• Articles

    Evaluation and Treatment of Neonatal Hyperbilirubinemia

    KAREN E. MUCHOWSKI

    Decreased gestational age and exclusive breastfeeding are the strongest risk factors for neonatal hyperbilirubinemia. Infants who appear jaundiced should be evaluated by risk score or by measurement of total serum or transcutaneous bilirubin. Phototherapy is an effective...

    Salivary Gland Disorders

    KEVIN F. WILSON, JEREMY D. MEIER, P. DANIEL WARD

    Salivary gland disorders include inflammatory, bacterial, viral, and neoplastic etiologies. Treatment is aimed at relieving the cause of the obstruction. Salivary gland tumors are relatively rare and typically require surgery.

    Update on Latent Tuberculosis Infection

    HOLLY HARTMAN-ADAMS, KAREN CLARK, GREGORY JUCKETT

    Persons with latent tuberculosis infection have a 5% to 10% lifetime risk of progressing to active disease. Targeted screening is recommended only for individuals and groups at increased risk of infection. Tuberculin skin testing has several limitations, including the need...

    Clarification

    Clarification

    Updated USPSTF and CDC recommendations, and incorrect Cochrane review data. Based on new and additional recommendations, we are updating the article “Update on Prenatal Care” (February 1, 2014, p. 199). The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) updated their...

    Close-ups

    Inspiring Change: A Patient's Journey to Wellness

    RILEY J. BURKE

    The personal side of medicine told from the patient's perspective. The patient's story is followed by commentary from a physician and a list of resources.

    AAFP News Now: AFP Edition

    AAFP News: AFP Edition

    Study: One-Third of Prescriptions Go Unfilled | Survey Finds High Physician Salaries Are Not Linked to Job Satisfaction | AAFP Analysis Can Help Physicians Navigate Medicare Payment Data | Immunization Information Added to App

    Editorials: Controversies in Family Medicine

    Should Family Physicians Routinely Screen Patients for Cognitive Impairment?Yes: Screening Is the First Step Toward Improving Care

    J. RILEY McCARTEN, SOO BORSON

    Dementia in older adults is a common,1 costly,2 and rapidly growing3 health care problem. It is almost invariably the result of chronic, progressive, and ultimately terminal brain disease, most often Alzheimer disease.4 Little can be done to alter the course of the underlying...

    Should Family Physicians Routinely Screen Patients for Cognitive Impairment?No: Screening Has Been Inappropriately Urged Despite Absence of Evidence

    DAVID G. LE COUTEUR, CAROL BRAYNE

    The evidence base and principles that underpin the introduction of population screening for any condition are accepted internationally.1,2 Dementia screening should not be exempt from the requirement that it first be shown to improve outcomes before being implemented in...

    Cochrane for Clinicians

    Prophylactic Antibiotics for the Prevention of COPD Exacerbation

    COREY D. FOGLEMAN

    Continuous prophylactic antibiotic therapy significantly decreases COPD exacerbations for up to three years. However, it does not decrease mortality, and it puts the patient at risk of antibiotic-resistant colonization and infection.

    Psychosocial and Psychological Interventions for Preventing Postpartum Depression

    AMY CRAWFORD-FAUCHER

    A range of prevention strategies can reduce the risk of postpartum depression, but more study is needed to determine which interventions are most effective.

    Graham Center Policy One-Pager

    Winnable Battles: Family Physicians Play an Essential Role in Addressing Tobacco Use and Obesity

    JOSEPH NICHOLS, ANDREW BAZEMORE

    Tobacco use and obesity are linked to most deaths and significant disability in the United States, and family physicians are uniquely positioned to address these issues. This highlights a need for transforming primary care practices and teams to systematize the recognition...

    Putting Prevention Into Practice

    Vitamin D and Calcium Supplementation to Prevent Fractures in Adults

    ROBERT McNELLIS, KIRSTEN R. BARNES

    A 55-year-old woman presents to your office for a refill of her blood pressure medication. She is otherwise healthy and does not take other medications. She states that her older sister has been taking vitamin D and calcium supplements for several years “to keep her bones...

    Photo Quiz

    Vaginal Discharge in a Young Woman

    NEHAL PATEL, RAOUF SEIFELDIN, WILLIAM HILL

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

    POEMs

    Testosterone Therapy in Men Associated with an Increase in the Risk of Nonfatal MI

    MARK H. EBELL

    Filling a prescription for testosterone therapy is associated with an increased likelihood of experiencing an MI, especially in older men and those with a history of cardiovascular disease.

    HPV Screening Every Five Years Equal to Pap Smear Every Three Years

    ALLEN F. SHAUGHNESSY

    A single HPV test provides the same degree of protection over five years as a Papanicolaou (Pap) smear does for three years. We may soon see a recommendation for HPV testing as a stand-alone screen, with cytology reserved for women who have an HPV-positive result. We may also...

    Varenicline Plus Bupropion SR No Better Than Varenicline Alone for Tobacco Cessation

    DAVID SLAWSON

    Combination therapy with varenicline and sustained-release bupropion was associated with a significantly higher prolonged abstinence rate compared with varenicline monotherapy at 12 weeks and 26 weeks in adult smokers attempting to quit. By 52 weeks, however, the difference...

    High-Potency Topical Corticosteroids Effective for Alopecia Areata in Children

    MARK H. EBELL

    Clobetasol propionate, 0.05%, applied in a thin layer for six weeks on, six weeks off, is a highly effective and safe treatment for alopecia areata in children; hydrocortisone, 1%, is not.

    Practice Guidelines

    Treatment of Knee Osteoarthritis: A Clinical Practice Guideline from the AAOS

    LISA HAUK

    This clinical guideline from the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) updates the one previously published in 2008 and addresses treatment of symptomatic knee osteoarthritis in adults 19 years and older.

    U.S. Preventive Services Task Force

    Vitamin D and Calcium Supplementation to Prevent Fractures in Adults: Recommendation Statement

    The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) concludes that the current evidence is insufficient to assess the balance of the benefits and harms of combined vitamin D and calcium supplementation for the primary prevention of fractures in premenopausal women or in men ...

    Letters to the Editor

    Letters on Preconception Counseling and Care

    Information from Your Family Doctor

    Latent Tuberculosis

    Tuberculosis (too-BERK-yoo-LOW-sis), also called TB for short, is a lung disease caused by a germ. Latent TB means a person is infected with the germ, but they are not sick. Some people with latent TB can get sick later in life. This is called active TB.

    Corrections

    Correction



    Disclosure

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


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