JAMA : the journal of the American Medical Association
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Recent guidelines endorse using history of menopause before age 40 years to refine atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease risk assessments among middle-aged women. Robust data on cardiovascular disease risk in this population are lacking. ⋯ Natural and surgical premature menopause (before age 40 years) were associated with a small but statistically significant increased risk for a composite of cardiovascular diseases among postmenopausal women. Further research is needed to understand the mechanisms underlying these associations.
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Chronic pancreatitis (CP) is a chronic inflammatory and fibrotic disease of the pancreas with a prevalence of 42 to 73 per 100 000 adults in the United States. ⋯ Chronic pancreatitis often results in chronic abdominal pain and is most commonly caused by excessive alcohol use, smoking, or genetic mutations. Treatment consists primarily of alcohol and smoking cessation, pain control, replacement of pancreatic insufficiency, or mechanical drainage of obstructed pancreatic ducts for some patients.