinning seen in Parkinson's disease.(Neurology)(Clinical report)
December 1, 2008... SALT LAKE CITY -- The inner and outer layers of the retina were found to be significantly thinner in patients with Parkinson's disease, compared with those layers in normal age-matched controls in a study conducted at the SUNY Downstate Medical...

Older antiepileptics, polytherapy linked to more adverse effects.(Neurology)
December 1, 2008... MADRID -- Adverse events are more common in patients who take older antiepileptic drugs or who take more than one antiepileptic, compared with those on monotherapy or newer agents. "The adverse effect profiles of antiepileptic drugs are...

Pregabalin can be effective addition for some seizures.(Neurology)
December 1, 2008... MADRID -- Pregabalin is an effective add-on therapy for refractory partial seizures in adults aged 50 years and older, according to a post hoc analysis that included 335 patients. The analysis extracted data on patients aged 50 years and...

Incidentalomas associated with genomic screening.(GENETICS IN YOUR PRACTICE)
December 1, 2008... Imagine what would happen if all of the patients in your practice were given direct access, outside of the context of routine medical care, to "screening blood cultures." You could predict that most of the results would be negative and...

Gene variants can predict mortality in multiple myeloma.(GENETICS IN YOUR PRACTICE)(Disease/Disorder overview)
December 1, 2008... Genetic variants in the DNA of patients with multiple myeloma appear to strongly influence survival, a groundbreaking new genomic study has concluded. In this first pass at identifying genetic markers for survival, treatment response, and...

Americans fall short on three vital nutrients.(Genetics in Your Practice)
December 1, 2008... ARLINGTON, VA. -- Half of the US. population doesn't get enough calcium, magnesium, and potassium to meet government recommendations, according to data from a study of more than 25,000 people. "The American population is overweight but...

TNF blocker may help Crohn's disease.(Gastroenterology)(Clinical report)
December 1, 2008... ORLANDO -- Endoscopic improvement occurred in more than 60% of Crohn's disease patients after 10 weeks of treatment with a pegylated biologic agent, certolizumab pegol. The study was the first prospective, phase III, multi-center, open-label...

Reducing gastrointestinal risks of NSAID therapy.(THE EFFECTIVE PHYSICIAN)(Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs)
December 1, 2008... Background Antiplatelet agents are being used more frequently and for more prolonged durations; as a result, it is vital for clinicians to know the associated risk of gastrointestinal bleeding and strategies to minimize this risk. A...

Young women lack knowledge about chlamydia.
December 1, 2008... WASHINGTON -- Sexually active women aged 15-25 years have little awareness about chlamydia or that there is a simple urine-based diagnostic test to detect the pathogen, according to a recent phone survey conducted by the Centers for Disease...

Prasugrel's benefit for ACS enhanced in diabetics.(Cardiovascular Medicine)(Clinical report)
December 1, 2008... MUNICH -- The investigational antiplatelet drug prasugrel was particularly effective for cutting ischemic events in patients with diabetes and relatively less effective in patients without diabetes in a prespecified analysis of the more than...

Greater coffee consumption linked to lower MI mortality.(Cardiovascular Medicine)(Myocardial infarction)(Brief article)
December 1, 2008... MUNICH -- Prognosis following an acute MI may be better for people who drink more coffee on a regular basis. The mechanism for the observed inverse relationship between usual coffee intake and mortality after MI remains unknown. It doesn't...

Smoking's cardiac effects appear 14.5 years earlier in women.(Cardiovascular Medicine)(Brief article)
December 1, 2008... MUNICH -- Women who smoke tend to have their first acute MI considerably earlier in life than do male smokers. This observation in a Norwegian case-control study suggests that smoking increases the risk of cardiovascular disease to a...

Aspirin cut CV risk in diabetics over age 64.(Cardiovascular Medicine)
December 1, 2008... NEW ORLEANS -- Aspirin therapy is commonly used for primary prevention of cardiovascular events in persons with type 2 diabetes, but a Japanese study of 2,539 subjects found no significant reduction in the primary end point of total...

