The Journal of family practice
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Review
Do carotid artery calcifications seen on radiographs predict stenosis in asymptomatic adults?
NOT VERY WELL. IN ASYMPTOMATIC PATIENTS, CAROTID ARTERY CALCIFICATION SEEN ON RADIOGRAPH HAS A POSITIVE PREDICTIVE VALUE OF 70% AND A NEGATIVE PREDICTIVE VALUE OF 75% FOR CAROTID ARTERY STENOSIS (STRENGTH OF RECOMMENDATION [SOR]: B, SYSTEMATIC REVIEW OF OBSERVATIONAL STUDIES WITH HETEROGENEOUS RESULTS AND A RETROSPECTIVE COHORT STUDY). CAROTID CALCIFICATIONS ON RADIOGRAPHS MAY BE MORE PREDICTIVE OF CAROTID STENOSIS IN PEOPLE WITH ATHEROSCLEROTIC RISK FACTORS (SOR: C, CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY). HARMS OUTWEIGH BENEFITS IN SCREENING FOR CAROTID ARTERY STENOSIS IN ASYMPTOMATIC ADULTS (SOR: B, MULTIPLE COHORT STUDIES); THEREFORE, INCIDENTAL RADIOGRAPHIC CAROTID ARTERY CALCIFICATIONS IN ASYMPTOMATIC PATIENTS SHOULD NOT PROMPT FURTHER TESTING.
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THE COMPARISONA. A 27-year-old Hispanic woman with comedonal and inflammatory acne. Erythema is prominent around the inflammatory lesions. ⋯ C. A teenaged Black girl with pomade acne. The patient used various hair care products, which obstructed the pilosebaceous units on the forehead.
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Low-dose aspirin (acetylsalicylic acid [ASA]; 75 to 100 mg/d) is widely used in the prevention of cardiovascular (CV) events based on the results of large-scale studies supporting a benefit. However, questions remain regarding the benefit-risk relationship in certain settings since long-term use of ASA is not devoid of risk. Incontrovertible evidence supports the benefits of ASA treatment, which exceed the risks, in patients who have had a previous CV event (myocardial infarction, stroke, unstable angina, or transient ischemic attack). ⋯ Recent evidence from large-scale clinical trials shows that administration of low-dose ASA is associated with a reduced risk of CV events with a corresponding small absolute increase in the risk of major bleeding (eg, gastrointestinal bleeding and hemorrhagic stroke). Although the benefit and the risk of low-dose ASA in primary prevention are numerically similar, the clinical consequences of an increased risk of bleeding and a decreased risk of a CV event may not be equivalent. If these data are applied to patients with higher levels of CV outcome risk, more patients may potentially benefit from aspirin use in primary prevention.
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At the end of the activity, participant will be able to: • Identify patients who could benefit from continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) vs fingerstick blood glucose monitoring. • List the types of information provided by CGM systems. • Interpret CGM data using the ambulatory glucose profile (AGP) to assess if the patient is achieving targets established by the International Consensus on Time in Range. • Modify the treatment plan based on CGM data to improve patient outcomes.