The Journal of urology
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The Journal of urology · Oct 2008
Profile of the veterans affairs urologist: results from a national survey.
The Veterans Health Administration has multiple employment arrangements for its physician staff. Urological care to veterans is provided by urologists who work in the Veterans Affairs system under 1 arrangement, including full-time Veterans Affairs, contract Veterans Affairs, part-time Veterans Affairs and fee for service. We assessed the similarities and differences of these employment arrangements, while considering factors such as race, gender, professional activities and salary. ⋯ The practice environment of the contract urologist in the Veterans Affairs system is comparable in many ways to that of the full-time employee. However, the tendency of many contract urologists to be employed in a separate practice setting has led to higher incomes and longer work hours.
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The Journal of urology · Oct 2008
Comparative StudyMental health diagnoses in patients with interstitial cystitis/painful bladder syndrome and chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome: a case/control study.
We compared the rate of mental health disorders in male and female patients with pelvic pain and control subjects. ⋯ Depression and panic disorder are significantly more common in men and women with pelvic pain conditions than in controls. Medication use data suggest that anxiety and depression may be more difficult to treat in patients with urological pain syndromes than in controls.
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The Journal of urology · Oct 2008
Sites of pain from interstitial cystitis/painful bladder syndrome.
In interstitial cystitis/painful bladder syndrome multiple pain sites are common. We hypothesized that a careful and systematic description of the pain of interstitial cystitis/painful bladder syndrome might provide clues to its pathogenesis. ⋯ Suprapubic prominence and changes in the voiding cycle are features consistent with but do not prove that the bladder is the pain generator in interstitial cystitis/painful bladder syndrome and the pain sites described by patients are referred from it. The patients with interstitial cystitis/painful bladder syndrome who might have been diagnosed with vulvodynia or urethral syndrome did not differ from others in important patient variables.
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This article introduces practicing urologists to the critical appraisal of systematic reviews and meta-analyses to guide their evidence-based clinical practice. ⋯ Valid systematic reviews of high quality studies can increase the confidence with which urologists and patients make evidence-based decisions. Thus, urologists need to recognize the inherent limitations, understand the results and apply them judiciously to patient care.