JAMA : the journal of the American Medical Association
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
Collaborative care for chronic pain in primary care: a cluster randomized trial.
Chronic pain is common in primary care patients and is associated with distress, disability, and increased health care use. ⋯ The assistance with pain treatment collaborative intervention resulted in modest but statistically significant improvement in a variety of outcome measures.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
Chlorhexidine-impregnated sponges and less frequent dressing changes for prevention of catheter-related infections in critically ill adults: a randomized controlled trial.
Use of a chlorhexidine gluconate-impregnated sponge (CHGIS) in intravascular catheter dressings may reduce catheter-related infections (CRIs). Changing catheter dressings every 3 days may be more frequent than necessary. ⋯ Use of CHGIS dressings with intravascular catheters in the intensive care unit reduced risk of infection even when background infection rates were low. Reducing the frequency of changing unsoiled adherent dressings from every 3 days to every 7 days modestly reduces the total number of dressing changes and appears safe.
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Mutations in X-linked lysosome-associated membrane protein gene (LAMP2; Danon disease) produce a cardiomyopathy in young patients that clinically mimics severe hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) due to sarcomere protein mutations. However, the natural history and phenotypic expression of this newly recognized disease is incompletely resolved and its identification may have important clinical implications. ⋯ LAMP2 cardiomyopathy is a profound disease process characterized by progressive clinical deterioration leading rapidly to cardiac death in young patients (<25 years). These observations underscore the importance of timely molecular diagnosis for predicting prognosis and early consideration of heart transplantation.
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Mr R is an African American man with a long history of poorly controlled hypertension and difficulties with adherence to recommended treatments. Despite serious complications such as hypertensive emergency requiring hospitalization and awareness of the seriousness of his illness, Mr R says at times he has ignored his high blood pressure and his physicians' recommendations. ⋯ Like many patients, Mr R faces several barriers to effective blood pressure control: societal, health system, individual, and interactions with health professionals. Moreover, evidence indicates that patients' cognitive, affective, and attitudinal factors and the patient-physician relationship play critical roles in improving outcomes and reducing racial disparities in hypertension control.