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Hypomagnesemia and Hypophosphatemia: 5 Pearls Segment

Hypomagnesemia and hypophosphatemia, often overlooked, are prevalent electrolyte disorders, affecting around 5-10% of hospitalized patients. Magnesium acts as a vital cofactor for multiple enzymes and helps regulate calcium and potassium levels, while phosphate is integral to various metabolic and signaling cellular processes. Depletion of these elements correlates with multiple symptoms and adverse outcomes. The rapid identification, diagnosis, and management from internists are crucial for optimal results across different medical settings.

Hypokalemia & Potassium Repletion: 5 Pearls Segment

Hypokalemia is one of the most frequent and significant electrolyte disorders. As the main ion that determines the electrochemical gradient of cells, potassium plays a central role in almost all cellular processes.

Signs of Human Trafficking and Response: A Physician's Guide | ACP

Human trafficking is a widespread issue so physicians need to know signs of human trafficking and treatment. Learn about recognizing and responding to survivors with this course.

How Would You Treat Tricuspid Valve Infective Endocarditis in a Patient Who Uses Injection Drugs? Grand Rounds Discussion From Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center

Infective endocarditis is a common and morbid condition involving prolonged hospital stays, significant disability, and a high mortality rate. The current crises of injection drug use and opioid use disorder have contributed to high rates of infective endocarditis in the United States. Endocarditis in patients who inject drugs involves additional management complexity for multiple reasons. Several infective endocarditis management guidelines exist, including from the American Heart Association and the European Society of Cardiology.

How Would You Treat This Inpatient With Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus? Grand Rounds Discussion From Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center

Management of hospitalized patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) presents unique challenges. Two recently released guidelines, one from the American Diabetes Association and the other from the Endocrine Society, provide useful recommendations and evidence review to inform the care of medical inpatients with T2DM. These guidelines mostly agree, although there are slight differences in their recommendations.

How Would You Prevent Subsequent Strokes in This Patient? Grand Rounds Discussion From Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center

Stroke is a major cause of morbidity, mortality, and disability. The American Heart Association/American Stroke Association recently published updated guidelines on secondary stroke prevention. In these rounds, 2 vascular neurologists use the case of Mr.

How Would You Manage This Patient With Type 2 Diabetes and Chronic Kidney Disease? Grand Rounds Discussion From Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center

Nearly 15% of U.S. adults have diabetes; type 2 diabetes (T2D) accounts for more than 90% of cases. Approximately one third of all patients with diabetes will develop chronic kidney disease (CKD). All patients with T2D should be screened annually for CKD with both a urine albumin–creatinine ratio and an estimated glomerular filtration rate.

How Would You Manage This Patient With Recurrent Diverticulitis?

Acute diverticulitis, which refers to inflammation or infection, or both, of a colonic diverticulum, is a common medical condition that may occur repeatedly in some persons. It most often manifests with left-sided abdominal pain, which may be associated with low-grade fever and other gastrointestinal symptoms. Complications may include abscess, fistula formation, perforation, and bowel obstruction.

How Would You Manage This Patient With Recent-Onset Atrial Fibrillation? Grand Rounds Discussion From Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common arrhythmia. Risk factors for AF include obstructive sleep apnea, physical inactivity, obesity, cigarette use, and alcohol misuse. Atrial fibrillation substantially increases the risk for stroke and is associated with higher rates of mortality than for individuals without AF. Strategies to prevent these risk factors and to optimize those that already exist reduce the risk for subsequent AF. Physicians play an important role in proposing strategies to reduce the risk for AF among patients.

How Would You Manage This Patient With Obesity? Grand Rounds Discussion From Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center

In 2022, 1 in 8 people in the world were living with obesity, and lifestyle interventions that include diet, exercise, and behavioral modification have been the foundation for management of obesity. Recently, pharmacologic therapies have been developed for management of obesity, the newest of these being glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonists.

These Annals of Internal Medicine results only contain recent articles.

Tea Consumption and All-Cause and Cause-Specific Mortality in the UK Biobank: A Prospective Cohort Study: Annals of Internal Medicine: Vol 175, No 9

Background: Tea is frequently consumed worldwide, but the association of tea drinking with mortality risk remains inconclusive in populations where black tea is the main type consumed. Objective: To evaluate the associations of tea consumption with all-cause and cause-specific mortality and potential effect modification by genetic variation in caffeine metabolism. Design: Prospective cohort study. Setting: The UK Biobank. Participants: 498 043 men and women aged 40 to 69 years who completed the baseline touchscreen questionnaire from 2006 to 2010. Measurements: Self-reported tea intake and mortality from all causes and leading causes of death, including cancer, all cardiovascular disease (CVD), ischemic heart disease, stroke, and respiratory disease. Results: During a median follow-up of 11.2 years, higher tea intake was modestly associated with lower all-cause mortality risk among those who drank 2 or more cups per day. Relative to no tea drinking, the hazard ratios (95% CIs) for participants drinking 1 or fewer, 2 to 3, 4 to 5, 6 to 7, 8 to 9, and 10 or more cups per day were 0.95 (95% CI, 0.91 to 1.00), 0.87 (CI, 0.84 to 0.91), 0.88 (CI, 0.84 to 0.91), 0.88 (CI, 0.84 to 0.92), 0.91 (CI, 0.86 to 0.97), and 0.89 (CI, 0.84 to 0.95), respectively. The association was most consistent for those who drank tea without added sugar or added milk to their tea. Inverse associations were seen for mortality from all CVD, ischemic heart disease, and stroke. Findings were similar regardless of whether participants also drank coffee or not or of genetic score for caffeine metabolism. Limitation: Potentially important aspects of tea intake (for example, portion size and tea strength) were not assessed. Conclusion: Higher tea intake was associated with lower mortality risk among those drinking 2 or more cups per day, regardless of genetic variation in caffeine metabolism. These findings suggest that tea, even at higher levels of intake, can be part of a healthy diet. Primary Funding Source: National Cancer Institute Intramural Research Program.

