Posted on December 6, 2013 by jss
Decline in Deaths from Cardiovascular Disease in Relation to Scientific Advances. The timeline shows the steady decline in cardiovascular deaths over the late 20th and early 21st centuries, along with major advances in cardiovascular science and medicine. ALLHAT denotes Antihypertensive and Lipid-Lowering Treatment to Prevent Heart Attack Trial, CASS Coronary Artery Surgery Study, GISSI Italian...
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Posted on December 5, 2013 by jss
A 30-year-old man was seen in an outpatient clinic at this hospital because of fever and lymphadenopathy. The patient had been well until approximately 2 weeks before presentation, when an enlarging, tender lump developed at the posterior base of the neck on the right side. Two days before presentation, fever to a temperature of 39.4°C,...
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Posted on December 5, 2013 by jss
The Road toward Fully Transparent Medical Records. Forty years ago, Shenkin and Warner argued that giving patients their medical records “would lead to more appropriate utilization of physicians and a greater ability of patients to participate in their own care.” At that time, patients in most states could obtain their records only through litigation, but the...
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Posted on December 5, 2013 by jss
How Early Should Obesity Prevention Start? Obesity has pervaded the United States and is spreading throughout the world. Following in its wake is type 2 diabetes, which will affect at least half a billion people worldwide by 2030. A majority of U.S. women of childbearing age are overweight or obese (as defined by a body-mass...
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Posted on November 9, 2013 by jss
Grading a Physician’s Value — The Misapplication of Performance Measurement Perhaps the only health policy issue on which Republicans and Democrats agree is the need to move from volume-based to value-based payment for health care providers. Rather than paying for activity, the aspirational goal is to pay for outcomes that take into account quality and...
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Posted on October 18, 2013 by jss
On December 4, 2012, two Australian radio DJ s called London’s King Edward VII’s Hospital, identified themselves, in fake British accents, as Queen Elizabeth and Prince Charles, and asked about a celebrity patient who had been admitted for pregnancy complications. A nurse, filling in at the reception desk in the early morning hours, answered the...
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