Patients with allergic rhinitis are genetically predisposed to producing specific IgE antibodies in response to environmental allergens, such as tree, grass, or ragweed pollen or cat, dog, or dust mite allergens. Patients must have symptoms suggestive of allergies and positive skin or serologic test results that correlate with their symptoms.
How strong is the evidence supporting the use of horse chestnut seed extract for chronic venous insufficiency?
Is methotrexate an appropriate therapy for synovial cysts associated with osteoarthritis?
Sexual dysfunction may not reverse after the drug that is causing the problem is discontinued.
A 37-year-old man presents with new-onset fever and abdominal pain of several days' duration. What does the PA film show, and what further action would you take to arrive at a diagnosis?
Rates of gonorrhea and chlamydial infection are highest among females 15 to 24 years old. Annual screening of all sexually active adolescents is warranted.
During a routine eye examination for contact lenses, a visual field defect was found in the left eye of a 27-year-old man. The patient had not noticed any vision changes.
The best place to evaluate a patient's gait is not the exam room, but the waiting room.
Patients often complain that ointments are greasy and stain clothing. Here's how to solve the problem and encourage compliance.
Break a disposable wooden cotton swab to create an instrument to test for sharp sensation.
What key question can you ask patients with chronic pain that may help lead you to a diagnosis?
A 60-year-old man presented with a pruritic rash on the chest and abdomen that had developed over a week in the summer, after a spate of yard work. The patient had multiple excoriated erythematous papules, some of which were hyperkeratotic. Joe R. Monroe, PA-C, MPAS, of Oklahoma City reports that biopsy of one of the lesions revealed epidermal hyperkeratosis and acantholysis, which confirmed the clinical diagnosis of Grover disease, or transient acantholytic dermatosis.
For 2 days, a 60-year-old man with a history of gout had excruciating pain in the left big toe. During 2 previous episodes, colchicine had relieved his symptoms. On this occasion, colchicine failed to provide relief. The patient's first metatarsophalangeal joint of the left foot was erythematous, hot, and tender. He could not bear weight on the foot. Other physical examination findings were normal.
For 20 months, a 23-year-old woman had bone pain that traveled to all of her extremities and was unrelated to physical activity. Physical findings were normal. An isolated increase in the serum calcium level was noted. Radiographs of the left and right femurs revealed diffuse diaphyseal thickening. A nuclear medicine bone scan demonstrated increased activity in the diaphyseal regions of the long bones, with a slight increase in cranial uptake.
A review of the environmental determinants of allergic rhinitis and asthma, including house dust mites, cats, dogs, and cockroaches.
Avoidance of allergens and irritants known to cause or aggravate allergic rhinitis and asthma is a key component in the management of these disorders.
BETHESDA, Md. - Inherited variations in a gene that codes for skin pigmentation can dramatically increase the risk of acquiring mutations in another gene that's linked to one form of melanoma, according to researchers here.
ST. LOUIS PARK, Minn. - Constipation can trigger physical aggression in a nursing home resident with dementia, researchers here reported.
DALLAS ? The 30-minute time frame for beginning a cesarean after the decision is made for one should be the suggestion it was intended to be and not the rule it has become, researchers here said.
SEATTLE - Blind drunk is much more than a vivid description of big-time intoxication, according to investigators here. It is also a state of visual inattention while driving that may not take much alcohol to attain.