Even low-risk patients may have plaque on CTA.(Cardiovascular Medicine)(computed tomographic angiography )(Clinical report)
December 1, 2008... BOSTON -- Direct screening for atherosclerosis using CT coronary angiography may provide a more accurate cardiovascular risk picture than do routine clinical predictors. However, the value of the imaging method in asymptomatic patients must be...

Medicaid cutbacks push uninsured into EDs.(Practice Trends)(Emergency Departments)
December 1, 2008... CHICAGO -- Medicaid cutbacks in Tennessee were associated with an abrupt and sustained increase in emergency department use and hospital admission among the uninsured, research shows. In August 2005, the state of Tennessee disenrolled...

Poor marks for PQRI.(POLICY & PRACTICE)(Physician Quality Reporting Initiative )(Survey)(Brief article)
December 1, 2008... Most physicians who participated in Medicare's 2007 Physician Quality Reporting Initiative found the program at least moderately difficult, according to a survey conducted by the American Medical Association. Only 22% of respondents to the...

Many have drug 'gap' coverage.(POLICY & PRACTICE)(Brief article)
December 1, 2008... A total of 13% of Medicare beneficiaries enrolled in Part D prescription drug plans and 63% of those in Medicare Advantage plans with prescription benefits had some form of coverage in the "doughnut hole," or coverage gap, according to a...

Resuscitation practices ineffective.(POLICY & PRACTICE)(Survey)(Brief article)
December 1, 2008... An overwhelming majority of emergency physicians believe that resuscitation practices in the United States are not very effective, according to a survey released by the American College of Emergency Physicians. In addition, more than half of...

HIPAA enforcement 'limited'.(POLICY & PRACTICE)(Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act )(Report)(Brief article)
December 1, 2008... The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has not provided effective oversight and has taken only "limited actions" to ensure that covered entities adequately implement patient privacy regulations contained in the Health Insurance...

Mass. Blues require e-prescribing.(POLICY & PRACTICE)(Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Massachusetts Inc.)(Brief article)
December 1, 2008... Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts said it will require all physicians to prescribe electronically beginning in 2011 in order to qualify for any of the health plan's physician incentive programs. Currently, 99% of primary care physicians...

Program cuts illicit drug use.(POLICY & PRACTICE)(Brief article)
December 1, 2008... A government-supported program used to screen patients seeking health care for signs of substance abuse can reduce illicit drug use among patients seeking medical care in a wide variety of health care settings, a study found. The Screening,...

Medicaid substance abuse screening funds go unused.(Practice Trends)
December 1, 2008... WASHINGTON -- More than $260 million in Medicaid funds set aside to pay physicians to conduct brief screening and interventions for substance abuse are practically untouched, according to federal experts in the White House Office of National...

Health reform '09: major overhaul--or not.(Practice Trends)
December 1, 2008... WASHINGTON -- Can President-elect Barack Obama really shepherd through major health reform? Not until the Medicare physician payment system gets fixed, according to Robert Laszewski. "How do you plan a health care budget in Medicare and the...

Long-term care is overlooked in health reform discussions.(Practice Trends)
December 1, 2008... WASHINGTON -- The topic of long-term care isn't making the cut as part of otherwise excited discussions of potential health care reform in the next administration, according to political observers, advocates, and insurance representatives ...

Physician-rating program used by Aetna meets NCQA standards.(Practice Trends)
December 1, 2008... Aetna Inc.'s physician-rating program recently received a passing grade from the National Committee for Quality Assurance. The evaluation was conducted under a 2007 agreement between Aetna and New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, and was...

Of 8 nations, more U.S. patients calling for reform.(Practice Trends)
December 1, 2008... In an eight-nation survey of people with chronic conditions, patients in the Netherlands were most positive about their country's health care system--reporting affordable, accessible care with low rates of errors--while U.S. patients were the...

