Family Medicine

A recent study found each missed physician visit increases an HIV patient's risk of death by 12 percent.

In a cohort of family medicine physicians, researchers found a strong inverse relationship between confidence and comfort toward opioid prescribing and concern about negative consequences.

As the doctor shopping rate for immediate-release single entity oxycodone increased by 9 percent, reformulated extended-release OxyContin's doctor shopping rate fell by 40 percent.

Researchers determine that recurrent miscarriage risk is elevated in women who carry the ACE I/D polymorphism.

Lisa M. McElhaney addresses the limited education, awareness, and prevention of bullying within pain management practices.

Commander John J. Burke details how pain management practitioners can adequately protect themselves from prescription drug diverters without hurting their legitimate patients.

Jennifer E. Bolen, JD, says it's the responsibility of physicians - not labs - to ensure drug testing reports comply with federal and state guidelines in the event of an audit.

Michael R. Clark, MD, MPH, MBA, outlines the vulnerabilities that put patients with acute pain at risk of transitioning into new chronic pain.

A panel of three experts from the legal side of pain management said investigations into prescribers after patient deaths resulting from opioid overdose are rare and overblown.

When alcohol consumption is a concern, it's better to prescribe antiretroviral therapy in HIV patients than to withhold it, according to a group of researchers at University Hospital of Berne in Switzerland.

Using nutritional supplement mixtures consisting of arginine, glutamine, and beta-hydroxy-beta-methylbutyrate (HMB) may speed up wound healing in diabetic foot ulcers.

In a study published in Experimental and Therapeutic Medicine, a professor in the Department of Digestive System at Xingtai People's Hospital in China, investigated the correlation between psychological status and the mechanism of action of pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines in patients with diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome (IBS-D).

In a clinical review published in Clinical and Experimental Gastroenterology, researchers from Iwate Medical University in Japan evaluated the long-term safety and efficacy of the novel serotonin-receptor agonist ramosetron in patients suffering from diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome (IBS-D).

Even when it's administered in a low-dose form that resists gastric acid and prevents tablet dissolution in the stomach, aspirin therapy causes peptic ulcer and increases the risk of 30-day mortality resulting from gastrointestinal (GI) disorder progression.

Reviews of crofelemer showed the drug's clinical utility in diarrhea associated with HIV, but clinical trials comparing it to other antidiarrheals are still needed.

Scaling up preventative isoniazid therapy can curb tuberculosis development and related death in patients infected with HIV, according to research published online Aug. 16 in Lancet Infectious Diseases.

Though patients may not disclose suicidal thoughts and behaviors to their physicians, their blood test results can be dead giveaways.

Fibromyalgia patients who don't respond to Lyrica (pregabalin) may see their pain scores significantly improve after adding Savella (milnacipran) to their treatment regimens.

Though many patients indicate side effects as the reason they stop taking their prescribed statins, clinical trials have not documented high discontinuation rates due to adverse drug reactions.

Researchers have published their findings from the NIH-sponsored Look AHEAD clinical trial in three areas relevant to type 2 diabetes management.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a new tablet to treat a broad population of HIV-infected adults and children in combination with other antiretroviral (ARV) agents.

Though memory concerns voiced by older adult patients often get dismissed as normal cognitive aging, a study from two national centers devoted to Alzheimer's disease research suggests cognitive complaints from at least two sources can accurately predict a non-demented patient's risk of developing dementia.

Steven P. Levine, MD, recommends selecting a biologic intervention from column A and a psychotherapy agent from column B to effectively treat depression and anxiety.

Patients who are unaware that they have diabetes may have less contact with healthcare professionals, receive less aggressive treatment, or have a poorer understanding of the disease and the actions required to treat it - all of which may be responsible for their increased risk of morbidity and mortality.

Surgeons and hospitals are concerned about perioperative risk reduction for obstructive sleep apnea patients.

As the risk assessment of suicide attempts remains tremendously challenging due to the lack of clinical markers, researchers across five different countries studied the pathological significance of psychotic symptoms in terms of their influence on suicidal behavior.

In clinical testing, the MD-Logic Artificial Pancreas system significantly improved overnight glucose control and decreased the duration of hypoglycemia in type 1 diabetes patients.

While substantial evidence already shows several genetic and environmental elements factor into immune-mediated rheumatic disease susceptibility, a recent review of hospital admissions data suggests vitamin D deficiency can single-handedly elevate a patient's risk of developing certain chronic conditions within that group of disorders.

The delivery of fecal microflora from "normal" stool from healthy donors by jejunal tube or during colonic endoscopy to promote microflora growth in the recipient is becoming more common.

Research findings from a group of Midwest-based investigators suggest bipolar disorder (BD) is linked to different illness burdens in binge eaters compared to obese patients who do not experience compulsive episodes of uncontrollable overeating.