Category: Conditions

MKSAP: 38-year-old woman with fever and flank pain

Test your medicine knowledge with the MKSAP challenge, in partnership with the American College of Physicians. A 38-year-old woman undergoes follow-up evaluation in the office. She was evaluated in the emergency department 3 nights ago with fever and f…

Don’t lower the voting age, says this neurosurgeon

On several occasions, most recently during a press conference in March 2019, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi has advocated changing the voting age to 16. Pelosi told reporters that lowering the voting age would increase engagement in politics among y…

The uphill battle for scholars in elderly care

Cognitive decline in older adults has been accepted as a normal part of aging. Recall, episodic memories, processing speed, and divided attention are all expected to decrease with time, but the implications of this decay are rarely discussed. Elderly s…

Why an asthma action plan is so important for children

Asthma is a common childhood condition. Estimates are that around 8 percent of all children have it. The incidence had been steadily increasing for many years, but some recent data suggest the burden of the disease in children may have leveled off over…

A hidden cancer success story: declining deaths from melanoma

Here is some news about cancer that isn’t widely known and is hiding in plain sight: Deaths from melanoma — a skin cancer that has lethal potential — have declined dramatically over the past several years. And while that fact alone is surpr…

The default for psychiatric patients: “Send them to the ER”

Here is a standard emergency department situation, played out all across America today. Patient X has schizophrenia.  He takes medication, but only until he feels better.  He is calm when he takes it, but sometimes aggressive and assaultive when out of…

When colon cancer is diagnosed, it’s also a difficult day for the gastroenterologist

Exercising good judgment can mean the difference between life or death. Life can be unforgiving of the choices we make. As we all know, many life events are beyond our control and understanding. But, there is much we can do to shape our paths to a brig…

MKSAP: 23-year-old woman with painful lumps on her legs

Test your medicine knowledge with the MKSAP challenge, in partnership with the American College of Physicians. A 23-year-old woman is evaluated for 2 weeks of painful lumps on her legs. The lumps persist for several days and make it difficult for her t…

Why is the toilet seat the gold standard for germs?

Google that phrase, and you will come up with lots of hits. The following is a partial list of things that have been found to have more germs than a toilet seat: Kitchen cutting boards, sponges and sinks, refrigerators, spatulas, pet food bowls, clean …

After cancer treatment: It’s time to reconsider the ringing of the bell

It’s become a common practice in oncology institutions across North America: A patient completes their prescribed course of treatment and they ring a bell. Usually, it’s a large bell, like one that used to be rung in schools signaling the end of …