SEATTLE -- When it comes to mammogram interpretation, the eyes and judgment of radiologists still have it over computer chips, according to researchers here.

DURHAM, N.C. -- Extending dual antiplatelet therapy with aspirin and Plavix (clopidogrel) to six months or longer significantly reduced the risk of death or myocardial infarction for patients given-drug eluting stents, researchers here reported.

MADISON, Wis. -- Severe social deficits in males with autism has been traced by investigators here to shrinkage of the amygdala, the component of the limbic system that governs non-verbal responses to threats.

COPENHAGEN -- Long-term cell phone users are not at elevated cancer risk, according to a large Danish study.

SAN DIEGO -- When the Marine Corps evaluated thousands of recruits, it found that young men, ages 18 to 20, were significantly more likely to become risky drinkers if they started drinking as children or young teenagers.

EDMONTON, Alberta -- When enthusiastic hockey fans get into it, the sound in an indoor arena can rise to the level of a jet aircraft taking off, with the risk of permanent hearing damage.

ZURICH, Switzerland -- Rare-earth magnets -- now being packaged into necklaces and bracelets -- may have a deadly attraction for patients with pacemakers and implanted defibrillators, warn researchers here.

CLEVELAND -- The abrupt halt to clinical trials of torcetrapib, an investigational HDL-boosting agent, raises questions about any drug that inhibit cholesteryl ester transfer protein (CETP), according to cardiologist Steven Nissen, M.D., of the Cleveland Clinic.

Porokeratosis is a clonal disorder of keratinization that features patches with raised red rims and atrophic centers. The histologic hallmark of porokeratosis is the cornoid lamella, the pathologic substrate of the ridgelike border.

Blue nevi are a manifestation of dermal melanocytosis.1 They consist of blue, gray-blue, or brown-blue papules that occur most commonly on the head and neck. The blue pigmentation is attributable to the depth of melanin in the dermis and the Tyndall effect (the preferential absorption of long light wavelengths by melanin and the scattering of shorter wavelengths, representing the blue end of the spectrum, by collagen bundles).

Actinic (solar) keratoses are found on sun-exposed skin of elderly white persons-in particular redheaded or blond patients, who tend to burn frequently and tan poorly. Actinic keratoses are the most common sun-related growths in white persons.

A variety of benign lesions in elderly patients involve proliferation of melanocytes. These lesions include dysplastic nevi, which histologically contain somewhat asymmetric nests of melanocytes; compound nevi, which histologically contain more symmetric nests of melanocytes in the dermis and epidermis and intradermal nevi, which histologically contain nests of melanocytes in the dermis.

Stucco keratosis is considered a variant of seborrheic keratosis. The name probably derives from the resemblance of the lesions to old stucco on the sides of houses. Stucco keratosis is thought to result from thickening of the epidermis, in particular the stratum corneum, which histologically resembles a church spire.

CHICAGO -- Liquid silicone augmentation of the breasts or buttocks, an unapproved cosmetic procedure, risks pulmonary emboli, said researchers here.

NEW YORK -- The older antipsychotic drug, Trilafon (perphenazine), is significantly cheaper and no less effective than four newer medications for the treatment of chronic schizophrenia, according to researchers here.

I enjoyed Dr Henry Schneiderman’s “What’s Your Diagnosis?” case of an elderly woman with severe facial ecchymoses from a fall. Would Dr Schneiderman elaborate on several points about that case? This woman did not trip or complain of dizziness before she fell. What caused her to fall?

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- A tumor board's thorough reassessment of recommendations for breast cancer surgery led to changes in treatment planning for more than half of the patients in a year, according to researchers here.

NEW YORK -- For many schizophrenia patients, switching antipsychotic drugs may improve symptom control with fewer side effects. But other patients, already doing well, may be better off standing pat, showed a randomized trial.

Because of the potential complications associated with mechanical ventilation, noninvasive ventilation is considered an attractive alternative in some settings. How useful is it in patients with acute cardiogenic pulmonary edema? Researchers who addressed this question found that the early application of noninvasive ventilation in the emergency department (ED) can decrease the relative risk of mortality by 39% and the need for endotracheal intubation by 57%.

A major disadvantage of unfractionated heparin is its intravenous administration and the need for coagulation monitoring and hospitalization. However, subcutaneous administration may be an alternative, according to Kearon and coworkers. They found that fixed-dose subcutaneous unfractionated heparin appears to be as effective and safe as low molecular weight heparin (LMWH) for the outpatient treatment of acute venous thromboembolism (VTE).