Diagnosing Acute Monoarthritis in Adults: A Practical Approach for the Family Physician

CHOKKALINGAM SIVA, CELSO VELAZQUEZ, AMI MODY, RICHARD BRASINGTON

Acute monoarthritis can be the initial manifestation of many joint disorders and should be diagnosed promptly to rule out a potentially destructive infection.

Common Hair Loss Disorders

KARYN SPRINGER, MATTHEW BROWN, DANIEL L. STULBERG

Common hair loss disorders such as alopecia areata, trichotillomania, traction alopecia, and tinea capitis have unique features on examination that aid in diagnosis and treatment.

Black Cohosh

BENJAMIN KLIGLER

The herbal medicine black cohosh is effective in the short-term treatment of menopausal symptoms.

Nausea and Vomiting of Pregnancy

JEFFREY D QUINLAN, D. ASHLEY HILL

Nausea and vomiting of pregnancy is generally a mild, self-limited condition that may be controlled with conservative measures. A small percentage of pregnant women have hyperemesis gravidarum, which can have negative implications for maternal and fetal health.

Management of Bartholin's Duct Cyst and Gland Abscess

FOLASHADE OMOLE, BARBARA J. SIMMONS, YOLANDA HACKER

Bartholin's duct cyst or gland abscess usually can be managed with Word catheter placement, which frequently can be performed in the office. Marsupialization is an alternative treatment for Bartholin's duct cyst; however, it should not be performed if a gland is abscessed.

Cards and Letters—A Bouquet of Roses

Janis Wright

In the May 1, 2003 issue, we started including a reader feedback card along with our “Clinical Quiz”answer cards in the hopes of collecting your honest opinions about AFP. This card will appear in the first issue of each month. We were looking for readers to respond with...

Newsletter

Matthew Neff

AAFP Testifies to Congress in Support of Family Medicine Training | New Patient Safety Conference to Be Held in Chicago, September 18–19 | ‘Physicians with Heart’ Project Headed to Kyrgyzstan in October | First Issue of<i>Annals of Family Medicine</i> Is Available Online |...

Quantum Sufficit

Sarah Evans, Heather McNeill, Shab Vakil

A “virtual” bar can help college students learn about the effects of drinking alcohol. The Associated Press reports that the Century Council, an organization funded by distillers, is distributing Alcohol 101 Plus to many college campuses. Using this CD-ROM program, students...

Prescribing Syringes to Injection Drug Users: What the Family Physician Should Know

JOSIAH D. RICH, LYNN TAYLOR, MEENAKSHI MEHROTRA, RACHEL MASON, MICHELLE STOZEK, SHARON STANCLIFF

Injection drug use (IDU) is currently the single largest factor contributing to the spread of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection in the United States.1 The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that one third of all cases of acquired...

Diary from a Week in Practice

“I can't believe it. I haven't felt this good since I was 20 years old. I feel like a new man.” Only a few days earlier, 74-year-old Wendell came to my office describing a 10-day history of muscle pain and stiffness especially in the mornings, low-grade fevers, mild...

Nausea and Vomiting in Early Pregnancy

DAVID JEWELL

What are the effects of treatments for nausea and vomiting in early pregnancy? What are the effects of treatments for hyperemesis gravidarum?

Behavioral Counseling in Primary Care to Promote a Healthy Diet

KENNETH FINK, BARBARA CLARK

Case study: More than 80 percent of Americans eat fewer than the recommended number of daily servings of fruit, vegetables, and grain products. Furthermore, they receive more than the recommended proportions of daily calories from saturated fat and total fat. You contemplate...

Obesity and Daytime Sleepiness

DANIEL C. BAUMGART, HELGA GERL

Photo Quiz presents readers with a clinical challenge based on a photograph or other image.

Evaluating Fever of Unknown Origin in Adults

ALLEN SHAUGHNESSY

When Normal D-Dimer Equals Low DVT Risk

MARK EBELL

Steroid Iontophoresis Is Little Help in Tennis Elbow

HENRY BARRY

ESWT Effective in Chronic Plantar Fasciitis

HENRY BARRY

Managing Asthma by Eosinophil Count

ANNE D. WALLING

Breast Cancer Subtypes Have Positive Axillary Nodes

ANNE D. WALLING

Clinical Indicators of SARS Diagnosis and Outcomes

BILL ZEPF

Linezolid Is the First of a New Class of Antibiotics

RICHARD SADOVSKY

NAEPP Updates Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Management of Asthma

Genevieve W. Ressel

The National Asthma Education and Prevention Program (NAEPP) has published an update of their guidelines on diagnosing and managing asthma. The report identifies a set of 10 clinical activities for reducing symptoms and preventing exacerbations in patients with asthma.

Clinical Briefs

Carrie Morantz, Brian Torrey

CDC Information on Monkeypox Virus

Disability Revisited

EDWARD B. HOLMES

For Social Security disability claims, it is not requested of the physician to provide a disability determination.

Eating Disorders: Lifestyle Choice or Clinical Problem?

ANNA L. MEENAN

ACE Inhibitor Use and Elevated Creatinine Levels

Potential Causes of Secondary Hypertension

C. HERBERT SCHAPERA

What Should I Know About Hair Loss?

Alopecia (say this: al-oh-pee-sha) is the medical word for hair loss. It generally refers to loss or lack of hair on part or all of the scalp. The hair loss can be temporary or permanent. It can be only on the scalp, or on other parts of the body, too. It can affect people of...

Correction

The department “Diary from a Week in Practice” in the June 1, 2003 issue (page 2312) contained an error in the diagnosis of an elderly woman. On page 2314, in the entry for Saturday/Sunday, the elderly woman had developed presbyopia rather than presbycusis. The online version...