Enhancing medical education in Africa: global perspectives on medical practice.(WORLD WIDE MED)(Interview)
December 1, 2008... A desire for travel and exploration and a dedication to students have been two driving forces in Dr. Michael Alkan's career as an internist and an educator. "I went into the area of infectious dis ease because--with the current exception...

Survey shows wide use of active placebos.(Practice Trends)
December 1, 2008... A survey of internists and rheumatologists suggests that prescribing active "placebos" is relatively common, even though ethicists generally frown on the use of such therapies, especially if the patient is not informed. The survey was...

Medicaid spending likely to outpace U.S. economy.(Practice Trends)
December 1, 2008... The price tag for medical assistance under Medicaid is expected to reach nearly $674 billion over the next decade, with the federal government picking up more than $383 billion of the cost, according to projections from the Centers for Medicare...

Plugging the blog.(INDICATIONS)(weirdmedicalnews.wordpress.com)(Brief article)
December 1, 2008... Devoted followers of Indications are no doubt aware that the Internet offers a vast array of Web sites devoted to weird science, weird medicine, weird behavior, and general weirdness--you name it. But in case you haven't heard, our San...

The self-correcting couch potato.(INDICATIONS)(Brief article)
December 1, 2008... Is it possible that couch-potato-ism could be self-correcting? That's the startling implication of a study conducted by researchers at Laval University in Quebec City. Published in the peer-reviewed journal Psychosomatic Medicine, the...

Designer vaginas maligned.(INDICATIONS)(Report)(Brief article)
December 1, 2008... As reported by the BBC, Professor Linda Cardozo of King's College Hospital, London, expressed serious reservations about the increasing prevalence of cosmetic vaginal surgery. At a medical conference in Toronto, she noted that a Google search...

CT colonography detects bone loss.(News)(computed tomography)
December 15, 2008... CHICAGO -- CT colonography can screen as reliably for osteoporosis as dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry and can be used to screen simultaneously for bone loss and colorectal cancer, a study of 35 patients suggests. Of the currently accepted...

Health premiums in Michigan rose 17 times faster than median earnings from 2000 to 2007.(VITAL SIGNS)
December 15, 2008... Note: Based on data from the U.S. Census Bureau, the Department of Labor, and the Department of Health and Human Services. Source: Families USA

Program improves implementation of advance directives: medical form documents patient's wishes.(News)
December 15, 2008... NATIONAL HARBOR, MD.-- A program designed to communicate specific end-of-life treatment preferences has been shown to be effective at limiting the use of unwanted life-sustaining treatments and translating the treatment preferences of dying...

Gulf War syndrome real, merits treatment studies.(News)
December 15, 2008... It's been a long time coming for veterans whose health complaints have been met with skepticism, but a federal panel has determined that Gulf War syndrome is not only real, it is tied to two causes: exposure to pyridostigmine bromide and...

Folic acid may prevent infant heart defects.(News)
December 15, 2008... NEW ORLEANS--Periconceptual folic acid supplementation appears to reduce by nearly 20% the overall risk of congenital heart defects, a Dutch case-control study has shown. Periconceptual folic acid supplementation at 400 mcg/day is already...

Magnetic stimulation approved for depression.(News)
December 15, 2008... The Food and Drug Administration has cleared a noninvasive device that delivers magnetic stimulation to the brain for treating depression in adults, according to Neuronetics Inc., the manufacturer of the device. The FDA cleared the...

Rise in MRSA-related sinusitis warrants cultures.(News)(methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus)
December 15, 2008... WASHINGTON--A steep increase in the proportion of sinusitis cases caused by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus should drive health care providers to broaden the use of cultures in areas where the prevalence of MRSA is high, a new study...

hsCRP could be a useful screening tool.(POINT/COUNTERPOINT)(C-reactive protein)
December 15, 2008... Do the results of the JUPITER trial warrant broader screening for C-reactive protein? The results of the recent JUPITER (Justification for the Use of Statins in Prevention: an Intervention Trial Evaluating Rosuvastatin) trial showed that...

