Table of Contents

September 16, 2008; 149 (6)

Articles

  • Massage Therapy versus Simple Touch to Improve Pain and Mood in Patients with Advanced Cancer: A Randomized Trial

    • Jean S. Kutner,
    • Marlaine C. Smith,
    • Lisa Corbin,
    • Linnea Hemphill,
    • Kathryn Benton,
    • B. Karen Mellis,
    • Brenda Beaty,
    • Sue Felton,
    • Traci E. Yamashita,
    • Lucinda L. Bryant,
    • and Diane L. Fairclough
    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:369-379

    Little is known about the effectiveness of massage in managing pain during palliative care. Kutner and colleagues randomly assigned 380 patients with advanced cancer to either massage therapy or simple-touch sessions. Pain and mood improved more after massage therapy than after simple touch, but the 2 treatments had equal effects on pain, quality of life, and analgesic use as measured over 3 weeks. Adverse effects were infrequent and similar in both groups.

  • Risk for Death Associated with Medications for Recently Diagnosed Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

    • Todd A. Lee,
    • A. Simon Pickard,
    • David H. Au,
    • Brian Bartle,
    • and Kevin B. Weiss
    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:380-390

    In this large case–control study, Lee and coworkers measured the association between medications and risk for death in veterans with newly diagnosed chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Inhaled corticosteroids were associated with decreased risk for death, whereas theophylline and ipratropium were associated with increased risk for respiratory and cardiovascular death, respectively.

  • Proton-Pump Inhibitor Use and the Risk for Community-Acquired Pneumonia

    • Monika Sarkar,
    • Sean Hennessy,
    • and Yu-Xiao Yang
    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:391-398

    Some studies suggest that proton-pump inhibitors (PPIs) increase risk for community-acquired pneumonia (CAP). In this large, nested case–control study of adults in general practices in the United Kingdom, long-term PPI use was not associated with increased risk for CAP. However, recently started PPI therapy was associated with increased CAP risk: The adjusted odds ratios for CAP occurring after starting PPIs within 2, 7, and 14 days of CAP diagnosis were 6.5, 3.8, and 3.2, respectively.

  • Brief Communication: The Relationship of Regression of Cirrhosis to Outcome in Chronic Hepatitis C

    • Vincent Mallet,
    • Hélène Gilgenkrantz,
    • Jeanne Serpaggi,
    • Virginie Verkarre,
    • Anaïs Vallet-Pichard,
    • Hélène Fontaine,
    • and Stanislas Pol
    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:399-403

    Mallet and associates studied regression of liver cirrhosis in 96 patients with chronic hepatitis C and biopsy-proven cirrhosis after treatment with an interferon-based regimen. Eighteen patients had biopsy-proven regression of cirrhosis. These patients had better 10-year survival rates than did patients without regression (100% vs. 74%). The study suggests that cirrhosis may be reversible in some patients with chronic hepatitis C.

Academia and Clinic

  • Educational Debt and Reported Career Plans among Internal Medicine Residents

    • Furman S. McDonald,
    • Colin P. West,
    • Carol Popkave,
    • and Joseph C. Kolars
    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:416-420

    McDonald and colleagues surveyed 22 653 internal medicine residents in their final year of residency to determine the relationship between educational debt and reported career plans. They found that the amount of educational debt is associated with such plans. These associations are more pronounced for U.S. medical graduates than for international medical graduates.

History of Medicine

  • Whither Prometheus' Liver? Greek Myth and the Science of Regeneration

    • Carl Power and
    • John E.J. Rasko
    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:421-426

    This myth of Prometheus—the Greek god whose immortal liver was feasted on day after day by Zeus' eagle—invariably provokes the question: Did the ancient Greeks know about the liver's amazing capacity for self-repair? Power and Rasko address this question by exploring the origins of Greek myth and medicine, examining the general theme of regeneration in Greek mythology, and surveying several scholarly interpretations of Prometheus' torture.

Clinical Guidelines

  • Pharmacologic Treatment of Low Bone Density or Osteoporosis to Prevent Fractures: A Clinical Practice Guideline from the American College of Physicians

    • Amir Qaseem,
    • Vincenza Snow,
    • Paul Shekelle,
    • Robert Hopkins, Jr.,
    • Mary Ann Forciea,
    • Douglas K. Owens,
    • and for the Clinical Efficacy Assessment Subcommittee of the American College of Physicians
    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:404-415

    This guideline presents current evidence on pharmacologic treatments to prevent fractures in men and women with low bone density or osteoporosis. The American College of Physicians recommends that clinicians offer pharmacologic treatment to men and women with osteoporosis or a history of fragility fractures. Physicians should consider pharmacologic treatment for men and women at risk for osteoporosis. When choosing among pharmacologic treatments for osteoporosis, physicians should make a patient-specific assessment of their potential harms and benefits.

Editorials

  • Antiviral Treatment for Hepatitis C Cirrhosis: Is the Effort Justified?

