Clinical measurement of physical activity appears to be an independent predictor of whether or not patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) will end up being hospitalized, according to a new study conducted by researchers in Connecticut. The study also corroborates an earlier investigation that…

New results from a large retrospective study of the National Cancer Institute’s SEER database show that patients with cancer who were married at the time of diagnosis live markedly longer compared to unmarried patients. Researchers also found that married patients are more likely to be…

Family Practice rediscovered A new trend in American health care is the patient-centered medical home. The approach revolves around a team of medical and health professionals who, working together, treat an individual, led by a primary-care physician who orchestrates the whole effort. The goal is…

Three-dimensional (3D) breast screens (mammograms) could offer substantial improvements in cancer detection and reducing false positives when used in conjunction with traditional two-dimensional (2D) mammograms, according to the results of a new study published in The Lancet Oncology.

Use of the novel anticoagulant otamixaban did not reduce ischemic events compared with unfractionated heparin plus eptifibatide but increased bleeding among patients with non–ST-segment elevation acute coronary syndromes undergoing a percutaneous coronary intervention, according to a study published by JAMA.

Extended use of a common antibiotic may prolong the time between hospitalizations for patients suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), according to a post-hoc analysis of a multicenter study which compared the hospitalization rates of patients treated with a 12-month course of azithromycin to the…

A single dose of the antibiotic ceftriaxone given for antimicrobial prophylaxis prior to surgery enhanced patient pain thresholds after the procedure, according to a study published in The Journal of Pain, the peer review publication of the American Pain Society, www.americanpainsociety.org. Previous studies have shown…

For patients with stable coronary artery disease (CAD) who are not experiencing a heart attack and an abnormal stress test, treatment of their narrowed arteries by the common procedure of angioplasty may not provide additional benefits compared to drug therapy alone. This finding results from…