Residency

OBJECTIVES: The objective of the study is to compare traditional nurse triage (TNT) in a pediatric emergency department (PED) with physician telepresence (PTP). METHODS: This is a prospective 2 × 2 crossover study with random assignment using a sample of walk-in patients seeking care in a PED at a large, tertiary care children's hospital, from May 2012 to January 2013. Outcomes of triage times, documentation errors, triage scores, and survey responses were compared between TNT and PTP...

BACKGROUND: Radiation dose exposure is increased in multislice spiral computed tomography (MSCT) compared to conventional coronary angiography (CXA). METHODS: Retrospective data analysis of 56 patients (66+/-8 years, 49 males, body surface area 1.98+/-0.18 m(2), heart rate 64+/-11 bpm) who underwent MSCT and CXA was performed (MSCT: 16-slice scanner, rotation time 0.375 s, 120 kV, ECG-pulsing; CXA: current technique system build in 2003). Ten patients with bypass grafts underwent bypass angiography in CXA and MSCT...

BACKGROUND: The double-blind phase of the EARLY study of bosentan remains the only randomized controlled trial of a PAH-targeted therapy in World Health Organization functional class (FC) II patients. We report on the efficacy, safety, disease worsening, survival and prognostic factors in mildly symptomatic pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) patients treated with bosentan in the open-label extension phase of the EARLY study. METHODS: Exploratory efficacy outcomes included 6-minute walk distance (6 MWD) and WHO FC...

BACKGROUND: Adequate calcium intake is known to protect the skeleton. However, studies that have reported adverse effects of calcium supplementation on vascular events have raised widespread concern. OBJECTIVE: We assessed the association between calcium intake (from diet and supplements) and coronary artery calcification, which is a measure of atherosclerosis that predicts risk of ischemic heart disease independent of other risk factors. DESIGN: This was an observational, prospective cohort study...

To determine the sensitivities and specificities of ventilation/perfusion lung scans for acute pulmonary embolism, a random sample of 933 of 1493 patients was studied prospectively. Nine hundred thirty-one underwent scintigraphy and 755 underwent pulmonary angiography; 251 (33%) of 755 demonstrated pulmonary embolism. Almost all patients with pulmonary embolism had abnormal scans of high, intermediate, or low probability, but so did most without pulmonary embolism (sensitivity, 98%; specificity, 10%). Of 116 patients with high-probability scans and definitive angiograms, 102 (88%) had pulmonary embolism, but only a minority with pulmonary embolism had high-probability scans (sensitivity, 41%; specificity, 97%)...

BACKGROUND: A recent meta-analysis found that cholecalciferol (vitamin D) should reduce falls by more than 20%. However, little is known about whether supplemental cholecalciferol plus calcium citrate malate will lower the long-term risk of falling in men, active older individuals, and older individuals with higher 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels. METHODS: We studied the effect of 3-year supplementation with cholecalciferol-calcium on the risk of falling at least once in 199 men and 246 women 65 years or older and living at home...

BACKGROUND: Primary pulmonary hypertension is a progressive disease for which no treatment has been shown in a prospective, randomized trial to improve survival. METHODS: We conducted a 12-week prospective, randomized, multicenter open trial comparing the effects of the continuous intravenous infusion of epoprostenol (formerly called prostacyclin) plus conventional therapy with those of conventional therapy alone in 81 patients with severe primary pulmonary hypertension (New York Heart Association functional class III or IV)...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

BACKGROUND: Used frequently for right ventricular dysfunction (RVD), the clinical benefit of inhaled nitric oxide (iNO) is still unclear. We conducted a randomized, double-blind, controlled trial to determine the effect of iNO on post-operative outcomes in the setting of left ventricular assist device (LVAD) placement. METHODS: Included were 150 patients undergoing LVAD placement with pulmonary vascular resistance ≥ 200 dyne/sec/cm(-5). Patients received iNO (40 ppm) or placebo (an equivalent concentration of nitrogen) until 48 hours after separation from cardiopulmonary bypass, extubation, or upon meeting study-defined RVD...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