How Would You Treat This Patient With Acute and Chronic Pain From Sickle Cell Disease?: Grand Rounds Discussion From Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center: Annals of Internal Medicine: Vol 175, No 4

Sickle cell disease is prevalent in large numbers of patients in the United States and has a significant global impact. Its complications span numerous organs and lead to reduced life expectancy. Acute and chronic sickle cell pain is a common cause of patient suffering. The American Society of Hematology published updated guidelines on management of acute and chronic pain from sickle cell disease in 2019. Several of the recommendations are conditional and leave specific decisions to the treating physician. These include conditional recommendations about the use of ketamine for acute pain and the initiation and discontinuation of long-term opioid therapy for chronic pain. Here, 2 hematologists discuss these guidelines and make contrasting recommendations for the management of acute and chronic pain for a patient with sickle cell disease.

Addressing Inequities in SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine Uptake: The Boston Medical Center Health System Experience

Academic medical centers could play an important role in increasing access to and uptake of SARS-CoV-2 vaccines, especially in Black and Latino communities that have been disproportionately affected by the pandemic. This article describes the vaccination program developed by the Boston Medical Center (BMC) health system (New England's largest safety-net health system), its affiliated community health centers (CHCs), and community partners. The program was based on a conceptual framework for community interventions and aimed to increase equitable access to vaccination in the hardest-hit communities through community-based sites in churches and community centers, mobile vaccination events, and vaccination on the BMC campus. Key strategies included a communication campaign featuring trusted messengers, a focus on health equity, established partnerships with community leaders and CHCs, and strong collaboration with local health departments and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to ensure equitable allocation of the vaccine supply. Process factors involved the use of robust analytics relying on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Social Vulnerability Index (SVI). The vaccination program administered 109 938 first doses, with 94 703 (86%) given at community sites and 2466 (2%) given at mobile sites. Mobile vaccination events were key in reaching younger people living in locations with the highest SVIs. Challenges included the need for a robust operational infrastructure and mistrust of the health system given the long history of economic disinvestment in the surrounding community. The BMC model could serve as a blueprint for other medical centers interested in implementing programs aimed at increasing vaccine uptake during a pandemic and in developing an infrastructure to address other health-related disparities.

Early Rhythm Control Therapy for Atrial Fibrillation in Low-Risk Patients: A Nationwide Propensity Score–Weighted Study: Annals of Internal Medicine: Vol 175, No 10

Background: Rhythm control is associated with lower risk for adverse cardiovascular outcomes compared with usual care among patients recently diagnosed with atrial fibrillation (AF) with a CHA2DS2-VASc score of approximately 2 or greater in EAST-AFNET 4 (Early Treatment of Atrial Fibrillation for Stroke Prevention Trial). Objective: To investigate whether the results can be generalized to patients with low stroke risk. Design: Population-based cohort study. Setting: Nationwide claims database of the Korean National Health Insurance Service. Participants: 54 216 patients with AF having early rhythm control (antiarrhythmic drugs or ablation) or rate control therapy that was initiated within 1 year of the AF diagnosis. Measurements: The effect of early rhythm control on the primary composite outcome of cardiovascular death, ischemic stroke, hospitalization for heart failure, or myocardial infarction was compared between eligible and ineligible patients for EAST-AFNET 4 (CHA2DS2-VASc score, approximately 0 to 1) using propensity overlap weighting. Results: In total, 37 557 study participants (69.3%) were eligible for the trial (median age, 70 years; median CHA2DS2-VASc score, 4), among whom early rhythm control was associated with lower risk for the primary composite outcome than rate control (hazard ratio, 0.86 [95% CI, 0.81 to 0.92]). Among the 16 659 low-risk patients (30.7%) who did not meet the inclusion criteria (median age, 54 years; median CHA2DS2-VASc score, 1), early rhythm control was consistently associated with lower risk for the primary outcome (hazard ratio, 0.81 [CI, 0.66 to 0.98]). No significant differences in safety outcomes were found between the rhythm and rate control strategies regardless of trial eligibility. Limitation: Residual confounding. Conclusion: In routine clinical practice, the beneficial association between early rhythm control and cardiovascular complications was consistent among low-risk patients regardless of trial eligibility. Primary Funding Source: The Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, Republic of Korea.