The American journal of medicine
-
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
The long-term effectiveness of a lifestyle intervention in severely obese individuals.
Severe obesity (body mass index [BMI] ≥40 kg/m(2)) is a serious public health concern. Although bariatric surgery is an efficacious treatment approach, it is limited in reach; thus, nonsurgical treatment alternatives are needed. We examined the 4-year effects of an intensive lifestyle intervention on body weight and cardiovascular disease risk factors among severely obese, compared with overweight (25 ≤BMI <30), class I (30 ≤BMI <35), and class II obese (35 ≤BMI <40) participants. ⋯ Lifestyle interventions can result in important long-term weight losses and improvements in cardiovascular disease risk factors among a significant proportion of severely obese individuals.
-
Opioids are an established option in the analgesic armamentarium for managing moderate-to-severe chronic pain. Long-term opioid use, however, is associated with several potential adverse effects and toxicities, such as peripheral edema, immune suppression, hyperalgesia, sleep apnea, and changes in endocrine function, many of which are not fully appreciated. ⋯ Indeed, diagnosing hypogonadism as opioid-related can be challenged by other influences on endocrine function, such as pain pathophysiology, comorbidities, other drug therapies, and patient age. Management options for opioid endocrinopathy include discontinuing opioid therapy, reducing the opioid dose, switching to a different opioid, and hormone supplementation.
-
Electrolyte disorders have been studied mainly in hospitalized patients, whereas data in the general population are limited. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence and risk factors of common electrolyte disorders in older subjects recruited from the general population. ⋯ Electrolyte disorders are common among older community subjects and mainly associated with diabetes mellitus and diuretics. Subjects who used both thiazides and benzodiazepines had a more severe degree of hyponatremia. Because even mild electrolyte disorders were associated with mortality, monitoring of electrolytes and discontinuation of offending drugs may improve outcomes.
-
Review
Untying the knot of thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura and atypical hemolytic uremic syndrome.
Patients presenting with microangiopathic hemolysis and thrombocytopenia are often given the diagnosis of thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura and treated with plasma exchange until the acute episode is over. Recent findings have shown that acquired thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura is a chronic autoimmune disease with inhibitory antibodies of a disintegrin and metalloprotease with thrombospondin repeat, member 13 and are at risk of relapses that may be preventable. Furthermore, many of the patients given the diagnosis of thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura really have atypical hemolytic uremic syndrome due to defective complement regulation that can be more effectively treated to prevent death and end-stage renal failure with eculizumab, a humanized monoclonal antibody of complement C5. These advances indicate that an accurate differential diagnosis of microangiopathic hemolysis is essential for optimal patient management.
-
In the United States, the prevalence and burden of chronic pain is large and still growing. Older adults (aged ≥65 years) make up a large portion of the population with chronic pain, and their presentation, diagnosis, and treatment tends to be more complicated because of age-related physiological changes and comorbidities. Guidelines on treating patients with severe back pain recommend opioids as an option for those who do not find adequate pain relief from acetaminophen or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). ⋯ Opioids may also be an appropriate option for patients with neuropathic pain who have not achieved adequate analgesia from maximum doses of first- and second-line antineuropathic agents. Still, opioids are not appropriate for all patients; rather, a differential diagnosis, consideration of other comorbidities, and the potential for opioid-related adverse effects and substance abuse are required to confirm the value of opioid treatment for each individual. For nonresponders to opioid therapy, opioid rotation should be considered before discontinuation is pursued.