By Nicole A. Lamparello, MD

Faculty Peer Reviewed

Monopolizing the news channels this week was the First Presidential Debate. President Barak Obama and former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney discussed essential domestic issues, including the economy, the role of government, and healthcare. While the Democratic and Republican nominees sparred on important healthcare matters on October 3rd, such as Medicare and the Affordable Care Act, this week notable medical journals published significant articles gaining widespread attention among healthcare professionals.

The healthcare segments of the Presidential Debate focused…

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By Joseph Marsano, MD

Faculty Peer Reviewed

This past week marked the meeting of the UN general assembly and with it the resultant heavy traffic stagnating much of east side Manhattan. The topic on everyone’s mind was the impact of Iran’s pursuit of nuclear technology on the relationship between the United States and Israel. As this topic grabbed much of the headlines, and rightfully so, there was less attention paid to the large widening gap between much of the industrialized world and developing nations when…

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By Ilina Datkhaeva

Faculty Peer Reviewed

We give hope to patients with advanced kidney disease that a transplant will save them from their Monday, Wednesday, Friday trips to the dialysis unit. But how certain are we that they even qualify to be a recipient? And if they do, are they going to live long enough to get their new lease on life?

 Kidney donation has received its fair share of publicity recently, from the allocation of organs to illegal immigrants to Good Samaritans starting…

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By Gregory Katz, MD

Faculty Peer Reviewed

This week the presidential race continues to monopolize the news cycle with Mitt Romney’s leaked fundraiser footage dominating the headlines. But as Governor Romney attempts to distance himself from his comments about Americans who pay no federal income taxes and President Obama pounces on his gaffes, a report from the Center for Public Integrity on changes to hospital billing practices that are costing Americans billions got lost in the shuffle. Analysis from Donald Berwick, former head of Centers…

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By Lakshmi Tummala, MD

Faculty Peer Reviewed

First up, the debate between coronary revascularization and optimal medical management continues. Over the past several years, the role of fractional flow reserve (FFR), a technique used during angiography to assess the functional significance of lesions seen on coronary angiography, has begun to be established. A study published in the NEJM this week looked specifically at the role of FFR in patients with stable coronary artery disease. 1220 patients with stable coronary artery disease and lesions appropriate for…

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By Bryan Stierman

Faculty Peer Reviewed

Staphylococcus aureus, first discovered in the 1880s, is one of the most widespread human pathogens. It is also a commensal organism, with about 20% of the population permanently colonized and 60% of the population intermittently colonized. There is a wide variety of potential diseases that may develop when S aureus further invades the body, necessitating the use of antibiotics. Since the introduction of antibiotics into clinical practice, S aureus has developed unique ways to combat them. The evolution of…

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By Anjali Varma Desai, M.D

Faculty Peer Reviewed

In the news this week, former US Open champion Andy Roddick ended his tennis career while Barack Obama sought to continue his presidential career. The Democratic National Convention, held last week in Charlotte, NC, featured speeches by President Obama and his wife, as well as former President Bill Clinton and Vice-President Joseph Biden. Many speeches addressed various aspects of Obama’s record, including his hotly-debated health care plan, with concrete references to the expected impact on the solvency…

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By Devyani Kothari, MD

Faculty Peer Reviewed

In news this week, the Republic National Convention, which was held in Tampa, FL, concluded with speeches by Mitt Romney and Clint Eastwood. The final grand slam of the year, the US Open, headed into its second and final week in Flushing Meadows where Laura Robson, an 18-year-old from Britain sent Kim Clijsters into retirement after she defeated her in straight sets and Andy Roddick, also announced his retirement. Additionally, it’s hurricane season again as Hurricane Isaac hit…

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By Jeffrey Krutoy, DDS

Faculty Peer Reviewed

Bacterial infective endocarditis is a potentially devastating disease, and while it may be an easy tradition to blame the dentist, recent research and new guidelines from the American Heart Association (AHA) indicate that it may not be so simple.

 Infective endocarditis (IE), while relatively uncommon (with yearly incidence rates ranging from 2 to 6 cases per 100,000 people), results in high rates of morbidity and mortality even when treated. For this reason, physicians have emphasized the importance of…

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By Tracey Liebman, M.D.

Faculty Peer Reviewed

This week’s primecuts starts off with some other-worldly news . The NASA rover, known as Curiosity, had landed on Mars on August 6 after a 352-million-mile trip from earth. Finally, this week, Curiosity successfully made its first, albeit short, journey on Mars, going all of 23 feet. In the coming months and years, it will continue to take more journeys through the craters and mountains on Mars. With the intent of finding evidence that some form of life…

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By Benjamin Navot, MD

Faculty Peer Reviewed

This week, with Mitt Romney’s selection of Wisconsin congressman Paul Ryan as his vice-presidential candidate on the republican ticket, there has been renewed interest in the two parties plans for the future of healthcare in America. With insurance coverage for millions of Americans at stake and government solvency questioned by our increasing healthcare costs, it is highly recommended that you take a look at both candidates’ platforms with regard to healthcare (Romney , Obama).

On a more evidence-based…

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