Table of Contents

May 7, 2002; 136 (9)

Articles

  • Rates of adult immunization and cancer screening are most likely to improve when a health care organization supports performance of these activities through organizational changes in staffing and clinical procedures. Involving patients in self-management through patient financial incentives and reminders is also likely to positively affect performance.

  • Public desire for a comprehensive annual physical examination is high across the United States and is sensitive to financial charges.

  • A substantial proportion of adults in the United States do not have antibody levels that are protective against diphtheria and tetanus. Although the recommended vaccine is a combination of tetanus and diphtheria, only 63% of adults in this study with protective antibody to tetanus also had protective antibody to diphtheria.

Brief Communications

  • In some patients in whom bone marrow transplantation has cured thalassemia, cirrhosis may be reversible after iron removal treatment.

Academia and Clinic

  • Differences in beliefs, values, and traditional health care practices are of particular relevance at the end of life. Physicians need to be sensitive to cultural differences and to develop the skills necessary to work with patients from diverse backgrounds.

Review

  • Postmenopausal estrogen replacement is associated with an increased risk for venous thromboembolism, and this risk may be highest in the first year of use.

Perspectives

  • Echocardiography is useful for identifying patients with pulmonary embolism who may have a poor prognosis. Further research will clarify and more precisely define the utility and limitations of echocardiography in the management of pulmonary embolism.

Editorial

  • In this issue, Oboler and colleagues report that many Americans believe in the necessity of annual physical examinations. In addition, Stone and associates show that planned visits for prevention were potent components of interventions that increased the use of preventive services. Annual examinations provide the opportunity to plug cracks in the system and assure that patients are getting indicated preventive care.

On Being a Doctor

  • 8:50 a.m.: Our pregnant chief resident says, “Did you see the World Trade Center is smoking?“

Letters

Medical Writings: Book Notes

Ad Libitum

Book Listings

Medical Notices

Summaries for Patients