Absolute risk demands a more thoughtful approach.(POINT/COUNTERPOINT)
December 15, 2008... While the association between high-sensitivity CRP and coronary heart disease has been proved with excellent and robust science, we must pause before using hsCRP widely as a clinical screening tool. Many are hailing the JUPITER trial as...

Restore NHSC funding.(LETTERS)(Letter to the editor)
December 15, 2008... In response to your article on community health centers, I work in a CHC in Camden, N.J. ("Doctors in Demand at Health Centers," Oct. 15, p. 1). Many of our patients would have limited access to care because Medicaid rates are so low. We...

Address acne, but use a gentle touch.(LETTERS)(Letter to the editor)
December 15, 2008... There was much that was wonderful about the advice from Dr. Alfred T. Lane, especially the concept of "touching" patients with acne ("Teens Being Treated for Acne May Be Unmotivated," Sept. 15, 2008, p. 28). However, I strongly disagree...

Imagining life on Jupiter.(GUEST EDITORIAL)
December 15, 2008... What will life on JUPITER look like? Put briefly, it will be a world with lots more testing of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) levels, and treating a whole lot more people with statins. Although a lot of the upsurge in statin...

Provenge fails to meet interim study end point.(Urology)
December 15, 2008... A final decision on Provenge will not be possible until mid-2009 at the earliest because the controversial prostate cancer vaccine failed to meet the primary end point in an interim look at data in a critical phase III trial. The interim...

PTSD in vets may present as substance abuse.(Psychiatry)(posttraumatic stress disorder)
December 15, 2008... WASHINGTON--Combat conditions in Iraq and Afghanistan that foster posttraumatic stress disorder are creating a need for interventions among returning veterans to prevent substance abuse that can emerge as a coping mechanism, according to mental...

Acupuncture lessens PTSD, depression, pain in veterans.(Psychiatry)(posttraumatic stress disorder)
December 15, 2008... CHICAGO -- Brief exposure to acupuncture significantly improved the symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder when this treatment was compared with usual care, in a randomized controlled trial in 55 veterans. Traditional Chinese medicine...

Tips for survivors of a traumatic event.(Psychiatry)(Brief article)
December 15, 2008... A fact sheet on posttraumatic stress is available from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. "Tips for Survivors of a Traumatic Event: Managing Your Stress" describes the signs of posttraumatic stress, recommends...

CKD increases risk for cardiovascular events.(Nephrology)(chronic kidney disease)
December 15, 2008... PHILADELPHIA--Hypertensive patients with chronic kidney disease were significantly more likely to experience cardiovascular events than were those with normal renal function, but amlodipine-based treatment may have slowed chronic kidney disease...

Intravenous iron therapy boosts hemoglobin.(Nephrology)
December 15, 2008... PHILADELPHIA--Treatment with the investigational intravenous iron replacement agent ferumoxytol significantly raised hemoglobin levels in patients with chronic kidney disease who had a suboptimal response to oral iron therapy in a post hoc...

Kidney disease information online.(Nephrology)(Brief article)
December 15, 2008... The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has added information about the diagnosis and treatment of kidney disease to its NIHSeniorHealth Web site, which features informative brief items in formats including large type sizes, open-captioned...

Systolic BP tied to mortality in kidney disease.(Nephrology)(blood pressure)
December 15, 2008... PHILADELPHIA--Both high and low predialysis systolic blood pressures are associated with an elevated mortality risk in patients with end-stage renal disease, according to data from a large international study. The National Kidney...

Diabetes/CVD prevention guideline released.(Endocrinology)
December 15, 2008... A new clinical practice guideline from the Endocrine Society gives clinicians strategies to keep type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease at bay in adults with metabolic risk factors. The metabolic risk factors that should raise red flags...

Every 1% rise in hemoglobin [A.sub.1c] increases heart risk by 11%.(Endocrinology)
December 15, 2008... ROME--For every 1% rise in baseline hemoglobin [A.sub.1c], the risk that a patient with type 2 diabetes would later develop coronary heart disease increased by 11% in a large observational study. The risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) was...