CDC Tells Docs to Be on the Lookout for Bird Flu Cases
The CDC wants clinicians and health departments to consider potential infections with the highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) A(H5N1) virus, commonly known as bird flu, in people with exposure to potentially infected animal sources. The health advisory alert comes on the heels of Monday’s announcement by the CDC and the Texas State Department of Health […]
CDC: Alarming Rise in Serogroup Y Meningococcal Disease
Clinicians should be alert for invasive serogroup Y meningococcal disease in at-risk populations and those with unusual symptoms amid the highest annual number of cases reported since 2014, according to a new CDC health advisory. Sequence type (ST) 1466, a strain of Neisseria meningitidis serogroup Y, is fueling the majority of cases seen so far […]
Some ‘Choosing Wisely’ Recs Protect Older Folks From Low-Value Care
Getting clinicians to commit to the Choosing Wisely recommendations somewhat reduced low-value care for older adults in common scenarios, a cluster randomized trial found. After primary care clinicians committed in writing to the Choosing Wisely recommendations, the odds of their older patients undergoing a low-value service dropped by 21% (adjusted OR 0.79, 95% CI 0.65-0.97), […]
Explanations Don’t Help Clinicians Spot Biased AI
Providing clinicians with artificial intelligence (AI) predictions along with model explanations can boost diagnostic accuracy, but that accuracy drops when using a biased AI model — and explanations don’t mitigate those negative effects, according to a randomized clinical vignette survey study. Clinicians who were asked to differentiate between pneumonia, heart failure, or chronic obstructive pulmonary […]
Opportunistic Infections Put a Damper on Belatacept After Lung Transplant
HONOLULU — Lung transplant clinicians had a rocky start using belatacept (Nulojix) for immunosuppression at one large-volume center, though they maintained that the agent could still be used to preserve renal function without affecting the patient’s graft. Out of 388 lung transplant recipients from 2019 to 2022, there were 37 who did not tolerate nephrotoxic […]
Be Alert For Ectopic Pregnancy After Self-Managed Abortion
Clinicians in the emergency department (ED) and primary care settings should be prepared to spot complications of self-managed abortion, according to a case report. A patient who had attempted self-managed abortion presented to the ED with a ruptured ectopic pregnancy that went undetected, reported Isabel Beshar, MD, of Stanford University in California, and colleagues. They […]
Worried About Your Medicare Payment Because of the Debt Limit? Don’t Be, Experts Say
WASHINGTON — Clinicians should be “concerned but not panicky” about the potential effects on Medicare, Medicaid, and other healthcare payments as the federal government approaches a “debt ceiling,” experts say. “The federal government has never defaulted,” said Bill Hoagland, senior vice president of the Bipartisan Policy Center, a nonpartisan think tank here. Healthcare providers “should […]
Clinicians Need More Training in Nutrition Education and Spotting Hunger, Biden Says
WASHINGTON — Doctors and other clinicians need more training on how to recognize hunger symptoms and to teach patients about proper nutrition, President Biden said Wednesday. Guidance to Stay Healthy “In 19 states, more than 35% of adults are obese,” Biden said at the White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health, which was held […]
Effective Treatment of Obesity Begins With a Conversation
ORLANDO — Successful weight loss begins with a conversation that many clinicians never have with their patients, a primary care obesity specialist said here. Obesity has become widely recognized as a disease, but many clinicians and patients still do not approach the condition as a disease. Existing in medical and social environments of bias and […]
CDC: Up to Five Monkeypox Cases Now Presumed in the U.S.
With one confirmed case and four presumptive cases of monkeypox in the U.S., clinicians should continue to be on high alert if their patients report new onset of rash, especially in the genital or perianal area, CDC staff said Monday. The one confirmed case in Massachusetts had over 200 close contacts, the majority of whom […]