By Kristina Cieslak, MD
Peer Reviewed
The heavily debated gradual decriminalization and legalization of marijuana will likely result in easier access for all ages. An informed debate has been stymied, however, by a lack …
Category: Systems
Clinical Correlations
The Role of Fish Oil in Arrhythmia Prevention
July 29, 2015
By Steven Bolger
Peer Reviewed
Omega-3 fatty acids were first identified as a potential agent to prevent and treat cardiovascular disease through several epidemiologic studies of the Greenlandic Inuit in the 1970s suggesting that high …
UV Nail Lamps and Cancer: A Correlation?
July 24, 2015
By Jennifer Ng, MD
Peer Reviewed
Beauty and suffering are often thought to be intertwined. It is hard to have your cake and eat it too. In the quest for beauty, women (and …
A Primer on CRP and Cardiovascular Risk
July 22, 2015
Cindy Fei, MD
Peer Reviewed
A 63-year-old woman with hypertension presents to your clinic for routine follow-up. She came across an online article regarding C-reactive protein and its purported link to heart disease, and she asks you whether she should be tested …
Diagnostic Challenges in Latent Tuberculosis Infection: A Brief Review of Available Tests and their Appropriate Use
July 15, 2015
By: Miguel A. Saldivar, MD
Peer Reviewed
“Indeterminate.” Many clinicians have expressed frustration when reading this word on a Quantiferon-TB Gold test result. The obligate follow-up question is: what is the next best …
Neurologic Complications In Infective Endocarditis: To Anticoagulate Or Not To Anticoagulate
July 10, 2015
By Shannon Chiu, MD
Peer Reviewed
The annual incidence of infective endocarditis (IE) is estimated to be 3 to 9 cases per 100,000 persons in developed countries [1-2]. Neurologic complications are the most …
Microbiome Blues in E
April 1, 2015
By M tanner
Many bacteria live in and on me—I’ve always known that. But when I learned that bacteria make up 90% of the cells in my body, it made me feel so sucio, so unclean.
I went through my …
Diabetic Foot Ulcers: Pathogenesis and Prevention
March 19, 2015
By Shilpa Mukunda, MD
Peer Reviewed
On my first day on inpatient medicine at the VA Hospital, Mr. P came in with an oozing foot ulcer. Mr. P, a 60-year-old man with …