Annals of internal medicine
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
Extended valganciclovir prophylaxis to prevent cytomegalovirus after lung transplantation: a randomized, controlled trial.
Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is the most prevalent opportunistic infection after lung transplantation. Current strategies do not prevent CMV in most at-risk patients. ⋯ In adult lung transplant recipients who have received 3 months of valganciclovir, extending prophylaxis by an additional 9 months significantly reduces CMV infection, disease, and disease severity without increased ganciclovir resistance or toxicity. A beneficial effect with regard to prevention of CMV disease seems to extend at least through 18 months after transplantation.
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The basic purpose of medical schools is to educate physicians to care for the national population. Fulfilling this goal requires an adequate number of primary care physicians, adequate distribution of physicians to underserved areas, and a sufficient number of minority physicians in the workforce. ⋯ Medical schools vary substantially in their contribution to the social mission of medical education. School rankings based on the social mission score differ from those that use research funding and subjective assessments of school reputation. These findings suggest that initiatives at the medical school level could increase the proportion of physicians who practice primary care, work in underserved areas, and are underrepresented minorities.
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Haiti's earthquake caused untold numbers of new disabilities across the age spectrum, from infants and children to elderly individuals. Amputations, spinal cord and brain injuries, complex multiple fractures, and other massive trauma will leave residual impairments, precipitating pressing needs at both the individual and societal levels. Short-term priorities include clinical stabilization, wound healing, and surgical revisions of suboptimal repairs. ⋯ While international organizations are assisting to fill these gaps, ultimately rehabilitation programs and assistive technologies will need to fit the specific demands of Haiti's culture and rugged natural physical environment. As Haiti rebuilds its public and private spaces, ensuring accessibility to persons with disabilities will be critical. Ultimately, one positive legacy of Haiti's earthquake could be the emergence of social attitudes, public policies, and physical environments that more fully accommodate disability across the life span.
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The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) of 2010 brings both promise and peril for primary care. This Act has the potential to reestablish primary care as the foundation of U. ⋯ Nevertheless, the peril is that the PPACA initiatives may not alter the current trend toward an increasingly specialized physician workforce. To realize the potential for the PPACA to achieve a more equitable balance between generalist and specialist physicians, all primary care advocates must actively engage in the long rebuilding process.