The American journal of medicine
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We aimed to evaluate the role of caffeinated beverage intake as a potential trigger of migraine headaches on that day or on the following day. ⋯ There was a nonlinear association between caffeinated beverage intake and the odds of migraine headache occurrence on that day. This suggests that high levels of caffeinated beverage intake may be a trigger of migraine headaches on that day.
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Left ventricular thrombus formation is a complication of acute myocardial infarction. However, the incidence and risk of systemic thromboembolism in the era of primary angioplasty for ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) is unclear. This study aims to determine clinical outcomes in patients with STEMI treated with primary angioplasty and left ventricular thrombus at 1 year. ⋯ In the contemporary era of mechanical reperfusion for STEMI, echocardiographic detection of left ventricular thrombus was observed in <3% patients. The presence of left ventricular thrombus was not associated with an increased risk of systemic thromboembolism.
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Review
Update in Outpatient General Internal Medicine: Practice-Changing Evidence Published in 2018.
The expansive scope of general internal medicine makes it difficult to identify practice-changing medical literature. Clinical updates can be facilitated by synthesizing relevant articles and implications for practice. Six internal medicine physicians reviewed the titles and abstracts in the 7 general internal medicine clinical outpatient journals with the highest impact factor and relevance to the internal medicine outpatient physician: New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM), Lancet, Annals of Internal Medicine, Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), JAMA-Internal Medicine, British Medical Journal (BMJ), and Public Library of Science (PLoS) Medicine. ⋯ Article qualities and importance were debated until consensus was reached. Clusters of articles pertinent to the same topic were considered together. In total, 7 practice-changing articles were included.
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Thirty-two percent of US health care spending goes to hospital care, and 20% goes to physicians' charges. The cost of hospital care in the United States is 2-3 times greater than in most similar countries. A large part of the high cost is due to a very large administrative overhead. ⋯ As physicians are increasingly employed by hospitals rather than independent, costs go up with no added benefit to patients. The United States has too many specialists and too few primary care physicians. Practice guidelines are slanted to favor expensive treatments, often with little solid evidence behind the recommendations.
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The impact of thrombocytopenia on revascularization and outcomes in patients presenting with acute myocardial infarction remains poorly understood. We sought to evaluate associations between thrombocytopenia, in-hospital management, bleeding, and cardiovascular outcomes in patients hospitalized for acute myocardial infarction in the United States. ⋯ Patients with thrombocytopenia in the setting of acute myocardial infarction had increased odds of bleeding, cardiovascular outcomes, and mortality compared with patients without thrombocytopenia. Future investigations to mitigate the poor prognosis of patients with acute myocardial infarction and thrombocytopenia are warranted.