    • Martin Black and
    • Rebecca Thomas
    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:427-428

    Many consider treatment of cirrhotic patients too late in the natural history of progressive liver disease to be worthwhile. The concept of treating cirrhotic patients, however, has recently gained popularity. Viral eradication is sometimes accompanied by reversal of cirrhosis, as Mallet and colleagues document in this issue. They demonstrate that the reported improvement in histology is associated with a reduction in cirrhosis-related complications and prolonged survival.

  • When Money Doesn't Change Everything

    • Atul Grover
    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:429-430

    In this issue, McDonald and colleagues demonstrate the relationship between student debt and plans for specialization among internal medicine residents. We may need to look beyond financial issues to understand what attracts physicians to more specialized areas of practice and work to address not only income but also how general internists and specialists practice medicine and what this means for our patients.

On Being a Doctor

  • The Measure of the Man

    • Charles A. Wittnam
    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:431-432

    In the Yellowstone River Valley of Montana, a handshake is still important. Here, handshakes are used to settle the sale of land, timber, and cattle and are always offered in greeting and in farewell. Montanans believe that a handshake provides important information about a person's character, and it is never taken lightly.

  • Listening to Skulls

    • Charity Thoman
    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:433-434

    There on the far wall, skulls peered down. Rows and rows and rows of human skulls. Each sat neatly next to the other, as if politely decapitated to take its place on the wall. They were eclectic and haunting. Who had they been? How had their bones ended up as part of this one man's personal collection?

Letters

  • Is Patient Cost-Sharing the Best Way to Protect the Medical Commons?

    • Robert H. Fletcher,
    • James E. Sabin,
    • and Joseph Dorsey
    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:435

  • Is Patient Cost-Sharing the Best Way to Protect the Medical Commons?

    • Anish P. Mahajan and
    • Robert H. Brook
    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:435-436

  • Monitoring Cholesterol Levels: Understanding Variance and Finding the Most Useful Data

    • Justin W. Timbie
    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:436

  • Monitoring Cholesterol Levels: Understanding Variance and Finding the Most Useful Data

    • William E. Cayley
    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:436-437

  • Monitoring Cholesterol Levels: Understanding Variance and Finding the Most Useful Data

    • Liu Hong,
    • Kaichun Wu,
    • and Daiming Fan
    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:437

  • Monitoring Cholesterol Levels: Understanding Variance and Finding the Most Useful Data

    • Paul P. Glasziou and
    • Les Irwig
    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:437

  • Sildenafil-Induced Thrombocytopenia

    • Andrew Philip,
    • Suneil Ramchandani,
    • Kevin Dorrance,
    • and Colleen Dorrance
    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:437-439

  • Correction: Sequential Therapy Appears Superior to Standard Therapy for Helicobacter pylori Infection in Patients Naive to Treatment

    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:439

  • Correction: Seeding Trials: Just Say “No”

    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:439

Medical Writings: Book Notes

Ad Libitum

Medical Notices

  • Medical Notices

    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:0

Summaries for Patients

  • Massage Therapy to Improve Pain and Mood in Patients with Advanced Cancer

    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:I-38

  • Drug Treatment for Low Bone Density or Osteoporosis to Prevent Fractures: A Clinical Practice Guideline from the American College of Physicians

    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:I-46

ACP Journal Club

  • Editorial: Why internal medicine subspecialists and generalists should register for ACP Journal Club PLUS

    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:JC3-2

  • Metoprolol prevented myocardial infarction but increased risk for stroke and death after noncardiac surgery

    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:JC3-4

  • Intensive insulin therapy improved glycemic control more than oral hypoglycemic agents in newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes

    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:JC3-5

  • Intensive glucose control did not prevent important complications in type 2 diabetes

    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:JC3-6

  • Intensive glucose control increased mortality and did not prevent cardiovascular events in type 2 diabetes

    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:JC3-7

  • Review: Little evidence exists on the benefits and harms of screening for and treating gestational diabetes

    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:JC3-8

  • Review: Antioxidant supplements do not reduce all-cause mortality in primary and secondary prevention

    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:JC3-9

  • Review: Blood pressure–lowering drugs prevent cardiovascular events equally well in younger and older patients

    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:JC3-10

  • Bivalirudin reduced major bleeding and adverse events in patients with STEMI having PCI

    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:JC3-11

  • Prasugrel reduced ischemic outcomes more than did clopidogrel in patients receiving stents for ACS

    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:JC3-12

  • Multidetector CT was noninferior to multidetector CT plus venous ultrasonography of the leg for excluding PE

    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:JC3-13

  • Low-dose vasopressin did not reduce mortality more than norepinephrine in septic shock

    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:JC3-14

  • Review: Celecoxib increases risk for cardiovascular events; risks are greatest with higher doses

    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:JC3-15

  • Glossary

    Ann Intern Med September 16, 2008 149:JC3-16
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This Issue

September 16, 2008; 149 (6)
  1. Articles
  2. Academia and Clinic
  3. History of Medicine
  4. Clinical Guidelines
  5. Editorials
  6. On Being a Doctor
  7. Letters
  8. Medical Writings: Book Notes
  9. Ad Libitum
  10. Medical Notices
  11. Summaries for Patients
  12. ACP Journal Club

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