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_\\__\ \\ \__’s MEDPULSE(TM) – Weekly Newsletter
The Online Resource for Better Patient Care
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http://www.medscape.com/
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MedPulse(TM) is a weekly e-mail newsletter informing registered
members of new content posted on Medscape during the preceding
week. To easily access the articles highlighted below, point
your browser to:
http://www.medscape.com/home/MedPulse.html
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CONTENTS
o Tidbits:
– 65,567 members as of 30 June, 1996
– 68,255 articles read this week
– 2,670 new members this week
o Announcement
– Educational Program on HIV Management for Pharmacists
o Feature Articles
– Empirical Treatment of Subcutaneous Phaeohyphomycosis
With Itraconazole
– Update on Hormone Replacement: Sorting Out the Options
for Preventing Coronary Artery Disease and Osteoporosis
– Autologous Stem Cell Transplants Taking Breast and
Ovarian Cancer Chemotherapy to New Heights
o Articles and Columns
– Phasic Serum Lipid Excursions Occur During Cyclical
Oral Conjugated Estrogens But Not During Transdermal
Estradiol Sequentially Combined with Oral
Medroxyprogesterone Acetate
– AIDS Epidemiology: An Update for the Pharmacy Manager
– Medical Students Embrace the World Wide Web)
– Improving Patient Adherence with Antibiotic Therapy
Through Patient Counseling
– No Respect!
– Potential Risk for Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever: The
Isolation of Serotype Dengue-3 in Mexico
o Exam Room
– Comparing Diagnostic Tools for Prostatic Abscess
– Common Bacterial Cause of Pyomyositis
o User Support
– Logging on to Medscape
– What if you forget your password?
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ANNOUNCEMENT
o Educational Program on HIV Management for Pharmacists
————————————————————-
Pharmacists interested in learning more about HIV management
can register on Medscape to attend a symposium on "New
Perspectives in HIV Management." This free, CPhE program —
presented by a nationally-recognized faculty — is being held
in major cities in the US from August through November this year.
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FEATURE ARTICLES ADDED THIS WEEK
Medscape’s Feature Articles include links to related clinical
information on the World Wide Web and encapsulated Medline
reviews.
o Empirical Treatment of Subcutaneous Phaeohyphomycosis With
Itraconazole
————————————————————-
Phaeohyphomycosis can be difficult to diagnose and treat. The
authors report a case in which histology and pathogen-specific
stains identified the cause.
o Update on Hormone Replacement: Sorting Out the Options for
Preventing Coronary Artery Disease and Osteoporosis
————————————————————-
Using hormone replacement therapy to hold coronary artery
disease and osteoporosis at bay in the menopausal woman has
become standard medical practice, but the more we’ve learned,
the more confusing the array of options has become. A specialist
in menopause sorts out the essentials in physically assessing
menopause and choosing from among the available therapies.
o Autologous Stem Cell Transplants Taking Breast and Ovarian
Cancer Chemotherapy to New Heights
————————————————————-
Autologous stem cell transplants offer a way to exponentially
raise the chemotherapy dose high enough to kill cancer cells
without obliterating bone marrow function and killing the
patient in the process. An oncologist with a major Canadian
stem cell transplant program reports on the road we¹ve traveled
and what¹s on the research horizon for this innovation in breast
and ovarian cancer treatment.
==========================
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ARTICLES AND COLUMNS ADDED THIS WEEK
o Phasic Serum Lipid Excursions Occur During Cyclical Oral
Conjugated Estrogens But Not During Transdermal Estradiol
Sequentially Combined with Oral Medroxyprogesterone Acetate
————————————————————-
Critical comments on a study to evaluate the serum lipid
fractions at the beginning and at the end of each phase of a
sequentially combined replacement cycle comparing the oral and
the transdermal routes of estrogen administration.
o AIDS Epidemiology: An Update for the Pharmacy Manager
————————————————————-
The epidemiology of AIDS is changing, particularly in the US.
The incidence of clinical AIDS is rising more rapidly in people
who are less than 33 years of age than among those who are older;
heterosexual transmission of HIV is becoming more commonplace.
New pharmacologic strategies are resulting in improved survival,
as seen in the use of rifabutin to prevent MAC and new
antiretroviral agents to slow viral replication. However, the
costs of some interventions to extend survival have increased
dramatically in recent years.
o Medical Students Embrace the World Wide Web
————————————————————-
There is much information on the Internet specifically directed
at medical students. Here are 11 sites that provide valuable
resources for medical students and others beginning medical
practice.
o Improving Patient Adherence with Antibiotic Therapy Through
Patient Counseling
————————————————————-
Many factors that impair medication adherence in general, and
antibiotic adherence in particular, have been identified. A
caring relationship between the caregiver and the patient is
the foundation to improving adherance, and the managed care
pharmacist is in a unique position to improve adherence to
antibiotic therapy. Proven communication techniques can enable
the pharmacist to counsel effectively, improve medication
adherence, and enhance the patient’s quality of life.
o No Respect!
————————————————————-
The medical profession seems to be suffering from a lack of
respect, especially when dealing with insurance companies,
which sometimes make decisions about patient care that are not
based on the clinician’s input or expertise.
o Potential Risk for Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever: The Isolation of
Serotype Dengue-3 in Mexico
————————————————————-
The Americas have a long history of dengue epidemics, which
present public health problems because of the potential
emergence of dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF). Efforts to control
Aedes aegypti–the only demonstrated vector of dengue virus in
the Americas–were effectively deployed in the 1950s and 1960s
when the Pan American Health Organization launched a continental
eradication campaign against yellow fever. Aedes aegypti was
eliminated in Mexico in 1963. However, subsequent social and
economic changes in the Americas have permitted the rapid
reinfestation of the vector throughout the region.
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EXAM ROOM
The "Exam Room" is a collection of Medscape’s self
assessment features, such as Today’s Question and PicTours.
o Today’s Question — Questions posted this week
————————————————————-
? Which is more conclusive in the diagnosis of prostatic abscess:
transrectal ultrasound (TRUS), or cross-sectional imaging with
MRI or CT?
? What is the most common bacterial cause of pyomyositis in
temperate climates?
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USER SUPPORT
o Logging on to Medscape
————————————————————-
Access to Medscape is free, but a one-time member registration
is required. When you select material to read, you will be asked
to sign in with your personal username and password. Once you
have signed in during your visit to Medscape, you will be able
to access all material without having to sign in again. Each
subsequent visit to Medscape, however, will require a sign in
to read the articles, but there will be no need to access the
registration page since you will already be a Medscape member.
o What if you forget your password?
————————————————————-
If you forget your password, send e-mail to:
"webmas…@medscape.com" noting your original ID (if you can
remember it) and he’ll reply with your password.