ID

Understanding the Zoster Vaccine

July 13, 2011
Understanding the Zoster Vaccine

By Michael Cohen

Faculty Peer Reviewed

The varicella-zoster virus (VZV) is well known to the majority of the population. In children, it strikes as varicella (chickenpox), characterized by pruritic, vesicular lesions in different stages of development dispersed over the body. A self-resolving and generally limited disease, this form of VZV infection is considered to be a nuisance more than a debilitating affliction, but rarely can have severe sequelae. In adults and the elderly VZV more commonly takes the form of zoster (shingles). This disease…

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Hepatocellular Carcinoma Screening Guidelines and Bellevue’s High-Risk Population

June 22, 2011
Hepatocellular Carcinoma Screening Guidelines and Bellevue’s High-Risk Population

By Ramoncito David

Faculty Peer Reviewed

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the third leading cause of cancer-related death in the world.  The prevalence of this fatal disease greatly varies among different nations, due to the fact that almost 80% of cases are secondary to hepatitis B or C.

The implementation of an effective vaccine against the hepatitis B virus (HBV) has reduced the prevalence of HBV carriers in North America to 0.1-2%; however, hepatitis B remains a global public health problem due its high…

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How Safe Is That Tattoo?

April 27, 2011
How Safe Is That Tattoo?

By Farzon A. Nahvi

Faculty Peer Reviewed

 Once thought to be exclusively the domain of gang members, prisoners, and those in the military, tattoos are now increasingly popular with the general population. The increasing visibility of tattoos on high-profile individuals such as athletes, musicians, and actors, combined with the increasing acceptability of tattoos among professionals, have made tattoos a common part of modern culture. Nevertheless, tattoo artists are subject to little regulation, and tattoo art comes with some real…

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The Porcelain Terror: Can a Toilet Give You Gonorrhea?

April 13, 2011
The Porcelain Terror: Can a Toilet Give You Gonorrhea?

By Bradley Ching, Class of 2011

Faculty Peer Reviewed

 What do every road trip, football game halftime, and trans-continental plane flight have in common? Usually a disgusting toilet paired with the urgent need of people to use them. While no one takes pleasure from these encounters, could they in fact be a risk for acquiring a sexually transmitted disease?

Gonorrhea or “the clap,” as it is lovingly nicknamed, is caused by the bacteria Neisseria gonorrhoeae and…

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Case of the Month: Vertebral Osteomyelitis and Psoas Abscess with Acinetobacter Baumanii: Report of an Unusual Case

April 6, 2011
Case of the Month: Vertebral Osteomyelitis and Psoas Abscess with Acinetobacter Baumanii: Report of an Unusual Case

By Michael C. Brabeck, MD,  Adam Davis, MD, and Shaun Rodgers, MD

Faculty Peer Reviewed

 Case:

A 56-year-old male was admitted to Bellevue Hospital Center with chronic back pain and a three month history of subjective fevers, decreased appetite, and a thirty pound weight loss. His past medical history was remarkable only for chronic alcohol abuse. He denied other substance abuse. There were no previous health care facility exposures, and the patient had no history of military…

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The Resurgence of Pertussis: Is Lack of Adult Vaccination to Blame?

February 23, 2011
The Resurgence of Pertussis: Is Lack of Adult Vaccination to Blame?

By Ijeoma Ejigiri, Class of 2011

Faculty Peer Reviewed

Whooping cough. 100 day cough.  Pertussis.  These are the various names for the disease caused by the bacterium Bordetella pertussis.  This small gram-negative coccobacillus, transmitted via respiratory droplets, is responsible for causing coughing paroxysms followed by a long inspiratory gasp, during which the characteristic high-pitched “whoop” occurs.  These coughing paroxysms can last for ten weeks or longer, hence the moniker “100 day cough.”   The paroxysmal phase is usually preceded by…

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Should You Eradicate Helicobacter Pylori Prior to Chronic NSAID Treatment?

January 19, 2011
Should You Eradicate Helicobacter Pylori Prior to Chronic NSAID Treatment?

By Joshua Smith, MD

Faculty Peer Reviewed

CASE:  A 54-year-old Asian female with no significant past medical history presents to her primary care physician with the complaint of several weeks of pain in her fingers bilaterally along with pronounced, worsening morning stiffness.  She is subsequently diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), and the decision is made to start her on long-term, high-dose non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs).  Given the link between NSAIDs and peptic ulcer disease (PUD), should this patient first…

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Myths and Realities: Does Vitamin C Work for the Common Cold?

January 7, 2011
Myths and Realities: Does Vitamin C Work for the Common Cold?

By Carolyn Bevan,  MD

Faculty Peer Reviewed

It starts with a tickle in your throat.  You feel a bit more tired after a day’s work, maybe your forehead feels a little warm.  You try to will it away, but over the next few days, it hits you: the congestion, runny nose and annoying cough.  Much to your dismay, you have a cold.  Determined not to give in without a fight, you drag yourself to the nearest drug store and…

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Meeting Perspectives: The 2010 Infectious Disease Society of America (IDSA) Meeting

December 22, 2010
Meeting Perspectives: The 2010 Infectious Disease Society of America (IDSA) Meeting

Neal H. Steigbigel, M.D.

The recent IDSA meeting reviewed many important and interesting findings.  Topics spanned a wide array of subjects, many of which are of importance and interest to all physicians.  These subjects included:

Treating severe Clostridial Difficile infection with fecal transplantation Isolation for extended spectrum beta lactamase (ESBL’s) bacteremia Update in multi-resistant gram negative infections Update on Pneumococccal infections Treatment dilemmas in immunocompromised hosts Update on invasive fungal infections

This high quality meeting has many simultaneous sessions and…

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The Polymyxins: Why am I using them all the time, and what are they?

December 8, 2010
The Polymyxins: Why am I using them all the time, and what are they?

By Jon-Emile S Kenny

Faculty Peer Reviewed

A 65-year-old female with locally advanced rectal cancer is admitted to the ICU, hypotensive and febrile.  Her PICC line is removed and blood cultures drawn.  Fourty-eight hours later all cultures return ESBL Klebsiella with susceptibility only to polymyxin.

I sat on the venerable call-room couch staring mindlessly at the cluttered, nauseating walls repeating the word ‘polymyxin’ like an endless antimicrobial mantra.  What strange dosing it has, and an even more…

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Grand Rounds: Influenza Pandemic

November 18, 2010
Grand Rounds: Influenza Pandemic

Summary by Lakshmi Tummala, MD

The Medical Grand Rounds lecture on October 6, 2010 titled “Influenza 2010: Update after the 2009 Pandemic was presented by Dr. Alicia Fry, M.D., MPH an epidemiologist from the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. I’m sure that those of us who were fortunate enough to be on the wards at that time recall the wonder of seeing a small piece of history unfold firsthand. Now, let’s take the journey again with Dr. Fry,…

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Mystery Quiz- The Answer

November 13, 2010
Mystery Quiz- The Answer

Dana Clutter, MD

Edited by Vivian Hayashi MD and Robert Smith MD, Mystery Quiz Section Editors

Faculty peer reviewed

The answer to the mystery quiz is bacillary angiomatosis (BA). BA is a disease that most frequently affects individuals infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and typically presents with multiple cutaneous papules and nodules. Visceral manifestations also occur and can involve the bone, lungs, lymph nodes, spleen, liver (termed peliosis hepatis) and the central nervous system.(1) Since the relatively…

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