Family Medicine

Stress cardiomyopathy is a unique cardiac syndrome in which transient left ventricular (LV) systolic dysfunction mimics acute myocardial infarction (AMI). It is usually brought on by acute emotional or physical stress (or both) and has 3 distinctive features: acute LV wall dysfunction, absence of significant obstructive coronary artery disease, and rapid improvement of LV systolic function within days or weeks.

Xi E. Zheng, MD, PhD, shares her views on young-onset colorectal cancer at 2014 ACG Annual Scientific Meeting in Philadelphia, PA.

Patients diagnosed with diabetic retinopathy may be able to get a sense of how their condition has progressed without having to leave the comfort of their own home.

Monika Fischer, MD, talks about focusing research on patients with more severe IBD symptoms at 2014 ACG Annual Scientific Meeting in Philadelphia, PA.

Monika Fischer, MD, discusses the outcomes of a study assessing fecal microbiota transplantation for c. difficile infection at the 2014 ACG Annual Scientific Meeting in Philadelphia, PA.

In morbidly obese but otherwise morbidly obese patients who had bariatric surgery, cardiovascular, and metabolic improvements were noted after 12 months.

A collaborative effort from researchers at the University of Pennsylvania and University of Florida has yielded plant leaves as a viable treatment for pulmonary hypertension.

Among Latinos, a Native American heritage was linked to a lower rate of asthma development, while an African lineage resulted in an increased asthma risk, researchers at University of California San Francisco found.

By comparing healthy and asthmatic lung cells post-infection, Imperial College London researchers believe they have discovered a new treatment target for asthma.

Prenatal exposure to phthalates, a chemical commonly used in cosmetics, increases children's asthma risk, according to study results published in Environmental Health Perspectives.

Carol Burke, MD, FACG, FASGE, talks about her phase-3 placebo-controlled trial of Celecoxib in pediatric subjects with familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP) at the 2014 ACG Annual Meeting in Philadelphia, PA.

Carol Burke, MD, FACG, FASGE, discusses pediatric familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP) and colorectal cancer at the 2014 ACG Annual Scientific Meeting in Philadelphia, PA.

Study results show that eluxadoline may be useful in patients with diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome (IBS-D) who do not achieve symptom relief with loperamide.

Charles Bernstein, MD, FACG, discusses his research on Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) treatment at the 2014 ACG Annual Meeting in Philadelphia, PA.

Study results show significant regional variations in the types of procedures and tests administered and the number of prescriptions written for patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), as well as in the number of emergency department visits and hospital admissions.

Cushing syndrome occurs only rarely in children, but when it does, it causes weight gain and stunting. In young children, adrenal tumors are usually the cause while in adolescents, pituitary tumors are more likely.

Prompted by almost-epidemic rates of diabetes in the United States and globally, the American Diabetes Association recently convened a consensus panel to examine diabetic kidney disease, one of the most frequent complications associated with diabetes.

Ann Romney announced the launch of a neurologic center in collaboration with Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, set to open in 2016.

John Saltzman, MD, Director of Endoscopy, Brigham and Women's Hospital, shares his experiences and thoughts on endoscopy testing and other topics discussed at the 2014 ACG Annual Meeting in Philadelphia, PA.

John Saltzman, MD, discusses the gastrointestinal tract and the integration of novel gastrointestinal procedures into treatment, and the role of the human microbiome in relation to GI disorders.

Type 2 diabetes occurs at roughly the same prevalence in men and women. Despite the similar prevalence in the sexes, women who develop diabetes feel the effect of its complications disproportionately.

Analysis of a dozen phase III trials indicates that patients with atrial fibrillation face significantly less risk of major, fatal, and intracranial bleeding if they take target-specific oral anticoagulants rather than vitamin K antagonists.

Calculation and interpretation of the anion gap is extremely useful in the evaluation and treatment of the patient with metabolic acidosis. In this installment, we look at case examples involving patients with multiple sclerosis and urosepsis; COPD, diabetes, and renal failure; and type 1 diabetes.

In the era of rapidly improving cure rates for hepatitis C infection, has the importance of staging as part of treatment diminished?

Interim study results presented at ACG 2014 indicate that treatment with vedolizumab safely and effectively maintains long-term clinical remission and response in patients with Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis.

Study results show that patients suffering from active inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) are at risk for poor prognoses following an initial myocardial infarction.

New research provides some of the first concrete support for a treatment guideline that has long been recommended on grounds of common sense alone: Patients who suffer severe allergic reactions such as anaphylaxis should follow up on their emergency room care by seeing an allergist or immunologist.

Inflammatory bowel diseases have an impact on the prognosis of multiple sclerosis, according to a study published in PLOS One.

The brains of children and adolescents with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are slower to develop some key connections, according to a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The incidence of young-onset colorectal cancer is increasing, and the disease is more aggressive pathologically. These findings are being presented at the annual meeting of the American College of Gastroenterology, held from Oct. 17 to 22 in Philadelphia.