Journal Update Archive

June 2008

• How Long Does It Take to Assess Literacy Skills in Clinical Practice?^
  The Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine 21 (3): 211-214 (2008)
  Health literacy screening is often not performed in clinical settings.  One possible reason is the concern about the time involved in performing such assessments.  The objective of this study was to measure the time required to administer the Newest Vital Sign (NVS) literacy assessment instrument to English-speaking primary care patients.
  
  
  
• In The Clinic^ is a monthly feature in Annals of Internal Medicine  that focuses on practical management of patients with common clinical conditions.  It offers evidence-based answers to frequently asked questions about screening, prevention, diagnosis, therapy, and patient education and provides physicians with tools to improve the quality of care.
  
  
• In the Clinic - Hepatitis C ^
  Annals of Internal Medicine.  3 June 2008, Volume 148, Issue 11
  This issue provides a clinical overview of hepatitis C, focusing on prevention, diagnosis, treatment, practice improvement, and patient information.

May 2008

• Use of recommended ambulatory care services: is the Veterans Affairs quality gap narrowing?
  Arch Intern Med. 2008;168(9):950-958
  Veterans Affairs medical centers (VAMCs) provide better preventive and chronic disease care when compared with other health care organizations, although recent health care quality improvement initiatives outside the VAMC sector may have narrowed quality differences.
  
  
• Counseling for home-based walking and strength exercise in older primary care patients.
  Arch Intern Med. 2008 May 12;168(9):979-86
  This study evaluated the effects of counseling linked with primary care visits on walking and "strength exercise" (the combination of strength-building and flexibility exercise) in aging veterans.
  
  
• Relative Effectiveness of Osteoporosis Drugs for Preventing Nonvertebral Fracture. 
  Ann Intern Med 2008;148 637-646
  This study compared the relative effectiveness of osteoporosis treatments to reduce nonvertebral fracture risk among older adults.
  
  
• Screening for Osteoporosis in Men: A Clinical Practice Guideline from the American College of Physicians. 
  Ann Intern Med 2008;148 680-684
  The American College of Physicians developed this guideline to present the available evidence on risk factors and screening tests for osteoporosis in men. 
  
  
• Screening for Osteoporosis in Men: A Systematic Review for an American College of Physicians Guideline.
  Ann Intern Med 2008;148 685-701
  Screening for low bone mineral density (BMD) by dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) is the primary way to identify asymptomatic men who might benefit from osteoporosis treatment. Identifying men at risk for low BMD and fracture can help clinicians determine which men should be tested. The purpose of this study was to identify which asymptomatic men should receive DXA BMD testing.
  
  
• Clinical Practice: Nonsurgical management of obesity in adults.
  N Engl J Med. 2008 May 1;358(18):1941-50. No abstract available
  This Journal feature begins with a case vignette highlighting a common clinical problem.  Evidence supporting various strategies is then presented, followed by a review of formal guidelines,  when they exist. The article ends with the author’s clinical recommendations.
  
  
• Discussing weight with obese primary care patients: physician and patient perceptions.
  J Gen Intern Med. 2008 May;23(5):581-7. Epub 2008 Mar 6
  This study evaluated patient-provider agreement on whether weight and related behaviors were discussed during routine visits.
  
  
• Personally Controlled Online Health Data — The Next Big Thing in Medical Care?
  N Engl J Med. 2008 Apr 17;358(16):1653-6
  Most physicians in the United States have paper medical records — the sort that doctors have kept for generations. A minority have electronic records that provide, at a minimum, tools for writing progress notes and prescriptions, ordering laboratory and imaging tests, and viewing test results.  Yet electronic health data are poised for an online transformation that is being catalyzed by Dossia (a nonprofit consortium of major employers), Google Health, Microsoft HealthVault, and other Web services that are seeking expanded roles in the $2.1 trillion U.S. health care system.

April 2008

• Patient Self-Management Support Programs: An Evaluation. 
  AHRQ Publication 08-0011
  Excerpt from Report Summary: The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) commissioned this report to identify and examine the factors that purchasers and builders of programs should consider when they are deciding on program components.  The authors conducted a literature review and interviews with self-management support experts to identify and evaluate the range of program models and their features.  They also identified measures that are used to judge the effectiveness and efficiency of the programs.  Key findings and recommendations for developing a self-management support program are discussed here.

March 2008

• Screening for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Using Spirometry: Summary of the Evidence for the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force.
  Ann Intern Med. 2008 Mar 3
  Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is the fourth leading cause of death in the United States. Fewer than half of the estimated 24 million Americans with airflow obstruction have received a COPD diagnosis, and diagnosis often occurs in advanced stages of the disease.  This article summarizes the evidence on screening for COPD using spirometry for the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF).
  
  
  
• Screening for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Using Spirometry: U.S. Preventive Services Task Force Recommendation Statement.
  Ann Intern Med. 2008 Mar 3
  New U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommendation about screening for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) using spirometry.

February 2008

• General Cardiovascular Risk Profile for Use in Primary Care. The Framingham Heart Study.
  Circulation. 2008;117:743-753
  The present report presents a single multivariable risk function that predicts risk of developing all CVD and of its constituents.

December 2007

• Update on the methods of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force: estimating certainty and magnitude of net benefit 
  Ann Intern Med. 2007 Dec 18;147(12):871-5
  In this article, the USPSTF updates and reviews the process by which it evaluates evidence, determines the certainty and magnitude of net benefit, and gives a final letter grade to recommendations.
  
  
• Screening for carotid artery stenosis: U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommendation statement
  Ann Intern Med. 2007 Dec 18;147(12):854-9
  Update of the 1996 U.S. Preventive Services Task Force statement about screening for asymptomatic carotid artery stenosis (CAS) in the general population.
  
  
• Screening for carotid artery stenosis: an update of the evidence for the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force
  Ann Intern Med. 2007 Dec 18;147(12):860-70
  In 1996, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force concluded that evidence was insufficient to recommend for or against screening of asymptomatic persons for CAS by using physical examination or carotid ultrasonography.  This study examines the evidence of benefits and harms of screening asymptomatic patients with duplex ultrasonography and treatment with carotid endarterectomy for CAS
  
  
• Cardiorespiratory Fitness and Adiposity as Mortality Predictors in Older Adults
  JAMA. 2007 Dec 5;298(21):2507-16
  Although levels of physical activity and aerobic capacity decline with age and the prevalence of obesity tends to increase with age, the independent and joint associations among fitness, adiposity, and mortality in older adults have not been adequately examined.
  
  
• Screening for High Blood Pressure: U.S. Preventive Services Task Force Reaffirmation Recommendation Statement
  Ann Intern Med. 2007 Dec 4;147(11):783-6
  Reaffirmation of the 2003 U.S. Preventive Services Task Force statement about screening for high blood pressure.
  
  
• Evidence for the Reaffirmation of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force Recommendation on Screening for High Blood Pressure 
  Ann Intern Med. 2007 Dec 4;147(11):787-91
  A literature search for new, substantial evidence on screening for high blood pressure that would inform the reaffirmation of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommendation on screening for high blood pressure.

*These links take you to the PubMed website and leave the Department of Veterans Affairs website.