• Articles

    Acute Lumbar Disk Pain: Navigating Evaluation and Treatment Choices

    DAVID S. GREGORY, CRAIG K. SETO, GEORGE C. WORTLEY, CHRISTINE M. SHUGART

    Six weeks of conservative management is the first-line treatment for low back pain caused by lumbar disk herniation. Physicians should first investigate any red-flag findings that suggest emergent causes of the pain. Surgical diskectomy may be indicated to relieve irritation...

    Common Oral Conditions in Older Persons

    WANDA C. GONSALVES, A. STEVENS WRIGHTSON, ROBERT G. HENRY

    Primary care physicians play a role in improving the oral health of older patients by assessing the risk of oral diseases; performing a focused oral examination; recognizing and treating abnormal changes; and referring patients to a dentist, if needed.

    Multiple Myeloma: Diagnosis and Treatment

    KONRAD C. NAU, WILLIAM D. LEWIS

    Multiple myeloma is diagnosed with serum or urine protein electrophoresis or immunofixation and bone marrow aspirate analysis. Although patients with asymptomatic or benign disease should not be treated, autologous stem cell transplantation is the standard treatment for many...

    Oppositional Defiant Disorder

    S. SUTTON HAMILTON, JOHN ARMANDO

    Oppositional defiant disorder usually begins in the preschool years and is diagnosed in early elementary school, often with coexisting conditions such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Because of the strain that oppositional defiant disorder places on the child's...

    AFP Journal Club

    Does Limiting Interruptions During Cardiac Resuscitation Improve Outcomes?

    ROBERT DACHS, MARK A. GRABER, ANDREA DARBY-STEWART

    Each month, our three presenters review an interesting journal article in a conversational manner. These articles involve “hot topics” that affect family physicians or “bust” commonly held medical myths. The presenters give their opinions about the clinical value of the...

    AAFP News Now: AFP Edition

    AAFP News Now: AFP Edition

    ACEP Issues Comments, Concerns on the Patient-Centered Medical Home Concept | CMS Delays Enforcing Directive that Would Restrict Public Health Insurance for Children | Residents Learn Basic Dental Skills to Help Patients Without Access to Dental Care | Immunization Rates...

    Editorials

    Promoting Oral Health: The Family Physician's Role

    ALAN B. DOUGLASS, RUSSELL MAIER

    Poor oral health is a major public health problem in America.1,2 Caries is the most common chronic oral condition of early childhood. Adults often seek medical care because of oral pain, and periodontal disease has been linked to premature birth, diabetes, stroke, and heart...

    Photo Quiz

    Intermittent Back and Leg Pain with Numbness

    NEDAA SKEIK, FADI I. JABR

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

    Practice Guidelines

    ACP Guidelines on Screening for Osteoporosis in Men

    CARRIE ARMSTRONG

    Guidelines on screening for osteoporosis in men are available from the American College of Physicians (ACP). Although osteoporosis is commonly thought of as a disease that affects women, osteoporotic fractures also result in considerable morbidity and mortality in men.

    Letters to the Editor

    Pregabalin for the Treatment of Trigeminal Neuralgia

    MATT VIEL

    Tips from Other Journals

    Do Women Get the Same Care as Men for Coronary Syndromes?

    ANNE D. WALLING

    Home Visits Provide Little Improvement in Older Patients

    CAROLINE WELLBERY

    Does Waist Circumference Independently Predict Diabetes Risk?

    AMY CRAWFORD-FAUCHER

    Pneumococcal Vaccination Improves Outcomes in CAP

    KENNETH T. MOON

    Primary Care Reduces Emergency Department Use by Older Patients

    ANNE D. WALLING

    When Should Colectomy Be Used for Inflammatory Bowel Disease?

    ANNE D. WALLING

    Comparative Effectiveness of CABG vs. PCI

    AMY CRAWFORD-FAUCHER

    Information from Your Family Doctor

    Treating Low Back Pain from a Disk Injury

    The bones in your spine are separated by disks that act as cushions. When you use your back in ways you're not used to, such as lifting something heavy, the disks may move and cause pain. One kind of disk injury is when a disk slips out of place and presses on the nerves in...

    Multiple Myeloma: What You Should Know

    Multiple myeloma (say: MY-el-OH-ma) is cancer of the bone marrow cells. These are called plasma cells. Plasma cells normally make antibodies, which help your body fight infection. Multiple myeloma can cause tumors to grow in your bones. It can also cause the plasma cells to...

    Oppositional Defiant Disorder

    Oppositional defiant (ah-puh-ZISH-uh-null dee-FIE-ant) disorder is a behavior condition that affects children and teens. Those who have it act negative, angry, and defiant much more often than other people their age. These behaviors have a negative effect on the child's or...

    Corrections

    Correction

    The article, “Herbal and Dietary Supplement–Drug Interactions in Patients with Chronic Illnesses,” (January 1, 2008, page 73) incorrectly referred to dietary supplement ingredient eleuthero (Eleutherococcus senticosus) as Siberian ginseng (Eleutherococcus senticosus) twice in...



    Disclosure

    All editors in a position to control content for this activity, AFP journal, are required to disclose any relevant financial relationships. View disclosures.


    Tag Legend

    Legend

    CME Continuing Medical Education Credit
    POC Point-of-Care Resource
    FREE Free Access
    Alg Algorithm
    DDx Differential Diagnosis
    PtEd Patient Education