Journal of general internal medicine
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While hate crimes rose during the COVID-19 pandemic, few studies examined whether this pandemic-time racial discrimination has led to negative health consequences at the population level. ⋯ Racial discrimination may be associated with higher likelihood of distress, and cigarette smoking among racial and ethnic minorities. Addressing racial discrimination is important for mitigating negative mental and behavioral health ramifications of the pandemic.
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Inappropriate polypharmacy, prevalent among older patients, is associated with substantial harms. ⋯ EHR-based measures and nudges addressing high-risk polypharmacy were feasible to develop and implement, and warrant further testing.
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COVID-19 disrupted access to critical healthcare and resources for many, especially affecting patients at safety-net hospitals who rely on regular care for multiple complex conditions. Students realized they could support patients from the sidelines by helping navigate abrupt healthcare changes and proactively addressing needs at home. ⋯ This proactive, novel initiative identified substantial clinical and social need among patients at highest risk for poor outcomes and filled a pressing health system gap exacerbated by COVID-19. Simultaneously, interprofessional students gained applied exposure to health systems sciences. This program can serve as a model for rapid, cost-effective, high-yield outreach to promote patient health at home both during and beyond the pandemic.
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A 23-year-old previously healthy male presented to the hospital with symptoms of heart failure. He was diagnosed with pericarditis and found to have a reduced left ventricular ejection fraction of 25%. He was noted to have mediastinal lymphadenopathy. ⋯ A QuantiFERON Gold returned positive. After a thorough travel history and detailed exam, the patient was diagnosed with disseminated tuberculosis after the discovery of a cutaneous gumma that was found to have acid-fast bacilli present on biopsy with Fite's stain. 18F-FDG PET CT and cardiac MRI were pursued given that pericardial and myocardial biopsy could not be safely performed due to the patient's hemodynamics. 18F-FDG PET CT and cardiac MRI did not demonstrate any myocardial pathology responsible for the left ventricular ejection fraction. This case highlights that pulmonary involvement is not necessary for disseminated TB, Fite's stain may be used to identify M. tuberculosis, and that cardiac MRI and 18F-FDG PET CT may be useful to delineate myocardial involvement in high-risk situations.