DESCRIPTION: Update of the 2003 U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommendation on screening for dementia. METHODS: The USPSTF reviewed the evidence on the benefits, harms, and sensitivity and specificity of screening instruments for cognitive impairment in older adults and the benefits and harms of commonly used treatment and management options for older adults with mild cognitive impairment or early dementia and their caregivers. POPULATION: This recommendation applies to universal screening with formal screening instruments in community-dwelling adults in the general primary care population who are older than 65 years and have no signs or symptoms of cognitive impairment...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

BACKGROUND: Arthroscopic partial meniscectomy is one of the most common orthopedic procedures, yet rigorous evidence of its efficacy is lacking. METHODS: We conducted a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, sham-controlled trial in 146 patients 35 to 65 years of age who had knee symptoms consistent with a degenerative medial meniscus tear and no knee osteoarthritis. Patients were randomly assigned to arthroscopic partial meniscectomy or sham surgery. The primary outcomes were changes in the Lysholm and Western Ontario Meniscal Evaluation Tool (WOMET) scores (each ranging from 0 to 100, with lower scores indicating more severe symptoms) and in knee pain after exercise (rated on a scale from 0 to 10, with 0 denoting no pain) at 12 months after the procedure...

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to investigate the long-term efficacy and safety of paresthesia-free high-frequency spinal cord stimulation (HF10 SCS) for the treatment of chronic, intractable pain of the low back and legs. DESIGN: Prospective, multicenter, observational study. METHOD: Patients with significant chronic low back pain underwent implantation of a spinal cord stimulator capable of HF10 SCS. Patients' pain ratings, disability, sleep disturbances, opioid use, satisfaction, and adverse events were assessed for 24 months...

OBJECTIVE: To systematically review the risk of mortality associated with long term use of tiotropium delivered using a mist inhaler for symptomatic improvement in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. DATA SOURCES: Medline, Embase, the pharmaceutical company clinical trials register, the US Food and Drug Administration website, and ClinicalTrials.gov for randomised controlled trials from inception to July 2010. STUDY SELECTION: Trials were selected for inclusion if they were parallel group randomised controlled trials of tiotropium solution using a mist inhaler (Respimat Soft Mist Inhaler, Boehringer Ingelheim) versus placebo for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; the treatment duration was more than 30 days, and they reported data on mortality...

BACKGROUND: Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the United States. Dietary factors account for at least 30% of all cancers in Western countries. As people do not consume individual foods but rather combinations of them, the assessment of dietary patterns may offer valuable information when determining associations between diet and cancer risk. METHODS: We examined the association between dietary patterns (non-vegetarians, lacto, pesco, vegan, and semi-vegetarian) and the overall cancer incidence among 69,120 participants of the Adventist Health Study-2...

AIM: We sought to examine the short- and long-term outcomes of patients who developed contrast-induced acute kidney injury (CI-AKI; defined as an increase in serum creatinine of ≥0.5 mg/dL or a 25% relative rise within 48 h after contrast exposure) from the large-scale HORIZONS-AMI trial. METHODS AND RESULTS: Multivariable analyses were used to identify predictors of CI-AKI, as well predictors of the primary and secondary endpoints. The incidence of CI-AKI in this cohort of ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) patients was 16...

IMPORTANCE: More than one-third of adults and 17% of youth in the United States are obese, although the prevalence remained stable between 2003-2004 and 2009-2010. OBJECTIVE: To provide the most recent national estimates of childhood obesity, analyze trends in childhood obesity between 2003 and 2012, and provide detailed obesity trend analyses among adults. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: Weight and height or recumbent length were measured in 9120 participants in the 2011-2012 nationally representative National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey...

CONTEXT: The optimal duration of treatment of women with postmenopausal osteoporosis is uncertain. OBJECTIVE: To compare the effects of discontinuing alendronate treatment after 5 years vs continuing for 10 years. DESIGN AND SETTING: Randomized, double-blind trial conducted at 10 US clinical centers that participated in the Fracture Intervention Trial (FIT). PARTICIPANTS: One thousand ninety-nine postmenopausal women who had been randomized to alendronate in FIT, with a mean of 5 years of prior alendronate treatment...

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the degree of knowledge about pain management and opioids use by professionals working at three pediatric units. DESIGN: This is a cross-sectional study. SETTING: This study was carried out at three pediatric units (pediatrics, intensive care unit, and oncology) of Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, which is a university hospital located in southern Brazil. SUBJECT: The subjects of this study include physicians, pharmacists, physiotherapists, nurses, nursing technicians, and nursing assistants...