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PRINCETON, N.J. -- The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the nation's largest health care philanthropy, announced it will commit at least million over the next five years to combat childhood obesity.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Radiologists can claim a victory over computers at reading mammograms, reported a multicenter team of investigators. Computer-aided detection resulted in 20% more biopsies, many of them false-positives.

HONG KONG -- If cadaver livers for transplant are scarce, a rapid but thorough four-step workup of living donors -- completed before the altruistic spirit fades -- can enhance the rate of usable volunteer organs for surgery.

PHILADELPHIA -- A new skirmish has broken out over whether a medically mandated annual mammogram for low-risk women younger than 50 is a good idea, rekindling a quiescent issue that once embroiled breast-cancer screening.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- A child who does not respond to his or her name by age one could have an autism spectrum disorder, although this sign of recognition deficiency may be a red herring.

abstract: Hemoptysis has many causes, including bronchiectasis, lung cancer, and bronchitis. The initial goals of the history and physical examination are to differentiate hemoptysis from epistaxis and hematemesis and then to establish its severity. A variety of signs and symptoms may suggest the underlying cause. For example, hematuria suggests vasculitis or an immunologically mediated disease, such as Wegener granulomatosis or systemic lupus erythematosus. The workup includes chest radiography and measurement of hemoglobin and hematocrit levels, platelet count, international normalized ratio, activated partial thromboplastin time, and creatinine level. Chest CT scanning often identifies sources of bleeding that are not apparent on radiographs and sometimes can be used in conjunction with bronchoscopy. Patients with massive hemoptysis should be hospitalized for rapid evaluation and intervention; treatment may include interventional bronchoscopy, angiography, or embolization. (J Respir Dis. 2007;28(4):139-148)

In the case described here, hypoxemic respiratory failure occurred secondary to a right-sided pleural effusion associated with an obstructive uropathy. The patient, a 75-year-old man with a history of benign prostatic hypertrophy (BPH), presented with a gradual onset of shortness of breath, tachypnea, and oliguria. Renal ultrasonography and CT scanning revealed bilateral hydronephrosis. A right thoracentesis yielded fluid with characteristics consistent with urinothorax. The patient was given medication for BPH, taught how to do self-straight catheterization, and scheduled for an outpatient cystoscopy. At follow-up, his chest radiograph showed no effusions.

Oral Contraceptives: Five Vignettes Illustrate Dx and Rx Problems-- and Solutions

A 67-year-old man presented with right lower quadrant pain of 3 days' duration. CT findings suggested acute appendicitis with ascites and omental caking. Laparotomy revealed a ruptured appendix, which was removed, and numerous gelatinous deposits throughout the abdomen.

Although the incidence of bladder cancer innon-smoking asymptomatic women underage 40 years who have not been exposed toenvironmental/occupational carcinogens isextremely low, current standards still recommendcystoscopy.

Colonoscopy revealed diverticulosis in a 47-year-old man who had presented with rectal bleeding. A polypoid lesion was noted in the sigmoid colon.

A 57-year-old woman presents with swelling of the hands that began several weeks earlier and is now worsening. She denies joint pain, and she has no history of trauma or significant vascular disease. She has had pneumonia several times; each episode was successfully treated with antibiotics. She has smoked 2 packs of cigarettes a day for the past 20 years

The goal of treatment in acute coronary syndromes is the restoration and maintenance of myocardial perfusion. To this end, numerous pharmacological agents are available, as well as percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).

Urge incontinence, also referred to as overactive bladder (OAB)-wet, is the involuntary loss of urine accompanied by or immediately preceded by a sensation of urgency. It has a reported overall prevalence of 16.0% in men and 16.9% in women. Currently, the mainstay of management for symptomatic urgency and OAB-wet is medical therapy.

During week 28 of her pregnancy, a 28-year-old woman presented with a gingival hemangioma between the right upper central incisor and canine tooth. The asymptomatic lesion arose during the thirteenth week of her pregnancy; it gradually enlarged and bled occasionally with minor trauma.

Drance hemorrhages are disc hemorrhages that lie within the peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer.

For severe constipation in hospitalized patients who do not have bowel obstruction or stool impaction and who have not responded to routine oral laxatives, suppositories, or sodium phosphate enemas, try a lactulose enema.

It can be difficult to tell whether a vaguely palpable abdominal mass is intra-abdominal, in the abdominal wall, or extra-abdominal. To differentiate among these 3 types, ask the patient, while lying on the examination table, to lift either the head or legs; then palpate the mass again.