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In 1996, approximately one quarter of the AIDS prevention budget of the CDC was allocated to HIV testing, predominantly for low-risk populations.1 It was their single biggest HIV prevention expenditure.

SEATTLE -- Patients with acute lung injury are less likely to die if they're treated in closed intensive care units that permit care to be directed only by intensivists, researchers here said.

BOSTON -- Dialysis patients exposed to gadolinium-containing contrast material during MRI may be at risk for nephrogenic systemic fibrosis, researchers found.

WORCESTER, Mass. -- Kids whose first reaction to inhaling tobacco smoke is to feel relaxed are more likely to get hooked on cigarettes, researchers here said.

When should buried stitches be used in closing a laceration? Which tools are best for removing a popcorn kernel lodged in a 2-year-old's nose? How do you determine the appropriate site for a shoulder injection? These are just some of the questions that will be answered in our new feature, "Primary Care Procedures: A Photo Guide," which launches in this issue on page 1035.

A comatose 82-year-old woman is brought to the emergency department. Her husband reports that after dinner she began to have difficulty in speaking, lost consciousness, and fell to the floor. He tried to rouse her, but was unsuccessful and called for an ambulance.

In a previously published Practical Pointer (CONSULTANT, August 2005), D. Brady Pregerson, MD, of Los Angeles proposed a method for tightening loose stitches after the clinician has finished suturing.

At the end of her Guest Commentary, "The Virtual Patient" (CONSULTANT, July 2007), Dr Faith Fitzgerald asks: "How shall my students experience the things that cannot be taught but only learned through the sometimes inconvenient, potentially time-consuming, emotionally disquieting, and generally non-remunerative interactions with real patients?"

When you need to jot down the name of a medicine, condition, or specialist for a patient and you're in a hurry, just grab a tongue depressor.

I end my review of systems with 3 questions that help patients reflect constructively on the state of their health.

An 89-year-old man reported that this lesion began developing on his left forearm 11 days earlier. It is a keratoacanthoma, a rapidly growing but benign neoplasm that occurs predominantly on the extensor surfaces of the hands and forearms of white men over age 50.

Although many lacerations are treated in the emergency department, primary care clinicians still see their share of such wounds. Most lacerations are incurred on the face and head (as a result of falls or altercations) or on the hand or lower arm (caused by tools, broken glass, or other sharp objects).

Presidential candidates might consider proposing a health care reform package that relies on a single-payer system, if results of a MedPage Today poll reflect the country's mood.

BALTIMORE -- Patients with rheumatoid arthritis who meditated were measurably less stressed after six months than those given standard care, but the disease was no better, said investigators here.

TORONTO -- For high-risk bladder cancer, a decision on aggressive versus conservative therapy depends on age and quality-of-life preferences, according to investigators here.

MELBOURNE, Australia -- Physical activity strengthens cartilage in the knee and protects older patients against osteoarthritis, researchers here found.

ROCKVILLE, Md. -- The FDA today ordered makers of more than 200 unapproved hydrocodone-containing cough syrups to remove them from the market.

SALT LAKE CITY -- Forecasts that physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia would be practiced disproportionately on vulnerable groups, such as the poor, the elderly, and women, did not prove accurate, according to researchers here.