The Journal of the American Osteopathic Association
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J Am Osteopath Assoc · Dec 2012
ReviewPharmacology of kratom: an emerging botanical agent with stimulant, analgesic and opioid-like effects.
Kratom (Mitragyna speciosa) is a plant indigenous to Thailand and Southeast Asia. Kratom leaves produce complex stimulant and opioid-like analgesic effects. In Asia, kratom has been used to stave off fatigue and to manage pain, diarrhea, cough, and opioid withdrawal. ⋯ Although it is still legal in the United States, the US Drug Enforcement Administration has placed kratom on its "Drugs and Chemicals of Concern" list. Physicians should be aware of the availability, user habits, and health effects of kratom. Further research on the therapeutic uses, toxic effects, and abuse potential of kratom and its constituent compounds are needed.
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J Am Osteopath Assoc · Nov 2012
Bibliometric measures and National Institutes of Health funding at colleges of osteopathic medicine, 2006-2010.
During the past 20 years, colleges of osteopathic medicine (COMs) have made several advances in research that have substantially improved the osteopathic medical profession and the health of the US population. Furthering the understanding of research at COMs, particularly the factors influencing the attainment of extramural funds, is highly warranted and coincides with the missions of most COMs and national osteopathic organizations. ⋯ Greater scholarly output leads to the procurement of more NIH funds for research at COMs.
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J Am Osteopath Assoc · Nov 2012
Self-reported physical health, mental health, and comorbid diseases among women with irritable bowel syndrome, fibromyalgia, or both compared with healthy control respondents.
Physicians often encounter patients with functional pain disorders such as irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), fibromyalgia (FM), and their co-occurrence. Although these diseases are diagnosed exclusively by patients' report of symptoms, there are few comparative studies about patients' perceptions of these diseases. ⋯ The results revealed statistically significant, relatively large differences in perceptions of quality of life measures and health profiles among the respondents in the control group and the 3 clinical groups.
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Hookah smoking, at one time confined to North Africa, the eastern Mediterranean region, the Arabian peninsula, and Southeast Asia, has begun to spread throughout the world. As some practices of eastern and Arab cultures reach the United States, the number of people using hookah on an experimental or regular basis has increased. Carbon monoxide poisoning can be a common adverse effect, possibly undetected by physicians, in hookah smokers. The authors report a case of carbon monoxide poisoning secondary to smoking tobacco through a hookah.
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J Am Osteopath Assoc · Oct 2012
The role of social networking web sites in influencing residency decisions.
Social networking Web sites such as Facebook have grown rapidly in popularity. It is unknown how such sites affect the ways in which medical trainees investigate and interact with graduate medical education (GME) programs. ⋯ Our results indicate that social networking Web sites have a present and growing influence on how osteopathic medical students, interns, residents, and fellows learn about and select a GME program.